Winter Has Come at Last

I can’t be in denial anymore; winter is definitely here. This morning I woke up to see hoarfrost on the herb garden thinking, “Well, hope the lemon verbena makes it THIS year. Too late to worry about it now!” Last night I had to scrape ice off my windshield when I left work, and the streets had little sparkles of black ice on them as I drove home. At least the hard top is already on the Miata, so I don’t have to wonder how I will dry out the soft top enough to be able to put it on. And tomorrow? I need to put the horses’ insulated winter turn out rugs on them.  Now that the days are averaging around 40⁰ degrees with wind and rain, it’s time.

Winter is not my favorite season. Never mind that my favorite holidays come then—it’s cold! It’s wet! It’s dark! And I don’t like that! In order to get through it without going into hibernation, I have to concentrate on the things I DO like: comfort food, burning wood in the fireplace, planning special dinners for Thanksgiving and Christmas, writing cards to friends and family, not needing an excuse to spend evenings knitting, watching my favorite Christmas DVDs, making and buying gifts for friends and family. I could go on, but you get the picture. No doubt these are some of your favorite things too.

Last night I went through my holiday DVD collection again to see if there were a few more I should buy. Most of these I bought when I still worked evening shift at my job and didn’t have a recorder. I used to record videos, but then we bought a DVD player/recorder that was so complicated to set up that I gave up trying, therefore the DVDs. That way I could watch them whenever I wanted, not just when they happened to be on TV. Now I’m spoiled. I have DirecTV and can watch and record whatever whenever I want. When I finally get an Internet-enabled system, the sky will be the limit. Still, it’s good to have my own DVDs, because I can just put them on and watch without having to do a search to find out when they will air and record them. This year, I hear, the Hallmark Channel is showing Christmas shows continuously. Great, but that would be a bit overwhelming for me. Here is a list of my personal favorites, all of them classics, and all of them entertaining:

It’s a Wonderful Life

Elf (Will Ferrel IS an elf!)

Miracle on 34^th Street (the original one)

Christmas in Connecticut (original)

National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (Chevy Chase—that says it all.)

White Christmas

Holiday Inn (Fred Astaire’s Independence Day number is unforgettable.)

The Polar Express

Scrooge!

A Christmas Story (Remember the Bumpus hounds? I laughed myself silly the first time I watched this!)

Fred Claus

The Santa Claus (1, 2, and 3)

How the Grinch Stole Christmas (original animated version)

Prancer

The Nightmare before Christmas

King of Kings

The Greatest Story Ever Told

Scrooged (an odd take on A Christmas Carol, starring Bill Murray—very funny!)

And these animated classics (kids love these): 

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer

Santa Claus Is Coming to Town

Frosty the Snowman

Frosty Returns

A Charlie Brown Christmas

A Christmas Carol

I must confess that I’m often feeling more like Scrooge than Santa before Thanksgiving rolls around, but watching a few of the above movies will usually get me in the Christmas spirit, especially during an evening by the fire with my husband Sam, a glass or two of wine, and some knitting in my lap.

May your Holidays (and winter too) be very merry and bright!