Merry Christmas to All

When I woke up yesterday morning, I looked at NORAD to track Santa's whereabouts.

At about 7:30 a.m., Santa was off the coast of Russia.

I spent most of Christmas Eve working on last-minute work items before heading over to my dear friend's house for an Italian feast with the kids. I've known the family for 10 years, helped raise the kids and love Christmas traditions with the family. I typically spend Christmas in upstate New York with my uncle, aunts, cousins and kids, but this year I'm at home. The weather forecast isn't particularly wonderful and I'm a bad driver on a good day, so we figured out the odds and decided it was better to just stay put. So, I stay...

I waited oh-so-patiently for the cab I called 40 minutes ago to pick me up. Apparently, the cab meant for me picked up another passenger... good thing I called back to find out where the cab I was promised in 10 minutes was in route. The dispatcher apologized and said another cab was on its way. Patiently, I wait... and the UPS man appears.

A big brown box. My name. Banana Republic. Santa had come early! If the first cab had been on time, I would have missed my Banana Republic early-delivery. In the box: one cashmere sweater, one sweater-cape, two pairs of favorite pants. There was no time to open the package because the new cab was approaching.

Christmas morning: Coffee in hand. "A Christmas Story" on TBS. Big brown box from Banana Republic waiting to be opened ... and it's just for me.