A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day....12-16-02 Christmas Is...FReeper Memories

Various Freepers | WVNan; JustAmy; Pippin; Diver Dave; Aquamarine; ST.LOUIE1

[Billie]

Christmas Is......

Christmas...
What is Christmas ...
Christmas is, Above All, Love ...
Christmas is Faith, Family, Friends ...
Christmas is Sharing, Giving Hugs, Laughing ...
Christmas is  Baking  Cookies,  Stringing  Popcorn ...
Christmas is Reviving Old Memories and Making New Ones ...

When I asked for help during the holidays with ideas and/or co-hosting a thread, many of you came through with offers of all kinds, for which we are very grateful.  We hope you have been enjoying the variety as much as Daisy, Dansy, Lori, and I have.  Today, some of our Finest Family share a few of their Christmas thoughts, memories, recipes, laughs..... ~ Billie

It's About Family by WVNan
This is a 'doctored' photo - Nan sent me a portrait
of Uncle John, to which I added hers.

She wrote back, "Thank you Billie. I love that picture.
Uncle will love it too. He loves for me to hug him.
Nobody else that I know of is allowed to hug him. ((((Hug))))"

Uncle John is one of those independent people that are indicative of the early settlers of West Virginia. He may have a grade school education, but he became a wealthy man simply by using his native ingenuity and his natural frugality. He probably never took a handout or even a hand-up from anyone in his life. In other words, he's proud.

During his recent stay in the hospital after a stroke he created something of a stir with his refusal of treatment. He got downright indignant when the nurse tried to bath him, making a fuss that could be heard over the phone when family called to check on him. He could be heard protesting, "Why are you giving me a bath? I don't need no d**m bath."

Happy to say that Uncle John is home and doing fair for someone who has had a stroke and is 93 years old. His unsinkable spirit is intact. ~ Nan

Family Traditions by JustAmy

Growing up during the 40’s and 50’s was a wonderful time for family get-togethers at Grandmother’s house. After my Grandmother died, family traditions changed. Each of my aunts started building her own family traditions.

For the past fifty-five years, my Mother’s house was the place for a new generation to build wonderful memories of the holidays at Grandma’s house.

With the passing of my Mother this year, there seems to be an empty place in our hearts and homes. A family gathering of three, my husband, my son and myself, hardly seems to be a base for a new holiday tradition.

Four months ago, I started helping out with the babysitting of a grand niece (she was three December 7th). My life has changed!! Instead of spending time in the electronic and home improvement stores, I now find myself in toy stores and the toddler section of the department stores.

After hosting our family Thanksgiving dinner, I will now plan an open house on Christmas day for nieces, nephews, grand nieces and grand nephews. My wish is for the youngest generation to have memories of spending time with family at Aunt Amy’s house. ~ Amy

A Christmas Memory by Marie Shelton (Pippin)

It was the first year I was in my new apartment, and I had just started out as a Liturgical Minister at the Catholic Church I attend in my town of Glen Burnie, Maryland. That year, 1996, was a year of transitions much like this year is. Our regular pastor was on a sabbatical, so we had another priest standing in for him. This was also the first year I can remember actually having a white Christmas!

I remember waking up on the morning of Dec. 24th to see the snow falling gently on everything and giving everything it touched a special, magical look. I was scheduled to read at the 4:00 Mass that evening at the Christmas Eve Mass. So I put on my boots and bundled up because it was really cold, if my memory serves me right and I walked to the church, which was within walking distance from my apartment. I got there early so I could familiarize myself with that evening’s readings. I enjoy reading the Word of God and I wanted to do the best I could with it.

FR. John, the priest who was celebrating the mass was there as was Anita, the liturgical coordinator/sacristan. We stood in the sacristy and talked and joked a little. Fr. John wanted to process up the aisle but there were so many people coming to church that evening that they were lined up at the side aisles and crowded at the back of our tiny church. Fr. John wanted to know if we could go around the church to the main doors. He wondered if Anita and I could stand a few moments of cold air as we had our coats off. I had piped up earlier that I was part Canadian, so Father John said since you are Canadian, I guess you can stand the cold!

We went out and around the church to the main doors. Fr. John was in a Christmas mood so he went up and knocked on the door; the usher by the door turned around, and Fr. John asked with tongue-in-cheek if we could come in!

We processed in and the Mass started. Anita had to be the altar server, as we had no one to serve. It was a beautiful service and the church was decorated up so wonderfully! It felt like Christmas, especially with the snow coming down. This to me was the most special time and everything went along so well. There were carols and religious hymns sung; the congregation and the choir blending their voices together sounded like angels singing to almighty GOD.

After Communion, Fr. John had a small tape player that he turned on and we listened to the “Ave Maria” being sung in Latin. It was beautiful and I had tears of joy running down my face. It was a glorious and magical Christmas Eve!

I hope everyone reading this has a safe and merry Christmas and a blessed New Year as well! ~ Pippin

A Memory of Christmases Past by DiverDave

There are several memorable Christmases to chose from and it was tough to pick just one. I scanned my memory from childhood to the present and I think I’ll share about Christmas 1965.

Mrs. DD (Linda) and I were married in June. Three short months later my ship, the USS PIEDMONT (AD-17) deployed for a 6 month cruise to the western Pacific (WESTPAC). We were to spend our first Christmas separated from one another.

Our ship’s crossing of the Pacific took 19 days and we pulled into Yokosuka, Japan and later to sailed to Subic Bay, Philipines and set up repair operations to ships serving in the Seventh Fleet. I was working in the Pipe Shop at the time as a 3rd Class Shipfitter P.

As the holiday season approached, one of my shipmates got the idea of making some sort of Christmas decoration for our shop. That in turn, prompted the other shops to do likewise. The theme was Christmas, and each participating shop produced a decoration which corresponded with the work carried out by each individual shop.

For us in the Pipe Shop, we took a length of 3" black steel pipe, put it in the pipe bender and bent it 180 degrees. We welded it to the deck of the shop and then went to the paint locker to get some paint. In no time at all, we had a giant 7 1/2 foot white with red striped candy cane. We then welded a piece of flat plate to the side with the words, "Season’s Greetings from Shop 56A.

The Sheetmetal Shop cut out large stars, bells, bows, etc and hung them from the overhead in their shop.

The Shipfitter Shop cut up strips of aluminum plate and welded them to a 1" pipe and formed a Christmas tree. They got cotton balls from Sick Bay and glued them to the branches.

The guys in the Machine Shop somehow got ahold of a small fir tree. They placed it on the deck just outside the door leading to the Mess Decks. The decorations were all the curled shavings that had been produced on the metal lathes. Looked pretty good with brass, steel, and copper curly ribbons adorning the tree.

As sailors will be sailors, a couple of guys came back from liberty in the late hours having consumed a few too many San Miguel’s. They decided to knock down our candy cane and take it to their lead Petty Officer’s bunk.

We recovered the candy cane and re-welded it to the deck in our shop the following morning.

That evening, once again too much San Magoo effected normally bright minds and the candy cane was once again stolen.

This time it found it’s way up to Officer’s Country and was placed on one of the dining tables in the Ward Room. Sadly, some dishes got broken by the bumbling burglars and the light-hearted hi-jinx became a serious problem.

The candy cane’s crooked end was cut off, the sign removed and the remaining piece of 3" pipe was place in the pipe rack to be used later on a job order from the fleet..

Somewhere, floating around in one of the Tin Cans of the Seventh Fleet is a section of steel pipe with candy cane stripes.

My time in the Pipe Shop lasted through the month of December and then I went TAD to Diving School for the duration of my second WESTPAC tour and then took up residence in the Diving Locker for the balance of my enlistment and one more WESTPAC cruise in ’67. Dave

From My Kitchen With Love by Aquamarine

Sour Cream Coffee Cake
2 sticks margarine softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 cups sifted self rising flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup or 8 oz container sour cream
1/2 cup milk
1/4 firmly packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup chopped nuts

Preheat oven to 350 degrees, grease and flour bunt pan. Cream butter and sugar til light and fluffy, add eggs one at a time. Blend in vanilla, sift flour, mix soda in, add to creamed mixture alternately with the sour cream and milk. Mix well after each addition, then spoon half of batter into pan.

Combine brown sugar, cinnamon and pecans. Sprinkle over the mixture. Spoon remaing batter on top. Bake at 350 degrees for 55 to 60 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes in pan, turn out on plate.

Cornbread Dressing with Bacon and Pecans
1 pan of 9x9 cornbread
6 bacon slices
4 celery ribs, finely chopped
1 large onion, finely chopped
6 cups torn day old bread (6 slices)
2/3 chopped pecans, toasted
1 large egg, lightly beaten
2 tablespoons light brown sugar
1 tablespoon chopped fresh or 1 teaspoon rubbed sage
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
3 to 4 cups chicken broth

Prepare cornbread; cool and crumble. Set aside. Cook bacon in a large skillet until crisp; remove bacon, drain on paper towels, reserving drippings in skillet. Crumble bacon and set aside. Saute celery and onionin bacon drippings in skillet 10 minutes or until tender.

Combine crumbled cornbread, bacon, sauteed onion mixture, bread and remaining ingredients in a large bowl; stir well. Spoon dressing into a 13 x 9 baking dish. Bake uncovered at 375 degrees for 45 minutes or until golden. Yield: 10 servings.

Note: If you like your dressing drier and crustier use 3 cups broth in the recipe. Use 4 cups for a moister dressing. ~ Aquamarine

Holiday Lighting Tips by ST.LOUIE1

One Christmas, when I was about nine, I put a string of Christmas lights on our cat Muggsy. I plugged her in to three long extension cords so she could move around. Then I put her in the back yard. When I set her down, she started jumping up and down trying to shake the lights loose.

I ran in the house and told Mom and Dad to hurry and get to the window, that something wild was out back. My Mom looked out and said..."Oh, my God!", and nearly fainted. She thought I had electrocuted Muggsy. My Dad was laughing so hard he nearly choked. He stopped laughing when Mom told him...."If Muggsy dies, so will you and Tony!". I stopped laughing in a hurry and ran to unplug Muggsy.

When Mom's Irish temper flared - it was time to get thee away! Muggs was fine, no harm done....that's why I'm still alive and able to partake in Billie's 'Christmas Memories'. : ) ~ Louie

Bring A Stray...
..Into Your Heart & Home!

THE WEEKEND THREAD 12-14,15-02 Week in Review

Opinions by our own 'King of Ping' The guy's good, folks!

Thanks, Mixer!

1) Click on the graphic to open the Calendar.
2) Once there you can click on any month and even click to the right to go into next year. Once you are in the month that you joined FR you will need to click on the number in the calendar and then an add item screen will come up.
3) In the next box enter your name in the "Calendar Text" field and then click on submit.
4) If any of the screens fail to load simply click on refresh in your browser and that will usually fix it.
5) If all else fails or simply if you want me to do this for you send me an FReepmail and I will gladly do it for you. ~Mixer

[GailA]

My favorite memory of Christmas as a child was when my littlest sister and baby brother were both under 3. That was when the bulbs were those BIG ones that got hot. Mom put the Christmas tree in the playpen to keep it out of their reach. It was funny then as the memory is now.

[FreeTheHostages]

WvNan, my name's Nancy too! I like everything about my name except one thing: it's misleading. "Nancy" I always think of as someone who is demure and smeet. I'm sweet, if at all, in a more tomboy/firebrand way. Hmm, I think I should be more of a "Billie."

Inappropriate names can be fun. I named my 20-pound cat "kitty" with ironic humor. Even as a kitty, she behaved like an adult male tiger. So it was always a bit of a joke. Now she's a huge and aggressive thing. So just calling her "kitty" is funny.

Cats are great. All they want for Christmas are empty paper bags and those plastic twist-off things.

[Billie]

Also, I can't believe you would even bring up the Fashion Show thread. Since it were your minor contributions which prevented it from being perfect. :)

Well, that was last year; I hope you'll see I've learned from those mistakes when you see the thread I helped you with tomorrow. :)

[WVNan]

Wellllll....since I happen to love cats, I guess you're off the hook. I'm back to work now. Just dropped in for a minute.

[lodwick]

And you're beary, beary welcome. No matter what I'm searching for, it seems I always discover a bear or two.

[FreeTheHostages]

ROFL!

One Christmas, dad replayed a radio broadcast he had done years ago, when I was 4 and my sister was 6, of us being interviewed by him on his Christmas show.

He asked me what the house was like on Christmas eve. And I (apparently thinking of "not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse"), mentioned that there were "stockings hung by the chimney with care" and there were also lots of "mouses."

My father says to me, with slight impatience, what else? And I say "rats"? And my father -- mind you, this is being broadcast all about -- says, no, other than that. How else is the house ready for Santa? And I say "mice"? And then, certain that this must be the key information my dad is prodding me for, I say with great certainty and cheerfulness: "There are lots of mouses and rats and mice!"

At which point my father clears his throat and turns to interview my sister, who is more helpful. :)

The interview ends with an entirely painful duet on clarinet and violin by two of my siblings.

[ST.LOUIE1]

Wellllll....since I happen to love cats, I guess you're off the hook.

Flattery does still work. LOL

See you later. : )

[WVNan]

Well, hi Nancy. How about that? I'm an incurable tomboy too. I was the child who followed my Dad and Grandad around all day bugging them with a milion questions about whatever it was they were doing. I learned how to do boy stuff. Carpentry, plowing, planting etc. I played with my brothers instead of my sisters. I could outrun, outclimb and outspit them all. Guess that's why I never have been much good with the Martha Stewart stuff.

[FreeTheHostages]

I was expecting one from 'you'. : )

Uh-uh. I believe that if one did a statistical study, you get more than your fair share of hugs here! And now that we have your jpg, we see why. ;) So I'll hug shy people instead. {{{{lodwick}}}}

[JulieRNR21]

I loved all your Christmas stories! Reading them has triggered cherished memories of past Christmases for me!

Louie....what a naughty boy.....poor Muggsy.....good thing that cats have nine lives....LOL

Here's a wonderful site to share with your family & friends:

http://home.austarnet.com.au/eebee/jacquielawson/xmas2001.htm

Special Thanks to Mama_Bear for this Christmas Georgio.....

[FreeTheHostages]

That's me! I was actually one of those Presidential Fitness kids in high school. Living on a big hill in Vermont and having to walk 1.5 miles to and from school, plus a long paper route on the hill, will do it for you.

I loved to fish too. And I loved pure math (went on to do it at Harvard, which greatly disturbed my dad, who basically is a little old-fashioned when it comes to women); I think I first started liking math only because it was a boy thing back then!! LOL.

But I *know* I started to love to fish because on vacations my dad wanted to fish just with his sons. So I practiced with the neighborhood kids and got good at it. I polished the most important fishing skill: luck. Even to this day, if I go deep sea fishing (which I rarely do, but whenever I do:) I catch a lot of fish. And that's totally luck.

But do you agree it's weird to grow up as a tomboy with the first name "Nancy"? I'm sure we all have more important things to think about, but it always felt a little incongruous to me . . . .

[FreeTheHostages]

Carpentry! See, I've never learned that but I have always really want to. I have many cousins in Vermont who are very good carpenters. I swear that my retirement will be all about carpentry.

I can use a chain saw and chop wood. Does that count?

[WVNan]

LOL. Yep, sound like me. I always fished and hunted small game. As a child I hated my name because the kids called me Nanny Goat. I would frequently get into fights over that, and come home with a shiner. Now I really do have to go. Later.

[ST.LOUIE1]

I was expecting one from 'you'. : )

Uh-uh. I believe that if one did a statistical study, you get more than your fair share of hugs here!
And now that we have your jpg, we see why. ;) So I'll hug shy people instead.

Well, ok. : )

[ru4liberty]

Good to see you too!

[FreeTheHostages]

hunted small game

I'm jealous! That I absolutely was not allowed to do. Which is a shame 'cause my family's Indian roots go back past the founding of the state of Vermont and little girls/young women in my land used to hunt small game too.

Vermont's deer-hunting culture is very inclusive of women, just my dad somehow thought women shouldn't hunt. Hunting: that's something else I'm going to do when I retire, or even before then.

[Mixer]

So yes, I say let's do a Dog a Day! I'd be happy to do the honors.

Awesome I look forward to dog number 9 tomorrow : )

[ST.LOUIE1]

Louie....what a naughty boy.....poor Muggsy.....good thing that cats have nine lives....LOL

LOL Hi, cutie!!!!

Here's a wonderful site to share with your family & friends:
http://home.austarnet.com.au/eebee/jacquielawson/xmas2001.htm

Bookmarked for later.

Guess my godson is getting lots of presents, right? : )

[Billie]

Thank you, Fine Sistah! Love the poinsettia swag! Pretty!

[Billie]

Well, after all, Free, remember who you're talking to. :)