Cuddle Up Day  [Jan 6]

Of course the perfect way to recharge yourself is to not think of anything and lay in bed. It's a time for you to say screw everything else and stay in bed for the whole day. It'll be even better if you had your significant O with ya. Last year on Cuddle Up Day, my partners in bed were Jimmy, Jenny, Billy and there was another whose name I forgot. I really had a nice day and got completely recharged.

Have a last cuddle before you get back to work this Cuddle Up Day and you'll be totally recharged. Some "alone time" can be really nice. The point is that you recharge! Trust me, your co-workers will appreciate it! Nobody likes a grumpy colleague who's about to go postal in the New Year!

Bad Hangover Day  [Jan 1]

The New Year Day is obviously always a Bad Hangover Day. I mean come on people don't tell me you don't usually have a hangover. There's no cure for that I tell ya!

But overall, have a good time with friends and family because that's the most important thing. Make sure you have warm clothes - you don't want to end up on the sidewalk and freeze to death in the middle of the night. And most importantly, be safe! 

New Year's Eve  [Dec 31]

I guess this New Year's Eve will not be like last time. Aaliyah and I went to the big party at Time Square last year. We've only seen it on TV so we decided to freeze our butts off and join the crowd. It was really great. Something about mass madness is so exhilarating. I think this year is going to be a quiet one - we are getting together at the Guinness bar two blocks down from my place. Adrian's going to be there so we can catch up on lost time.

Call-A-Friend Day  [Dec 28]

It's official folks, Aaliyah and I are no longer an item. Maybe it's because of my quirky humor, maybe it's because of my not getting out the bling, bling and stepping it up a notch. We mutually called it off after Christmas. She wanted to pursue her Ph.D. in Anthropology and a long distance relationship was not going to work for either of us.

What about you? Do you have a friend you call when you need someone to talk to? Or even to just say "hello"? Holidays can be real lonely at times but hey, there will always be friends who answer your call.

Fruitcake Day  [Dec 27]

What is it about Fruitcake that people hate so much? I mean it's just cake, people! But when every December comes, fruitcake bears the butt of all jokes. We used to joke on the stoop about each other's fruitcakes. My favorite is: "Your mama's fruitcake is so heavy they had to hire a hand truck to haul it in!"

Poor, poor fruitcake! But hey, what will we do without fruitcake humor during the holidays? Besides, it's an ancestor cake to those other breads and cakes that are fruitcake-like, including black cake, dreikonigsbrot, babka, king cake, and even panettone! Think about it, and it'll make you appreciate it more. The holidays would be so boring if we couldn't crack jokes about mom's fruitcake. After all, there are good fruitcakes out there ya know, you just have to sift through the rubble. (Pun intended.)

Wintery Birthdays

The trouble with being broke all the time is that it takes up all of your time. During the holidays many of us come up short and this year, even my credit cards have scorch marks. Aaliyah's been a bit of a nag asking for something glittery for Christmas, there's a secret Santa party at the office, there's my party at my place, and there are four birthdays I need to celebrate. SIGH! It's soooo overwhelming with all this stuff to get.

Now, Rick's birthday can be celebrated at the local pub, but my boss is another story. He's combining this year's office dinner with his birthday. So I need to find something cheap or split the cost with someone to get something anyway. The question is: what do you get for the guy who has everything? He's not just any guy either. He's an eco fanatic caught up in the whole Gore choir of global warming and how we need to "save the earth." He wouldn't want anything that wasn't recycled, reused or reduced.

I was discussing this with Donna while hanging around her cubicle. "I have an idea," she said, "what about a used book? He's a big fan of the classics." It sounded good to me. I thought, "How much can a used book cost?" We headed down to the Battery towards The Strand after work. Donna found a perfect book that we both can chip in money for. She said it was $450. "$450!!!" I almost shouted in the store. "Shhhhhhh," Donna tried to calm me down.

Folks I know I might be a cheapskate sometimes, but there is an ABSOLUTE LOGICAL REASON that we're talking here. I'm not going to spend that much money on a book! Then Donna explained to me that it's a rare first edition French book about a Greek sailor who got ship wrecked and through a series of events, became an advisor to the king of Siam. Ya, you read my mind, "WHOA" was it! This book was written back in 1697, so ya, of course it costs that much.

Donna tried to persuade me. She cajoled me, then threatened me. But I would not budge! NO WAY am I going to pay. Then I remembered that Clinton just came to sign autographs uptown in Harlem so I suggested that we go there and see if there are any autographed versions left. Donna agreed to the compromise. We got to The Hue-Man store and of course the Clinton copies were not there. But we found Al Gore's "The Assault on Reason," which I've heard him say that he wanted to read but never got around to getting it. I told Donna about it and we FINALLY reached an agreement. So we got the book.

We reached the counter to pay and I told Donna that we're going to split the bill. She was outraged, "WHAT? Split a $25 book?!"
"Hey Donna, SHHHHH! It's the holiday season I'm broke. Besides, I got you a present." Donna started smiling. "I guess it's the thought that counts. You're right, I have to watch my spending too." Well, at least we achieved our objective. Now we have a birthday present for the boss!

Christmas  [Dec 25]

Christmas is supposed to be fun. It's supposed to be a time when you get together with your buddies and have a blast. But for Mrs. Radcliffe that wasn't the case.

It was a great scene because we had an older lady, middle aged couple and preppy Talbot's kids running around with my hipster and goth friends. Now, THAT's surreal! They all loved it of course and we had a grand time. They loved it so much that we're going to have a party at my place this Christmas too! And yes, NO SUGAR for the kids! I hope they tire themselves out and go to sleep early.