Living Wright: Revive the memories to rekindle the cheer
BY JASON ASHLEY WRIGHT World Scene Writer
Tuesday, December 04, 2012
12/04/12 at 5:27 AM
What is your favorite Christmas song?Original Print Headline: Revive the memories to rekindle the cheer
It's beginning to look a lot like Easter.
By no means am I wanting to rush the season, but this weather is more like early spring than a Green Country December.
Nonetheless, I'm trying not to let it dampen an already slightly soggy spirit, what with chronic pain, poor sleep and a generally snotty attitude that I just need to get the holly over.
Perhaps it's perfect timing, then, for our sixth annual Fa-La-La-La-Lagniappe, a deck-the-halls edition of our monthly dose of somethin' somethin' extra with nary a rhyme nor reason, save for holiday-themed rambles.
Favorite things
I vaguely recall writing my own lyrics one year to "My Favorite Things," the "The Sound of Music" tune that some people consider a Christmas song.
Nothing against bright copper kettles and brown kittens tied up with string or whatever Maria sang, but my version was a tad more mundane - things like relishing the slight ecstasy of sneezes, popping bubble wrap simultaneously with both fists and using a Q-Tip immediately after every shower despite the warnings of an ear-nose-and-throat doctor.
This holiday season, my favorite things to sing about are Flexeril, an extra-large heating pad Mom and Dad gave me, and a '70s corduroy coat to add to my pimp-tastic vintage coat collection. I'm not sure any of these would rhyme well with one another, so I'll probably skip song-writing and stick to playing my favorite Christmas music.
I keep waiting to hear Buck Owens' "Santa Looked A Lot Like Daddy" on the radio, but I haven't stumbled across that yet. It's my sentimental, all-time favorite Christmas song, as it brings back memories of playing honest-to-goodness vinyl records on Mamaw's old stereo - and sneaking near-lethal amounts of candy before dinner.
That's another tradition I miss: Christmas Eve at Mamaw Wright's, Christmas Day at Mamaw Walters' house. Then, on Dec. 26, gastronomically reeling from the previous two days, just to gear up for the New Year's feast of black-eyed peas, cabbage, cornbread and ham while watching college bowl games.
This year, I'm actually attempting to stick to Weight Watchers during the holidays. So far, it's been quite a challenge, as almost every day sees some treat travel to the newsroom and, more often than not, land less than 10 feet away from me, in plain fluorescent sight. Sometimes, I refrain, and keep listening to the Cambridge Singers on Pandora. Sometimes I don't, and we'll leave it at that.
I just wish there was a little pill that could make me feel like I used to on those holidays past - and not worry about fat grams and calories and size-32 pants taunting me with their unwearableness from my closet.
It doesn't have to be a pill, though - could be a Flintstone chewable or nasal spray, for all I care.
Of course, pharmacology isn't the answer to my holiday ho-hums. I reckon what matters is laying claim to those good childhood memories, basking briefly in their yuletide glow, then snapping out of it and making new memories.
But some bubble wrap, Q-Tips and Buck Owens singing in the background wouldn't hurt.
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