01/10/2008 (Ancillary)

Okay, this is cathartic! I feel like writing. Been doing so much Photoshopping and need the break. And somethin's in my craw, so to speak.

It's about Christmas. Well, no, maybe not. It's about "Xmas".

Noone has EVER said to me "Merry 'Xmas'". Nor have I ever said it to anyone. EVER! Why? I think it's because there's NO SUCH THING! And if it's somehow meant to save space, instead of Happy Kwanza, why don't we ever see something like "Happy 'Xza'"???

Something about this "Xmas" dribble really gets my goat. Sure, it's only a word, and words can be annotative and connotative all at the same time. So, I think I know what someone MEANS when they write "Xmas", but haven't we all been taught to say what we MEAN and MEAN what we say??? (That's a rhetorical question, but answer if you must...)

I am NOT a religious or spiritual person of any kind. I do, however, respect, and will defend, others' right to believe and worship as they see fit, provided they're as considerate to others that they, too, may believe and worship in their own way. Our country is one of the few bastions of religious freedoms left in the world, although dim lights flicker around the planet; none are as bright as those here at home.

But I digress...

Words MEAN something. They herald intent. They make things clear. They convey feeling and deportment. They map things out that would otherwise bewilder and lose us. They're there for a reason, and to be reasonable so that reason will flourish and grow!

Xmas, on the other hand, has NO reasonable meaning. It makes things clear; as mud! It conveys NOTHING and, in my personal opinion, indicates a serious lack of deportment. It maps NOTHING out and it DOES bewilder and lose reasonable people. After all, then Santa Claus, or the Easter Bunny might otherwise be called Bambi Luftwaffe, or Sinbad the furry one, or Xmas Teebone! Sheeeeeesh!!! The unreasonable possibilities boggle the best of minds (not that mine is one of them).

What, pray tell, is going on here? Am I to understand that the user of the word "Xmas" believes in Xmas, but not in Christmas, or do they mean to say that "Xmas" and "Christmas" are interchangeable? How does that work? My name is "Robert", but you can call me "Xert" for "short". Right! Like "R" isn't already far enough down the alphabetical list! Xert Xis. That's interchangeable with Robert Davis. That's dehumanizing and diminishes my real name, in exactly the same way that Xmas diminishes Christmas, conveys NOTHING and demonstrates the user's poor way with words, or should we say "Xer's" poor way with words?!

Okay, okay!!! My Andy Rooney moment is over; at least for this season.

Kindest regards,

Robert