Now that we're moving, a note on the new location--

Welcome to Simply Xmas' new home at Blogger!

After giving the matter some thought, I decided that I would, after 5+ years on the Wordpress platform,  move Simply Xmas over to Google's Blogger. Suffice it to say there are certain advantages to using Blogger that finally swayed me in this direction. The transfer went suprisingly well, but there were a few glitches that must be corrected.  Beyond that, there is a lot of  "dead wood" in the blog that I am going to cull over the next few days: dated material specific to one geographic region, etc. In the beginning this blog focused heavily on covering the various trappings of the Christmas season in the region where I live, but it has been drifting away from that, and more towards a "general" holiday blog. Henceforth, the focus will be the history of Christmas, Christmas recipes, old and new, Christmas games, stories, poetry, images, thoughts and reflections, and of course, ideas related to how you can simplify your Christmas, making it more joyful and less stressful.

This process of cleaning up should take a week or two, and I should be posting fresh content regularly by no later than Thanksgiving, and possibly even earlier than that. Meanwhile, there's a lot here to look through, if this is your first visit.

Some consider Halloween the traditional "kickoff" of the holiday season. Allow me, then, to say for the first time this year: Happy Holidays!

"Valley Winter Song" - Fountains of Wayne

"Snow-Bound" (1865)

"Good Hours" (1915)

I had for my winter evening walk—
No one at all with whom to talk,
But I had the cottages in a row
Up to their shining eyes in snow.

And I thought I had the folk within:
I had the sound of a violin;
I had a glimpse through curtain laces
Of youthful forms and youthful faces.

I had such company outward bound.
I went till there were no cottages found.
I turned and repented, but coming back
I saw no window but that was black.

Over the snow my creaking feet
Disturbed the slumbering village street
Like profanation, by your leave,
At ten o’clock of a winter eve.

Robert Frost (1874–1963).  North of Boston, 1915.

Snow Day

I crawled out of bed this morning, and after acquiring a cup of Joe, I noticed it was snowing outside. A gentle, lazy snow - none of that wind-driven, white-out stuff. This suddenly called to mind an old Simpson's "snow day" episode....

The story goes that Bart has been doing miserably in school, and is in danger of being held back if he doesn't pass his next exam. That night, after getting corralled by Homer (such a good Dad) into putting off studying in favor of watching a King Kong knockoff, Bart resolves to at long last hit the books. But the hour has grown too late, and in desperation, he prays for a miracle, to buy him some time....

Voila, the next morning, it is snowing. And it turns out that school has been called. But instead of remembering his prayer of the previous night, he grabs his sled and snow goggles and makes a headlong dash for the door. However, waiting for him at that portal to a winter wonderland is Bart's perpetual conscience, his sister Lisa, who reminds him in a philosophical sort of way about his prayer of the previous evening.

So, Bart dutifully trudges back upstairs, and once in his room, a mental war ensues. "Stupid snow day," he says to himself, "how good can it be...?"

But it's good. Looking out the window, he sees a scene of winter joy unparalleled.The whole town is out there, having fun. The crooked, philandering Mayor Quimby even makes an appearance, and from a podium which just happens to be handy announces, "I hereby declare this SNOW DAY - the FUNNEST DAY EVER in Springfield..." Thereafter, everyone in town joins hands in a circle, and begins to sing "Winter Wonderland."

How does it turn out? Does Bart stick to the books and save the day, or does he yield to temptation?

If you haven't seen it, I guess you'll just have to find out.

Click here to watch the entire episode online.

"Make a Flake," online

Here's a fun little online flash utility, for making a digital snowflake. The program folds it for you, and you cut it out with digital scissors. It may take a few trys to get the hang of it, but "undo" and "start over" buttons are provided. Kids will really enjoy this.

http://snowflakes.lookandfeel.com/

After creating and saving your flake, you have the option of saving it in .JPG format, or as an .EPS file (opens in Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator), for further editing. You may also e-mail it to a friend directly from the website.

Don't forget to view the gallery! There are literally thousands of snowflakes there, and they are all downloadable.

Here are two I just created (click on thumbnails to enlarge):