We might be wondering if you were surprised as I was that ol’ man Winter was ushered in only a couple of days back? Heck, what with the sub-freezing mornings we’ve been experiencing the past few weeks, seems as if the season changed right after Thanksgiving. Speaking of Thanksgiving, seems like we might have some Turkey & trimmings left over in the freezer, and here we go, thinking of fixing some more of the same for Christmas dinner. Ham sounds a lot better for this ol’ scribe, but steak, Prime rib, or tamales with Chili would go along pretty well. I think Sally and her kids have a good idea for Christmas eve in merely fixing chips, dips, & other finger foods. I know this, by the time we get around all the snack foods, most of the bunch is too full for the main dishes, thus we’re plagued with all those dratted leftovers, once again. Cousin Harry Harkey is in visiting with all of us around Harkeyville this week, coming out from Dobbin, down around Anderson & Tomball, with wife, Debbie Jean, and daughter, Helen. They are camping out down at the new RV park at the Golf Course and really enjoy the facilities. James B. noticed their Air Stream as it was sporting a big Aggie flag out front, along with the Texas flag and the Stars & Stripes. I’ve laid out some Backstrap, courtesy of Dale Barber, and plan on seeing how adept the Dobbin Harkeys are at fixin’ biscuits & gravy. If you want a confirmation on the location of Dobbin, you might want to ask Ted Red. By the time you are reading this, we should have a couple of shopping days left ‘til Christmas. I still have some shopping left to do, mine own self. It’s probably a pretty good bet that most of you guys are not quite through either. I usually can offer some fairly easy suggestions, as this situation seems symptomatic with most men. We usually think of what we’d like to get for those that are special to us, but might have trouble finding the exact gift that is so appropriate. One of the easiest of gifts that is pretty simple to find around our parts is anything made with Pecans. All kinds of goodies with the most delectable of the nut family can be picked up at any of the eight or so Pecan retail outlets around our Town. You should be able to pick out that favorite Pecan pie, candy, cookies, or fancy nuts that go with just about anything. They will also handle the packaging and mailing to that favorite uncle, aunt, cousin, or customer for a small additional fee and you don’t even have to wrap the present. If you are stumped as to what special condiment they might prefer, plain ol’ Pecans will do the trick and you can get them cracked, shelled, in-shell, toasted, roasted, sugar coated or spicy. Pretty simple, isn’t it, and you can even send them a note as to how "heart-healthy" the precious Pecan can be. Guess we’d better be getting on down the road as the Editress will be needing this humble effort prior to deadline. We’d like to wish all yall a very merry Christmas and Happy Holiday season from the Harkey House along with blessing and thanks for what this special season is really about. Other than that , rest assured that the Mayor & yrs. truly will certainly be taking care of our part out around—————Harkeyville!!!!!!!!!