I didn’t mention it but – obviously – I didn’t finish my novel. In fact, I only got about 5500 words. I quite liked my plot and the characters but that was just it: all I wanted to do was write brief scenes with these people and capture feelings, fleeting moments. I could never seem to string it all together into something coherent. I had all the pearls but none of the necklace to hold them in place. Maybe next year I will have the time and/or the energy to finish something of substance.

Meanwhile, I still feel like creating those moments that hold the essence of a feeling. For instance, just a moment ago I walked out into my living room after taking a bath (and perusing the Target catalog that came in the mail). I felt so warm and cozy just standing there before the tree, even though it’s a fake one.

And I wanted to bottle up that moment and hold onto it. I love when the tree is up and I can sit on the couch under some blankets (and thereby, also some dogs) and enjoy the lights. I remember being a kid and my mom pointing out that if you squint at the tree, the lights blur and you get this cool effect. I found out that my camera has this cool light effect setting that almost replicates it.

I also set up my little village. I don’t really have room for any more but I am sure someone will buy me another building this year. Once you start, it becomes a tradition; and an easy gift idea for family members. I like to think of how happy everyone is who visits these little shops, in the imaginary world of Dept. 56. My favorite is probably the laundromat that is attached to a book store. So, you know, while you wait for your clothes to dry, you can peruse the newest biographies. Once you find one, maybe the shop also has a little bistro where they serve coffee and pasty and for that couple hours it takes to do laundry, you can enjoy the warmth inside, away from he snowy little village, and be thankful for all you have. It’s the only time I wish for snow. Otherwise, I am happy with our (relatively) cold temps here minus all the snow shoveling and frozen pipes. (Though, that has been known to happen. It happened to the bathroom pipes in CompUSA one winter.)

I am usually pretty torn emotionally around this time of year. On the one hand, I take time to count my blessings and be happy about my life and its quality. I have it pretty darn good these days. Conversely, I sometimes feel so sad about the end of the year, the constant cold, the excitement of the holiday/shopping season that will soon end and oh, then what will I do? It’s the anticipation of family and gift-giving and frenzied everything followed by the dull let-down thereafter that makes me dread the end of another year. But like all things, I must go into it bravely and knowing that I’ll come out on the other side all right.

So, what is your favorite thing about Christmas? Be it big or small, I’d love to know.