Oh NF, I read about your christmas experience and it made me SO sad! I wish I had a picture of the alter area from my colleges campus ministries... It is a Catholic college with nuns and all (no habbits and there are rules about rulers ). Anyway... At christmas they always decorate the alter in the "sanctuary" so beautifully... Most of the major religions have something this time of year and so there is something specific to each of them all in together. Thet look so wonderful all together in harmony on the alter. The last Sunday mass of the semester our resident "Jewish Catholic" would set up beautiful decorations for Hanuka and we always had kosher italian cookies and punch after mass.
I had screwed up my planning and had to make a mad dash to Walmart this morning for groceries... I went at like 8am and it wasn't too bad but we got out of there just in time! Although... Not soon enough to miss the kind gentleman trying to get donations for Salvation Army... There are few people in the world that sing worse than I do but he was among them and trying to sing Ave Maria... I was trying to come up with a polite way to explain that he might get more donations by not singing so that people might approach but my ears hurt too much so we just moved on.
I think I am bunkered down safe and sound until the holiday passes... although we may have to do laundry... but who does laundry at the laundrymat over the holidays? No one I hope!
Our house is a mess too... I keep hoping my son will do something wrong so I can make him clean up the livingroom as punishment... He is being good as gold. They never missbehave when you need them too!
Anyway... I hope you found a thing or two to laugh at in this mess. And you may want to look around... some places around us deliver... even on christmas! Pizza delivery may be our new christmas ritual!

Hang in... we are here if you need us... If I'm sleeping just bap me with that tail of yours... works for my cats all the time... you can skip the morning fart or cat breath that usually goes with it though... being baped with the tail is usually good enough!