Originally Posted by
BobbyG
I'm jewish, but growing up my best friend was catholic. When I was 9 we added a family room to the house complete with a fireplace. When Christmas rolled around my friend, Steve, persuaded me to hang a stocking. After all, Santa rewards those who have been good; it doesn't say they can't be jewish. When I got home, I asked my mom who I would go about hanging a sticking by the fireplace and she was not amused. How dare you even consider it, she chided me. My dad came home, we ate dinner and I went to my room to read. A short while later my folks both came in and said since it was the first Christmas with a fireplace in the house, I should go ahead and hang a stocking and see what happens. So I took and old sock and some duct tape and hung it up over the fireplace. My siblings declined to join me. In the morning I hurried downstairs and lo, and behold, there was something filling the sock, and some wrapping paper poking out of the top. I grabbed the sock, reached in and pulled out a lump of coal, well a charcoal brickette. Attatched was a card that read, "Ho, Ho, Ho! Nice jewish boys shouldn't try to fool Santa!"
Anyways, last year my wife earmarked some money for me to buy a new bike since I never buy anything for myself. THis year I'm looking at a new kickstand and frame pump. I'm just a simple guy.
Wow, hard lesson. On the other hand, my daughter has been sleeping downstairs by the fireplace for many years now. Getting up at 2:00 in the morning on Christmas to fill the stockings without waking her up kinda sucks. ;-)
She's 12 for cripes sake! I think she's figured it out though. She probably did years ago but she enjoys torturing her Dad so it wouldn't surprise me if she's been watching me stumble around filling stockings for the last 3 years. I could put a bottle of bike wash in her stocking but I already gave her some for her birthday (it's a running joke). I reap what I sow I guess.