Doug 2007!

Q: What do I do on a December Sunday when I know the Steelers are getting their butts handed to them?

A: Put up my Christmas decorations!

Back in an easy-access apartment, yahoo for being able to get a real tree again! (Douglass Fir...funny how they all end up being named Doug.) So now I'm happy, it finally feels like the holidays. I'm a big fan of the holidays. Not religiously, certainly, just culturally. It's really the one time of year that people of so many different cultures have a big celebration, and something about big celebrations in the middle of cold and snow just makes one feel warm and fuzzy.

Actually, as much as I love my own decorations and Christmas tree, one thing I really love about Squirrel Hill is that's it's one place that you really have the warm and fuzzy holiday feel, but it's not just Christmas shoved down your throat. I'm sitting in my office right now (Blogging at work? Shh...don't tell!) with the office Christmas tree, Santa Claus everywhere, and an explosion of red and green cube decorations. I'd much rather be at CTR or the library in Squirrel Hill, where it feels festive but not so exclusive. Not to say that people who've grown up celebrating Christmas shouldn't do so (my own cube has red tinsel), I just like being in an environment with more of a mix of people who celebrate a whole range of things.