Christmas Thoughts

• OK, so it's going to be a Brown Christmas.  There was, like, a couple to a few inches of snow one time, but temps went above freezing after that, and even though there was a dusting a few days ago, I can see grass.  My initial rule of thumb regarding snow is that it is absolutely necessary to have snow on the ground in order to confirm the image of a White Christmas.  But lately I've noticed how easy it is to get around.  If there were snow, we'd be sliding all over the place.  And I don't miss that.  So maybe I don't want a White Christmas after all.  Maybe I'm a hypocrite.
• Went back to my brother's place last night for Christmas Eve prime rib, and once again, my bro was being an antisocial, antagonistic dick to ... my sister-in-law.  I maybe will expound on this some other time, but I remember him being this much of an asshole to me when we were kids, and the dude's 43 and he's still talking shit, this time to the person to whom he supposedly pledged his heart and soul.  After he starting bagging on him I decided I wasn't going to stay long.  (I left earlier than I did Sunday because Mother wanted me to come home and call her.)  What does she see in him?  Is she blind?  Does she think she can change him?  Or does this insulting form, scary as it is for me to say, the foundation of a flourishing marriage?  If that's the case, she may be as much of a psycho as My Asshole Brother is.  And maybe even moreso.
• Things were all out of whack yesterday.  Sister wanted to WhatsApp in and talk to my brother and sister-in-law and niece, but she didn't reply while I was at their place, and she finally replied once I left.  This is all because Mother seemed really determined to get me on the phone.  I was afraid something bad happened to Mother.  Turns out she was only panicky because she freaked out over me not being able to access my parents' stock portfolio online.
• I was looking forward to a relaxing day of not doing anything but sleep and watch basketball.  But I am trying to make spaghetti.  Plus there are bills to pay and clothes to wash, so maybe I'll be doing a lot of stuff on Christmas.  Dammit.

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For this year's Christmas song, I chose Hall & Oates' version of "Jingle Bell Rock."  It was first performed by Bobby Helms in 1957, but H&O did their cover in 1983, and it's been a Christmas staple ever since.  I like this most for the way lead singer Daryl Hall punches the "ROCK!" in the line, "To ROCK! the night away."

But when trying to see if there is a video for me to embed here, I came across a couple intriguing facts.  First of all, the person who does the quick guitar solo in the middle (dressed in drag) is none other than G. E. Smith.  Smith played lead guitar for the duo for tours and recordings, and eventually he became musical director at Saturday Night Live.  I remember shots of him soloing; his demonstrative expressions left an indelible impression on my mind.

The other thing about this?  Look at how the video is captioned:



"Daryl's Version?" So you mean to say that there is a "John's Version?" Why, in fact, yes!  John sang lead on the flip side of this non-album single.  And there is a "John's Version" video, too!



I don't remember Oates singing lead for any song they did.  Researching things that don't mean anything in the long run are cool!

Merry Christmas, everyone!