ON DECEMBER

The days continue to get shorter. The weather is unpredictable, like a schizophrenic game of "Plinko." The holiday season has started and only increases in intensity as the days pass.

As a student, this was one of my favorite times of year, as it meant a long break was coming up. As a Walgreens manager (okay, assistant manager), this time of year was both draining and frustrating, as not only did store traffic increase, but vacations and time off weren't allowed. And now, as a student affairs professional, I find I enjoy this time of year...as it means a long break is coming up. Only now I have the money to enjoy it (and I realized today that I have over five weeks of vacation saved up! Seriously, five weeks!)

Despite the long break ahead, I can't help but feel a little melancholy at this time of year. Maybe it's the decrease in sunlight and a Vitamin D deficiency. Maybe it's a wistfulness and nostalgia for the days when I only had to worry about the order in which I'd open presents. Maybe it's my longstanding feud with the Salvation Army. (That seems like a typical joke for me, doesn't it? No joke. I refuse to give money to bell-ringers. Story coming sometime later this month, when I can't think of anything else to write about.) In any event, I can almost guarantee that at some point, I will be by myself in my apartment, and I will listen to "A Long December" by Counting Crows and I will feel miserable. Not that it's a judgment on the song - I enjoy the song - but a combination of everything usually kicks my firm, shapely butt at this time of year. Maybe I should listen to "Forget December" by Something Corporate, instead. I don't know.

In any event, there's a break coming up, and one day where people try not to be jerks to one another. Oh, and there are mint M&M's.