Snowed Out

Sometimes getting from point A to point B doesn't go as smoothly as planned.

A couple days ago, after several hours at Palm Beach International airport, I snapped this picture in the 'rebooking' line where overwhelmed agents were trying to rebook travelers whose flights were cancelled due to the blizzard in the Northeast.

While a snow day in New York is usually very pretty and fun (while you usually can't make it to work, you somehow can make it to a cozy tavern to meet up with friends, your fellow pioneers in the snow), this snow day sounded a bit more extreme. Tales of people trapped in the subway for 8 hours (my personal idea of hell), sleeping at closed airports, and friends in that start and stop momentum who've been trying to leave the city since Sunday for New Years destinations in LA, Montreal and Miami. I keep seeing a video on the Weather Channel showing a snow plow crashing into an unfortunate SUV parked on the street right in Brooklyn Heights, and my neighbor Stacey has told me that Grace Court still isn't plowed yet.

Weather delays definitely causes some 'non yoga moments', as my friend Karen would say. The rebooking line didn't seem to hold a lot of people going with the flow, and accepting the inevitability of change, and that most things don't go according to plan. Thoughts of "life is a journey, not a destination" didn't seem to be top of mind when you're in line for multiple hours, with your fellow travelers who are frantically on phones, blackberries and ipads, changing plans, trying to figure out how to travel (or where to stay for several days) when there are no flights, cars or trains, and airports are closed.


I am now going to be closing out the year in South Florida, with an extended palm tree and sunshine pause while New York digs out. Unfortunately the little squad above has already left for Park City and the Bahamas, but I will have QT with my father and some other friends, while embracing the notion that in addition to the journey, life is also a wonderful adventure!

'Twas the day before Christmas

Down in Who-Ville, we're all preparing for Christmas. Making several versions of Office Max "Elf Yourself" with my nieces. A festive group dinner with everyone last night, dressed in our Loblolly best. Tales of holiday meltdowns in stores. My sister just leaving to run to Publix (again), and the mall (again). A big day ahead of cooking and cleaning and last minute wrapping and dressing for Christmas Eve.

With all the prep for the big day, even without all of the above, it would come anyway....

Every Who
Down in Who-ville
Liked Christmas a lot...

But the Grinch,
Who lived just North of Who-ville,
Did NOT!

The Grinch hated Christmas! The whole Christmas season!
Now, please don't ask why. No one quite knows the reason.
It could be that his head wasn't screwed on quite right.
It could be, perhaps, that his shoes were too tight.
But I think that the most likely reason of all
May have been that his heart was two sizes too small.

But,
Whatever the reason,
His heart or his shoes,
He stood there on Christmas Eve, hating the Whos,
Staring down from his cave with a sour, Grinchy frown
At the warm lighted windows below in their town.
For he knew every Who down in Who-ville beneath
Was busy now, hanging a mistleoe wreath.

"And they're hanging their stockings!" he snarled with a sneer.
"Tomorrow is Christmas! It's practically here!"
Then he growled, with his grinch fingers nervously drumming,
"I MUST find a way to keep Christmas from coming!"
For, tomorrow, he knew...

...All the Who girls and boys
Would wake up bright and early. They'd rush for their toys!
And then! Oh, the noise! Oh, the noise! Noise! Noise! Noise!
That's one thing he hated! The NOISE! NOISE! NOISE! NOISE!

Then the Whos, young and old, would sit down to a feast.
And they'd feast! And they'd feast!
And they'd FEAST! FEAST! FEAST! FEAST!
They would start on Who-pudding, and rare Who-roast-beast
Which was something the Grinch couldn't stand in the least!

And THEN
They'd do something he liked least of all!
Every Who down in Who-ville, the tall and the small,
Would stand close together, with Christmas bells ringing.
They'd stand hand-in-hand. And the Whos would start singing!

They'd sing! And they'd sing!
AND they'd SING! SING! SING! SING!
And the more the Grinch thought of the Who-Christmas-Sing
The more the Grinch thought, "I must stop this whole thing!
"Why for fifty-three years I've put up with it now!
I MUST stop Christmas from coming!
...But HOW?"

Then he got an idea!
An awful idea!
THE GRINCH
GOT A WONDERFUL, AWFUL IDEA!

"I know just what to do!" The Grinch Laughed in his throat.
And he made a quick Santy Claus hat and a coat.
And he chuckled, and clucked, "What a great Grinchy trick!
"With this coat and this hat, I'll look just like Saint Nick!"

"All I need is a reindeer..."
The Grinch looked around.
But since reindeer are scarce, there was none to be found.
Did that stop the old Grinch...?
No! The Grinch simply said,
"If I can't find a reindeer, I'll make one instead!"
So he called his dog Max. Then he took some red thread
And he tied a big horn on top of his head.

THEN
He loaded some bags
And some old empty sacks
On a ramshakle sleigh
And he hitched up old Max.

Then the Grinch said, "Giddyap!"
And the sleigh started down
Toward the homes where the Whos
Lay a-snooze in their town.

All their windows were dark. Quiet snow filled the air.
All the Whos were all dreaming sweet dreams without care
When he came to the first house in the square.
"This is stop number one," The old Grinchy Claus hissed
And he climbed to the roof, empty bags in his fist.

Then he slid down the chimney. A rather tight pinch.
But if Santa could do it, then so could the Grinch.
He got stuck only once, for a moment or two.
Then he stuck his head out of the fireplace flue
Where the little Who stockings all hung in a row.
"These stockings," he grinned, "are the first things to go!"

Then he slithered and slunk, with a smile most unpleasant,
Around the whole room, and he took every present!
Pop guns! And bicycles! Roller skates! Drums!
Checkerboards! Tricycles! Popcorn! And plums!
And he stuffed them in bags. Then the Grinch, very nimbly,
Stuffed all the bags, one by one, up the chimney!

Then he slunk to the icebox. He took the Whos' feast!
He took the Who-pudding! He took the roast beast!
He cleaned out that icebox as quick as a flash.
Why, that Grinch even took their last can of Who-hash!

Then he stuffed all the food up the chimney with glee.
"And NOW!" grinned the Grinch, "I will stuff up the tree!"

And the Grinch grabbed the tree, and he started to shove
When he heard a small sound like the coo of a dove.
He turned around fast, and he saw a small Who!
Little Cindy-Lou Who, who was not more than two.

The Grinch had been caught by this little Who daughter
Who'd got out of bed for a cup of cold water.
She stared at the Grinch and said, "Santy Claus, why,
"Why are you taking our Christmas tree? WHY?"

But, you know, that old Grinch was so smart and so slick
He thought up a lie, and he thought it up quick!
"Why, my sweet little tot," the fake Santy Claus lied,
"There's a light on this tree that won't light on one side.
"So I'm taking it home to my workshop, my dear.
"I'll fix it up there. Then I'll bring it back here."

And his fib fooled the child. Then he patted her head
And he got her a drink and he sent he to bed.
And when Cindy-Lou Who went to bed with her cup,
HE went to the chimney and stuffed the tree up!

Then the last thing he took
Was the log for their fire.
Then he went up the chimney himself, the old liar.
On their walls he left nothing but hooks, and some wire.

And the one speck of food
The he left in the house
Was a crumb that was even too small for a mouse.


Then
He did the same thing
To the other Whos' houses

Leaving crumbs
Much too small
For the other Whos' mouses!

It was quarter past dawn...
All the Whos, still a-bed
All the Whos, still a-snooze
When he packed up his sled,
Packed it up with their presents! The ribbons! The wrappings!
The tags! And the tinsel! The trimmings! The trappings!

Three thousand feet up! Up the side of Mount Crumpit,
He rode to the tiptop to dump it!
"Pooh-pooh to the Whos!" he was grinch-ish-ly humming.
"They're finding out now that no Christmas is coming!
"They're just waking up! I know just what they'll do!
"Their mouths will hang open a minute or two
"The all the Whos down in Who-ville will all cry BOO-HOO!"

"That's a noise," grinned the Grinch,
"That I simply must hear!"
So he paused. And the Grinch put a hand to his ear.
And he did hear a sound rising over the snow.
It started in low. Then it started to grow...

But the sound wasn't sad!
Why, this sound sounded merry!
It couldn't be so!
But it WAS merry! VERY!

He stared down at Who-ville!
The Grinch popped his eyes!
Then he shook!
What he saw was a shocking surprise!

Every Who down in Who-ville, the tall and the small,
Was singing! Without any presents at all!
He HADN'T stopped Christmas from coming!
IT CAME!
Somehow or other, it came just the same!

And the Grinch, with his grinch-feet ice-cold in the snow,
Stood puzzling and puzzling: "How could it be so?
It came without ribbons! It came without tags!
"It came without packages, boxes or bags!"
And he puzzled three hours, `till his puzzler was sore.
Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn't before!
"Maybe Christmas," he thought, "doesn't come from a store.
"Maybe Christmas...perhaps...means a little bit more!"

And what happened then...?
Well...in Who-ville they say
That the Grinch's small heart
Grew three sizes that day!
And the minute his heart didn't feel quite so tight,
He whizzed with his load through the bright morning light
And he brought back the toys! And the food for the feast!
And he...

...HE HIMSELF...!
The Grinch carved the roast beast!
~Dr Seuss

Believing in Santa

A couple days ago we visited Santa at the Gardens mall in South Florida. My niece Ellie said, "I know he's not the real Santa, but I want to talk to him anyway."

Ellie's older sister Katy didn't want to see him and has been pretty quiet so far around the subject of Santa. My sister and I have discussed this, and we wondered, like I did last year, if Katy believes as strongly as Ellie does.

I'm reprinting this editorial from The New York Sun in 1897 to remind us all that believing in what we can't see is the only way to really live.


DEAR EDITOR: I am 8 years old.
"Some of my little friends say there is no Santa Claus.
"Papa says, 'If you see it in THE SUN it's so.'
"Please tell me the truth; is there a Santa Claus?

"VIRGINIA O'HANLON.
"115 WEST NINETY-FIFTH STREET."

VIRGINIA, your little friends are wrong. They have been affected by the skepticism of a skeptical age. They do not believe except [what] they see. They think that nothing can be which is not comprehensible by their little minds. All minds, Virginia, whether they be men's or children's, are little. In this great universe of ours man is a mere insect, an ant, in his intellect, as compared with the boundless world about him, as measured by the intelligence capable of grasping the whole of truth and knowledge.

Yes, VIRGINIA, there is a Santa Claus. He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist, and you know that they abound and give to your life its highest beauty and joy. Alas! how dreary would be the world if there were no Santa Claus. It would be as dreary as if there were no VIRGINIAS. There would be no childlike faith then, no poetry, no romance to make tolerable this existence. We should have no enjoyment, except in sense and sight. The eternal light with which childhood fills the world would be extinguished.

Not believe in Santa Claus! You might as well not believe in fairies! You might get your papa to hire men to watch in all the chimneys on Christmas Eve to catch Santa Claus, but even if they did not see Santa Claus coming down, what would that prove? Nobody sees Santa Claus, but that is no sign that there is no Santa Claus. The most real things in the world are those that neither children nor men can see. Did you ever see fairies dancing on the lawn? Of course not, but that's no proof that they are not there. Nobody can conceive or imagine all the wonders there are unseen and unseeable in the world.

You may tear apart the baby's rattle and see what makes the noise inside, but there is a veil covering the unseen world which not the strongest man, nor even the united strength of all the strongest men that ever lived, could tear apart. Only faith, fancy, poetry, love, romance, can push aside that curtain and view and picture the supernal beauty and glory beyond. Is it all real? Ah, VIRGINIA, in all this world there is nothing else real and abiding.

No Santa Claus! Thank God! he lives, and he lives forever. A thousand years from now, Virginia, nay, ten times ten thousand years from now, he will continue to make glad the heart of childhood.

Be The Change

Last weekend I had gone to the American Museum of Natural History, which is stunning in its breadth and scope, and certainly grounds one's thinking as a member of the Vertebrae family: Specifically, how the human species uniquely creates the largest impact (and therefore has the largest responsibility) for the millions of other species on this mid-sized planet with limited resources that we all share.

One of the species we're responsible for of course is our own.

Living in New York, most of us are confronted with poverty and social issues on a very regular basis, passing by people living on the streets, begging for money or food, and shivering in December temperatures. Though we are very fortunate to live in rich city, in a rich and generous nation, and its actually pretty hard to imagine how life must be in other parts of the world...

...Where babies regularly die from malnutrition and low birth weight. Where children die from water born disease. Where HIV positive mothers create a cycle of pediatric Aids because they cannot get to a health clinic for necessary medicine to prevent passing on the disease to their unborn children. Where one billion people on our planet don't have access to clean water.
Where this message, outside of the Hall of Biodiversity at the American Museum of Natural History gives perspective about our future, which includes all the children of the world.


Last night, 20/20 , with support from The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, dedicated an entire show to some of the world's worst health problems. charity: water, an organization that began when a regular New York guy decided to stop living just for himself, and make a positive change to help others, was featured as well as several other stories featuring remarkable solutions that are literally saving millions of lives.

I had mentioned the upcoming airing to Karen, a good friend from work, and she commented, "The world is a mess, we need more people like that guy."

ABC News (with my hero Diane Sawyer), is using its reach and resources, to open our eyes to what is really happening in the world with an impressive year long initiative called "Be the Change: Save a Life", which will bring awareness and attention to the most pressing global health challenges, and inspire us to act.

Because we can all actually be 'that guy.'

We are Fam-a-lee

The other day when I was bringing a bag of wrapped presents to the UPS Store to ship to South Florida, the packer commented "You have a big family there." (with full Brooklyn accent, where 'there' is pronounced 'they-ah'). I smiled, as realized he was right.

A few years years ago, when our family of four first began celebrating Christmas with my brother-in-law Travis' family, a couple of weren't quite sure how things would go. Turns out, quite well. A couple years later after some Christmas Eve cocktails my brother-in-law informed me that I "needed to marry someone Jewish, who has no family or hates his family (!)" so we'd always be together and "not have to be with his squad every other year." And as Jason (who is my sister's brother-in-law, in other words - Travis' sister Stacy's husband) pointed out "You've even scored some godchildren out of the deal".

Life expands and families do too with new lives who've entered the world in the past 10 years you cannot imagine life without. And in-laws, out-laws, cousins, grandparents, step-parents, boyfriends, girlfriends and all the people you're not technically related to, but who you love, and are family to you.

Sometimes of course things are much less picture perfect like above, especially when there's a pack of kids powered by sugar and lack of sleep, ambitious schedules and adults who need naps too! And like in every family, sometimes this includes stepped on feelings, and years of expectations and dynamics, and all that comes with that too.

Though as I was looking at the video I created last year for the kids, the thing about families is despite minor holiday squabbles or years of issues in the making, when you're fortunate enough to keep adding people to your life, with any luck you realize the whole truly is greater than the sum of its parts.

Creative Inspiration

My dear friend Ellen in California sent me this picture of the tree her husband Kevin created from driftwood and river rocks from a recent Lake Tahoe holiday. I had no idea he was so creative! How amazing to see it shine.

Whether its painting, cooking, photography, writing, decorating, singing, dancing, flower arranging, building...I believe creative urges are meant to be explored, and most often bring out that happy calm best version of ourselves, while adding beauty to the world.

Happy Wednesday everyone.

Miracle on 91st Street

I enjoy a few holiday traditions. Every year I reread "The Best Christmas Pagent Ever", a story I've enjoyed ever since I was a little girl. I send advent calendars every year to my nieces where they take turns opening the doors for daily chocolates during the month of December. My brother-in-law and I always try to watch "Trading Places" every year, and of course "Charlie Brown Christmas", "Miracle on 34th Street", and "The Grinch" are long time favorites too.

Last year, a friend of mine introduced me to a new holiday tradition - the Lighting of the Park Avenue trees, and caroling with the childrens' choir in front of Brick Church on Park Avenue and 91st Street. This annual event began in 1945, when the trees were first lit to honor soldiers who had died in World War II. Every year since, New Yorkers stood where I was last night, shivering in the dark night, singing, waiting, witnessing.

As someone who does believe in Santa Claus and miracles of the season, it's still quite extraordinary to experience people gathering together for several blocks, and for one suspended hour, witness the hard edges of New York soften and hear everyone gathering down in Hooville to sing.

After several songs, the pastor led us -- "...Christians, Jews, Muslims, Believers, Non Believers, we're all one tonight..." -- in prayer for the troops abroad, and for peace on earth. And then, for the 66th time, taps were played and "Let there be light". Suddenly, the trees for 50 blocks south were lit, and illuminated the cold, dark night.

Love Actually

Coming off a long happy Thanksgiving weekend in Philadelphia where old friends and new, and a 8 month old Lab named Jimmy Page, gathered in my friend Karen's 200 year old colonial house (where I even earned a Norwegian nickname Liv - pronounced Leave - "Life!"), post Thanksgiving life back in New York felt a little abrupt.

'Tis the season for holiday magic and enchantment, and it can also be the time of year for burning the candle at both ends, ragged nerves, stress, sadness and heartache.

On Thanksgiving day, I got news that a good friend's mother was diagnosed with terminal cancer, and she was only able to communicate with us by email as couldn't talk on the phone without crying. Others are in the midst of family fights, the worst kind of fights. Another close friend in New York with three little kids had a holiday 'surprise' this week when a pipe burst in construction in the apartment above their loft at 3pm. The rain from above has caused incredible damage to all furniture, rugs, ceiling, walls and floors and they are living with the smell of mildew - "We're a hot mess right now", she said. My cousins celebrated their first Thanksgiving without their mom, my Aunt Ruth, and Thanksgiving 11 years ago was also the last time I saw my own mother before she passed away unexpectedly just before Christmas.

It can be a tough time of year.

Though I have vowed not to complain about it this year ("You don't live in California any more, get over it," tough love Stacy remarked the other day), the weather has finally caught up to the calendar, and its also becoming darker and colder.

The other night, rushing past Bryant Park when I was running late for evening plans, I almost missed the the tree, illuminating the darkness with light.

And another evening, a small grassroots choir unexpectedly brought beauty and peace to a grim and rather charmless subway station.

And then a message on how to live well on the wall of a cozy West Village restaurant.

In the midst of life , which can be difficult, you don't want to miss the point of the season, and what it's all about:

Which is to Love

However and whenever you are able.