Practically Fearless Living

Holiday lists begin

Christmas. Here it come. If you're like me, you're going to wake up on Dec. 26 and wonder what the heck happened to Advent.

Tomorrow's list (ooh, holiday color on the type):

• Organize all those darned holiday decor bins in the office (half of them full; half of them empty)
  
• Buy ingredients for bourbon balls.
  
• Buy ink for photo printer (I can't do Christmas cards without the family picture print, right?) 
  

Here's an idea (not for you, for me, I'm just sharin' here). Make a list each day, then see what happens at the end of each day. This list-a-day thing needs a name, but that will have to come when I'm feeling more clever.

Will the stuff get done? Will the list-guilt set in and make me work like a mad woman to accomplish something -- anything -- towards making this Christmas the one without the Dec. 26 guilt over holiday tasks left undone? Will I finally spend Boxing Day not boxing myself about the head for not baking cookies, mailing Christmas cards, reading holiday stories, finishing my decorating? I dunno.

Will this holiday listarama create more guilt? Is it crazy to try it with the looming work deadlines between now and Dec. 24?

We'll see ...

And, should anyone wander over to my blog (besides my mom) I'll include a couple of links to holiday-related links. Full disclosure, I read all sorts of blogs, from people of all ages, interests and subjects. Holiday-related will be loosely interpreted at times.

Tonight I leave you with this. See, I did get my trees decorated:

Colin McGonagle photo

Who took my year?

   

I'm just sayin' somebody took my year when I wasn't looking.

I know for a fact that the entire months of March and October simply disappeared.

It makes me wonder if I'm spending too much time with the red wine (of course not, it's good for me, right?).

Suddenly, just two days ago, it became December, and I'm in full freak-out mode.

2008 is skulking away like the child who tracked mud on my beige carpet. I see its guilty look. It knows it did me wrong by shortening itself from the prescribed 365 days to something less. I've accepted the inevitable. I'm behind schedule, and Christmas will come with me or without me.

So, what to do? Today, I've brought catalogs to work, and I'll start shopping during lunch -- Internet, you're my main holiday squeeze! But first, let the grateful game begin.

Each time I post, I'll be grateful for three things. The closer we get to Christmas, the tougher this may get, but by golly, I'm going to do it. Frankly, I'm tired of the daughter unit asking me why I hate Christmas. It's kind of embarrassing that it's become so obvious.

I invite you (anybody out there???) to join me. Put your grump sister aside and channel your inner contemplative. I promise, five minutes and you'll be back at what ever holiday task you're knee deep in, and yes, avoidance counts as a holiday task!

Today...

• I am grateful I have my health. Since I have friends battling serious, life-threatening illness, I've learned to appreciate my health this year.

• I'm grateful I have a job, and I can pay my bills. This time around the economic slow down is extra scary. College tuition is a major factor in my life.

• I'm grateful I have one make-up brush left this morning. The rest are gone, and I have no idea where they went. It's a lot faster in the morning when you can only put on those products that use the same brush. Any idea where they went, daughter unit?

(c)Michelle Yard Photo