Christmas Meme

I've been memed by Sapientiae Amator. OK, here goes:

1. Hot Chocolate or apple cider?

Hot chocolate, I suppose, but I also really enjoy orange chocolate, that delightful drink wherein orange juice is substituted for the milk (and sugar is left out). Reminds me of the “chocolate orange” one can buy at Trader Joe’s.

2. Turkey or Ham?

Ham. I’m from Arkansas, where the state mascot is a pig, and I suppose that has corrupted me. I like most greasy foods.

3. Do you get a fake or a real Christmas tree?

We had a small fake one for a while, but we don’t have one at the moment. I’m thinking about waiting until the day after Christmas to buy another fake. Eventually my hope is to have a real but potted tree that I can move in and out of the house.

4. Decorations on the outside of your house?

No, but my neighbor has an enormous plastic bubble with a giant Santa’s sleigh that moves round and round. I figure he has enough in his yard for the two of us.

5. Do you prefer a white Christmas?

I grew up with cold but brown Christmas’s and did not experience the “White Christmas” until adult years. In the end, I suppose I prefer the snowy weather because it encourages everyone to stay inside and pursue leisurely conversation over a hot cup of something.

6. Do you enjoy singing Christmas carols?

Yes. I’m working at teaching my children to sing, but the progress is slow.

7. Favorite Christmas carol?

Well, define “carol”. Is there a difference between “carol” and “hymn” when it comes to Christmas music? Taking “carol” to be folksy but not exclusive of religious subjects, I suppose my favorite is “O Holy Night”. If we can include non-folksy stuff and if Advent music counts, then my favorite by far is Rorate Coeli.

8. How do you feel about Christmas movies?

I like “It’s a Wonderful Life” and “A Christmas Carol”. All the others I have seen are entirely devoid of the religious element that makes Christmas tick—and even those two are on the border in some ways. In general, my family does not watch movies more than once or twice a year.

9. Favorite Christmas movie?

One of the two mentioned above.

10. Stockings before or after presents?

Before, or whenever. I don’t see the point of them otherwise. Manifestly the idea of having gifts hidden in stockings is so that children can discover them, not so that they can be fitted into some kind of pre-arranged schedule.

11. Do you open a present or presents on Christmas Eve, or wait until Christmas day?

Always Christmas Day. And the next day. And the next. Hopefully we can reach the point of having gifts for all twelve days.

12. Go to someone else's house?

This is our first year entirely at home—ask me later what I thought of it!

13. Do you read the Nativity Story? If so when?

We read it in various forms again and again throughout the Advent season. It’s a kind of catechesis for our children.

14. Do you go to Mass on Christmas Eve, at midnight, or Christmas morning?

It varies depending on the ages of the children.

15. What is your favorite holiday smell?

I don’t have a strong sense of smell, so I suspect that this particular avenue of holiday appreciation is less intense for me than for other people. That said, everything with (a) nutmeg, (b) cinnamon, or (c) fresh evergreen is a winner.