Did I Mention . . .

I realized late yesterday that in all my gushing about fall, I forgot one of the best/most important aspects of this time of year . . . TV HOLIDAY SPECIALS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Can I just say that I remember life practically revolving around the yearly specials when I was little . . . mostly because these were the very, very few times we were allowed to stay up past our ridiculously early bedtime. (don't even get me started on that one . . . although a post about it will probably show up sooner or later . . . ) That, and they're pretty freaking awesome. And since you only saw them once a year there was just the right blend of familiarity and newness to them - you know? I know the "Gimmie, gimmie, gimmie" song from Garfield's Christmas Special, but I could never sing it.

I was always sad that there were so few Halloween specials, but Garfield and Charlie Brown are so classic!!! I still get a little freaked out remembering the pirates in the Garfield special - dude, that part was SCARY!!!!!!!!! And The Great Pumpkin would probably still crack me up. A person who doesn't laugh at Peanuts must have, like, no soul or something. No personality. No heart . . . something.

December was by far the best though, since there was a special on practically every night - score! Holy cow, how much do I love claymation animation! So fake . . . but so cute. By far my favorite Christmas special was "A Claymation Christmas." Does anyone else out there remember that one? It had these two dinosaurs who introduced . . . well, I guess you'd call them music videos of Christmas carols and were very Odd Couple-y. And these other creatures kept showing up singing "Here We Come A-Wassailing," only they'd sing it wrong. A gaggle of geese sing "a-waddling" and waffle vendors sing "a-waffling" and the uptight dinosaur keeps having these minor freak outs when they sing it wrong. I always had the distinct impression that Mom didn't like this one very much . . . that might have had a bit of an influence on my opinion of it. Anyway, when I was about 8 or 9 they stopped showing it, which was very depressing. And ever since then whenever the subject of holiday specials has come up (more often than one would think!) I always ask if anybody remembers that one. I was really beginning to think I had imagined it or something, because NOBODY ever knew what I was talking about. And then two years ago I told Luke about how it was my favorite and I couldn't find it anywhere and nobody else ever remembered it . . . and what do you think I got for Christmas that year? Dude, I was ecstatic. By that time we were engaged (although I'm tolerably certain that he bought it before he proposed) and I told him flat out that he could forget about ever getting me a better present because seriously? Some things just cannot be topped.

And then we watched it. And it's a bit trippier than I remembered . . . lots trippier than I remembered. Like, super trippy. I can see why Mom probably didn't care for it. But the trippiness only made me love it more. Seriously, why aren't they showing this on TV anymore?!

I'm so glad we get ABC and NBC and CBS on our TV . . . sadly, that's all we get. But as much as I love youtube, watching the specials on TV will be much better. Between the bigger screen and the nostalgia factor, I will be in heaven. And I can watch the Macy's parade next month!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I've missed the parade for the last three years, and that was probably the most depressing thing for me about having to work on Thanksgiving. You do NOT mess with my holiday traditions! Come 10:00 Thanksgiving Day I am parking my butt in front of the TV and only moving during commercials until I see Santa coming down Broadway. Good times.

Have I mentioned that I absolutely love and adore this time of yer, by any chance?

Lukeism for the day, in case you missed it on facebook: Our 50th anniversary . . . that's in, what, thirty years?
. . . I thought I was bad at math. :-)

P. ost S. cript
Three for one! How could I post anything else? Enjoy!