One Week To Go...

...and all through the land...people clamored to know, "O, when will it end?!"

"The answer's contained in the statement, my dear,

"Just 7 more days 'til Christmas is here!"

So hurry and watch those shows on TV!

The halls all need decking; you must trim the tree!

But somewhere amidst all the sparkle and shine,

The tumult and chaos that's stealing your time,

Take a moment or two for calm meditation;

Remember the Reason for this celebration.

The lights and the glitter are all well and good,

The ornaments, presents, songs and the food...

But when you consider the Grand Scheme of things,

They're really just heralds for our Newborn King.

So sing and be merry with those that you love,

But never forget God's gift from above.

With shepherds and Angels we echo it still,

"Glory to God, peace on earth and good will."

As the big day approaches we've been watching so many Christmas movies non-stop, they've all started to blend together.

We actually haven't watched any Christmas movies at all, not even The Bishop's Wife, which is one of our favorites.

Instead we've been pulled into mini-series like this one:

...a glossy mystery set in 1930's London about a black jazz group that briefly becomes the toast of high society.

It's very well acted with absolutely gorgeous art deco sets and lively original jazz numbers...

...but you can feel in your gut their brief entrée to the rarefied air of the silk stockings won't last.

This is after all the 1930's, the decade of fascism, and the elite's fascination with The Louis Lester Band...

...soon turns tragic.

When it does, the upper crust's true colors are fluttering in the breeze anon for all to see...

...as they hang the scapegoat out to dry, closing ranks to protect their own.

And while the story devolves into a not so puzzling "who dunnit", yet the strong acting and well formed relational underpinnings hold your interest 'til the final credits roll.

This one is worth a look, even though there's nary a Christmas tree nor Santa Claus parade anywhere in sight.

I've made reference to all the majestic oak trees we have around our home...

...and I love having them, not just for their grand beauty but also for the welcome shade they provide in the summer.

But they hold their leaves late into the fall season, and when they do finally drop we have a TON of leaves on our yard...way too many for Karen and I to get rid of by ourselves, so a local yard service brings in their mega-blowers and after most of one day, voila!  Clean yard.

They had just finished that task earlier this week, when yet another major wind storm blew through...

...with gusts up to 79 mph.

Considering a category 1 hurricane has winds of 74 mph, that's quite a blow.

Besides blowing Buster Keaton's umbrella away, it also blew every remaining leaf in the neighborhood into our yard...

All of those areas had been clear, but here we go again.

Heavy sigh...

I checked the local listings and guess what?

Instead of Lucy, Mod Squad or Sonny & Cher (with Jack Palance and Ed McMahon), it's time for a promenade through the parting shots department...

Clarise did say (s?)he was "cute"

I don't trust the green guy under my tree

one last "fire in the sky" photo from Larry's cottage in 2021

do yourself a favor and click here:  Holiday Ride

someday...

invasion of the sanity snatchers

Try not to surrender to full on panic mode, y'all...

later, mcm fans...

Just 7 More Days...

 

...and all through the land...people clamored to know, "O, when will it end?!"

"The answer's contained in the statement, my dear,

"Just 7 more days 'til Christmas is here!"

So hurry and watch those shows on TV!

The halls all need decking, and so does the tree!

But somewhere amidst all the sparkle and shine,

The tumult and chaos that's stealing your time,

Take a moment or two for calm meditation;

Remember the Reason for this celebration.

The lights and the glitter are all well and good,

The ornaments, presents, songs and the food...

But when you consider the Grand Scheme of things,

They're really just heralds for our Newborn King.

So sing and be merry with those that you love,

But never forget God's gift from above.

With shepherds and Angels we echo it still,

"Glory to God, peace on earth and good will."

As you may have surmised, this past week we did in fact continue watching our traditional Christmas movies and shows...

...along with some of the Hallmark variety...and while those can lend new meaning to the word "obvious", they do typically deliver a consistent couple of hours of light entertainment.

With challenging problems like finding someone to play Santa in the town Santa parade or convincing 10 year old Muffy that Santa really is real - no, really!   He's real! - you're not going to achieve the 4th level of Arhat...

...but if you're not too picky you will see a couple of attractive people - who live in attractive surroundings with attractive friends, have attractive jobs and occupy attractive homes - become attracted to each other, then un-attracted to each other, then finally attracted to each other again - no, I mean for good this time - at which point they'll cue the swelling music as our attractive heroes share an attractive kiss, annnnnnnd - cut!

I dare ya...no, I ding dang diggety dong double dog dare ya...

Hey, I actually enjoy some of the Hallmark movies, especially in these depressing times...it's nice to unplug for a couple of hours and escape.

So go ahead...take a flyer and watch a few...

In the happy news department, Mandy from The Retro Revival sent me some pics of our Philco V-handle’s reattached  V-handle, to wit:

It's the most complicated door mechanism of its era, and Mandy reported it was a real treat getting it installed again.

Thankfully they did so successfully and the re-assembly process of our baby continues.

As I'm sure you know, the big yank about these refrigerators is they open from both the left and the right side depending upon which end of the V handle you press.

And while the exact same refrigerator was marketed under a different model number with a regular handle, it's the iconic V handle that makes it the holy grail for us mid century modern enthusiasts.

Très cool, oui?

Before you race out the back door to fight the crowds at the mall...

Christmas at the mall, covid style

...and complete your Christmas shopping, we should take a leisurely stroll through the parting shots department...

enjoying the fire in some flurries

Franky in his holiday attire

better to have Kitty under the tree than in it I guess

For those of you who still care about the state of our constitutional republic, I have to admit things are looking grim.

Short of a miracle, it's starting to appear that a corrupt imbecile and his communist running mate - neither of whom could draw a crowd in the subway at rush hour - will have cheated their way into the highest offices in the land.

The people - and I mean all of us on both sides of the political spectrum - will henceforth have no say in who our "elected" (wink wink nudge nudge) leaders are.

Barring implementation of martial law and the Insurrection Act, we're headed for one party rule and the end of the republic as founded 244 years ago.

It was a good run, I guess.

For those who don't really care and are just glad "they won": you lost.  We all did.  That truth will become sadly, maybe even violently evident in the days ahead.  (helpful hint: start learning Mandarin.)

For those who have faith in the God of the universe, take heart: He's still in control and will still care for His people.  He always has, no matter the fiery trials He's allowed through the centuries.

There could be some of those in our not too distant future.

But for now - it’s Christmas time...

...and we should do our best to lay aside our cares and concerns and celebrate a truly Joyeux Noel!

later, mcm fans...