First Annual, "Give 'Em The Boot" Award

Sorry I'm so late today. I was having technology issues.

Today's creative idea is compliments of Kristen G.

But, first. On a serious note I want to say thank you. This holiday season has been extra fun for me. I've spent time thinking about why and I am convinced part of the reason is because I've gotten to share it with all of you. It's funny. We are spread out all over the country and each of us lives busy lives with lots of competing demands. But, each day - if only for a moment - we come together and share a small piece of ourselves (holiday traditions, childhood memories, anxieties). If you would have told me a year ago that I would have spent an evening admiring many of your Christmas trees, receiving holiday cards from you, or hanging ornaments on my tree from places I haven't been or people I didn't know, I would have said you are crazy. But what a difference a year and some spirited, willing, and committed people can make.

Again, thank you (lurkers and active readers) for entering my small corner of the world and making it richer.

Just as exciting as you entering my world is this... many of you contacted me, outside of the blog, asking for mailing addresses of fellow readers or asking questions about what he/she might like for a present. That pleases me beyond measure. It means we are truly a community, not bound together by me or anything I might post on a given day. It means, if I were to leave tomorrow, the spirit of this blog - the spirit of #218 - would continue without me. Pretty remarkable considering that less than a year ago we didn't exist. It ranks right up there, among the top reasons this Christmas was so merry.

Albeit sincere, enough mush.

Let's get busy talking trash. Per Kristen's suggestion, today we are going to start a new Highlowaha tradition. Today, one lucky (or unlucky, as the case may be) reader will win the "Give Them the Boot Award." This award will go to the person who has the funniest, most outrageous, or most hideous holiday story... about a family member or holiday guest! It could be anything from a crazy family feud, an aunt or uncle's distracting quirk, an office mates horrible display of table manners, and everything in between.

The winner receives a carefully selected and highly coveted purple boot ornament. He or she will keep the ornament through next December 26, when -after another year of stiff competition - it gets passed along to the next winner.

I wish I had some great story to kick us off. I wish I could tell you about my uncle who slurps soup, my aunt who mooned the neighbors, the drunk neighbor who got carried away with mistletoe, or the sister who managed to find the single most useless chatchka to wrap up and call a Christmas gift. But, I can't. I tout myself as creative and yet, I can't seem to twist, turn, or distort a single Christmas occurrence to fit the criterion.

Help me, before our first annual competition dies a quick death.

Signing off until tomorrow...