It was a great Christmas Eve. I got to sit on the couch with the remote while the ladies of the house cooked and wrapped gifts. My great nephew Onofrio helped with the cooking and did a masterful job. There is a tradition in many Italian-American families to eat late and open gifts at the stroke of midnight. I was all for this as a child, but I saw last night how tough it can be on kids. My great-great niece Olivia, almost two, was cranky, as was Yuri, four-and-a-half. Valentino, 11, was sleepy but didn't complain. To my surprise, Olivia polished off an entire plate of pasta. She cried because she wasn't allowed to have any lasagna, which contained ingredients her little body isn't ready to process. I concentrated on the seafood: the octopus salad, scallops and several types of shrimp, one covered with turkey bacon. Wow!
Fortunately, one of the Spanish language stations was running the animated Cars, which kept the boys awake. At 10:30 I left to pick up their grandmother, Isabel, who works in a hospital. Unfortunately, she will be working today too. By the time we got home, everyone was watching the perennial classic A Christmas Story. When midnight struck bedlam ensued. The kids were suddenly wide awake and tearing through the wrapping on their gifts. It was a sight not seen in our home for quite some time. Then it was time for pastry. I had three miniatures. As I bid everyone good night, Olivia said: "Ciao," tugging at my heartstrings. She is so beautiful.
I'm surprised and happy the Giants took it to the Jets yesterday. I find Rex Ryan insufferable, although he is a good coach. Of course, the Giants are not without jerks. No modern team is. Brandon Jacobs is pathetic, excoriating Ryan for a lack of class while demonstrating a complete lack of it himself. And what's with the Jets, during home games in their shared stadium, covering murals depicting the Giants' four Super Bowl victories? The Giants don't cover the one celebrating the Jets' great upset of the Colts.
The second best thing about Saturday's NFL action was that the Eagles were eliminated. They grossly underachieved in 2011. It would have been a sin for them to qualify for the playoffs at 8-8 on the basis of one good month.
I thank Joanne, who took time out from her Christmas Eve chores yesterday to donate another batch of popular novels, and to the kind people who bought books on Bay Parkway. I figured folks would be tapped out from holiday spending. As I always say: Give it a shot.
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