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That actually did make me laugh.

The hat is amazing. It doubles as a scarf.

I finally got my tree up, though I have yet to hang the ornaments. But it isn't a super big tree, and I've wrapped it with 400 LED multi colored lights. So it is kind of a light explosion right now.

Lucy: Everyone talks about how "great" Beethoven was. Beethoven wasn't so great.

Schroeder: What do you mean Beethoven wasn't so great?

Lucy: He never got his picture on bubble gum cards, did he? Have you ever seen his picture on a bubble gum card? Hmm? How can you say someone is great who's never had his picture on bubble gum cards?


Here's a interesting fact, since the year 1893 there have been a total of 256 different Beethoven trading cards made. So Lucy's comments were erroneous. There was a long stretch without any cards made between 1948 - 1966, which was the year after A Charlie Brown Christmas first aired. It makes you wonder if the sudden printing of a new Beethoven trading card after so many years was a direct result of that special's immediate impact on society back then. Of course, it could just be a coincidence.

Also, speaking of A Charlie Brown Christmas, this year marks the 60th anniversary of the special. It's hard to believe it's been that long already, my mother watched it the same year it first aired, and she's watched it every single year since then.

Murf, I'm glad to hear that your son will be there for Christmas, I hope that your family enjoys the holidays with him. I told my wife about your cranberry orange bread and she's very interested in baking it herself, so I might have to get the recipe from you, unless it's a guarded family secret, then we understand.

On a unrelated side note, we went ice skating on Fri. night and I slipped on the ice and landed directly on my butt, I got a jolt of pain to my spine, and then somebody crashed into me, hitting me right in the middle of my back with their knee. I've been having some serious back pain the last few days, but I'll be fine.

The other night outside the skating rink there was a woman yelling at any kids that passed by, and telling them that Santa isn't real, and saying some other stuff. Thankfully, everybody ignored her, and so far she's the only moron that we have run into this season.

Also, one of the things that we like to do as a family is build Lego sets, and I recently saw a set based on the Colosseum in Rome that we visited in the summer, so I ordered it and it just arrived in time for Christmas. It's almost ten thousand pieces, so it should take awhile. I don't know what the final dimensions are, but with that many pieces it's probably going to be pretty big. There's a picture of it below.


Well, that's my holiday update, I'll be back in a few days. Stay safe, healthy, and warm my friends. MERRY CHRISTMAS!

That model Colosseum is fabulous! It makes me want one, and I've never even been there.

What a jerk to have been yelling at your kids like that! Probably inebriated, or mentally off.

So sorry to hear of your accident. I sincerely hope your back heals quickly!

The cranberry orange bread recipe is no secret at all. I got it from a cookbook I received as a wedding gift, but I've seen the same thing on Ocean Spray sacks of fresh cranberries, and they probably have it on their web site. I've made it for decades and have developed a few short cuts/tweaks. If I remember I'll tell you more about it when I'm at home. Merry Christmas!

HH, I'm stupid about importing things from other sites, but go to the Ocean Spray web site and look up Classic Cranberry Nut Bread. It's the precise recipe I use, except I've gotten so I omit the nuts. My daughter didn't like them when she was young, and some people are allergic.

Over the years I've sometimes substituted vege oil for the shortening. I don't see much if any difference, but a pro baker might.

I don't measure the orange zest. I just zest an entire navel orange. I also use bottled juice, but I make sure it's not from condensed. I prefer it with pulp, but this year I've had to use pulp free as they were sold out of the other.

I also have gotten lazy and skip the sifting of the dry ingredients. Again, I can't tell the difference, but a pro baker might.

Oh, and I use an entire 6 oz pack of fresh cranberries, rinsed and coarsely chopped.

I hope you enjoy it. It's such a favorite at our house that we can't imagine Christmas without it. When my older son was in college, he came home from a rugged semester saying it didn't seem like Christmas at all. On Christmas morning, when I handed him his cranberry orange bread, he stared at it for a long moment. Then he said, "Wow, it really is Christmas."