Christmas time is here

I found out some disturbing stuff on Sunday night when we arrived in my hometown of Tifton, GA. Turns out the Ray Coniff album that I had written about recently and even featured (ironically) on my Christmas 2007 mix was NOT the craptacular singing group that my family made fun of when I was a youth.

It turns out, that group was "Fred Waring and the Pennsylvanians." I hang my head in shame for getting it wrong. That makes me question so much of my childhood. . .

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We've been in Tifton for about two days now. Mostly just hanging around. Muleskinner and I watched "It's a Wonderful Life" last night, a Christmas tradition that I am fairly certain is accurate. (No, I am sure that that much is true.)

We spent a quick visit in Waycross spending time with Lynda's brother's family. I greatly enjoyed some homemade Brunswick Stew from AT, and I scored the recipe as well. I'll post it for anyone who would like to give it a try. I might even bring some in to work or to the next party that I attend.

Last night on Christmas Eve, we attended the local Episcopal church for a Visit from St. Nicholas and Christmas Eve service. It turned out to be an odd convergence of our recent religious past. We found that the Episcopal church was currently without a permanent priest and the supply priest from Albany was none other than the priest that ran the church Lynda and I attended when in college over in Statesboro, and he was the priest that (along with Lynda's dad) officiated at our wedding. Add to that the fact that, since it was Christmas Eve and a "children's service" St. Nicholas came by to give a brief historical sermon about the religious underpinnings of Santa Claus. That might not be that unusual, except that the first church that Lynda and I attended when we moved to Ohio was named St. Nicholas of Myra, the very same historical figure that was visiting the children that night. We had a good time catching up with Fr. RD and Z, his wife. They were both important figures in our young adult lives and it was great to see them again.