Christmas comes but once a year

Looking for a little Christmas cheer? Well, there's this.

Or, you can just look at all these:

























You can see most of the books SuperFiancee gave me to replenish my sadly depleted in- stack in the photo. The one you can't see is OLD TWENTIETH by Joe Haldeman.

In addition to the DC comics hat, and the buttons on it, and the books, and the Magic cards, and the cool Captain America t-shirt, and the new robe and the new pajama bottoms and two other shirts (including a fabulous purple moleskin shirt from SuperFiancee that I already adore) and a new pair of corduroy pants, I also got BATTLESTAR GALACTICA Season 1 and LUCKY SLEVEN on DVD, Machine Man and Super Skrull Unique HeroClix from SUPERNOVA in my stocking, Snap Wilson and Skymax Limited Edition HeroClix from Mike Norton, a great deal of chocolate including a Tobler Chocolate Orange in the toe of my stocking and a packet of Ghirardelli Milk Chocolate squares, three obviously randomly chosen comics, including SECRET ORIGINS #29 featuring POWER OF THE ATOM, MR. AMERICA and the Golden Age RED TORNADO, from Super Drama Teen (she also gave me the buttons on my hat) a Spider-Man toothbrush, a work-oriented CARE package from Super Adorable Kid full of Kleenex and snacks and plastic cutlery and various other things that will come in handy when I'm off at Craptastic City taking calls... all this, plus the Comic Shop Guy book from the Collets... I mean, holy cow, legendary dragons don't have hordes like this.

None of this is anywhere near as important, of course, as the fact that SuperFiancee and the SuperKids obviously had fabulous Christmases as well... a joyous holiday I was pleased and privileged to be a direct enabler of.

I'll tell you, you haven't lived until you've been allowed to live for someone else's happiness.

What did I get the pleasure of giving to my family this Christmas? Well, I helped finance most of their swag, but directly from me to them, I gave --

Super Adorable Kid a Barbie American Idol singing stage with a toy headset for her and real recording machinery so she can make her own music;

Super Dependable Teen a Puzz 3-D Millenium Falcon (something that wouldn't have happened without SuperFiancee's incredible E-bay savvy and determination);

Super Drama Teen a light box, so she can trace her favorite comics panels and improve her own already enormously talented artistic style;

and SuperFiancee -- well, I gave her a new food processor, a gigantic skillet, a four piece Wok set, some sexy undies, some tin signs she'd wanted to put up in the kitchen, a salad shooter, some Magic cards, a Nickelback CD, a little wooden box, a snow globe with a polar bear inside it, the Led Zep concert t-shirt she's wearing in the picture, and a lot of sugar free chocolate, including some cherry cordials she's already gobbled several of. And probably a few other things that are escaping my brain at the moment.

In addition to all of the above, Super Drama Teen got V FOR VENDETTA on DVD and a hoodie and a great many art supplies for when she goes to art school next year and a STRANGERS IN PARADISE collection and t-shirt, and new pants. Super Dependable Teen got a Boba Fett t-shirt and pin, a sweatshirt with an iron on transfer of one of her new boyfriend's STAR WARS cartoons on it, X-MEN III on DVD, some Punisher pins, and new jeans. Super Adorable Kid got Amazing Allysen (boy, that doll won't shut up; she reminds me of another girl I used to know named... okay, never mind that), some plastic food and dishes (she loves to play restaurant), a Princess Jasmine Barbie, a toy compact with toy make up, an Olivia book, that adorable jacket and some other clothes, and honestly, I can't remember what all else, but she got a TON of stuff, and seems overjoyed with every bit of it.

And now, we're off to eat an early Christmas dinner (around 12:30) as the SuperKids still have to head over to their dad's to spend Christmas afternoon with him. Ham, mac n' cheese, corn, dinner rolls, garlic smashed potatoes, deviled eggs, broccoli casserole, and fruit salad, followed by lemon squares, gingerbread with home made whipped cream, and/or a Milky Way cake for dessert. Whooo! All this, with the Grinch (the cartoon, not that godawful live action thing) on constant loop in the background.

Seriously. Life don' ged much bedda dan dis.

I mean, yeah, it's raining outside instead of snowing, but I refuse to let that get me down.

Merry Christmas, everyone!!!!