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‘Twas the night before, the night before, Christmas. All through the house many creatures were stirring most of them furry and canine. Oh, hell, I call this parody for lack of patience. Jon and I have been sick for two out of the last three days, and I have to say that probably exercising in the middle of it was not my brightest move, but I’d do it again, I think. We usually feel better when we exercise. If any of you are feeling as Grinchy as I am this year, I have some alternate Christmas theamed shows for you to put into your DVD player. Things that will help you embrace your mood and still be festive, sort of.
Hercule Poirot’s Christmas with David Suchet. “The Christmas Party”, another murder for the holidays, this time with Nero Wolfe and Archie Goodwin. If you do not know who I am referring to, then get a Rex Stout book, quickly, and cure your ignorance. It’s one of our favorite mystery series. There are other not so merry holiday movies, but I’ll leave you with this one; Bell, Book, and Candle. It’s not about murder, but it is about the supernatural, and love, and not love, and cats, and it has Jimmy Stewart and Kim Novak in it. It begins at this festive time of year. A romantic and scary Christmas, just up my alley. I’ll recommend one short story, and one book, to complete the unmerry list. “The Festival” by H. P. Lovecraft, and THE DARK IS RISING by Susan Cooper. The Lovecraft story has long been a favorite of mine, and Cooper was out long before J. K. Rowling ever dreamt of Harry Potter. THE DARK IS RISING is actually supposed to be the second book in the series, but the first two books can be easily read out of order, and this is the book that sold me on the series. It is magical and heartwarming and scary and awe inspiring. It is one of the few books that I will reread periodically, just for the pleasure of the words and the story. Some books you like to take off the book shelf and wrap around yourself like a favorite blanket. Something to comfort you when your spirits are low. THE DARK IS RISING is such a book.
Enjoy my unmerry Christmas list; I do.