Brisket and Jelly Donuts

This morning my wife rolled out of bed at 7 am to put a brisket in the slow cooker. She then fed our cat and when he was done eating, she sent him in to wake me, which he did willingly. Twenty minutes later we were on our way to Star Donuts in Draper to pick up a half dozen jelly donuts. Now, I will tell you that as we venture into our late seventies, we don’t see 7 am very often. I do wake that early once a week to take care of cats at Best Friends Animal Society, but that is about it for early rising. So, did we have a sudden craving for Brisket and Jelly Donuts? Nope. It is the second night of Hannukah and we are having friends for a traditional Hannukah dinner. Jelly Donuts, you say? I’ll get to that in a minute.

Happy. Merry. Utah.

I know many people worry about how we greet one another during this holiday season. Christians insist on Merry Christmas, not Happy Holidays. Some Jews are offended if someone wishes them Merry Christmas instead of Happy Chanukah. I don’t know anyone who celebrates Kwanzaa or Festivus (for the rest of us) but given human nature, it wouldn’t surprise me if some of them were offended by the incorrect holiday greeting. Personally, I am not offended by any greeting I receive at this time of year. I will take all the good wishes offered me, no questions asked.

Holiday Shopping

It is the lunch hour and I am sitting in the park, taking a break from my first successful shopping day of the Holiday Season.   I say Holiday Season, by the way, not because of any tendency toward political correctness but because Muri and I celebrate both Hannukah and Christmas … and Holiday Season is much easier to type than Hannukah and Christmas Season.  Twenty letters easier if I’ve spelled Hannukah correctly.   I left the house this morning frustrated because until today, I’d found very few gifts on my previous trips to what my grandchildren like to call The Stores.  As in, Where did you go today, Savy?  We went to The Stores with Mommy.  Mommy, by the way, REALLY likes The Stores.  Since the Holiday Season only comes around once a year, I tend to forget that’s that is my Holiday Shopping modus operandi … I need to make multiple trips to The Stores and, often, multiple passes through the same store to get some ideas and to decide what I don’t want.   Then … usually a few days before The Holidays … I have a day like today.   I get up early in the morning to hit the stores before they get busy and things practically jump off the shelves into my cart.  I’m Santa, spreading cheer to other shoppers in line and sales people tired of harried customers.   I remember how much I love buying presents for people and in my seventies, it doesn’t even matter if my son, who never gives me a Christmas list, will likely return 75% of what I buy him.  It’s the thought that counts, right?