Over!

by Marinka on January 1, 2013

The holidays are over, Praise the Lord. Don’t get me wrong, with the exception of people who actually observe it, no one loves Christmas more than I do. It’s so festive and merry! And the after Christmas sales are nothing to sneeze at, either. My family and I flew to North Carolina to visit with my in-laws. And then we flew back to visit with the couch.

Because my parents and I are Soviet-born, New Year’s Eve is a really big holiday for us and the pressure to be HAPPY and FESTIVE is serious. Soviet era people were not permitted to observe religious holidays, so it was basically New Year’s or nothing. And New Year’s it was.

This year, Mama suggested that we spend it together, and that seemed like a fun idea until she started calling me and saying things like “I hope you’re thinking of making it fun and festive for everyone” which is sort of uncanny because at that very moment I was trying to calculate how many more hours there were until The Bachelor started again. And as soon as Mama said that, I felt the weight of a thousand Siberian winters and the oppression that my ancestors endured so that I could make a festive and glorious New Year’s Eve for my family.

But somehow it came together. My friend Susan stopped by for a glass or three of wine and talking about books, and so did my other friend Susan, and then my friend Ines and her family and before we knew it, we were all sitting around talking about Hitler. Because I don’t know what could be more festive than talking about Hitler.

I don’t know how it started, I assume Papa was trying to push Churchill’s History of World War II he just read on everyone and then Ines started talking about a book she lent me about Nazis and asked me if I’d read it and I said “yes, sure” but then remembered that I’m trying to be a “better person” and lie less especially since everyone seemed committed to discussing these books for the rest of 2012, and chances are at some point she’d ask me a question about it and I’d be caught in a lie, so I confessed and said “oh, no, actually I didn’t” in a way that I hoped didn’t sound like I’d suffered a recent stroke that blurred the lines between my understanding of the concepts of yes and no. This had the unfortunately effect of Ines, whenever she referenced the book, adding “the one that I gave to Marinka but she didn’t read.”

Husbandrinka then promoted his own favorite book on the subject, The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich, which he finds fascinating because it was written by a journalist who was reporting on the events in the 1930s, during the rise of the Nazi party and then when after the war the Americans seized the Nazi records, they gave the author full access to them.

I didn’t have a favorite Nazi-era book, so I mostly just drank champagne. And felt very grateful to be with my fiends and family. And very excited that the holidays were coming to a close and that it was almost time to return to the real life, with work and school, and bedtimes and routines.

Here’s to a great, happy and healthy to 2013. Let’s make it a great one!

(this post contains Amazon affiliate links)

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{ 15 comments… read them below or add one }

Mama D January 1, 2013 at 1:02 pm

Praise The Lord indeed. I need my routine back too! And I have to say I’m glad that our NYE did not involve Hitler in any respect. 😉

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Susan Weinstein January 2, 2013 at 1:26 pm

I should have stayed for when Ines came. I could talk about Operation Ruby Slipper, a novel which somehow imagines Judy Garland as a spy in Nazi Germany. Since my husband is an avid watcher of the “Hitler channel,” also known as the Military Channel, we are up on the latest news on battles and speeches that have been replayed for probably half a century.

I am also glad it’s over, and look forward to the Year of the Black Snake!

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anymommy January 1, 2013 at 1:27 pm

To real life! With work and most especially SCHOOL! Love to you and happy 2013, may the weight of all those Siberian winters lift from your shoulders 😉

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Awesome dude January 1, 2013 at 2:07 pm

In Churchill’s time they did not give The Nobel Prizes for nothing, and he got one for this work.

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Loukia January 1, 2013 at 4:07 pm

Happy 2013, Marinka! xoxo

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anna see January 1, 2013 at 5:01 pm

Happy New Year to you and yours! Thank Papa for the book recc.

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edrinka January 2, 2013 at 9:05 am

Which fiends are you grateful for?

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Tinne from Tantrums and Tomatoes January 2, 2013 at 9:22 am

I discussed Tv-chefs with my in-laws, be glad you got away with Hitler.

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Holly January 2, 2013 at 9:42 am

You don’t have a favorite Nazi book?

My friends and I actually play a game (made up, of course) called “Hitler” on New Years. (Not as bad as it sounds- just the “name game”, though inevitably someone ends up writing in “Hitler,” hence the title of the game.) It’s great fun.

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Lady Jennie January 2, 2013 at 10:08 am

This is one of the many reasons I love reading you:
“And as soon as Mama said that, I felt the weight of a thousand Siberian winters and the oppression that my ancestors endured so that I could make a festive and glorious New Year’s Eve for my family.”

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dusty earth mother January 2, 2013 at 10:22 am

Happy Hitler-free 2013, my dear friend.

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joeinvegas January 2, 2013 at 11:47 am

Happy Back! Did the kids get to stay up until midnight and cheer and fall asleep?

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magpie January 3, 2013 at 5:14 pm

Happy 2013!

Also, a seriously good WWII book is Stones from the River (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stones_from_the_River). You know, in case you actually wanted to read one.

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tracy@sellabitmum January 3, 2013 at 6:42 pm

Happy 2013!!

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the mama bird diaries
Twitter:
January 3, 2013 at 10:01 pm

I’ve said to my husband again and again, you Jews just know how to party. Happy New Year.

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