'Tis the season! Mel and I went out last night to walk around the Southlake Shopping Center (we are still in Texas) and enjoyed the beautiful evening. It was a rare night with a slight cool breeze occasionally tousling our hair as we walked hand in hand around the outdoor mall, doing nothing more than window shopping and gazing at all the newly installed Christmas decorations in all the shops.

I got so excited when we saw many workers putting up Christmas lights all over the place, and I even got a picture of some men placing lights on the top of the gazebo! I think Mel and I will go out tonight so we can see if they are lit yet. I just can't help it, I love Christmas! I can hardly wait until the radio stations start up with the Christmas music! My radio will not play anything but Christmas music until the holidays are at an end.

We ended the evening with pizza and a glass of wine at a wood-fired pizza parlor, then went over to Central Market to buy a few odds and ends to nosh.

We have really wanted to watch a movie or something, but I have been so exhausted I haven't been able to muster up the energy to concentrate! Days off are rare treats for me and I like for my brain to take a holiday too!

Debi drove in to Dallas yesterday and we did go to see "The Nightmare Before Christmas"  in digital 3D. It was awesome! I love that movie so much!

I can hardly wait until Thanksgiving since that's usually when Melinda and I start to watch our favorite Christmas movies. We almost always start with "Christmas in Connecticut" and then "White Christmas". We always hope for a chilly day to kick off our Christmas movie marathons, but sometimes living in Texas hasn't accommodated us. I doubt Vegas will be any more accommodating to our desires.

Without a doubt my favorite Christmas movies are the above mentioned,  along with "Elf", "Miracle on 34^th Street" (the original, not the 90's version), "Christmas Vacation", "The Santa Clause", "The Bishop's Wife",  "Scrooged" (with Bill Murray), "Scrooge" (with Albert Finny), "A Christmas Carol" (with Patrick Stewart) and "The Muppet Christmas Carol". In fact, Mel and I will watch just about every version of "A Christmas Carol" there is, including the Mr. Magoo version. We always end the season with a viewing of "It's a Wonderful Life", and we are happily spent until the next Christmas season arrives and we can start it all over again!

There are many more Christmas movies we love, but the ones I mentioned are our favorites. I didn't even mention the TV shows like "Rudolph" and "Frosty" and "A Charlie Brown Christmas"! Why, Christmas just wouldn't be Christmas without our old friends joining us in our darkened room curled up with some freshly popped popcorn and the lights from the Christmas tree dancing, their reflection bright on TV screen. We don't watch anything not Christmassy during the season, and I always get so excited to start.

I'm sure Melinda and I are not the only ones to celebrate this joyous time in this manner. Something wonderful happens inside of me and it makes me so happy to be alive and I feel like I'm a kid all over again! I only hope that you experience this wonderful feeling as well. If not, then cast aside those old worn out adult-colored glasses for just a little while and marvel in the wonder of a child, if only for a day or two. Just for a brief moment, believe in Santa. Maybe, just maybe, something beyond this dreary mundane planet really does exist! If not, then what the heck, at least you got to have a little fun!

By the way, if you haven't ordered it yet, my book is available on Amazon.com HERE and it will make a great Christmas gift! Again, my sneakiness comes through, and I turn a nice little diatribe on Christmas cheer into a commercial for my book. But it really would be a great Christmas gift. It has it all, Thrills! Chills! Sad stuff and happy stuff! Triumph over adversity! I mean, who wouldn't enjoy all that? I'm just saying…

Until my next blog, Happy Thanksgiving, faithful Fator Tots! And if you are in another country that doesn't celebrate Thanksgiving, well, have a happy day, and maybe think about showing how grateful you are for the life you have by stuffing yourself silly and taking a nap during your favorite sporting event. Believe me, it's a terrific way to spent a day once a year!