Obligatory Holiday-Related Post: Two in a Series

Courtesy of Brave Astronaut . . .

Welcome to the Christmas edition of getting to know your friends. Play along if you'd like.

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags?
   Gift bags, because I'm lazy. And also I suck at estimating the correct amount of wrapping paper, getting the corners to be flat, and doing fancy bows.
   
2. Real tree or artificial?
   We had real trees when I was growing up, but I don't mind artificial.
   
3. When do you put up the tree?
   At my apartment I don't really do a tree at all. At my parents' house, it depends on my mom's schedule, but I think she usually gets to it in the first week or so of December.
   
4. When do you take the tree down?
   If I put one up, I wouldn't take it down. Once something gets set up at my place, it stays that way. My mom doesn't take the tree down until after Serbian Christmas, which is January 7.
   
5. Do you like egg nog?
   Not in mass quantities, but it's okay.
   
6. Favorite gift received as a child?
   Maybe the giant stuffed Snoopy from my Uncle Dave when I was about six? I still have it. I took it to college with me. My friend Aaron insisted on trying to get Snoopy to drink beer one night. Sigh. Good times.
   
7. Do you have a nativity scene?
   Personally, no. My mom has a nice one, though.
   
8. Hardest person to buy for?
   Probably my dad, if only because if he wants something, he'll just buy it.
   
9. Easiest person to buy for?
   Me, ha ha.
   
10. Mail or email Christmas cards?
    Mail, although I haven't made my cards for this year yet. I need to get cracking on that, but it means clearing off enough work space first — no easy task!
    
11. Worst Christmas gift you ever received?
    Nothing really stands out at the moment.
    
12. Favorite Christmas movie?
    Hands down, A Christmas Story. I remember going to see it in the theater with my parents and sister. I own it on DVD (special 2-disc edition, natch!) and tune in to the annual twenty-four hour marathon on cable.
    
13. When do you start shopping for Christmas?
    I kind of do it year-round — keep an idea file or pick things up when I see them. I'm trying to emulate my mom: she finishes all her Christmas shopping in July.
    
14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present?
    Yes.
    
15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas?
    Marzipan. Oh, and Pez, which my mom puts in my stocking every year.
    
16. Clear lights or colored on the tree?
    Bubble lights!
    
17. Favorite Christmas song?
    "Please Come Home for Christmas" by Charles Brown. Although "Santa Claus Is Back in Town" by Elvis Presley and "Merry Christmas Baby" by Chuck Berry are also up there. I made a whole Christmas mix CD a few years ago . . . I need to dig that out.
    
18. Travel at Christmas or stay home?
    Stay at home.
    
19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer?
    Yes.
    
20. Angel on the tree top or a star?
    Star.
    
21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning?
    In the morning.
    
22. Most annoying thing about this time of year?
    The Little Drummer Boy.
    
23. Favorite ornament theme or color?
    Snowflakes — blue and silver.
    
24. Favorite thing for Christmas dinner?
    Honeybaked ham — We always had one at the Christmas Eve party my parents used to host when I was growing up.
    
25. What do you want for Christmas this year?
    A larger apartment without having to pack up all my junk and move it, a bunch of new pairs of Chucks, a video iPod with the largest hard drive possible . . . I already got one thing I wanted: A green hooded zip-up fleece sweatshirt. Thanks, Mom!
    

The last two questions are supposed to be who's most/least likely to respond to this, but I omitted them because I like having 25 questions. For some reason, the numbers come out as bullets, but trust me: There are 25.