• Be Naughty - Save Santa a Trip!
• He knows if you've been bad or good...Hope your Christmas is merry anyway.
• Child to mother on Christmas Eve:
  "Can we eat breakfast tonight so it won't get in the way tomorrow morning?"
• Man: "You've got post-holiday depression, don't you? You miss the special frivolity that only happens during the holiday season."
  Woman: "No, I miss the special desserts that only happen during the holiday season.
• One year I helped my daughter make her Christmas cards. The front had a picture of her three children and said "I like to give homemade gifts for Christmas...". Inside it said "which one of the kids would you like?"
• Why do you have to leave the cookies and milk out for Santa?
  Because he's a man and can't get them himself...
• Woman at department store exchange counter:
  "This is a Christmas gift from my husband. Do I have to wait until Christmas to exchange it?"
• Dear friend,
  Your name is on my Christmas card list, and as I wrote you name and address on the envelope, an odd, puzzling feeling of wonder washed over me, and I wondered ...who are you?

The Four Stages of Man:

• He believes in Santa Claus
• He doesn't believe in Santa Claus
• He is Santa Claus
• He looks like Santa Claus

The Funniest Face

The funniest face
Looked out at me
From a silver ball
On the Christmas tree!
At first I thought
It was Santa's elf,
But I looked again and
It was just myself!

Twelve Days After Christmas

The Twelve Days of Christmas at School

The Twelve Days of Christmas - New Policy

(Submitted by: Meridee Mannino-Phistry)

Effective immediately, the following economizing measures are being implemented in the "Twelve Days of Christmas" subsidiary:

1. The partridge will be retained, but the pear tree, which never produced the cash crop forecasted, will be replaced by a plastic hanging plant, providing considerable savings in maintenance;
   
2. Two turtle doves represent a redundancy that is simply not cost effective. In addition, their romance during working hours could not be condoned. The positions are, therefore, eliminated;
   
3. The three French hens will remain intact. After all, everyone loves the French;
   
4. The four calling birds will be replaced by an automated voice mail system, with a call waiting option. An analysis is underway to determine who the birds have been calling, how often and how long they talked;
   
5. The five golden rings have been put on hold by the Board of Directors. Maintaining a portfolio based on one commodity could have negative implications for institutional investors. Diversification into other precious metals, as well as a mix of T-Bills and high technology stocks, appear to be in order;
   
6. The six geese-a-laying constitutes a luxury which can no longer be afforded. It has long been felt that the production rate of one egg per goose per day was an example of the general decline in productivity. Three geese will be let go, and an upgrading in the selection procedure by personnel will assure management that, from now on, every goose it gets will be a good one;
   
7. The seven swans-a-swimming is obviously a number chosen in better times. The function is primarily decorative. Mechanical swans are on order. The current swans will be retrained to learn some new strokes, thereby enhancing their outplacement;
   
8. As you know, the eight maids-a-milking concept has been under heavy scrutiny by the EEOC. A male/female balance in the workforce is being sought. The more militant maids consider this a dead-end job with no upward mobility. Automation of the process may permit the maids to try a-mending, a-mentoring or a-mulching;
   
9. Nine ladies dancing has always been an odd number. This function will be phased out as these individuals grow older and can no longer do the steps;
   
10. Ten Lords-a-leaping is overkill. The high cost of Lords, plus the expense of international air travel, prompted the Compensation Committee to suggest replacing this group with ten out-of-work congressmen. While leaping ability may be somewhat sacrificed, the savings are significant as we expect an oversupply of unemployed congressmen this year;
    
11. Eleven pipers piping and twelve drummers drumming is a simple case of the band getting too big. A substitution with a string quartet, a cutback on new music, and no uniforms, will produce savings, which will drop right to the bottom line;

Overall we can expect a substantial reduction in assorted people, fowl, animals and related expenses. Though incomplete, studies indicate that stretching deliveries over twelve days is inefficient. If we can drop ship in one day, service levels will be improved.
Regarding the lawsuit filed by the attorney's association seeking expansion to include the legal profession ("thirteen lawyers-a-suing"), a decision is pending.
Deeper cuts may be necessary in the future to remain competitive. Should that happen, the Board will request management to scrutinize the Snow White Division to see if seven dwarfs is the right number.

The Twelve Days of Christmas - Politically Correct Version

On the 12th day of the Eurocentrically imposed midwinter festival, my Significant Other in a consenting adult, monogamous relationship gave to me:

TWELVE males reclaiming their inner warrior through ritual drumming,
ELEVEN pipers piping (plus the 18-member pit orchestra made up of members in good standing of the Musicians Equity Union as called for in their union contract even though they will not be asked to play a note),
TEN melanin deprived testosterone-poisoned scions of the patriarchal ruling class system leaping,
NINE persons engaged in rhythmic self-expression,
EIGHT economically disadvantaged female persons stealing milk-products from enslaved Bovine-Americans,
SEVEN endangered swans swimming on federally protected wetlands,
SIX enslaved Fowl-Americans producing stolen non-human animal products,
FIVE golden symbols of culturally sanctioned enforced domestic incarceration,
(NOTE: after members of the Animal Liberation Front threatened to throw red paint at my computer, the calling birds, French hens and partridge have been reintroduced to their native habitat. To avoid further Animal-American enslavement, the remaining gift package has been revised.)
FOUR hours of recorded whale songs
THREE deconstructionist poets
TWO Sierra Club calendars printed on recycled processed tree carcasses and...
ONE Spotted Owl activist chained to an old-growth pear tree.

Merry Christmas. Happy Chanukah. Good Kwanzaa. Blessed Yule. Oh, heck! Happy Holidays! (unless otherwise prohibited by law)*
*Unless, of course, you are suffering from Seasonally Affected Disorder (SAD). If this be the case, please substitute this gratuitous call for celebration with suggestion that you have a thoroughly adequate day.

Martha Stewart's Holiday To-Do List

• December 1 - Blanch carcass from Thanksgiving turkey. Spray paint gold, turn upside down and use as a sleigh to hold Christmas cards.
• December 2 - Have Mormon Tabernacle Choir record outgoing Christmas message for answering machine.
• December 3 - Using candlewick and hand-gilded miniature pine cones, fashion a cat-o-nine-tails. Flog gardener.
• December 4 - Repaint Sistine Chapel ceiling in ecru, with mocha trim.
• December 5 - Get new eyeglasses. Grind lenses myself.
• December 6 - Fax family Christmas newsletter to Pulitzer committee for consideration.
• December 7 - Debug Windows XP
• December 8 - Decorate homegrown Christmas tree with scented candles handmade with beeswax from my backyard bee colony.
• December 9 - Record own Christmas album complete with 4-part harmony and all instrument accompaniment performed by myself. Mail to all friends and loved ones.
• December 10 - Align carpets to adjust for curvature of Earth.
• December 11 - Lay Faberge egg.
• December 12 - Take dog apart. Disinfect. Reassemble.
• December 13 - Collect dentures. (They make excellent pastry cutters, particularly for decorative pie crusts.)
• December 14 - Install plumbing in gingerbread house.
• December 15 - Replace air in mini-van tires with Glade "Holiday Scents" in case tires are shot out at mall.
• December 16 - Erect ice skating rink n front yard using spring water I bottled myself. Open for neighborhood children's use.
• December 17 - Child proof the Christmas tree with garland of razor wire.
• December 19 - Adjust legs of chairs so each Christmas dinner guest will be the same height when sitting at his or her assigned seat.
• December 20 - Dip sheep and cows in egg whites and roll in confectioner's sugar to add a festive sparkle to the pasture.
• December 21 - Drain city reservoir; refill with mulled cider, orange slices and cinnamon sticks.
• December 22 - Float votive candles in toilet tank.
• December 23 - Seed clouds for white Christmas.
• December 24 - Do my annual good deed. Go to several stores. Be seen engaged in last minute Christmas shopping, thus making many people feel less inadequate than they really are.
• December 25 - Bear son. Swaddle. Lay in color-coordinated manger scented with homemade potpourri.
• December 26 - Organize spice racks by genus and phylum.
• December 27 - Build snowman in exact likeness of God.
• December 28 - Hand sew 365 quilts, each using 365 fabric squares that I wove myself. Donate to local orphanages.
• December 29 - Release flock of white doves, each individually decorated with olive branches to signify desire for world peace.
• December 30 - Give staff their resolutions.
• December 31 - New Year's Eve! Call a friend in each time zone of the world as the clock strikes midnight in that country.

Is Santa Claus a Woman?

I think Santa Claus is a woman...
I hate to be the one to defy sacred myth, but I believe he's a she.
Think about it. Christmas is a big, organized, warm, fuzzy, nurturing social deal, and I have a tough time believing a guy could possibly pull it all off!
For starters, the vast majority of men don't even think about selecting gifts until Christmas Eve. Once at the mall, they always seem surprised to find only Ronco products, socket wrench sets, and mood rings left on the shelves. On this count alone, I'm convinced Santa is a woman.
Surely, if he were a man, everyone in the universe would wake up Christmas morning to find a rotating musical Chia Pet under the tree, still in the bag.
Another problem for a he-Santa would be getting there. First of all, there would be no reindeer because they would all be dead, gutted and strapped on to the rear bumper of the sleigh amid wide-eyed, desperate
claims that buck season had been extended. Blitzen's rack would already be on the way to the taxidermist. Even if the male Santa DID have reindeer, he'd still have transportation problems because he would inevitably get lost up there in the snow and clouds and then refuse to stop and ask for directions.
Other reasons why Santa can't possibly be a man:
Men can't pack a bag.
Men would rather be dead than caught wearing red velvet.
Men would feel their masculinity is threatened....having to be seen with all those elves.
Men don't answer their mail.
Men would refuse to allow their physique to be described even in jest as anything remotely resembling a "bowlful of jelly."
Men aren't interested in stockings unless somebody's wearing them.
Having to do the Ho Ho Ho thing would seriously inhibit their ability to pick up women.
Finally, being responsible for Christmas would require a commitment.
I can buy the fact that other mythical holiday characters are men - Father Time shows up once a year unshaven and looking ominous. Definite guy.
Cupid flies around carrying weapons.
Uncle Sam is a politician who likes to point fingers.
Any one of these individuals could pass the testosterone-screening test.
But not Santa. Not a chance.

What Are You Getting for Christmas?

(Erma Bombeck)

Someone asked me what my kids were getting for Christmas this year, and I said, "I really don't know. Either a chest cold, stomach flu or walking diarrhea."
I don't worry about them. They always come up with something - even if it's at the last minute.
When they were small we always used to hear stories of Christmas
...about how people went to parties or watched the big tree at the court house being lit up. Once when I was at the drugstore having prescriptions filled, I even saw a group of people singing. I didn't know what it was all about so I asked the druggist. He said, "They're called carolers and they go out and sing in front of homes and sometimes they're invited in for punch and cookies."
"But how do they get their medication?" I asked.
"They're not sick, and they don't need medication," he said.
That was the first time I realized that not everyone got sick at Christmas. It made me curious about how other people spent the holiday. My neighbor to the left had four children, and the one on the right had two. One day we compared notes.
"I heard that Betty, the childless secretary in the next block, and her husband come down on Christmas morning in their robes and slippers and open their gifts before breakfast."
"Big deal," said Helen. "We do that."
"But wait!" I said. "AFTER THAT THEY GET DRESSED."
"Maybe their drugstore doesn't deliver on Christmas day," said Charmaine.
"No, I think they go to church and then go to someone's home for a big turkey dinner with stuffing, cranberries, sweet potatoes and pecan pie."
No one said anything for a minute. Then Helen said, "I've got to go home and pull together some clear broth, Jell-O and Seven-Up."
"And I've got nose drops at 2 o'clock, antibiotics at 3 and Kaopectate at 3:30." Said Charmaine.
There are a lot of theories as to why children get sick at Christmas. Some say it's the excitement - others contend it's the exhaustion that makes you vulnerable. My own theory is that we're probably allergic to all that ho-ho-hoing and will break out with something every time we hear happiness.
Besides, if childless Betty ever got a rectal thermometer as a stocking stuffer, she wouldn't know what to do with it.

Handmade Gifts

(Erma Bombeck)

As the holiday season looms large, I find myself a bit despondent over the fact that all year long I have wantonly thrown out eight perfectly good bleach bottles and six dozen Styrofoam cups - not to mention probably 87 grapefruit rinds.
Here we are, in the final stages of the gift-giving season, and the garbage man has taken away the material from which great gifts are made.
I know, too, in what reverence these gifts are held by the fortunate recipients. Long ago we received a box containing a Styrofoam circle covered in Pepsi bottle caps and blue peach pits.
"Gosh!" exclaimed my daughter.
"Wow!" added my son.
We observed the gift in respectful silence for several minutes.
"What IS it?" my son finally asked.
"It's a Christmas wreath, of course," I answered. " Auntie Barbara made it for us."
"Come on. She bought it."
"Nobody SELLS things like that," I countered. " Besides, there's blood all over one of the peach pits."
"Do you like it?" my son asked.
"Son, no one else in the whole world has a wreath like this. Auntie Barbara put a lot of time and energy into this wreath."
"Not to mention blood," my daughter added.
"But do you LIKE it?" he insisted.
"LIKE is perhaps the wrong word, " I retorted. " I RESPECT this wreath. Gifts like this are unique products of human imagination. Gifts like this are living symbols of man's creative genius. Gifts like these are . .."
"UGLY!" my son interrupted. "What did you send Auntie Barbara this year?"
"A lamp shade I made out of Hershey bar wrappers and pink macaroni shells," I admitted.

Christmas Morning

(Nancy Stahl)

Random thoughts, which can't help occurring to me a 6:17 a.m., December 25^th ...

• Q. What am I doing up in the middle of the night?
  A. I am up because it is difficult for sleep to knit up the raveled sleeve of care while a 6-year-old is sitting on your chest and yelling " Wake up, Mommy!"
• Q. How many times can one listen to a toy telephone announce that "The cow goes MOO" without shrieking "Not any MORE he doesn't!" and flinging the whole ill-considered gift through the kitchen window?
  A. So far, 43 times.
• Q. Why are you sitting here when you should be in the kitchen stuffing a turkey?
  A. It is rather difficult to move while a small boy is cutting your toenails so that he can look at the parings under his new microscope.
• Q. What image must a son have of a mother for whom he buys enormous magenta and chartreuse hoop earrings?
  A. Never mind that. What about a daughter who buys her mother a giant-size bottle of Old Spice after shave cologne?
• Q. Wasn't it a jolly idea to burn all the odd bits of paper and Christmas wrapping in the fireplace?
  A. It would be a darn sight more jolly if my son hadn't gotten carried away and burned the washing instructions to my slacks, the rules to " Space Patrol: A Thrilling Game for the Whole Family," and the warranty on the electric blender as well.
• Q. What is Big Jim doing in Barbie's Country Camper to cause so much smothered laughter?
  A. Ignore it. Whatever it is, it is the one thing that doesn't require four "D" cell batteries.
• Q. How many chocolate Santas can a 7-year-old dog eat before being sick on the rug?
  A. Six. No, make that five.

Twisted Greeting Cards

(Alan Meiss)

• I must express my gratitude
  for such a lovely gift.
  Your thoughtfulness and taste is matched
  only by your thrift.
  It's clear that you spared all expense,
  if you catch my drift.
  Remove the anti-theft device
  when you again shoplift.
• It's Christmas time, and once again,
  the family's gathered 'round.
  Uncles, aunts, and cousins come
  to raise a joyful sound.
  All that is, except for you,
  whom we can only send this mail.
  But we'll save your gifts for fifty years
  till you get out of jail.
• This Christmas time I give to you
  a book that isn't mine.
  So give it back before it's due
  or I'll have to pay a fine.

Santa Claus, like all pilots, gets regular visits from the Federal Aviation Administration, and the FAA examiner arrived last week for the pre-Christmas flight check. In preparation, Santa had the elves wash the sled and bathe all the reindeer. Santa got his logbook out and made sure all his paperwork was in order. He knew they would examine all his equipment and truly put Santa's flying skills to the test. The examiner walked slowly around the sled. He checked the reindeer harnesses, the landing gear, and even Rudolph's nose. He painstakingly reviewed Santa's weight and balance calculations for sled's enormous payload. Finally, they were ready for the check ride. Santa got in and fastened his seat belt and shoulder harness and checked the compass. Then the examiner hopped in carrying, to Santa's surprise, a shotgun.
"What's that for?!?" asked Santa incredulously.
The examiner winked and said, "I'm not supposed to tell you this ahead of time," as he leaned over to whisper in Santa's ear, "but you're gonna lose an engine on takeoff."

Three men died on Christmas Eve and were met by Saint Peter at the pearly gates. "In honor of this holy season," Saint Peter said, "you must each possess something that symbolizes Christmas to get into heaven."
The first man fumbled through his pockets and pulled out a lighter. He flicked it on. It represents a candle, he said.
"You may pass through the pearly gates", Saint Peter said.
The second man reached into his pocket and pulled out a set of keys. He shook them and said, "They're bells".
Saint Peter said, "you may pass through the pearly gates".
The third man started searching desperately through his pockets and finally pulled out a pair of women's panties.
St. Peter looked at the man with a raised eyebrow and asked, "And just what do those symbolize?"
The man replied, "They're Carols".