The Dr. Seuss National Memorial Sculpture Garden

Last weekend I hung out with Max, the Lorax and Things 1-2 at the Dr. Seuss Memorial Sculpture Garden.

The garden is part of Springfield's museum campus, east of the Connecticut river and up the hill from City Hall. Seuss -- er, Theodor Seuss Geisel -- grew up only a few minutes away, though he spent most of his life in La Jolla, California. In fact, the titular street of AND TO THINK THAT I SAW IT ON MULBERRY STREET is pretty near as well. 

We stumbled upon it mostly by accident -- I say mostly because I had spotted it on a map and suspected it was something we'd want to stop and see. We were actually hoping to eat at the Blake House Cafe up the hill at the Springfield Museum, only to be turned away because "we close at 3" and it was 2:55. (Which is not 3:00... but anyway.) Later I learned the sculptures were created by Geisel's stepdaughter.

If you are looking to do a literary trip in western Massachusetts, a suggested pairing would be Edith Wharton's country house The Mount (about an hour away in Lenox). We did not see, nor did we attempt to find the headquarters of Merriam-Webster, which at least picks up its mail in Springfield. But maybe next year.

City sidewalks, busy sidewalks dressed in holiday style

It's the official Curmudgeons Admit The Start Of The Christmas Season day. I can't lie, I love the trappings, looking in windows of stores where I never shop and inhaling peppermint bark and watching the Claymation Christmas Special for the 475th time (and doing the latter two things sacked out on the couch with my siblings, reminiscing about the year the twins were young enough to fit into their stockings, or the year my sister got sick and begged for a Chia Pet, or the year my dad kept pulling relatives aside during dinner to watch "A Special Christmas Box").

One of the holiday chores we would typically be doing the day after Thanksgiving is getting out the box of Christmas movies and books. I try to re-read David Sedaris' HOLIDAYS ON ICE and the first two chapters of LITTLE WOMEN every year. For picture books you can't go wrong with HOW THE GRINCH STOLE CHRISTMAS (best read aloud in Boris Karloff voice), THE POLAR EXPRESS or the edition of THE NUTCRACKER with the almost-too-scary Sendak illustrations in it. What's your favorite holiday book?

(Sorry this list is so Christmas-centric; despite working in a hillel I don't know of any Hanukkah books. Please pitch in and correct my ignorance.)

Since today is also Buy Nothing Day, here are the free full texts of "The Gift of the Magi" and A CHRISTMAS CAROL; you can also listen to Sedaris' "Santaland Diaries" radio pieces (my first ever exposure to him) here.

Still from "Will Vinton's Claymation Christmas": GeekUSA