This has been a strange holiday season. Part of me feels a bit guilty for even commenting about it because I see my own full life with four wonderful little girls & a wife & then think of those that are having tougher times than I am, like Kyle & Messybear. Still, this season has been a bizarre melancholy one.

I still own my the house that belonged to my parents in a town about forty minutes away and in front of the house stands a very large Pecan tree. It was a favorite of theirs. Earlier this week I was called and told the locals were "trimming" the limbs of this beauty that were hanging over the street. So today I headed over there to take a look at the damage and on the way Charlie Rich's song Feel Like Going Home played. It hit exactly what I've been feeling this holiday season. My Sister just loved Christmas and the preparation and process of giving gifts. My Mother loved the get-togethers and handing out of bawdy gifts - the bawdier the better. And my Dad, well, he just loved to drink and act a little crazier.

The last month I've really missed my own booze and sometimes worry that that place is about the only place capable of killing this melancholy, but then other days it's a bit different.

Hope all had a great holiday season and that the New Year is kind to us all and maybe, just maybe, the guest of honor here will offer us something additional to look forward to.