Date: 20 December 2020. Christmas Memories.

© janice142
 

The time between Thanksgiving and Christmas is my favorite. Each year I search for one ornament or decoration to represent the year. It is the one "budget is no object" item in my list. This year I found a perfect miniature ceramic Christmas tree.
 

It takes a weird size battery however...

I took a permanent magic marker and wrote the battery information on the bottom of the ceramic tree.
 

Whenever something takes an odd battery I write the size down on the item. I use a magic marker so it is easy to see. This makes my life easier and usually prevents me from purchasing the wrong size batteries.

My ceramic angels by the new tree are at least 50 years old... they are by Lefton. The girl is a bell.

Each year they are prominently displayed. The past few years they have been just forward of the throttle.
 

Lately for boat friends I make some sort of holiday decoration that folds flat. The flat part is critical so that postage doesn't kill me. And too, boat folks don't generally have room for *folderol.

*Folderol is a useless trinket; think: dust catcher, or ornament purely for decorative purposes.
 

For the Record, I am EXTREMELY late in mailing my Christmas cards this year. I apologize. Most will arrive before the new year, I hope.
 

Regardless of the disposability of paper ornaments made from outdated charts, I love
making them for friends. It is always my intention to get them mailed the first week in December.

This year that did not happen. I have already received a card from my friend which is great. Thanks Irene.
 

I opted for folded Scandinavian stars for 2020. They are
relatively easy to make, after the first dozen or so that is...

I utilize an outdated chartkit for the West Coast of Florida in my holiday crafts projects. The gift of that set of charts has been a real blessing. Plus I believe it is pretty cool to have something with a nautical flair to share with my boat friends.
 

It was such fun to receive pictures of previous ornaments I made still being used by friends this year. How cool is that?!?
Aboard Katja...	Bucky's shoreside residence.

This year I also bought from eBay (China) a removable wall sticker.

Santa Claus is on the bulkhead in my forward cabin.
 

The wall sticker was difficult to place neatly onto the smooth fiberglass gelcoat. It currently has air bubbles under the surface. I tore the thin plastic in a couple of places too.

Santa is worth the $4 I paid. To save it for next year I will cut the decoration into four quadrants. They will fit in my Christmas box. It is pretty, but not real practical when it comes to storing away someplace.
 

You may realize that I am a bit of a nut for Christmas.

It is the most wonderful time of the year, though the turning sign does annoy bird friends.
 

Yes, my grumpy Gus still hangs out waiting for hotdogs. He has his feathers ruffled.

The night herons fight each other, pulling feathers.
 

A new friend, Anisha, lives upstairs in an apartment behind Seaweed. Anisha has birds that walk inside her place when she is not prompt at feeding times. Around here, the people take care of our feathered friends. She was kind enough to take me shopping, twice!
 

We went to a cool consignment shop called Blondie's Resale.

The owner of Blondie's is Luan.

I found a cool present for a friend at Blondie's Resale.
 

I love that there is a place on the beach that sells collectibles and ephemera. Old stuff interests me. I love love love that sort of thing. At Blondie's I found two cool thimbles, a Precious Moments little box, a necklace and a small lap quilt.

Blondie's Resale: 15026 Madeira Way, Madeira Beach, FL  33708. Phone: 727-565-2560
 

If you're in the vicinity, Blondie's is worth the visit. It is across from the Madeira Beach post office, near the library, Winn Dixie and Dollar Tree. It is definitely a new favorite place to shop. Blondie's has cool stuff at reasonable prices. Visit the owner Luan and tell her "hello" from Seaweed. Thanks!!

A couple years ago I found the coolest Christmas duck at the Salvation Army.

It is half price for seniors on Mondays, which of course is a good day to shop there.
 

I'll be honest: Any day is a Great Day to shop at the Salvation Army.
 

This year has been a real roller coaster. The Newest grand was born in the springtime. I was there for the birth, and flew home the day before domestic flight restrictions were implemented. The kids took me on a second trip to Disney this fall so I could love on the baby and enjoy the Original grand. That was special too. And now, Christmas!!
 

Christmas is my favorite. I've watched Miracle on 34th Street, White Christmas, Holiday Inn, Frosty the Snowman, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, Snowball Express and loads of other cheerful movies. My DVD collection is such a blessing. One of these days I'm going to digitalize all my movies, with closed captioning and the special features. But not today...

Seaweed is rafted to a Gulfstar36. She faces south with the transom toward the mangroves.
I tie off the Air Breeze wind generator so it won't make noise and bother the birds.

One of my birds is sitting on the dinghy davit.
A couple of window cling snow flakes decorate the back windows.
 

The portside windows in my pilothouse are usually covered in Reflectix to keep out the morning sun.

I did take down the Reflectix after this picture was taken.
 

Memory Lane: Over fifty years ago when cruising we stopped every few years at one particularly impoverished village. You should know Mother sewed all my clothes. She would save fabric scraps and thread spools to pass along to the ladies in this village.

I always felt so rich to be able to give away these items. I remember the women crying over the gift of thread!

Even a small thing can make a huge difference. As for me, I want to be that person who shares her happiness and good fortune. Christmas is the time of the year when I try to spread good cheer. I suspect most folks do the same.

But I digress... One of the women gifted me this small doll:

I was told later that this is a Worry Doll. I am to tell the doll my problems and she will fix things.
 

This year she is sitting on the garland over the dinette window near some of the stars I made.



Boaters like me can and do decorate our vessels at Christmastime. I love my home.

Seaweed is not fancy. She brings me such joy and happiness however. I truly am blessed.

Thanks for all the comments on the Christmas Friends article. You really did make my day.

That's it from the water. I thank you for reading.
 

Does anyone know about how old my Lefton china (ceramic?) angels are? I would never sell them.
And, what is your oldest/most treasured Christmas ornament?
 

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