yuletide cynicism

If you’re looking for yuletide cynicism here, you’re shopping in the wrong place. This is New York City’s time of year. It’s stood the test of time and it fairly sparkles, proving that the ordinary can be extraordinary. With the right lighting. Lisa’s (parent’s) apartment glitters like our promised heaven on high. When we left at Thanksgiving, Michael (Lisa’s dad) had the concierge service stressed, toting boxes of decorations up from their storage area. When I waved my goodbyes, he appeared to be wrestling an octopus of cool-white fairy lights into submission. Now everything glitters pyrite bright. Our holiday time is limited—and this is our chance to unwind—so we’re selective about what we decide to embrace. For instance, there was a sale at Michael Kors where, no big deal, I got a pair of brogues, black leather wingtips that’ll be straight fire with a little black dress. The bargains were so good that I decided the store must be a drug front. Not that I’m complaining. Do I ever complain? Nope, I’m stoic. Like Eric Adams, the mayor of New York, Lisa and I’ve been “testing the product” of Manhattan's club scene. We’re searching diligently for the new and unfamiliar. When it comes to picking which clubs we want to visit, Charles, our driver and escort (a retired NYPD cop), has gone as far as to suggest, we’re “out of our depth,” and refused to let us even try one or two DJ’d, pop-up clubs in Queens that were getting a lot of heat and likes. “Roosevelt Avenue is the new 42nd Street,” he’d said. What does that even mean?? Indignant silence Anyway, I hope Christmas finds you all merry and bright and that your holidays—whichever you celebrate— are carnivals of food, music, friendship and love—for those are the luxuries that count the most. Merry Christmas! Happy Hanukkah! Merry Kwanzaa, Happy Festivus! . . Songs for this: Absolutely Everybody by Vanessa Amorosi Rock With You by Traincha . . A Christmas Playlist—because there's 4 days til Christmas www.daweb.us/xmas/Christmas_28.mp3