Saturday 9

Saturday 9: Happy Holidays! (from the archives)

1. As you can see, Sam loved giving her annual wish list to Santa. Yet some children are reluctant to climb into Jolly Old St. Nick's lap. Did you enjoy the tradition or were you shy? Or did you by pass it altogether -- either because you wrote him a letter or because your family didn't celebrate Christmas? I never enjoyed going to see Santa, but when I still believed it felt terribly important. Like my job as a kid at Christmastime.

2. Are you currently on the Naughty or Nice list? How did you get there? I'm Nice. I have my faults, but in the main, I'm a good egg.

3. Did you ship any gifts to friends and family this year? If so, which one traveled the farthest? My oldest friend's gift went 2,032 miles. Chicago to Tarzana. She's getting a bedazzled refrigerator magnet of a cat that says, "You had me at meow" (she has three shelter cats) and a mug emblazoned with this saying of Captain Kirk's (she's a Trekkie).

4. Did you buy yourself a gift this year? I took myself to Graceland for my birthday last month. I had a lovely time, but now I'm sad because I broke the Graceland snowglobe I bought myself as a souvenir.

The main staircase at Graceland, festooned with poinsettias.

5. What's your favorite holiday-themed movie?  This year, while I wrap gifts, I'm going to watch A Diva's Christmas Carol. It's a made-for-TV movie starring Vanessa Williams as Whitney Houston as Ebeneezer Scrooge. I really like Vanessa Williams. She's a nifty little actress and she knows her way around a carol.

6. Thinking of movies, Christmas is lucrative for Hollywood. Have you ever gone to a movie theater on Christmas Day? Nope.

7. Have you ever suffered an embarrassing moment at the company Christmas party? I'm still a little embarrassed about that night a decade ago when instead of the ladies I accidentally opened the men's room door. I wasn't even drunk. I dearly wish I had been bleary-eyed. You can't unsee some things.

8. What's your favorite beverage in cold weather? This year I'm liking Rumchata. It's that hint of cinnamon.

9. Share a memory from last Christmas. Dinner at the Harbour View at the Pier House in Key West. I was already suffering from my stomach malady, so I don't remember much about the meal. But the walk to our table through this lush green garden was great. And then we dined at a table with a seaside view and watched big, big boats float by. For a Chicago girl who has seen her share of white Christmases, this was an amazing way to spend the holiday.