it's christmas night, not christmas eve, but the night after the day itself. we of course had the obligatory family circle, opening presents and then finally retreating to our own spaces. there was some disappointment afoot. it's painful to see your kids disappointed. they will survive, though. one, the youngest, was overjoyed.

they tend to be very materialistic, and they tend to get everything they want anyway. so, when the time comes, i feel totally over my head in trying to conjure up something they might want or need. often i'll get them something only to find out they already had it, or they moved through that phase years ago. these days, if they want something, they start well before christmas and usually get it.

i hate going straight to the materialistic aspects of the holiday, but there you have it - to most of us, it's all about the stuff. to me, it was partly about the weather, and whether i could make it forty miles to the airport and back in subzero temps. that i did though, no problem. i survived all the transpo issues brought on by the sub-zero, high-wind, fiasco snow, bad here but even worse some places where the snow was more unrelenting.

but my late arrival last night, stocking duties, and the stress from the weather have combined to meke me too tired. so, more later...