I recently discovered a goal that I didn't realize I had until already pursuing it: to do as much "Christmas-like" activity as possible this year. Since Thanksgiving was over, I have been determined to fill my calendar with holiday plans, from family dinners to shopping sprees to tuning my radio to one of those 24/7 holiday music stations and breaking the dial... Okay, maybe I shouldn't include shopping on this list, since I'm way behind on that front. Needless to say, I am on pace to break records across the board, having already:

- Seen the (75th Anniversary) Radio City Christmas Spectacular
- Visited the Rockefeller Center tree
- Traveled to upstate New York to cut down a tree for the new apartment
- Bought all the necessary decorations, lights, ornaments, etc. for the tree
- Had a nice holiday dinner with my parents, followed by a drive-through light show sponsored by a local Girl Scouts troop

Mind you, I have barely bought any gifts, and I still don't have plans for New Year's Eve... but I'd like to think I'm off to a pretty good start. I'm going to a train show at the Bronx Botannical Gardens this weekend, my girlfriend and I have a date to bake all of our favorite holiday cookies one of these days, and then of course is the Italian Christmas Eve Seafood Dinner, followed by Midnight Mass (and waiting for Santa to arrive)!

It turns out, I've realized why I'm so determined this year. The Monday before Thanksgiving, 2007, my grandfather passed away, kicking off a relatively somber Holiday Season. 2008 will be happier, if I have anything to do with it, and I'm finding it quite therapeutic after 12 months or so that weren't quite festive. I'm happy to hear about how you're planning to get into the Christmas Spirit this year. The more ideas the merrier!