Truly, today the prizes went into the mail. My condolences to the winners.
More posting starting tomorrow. Mental health hiatus/post Christmas slump nearly over.
Oooooh, prizes!
I hate to keep luring you here in hopes of a post and then present some old dreck.
Two suggestions:
1. Subscribe in the box on the right. You will get the latest post via email when I scribble it.
2. Take a few days off and come back Tuesday.
I’m wiped out after the last six weeks. Today was kind of the end of the run. We made lunch for 150 people in Saint Paul. That whole thing in which we’re asked if we fed the hungry when we face our Lord? Yeah. Checked that box for this semester.
Pictures below show (in order) the completed meatloaf before it went into the freezer/fridge, the crew that made it all happen last night when we put them together, and the finished product today. It was really good. I’m usually a harsh critic of my own cooking, but this was gourmet level, lots of happy faces before they headed back out the cold and the shadows where they live. We did our part in some small measure. Pat & Pam do this every two weeks with some group. Angels.
My thanks to all the volunteers that helped out. My friend Ilene, Jess, Pam, Rose, Mary, Pat, Bob, Kip, and the dozen or so others who pitched in to scrub pots, serve plates, fill coffee cups, and generally acknowledge and love the people who came for lunch.
Thanks for dropping by.
Twelve big meatloaf pans (feeds 300) ready for the freezer/fridge.
Santa's helpers (L-R) Bob, Pam, Kip, Pat
Luncheon is served - green beans, butter noodles, meatloaf, and love.
(post edited due to Santa not being mentally present during most of this past month. On the other hand, that little dog has melded into our lives so quickly and thoroughly that I just assumed it was longer. Never post when exhausted.)
She's amazing. My girl, Stormy.
With 10 4 days under our belts as a new family we’re doing well. Stormy comes quickly when called, enters her kennel (little cage, house) without prompting, does not flinch when you reach for her, and spent the morning on the couch next to me.
Yup. Got up on her own and just enjoyed the pets. It was wonderful.
Light posting for today, still recovering from a month of Santa. 31 events since November 17. And some of them were all afternoon affairs. Combine that with working full time at the widget factory, experiencing the death of my beloved girl, general husband duties, and all the other stuff that comes along in this life and I’m just plain worn out. I was going to do the final post-Christmas paperwork this morning but slept in. Guess I’ll do that this weekend.
But starting next week, I get to resume normalcy and get back to work on the novel. Still seeking a new title and much editing before the final contest submission.
Hope you have a great day. Thanks for dropping by.
I was discussing Santa pricing with a friend/customer/business associate the other day and we both laughed about my process. I charge what I want when I want.
BUT THAT’S NOT FAIR. Gee, really? I had noticed it but was afraid to change my ways.
Not really. I have a simple rule on pricing: your price never goes up, and sometimes goes down as long as you are with me each year. And for one customer they can skip years and the price stays the same (my first customer that I got “on-my-own” and they hold a special spot in my heart.)
Why would I do that? It’s simple: it works. My customers are loyal, refer others to me, and will usually throw in more than my fee after a few years. And they become friends. If they skip a year, move the event way out into the woods (one did a few years ago and it was an extra hour of driving and gas so the rate went up a little bit,) or turn it from a family gathering of 12 to 75 business associates then the rate goes up. But not much.
In some cases the rate drops. Case in point is one of my corporate clients, Midtown Global Market. I love going there each year. I started with them the first year they had a Santa. Santa Dan and I split the dates and I had a great time. I get to see a bunch of children there who will never see Santa at a major mall. Those kids, inner city kids, are worthy of Santa’s love as well. It’s who Nicholas was in real life. And I get to blow a few minds by chatting with them in my very bad Spanish and my pretty good Arabic. I’d better learn some Somali for next year. Kids of all races and creeds come to see Santa. And if that love I have for them reflects on God’s glory for even a moment or two, then I’ve made my point and shown my faith. No preaching, just quiet prayer over small children in my heart.
I also get to see a lot of kids from families who have come to visit each year of their children’s lives. The value of that to me is incalculable. So this year when they trimmed me back to two dates I threw in a third for free. Yup, took a pay cut. That’s part of my “ministry” of praying over my visitors. I got a chance to see people that couldn’t come on the two dates they booked me for in the beginning. And working free on one of the busiest Saturdays of the Santa season was a joy.
“How can that be so special that you’d take a pay cut?” I have a card on my desk that explains it best. Inside the card is a note thanking me for my being there each year. And there are 4 pictures inside. The pictures are of twin girls from infancy to age 3+ (they came to two events this year.) And I have the honor of being “their Santa.” Money plays no part in that kind of devotion and love. They trust me with their daughters and I plan on being there for them for some years to come.
Another customer paid me in Baklava this year. It’s a friend of mine who gets me a nice gift each year for taking the time to visit their grandchildren and cousins/nieces/nephews/etc. They are a large Greek family and all of them are great cooks. I had conned them out of a small tin of the good stuff a few years ago and was optimistic to score another. As I got ready to leave the hostess handed me enough Baklava for 20 people. I was gobsmacked. It weighed a ton. Loaded with honey, philo dough, nuts, spices, and love. I’d visit them just to watch the kids grow – now they get to watch Santa grow.
The knit cap? I am a proud member of Pack 419 and they awarded me an official Cub Scout hat for their pack. Again, I watched them grow from their first year in Cub Scouts until they leave the organization. In the next year (if my calculations are correct) the first of them will be earning their Eagle Scout rank. I hope they remember Santa and send a picture of both events. I’d be so proud to put that one up on my cube wall.
And the last group are my Army friends. I’ve been priveledged to be their Santa for a number of years now. As a veteran I wanted to give back to the people who took up where I left off. And the stunning thought hit me this year for the first time – every one of the people over E-4 that came to see me is probably a combat veteran. I’m honored to be with them on that day each year that they celebrate the birth of Christ. They give so much for all of us each time they don the uniform. And the wounds are there to prove it, visible or not. A great group of men and women.
But the world never changes all that much or all that quickly. And inside each of us is that little kid who looked forward to peeking around the corner and catching Santa at his work. Hopefully you never grow past the point where the magic infects you and you can laugh and smile with your peers. I have two pictures of uniformed kids at the edges of the age range that prove it each time I look at the pictures. See if you can spot the similarity between the pictures. All of them believe in Santa Claus. And he believes in them.
Pack 419
Army "kids"
And, just fyi I have to throw in a Stormy picture – she’s doing fine.
Bribery is the quickest way to a dog's heart.
I just wanted to get a post out there to wish you all a Merry Christmas. It’s 0300 right now and I’m working on Santa stuff – last minute toys, routing, checking for fuel stops, getting the suits ready, reindeer maintenance (Edzell’s not really a reindeer, but his poor elbows are raw and needed to be treated with steroids,) and assorted paperwork that goes with the business end of things.
I will probably not be posting again until after Christmas, but I’m not sure yet. I do have mobile access from the sleigh so who knows.
I do know that for the first time in 18 years I will be able to spend Christmas with my mother. My parents moved out of state years ago and due to personal and Santa obligations I couldn’t get there for Christmas. Last night, for the first time ever, she got to see me in my full garb as Santa. I loved her comment: “You look so real.” And this from the woman who gave me birth.
I am proud to share two pictures with you that I know I will cherish for the rest of my life. As you will quickly discern I’m a bit bigger than my mom. My dad was only 4 inches taller than her. I suspect the stork got the wrong address and dropped me out of frustration with hauling my big carcass around.
I wish you all love and joy this Christmas. Be kind to each other. Let petty differences go to the side. Don’t fight. Don’t get all liquored up and badger each other. And most of all, remember who’s birthday it is and why we celebrate this day.
Mom on my knee.
Just a bit of size difference.
