December ephemera...

+  Atlanta is a set of contradictions this time of year:  You get the usual elements of Christmas in a big city such as crowded shops and people in a rush.  But the South is still a place apart.  We've enjoyed sumptuous brunches on Sundays in December.  A neighbor decorated our mailbox with swag.  The weather is cold in the mornings, but warm by mid-afternoon.  And there's always the unexpected:  the German Christmas market in Atlanta was massive and filled with scores, maybe hundreds, of Europeans.  I purchased some stollen to be enjoyed this weekend.

+  On Friday, eight of us will see A Christmas Carol.  We saw it last year and it was exceptional.  I suppose it's the counterpart to the English panto, something I enjoyed every year while living in Oxford.  The jokes at pantos are so well-worn, but always amusing, particularly if you are drunk.  The lead (always a cross-dressing, flamboyant actor) warms up the audience:

You sir, where are you from?

Abingdon.

Sorry?

Abingdon!

No, I'm saying I'm sorry for you...

+  We've recently purchased an extravagance:  a Mercedes SUV.  In just a few weeks we've cracked the windshield and dented the running board.  I suppose it's part of the family now.

+  I'm reading We by Yvegeny Zamyatin.  I just finished House of Silk by Horowitz.

+  I'm downloading this holiday gem right now: