During the month of December, we spend more money than we do in previous months; we drink more alcohol, sleep less, eat more sugar and work out less. Starting January 1st, we make new goals and have a fresh start. That’s when we say goodbye to the glitter and the gluttony and start to simplify. We sign up at a gym, throw away everything we don’t need at the moment and regret it later in the year – like donating the TV set from the bedroom. You just know the 30 Rock marathon will come and you will want nothing more than to camp out in your bedroom and order Thai food.

If we repeat this cycle every year and get sick of the binging and wallet-abuse, why participate? Is there a way to stay within our routines and yet have all the same fun? Can we forgo buying things for ourselves as we shop for holiday gifts? Can we say no to a couple of the holiday gatherings and bypass the Cranberry Bliss Bar at Starbucks? Is there a way to tone down the major Feng Shui attack that takes place in the New Year (and keep the television)?

I’m afraid there’s some twisted charm to this rollercoaster that we just might not be ready to depart from. Besides, how can we celebrate a new start if everything is already fresh and optimistic?

Happy Holidays

xoxo

Fabwick

Sausage-Snatcher

There’s something similar about the Icelandic Santa Clauses (the Yule Lads) and the men in episodes of Sex And The City. The Yule Lads all have single-minded agendas and (some of them) go by the names: Door-Slammer, Paddle-Licker, Sausage-Snatcher and Shorty. They come to town one-by-one beginning 13 days before Christmas. Every night the children put their shoes in the windows hoping for a treat from each and every Yule Lad. The gifts are clearly from the parents and are not always exciting. I remember ending up with the same kind of cookies my mother had baked earlier that week.

The men in Sex And The City, regardless of their birth names, become known by names like, Ass-Licker, Overeater, Spanker and Shorty. They, too, have single-minded agendas and become intrigued by women in fabulous shoes. They’re notorious for taking what they want and giving back something the women don’t always want. Some of those men stop only by for one night and continue to the next pair of shoes they are intrigued by.

If we take this comparison to the next level by saying that the men in Sex And The City are actually out there in real life – are we saying that all single men are like the Icelandic Yule lads? Unfortunately, I’ve witnessed some scary traits in the past and continue to do so now through my single friends: there’s a guy who likes to text message pictures of his package to girls he has just met; there’s a guy who grabs his balls during a climactic moment; and then there’s the obsessed guy who parks outside the house to spy. These are just a few examples. I believe what we have here are: Package-Texter, Ball-Grabber, and the Creepy-Peeper.