And So There Begins Yet Another Holiday Season

You know, I'm a little indifferent about the holidays, this year a bit more than past years.  It could be because everywhere you turn there's some newscaster squawking about how terrible the economy is and how low sales are...and it's true.  Working in the e-com biz, I do see our stores sales suffering a bit.  Sometimes I think, well maybe people just don't care about artist merchandise and the same shit they see day in and day out.  Who really cares if there isn't something new to buy.  We can only look at the same old stuff and realize, I really don't need an "all over print" t-shirt that just happens to be 20% off.  The most difficult part of this season in particular I guess is the lack of funds flowing freely.  I would love to give grand gifts to my friends and family, but my pocketbook and credit cards (which I should avoid using like the plague) only stretch so far.  So outside of monetary generosity, what things are there to make the holidays special?  And so I must ponder what I can do to further inject myself into the spirit of giving, red and green, pine trees, twinkly lights and all those other elements that you see walking the streets during December.


We'll start off with Christmas trees -- Noble Firs, Douglas Firs, my family's personal favorite, Silver Tips, all most commonly smelled as pine trees.  

Image courtesy of http://www.scctrees.com/

I really love the smell of pine, so an actual tree in the house does please me. I'm actually tempted to buy a tree this year, but am a little scared of Miss Zolite demolishing the thing while I'm at work for 12 long hours.  She is quite destructive.  Plus I would need to buy twinkly lights, ornaments, a stand, all that other stuff...I'm starting to hear the cash register dinging.  Now granted these items are useful year after year so it's not like they'd go to waste (unless Zolite destroyed them), it'd be more of an investment, and seeing as my sister and her husband's cat is much more rambunctious than mine and they've managed to have a tree in their quaint SF apartment, I might just need to do that too.  Holiday spirit check one!


My next favorite thing about the holidays, well, more winter in general, is hot toddies.  MmmMMmMMMMM.  I love me some hot toddies making you feel all warm and fuzzy inside.  Perfect hot drink for sitting next to the fire, next to a Christmas tree, or just sitting and reading a book, curled up in a blanket watching the snow fall outside.  Ok, so maybe it doesn't snow in SF (pooo), but I can still dally with the idea of sneaking a trip up to Tahoe!

Image courtesy of Crafty Suzanne's blog

In case you don't know what a hot toddy is (in my family it's called a hot brandy (brandy sometimes replaced with cognac because that's all what's in the liquor cabinet...works the same way, still delicious)), it's a delightful hot drink taking:


1 shot of brandy, cognac, whiskey or bourbon (1.5 shots if you feel you need some extra tingles)
1 slice of lemon about a 1/4 inch thick
1 cinnamon stick
2-3 cloves
1 small teaspoon of sugar (or one dollop of honey if you prefer, or both)
1 cup of boiling water (or enough to fill the glass...adjust booze measurement accordingly for larger glasses ;) )


Hot toddies are traditional in my family during the holiday season...that and hot wine and irish coffees (yes, we like to spike everything).  My Mom being the biggest fan (father preferred his cognac or brandy just straight, no mussing with boiling water, once upon a time), she would make them at home and more frequently up at our cabin in Tahoe when we would sit around and play Zolite (best card game ever and of course it's Latvian and yes I named my cat after a Latvian card game).  Not only does this beverage bring back memories that make me feel warm and fuzzy inside, it literally makes me feel warm and fuzzy inside.  Win-win situation right there.  Holiday spirit, check two!


Probably two of the most important holiday traditions in any Latvian family is the baking of pīrāgi (bacon and onion pastries) and piparkūkas (heavily spiced cookies, direct translation being "pepper cakes").  What would the holidays be without baked goods anyway?!  Latvians are particularly special and I know everyone is jealous of our mad baking skills, especially with bacon.  I know my work colleagues all get overly excited when I bring a batch of pīrāgi to the office...they snatch them all up as if they were the last ones that existed on the face of the earth! Now, I don't have recipes for either of these delightful treats..or rather, I don't have recipes with direct measurements (my grandmother taught me to go by how it looks and feels and not by direct proportions...I'll figure it out one day though), so they will remain as a Rutkovskis / Meiers family secret!  Muahahaha.  

Image courtesy of me...yes, those are my pīrāgi.

Now the pīrāgu baking is all left up to me now.  My grandmother used to make them, but her recent move to a home without a kitchen and her depletion in long term strength (meaning working for 6 hours straight), isn't as resilient as it once was, so now, the duty is mine.  I must say, I've gotten awfully good at baking pīrāgi.  It's all about how you work the dough...have to keep it soft, fluffy, without too much air, but all the ingredients must be properly worked in.  Aaaand, yummy bacon helps too.  Last batch of pīrāgi I used apple wood smoked bacon..pretty delicious if I say so myself.  My pīrāgu baking is quite an event.  Zolite participates in every possible way she can, whether that means sticking her nose in the flour, pawing at the heated half and half, taking a snooze on the dish rack, or perching herself up on the refrigerator to watch from above. 

Image courtesy of http://blogs.gatavosim.lv

The piparkūkas are still my Mom's job and she's pretty good at them.  Ever year she tweaks the recipe slightly to make them a bit spicier.  I know there's allspice, cinnamon, pepper, nutmeg, cloves, and some other spices...I just can't remember them all.  Nonetheless, it's safe to say they are Latvian spice cookies.  MmmMMmm, good.  This is another all day affair...you have to prep the dough at least one day in advance, better to make it 2 or more so it sits properly and then when you're ready to start the baking, you have to roll out the dough and press the perfect shapes, put them on the pan, wash them with egg and sometimes put chopped almonds on them, then bake! For I believe 12-13 minutes, I can't remember.  Holiday spirit checks three and four!


So there are 4 holiday spirit checks that are sure to perk up some spirits without the need for excessive monetary generosity.  Granted, it does cost money to purchase a tree, hot toddy fixings and Latvian baking fixings, but they are things that please everyone and make everyone feel good that we're sharing the spirit of the holidays together with food and drinks and decorated trees.  It's a start and I am looking forward to all of the above.  There are of course more holiday checks when applicable, such as cute holiday lingerie (check out Victoria's Secret, some cute things right there!) when you have a special someone to share them with...I'm working on that.  Macy's SPCA window drive with the cute puppies and kittens up on display for all to ogle and hopefully adopt (that's where Zolite came from after all!).  


Probably the last, most important holiday check (as cheesy as it sounds) is just being with family and friends.  We all have people in our lives that we love and want to spend time with.  Even though the holidays are crazy and we might want to bop our family members and friends on the head and tell them to chill out and relax (promptly throwing a hot toddy in their face), there's still the importance of sharing time together and appreciating the people we have in our lives.  We might not get along with everyone, and as my very good friend always says, "You don't pick your family, you pick your friends," who in turn become your family, it's important to recognize everyone and just take a step back from the differences you may have and value their presence in your life and their contribution to your life as well.  


May the holiday madness begin! :)





Don't mind the subtitles...Finnish I think??