The 25th:

I'm an member of the collected citizenry that call its self the United States of America.  We got their first, so we get to have that name first- or so we say when others try to contradict us.  Its the 25th of December, and I guess its that time of year again: Xmas.

I choose Xmas instead of Christmas for a plethora of reasons, primarily being I'm not Christian.  Although, the holiday isn't really Christian any more either.  Xmas is kinda of a result of American Cultural mixing, the end result of two or three hundred years of European cultural sharing and mixing until our modern, corporate and secular culture enshrines it.

This doesn't devalue it for me, but I think some people might try to tack on religious reasons that aren't there for a holiday that should have nothing to do with religion.  Its day to be with family or at least reflect on that. 

We talk of a "Xmas Spirit", and in general we mean act like human beings to one another.   And although we might think of each other as horrible people every other day of the year, all members of the constituency of the US think that on December 25th everybody is better.  We stand up on that day and think of each other in a way that maybe we should think of one another every day of the year.

It isn't like that.  And you should take your victories when you get them.

So, I leave off with a quick bit of Xmas advice, handed down in my family for decades, if not centuries:

Don't get drunk on Xmas.  No one wants to try and take you to the ER if you get alcohol poisoning.

IN MADNESS I REIGN