Not a creature was stirring

You know what I like best about being a Jew on Christmas?

Nothing.

No, really. Doing nothing.

I no longer live in NJ. When I did, the Christmas break from work was often four days long, so I’d visit Heidi here because it was one of the times of year that she was available. But now that I’m here, it’s not my holiday, and I’m not interested in celebrating it, even vicariously. I told Heidi last year that it was probably the last time I would be joining them for Christmas dinner. I want to do Jewish things on Christmas, I told her. Like go to a movie or have Chinese food or hang out at the JCC. Sorena is thirteen now, and old enough to understand why Aunt Meryl won’t be joining them any more, though she put up a fuss last year, which is part of the reason I said yes.

Well, this year, they’re going out of town for the holiday, and I had no intention of joining them even if they stayed in town. But now I have my choice: I can do nothing here, or I can go over to their house and do nothing. They have a big-screen TV. Mine’s a normal-size one. So going over there is a distinct possibility, as my big holiday plans are to watch the Tolkien trilogy. I may actually watch the first film today, because all three extended versions equal a lot of hours for one sitting.

I can’t decide about the where, though. The dog factor is a big part of the formula. I have to determine how much I want to be annoyed by their Great Dane. The other two dogs will simply sit with me, but Tink will expect to be played with and paid attention to. And that’s 125 pounds of dog that wants to be paid attention to. Yeah, I might stay home.

Not for me, those bogus stories about Jews feeling left out on Christmas. It’s not our holiday. It’s as simple as that. My mother used to work every Christmas at Eastern Air Lines, so she could get the doubletime and use it for Rosh Hashanah. Some Jews work on Christmas so that they can give their Christian coworkers time with their families. (Funny how you don’t see many of those articles, but plenty about Jews feeling “left out.”) I used to try to work on Christmas, but none of my companies are open, and they wouldn’t allow me and the other Jews to come in and work. So I gave it up and started enjoying my tradition of doing nothing. Dad used to get a free turkey from Pabst Blue Ribbon, so I’d cook it, and Dave and Eric would come over (this was before Dave was married) and watch football. Okay, they’d watch football, and I’d read, unless it was a good game.

Right now, it’s extremely quiet in my apartment complex. Many people have left to see family, others are (I presume) getting ready for their parties and dinners. I love it. I slept in yesterday morning, with no noise from outside to bother me. Okay, there was a bit of yowling by Gracie an hour before I wanted to get up, but that happens all year long, so it doesn’t count.

Merry Christmas to all my Christian readers. I hope you have a wonderful (and meaningful) holiday. Me? I’m gonna do nothing. Happily.