Quick Update: I went back into my blog archives and found last year’s Christmas meme.  It’s interesting because things really don’t change all that much from year to year…

Well, Sarah had me pegged, alright.  Noting that my blog has been a little “quiet” lately, she thought that I would be a likely candidate for copying the meme she posted a few days ago.  Well, I shall not disappoint.  Break out the mulled cider (see #5), string up some white lights (see #15), and throw that jolly old fat man in his sleigh…away we go!

  1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? Mostly wrapping paper, because I like to create a beautiful and aesthetically pleasing package.  That being said, if the gift is oddly-shaped, a gift bag is a great alternative.
  2. Real tree or artificial? Artificial.  And pre-lit since last year.  I do have fond memories of the real trees of my past: the ones my dad would cut himself from the woods behind our house; and the one that Sarah, Marlene, and I had in our Troy shithole apartment – the tree we had to nail to the windows with string, because the dueling cats kept knocking it over, the same one that got so dry that it closed up like an umbrella and “ate” several of our ornaments.  Remember that one?
  3. When do you put up the tree? The weekend after Thanksgiving.
  4. When do you take the tree down? January 6.  Isn’t that a rule or something?
  5. Do you like eggnog? <gack> No.
  6. Favorite gift received as a child? Hmm.  So many.  Probably the AM/FM radio, small, chrome finish, black buttons.  I carried that thing around everywhere.  Must be where I got my love of radio…
  7. Hardest person to buy for? My father, hands down.  There’s only so much hunting gear you can buy someone.  Second place: my husband.  He’s the kind of guy who buys what he wants when he wants it, leaving you nothing to choose from for Christmas!
  8. Easiest person to buy for? My sisters.  We like the same things.  As a matter of fact, last year Leanne and I bought each other the same EXACT gift.
  9. Do you have a nativity scene? Yes, but I haven’t put it out in a while.  The thatched roof on the manger has begun to shed.
  10. Mail or email Christmas cards? Mail.  But maybe I’ll try the email thing this year.  I must say, though, I love RECEIVING cards.
  11. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? I don’t actively remember ever disliking a gift I received, but there is a favorite family story: apparently, my grandparents bought me a Close-and-Play record player when I was little (maybe 4 yrs old).  When Grandma asked me how I liked it, I said “I really hate it.”
  12. Favorite Christmas movie? A Christmas Story.  Duh.
  13. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? Yup.  Hopefully my sisters aren’t reading this…  🙂
  14. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? Besides Christmas cookies, I don’t really have any Christmas food traditions.
  15. Lights on the tree? white.lights.only.
  16. Favorite Christmas song? “Christmas Wrapping” by the Waitresses.  It’s just not Christmas without it!  My absolute least favorite: “A Wonderful Christmastime” by Paul McCartney.  I want to kill myself when I hear it.  Seriously.  Just to make it stop.
  17. Travel at Christmas or stay home? Usually no travel on Christmas Day itself, though we head down to my parents house on the weekend after.
  18. Can you name all of Santa’s reindeer? Yes.
  19. Angel on the tree top or a star? Big obnoxious star with white lights.
  20. Open presents Christmas Eve or morning? Both, because Bob likes to open gifts on Christmas Eve, and I like to save them for Christmas morning.
  21. Most annoying thing about this time of the year? Getting accosted by charities when shopping.  I will drop some money into the Salvation Army kettles, because they don’t chase you down as you enter/leave the store.  I have been known to exit the store from a different entrance, much further away from my car, after telling a girl soliciting for military families (I think) that I’d give her some money on my way out.  Thank God Al Gore invented the internet, so I don’t have to go the mall anymore.
  22. Favorite ornament theme or color? Nope.  Which for me is surprising.  I just like to hang up all the ornaments that I’ve had since Nursery school.  I seriously have one for every year I’ve been alive.  Thanks, Mom!  And Mom just bought me a new 2008 one from Disney World!
  23. What do you want for Christmas this year? I don’t know.  I truly have everything I need, and just about everything I want.  The only thing lacking is some self-discipline, but I don’t think that’s available at Target (yet).
  24. Who is most likely to respond to this? Probably no one.  <sigh>
  25. Who is least likely to respond to this? Everyone I know.