Main Index

Year	Poem(s)	A Little Background
1994	Star Wars - This tells the story of an Imperial raid on a small trader vessel. I.R.S. - This story deals with a surprise vist to a taxpayers home by the president and eight IRS agents.	This was the first year we thought we could even attempt creating a poem. We came up with the Star Wars poem first (which I think is still the best), and then rushed together the IRS one so we would have something to send to the non SciFi folk we know.
1995	Politics: Newt Gingrich - Here, we pick on the then Speaker of the House taking him on journey with the spirits of Christmas Past, Present, and Future, who bear a strange resemblance to Bill and Hilary Clinton, and Rush Limbaugh.	This year, we had time to come up with only one. We tried to do it on something topical, and the Speaker was that the top of the national joke list.
1996	Florida - This was our first Christmas in our home in Florida, and it had to have a different twist to it. Microsoft - Although having done one, we hit on another idea that came to fruition. Hey we picked on Bill Clinton, why not Bill Gates?	Having just moved into our new house in Florida, it was time to tell the tale of Santa's delivery in the tropics. Once that was done, another idea popped up, and we told of Bill Gates pushing Microsoft ahead.
1997	Lost in Space - Here is the tale of how Santa visited the Jupiter 2 while in route to wherever it was going.	I had wanted to do one to Lost in Space for a while now, and that was where I headed for our SF poem this year. Unfortunately, it was the only one we did.
1998	Santa in Disarray - With Ken Starr's witch hunt for wrong doing in the White House, it seems he even called Santa and his elves to testify. Unfortunately, that left little time to make gifts.	Another jab at politics, and the Ken Starr grand jury came to mind. I was told by my Dad afterwards that my relatives keep mentioning to him that they would prefer I not write on politics.
1999	Y2K - Being the big worry of the year (if not the last five), we took a look at what could happen if Y2K wasn't stopped.	With all the humbug over Y2K, it seemed an easy target.
2000	Millennium - Since all the marketing and Y2K worries of the past year called the end of the year the millennium, we thought it appropriate to mark the beginning of the true millennium. We took a shot at past predictions, and future possibilities.	Having zip for ideas, I went back to all the disaster predictions for the start of the millennium. I then made note of the true start of the millennium, and looked things that had been predicted. I remember being in school in the 60s and hearing prediction of things that would take place by the year 2000.
2001	Wondering What to Write On - As with each year, coming up with what to write is the hardest thing. In this case, it turned into one of three poems. Time Travel - Here we took a jaunt through the centuries to look at Santa delivering his presents from past, future, to present. Internet Shopping - We took a look at how things might turn out if we bought everything online. It's easy. It's quick. The best part is that they do the shopping for you.	This was a surprising year. I sat there wondering what to write on, when I came up with the time travel idea. Then I stepped back and thought that wondering what to write on was a good idea too. I flushed out both of those when Shirley told me she had a great idea for internet shopping, and supplied a couple verses. So, having yet another idea, I flushed out a third poem. The hard part is deciding who to send which one to.
2002	A Long Night - This year's poem took a twist. It tells the tale of a night of sleep interrupted constantly by noises, the last sound coming from the roof.	As I have trouble sleeping at times, I wondered what would happen if the main story teller of the poem couldn't get to sleep because of all kinds of distractions.
2003	The Undecorated House - This tells the story of how the season got far advanced before any of the decorations got put up.	Shirley came up with an idea about our ornaments not getting out of the attic. As usual, it was a year when things happened late.
2004	The Long, Cold Night - This year we took a page from the movie "The Day After Tomorrow", as well as the summer of hurricanes. We wondered if Santa could go out in such weather. That Was The Decade That Was - This is the decade round up where we touch on each one that have written thus far.	This year needed something special as it was the 10th year that we have been writing these poems. for that we came up with the decade round up which briefly touches on each that we have written thus far. At the same time, we needed one new one for this year. The hurricanes that touched Florida gave inspiration to this.
2005	Star Wars: The Final Episode - In the back of my mind, I felt the need to do one last Star Wars poem just because the last episode was released this year. Clichéville - This one came a bit easier, once I had formulated the idea. Here we just threw old sayings and quotes at the reader. Most of them came from TV and movies (yes, the reader's age may be a factor). There are 29 references. Can you pick up on all of them?	This year was tough. We were worried that we might actually have to go out and buy cards to send. We started with one idea set in virtual reality, but by the time it was flushed out, I had totally missed the mark. I had used one line that sent me off doing another poem, but once Shirley saw it said it was half Star Wars. So, I made the Star Wars poem, and then came back to do the other. They are very similar as the same starting poem was used for each.
2006	High Tech Santa - It was coming down to the last minute, looking for ideas. Seeing all the commercials for high tech electronics rang out with a sympathetic (or pathetic you might decide after you read it) vibration.	I had actually had been thinking of ideas all year long. The problem was that when it got closer to the time to make up the cards, the ideas petered out. Finally one appeared, and it was done in two days.
2007	No Poem - This year, we broke the tradition and did not come up with anything. The poem inside explains it.	See inside.
2008	A Green Year - This year, the North Pole goes green.	This year, the North Pole has become ecologically aware. Things have gone green so to speak
2009	Vampires - Delivering toys in Transylvania.	Since vampires were the hot item this year, Santa delivered to a dark castle deep in Transylvania.
2010	Strange Holidays - Being yanked into another timeline and seeing the mixed up holidays there.	This started with a Facebook comment about how all the holidays were being pushed together, Christmas merchandise in the stores before Halloween. My comment was about listening to the Jingle Mash. We started down one track, then trashed it to take another. We also had a third, but could not get that worked out at all.
2011	Doggie Nights - What would Santa's visit look like from a dog's point of view?	Forever, we start out blanking on our theme. Then we wondered how the dogs would view Santa as he came to do his job. Would they growl? Would they know not to?
2012	A Story for the 21st Century - How things would be when Santa used computers for everything, from tracking his flight to scheduling deliveries.	This was literally a last minute idea (as all too many are). We went through and rejected way too many ideas. Finally, a line came to me, one I cold work with to build to and past.
2013	A Christmas Shopping Story - With all the shopping starting at Halloween, what would happen if one hedged their bets and waited for the very best prices?	We keep seeing Christmas decorations being put in stores earlier and earlier. But with that, when is the best time to shop? Early? Or the last minute?
2014	A Doctor Who Christmas Story - What would happen if instead of Santa, a TARDIS appeared, and The Doctor popped out? The Decade Wrap Up (20 years in the making) - This was the closing out of our second decade of doing holiday cards. So, we had to wrapup what we'd done and talk about the future.	We were looking for something to write on, knowing that one would be a wrap up of the decade. We realized that we had never done a Doctor Who story, so that was where we headed. Having done these cards for two decades now, we had to do some type of wrapping up as we did back in 2004.
2015	An Unforgettable Christmas Story - As often happens with us, every time we puyt something down, it walks away. We put things in safe places that are so safe, we can't get to them. So, we start with someone trying to decorate the tree and they can't find what they're looking for. Yet Another Star Wars Story - With a new movie coming out shortly, we decided to again write on Star Wars. It talks about die hard movie goers camping out to buy tickets to the first show.	Shirley started the Star Wars poem with the exact same opening we used on our first poem 21 years ago, without realizing it. I then took it in another direction. Not wanting to do only Star Wars, I got another idea at the last minute and flushed it out. I was thinking about how many things I misplace during the year, and here it is.
2016	A Tiny Little Christmas Story - Wondering what to right on, we started with a line, then it occurre dto me to tell the traditional story from the point of view of the mouse. A Christmas Story of Possibilities - Again wondering what to write on, I decided to start throwing ideas out and see what brought chuckles.	This year, we were blank up until the last minute, well, almost the last minute. Shirley started with a line about "and all through the 'burg'". I immediately finished the next line, and then it sat for three weeks. Once I finally got it worked out, the next which had been playing tag with my mind for a while came through.
2017	A Christmas Story That Could Go Viral - What would happen if Santa and the elves got sick just before Christmas? Would gifts get out ontime? Or woudl tghis be a global sisaster? A Christmas Story Of The Third Kind - On Christmas Eve, our hero goes out to walk the dog and watch the meteor shower. It is then that the UFO comes by to visit.	It was getting late in the season (and it seems like we say this every year), and ideas were few and far between. Having just gotten over a cold, we thought it would be interesting if the elves were sick and couldn't work. Then we were going to have a companion piece where the story teller was sick during Santa's visit, but it just didn't flush out. I was rattling around with ideas and thought "go out and get some air." That is when the second idea popped in and I ran with it.
2018	In the Nick of Time - Time seems to be flying by, so much so that we just can't remember things from one moment to the next. Thankfully, someone arrives to straighten things out. Who you gonna call?	With time running short, we were stumped for ideas, until one came to me. Everyone keeps saying how fast time seems to be going by. So, that started the story, but I didn't want to do an entire story of the months flashing by, so it took a left and came in with another idea. Then when that petered out a bit, idea number three popped in. So there are about three good ideas here that go wrapped into one story.
2019	Remodeling - Santa's delivery schedule could run behind due to renovations happening at the pole. Nothing is ever done one time, and the quote is never final.	With renovations going on at the house, we decided it was a good topic to do this story on. And although we could go on much longer, we had to fit it on one piece of paper.
2020	Delivering in a Pandemic - Santa is delivering gifts, even in the moddle of a pandemic. That takes a few changes in his normal routine.	The world is in chaos. There is unrest, a pandemic, and maybe aliens. We thought a bit of humor was much needed.
2021	A Family Story - After the year we had last year, we wanted to show the enjoyment of family being able to get together again. A Heroic Tale - Sitting over my desk wondring what to write, I start describing the story I must tell, one with heroes and villians, and a damsel in distress. And a quest ensues. SciFi Characters Intermingling - Trying to sleep, I kept seeing characters form science fiction shows and movies coming in and out, and running into each other. They keep changing form one to another as I try to wake from this nightmare.	This was an interesting year. The first story got written on December 7th. Once that was done, the next two ideas popped onto my head. They all got flushed out, made into cards and mailed by the 10th. It's been a while since we came up with more than one decent idea at the same time.
2022	A Lit Up Holiday - Each year, we put out lights, which takes about 4 days. We are running out of room, yet we keep getting more. And Santa does't hep as he brings us more. An Etheric Holiday - As I work in etherical energy, and talk hope and peace, I thought I would write on it,	One idea came, and was slow fluching out, but we told the story of our holiday lights, and what all is out there. Then looking for a second hook, I thought something in a more spiritual (astral) plane might be good to do, and this flowed so fast, it was done in a few hours.
2023	A Close Encounter of the Holiday Kind - This story follows an alien celebrating their holiday who decides to check in on humans.	There was one idea, just one. For weeks it was two lines, but then it all came together in a day.