I’m here with #joinin this Christmas. Always a tough time for me and many who have a table set for one and nobody to pull a cracker* with, and my heart goes out to those who have one empty place at their table for the first time this year - am sending you an extra hug

(*a British β€œChristmas cracker”, not a cracker with cheese)

@miss_d Happy Christmas Miss D! Just know your voice is heard and you are seen...

I'm lucky. I have a husband to be with. However, this is our first year w/o his mother (she passed in July). The mood is not celebratory. He just can't.

This is the first time since we met in '98 that we didn't have either my folks or his near us during the holidays - and I can say it's not easy. BUT we have each other - and we hold that close to our hearts.

@jann so appreciate this, is acts of kindness like yours that make all the difference and lift the spirits. I feel for you and your husband today, what a difficult time, sending my thoughts this Christmas

@miss_d Do you listen to podcasts? There's a great podcast that goes over the older (and unknown) Christmas TV specials - and is Hilarious! Advent Calendar House. It helped me raise my spirits - thinking of and remembering older times. I don't know if that would be enjoyable to you or not.

His Rankin-Bass and Peanuts and Muppets episodes are amazing!

@miss_d Mike Westfall is the host and he is a great guy! He lives about 30 min away...and it's funny when he talks about the BEFORETIMES... (what we Floridians call the times they lived up north where it's cold).
@jann what a find! I’m diving into the Muppet Christmas movie one - πŸ™ŒπŸ₯‚πŸ₯³πŸ’š
@miss_d Another one - that is absolutely GREAT - is #ChristmasPast with Brian Earl. It's just a bunch of small podcasts about everything from Fruitcake to Christmas Trees to mince pies, to Christmas Ghost stories...
@jann that sounds wonderful too, adding to listen to next!

@miss_d (if you like that one, Brian has a book that is the same kind of thing that he just released!)

Sorry for bombarding you with suggestions.

@jann not at all, very lovely of you to take the time, merry Christmas!