Candlelight Thoughts:

Happy Hanukkah, to those who celebrate.

I sometimes think it's unfortunate that Hanukkah and Christmas fall so close together on the calendar. Hanukkah is a minor holiday, and yet sometimes it seems to get a LOT of attention and fanfare (I'm writing this shortly after finding a lighted spinning dreidel lawn ornament and BB&B) for no other reason than to show Christmas what's up.

Well. That's not my battle. We just have a simple menorah, a few dreidels, and a handful of gelt. But the simplicity is welcome at this chaotic time of year: what better way to spend the darkest nights of the year, than gathering with your loved ones and marveling at their faces in the candlelight?

Hanukkah is not meant to compete with Christmas. It's quiet, simple, just a slight departure from the norm. But it is lovely. Right when most people are frazzled with lists, wrapping, and breaking the bank, we get to lie back, order crab meat cheese wontons, and pretend it's snowing.

And, can I just say, if it were to compete with Christmas, Hanukkah would definitely win the decorations award. Blue and silver look way better than red and green. I mean, come on.

Simple Pleasures: Sleep Soother

There was once a time when I'd never heard of such luxuries as "linen spray," "bed mist," or "room tranquilizers." In high school, I loved the smell of conditioner so much, I would mix it in a spray bottle with water and spray it over my bed. Or, I'd rub a sheet of fabric softener over my sheets, to get that freshly-laundered scent that I've always found so clean and soothing.

And then, behold! Trying linen spray (or whatever you want to call it) for the first time is like trying gazpacho for the first time: weird at first, but so memorable, and from then on, you either love it or hate it.

I've tried quite a few mists, but this one by V'Tae is by far my favorite. Not too floral, not too "clean" (which borders on "chemical" all too often), I swear I don't last 30 seconds after my head hits the pillow. One of my favorite things is crawling in to my neroli scented sheets with freshly shaved legs, I feel downright royal. And for $18, it's a splurge I can handle.