Saturday 9: Happy Holidays

 

Hi everyone, and soon, Joyeaux Noël!

Things are well underway here, and I feel we should be fairly well set for Christmas Adam, Christmas Eve, Christmas, and the days that lie after... C'mon, we can't be the only ones who call it that!

If you're joining in the fray this weekend, be sure to put up your link here so we can all visit you and make the most delightful remarks. I was all set to do so this last week (although 2-3 days late, when I finally posted mine), but my cord for my laptop bit the dust. I've been making my crankiness about it very well known, so I'm sure everyone here is relieved the replacement finally arrived last night!

Let's get these sleighbells shakin', shall we?:

SATURDAY 9: HAPPY HOLIDAYS
 From the Archives

1. As you can see, when Sam Winters was a little girl, she loved giving her annual wish list to Santa. If you could ask Santa for anything at all, right now, what would it be?

Whatever it is that is going to take away the searing pain in my knee, which I should have followed up on better six months ago. I'm going in on Monday. Hopefully they'll be helpful. Please cross your fingers and send all the good juju for me! ✨✨ Or, you know, prayers work, too?

2. Are you currently on the Naughty or Nice list? How did you get there?

(LONG, if you wish to skip this one!)

I think, at this point in the year, any one of us can say "Oh, I'm for sure on the nice list," or "Oh, I don't want to be associated with any 'nice' list! I'm on the baaaad list." Whatever the case, we all know that's BS. Truthfully, and again I think we all know it, we all have a huge helping of "nice list" attributes and a healthy portion (which doesn't mean BAD, the way I read it) of "naughty list" attributions, just in different distributions. And I'm sure for each of us, the proportions change month-to-month. But here we are, mid-to-late December, closing in on Christmas and New Year's, and I would like to say that I'm tucked inside a burlap sack with two scoops of Nice List giving me a boost in that direction. I'm always trying. Always trying to be better.

Because, listen. I'm still trying to push through my grieving and do some Paper Hugs in support of LGBTQIA++ Mama Dragons and their Baby Dragons HERE (please see Mama Dragons for more explanation and ways you can help, if you should wish to do so), and I had exceedingly briefly joined our local J***** Board at the hospital downtown, thinking they all (so far) seemed so friendly and... Nice List. And in my application, I gave my past history of running my own 501(c)(3) when our own infant son Robby died, which was entirely on a shoestring budget, so I said I was willing to help out in cases like those, or when infants were stillborn or clearly not going to make it. I told them I was prepared to take on a role to help with those patients, and their parents, if no one was already in it. (Because, as much as we like to do hide these things -- sweep them under a run and just show the pretty face of births with balloons and smiles and bouquets -- they will still happen, at every hospital, sadly.) 

Cheers,

Melanie O

she/her/hers

me@yahoo.com

ph. #

Activist. Warrior. Ally & Co-Conspirator.✌🏻🌈 🌎

But then the most oddball thing. 🔝 This is my email signature, with redactions for my personal information (and now it will be changed, given that I understand how some people are seeing it.

©ECOlunchbox

Now. Apparently that last line caused something of an uproar over at the JBoard, and the same membership VP who essentially invited me to their, quote, "very Conservative" group wanted to make sure that I wasn't a warrior for, or an activist for, or an ally to, or a co-conspirator for, anything nefarious or negative or dangerous or anything at all that would counter their (now, this is the way I read it), very Conservative lily-white ways of life.

Take offense if you want to, but y'all. I'm an activist for the environment and climate change; LGBTQ++ causes to stick up for the rights of my babies and others'; pro-Progressive movements; and, I can get down with anything anti-Trump. I didn't say anti-Conservative, I said Trump, because some of us have to see the writing on the wall. If you've never seen me in action, though, as she has? You might not be able to figure out that I'm in a wheelchair, so most of that I do from home.

I've got a LOT going on health-wise; literally (I will take whatever you want to bet up front because this literally happens Every Time) with each new provider that I see, at some point in the visit, they break out the $64,000 word: COMPLICATED. So I refer to myself as a warrior in a wheelchair, that's all. I'm not going to put my whole medical history here out front, but if you've got questions, I bet I've got answers for you.

As far as Allyship and being a Co-Conspirator? Except for being CISHET female, (which, I know, still carries quite a bit), I recognize I have more than my fair share of Privilege in this world, and it's up to those of us with more-than to help those with less-than in this world receive their fair share. That's all. No more, no less. Okay, moving on. (Oh, but, I was so offended, I left the group. Why not just ask me directly, immediately, instead of several-however-many-of-you ruminating on it for days, like I'm a danger to be questioned? If you didn't like the answers, be direct, say so, and... I guess still keep my "donation"?)

3. Are you traveling this Christmas? If so, are you going by car, plane or train?

You're out of your gourd if you think I want to travel by any of those means - throw in luxury cruise ship and maybe we'll talk - for the holidays. I'm already where I need to be. And I'm recovering from the flu shot, so I'm being a big baby already. No one needs to be locked inside anything with me!

4. Did you ship any gifts to friends and family this year? If yes, which one traveled the farthest?

Not far. Our son and his fiancé got engaged on their 2nd anniversary, so I thought we should send some Christmas cheer to him in Delaware and to his family in our state's capital, Annapolis, in the form of some Swiss Colony packages. Sidenote: we (I) went a little overboard for ourselves and definitely can't eat everything in time! Augh!

5. Did you buy yourself a gift this year?

 

I was desperate for a new laptop cord after my original died earlier this week! It finally got here yesterday - does that count?

  

Oh, and a few things I got for myself for under a buck each on Amazon Haul! Some even for just 1¢. The scarves I mostly bought to up our large-size furoshiki count, but they really do look nice!

6. Which do you prefer: candy canes or gingerbread?

You know, for years I didn't think I liked gingerbread, but then we did the kits from IKEA a couple years ago, and they were really pretty delicious. I only like the really colorful (think blue, green, red, yellow - all in one cane), fruity candy canes, but I'm blanking on the brand name we usually get - not the red and white ones.

7. Can you see any holiday decorations from where you're sitting now?

Just one small item, since I'm in our bedroom right now:

One of our Advent activities was to paint Christmas icons on the windows, and Nico painted this cute little acrylic tree on the window behind my dresser.

8. What's your favorite winter beverage?

 

I like mulled cider,

and I also like a spiked eggnog (both of which recipes I've just pinned here). Neither have I had yet this year, but Winter starts tomorrow, so I figure I've still got time!

9. Share a memory from last Christmas.

I should probably pass on this one. We were still extremely fresh from our son's death by his own hand, and we were really still going through the motions. I just honestly can't remember a whole lot of whatever festivities. On the flip side, I just found some more awareness ribbon enamel pins I didn't know we still had, so if you'd like one, let me know and I'll send one to you.

Here's hoping EVERYONE's holidays are much happier than ours were last year.

Take care

   ~xoxo