It was an ordinary day. Christmas has come and gone and I now have to wait until next year to decorate the house, send the cards, buy the presents and put the photos of Christmas' past in our glass-topped coffee table. As I put away the decorations I gathered all of the old photos that we like to display in our coffee table we have next to our tree. Photos of Christmas' past that go all the way back to the 60s. Carol and my first Christmas together, the first Christmas we celebrated with our first child, the last Christmas we celebrated with a live tree ...... and the list goes on and on. Wow, is it neat to have all these photos to bring back the happy memories. Kind of like a historical walk-through of Christmas during the last 50 years. In the 60s I remember: Bob Hope being on TV performing with the troops; Nat King Cole singing "The Christmas Song" on our hi-fi; TV specials Charlie Brown, Frosty and the Grinch; Santa Claus Conquers the Martians in the theater; and buying hot wheels, Etch-A-Sketch and Easy-Bake Ovens. In the 70s I can remember: Taking my first Polaroid photos at Christmas; Listening to the Jackson 5 on our 8-track; Watching the Walton's Homecoming; and buying Pet Rocks, Legos, and a Wonder Woman doll. In the 80s I remember: Bypassing the tree stand and cutting our own tree; Watching Johnny Carson tell his fruitcake jokes, Seeing my favorite Christmas movie, National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation with Chevy Chase; and buying Transformers, Rubik's Cubes, and standing in line for a Cabbage Patch Doll for my daughter. I the 90s I remember: "Merry Christmas" giving way to "Happy Holidays for fear you would get sued; Watching Seinfeld's "Festivus for the rest of us" episode; Going to see Home Alone at the movies; and buying Beanie Babies and Pokemon for the kids. In the early 2000s I remember: Deciding to break down and get an artificial tree; Listening to Christmas music on my iPod; Watching on TV the marathons of "A Christmas Story" and 007 movies; and putting the Wii, Razor scooters and gift cards under the tree. My photos tell the stories of the past and I am having the best time looking at them. I took quite a few this year which I will add to the collection for next year. But, the old-time photos tell the story of Christmas' Past when life was easier and less stressful. But then again, I guess I can't see stress and easiness in my photo collection. Here's hopping it was there and will always be there at Christmas. It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.
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