Blessed Christmas from FIF

A few thoughts on the coming apocalypse:

My wife and I are briefly back in Chicago following a couple days in Cleveland with my parents for Christmas (more on that in a moment) and preceding a flight to Atlanta tomorrow to spend the rest of the month with her parents and the two cutest nieces in the world.

We went to Walgreens to gather a few supplies and price the discounted Christmas merch. For those of you who know my theory of Walgreens, you know that every time I go there, something either hilarious or obscenely scary happens. Today, was no exception. Surely, the world is ending soon.

Ways to know that you're with my family for Christmas:

1. My father always asks for (and gets) new sweatpants from someone. He opens them and inevitably says, "Oh boy! Panties! Tanks! [sic]" That's my father.
2. To welcome the Savior of the world, we have chicken tacos and play Clue. I completely blunder into winning one game. Now, there's a traditional Christmas.
3. I got to have an all-too-rare visit with an old friend, Omar. Omar still wants to do the baseball blog with me, and I want to do it too.
4. My father, on finding out that his new little ceramic house (we've been getting them for him for years) sings when he claps at it, tries to make it sing "Silent Night" by doing all sorts of things to it. He tries the clapping cadence from "In the Navy" by the Village People. It works.
5. We all wondered what happened to the dog. It wasn't quite the same without him grabbing at the wrapping paper.
6. My grandmother... God bless her soul.
7. No matter where you go, people are short of temper and in a mood to swear at each other and pick fights. Peace on Earth. Good will to men. Get the %$#@ out of my way!
8. My mother still looks forward to hearing Bob Rivers' Twisted Christmas. It's not the family time or anything else like that. It's Bob Rivers.
9. My wife knitted a Santa Claus.

On our way out of Chicago, we noted that Chicago radio station Q101 was again doing their end-of-the-year "14 years in 14 days" countdown. As we drove out, they were doing 1997. Specifically, they played this song, which I hadn't really heard in about... well, 9 years. Neither had you, and it's your new obsession song too now.

My brother will be graduating from college in the spring?

While I'm here:


On to the news:

Jesus is King... of Poland
(Jesus is Lord, but Elvis is King)

Santa catches a streaker
(He sees you when you're sleeping, but come on...)

A whole bunch of odd Christmas criminals
(Ummm...)


Today's fun fact:

What is the origin of Boxing Day? Answer: no one really knows.


And finally:

Being an Orthodox Christian, I have a bit of a different perspective on Christmas. Christmas Day in America is just the culmination of the entirety of about a month of partying that's been going on since Thanksgiving. In Orthodoxy, we fast for 40 days before Christmas so that we're prepared to celebrate for the 12 days of Christmas (thought that was just a song?) So, in that spirit, I wish you a continued happy, joyful, and blessed Christmas.

Christ is born! Glorify Him!