NO Holiday Blues!
A woman told me that she used to wait eleven months for Christmas and it HAD to be all that she expected. She said she felt like “a pressure cooker.” That kind of intense need is what leads to holiday blues and worse. Now just in case things don’t go as you have them planned – someone gets sick, someone missed the plane, gets lost on the road, begs out, fights with you, has a tree fall on their car – let’s set things up so you don’t get the blues. If Tuesday morning comes and it looks like all your dreams for Christmas are coming apart, stop! Start humming “I’ve got a New Attitude” and do these things.
Pick out your favorite music. Is it White Christmas? Grandma Got Run over by a Reindeer? I Heard it through the Grapevine? Whatever it is, put it on to play and sing along – LOUD! Break into a dance.
Find the popcorn, and put that out. Get out the ingredients for cookies. Make a list of what you will need for dinner (if the food was being brought by the guy whose engine died) - a little chicken from the store? A can of gravy? Refrigerator rolls? Cookie sprinkles? Make it easy. Dash out and get it – tell the grocery clerk Happy Holidays or Merry Christmas – which ever you prefer. But cheer them up too!
Get out your favorite movies - Christmas in Connecticut, The Blues Brothers, Lord of the Rings.
Is there anyone you can invite over? Here’s what you say, “It turns out my plans were unexpectedly changed. I would love for you to come by this afternoon. I’m making cookies.”
OK, put on the music. Sing along! Get the food going – even if you’ve settled on a bowl of Rice Krispies. Make the cookies, cut out shapes. No cutters? Use a glass turned upside down.
Put out the cookies. Let people frost them.
Put out the games and a jigsaw puzzle.
Put on the movie.
Now dance, laugh, play.
Feeling like you can relate to the pressure cooker analogy? Call me. I’ll tell you how she fixed it.
Two more Jewish options for Christmas Eve and Day --
Chopshticks
“Chopshticks" is an annual local tradition of great Comedy and gourmet Chinese Food. It's a yearly sell-out and tickets must be purchased in advance. In fact, 2006 sold out so quickly, a second night has been added this year. Why spend the holidays alone when you can spend it laughing out loud with other Jews?
This year's program features a cross-country, comedy triple threat: two fast-rising comics from the East Coast who are garnering great reviews and big laughs: Lenny Marcus and Brad Zimmerman, and exciting Bay Area newcomer Mo Mandel.
Attendees will enjoy a gourmet vegetarian (and fish) dinner at Mings, a beautiful Chinese restaurant in Palo Alto noted for its fine dining and upscale atmosphere. The multi-course meal includes a cocktail hour for the first hour.
Dates: Monday Dec. 24th at 7 pm
Tuesday Dec. 25th at 6 pm
Place: Palo Alto JCC, 1700 Embarcadero Rd., Palo Alto
Cost: Tickets are $70 per person or $700 for a table for ten.
Information: 650-493-9400
www.paloaltojcc.org
Young Adult: Meet and Greet / Chinese Food
This month's Young Adult Meet & Greet will coincide with an annual Jewish tradition: Chinese food on Christmas. While other folks will deck the halls and fa la la we'll enjoy a vegetarian meal at Mandarin Gourmet. It'll be just the thing to help you recover from the Latke Ball the night before.
Date: Tuesday December 25, 2007
Time: 7:00pm
Place: Mandarin Gourmet, 10145 N. De Anza Blvd., Cupertino
RSVP IF YOU WANT US TO SAVE YOU A SEAT!!
RSVP by emailing Aleeza at cbdyag[at]gmail.com
Contact: Michael Goldberger at Beth David (sponsoring synagogue) goldberger@beth-david.org
Cost: Pay for dinner there, dinner will be around $20/person
http://cbdyag.wordpress.com/
