Ah, the holidaze....

 Here we are at yet another holiday season. My son is 16 now, and being a gamer geek, really doesn't want much except a new graphics card so he'll get better framerate on WoW. The husband isn't much better, they are both pretty low maintenance.
 Sometimes I miss the holiday gatherings my family had when I was a  child. I had no idea then that most of my family hated each other, and as my oldest sister likes to say "When our family gets together, there's gonna be a cuttin' or a shootin'." I remember one year waking up in the wee hours to find my brother home from the Navy, making coffee in the kitchen before anyone else was up. Another year, my new brother-in-law and I bought each other inflatable lightsabers, and had a fight in the front yard after dinner.
 When I was a teen, I had friends who were a second family to me, and I spent the most wonderful Xmas Eves at their house, eating things like venison roast and tabouli. We would start at 9ish, open presents, and eat into the late hours, simply talking and enjoying each other's company.
 I moved to Austin, and since traveling is pretty much torture to me, didn't go back 'home' for the holidays except for a couple of times. My family came to Austin a couple of time as well, and it was usually an ok time, but there was always that undercurrent of strain, that everyone was trying too hard to make it a good time.
 When my son was born, the first Xmases were fun, buying toys and things. The older he got, the less he wanted much more than computer stuff, so the fun kinda went out of shopping. My parents are gone for several years now, my brother deceased since '91. My sisters have their own family gatherings now with their families. My husband and i spend a quiet holiday these days, little to no stress, and really not much different from a regular weekend. Sometimes I do want the big group holiday, but then I remember the hassle, the fighting that resulted in people not speaking for half the year, and I think I would rather stick with my small quiet holidays!