Bandolin, That sucks for you and I hope I can help with some comments. Mostly because I'm an obnoxious know-it-all who still thinks he can actually help in this world. So sit back for my tale of woe/joy. I'm gonna' tell it anyway. It's been cold here too. But I'm one of the 1/100th of the population of the earth that can actually flip a switch and have lights or water magically enter my home. I also have heat I don't have to chop and haul. I've had the cough for about two weeks now and feel exhausted. For the first time since my wife died I have enough free vacation to lie about as I need. I even got some of the lights up over the porch. I've been cruising around shopping in a car that actually has both heat and air. Not only that all the seals around the windows are intact so the wind doesn't whip in on the interstate. My kid's get out and run around a lot. My sister's boy doesn't. He's autistic and either sits clapping and barking like a seal or runs and smacks into opposite walls over and over. My friend would like kids but a boy she met in high school gave her clamidia, which scarred her tubes. Now she'll never have the option of children. Our neighbors had Halloween decorations up and decided my kids trashed them. It turned out to be a boy my oldest liked so she lied when she said she didn't know who did it. They were told not to play with the neighbor's girl again. Now it's six years later and she smokes, drinks, and cats around at 2am. I thank god that none of my kids are in on her trouble. My oldest is in Psychology for pre med and complains because she got a B. My middle one came in and said, "Can you help me move my bed? I want to scrub the floor underneath. Then I'll start on the basement." I can't think what I did to deserve this. The final thing is Martha Stewart is a fake. No one gets a staff of 20 to help cut doilies and centerpieces. My trees not done yet, so what? I'm headed out the 24th to shop for the last difficult people on my list. If I get done, I get done. If not, the stores all open Dec 26th. My kid wants a bike and DDR max. They aint both goinna happen. This doesnt make me a bad man however. In the meantime everyone is going to be warm and have enough to eat. If you expect everything to be perfect, all the presents to be right, all the bills to go away, you will always be disappointed. The Joy of Christmas is a state of mind. It involves giving up concerns as much as getting things. The only one who can stop you from forging more chain is you Ebenezer.