polar [covid] express

 covid be damned, it's time to get out a little.

the past couple of years have seen a lot of events be canceled.  thrilled that the [polar express] is back!  an even that i've been wanting to check out for years now.

so although everyone was in masks including the big man himself, it was nothing short of the perfect way to get into the holiday mood.

[december] dynasty

santa might be the only celebrity out there who knows how to handle his status.

we live in a world that loves to criticize; a world that forces you to take sides. people want you to either be for something or against it, and then tell you opposing views no matter what side you're on. social media only adds fuel to this feuding fire.  unfortunately even the big guy up north can't escape the critics. whether it's related to religion, race, commercialism, or questioning the fact if he even exists, santa has his skeptics as well.

the major problem i feel is people are forgetting; santa can be whatever you want him to be!  that's one of the best qualities about him.  there are no solid facts involving santa.  he doesn't have a facebook account giving his bio, he post no long rants on twitter, he doesn't "check in" on path anywhere, he doesn't blog about his workshop, he's managed to keep himself away from the paparazzi and has no outlandish videos on youtube.  as far as i know, he's never held any sort of press conference to come out on any official views or opinions. basically he is completely unlike any celebrity or reality star we currently know and frankly, we're not sure how to handle it.

santa knows what he's doing; living way up north, away from everyone else, working at night, coming to town only once a year. every single one of his actions allows us to use our imagination to custom discover who he is.  people have forgotten the magic of this merry muse and the inspiration he gifts us all.

as a child i whole hardily believed in santa. the scenes my little imagination would create were priceless.  i'd spend weeks writing letters to him telling him how good i had been that year, and reflecting back on those events i chose to leave out. falling asleep, nights were spent wondering what his workshop looked like located in a snow filled wonderland. i'd try to figure out how he made it around the world in one night, the different roofs and chimney's he'd encounter, how he and his elves made all those wonderful gifts and how big his bag would have to be to carry them all.  the amazing thing about a child's brain is it isn't cluttered with reality yet, and anything seemed possible.  adulthood is weighted down enough with responsibilities, rules and facts; i sometimes miss the days when flying across the sky in a sleigh powered by eight tiny reindeer made perfect, logical sense.

in a world filled with endless information and digital facts at your fingertips, i feel we're not leaving much room for pure imagination.  creative people around the world and throughout the centuries have had this jolly elf to thank for the inspiration of countless stories, poems, tales, songs, plays, musicals, and movies.  all creating a warm and romantic vision for these cold months.  a vision, of the character we all long to be like this time of year. a vision that's transcended fads, fashions, politics, borders, and technology throughout the centuries.

santa is not like the celebrities we constantly hear about in the news. he's above all that, and we owe it to him to treat him as such.  instead of treating santa like some diva ranting on twitter, or some reality tv star stating a polarizing opinion, please treat santa better. let him be a merry muse. use your imagination and let him be whoever you see fit to bring a little more joy into the season.

to me, santa is a bit like a father figure, a completely selfless person providing insight and wisdom…but then again, i might be bias.

now dasher, now dancer, now prancer and [hipster]

the christmas spirit has been in full force the past couple of days.  i've tried to stay focused at work, but visions of sugar plums keep dancing around in my head, along with all the other seasonal treats filling up the office kitchen.

so in between writing parodies to "the night before christmas" in my head, and testing out the new flickr app, it occurred to me today santa is actually a little bit of a hipster...though he would never admit it.  however, after looking at and analyzing a few of his traits, it's surprising his workshop isn't located in williamsburg or portlandia.

that being said, i give you the top 15 reasons santa is the ultimate holiday hipster.

1. he's really into red pants, although i'm sure he opted out of the "skinny" fit.

2. vintage patent leather boots. very rock star.

3. ironic stocking cap.

4. wears the same outfit ALL the time...like he can't afford anything else.

5. runs a vertical integrated company which uses local labor. very american apparel.

6. very into d.i.y. products and making handmade goods found on mrs clause's pinterest page.

7. owns a lot of vintage toys, which he occasionally sells on his etsy page.

8. into alternative forms of transportation. it doesn't get any "greener" than reindeer.

9. lives "off the grid," commune style.

10. always seems to be dingy and covered in soot.

11. works really hard for one day, then takes an extended vacation.

12. has been to SO many cooler places than you.

13. finds cigarettes and cigars too pedestrian, so he smokes a pipe.

14. talks smack on "commercialism", yet he still works at the mall.

and the clincher!

15. a long, bushy, lumber-jack-like, 19th century styled beard.


any other traits proving jolly old st. nick is a hipster?

[elf] promotion

so i have a little secret.

i know santa...pretty well actually.

so well in fact i use to work as an elf for him at a local christmas tree farm when i was younger.  i say younger, but the truth is i was an elf until i was thirteen, which, even in elf years, is pretty old.  trust me, there's nothing more embarrassing than having girls you know from your high school see you dressed in red and green from head to toe, complete with suspenders and an extra long elf-like stocking cap.

oh well....situations like that build character...i think.

luckily for me however, that was the last year for my elf duties. the owner of the tree farm approached me that season and asked if i'd like to work for him the next year harvesting trees.  i saw this as a huge promotion within the kringle organization and eagerly said yes.

i ended up working at the farm every season through out the rest of high school, and loved every minute of it.  nothing could have put me more in the christmas spirit than being surrounded by hundreds of evergreens with families excited about picking one out for their home.  i could have enjoyed working there several more years, but with as with everything in this life, time kicks in and you move on.  i went to college, then got a job and slowly my christmas tree days became a found but distant memory.

this past weekend though, i had the urge to visit some of my christmas past, and rekindle some of that christmas spirit again, so i ventured out to the tree farm.  i had also heard from a very reliable source my old boss would be out there.  i stopped by and talked with the big guy for a bit and watched kids whisper to him what they wanted for christmas.  i also chatted up my other boss, the owner of the tree farm, and just like in 1998, talked about k-state football.  the whole visit only lasted about 30 minutes, but it was an excellent way to start the season.

so whatever traditions you or your family may have this time of year, i hope you enjoy them, it really does make the season that much richer.