Started a gray, wet morning with Prep & Landing and oatmeal and grapefruit for breakfast. This 2009 Disney special takes us behind the scenes on Christmas Eve to show us just how Santa manages to deliver all those toys. The answer - a high-tech, elite group of elves known as "Prep & Landing" go on ahead and make sure every house is sleeping, ready, and has the milk just the right temperature for the big man in red. Trouble is, Wayne, one of the the team's most trusted field elves for over 200 years was just passed over for a promotion, and he's not happy about it. Not only that, but his partner got the coveted position, and he has to train a new recruit named Lenny just out of the academy. Angry over how his Christmas Eve has gone, he slacks off during the job. When his goofing around may result in a kid being passed over, Lenny reminds him that the real reason for his job is making the kids happy.
Naughty & Nice came out two years later. This time, Wayne is competing with his younger brother Noel, a coal-mining elf, for the Elf of the Year award. The brothers and Lenny infiltrate the house of a "naughty" kid who is trying to break into Santa's computerized "naughty and nice" list. While Lenny tries to keep the list out of the kid's hands, the brothers try to outdo each other.
Someone at Disney really got into this. In addition to the two half-hour specials, there's two more shorts included on the DVD, "Mission: Secret Santa" (Wayne and Lenny have to retrieve something from Santa's office) and "Tiny's Big Adventure" (Tiny the Elf does his best to make coffee). Not to mention, the DVD is filled with spoof commercials for North Pole businesses briefly seen in the specials, "training shorts" for Prep & Landing team members, and even black & white newsreels. I can tell why these were extremely popular when they came out. Get the DVD, even if you've caught these on TV; the additional shorts are hilarious.
It was raining lightly when I headed to the laundromat. I did get a ride from my landlady Linda who lives a block away; she was heading out to run errands on the White Horse Pike anyway. The laundromat was busy when I arrived, quiet as a mouse when I left. Thankfully, I was able to get a washer and drier with no problems. My laundry basket was almost as full as it was last week; I had sheets to wash.
When I got home, I listened to one of my True Value Happy Holidays CDs while putting away the laundry and having pasta with beans and vegetables for lunch. It was 39, the one with Tony Bennett singing "Snowfall," which I figured was appropriate.
It wasn't even raining when I headed out to work, just damp and cloudy, probably in the 40s. The snow was melting and slushy. Despite the slightly improved weather, the Acme was a nut house tonight. We're supposed to be getting more snow tomorrow, between 3 and 5 inches as of right now (although after yesterday, I'm taking that information with a grain of salt). We had two people call out and were short on help, too. Thankfully, it just began slowing down as I was ready to go.
When I got in, I put on The Backyardigans as I made peanut butter and strawberry spread on cinnamon bread for a quick dinner. "The Action Elves Save Christmas Eve" is another take on elves who can kick rear and help Santa keep the gift-giving on track. "Action Elves" Uniqua, Tasha, and Pablo have to get Santa's magic sack back from goofy "Abominable Brothers" Tyrone and Austin, who took it to carry snowballs and really doesn't know what it does.
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