And All Through The House...
26/12/21 07:06
What a morning! Did y'all see Senator Joe Manchin on FOX Sunday yesterday? He came out as an unequivocal "NO" on Joey Biden's boondoggle of a Build Back Better bill. Manchin efffectively and singlehandedly put a stake in the heart of the Biden presidency with his declaration. Biden needed Manchin's vote to get the bill across the finish line and, after months of negotiations with the White House, Manchin went on FOX to announce his decision. Why did he do this on FOX? Don't know. Don't care. It's not like he couldn't have gone on CNN to say what he had to say.
There was a collective sigh of relief on the right as passage of this bill meant higher taxes, tens of thousands of new IRS agents, and just a thousand other things that would likely be not only costly but ultimately punitive. It was a bill crafted by the progressives and pushed by the party as a bill that would be a great benefit to the American people and, god willing, a bill that would give the democrats something to run on come the midterm elections in 2022. I'm trying to understand now why the White House and their minions are pillorying Joe Manchin in the media. I understand that they aren't happy but negotiations are negotiations. They don't always go your way. Grow the fuck up!
My binary zero sum brain is very happy with this development as it represents a loss for the democrats and a win for the republicans. Not that the republicans did much to see to it that we as Americans knew everything we needed to know about the bill. They didn't. This was all Joe Manchin. If his party pushes too hard they might see Senator Manchin moving over to the Republican Party and that would put the republicans back in the majority. That would be icing on the cake in my honest opinion. It wouldn't take much. His state of West Virginia voted for Trump by maybe 60% over Biden. They would welcome Joe Manchin to the Republican Party with open arms.
I am going to so enjoy the gnashing of the teeth and the wringing of the hands today in the media as they twist themselves into a pretzel trying to make sense of Manchin's merrymaking at their expense. Everything is personal with the democrats. It doesn't help that Manchin's decision makes Biden and his people look like a cabal of stooges. It seemed like every other day the media made a big deal about how Manchin was visiting the White House to continue negotiations. He (Manchin) must want something. What does he want, was a constant refrain when they asked the progressives how they thought things were going.
Sure, Sleepy Joe will see to it that Senator Manchin gets what he wants and then we can pass this bill and get it on to the President's desk for his signature. These are simpleminded exhortations of a progressive wing of their party that is used to getting what they want even if that means having to unleash their jackboots in BLM and Antifa. I can hear them now. We can sway jurors with our Alinsky-like tactics, why not some dumb ass hick Senator from the backwater state of West Virginia. Not a day passed by when you would hear one of his fellow senators like the communist, Bernie Sanders, say, "The people of West Virginia want this bill passed overwhelmingly." That's a lie.
There is a lot of scarlet in the financial markets this morning ostensibly due to Manchin's decision. I would think that the markets would like the news since it means that higher taxes are not coming down the pike. The Fed also won't need to print as much money so that means less inflation. Alternatively, it also means that trillions of dollars will not be flowing into the economy so liquidity, the lifeblood of any economy during hard economic times, will be doing more ebbing than flowing. There are also plans on the table to rein in quantitative easing in the first quarter of 2022 and interest rate hikes are back on the table per the fed's latest comments. None of this bodes well for Joe Biden.
I saw a tweet this morning about American troops on the Russian border. Say what? This is the first I'm hearing about this? Why wouldn't that story be at the head of any newscast? Is this the liberal media hiding information from the American people again on behalf of the corrupt Biden Administration? Who authorized this dickwhistle of an illegitimate president to put American blood and treasure within earshot of tens of thousands of Russian troops just waiting for the word to come down from Vlad before taking Ukraine? Have we declared war on Russia? How much stock should we be putting in idle tweets when it comes to reports like this?
I'm not hearing anything from Uncle Wally about cancelling the holiday get together so I guess it's still on. I hope he's not thinking that since he's not hearing from anyone about concerns about the raging virus that there's no need for concern. He should be putting his family's health first and foremost when it comes to not exposing anyone to the dreaded Covid and any one or more of its variants. We would be fine not to attend if he were to decide that having a party during a virus spike is just a bridge too far. That's perfectly understandable. Maybe he needs to hear that from me.
I do get the sense that no one in government wants to be an Uncle Scrooge when it comes to putting any restrictions in place that would tarnish the holidays already underway. Locking people down and shuttering businesses would further decimate and deflate an economy that is still in recovery mode since the onset of the Covid virus back in March of 2020. Knowing what we know about the omicron virus, one of many variants of the Covid virus, none of us should be really concerned yet the media is pushing the panic porn and that isn't helping.
Yes, it's spreading like wildfire. To date, there has been maybe one death from this particular variant in the United States. Mrs G forwarded us a memo from her independent living facility yesterday that spoke of new cases here and there in her facility but none that warranted anything more than maybe keeping an extra box of Kleenex close at hand. Everyone was doing well because of the vaccinations or so the memo said and I can't quite remember if the memo was pushing booster shots or not. I suppose the handful of anti-vaxers in her facility will continue to not want the vaccine while everyone else will get the jab and life will go on.
There is a bit of a kerfuffle about who will bring what to Mrs G's place for the holiday get together. Mrs G wanted to order a cheese plate from her facility but that option became unavailable after they had reached the maximum number of orders available. Mrs G never came out and asked the missus to help with securing a like dish but the missus knew a marching order when she heard one. Or, in this case, didn't hear one. We talked briefly about picking up a platter from the local greek restaurant but we wondered aloud who might or might not be interested in delicacies like grape leaves, humus, and bite-sized deep fried eggplant bites. Maybe we'll just get some cookies from Whole Foods. Everyone likes cookies.
In days of old, before Mrs G went off to live at her independent living facility, she would always put out dishes of little things like black olives, pickles, and maybe some crackers and cheese when family came over during the holidays. It's a custom that is, quite frankly, old as the hills. I'm not even sure that it's worth bringing up here other than to say things are different these days with Mrs G getting on in years and being at the mercy, as she is, of the shortcomings of her facility when it comes to things like having enough cheese platters on hand to satisfy the demands of their clients. Then again, a lot of things have changed since the pandemic came along so this may be just one more thing.
God only knows that she has enough children who can bring things themselves so maybe it's just a matter of coordinating all those things that people want to bring so that she doesn't end up with too much of one thing and not enough of some other things. See how that works? She did ask the missus if she might bring some apple juice so there's that. And, not just any apple juice. Mott's apple juice is what she prefers for whatever reason. She still has plenty of A&W root beer on hand since I brought over a couple of 12-packs recently thinking that she preferred caffeine free root beers when, in fact, she prefers sugar-free root beers. I need to write these things down.
Just so you know, we're not talking the last supper here. That is to say, there might be 6 or 7 people in attendance and we're talking snacks here, not a full course meal. This is not some elaborate 12-course meal we need to worry about. We also don't know what, if anything, Mrs G's other children plan to bring. I think they're mindful of the fact that Mrs G may not be up to doing what she's done in the past when it comes to this sort of thing. She can only do so much. Age and infirmity has a little to do with that but there comes a time when your children have to step up to maybe lend a hand or take over some age old family tradition. It's what family's do in a pinch.
I mentioned to the missus last night that I was quite sure that we have nothing to fear from the unvaccinated. I was a little surprised to hear her push back and say something about them carrying more of a viral load. Say what? My darlin' has been drinking some of the Koolaid being served up by the national media. I wish she wouldn't do that. I set about looking around on the internet for a source or two that might either contradict or support this wild-eyed contention of hers. I was not surprised, knowing what I know about the full court press of the media elite to sell this vaccine hoax, that I found more articles supporting her position than not.
I don't know why I bother. Even if I did find an article supporting my position I'm quite certain that the missus would sooner believe what she was reading than the "nonsense" I was dishing up. She might even give my article a cursory look if only to pay me a bit of lip service but she would likely dismiss it as a contrarian view and not worthy of serious consideration. Thanks for nothing, sweetie. Why do I even bother? I do think that there are just as many experts out in the ether who would agree with me and would likely poo-poo what the missus and her experts believed to be true.
If the experts disagree on what's true and what isn't true when it comes to this Covid stuff, who are we as mere mortals to argue any of it. If we can't argue any of it, then where does that leave us when it comes to drawing conclusions on our own about what's best for us and our loved ones? I guess if you've gotten through the better part of two years now without contracting the virus then you can take stock of sorts in what you think works and what doesn't work. I was out and about in the first 12 months before the vaccine became available and I was never fearful one way or another and I think that served me well. Once you give in to the fear, it's all over.
There are enough "breakthrough" cases now that I'm beginning to wonder if getting the vaccine hasn't screwed up my body's natural abilities to fight the virus. It certainly did not work for the people who got those breakthrough cases. In fact, it's looking now like the more shots you've received, the more susceptible you are to the virus. That, in my mind, makes the vaccines public enemy numero uno. The one theory that I'm willing to give some credence to is that if you've had the vaccine, you are less likely to be hospitalized or maybe succumb to the illness. If the cases are going through the roof but the hospitalizations and deaths are plummeting, what other conclusion can you draw?
We got a delivery yesterday that included a hat that the missus thought the Ev man might like for Christmas. She had ordered it from The Vermont Country Store catalogue. She was as sure as you can be about anything when you order something on line as to whether or not it was going to fit him. It was one of those hats with flaps that you can pull down over your ears so I suppose that makes it more of a cap than a hat. Out of curiosity, I looked at the label to see where it was made. The fucking thing was made in China! Had I known where it was made, I would have told the missus not to order it.
I don't know why but I was expecting more from the Vermont Country Store. Maybe I shouldn't have been surprised. I had visions of one or more craftsmen sitting around in a semi-circle in front of a roaring fireplace exchanging stories about the North Pole and sipping hot chocolate out of glazed mugs while stitching together their wares for delivery to the Vermont Country Store. Instead, I now get these rather disturbing pictures in my head of a barely heated warehouse in the northern region of China where slave labor is put to work churning out goods for delivery to stores like The Vermont Country Store. I'm feeling a little victimized truth be told. That settles it. I'll be returning the hat now if I have to drive it back to Vermont myself.
I've been watching this show on the telly called "The Great British Baking show." As a rule, I do not watch reality shows and I'm not sure that I could even name one if pressed to do so. That isn't to say that you can't find one or more that piques your interest one way or another. Maybe it's real estate you're interested in and there are shows, now I remember, like "Million Dollar Listing" or maybe something like, "This Old House." Anyway, I'm not sure how I ended up watching this baking show since I don't do much if any baking and I have no aspirations one way or another to start baking. Am I happy to pursue the goods on display at my local bakery now and then? You betcha.
My fascination with the show may be due to the over-the-top production of the show and, secondarily, the personalities. I mean the quality all around is just superb. You can almost imagine yourself making what they make, sampling what the judges sample, and experiencing the ups and downs of the bakers as they compete against each other to bake something that will not only be pleasing to the eye but pleasing to the palate as well. I was a little surprised to see one contestant dismissed in last night's show since I think he was technically one of the better bakers.
I was telling the missus that I thought he was dismissed not because he wasn't technically quite good but rather because he was maybe too technical. I don't think the fact that he was German had anything to do with anything but Germans can be an exacting lot. They make great cars so there's that. I will say that I never saw his dismissal coming because I was blind to the non-technical aspects of the challenges presented to the bakers. It isn't even something that the judges had to explain or maybe could explain when they got around to having to select someone to go home. How do you tell someone that there isn't enough heart and soul in the creation of their delicacies?
It makes me wonder if the German fella who got sent home had any inkling that this was his Achilles heel in the scheme of things. He commented after he was announced as the baker to be sent home that he saw it coming and further stated that the other bakers were probably more shocked than he was at the announcement of his dismissal.
I think he didn't see it coming. Was he wringing his hands when awaiting the announcement by the judges? No, he was not. Was he looking concerned? No, he was not. Was he bowing his head hoping against hope that he wouldn't hear his name uttered by the judges when the announcement was made? No, he was not. He was what you would expect from a German who didn't think he would lose to his lessers on the stage.
And then there were three. Three contestants who would be going into the final. Only one would be crowned "Master Baker." The bakers we'd come to know and love over the course of 10 episodes now stood before the judges with their creations. I had my favorite, of course. He was the fellow to beat in my humble opinion. Now that the German was out of the way, the crown was his for the taking.
That isn't to say that one of the other two contestants might surprise everyone with a creation and walk away with the crown. There was always that possibility. Not that this counts for anything, but the other two contestants always seemed to surprise even themselves when they were announced as Star Baker for the week's challenge. My guy, not so much. So far, so good.
Today is Christmas Eve so it should be a fun day. There's not a lot left to do so that's a good thing. I do have a pan of eggplant lasagna to pick up at 11 from Sophia's in North Hampton. If I see a loaf of Italian bread at Sophia's to buy, all the better. I'd planned to have bagels with the meal but Italian bread might make better garlic bread. Anyway, this post is getting a little long in the tooth so it's time to wrap it up. Here's hoping everyone has a Merry Merry Christmas!
There was a collective sigh of relief on the right as passage of this bill meant higher taxes, tens of thousands of new IRS agents, and just a thousand other things that would likely be not only costly but ultimately punitive. It was a bill crafted by the progressives and pushed by the party as a bill that would be a great benefit to the American people and, god willing, a bill that would give the democrats something to run on come the midterm elections in 2022. I'm trying to understand now why the White House and their minions are pillorying Joe Manchin in the media. I understand that they aren't happy but negotiations are negotiations. They don't always go your way. Grow the fuck up!
My binary zero sum brain is very happy with this development as it represents a loss for the democrats and a win for the republicans. Not that the republicans did much to see to it that we as Americans knew everything we needed to know about the bill. They didn't. This was all Joe Manchin. If his party pushes too hard they might see Senator Manchin moving over to the Republican Party and that would put the republicans back in the majority. That would be icing on the cake in my honest opinion. It wouldn't take much. His state of West Virginia voted for Trump by maybe 60% over Biden. They would welcome Joe Manchin to the Republican Party with open arms.
I am going to so enjoy the gnashing of the teeth and the wringing of the hands today in the media as they twist themselves into a pretzel trying to make sense of Manchin's merrymaking at their expense. Everything is personal with the democrats. It doesn't help that Manchin's decision makes Biden and his people look like a cabal of stooges. It seemed like every other day the media made a big deal about how Manchin was visiting the White House to continue negotiations. He (Manchin) must want something. What does he want, was a constant refrain when they asked the progressives how they thought things were going.
Sure, Sleepy Joe will see to it that Senator Manchin gets what he wants and then we can pass this bill and get it on to the President's desk for his signature. These are simpleminded exhortations of a progressive wing of their party that is used to getting what they want even if that means having to unleash their jackboots in BLM and Antifa. I can hear them now. We can sway jurors with our Alinsky-like tactics, why not some dumb ass hick Senator from the backwater state of West Virginia. Not a day passed by when you would hear one of his fellow senators like the communist, Bernie Sanders, say, "The people of West Virginia want this bill passed overwhelmingly." That's a lie.
There is a lot of scarlet in the financial markets this morning ostensibly due to Manchin's decision. I would think that the markets would like the news since it means that higher taxes are not coming down the pike. The Fed also won't need to print as much money so that means less inflation. Alternatively, it also means that trillions of dollars will not be flowing into the economy so liquidity, the lifeblood of any economy during hard economic times, will be doing more ebbing than flowing. There are also plans on the table to rein in quantitative easing in the first quarter of 2022 and interest rate hikes are back on the table per the fed's latest comments. None of this bodes well for Joe Biden.
I saw a tweet this morning about American troops on the Russian border. Say what? This is the first I'm hearing about this? Why wouldn't that story be at the head of any newscast? Is this the liberal media hiding information from the American people again on behalf of the corrupt Biden Administration? Who authorized this dickwhistle of an illegitimate president to put American blood and treasure within earshot of tens of thousands of Russian troops just waiting for the word to come down from Vlad before taking Ukraine? Have we declared war on Russia? How much stock should we be putting in idle tweets when it comes to reports like this?
I'm not hearing anything from Uncle Wally about cancelling the holiday get together so I guess it's still on. I hope he's not thinking that since he's not hearing from anyone about concerns about the raging virus that there's no need for concern. He should be putting his family's health first and foremost when it comes to not exposing anyone to the dreaded Covid and any one or more of its variants. We would be fine not to attend if he were to decide that having a party during a virus spike is just a bridge too far. That's perfectly understandable. Maybe he needs to hear that from me.
I do get the sense that no one in government wants to be an Uncle Scrooge when it comes to putting any restrictions in place that would tarnish the holidays already underway. Locking people down and shuttering businesses would further decimate and deflate an economy that is still in recovery mode since the onset of the Covid virus back in March of 2020. Knowing what we know about the omicron virus, one of many variants of the Covid virus, none of us should be really concerned yet the media is pushing the panic porn and that isn't helping.
Yes, it's spreading like wildfire. To date, there has been maybe one death from this particular variant in the United States. Mrs G forwarded us a memo from her independent living facility yesterday that spoke of new cases here and there in her facility but none that warranted anything more than maybe keeping an extra box of Kleenex close at hand. Everyone was doing well because of the vaccinations or so the memo said and I can't quite remember if the memo was pushing booster shots or not. I suppose the handful of anti-vaxers in her facility will continue to not want the vaccine while everyone else will get the jab and life will go on.
There is a bit of a kerfuffle about who will bring what to Mrs G's place for the holiday get together. Mrs G wanted to order a cheese plate from her facility but that option became unavailable after they had reached the maximum number of orders available. Mrs G never came out and asked the missus to help with securing a like dish but the missus knew a marching order when she heard one. Or, in this case, didn't hear one. We talked briefly about picking up a platter from the local greek restaurant but we wondered aloud who might or might not be interested in delicacies like grape leaves, humus, and bite-sized deep fried eggplant bites. Maybe we'll just get some cookies from Whole Foods. Everyone likes cookies.
In days of old, before Mrs G went off to live at her independent living facility, she would always put out dishes of little things like black olives, pickles, and maybe some crackers and cheese when family came over during the holidays. It's a custom that is, quite frankly, old as the hills. I'm not even sure that it's worth bringing up here other than to say things are different these days with Mrs G getting on in years and being at the mercy, as she is, of the shortcomings of her facility when it comes to things like having enough cheese platters on hand to satisfy the demands of their clients. Then again, a lot of things have changed since the pandemic came along so this may be just one more thing.
God only knows that she has enough children who can bring things themselves so maybe it's just a matter of coordinating all those things that people want to bring so that she doesn't end up with too much of one thing and not enough of some other things. See how that works? She did ask the missus if she might bring some apple juice so there's that. And, not just any apple juice. Mott's apple juice is what she prefers for whatever reason. She still has plenty of A&W root beer on hand since I brought over a couple of 12-packs recently thinking that she preferred caffeine free root beers when, in fact, she prefers sugar-free root beers. I need to write these things down.
Just so you know, we're not talking the last supper here. That is to say, there might be 6 or 7 people in attendance and we're talking snacks here, not a full course meal. This is not some elaborate 12-course meal we need to worry about. We also don't know what, if anything, Mrs G's other children plan to bring. I think they're mindful of the fact that Mrs G may not be up to doing what she's done in the past when it comes to this sort of thing. She can only do so much. Age and infirmity has a little to do with that but there comes a time when your children have to step up to maybe lend a hand or take over some age old family tradition. It's what family's do in a pinch.
I mentioned to the missus last night that I was quite sure that we have nothing to fear from the unvaccinated. I was a little surprised to hear her push back and say something about them carrying more of a viral load. Say what? My darlin' has been drinking some of the Koolaid being served up by the national media. I wish she wouldn't do that. I set about looking around on the internet for a source or two that might either contradict or support this wild-eyed contention of hers. I was not surprised, knowing what I know about the full court press of the media elite to sell this vaccine hoax, that I found more articles supporting her position than not.
I don't know why I bother. Even if I did find an article supporting my position I'm quite certain that the missus would sooner believe what she was reading than the "nonsense" I was dishing up. She might even give my article a cursory look if only to pay me a bit of lip service but she would likely dismiss it as a contrarian view and not worthy of serious consideration. Thanks for nothing, sweetie. Why do I even bother? I do think that there are just as many experts out in the ether who would agree with me and would likely poo-poo what the missus and her experts believed to be true.
If the experts disagree on what's true and what isn't true when it comes to this Covid stuff, who are we as mere mortals to argue any of it. If we can't argue any of it, then where does that leave us when it comes to drawing conclusions on our own about what's best for us and our loved ones? I guess if you've gotten through the better part of two years now without contracting the virus then you can take stock of sorts in what you think works and what doesn't work. I was out and about in the first 12 months before the vaccine became available and I was never fearful one way or another and I think that served me well. Once you give in to the fear, it's all over.
There are enough "breakthrough" cases now that I'm beginning to wonder if getting the vaccine hasn't screwed up my body's natural abilities to fight the virus. It certainly did not work for the people who got those breakthrough cases. In fact, it's looking now like the more shots you've received, the more susceptible you are to the virus. That, in my mind, makes the vaccines public enemy numero uno. The one theory that I'm willing to give some credence to is that if you've had the vaccine, you are less likely to be hospitalized or maybe succumb to the illness. If the cases are going through the roof but the hospitalizations and deaths are plummeting, what other conclusion can you draw?
We got a delivery yesterday that included a hat that the missus thought the Ev man might like for Christmas. She had ordered it from The Vermont Country Store catalogue. She was as sure as you can be about anything when you order something on line as to whether or not it was going to fit him. It was one of those hats with flaps that you can pull down over your ears so I suppose that makes it more of a cap than a hat. Out of curiosity, I looked at the label to see where it was made. The fucking thing was made in China! Had I known where it was made, I would have told the missus not to order it.
I don't know why but I was expecting more from the Vermont Country Store. Maybe I shouldn't have been surprised. I had visions of one or more craftsmen sitting around in a semi-circle in front of a roaring fireplace exchanging stories about the North Pole and sipping hot chocolate out of glazed mugs while stitching together their wares for delivery to the Vermont Country Store. Instead, I now get these rather disturbing pictures in my head of a barely heated warehouse in the northern region of China where slave labor is put to work churning out goods for delivery to stores like The Vermont Country Store. I'm feeling a little victimized truth be told. That settles it. I'll be returning the hat now if I have to drive it back to Vermont myself.
I've been watching this show on the telly called "The Great British Baking show." As a rule, I do not watch reality shows and I'm not sure that I could even name one if pressed to do so. That isn't to say that you can't find one or more that piques your interest one way or another. Maybe it's real estate you're interested in and there are shows, now I remember, like "Million Dollar Listing" or maybe something like, "This Old House." Anyway, I'm not sure how I ended up watching this baking show since I don't do much if any baking and I have no aspirations one way or another to start baking. Am I happy to pursue the goods on display at my local bakery now and then? You betcha.
My fascination with the show may be due to the over-the-top production of the show and, secondarily, the personalities. I mean the quality all around is just superb. You can almost imagine yourself making what they make, sampling what the judges sample, and experiencing the ups and downs of the bakers as they compete against each other to bake something that will not only be pleasing to the eye but pleasing to the palate as well. I was a little surprised to see one contestant dismissed in last night's show since I think he was technically one of the better bakers.
I was telling the missus that I thought he was dismissed not because he wasn't technically quite good but rather because he was maybe too technical. I don't think the fact that he was German had anything to do with anything but Germans can be an exacting lot. They make great cars so there's that. I will say that I never saw his dismissal coming because I was blind to the non-technical aspects of the challenges presented to the bakers. It isn't even something that the judges had to explain or maybe could explain when they got around to having to select someone to go home. How do you tell someone that there isn't enough heart and soul in the creation of their delicacies?
It makes me wonder if the German fella who got sent home had any inkling that this was his Achilles heel in the scheme of things. He commented after he was announced as the baker to be sent home that he saw it coming and further stated that the other bakers were probably more shocked than he was at the announcement of his dismissal.
I think he didn't see it coming. Was he wringing his hands when awaiting the announcement by the judges? No, he was not. Was he looking concerned? No, he was not. Was he bowing his head hoping against hope that he wouldn't hear his name uttered by the judges when the announcement was made? No, he was not. He was what you would expect from a German who didn't think he would lose to his lessers on the stage.
And then there were three. Three contestants who would be going into the final. Only one would be crowned "Master Baker." The bakers we'd come to know and love over the course of 10 episodes now stood before the judges with their creations. I had my favorite, of course. He was the fellow to beat in my humble opinion. Now that the German was out of the way, the crown was his for the taking.
That isn't to say that one of the other two contestants might surprise everyone with a creation and walk away with the crown. There was always that possibility. Not that this counts for anything, but the other two contestants always seemed to surprise even themselves when they were announced as Star Baker for the week's challenge. My guy, not so much. So far, so good.
Today is Christmas Eve so it should be a fun day. There's not a lot left to do so that's a good thing. I do have a pan of eggplant lasagna to pick up at 11 from Sophia's in North Hampton. If I see a loaf of Italian bread at Sophia's to buy, all the better. I'd planned to have bagels with the meal but Italian bread might make better garlic bread. Anyway, this post is getting a little long in the tooth so it's time to wrap it up. Here's hoping everyone has a Merry Merry Christmas!