Saturday, December 19, 2009

That Holiday Sweatshirt Again

It is fair to say that I might have overdone it last night. Overdone it with the imbibing. We had the Hamiltons over for what was supposed to be low-key pizza and Scrabble. Then, around midnight, my brother and sister-in-law turned up, having made it out of DC and driven south at probably the last minute anyone could leave the city before it became a total whiteout. They were heading for the mountain house, but they heard it was unreachable, so they came to Atlanta. Their account of the roads between Richmond and Charlotte was scary--cars all over the sides of the interstate, stuck. If you are up there in that storm, my heart goes out to you. Stay safe at home! So they came in and the low-key gathering kinda got a second wind, and some pitchers of cosmos were consumed, and we played Cranium, which Matt and I both remembered that we hadn't played since New Year's Eve of 1999. So we partied like we did in 1999, and the next thing I know it is 4:30 in the morning and we're standing in the kitchen eating crackers and griping about the Senate.

I'm not feeling too steady today.

Seeing Dave reminded me of his famously awesome Christmas sweatshirt. Which if you weren't reading me last December (where in hecks were you?) you may have missed. It made its debut in this post, excerpted below. Please enjoy it while I go sip some diet pepsi.

A few years ago, while they were still in college, my brother Dave and his roommate decided to make a Christmas sweatshirt. I don't really know what area of human knowledge we can draw on to help us understand that. Just two dudes, creating festive holiday garb. Their particular brand of college hipster culture was so complex that it can't really be known how sincere their efforts were. They certainly weren't snarky about it, but were they making the sweatshirt or quoting the sweatshirt? I think that, perhaps, postmodern irony really has given way to The New Sincerity. Maybe. It's possible that there are young twenty-somethings all over the country who are lovingly crafting that Tampon Turkey centerpiece. But here is the sweatshirt.

Lest you think that this was the half-assed work of a moment, I refer you to the 3D tiny wrapped packages under the felt Christmas tree, which they have decorated with little lightbulbs. My favorite part has to be the cheery and vague "Holidays!" leading up to the pom-pom poinsettias on the shoulder. This thing wants a wider audience. Surrender to its cheeriness. Holidays!

17 comments:

melondonkey said...

Dave's latest holiday get-up is even stranger and more complicated, as it includes a vest and a bright red beret.

Becky said...

I have not seen this get-up, Melon.

Camp Papa said...

For those who don't know him, Dave is the kind of guy who could wear that shirt into a biker bar and have 'em singing Good King Wenceslas, in three part harmony, before the evening was over.

Amy said...

That is so funny! I was going to email you and tell you to re-post the sweatshirt! Love it.

So glad they've made it to you safely. You'll be happy to know that, here in CA, it's in the upper 70s and the kids have been swimming. Holidays!

Keely said...

Oh noes! Not crackers and the Senate!

I can't "party like it's 1999", because for me that was one of the lamest New Years ever. So I just don't party.

The Stiletto Mom said...

I am so in love with this sweatshirt...I need one to wear on Christmas Eve when I show up at my best friends house is the tackiest holiday garb I can muster. This year, I'm bucking the trend and not wearing a sweater. Instead I have a satin purse with dancing santas and a white feather boa and an apron with a giant sparkle tree on it. The sweatshirt would be a nice touch though...

Amy said...

Awe-inspiring... both the sweatshirt AND their determination to make it out of DC! My Facebook feed last night was a litany of foiled efforts to be somewhere else for the weekend.

On the upside, sledding down the middle of my street today was pretty fun.

Camp Papa, LOVED the personality profile - I don't know Dave but now officially wish I could have the opportunity.

Cassie said...

Oh, I'm SO happy you re-posted this! My bins full of Christmas decorations are all labeled "Holidays" and I had a good chuckle while pulling them out this year.

I hope you get lots of rest tonight!

Michele said...

Just saw Sunday Morning on CBS where they featured Christmas sweaters. Seems there are a bunch of people around the country that are having ugly sweater parties. Not this this counts, but I'm just sayin'.

Elisa @ Globetrotting in Heels said...

OMG! Awesome and horrifying at once. Wrapped in a tiny package under a felt Christmas tree :-)

Becky said...

Oh Michele, they showed me their pics from just such an ugly sweater party! There will be more on this to come.

Anonymous said...

Cranium and cosmos are ALWAYS a winning combination. Love the sweatshirt! Holidays to you and yours! ;)

gretchen said...

I absolutely love your family. "Just two dudes, creating festive holiday garb." made me laugh wine out my nose. Glad you reposted, since I'm still a newby. Hope that by now you've enjoyed a "hair of the dog".

Ginny Marie said...

I surrender, and am officially cheered! Holidays!

Anonymous said...

that's a first for me - two GUYS making a holiday sweatshirt.

clear screen said...

wow -- i hope you've recovered. I'm so impressed by your abilities to stay up past midnight.
and i'm just as impressed by your brother's skills with a glue gun!

Lawyer Mom said...

"So they came in and the low-key gathering kinda got a second wind, and some pitchers of cosmos were consumed, and we played Cranium, which Matt and I both remembered that we hadn't played since New Year's Eve of 1999. So we partied like we did in 1999, and the next thing I know it is 4:30 in the morning and we're standing in the kitchen eating crackers and griping about the Senate."

Oh, wow! I would so have loved to have been there. And a sweatshirt like that would cure ALL!