Kal-El-mas Eve 2010

Another year, another Christmas Eve family get-together. All the insanity that I’ve grown used to over the years, despite one of my aunts making an attempt to keep us all organized and to keep the chaos to a minimum. 

Aunt D: “Okay, now everyone calm down, and let’s all be patient.”

J (sister): [Laughs]

Me: “You do realize that we’re crazy every year, right?”

Aunt D: “Yes, but this time, 95% of us are adults.”

That didn’t work out as well as she expected. She didn’t make that much of an effort, either. Things started off sort of orderly with everyone in the room getting a gift from the same person, and all of us opening them one by one, and then proceeded to devolve into chaos. People started talking over each other, and weren’t waiting until everyone got gifts to open the one they’d just been handed – so, business as usual at my Grandma’s house on Christmas Eve.

 

Despite not getting what I was looking forward to (and had been led to expect), I still had a good time appreciating my family’s insanity, and being thankful for the gifts that I did get. And as far as I’m concerned, I had a pretty good haul this year: a DVD player (which I’ll be letting my mother use, so I can take my PS2 back from her), an amazingly comfortable robe (or is it ‘housecoat’ when it’s a ‘man-robe’), pajama pants, black slippers, a box of five different kinds of hot sauces from boring jalapeño to a yummy habanero (which I’ve gotten three years in a row now, and enjoy), a nice button-down shirt, and a gorgeous wolf-themed knife.

 

The wolf knife is one that I’ll have to put up a picture of, when I can get one. The aunt that bought it never asks most of us what we want for Christmas, but as far as I’m concerned, always buys some of the coolest shit. A couple years ago, it was a collection of small wolf sculptures of varying colors, with tribal designs on them. Last year, it was a wool wolf blanket.

 

This year, the knife she got has a handle made to look kind of like bone, with a metal-etched wolf set into the center of the handle, and a wolves-in-the-snow scene painted on the blade in a great-looking set of metallic paints. It’s probably the coolest thing I’ve gotten from her, ever since she found out that I really love wolves and eagles. Before that, she used to get just random cool stuff, and a package of socks. I kind of wish that she still got socks, because they’re always disappearing. And they’re not nearly as pleasant to replace when it’s your own money paying for them.

 

So, how was everyone’s Christmas this year? Or if your family hasn’t had their Christmas get-together yet, what are you expecting? Any funny things that usually happen? Or any gifts that you’re reeeeally looking forward to? Let’s hear it!

 

And lastly, merry Kal-El-mas.