Breaking Bad for the Holidays

      I'm getting cynical with all this virus stuff. They said trick-or-treating on Halloween was high risk while voting in person was low risk. Seems like from what I heard and read afterwards, it was the other way around. Then they said that family Thanksgiving dinners were high risk. But they also say holiday shopping in stores with lots of strangers is encouraged because of the great deals as well as the boost to the economy. That makes it worth it.

     So I have to decide for myself. Is it worth it?

     I'm too much of a fan of Halloween not to let it go without handing out treats. And we did, socially distanced with a card table separating us, in theory, from the trick-or-treaters. When we saw a group of kids coming down the street, we'd put some candy bars on the table then sit back to watch. My neighbor had set up an inclined PVC tube to deliver his treats but when it jammed a few times, he used a table like we did. 

     And Halloween went without a hitch. Scariest moment didn't come from a ghoulish costume but from a pint-sized trick-or-treater who for some reason circled our table, coming within a few feet of us before sneezing Yikes! My wife and I both wore masks as we sat, but still . . .

     We had over 80 trick-or-treaters and most of them respected the honor system, taking just one piece of candy. Most of them. One older boy took two pieces from the table, after which he pointed to his eyes, then pointed to my wife and I sitting there watching him. So he's in effect saying that he's keeping an eye on us as he pilfers an extra piece of candy for himself? I don't get it.

     For Thanksgiving, all the reports were that we should self-isolate and do a virtual Thanksgiving instead. That's perfectly fine too, I guess. But seeing your grandkids through Skype or Zoom—and we've done that many times—is like watching your favorite Broadway play on a 14-inch computer screen instead of being there in person. And you don't even get the opportunity to hug the cast members.

     So my son packed up his family in St Louis and came to Michigan to spend a week here. Mom and dad tested negative before they hit the road. The three little ones were all healthy. Then the kiddies got to experience a holiday with the grands. They built a candy gingerbread house inside as well as a real snowman outside, baked cookies with grandma, snuggled with grandpa, and enjoyed playing with their cousins on Thanksgiving day and the day afterwards. Let's be honest. None of those are things you can really do virtually.

     My wife and I got to see our youngest grandson Charlie walk for the first time, even personifying the proverb, “Walk softly and carry a big stick” when he found our yardstick in a corner.

     Our home was a big playhouse for a week. After it was over and the car was being loaded up for the drive home, my nearly four-year-old granddaughter Gwen came up to where I was sitting and surprised me with a kiss on the cheek. It just melted my heart.

     Now with the empty house again, my wife and I will lay low once more. Let others snag the great shopping deals and browse the boutiques. I already feel like we've received a major holiday gift. And though I know we can't be totally sure we dodged getting sick, I feel right now that I can answer the question I posed earlier:

     It was worth it.