Thanksgiving day was quite fun.We had turkey and all the trimmings, talked a lot, sang (#2 daughter played the piano, something which she does much better nowadays than she used to, in spite of my inept page-turning), went for a walk on the square and narrowly missed the turning on of the Christmas lights, looked at family photos, reminisced, played Malarkey, washed up all the dishes together, and had one last piece of pie before bed.
For the day after Thanksgiving, I have chosen a Christmas song which is a paean to materialism: “Santa Baby.” Here is a site with the words and a Midi file:
http://www.personalizedletter.com/Holidays/Christmas/index.html
Joan Javits and Phil Springer wrote this song. Eartha Kitt recorded it in 1953, and Madonna did it a few years back. It is a woman singing about what a good girl she’s been (“Think of all the fellas I haven’t kissed”) and all the things she wants Santa to give her (a car, diamonds, sables, the deed to a platinum mine… just a few little trinkets). I like this song a lot, although I prefer to interpret it as social commentary. It has a catchy tune and is a lot of fun to sing or play.
The day after Thanksgiving brings out the worst in holiday shoppers. They camp out in parking lots, push, shove, rip things out of each other’s hands, and come to blows — all in the pursuit of largely illusory bargains on things they mostly don’t need in the first place. They come home exhausted, bitter about the increasing materialism surrounding the holidays, and overwhelmed not only by all the things they bought, but also by all the things they saw, coveted, and left behind. An alternative is Buy Nothing Day, an international festival of simplicity. You can learn more about it here: http://www.buynothingday.co.uk/
Okay, I know that this is a sport for some people. And for others it is a cherished tradition they engage in with friends and family, however unappealing I may find it. If you are determined to spend “Black Friday” on safari for waffle irons and video games, at least sing “Santa Baby” in the car on the way there. Sultry voice, boop-boop-be-doop lips, and shimmying are optional, but keep the car on the road.
Needing a non-secret knitting project to work on while enjoying Thanksgiving with my family, I cast on the 338 stitches for the Fair Isle cardigan I have been thinking about for a long time. It is a January project, but I don’t think it’ll do any harm to work on the ribbing a bit. I am using a variegated yarn, something I have never done before, and so far I don’t care for the effect much. However, the first few rows of a knitting project are always the least comfortable, and of course with that many stitches, the first few rows last a long time. So I will carry on.
glad you had a great holiday…
You can just highlight the words by double clicking, Yea, I know the background makes it kinda hard to read. Maybe I’ll put “doubleclick the paragraph to read” somewhere on my mini-profile.
Also, just read your comment about Walmart on Leo’s page, that’s why In-And-Out Burgers in California is such a great fast-food place. Workers are paid more than other fast food restaurants, they finanacially support programs that help kids dealing with adult problems (such as rape, etc.), and they’re cheap. all of this lessens the profit that family makes, but they do it anyways.
I love the song “Santa Baby” mostly because it is the least “christmasy” song played during the holiday season. I absolutely despise shopping and buy gifts for people that they can buy for themselves. I have also been working on a crochet project over this break, my first scarf. I am becoming increasingly dissatisfied with the look of it and I believe I need to learn a new stitch for my next project. We’ll see. Have a wonderful weekend!