Christmas HNT - Phase 1 of 3

In compliance with Phase One of the HNT Plans for December...


Here is a picture of our Christmas tree for this year. Don't be hatin' on the darker strip about halfway up it, either. The lights were there. Well, technically...they're still there. But...

They are have been rendered inoperable.

You can thank the cute little black and white puppy. Remember the cute little black and white puppy in this post? Yeah, that one.
Puppies tend to like to chew on things. And it doesn't always have to be Christmas tree lights. Sometimes....

...it's Christmas presents. Nothing a little wrapping paper won't cure though.

For the real part of this HNT, I want to show you all a very unique Christmas ornament.


Doesn't look too unique, huh? Care to guess what it's made from?

here's the story behind it:
I was a delivery driver for 13 years and delivered product all over the southeastern U.S. I had a regular route to Panama City Beach, FL for almost 7 1/2 years. Over that length of time, you meet people and see them every week and some of them become pretty good friends. Such was the case with a couple in a little tiny (not even one stoplight) town in north Florida. They ran a little country store that did a great business. They also had a pretty good breakfast crowd every Tuesday morning when we got there. The delivery would take over an hour to complete and I was constantly in and out of the store, interacting with the patrons. I even got to know several of them on a first name basis. Even wound up buying a horse from one of the old men there. My wife and I even stopped in there a couple of times on the way to the beach just to say "Hi".

Each Christmas, "Miss Betty" would make a big tin of cookies and candy and give it to me the week of Christmas. I would usually have them a card or something but rarely much more. One year, she gave me this ornament and the simplicity of it was amazing. I never would have thought of this myself. Ever. But I guess if you give someone enough time to think, they'll eventually think of everything.

But who would ever guess that you could make a pretty neat-looking Santa Claus....

...from an oyster shell?

Merry Christmas and Happy HNT!!

Go tell Os if you're spreading the cheer this week.