December 21, 2003

Hi ... 

It's been a while since my last Ramblings (that's starting to be my mantra).  Several people have written me saying "What's up?!" so I thought I'd send out a little year end wrap-up and hopefully in 2004 we'll be on a better schedule.

First of all, Merry Christmas!  In our modern day, multi-cultural society, you hardly *ever* hear "Merry Christmas", anymore. It's become politically correct, it seems, to say "Happy Holidays" instead of Merry Christmas, because. . . well. . . there's so MANY holidays and occasions around this time of year that it's just easier not to offend anyone, by wishing them the wrong holiday, I guess. But. . . just so you know, Kelvin P. Ringold, Sr. celebrates Christmas!  If you don't celebrate Christmas, then that's fine too. I mean no disrespect to your special day, but mine. . . is Christmas. And if you don't like Christmas, then... I wish you happy "Peace on Earth and Good Will Towards All Men (mankind) . . ." and everyone should be able to get behind *that* one. Regardless, may the JOYs of the season fill your hearts and your minds and

I have a little Christmas story for you.

It's Christmas Eve. . . 1976. I was in the US Air Force, stationed in Hampton, Virginia. My wife and children -- the youngest of which is just over two months old at the time (that's Kelvin Jr, who is in Iraq this Christmas) -- are staying at her mom's house some 4 hours or so away for Christmas, in our home town of Salisbury, Maryland.  I can't be with them because I'm on stand-by at the air base, and have to be there within 30 minutes if there's a problem.   (nothing good like combat... just communications equipment outages...) So, instead of being with my family, I and my pager were spending time with some friends -- Russ and Carol, as I recall -- who lived just outside the base.

Of humble means, for the most part, these friends gathered together for a little Christmas Eve gift exchange.

The second gift came out... a long, flat, package; about 3/4 inch think... 12 or so inches wide, and nearly two feet long... that turned out to be a set of 4 place mats -- cheap, plastic ones... must of been $3 or $4 at the time. The receiver's name was Cathy -- and the place mats had a picture of the cartoon turtle named Cathy -- which was significant because Cathy talked very slow and methodically, and the turtle was symbolic -- and the mats read "Cathy's Place. . ."and Cathy must have raved about those mats for 15 minutes. . . And so it went for the longest time, and the biggest gifts that were given was an expensive bottle of wine that this one Colonel's son gave the group. I'm not sure how he became friends with this group of folks but they had all pooled *their* money -- from about 7 or 8 people -- and bought the Colonel's son a Mr. Coffee coffee brewer -- one o

So, when you're opening your Christmas gifts on Thursday, and you get something that's a little cheaper, or a little less grand than you thought you should be getting. . . remember the meaning of the giving, and remember the meaning of the receiving, and remember this little story.

I haven't seen any of those people since I left Virginia in 1976, but I spend Christmas Eve with them every year in my heart.  Come join us.

Have a great Christmas -- and an awesome New Year; and I hope to entertain you in 2004.