Happy Boxing Day

If you had to pick a movie family to be your own, which one would it be? If there was a movie that could best describe your Christmas, which one would you pick?

Well, I’m going out on a limb here, but I’m going to say my family is the Griswolds. I mean, we’ve had vacations that seem to fit in with the spirit of the Vacation movies. Blow-outs, burning alternators, campers, dogs that got into other family’s cars, sickness, and whatever else you can think of.

But Christmas. . . Christmas has always been special. And different. Until this year. . . .

Christmas Eve came and it really didn’t feel like Christmas. I wanted to watch “White Christmas” really badly and AMC was playing it on an endless loop all day long. At one point I kind of corralled everyone in the basement to watch, but I could tell that the only one who really wanted to be there was me—and maybe Muffin.

But the day went on. My mom cooked. My brother went to his house to hang with his in-laws. My dad did whatever my dad was doing, which I think was wrapping his gifts for my mom. We’re a last-minute wrapping kind of family.

Then, we discovered the pilot light on the hot water heater had gone out. And the gas fireplace in the basement quit going. My dad couldn’t get anything to light and stay going. Candle lighters and matches wouldn’t stay lit in the basement, but worked upstairs and outside. Eventually, the guy from the gas company came out, but couldn’t figure things out. His best guess: there wasn’t enough oxygen in the basement to keep things lit. Let that one sink in.

NOT ENOUGH OXYGEN!

We ended up opening up some of the basement windows on one of the grossest, windiest, rainiest Christmas Eves ever and lighting a candle. I dubbed it “the candle of life” because if it went out, I was figuring we had no oxygen and I was getting out of there. Fun holiday celebrations with the Crows.

Oh, and did I mention that my parents’ home phone line inexplicably quit working? Yeah, that went down, too.

I was fairly convinced someone was trying to kill us all. My mom and I even had a plan to open our gifts before going to bed so that we could at least enjoy them before we died.

Christmas Day was fairly uneventful, except that we made the decision not to further confuse my grandma by bringing her home from the nursing home, making it the first Christmas we’ve celebrated without her. We went up in the afternoon, but the meds they’re giving her to keep her emotions in check keep her pretty much sedated, so she really didn’t know we were there until about an hour or so after we’d gotten there. My mom and I had brought games, so we played cards and even made up our own lame card game. Then, my grandma refused to eat supper or take her medicine or let anyone help her get ready for bed. Interesting times we’re living in these days.

But all around, a good Christmas day because it was spent with people I love who share the hope I have.

But seriously: the Griswolds might be loosely based on my family. I’m just saying!