Embracing the Inner Child

I didn't see Narnia here, but I did see
Alice in Wonderland.  This theatre would
make anyone feel like a kid again.

That's an awfully lofty and sort of New Agey title, isn't it?  Well, don't worry, I promise not to overwhelm you with childlike sentiment...

As regular readers will know, I am the dad of eight children - one daughter and seven boys.  You might also have gathered from various posts, that I, myself, was a rather odd child (OK, some would say an odd adult, too!).  My idea of a good movie as an eight or nine year old might have been a good documentary about JFK, or maybe something like Holiday Inn.  Of course, when I was eight or nine, to watch such a film required a visit to the local video store.  There, you chose from, perhaps, a couple of hundred titles and would likely have to rent a VCR to watch the movies.  The VCR's were large affairs, transported in even larger plastic cases lined with foam, and had to be returned in 24 or 48 hours.  How times have changed.  Now I can carry many of my favorite movies, ready to watch, in my pocket!

Back to my point...  When I was a child, there were few "kid's" movies that interested me.  Yes, I saw The Muppets Take Manhattan countless times, and was addicted to Bedknobs and Broomsticks for many years, but movies for the elementary set never really caught my attention.  You'd think that this would have lasted into my true adulthood, but I fear it's not necessarily the case.

Earlier this year, I very much wanted to see The King's Speech (I did, eventually, and it was a great movie).  Playing at the same time and in the same theatre, the rest of my family wanted to see, ugh, Gnomeo and Juliet.  Who on earth wants to sit through that?  Well, for reasons I cannot recall, I couldn't see The King's Speech and had to be dragged along to watch animated Garden gnomes make merry.  And, of course, I loved it.  I am not suggesting that it was a great movie by any intellectual or artistic standards, nor do I have less enthusiasm for my more serious films.  What I am saying is that I am so often wrong in my assumptions about what I will think is fun.  Really, it's nothing more than pretentiousness.  You see, generally, when I do go to the movies, I do end up seeing a kid's films.  And, just as generally, I usually find myself having a great time.  The company helps, of course, such outings with the kids are most often great fun, but the movies aren't bad, either.  And, even if they are awful, like Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked, which I saw today, it can still cast a little childish glow on the day.

If Disneyland could bring out the child in
Dick Nixon, imagine what it could do for you!

I hate pretentiousness.  I hate it especially because I am sometimes guilty of it.  Case in point...  Disneyland.  For years I had little interest in the place.  I'd far rather have traveled someplace more serious and historical.  However, in 2005, the opportunity to visit the "Happiest Place on Earth" presented itself and I made the trip.  Since then, I have been back five times and there isn't a time that I can think of when I wouldn't drop everything to go again.

So, what's my point?  Really, it's simple.  Having a bit of the childlike wonder that we all once had (some of us in smaller amounts than others) stay with us throughout our lives is a fabulous thing.  Not only will it keep us feeling younger, but it will allow us to enjoy a variety of experiences that we might otherwise write off as childish or beneath us.  It's also important that we not take ourselves too seriously.  If we can't see humor in ourselves and the world around us, we must be blind and, really, rather sad.  So, be dapper and dreamy, and invite that inner child out to play!

Christmas at the White House "Mamie Style"

The official portrait of Mamie Eisenhower wearing her
1953 Inaugural Gown in Mamie Pink. 
One of the loveliest of first lady portraits.

I was puzzled when I came across a new book about Christmas at the White House.  The author chose as her starting point the tenure of Jackie Kennedy.  Now, I have nothing but good things to say about Jackie, and I found the book quite interesting, but if you really want a starting point for holiday decorating at the White House, you simply must start with Mamie Eisenhower.

The first time I ever really considered the combination of two of my favorite topics, the White House and Christmas, I was probably about nine years old.  It was at that time that I discovered a book by J. B. West, Chief Usher of the White House.  Upstairs at the White House chronicled West's time as "the most powerful man in Washington, next to the President", as Jackie Kennedy called him.  It was an insider's view but, unlike many books written today, shed much light on what life in the Executive Mansion was really like without betraying any confidences.  I can't count the number of times I read this book, I absolutely loved it.

Halloween in the State Dining Room during the
Eisenhower Administration.

It was in West's book that I learned that, while Christmas had certainly been a big affair at the White House before, it was Mamie Eisenhower who let her love of the holidays overtake the mansion.  It wasn't just Christmastime, either.  Mamie put cornstalks and jack-o-lanterns throughout the rooms of the State Floor at Halloween, leprechauns and four leaf clovers at St. Patrick's Day and pink bunnies bursting out of Easter eggs in the spring.  Reflecting the taste and style of her time, Mrs. Eisenhower's holiday taste seemed more fun than formal, and probably brought life to the historic house.  Interestingly, as the wife of a five-star general, Mamie was known for the pomp and pageantry of her White House functions, but didn't let spit and polish overwhelm a more down-to-earth hospitality.  She was, in short, an interesting combination of her very American Midwestern and Western roots and the influence of years moving in the highest echelons of both American and European society.

A 1950's era White House Christmas tree in the
East Room.

Christmas in the Eisenhower White House was filled with good cheer and plenty of red, white and green.  Ropes of holly and greenery surrounded the columns in the Cross Hall, while trees dripping in tinsel were to be found in the East Room and in the family's private quarters.  In one year, 27 trees could be found throughout the mansion, rivaling today's impressive Christmas adornments.  Wreathes were in each of the windows, and red ribbons hung from the glittering crystal chandeliers.  Beautifully lit trees were placed on each side of the main entrance to the house, brightening the North Portico throughout the season.  To ensure that the holiday spirit was never let down, Christmas carols were piped throughout the house, probably courtesy of the Eisenhower's favorite entertainer, Fred Waring and the Pennsylvanians.

In 1960, for their last Christmas in the White House, the Eisenhower's entertained their extended family to a holiday celebration centered on dinner in the cheerfully decorated State Dining Room.  Family-centered at heart, Mamie wanted to share their last presidential holiday in the surroundings she so enjoyed.  It's hard to imagine any other first lady who has enjoyed being mistress of the White House more than Mamie Eisenhower.

Christmas in the State Dining Room, 1960.

Today, a White House Christmas is not just an interesting event, it's big business.  Books have been written, annual television specials are produced and the White House Historical Association puts out a new ornament each year.  But, it seems to me that there was an innocence to the Eisenhower holidays that's been lost in the ensuing years.  To look at pictures snapped of the presidential tree in those years is to see the same kind of Christmas that most Americans celebrated, perhaps on a larger scale, but in similar style.  Today, the White House celebrates Christmas in spectacular style, quite unlike anything I can aspire to, but great fun nonetheless.  Regardless of which you prefer, it's hard not to delight in Christmas at the White House!

The 2011 White House Christmas Tree
in the Blue Room.

'Twas the Week Before Christmas...

Ah, a Norman Rockwell Christmas...

And all through this house, every nook and cranny (what is a cranny?) seems to be stuffed with items awaiting wrapping or delivery.  The mail man is eagerly awaited each day in the hope that he will deliver the last of those "must have" gifts in time for the big day.  I have five of the ten new homemade felt stockings I'd planned to give the kids made, two and a half more are in process.  I still haven't made all of the Christmas cookies on my list, but I live in hope.  In short, despite all my best efforts and promises to my self, I have become entirely engulfed in the last minute preparations for Christmas.

It happens every year, doesn't it?  Regardless of how early you start or how committed you are to having a "simpler" holiday, that last week is a killer.  I'm not complaining though, really I'm not!  It's part of what makes Christmas exciting and a little breathtaking.  There's something quite fun about staying up later than anyone else, watching the entire series of Rumpole of the Bailey, and wrapping your heart out.

Having said that, I can see that in this last stretch, there are a few things that are going to have to give...  The first is certainly going to have to be blog updates.  Yes, this may be my last Dapper and Dreamy post until the day has passed.  Somehow, I think that many of you are just as busy as I am and will appreciate a little break from feeling that you "have" to read anything new.  In addition, in my book, Christmas doesn't end until I am good and ready for it to do so, and that is never at 11:59 PM on December 25.  In fact, one could say that some of the best things about Christmas start at that moment...  Most obligations have been honored.  You're ready for a break from shopping and keeping secrets, and you've run out of quarters to drop into Salvation Army collection kettles.  And yet, there are still tubs of cookies left to eat, all of your favorite Christmas music remains stacked by the stereo and your decorations are intact.  You also have all of those delightful gifts that were bestowed upon you to enjoy (or return).  December 26 is the time to really start enjoying the season without the stress that the endless preparations can entail. 

Here's an example of what I mean about pressure...  Regardless of whether I really like the songs that are being played, and I often don't, I somehow feel that to listen to anything other than the Christmas music on the radio while I am driving is wrong.  After all, that wall to wall musical joy is only on once a year, admittedly for about five or six weeks of the year, now.  So, I swtich between the two stations, resorting to my daughter's new She and Him (or "Them", as I call them simply to annoy her) Christmas album when the choice is between Christmas Shoes on 99.1 and Christmas in the Northwest on 94.5.  This leaves countless good CD's sitting around uselessly...  Until December 26.  I know, it's ridiculous...  But tell me you don't do silly things like this, too.

Shutting down the blog for a few days means that there are some Christmas topics that you'll have to wait a little longer for...  So, look forward to my thoughts on Shiny Brites, the world's premier Christmas ornaments.  We'll also cover some of our favorite Christmas goodies, the Queen's Christmas Speech and the most memorable gifts we've received.  Who knows what else we'll come up with!

Vintage Ideals magazines...
A trip into Christmas' past...  Often
with really bad poetry but really good
illustrations.

In closing, let me wish you a very Merry Christmas...  Writing this blog over the past several months has been an even better than I'd expected.  I love your comments and interest in the things I've written about.

The Real Meaning of Christmas?

Friends, it's Christmas time.  There's no need to be afraid.  At Christmas time we...  Ooops, got a little caught up in my musical reverie...  Sorry!

Today's post isn't really about the true meaning of Christmas...  exactly.  It's more of a little diatribe about our response to the many feelings and underlying reasons for the season. 

Although we often decry the commercialism that the holiday seems wrapped around these days, we can go a little too far the other way, as well.  Wait!  Am I being blasphemous?  Not at all...  While I love to take time to meditate on the spiritual side of the season, I sometimes think we get a little too pious about it all.  We smugly talk in our churches about being the people who really understand what it's all about, as if the people across town at the mall don't have a clue.

Christmas is celebrated by millions upon millions of people, not all of whom have any real sense about the original purpose of the day.  Is that an awful thing?  I'd offer a resounding, "No!" in answer to that question.  At its very best, the Yuletide season is about giving.  It's about being thankful for one another and showing it by some act or gift.  It's about recognizing the good that's in the world.  And it's about looking beyond ourselves.  It's also just plain fun.  And, in some ways, that's enough.  It's a break from the sameness of much of the rest of the year.  It's an excuse to be a little lax, to be a bit more childlike.  And, it's a marvelous reason to make lots and lots of cookies.

You may think that some of this is rather tongue in cheek.  I assure you that it isn't.  Growing up, religion was the farthest thing from my own families mind in December.  It wasn't a willful disregard, it just wasn't a consideration.  The traditions of faith were entirely supplanted by Santa, Rudolph and Frosty.  True, there was an angel atop the tree, but she looked more like a bee-hived, sleeping Elizabeth Taylor than anything truly heavenly.  We had traditions, though.  The cookies and candy were always the same...  Candy Cane Cookies, made reluctantly but lovingly by my long-suffering mother, Mocha Nut Butterballs and Thumbprint Cookies.  Rich Toffee Square Cookies covered with melted milk chocolate and sliced almonds were also on that list (I must mention these as I made a batch tonight and it's rather hard to stop eating them).  My mother is also famous for her buttery toffee.

You could always count on a full stocking on Christmas morning, as well.  In our family, that stocking would have a new, sparkly ornament attached, and would likely contain Tangy Taffy or Callard and Bowser Chocolate Drops.  Those were really good stockings...  No nuts and oranges, there wasn't enough room!  You might find a good book, though. 

The food was also absolutely delicious...  Cheese Puffs, Stuffed Mushrooms and Deviled Eggs for starters, followed by Roast Beef, Yorkshire Pudding, Mashed Potatoes, Brussels Sprouts and Fruit Salad.  Dessert included Christmas cookies and candy, a Trifle, a Chocolate Cake and who knows what else.  The leftovers were the best.

Christmas Day almost always included my grandmother and aunt, driving from their home about 40 miles away and causing a rather prolonged wait to get to the stockings and presents.  But, it was always worth it.  Sitting next to my hilarious aunt, making fun of the crazy things my frazzled mother would say as she tried to keep everything going, was one of the highlights of the day.  To this day my aunt and I only have to mention a certain broken punch bowl and a can of Pepsi to each other and we start a laugh fest (I'd explain, but family humor never translates well...).  In short, we had wonderful days, so wonderful in many cases, that the memories have lasted for decades.

What I'm getting at here is that, regardless of one's belief system, one of the joys of Christmas is that it unites people in some of the most delightful circumstances possible.  Before we belittle those more "commercial" aspects of the season, let's take a moment to notice the fact that so many people are engaging in those activities with one aim - to make someone around them happier, to show their love and appreciation and, just to have a really good time.  So, please, don't forget the "true" or deeper meaning of the holiday, it adds a wonderful depth for those who so inclined.  But, for heaven's sake, don't forget the lighter side either.  In other words...  Don't take the "Santa" out of Christmas.

Christmas Decorating at the Dapper and Dreamy House

The Dapper and Dreamy tree...  Big lights,
little lights, lots of ornaments, very little
matching!

For some reason, Christmas has taken a little time so settle on the Dapper and Dreamy house.  At the same time, it seems that the big day is approaching faster than ever!  With barely ten days to go, I have at least a month's worth or preparations that could be made.  As usual, all the important things will get done just in time and I'll commit to starting extra early next year.

At long last, all the decorations are up and the house is filled with the smell of our freshly cut fir.  That's lucky, because usually I don't notice the tree's scent until sometime in January...  when it's so dry it's more like potpourri than anything living.

So, what is the Dapper and Dreamy tree like, anyway?  It's very much a family tree.  We've decorated trees in many ways over the years - themed trees, trees with a limited color scheme, trees with no theme at all.  One of my favorites was put up last year - a small tabletop tree, a Noble fir, I think, decorated with vintage lights (well, vintage looking) and only my old collection of Shiny Brite ornaments.  It was simple, it was colorful and it lasted forever.

We've sort of built on that idea this year.  After tramping around for an hour at a local tree farm, we finally settled on a seven foot Noble fir.  We looked at hundreds of trees!  They were either perfect, but too large...  Perfect, but too fat...  Perfect, but too short...  You get the idea.  By the time we finally found one that we could all agree on, we were absolutely frozen and willing to take just about any tree!  Once home, we realized that we could have picked that much taller tree after all...  Oh well, next year!

Close up of all the colors, and the big lights with
their star-shaped reflectors.

The Dapper and Dreamy tree is about color and patina and fun.  It's also about memories - old memories and what will one day become memories.  Each year we pull out the seemingly endless boxes or ornaments, wreaths and odds and ends and transform the house in our own way.  The ornaments on the tree are a definite mix of sentimental, nostalgic and simply pretty.  In our family, for as long as I can remember, we were given a new ornament each year.  We've continued that practice which means that we often have between ten and twenty new hangers each year, when my mother decides to revive the old practice.  That's a lot of ornaments!  Everyone has a sort of theme - I am generally pine cones, Santas or castles.  Melissa's is usually something musical or perhaps a sparkly fruit...  Victoria gets angels or cupcakes or maybe ice cream cones...  You can see the pattern.  But we also love finding "new" old ornaments!  I have a particular affection for Shiny Brite ornaments.  Even the plain ones come in such lovely colors.  (I'll write more about Shiny Brites soon...)  We also pick up vintage ornaments wherever we find them - tag and estate sales, thrift stores and, if they are really something special, antique stores.  There are also a few that have survived the passage of time and once hung on my mother and father's tree when they were children.  There's the construction paper bell my mother made in grade school, and the tiny, sparkly, glittered sugar plum that was my dad's.  This is one of the best things about decorating the tree...  As you pull out each little bauble, there's a memory or a story attached.  Maybe it's something very specific about the piece or the person who gave it, or perhaps it's something more general like remembering the Christmas that you bought that box of sparklers.  It's also delightful to hear the children share their reminisces when they unwrap the old newspaper that's reused each and every year.  It's good to hear their happy memories.

Some old, slightly weathered Shiny Brites...  Very cozy.

Of course, there's more than just the tree to consider.  There is the nativity set, a copy of one just like my grandmother once had.  Our collection of Santa's that fill our breakfront - old and new, made of ceramic, wax and even pipecleaners!  Endless books that fill tables and shelves, stories waiting to be read again as they are each Christmas.

A cozy room to read in, transformed for the winter with
red curtains and pillows.

The breakfront filled with a collection of
Santa's.

If you can take a breath and enjoy the spectacle for just a moment, what a marvelous time of year this is.  The sparkling lights, the warm smells, the bright colors and giddy anticipation.  The special foods and drinks reserved for the season, the cheering music...  It's a time apart, a time like no other.  If you can look past all of the stress and the mad rush, which can also be rather fun, you'll notice that Christmas really is the most wonderful time of the year!

In Praise of the Incandescent Bulb

A house in Eugene's South Hills, decked out with
thousands of twinkly lights.

One of our family's favorite holiday traditions is looking at Christmas lights or, as my now 21 year old daughter used to call them, "Chrisums lights".  We've been doing it for as long as I can remember.  In fact, when Victoria was little we'd be so excited for the upcoming holiday that we'd start in mid-November, just on the off chance that we'd spy some early decorators like ourselves.

Years have passed, and gas prices have risen, but this is one time of year that I don't seem to notice the need for additional visits to the local gas station.  That time in the warm car, Christmas music playing happily in the background, driving around the town is something I look forward to all year long.  Even now, every one of the kids still seems to get as much enjoyment out of it as I do.  Each night, someone asks, "Are we going for a drive tonight?"  To add to the excitement, a local radio station plays all 26 installments of the 1930's radio classic, "The Cinnamon Bear", at 7:00 each night.  Although we've heard it countless times, we still like to tune in to see how Judy and Jimmy are doing on their quest to find their beloved silver star.

There's a downside to this annual tradition, however.  In the interest of saving energy, no doubt an excellent goal under normal circumstances, many people are switching to, ugh, LED lights.  Now, if you are a devoted greenie, please don't get too upset.  I am all for saving the planet through wiser uses of our natural resources but, frankly, these LED Christmas lights are not only ugly, they are depressing!  Sort of like listening to a Kenny G Christmas song.  Each time I hear one of Kenny's Yuletide saxophone renditions I get that horrible feeling one has at about 11:55 PM on Christmas night...  It's all over.

LED Christmas lights lack that warm, old-fashioned glow.  That welcoming, It's a Wonderful Life nostalgia that the old, incandescent bulbs give off.  Those big opaque bulbs in colors like red, green, orange, white and blue or the sparkly transparent ones that add purples and pinks to the equation just scream Christmas!  The cold gray-bluish or dingy green-yellowish LED's are a poor replacement, making barely a whimper in their quest to add holiday spark to your split-level McMansion.  And the colored versions?  Unless you are withing 15 or 20 feet, you can hardly make them out.

A string or two of cozy C-9's...

I know that there are many more important things to think about, but one of the most delightful parts of the cold winter nights leading up to Christmas is the sight of streets all aglow.  As far as I am concerned, LED lights should be banned (OK, that may be going a bit far) and "Christmas" lights would be kept alight all the way through the winter until the warmth of Spring began its approach.  After all, in the rather dreary days so many people have experienced in recent years, a little extra sparkle would be a welcome addition.

So, if you are really committed to being Dapper and Dreamy...  break out those big old lights and deck the house from top to bottom.  And, if you are like we are and are beyond committed, trim your tree with them, too!

The Best Christmas... EVER!

A perfectly coordinated, and very
beautiful Christmas tree...  How
many people would it take to
recreate this at your house?

The title of this post, "The Best Christmas...  EVER!" is just one take on the many similar headlines splashed across the covers of lifestyle magazines during this time of year.  Inside, you will find beautiful, perfect photos of ideas that will make these holidays better than EVER!  See those trees on page 42?  They are perfectly coordinated with the decor of the room, each ornament either handmade by you or purchased at great expense at your local department store.  And don't miss the cookies.  That article starts on page 64!  Notice the perfection with which each sugar cookie is frosted, not a speck of icing out of the perfectly piped lines, colors perfectly blended, once again, to match your decor.  And, finally, the five page advertisement...  I mean "list" of must buy gift ideas for those you love, near and far.  If you follow the directions listed in these magazines, you WILL find Yuletide nirvana.

Turn time back about 50 years and peak at the ideas for a "perfect" Christmas found in magazines of old.  You will notice that the trees are certainly themed, some even coordinated with the room in which they rest, but you will also notice how plain they look by today's standards.  In fact, how easy.  You will also find splashy ads and articles about cookies and other festive foods.  But something's amiss...  These sugar cookies look like they were decorated by human beings, maybe even children.  And, finally, gift lists were regular features but, again, the suggestions are more homely than expensive, designed to actually be used by the recipient rather than serve as a token of your exquisite taste.  Of course, these ideas were created at a time when Thanksgiving was still an actual holiday.  I expect it will soon be renamed "Black Friday Eve".

Don't get me wrong, I enjoy the holiday magazines of today as much as anyone else.  The ideas can be fun and inspiring, and the newest trends can keep us up to date and fresh.  What bothers me is this idea that by putting endless resources of time, money and energy into the six weeks that end each year, we can have perfect, magic moments with friends and family.  To me, it doesn't have to be the "best" anything.  Just the idea that it's Thanksgiving or Christmas is enough.  How much more magical can it get?  The ornaments on my tree aren't perfectly matched and haven't been bought with an eye toward room coordination.  Most of them have special meaning, like the Christmas castles and houses that my mother has attached to my stocking for the last 38 years.  Or, perhaps the sparkly pinecones of many colors or shiny Santas that my wife tries to find for me every year.  Each December, as we unpack those ornaments, we can laugh and reminisce about so many Christmas' in the past.  It gives our kids the chance to share their own recollections and to listen to stories of their parents as children.

Cookies?  It's the same every year, with a few new additions from time to time.  Candy Cane cookies (the bane of a good parent's Yuletide existence), Thumbprints, Mocha Nut Butterballs, Russian Tea Cakes, Mary's Mother's Snowballs...  They show up again and again.  The frosted sugar cookies?  IF they are made, I can promise you that there are no lines for the icing to be piped within, and they still taste awfully good.

I'm not trying to throw sour grapes.  I know that there are many, many talented people who create what are, in many cases, works of art.  But, when we are looking through the pages and pages of ideal holiday spectaculars, try to remember that they were created by professionals...  with a staff...  and excellent photographers.  Take the good ideas and use them in your own homes, but, for goodness sake, relax.  Don't aim for perfection.  Aim for simple, heartfelt fun.  Ask yourself what you really want the holidays to be for yourself, and for those who come after you.  Should Thanksgiving be a special time to reflect on the many advantages and blessings we have, to share time and a special meal with family and friends?  Or, should it become a mere afterthought to the greater event that's swept the nation...  Black Friday?  And what about Christmas?  Is it only about creating the perfect holiday or buying the perfect gifts?  Or, is it, once again, an ideal to reflect on things larger than ourselves, to share goodwill and to reconnect with humanity?  For me, it's time to strike a balance.  I'll still shop, wrap, decorate and bake like a fiend, but I'll try to do it a bit more mindfully, and put a little less pressure on myself to make this the grandest, most magical holiday ever.

And, aside from all this...  if this year's Christmas is the best EVER...  what are you going to do next year?

Christmas Movie of the Day... Desk Set?

Hepburn and Tracy paired once again
in Desk Set.

There are so many options when it comes to Christmas movies, why would I even think of choosing one that's not traditionally associated with the big day?  Because for Christmas colors and Christmas parties and even Christmas presents, Desk Set really is hard to beat. 

Starting just before the holiday season, Desk Set is as mid-century as it gets.  Taking place at the Manhattan headquarters of a major national network, the film's premise is based on what happens when technology tries to take the place of people in the company's Research Department.  Katharine Hepburn manages the division with brassy Joan Blondell, and patrician Dina Merrill,  as her trusty employees.  Kate, who plays the part of Bunny Watson, also happens to be dating (rather unbelievably) one of the top VP's, Mike Cutler (played by Gig Young).  Sparks fly when Richard Sumner (Spencer Tracy), efficiency expert and inventor of EMORAC, a.k.a., the "Electronic Brain", sets up shop in Research with an eye toward streamlining the department's research capabilities.

Wouldn't you like to work in an office like
this?  This is the Research Department
where all the action takes place.

The real story here is the burgeoning affair between Tracy and Hepburn.  Although well past middle-age and in one of their last films together, the duo make more sparks than ever before.  Not only are they entirely believable as a couple, but they play off each other perfectly, making for some wonderful moments.  From the start you can see where things are going - unlike self-satisfied Mike Cutler, Richard Sumner never assumes that Bunny just another "old coat" hanging in his closet and perpetually ready to wear.  Joan Blondell, as Peg, is great as the wise-cracking friend and colleague of Bunny, and shows why she was a star in the early 30's "girl makes good" style of films.

Let the party begin!  It's Christmas in the
Research Department!

But, why is this a Christmas movie?  First, the giant tree in Rockefeller Center makes a glorious appearance just as we join the girls in Research for their annual Christmas party.  Held in the office, now transformed by a giant holly wreath and one of the best classic movie Christmas trees ever, these folks know how to throw an office party!  The champagne flows and the boys in Legal hop over for an impromptu dance, much to the delight of man-hungry Peg.  It's as jolly as a holiday fete ever could be and will make any other party you attend this year look a little dull around the edges.  This is another of those movies where the color is as much a part of its appeal as the costumes and sets.  Technicolor greens, red, purples, blues and greens jump off the screen, and you are left wondering why you can't get that kind of palette in your own life!

Check out that tree!  And those presents!  And the color
of that dress!  This is a Technicolor dream!

Desk Set is a favorite movie of ours, and one we've watched for many years.  It's one of those films that you can count on - if you can't decide what else to watch, pop Desk Set into the player and you are set for the evening.

Reading at Christmas

We have so many Christmas books around, we have to put away much of our regular library to accommodate them each year.  That's fine by me.  These are books that I love to return to year after year.  It's also fun to find new stories to add to the growing collection.

Of course there are all the Dickens stories, collected in an attractive boxed version from the 1940's, including the perennial A Christmas Carol, and treasuries that contain things like The Gift of the Magi and each of the Biblical versions of the birth of Jesus.  But there are also new stories, one of my favorites by David Sedaris, Six to Eight Black Men.  This particular piece is contained in one of the best Christmas collections I've found, Caroline Kennedy's A Family Christmas.  Containing most of the well-known tales we expect, there are a few surprises, Sedaris' being the one that regularly brings out my family's Yuletide laughter.

Old magazines can be treasure troves for good stories.  While not "Christmas" tales specifically, Gladys Taber's Butternut Wisdom columns in Family Circle are perfectly charming accounts of New England country life.  They're equally good throughout the rest of the year, but at Christmas she talks of her cozy house, pets, Christmas trees, snow and a house full of family.  McCalls, Ladies Home Journal and other magazines of the type are equally good for holiday fiction, and non-fiction, alike.  They're also marvelous places to find some really fun, and sometimes tasteless, Christmas decorating and menu ideas.

Perhaps my favorite Christmas stories of all time are two by Miss Read.  The Christmas Mouse and Village Christmas are absolute musts.  The two stories, usually printed together, are perfect accounts of Christmas in the coziest English village of all time, her beloved Fairacre.  Read them once and you will find yourself revisiting them year after year, just as I do.

Not to be forgotten, a new discovery...  Journey Into Christmas is a collection of short stories by a writer named Bess Streeter Aldrich.  I'd never heard of Mrs. Aldrich or her writings before, but came upon them while looking for another book at the local thrift store.  To be honest, I picked it up because I liked the cover and thought it would look great with the other books.  Imagine my delight when I started reading.  These are pieces that talk about the kinds of Christmas' we can relate to as Americans.  Despite being set in the 1920's - 1930's, Streeter's stories still seem relevant, the surroundings she draws still recognizable, and the people likable.  I'm not through with the book yet, I hate to finish it, but I am loving each and every page and highly recommend it.

Finally, the one Christmas story that I've heard every year of my life, and the one that everyone in our family has to hear at least once, and perhaps many more times, each year.  From a 1940's Christmas book owned by my mom, Granny Glitten's and Her Amazing Mittens is the story of, obviously, Granny Glittens.  Granny is known for her skill at knitting mittens.  One year, after writing to "The Store" for the colored yarns that she requires, she's told that only white yarn is available!  Feeling hopeless and hungry, Granny retires to the kitchen to make dinner for herself and her cat, only to find that her cupboard is filled with nothing but jars of candy...  Colored candy!  Red, green, black...  Why, these are the colors she needs for her mittens!  Caught by an idea, Granny drops skeins of white yarn into pans of the melted candies, creating yarn flavored like chocolate, licorice, peppermint and wintergreen!  Now, not only are Granny's mittens sought after because of their appearance, but also because they are edible.  She's created a new product, as well as demand since those delicious mittens will have to be replaced each time the hungry wearer devours them.  Never explained is how through the simple process of infusing this wool with candy it also becomes edible, but I can suspend my belief in the interest of Christmas.  Granny Glittens few illustrations are charming, and are part of the reason I've loved this story for as long as I have.

There are countless wonderful stories for Christmas, and I hope to discover many more.  But, for now, I am content to read and reread all of my old favorites, preferably in the glow of those large, colorful Christmas lights that used to regularly adorn Christmas trees in years past, long before we worried that they could ignite the whole house.