weather outside is frightful

So the weather people were right in saying that MN would be hit by a storm. From the bus stop, I walked in snow almost up to my knees. Not that we have that much, but the snow on the roads got plowed on the sidewalks, and they were not clear. Thankfully, a co-worker gave me a ride home so I didn't have to trudge through it again.
My Christmas will be rather quiet, and I'm okay with that. This season, I've been trying to pick and choose my activities so I can actually enjoy the holiday rather than running around, trying to get everything done in time, and watching it quickly pass. So I said "no" to Christmas cards. If my friends and family are reading this, I am not completely against Christmas cards. I just think the effort of finding the cards, writing in them or composing that newsy letter, and getting the envelopes addressed and mailed before the 25th is better spent listening to Christmas carols, watching holiday movies, or calling someone by phone.
I also chose to spend Christmas by myself rather than let my friends travel 90 miles on snowy and windy roads. Being great friends, they would have picked me up, but the snow has kind of dampened my ambitions to go out. In storms like this, I want a curl up on my couch with a cup of Good Earth tea with two squirts of honey in hand while watching a movie or reading a book. Not that I couldn't do that at my friends' house, but the idea of driving in slow moving traffic and adding in the possiblity of being stuck or stranded somewhere to get to that point made me decide to stay put.
So I guess that makes me a hermit. Or, "not normal" as work colleague called it since I won't be spending Christmas with my family. Yeah, maybe I am. But, its kind of been an unconventional year. I've almost lived 360 days without a car. And, last year when I attempted to do the traditional flying home for Christmas thing, I got grounded due to winter storms on the West Coast for three days. I did make it home for Christmas (just barely).
Christmas is not about being normal. Oh, there's people out there who will try to tell you a list of things that you should do for Christmas. But, I'm not one of them. Rather, I believe that it should be time to breathe. Enjoy the moment of snow falling outside the window or talking on the phone with relatives. Be present and focusing on the glass half full stuff rather than the glass half empty nonsense. I know that Christmas Day is not the actual day that Jesus was born, but when it did happen, Mary and Joseph made the most of what they had in that stable. And a King was born to bring peace on earth.