Santa's New Contract (aka: don't expect much for Christmas)

On a personal note, it was one year ago tomorrow that the Personal Demons trilogy sold at auction, so I want to send out a holiday hey to my seriously cool editor Melissa Frain. Happy anniversary!

There’s a chill in the air (it dipped to a nipply 60 degrees yesterday) and everyone at the mall has their elbows sharpened. It’s beginning to feel a lot like Christmas. Course, if you hang out in department stores, you probably thought that sometime in mid-September.

So, ho-ho-ho and all that.

Unfortunately, the economy has taken its toll on the North Pole. A new contract for Santa has finally been negotiated. He swung by to check in on uncle Ebenezer (he ascertained the relationship because I have nary a decoration anywhere in sight) and asked me to pass along the following information:

To Whom It May Concern:

I regret to inform you that, effective immediately, I will no longer be able to serve Southern United States on Christmas Eve. Due to the overwhelming current population of the earth, my contract was renegotiated by North American Fairies and Elves Local 209. I now serve only certain areas of Canada and the northern boarder states.

As part of the new and better contract I also get longer breaks for milk and cookies so keep that in mind. However, I made certain that your children will be in good hands with your local replacement who happens to be my third cousin, Bubba Claus. His side of the family is from the South Pole. He shares my goal of delivering toys to all the good boys and girls; however, there are a few differences between us.

Differences such as:

1. There is no danger of a Grinch stealing your presents from Bubba Claus. He has a gun rack on his sleigh and a bumper sticker that reads: These toys insured by Smith and Wesson.

2. Instead of milk and cookies, Bubba Claus prefers that children leave an RC cola and pork rinds [or a moon pie] on the fireplace. And Bubba doesn’t smoke a pipe. He dips a little snuff though, so please have an empty spit can handy.

3. Bubba Claus; sleigh is pulled by floppy-eared, flying coon dogs instead of reindeer. I made the mistake of loaning him a couple of my reindeer one time, and Blitzen’s head now overlooks Bubba’s fireplace.

4. You won’t hear On Comet, on Cupid, on Donner and Blitzen . . ., when Bubba Claus arrives. Instead, you’ll hear, On Earnhardt, on Wallace, on Martin and Labonte. On Rudd, on Jarrett, on Elliott and Petty.

5. Ho, ho, ho! has been replaced by “Yee Haw!” And you also are likely to hear Bubba’s elves respond, “I herd dat!”

6. As required by Southern highway laws, Bubba Claus’ sleigh does have a Yosemite Sam safety triangle on the back with the words “Back off”. The last I heard it also had other decorations on the sleigh back as well. One is a Chevy logo with lights that race through the letters and the other is a caricature of me (Santa Claus) going wee-wee on the Tooth Fairy.

7. The usual Christmas movie classics such as Miracle on 34th Street and It’s a Wonderful Life will not be shown in your negotiated viewing area. Instead, you’ll see Boss Hogg Saves Christmas and Smokey and the Bandit IV featuring Burt Reynolds as Bubba Claus and dozens of state patrol cars crashing into each other.

8. Bubba Claus doesn’t wear a belt. If I were you, I’d make sure you, the wife, and the kids turn the other way when he bends over to put presents under the tree.

9. And finally, lovely Christmas songs have been sung about me like Rudolph The Red-nosed Reindeer and Bing Crosby’s Santa Claus Is Coming to Town. This year songs about Bubba Claus will be played on all the AM radio stations in the South. Those song titles will be Mark Chesnutt’s Bubba Claus Shot the Jukebox, Cledus T. Judd All I Want for Christmas Is My Woman and a Six Pack, and Hank Williams Jr.’s If You Don’t Like Bubba Claus, You can Shove It.

Sincerely Yours, Santa Claus
(member of North American Fairies and Elves Local 209)

*thanks to christmasjokes.wordpress.com

I'm leaving Thursday for Atlanta, where there is supposed to be flurries. I'm not sure my thin California blood can handle that. O_O By the time I get back, I fully intend to have a finished draft of Hellbent (my Chrismas gift to myself) and a winner for my December Debut and Second Ever Original Sin ARC contest.

Thank you all for an amazing year! I've said it before and I'll say it again: I have the BEST followers! Have a happy, healthy holiday and a fabulous New Year!

See you in 2011! xoxox