Christmas time is here by golly!

"Christmas time is here, by golly, Disapproval would be folly, Deck the halls with hunks of holly, Fill the cup and don't say "when." Kill the turkeys, ducks and chickens, Mix the punch, drag out the Dickens, Even though the prospect sickens, Brother, here we go again.

On Christmas day you can't get sore, Your fellow man you must adore, There's time to rob him all the more The other three hundred and sixty-four."

It gets worse...

I've been in a bit of a "Bah humbug!" mood for various reasons, but something happened the other day that cheered me up in ways I can't quite explain.

I took the artificial tree out of the basement and set it up. I used to be a tree snob, but hey it's so much easier to set up, doesn't shed on the carpet, and it's not a fire hazard to the same extent a drying evergreen full of sap is.

Then I took the kids shopping for Christmas tree ornaments. When we got home I took a nap, intending to make a family thing of decorating the tree.

While I was napping my six-year-old daughter and one of her two best friends, a little girl from a Muslim family in the neighborhood, took out the ornaments and hung them on the tree.

For some reason I found that so terribly sweet, and a good omen. OK, I'm a 20th century rationalist by education, but I'm a superstitious Celt by heritage. For whatever reason, it really brightened my mood.