Contemporary essays, fiction, and opinion offered regularly by author Anne Brandt.






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Home for the Holidays
Posted: 12/17/07
Earl and I arrived home Saturday night, having experienced eighty-five degree weather at 8 AM that morning and a blizzard at 8 PM that night. But that wasn’t the only adjustment we made this past weekend.

We’ve gone from holiday mode to vacation mode and back again to holiday mode. Granted, there were some Christmas decorations on the Grand Princess, but not many. There was also a menorah for the Jewish passengers celebrating Hanukah. But for the most part, the cruise was about cruising and not about celebrating any of December’s holidays.

Then there was the food. It’s hard to beat twenty-four hour dining at one’s disposal, accompanied by twenty-four hour cocktails if you’re inclined. It means you can eat whenever the mood strikes without having to make plans and preparations. Now that we’re home I’m the head chef again, a title I’d gladly relinquish.

My family arrives this coming weekend, so for now Earl and I are enjoying the quiet. We’re rested and tanned and ready. And as I wrap the final gift or two, I think about where we were one week ago today. That would be Jamaica where we swam with dolphins, and I even kissed one. I never did that before during the Christmas season.


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