'"There's No Place Like Home"

Now that the holidays are seriously, officially, and truly over  — i.e. decorations are put back into boxes and the retail business has officially slumped in sales — I can tell you the truth. There honestly is no place like home. Granted, I live just a stones throw from my childhood over on 995 Beverly, but man, each time I'm back there it's like a time warp, and not because of retro furniture. We don't have any, unless you count antique duds as retro, which technically they are. It's as if when you walk through the door years are simply knocked off your life. So there you are standing in the front hall at age 12.

Being from a family of eight, there's always been mayhem around the holidays, or rather just mayhem all the time. Whether it's a fight regarding who wants what for Christmas and who's planning to get it, or picking a bone over movie selections: my dad's favorite movie to quote ever Elf ("He's an angry elf!"), a family favorite that we draw numerous comparisons from The Family Stone (Timmy & Larry combo=Luke Wilson), or that horrific movie Bad Santa, which for some reason all four of my brothers can't get enough of — I can always count on there being some semblance of family unity. And here's where it gets sappy: having Larry, Colleen, Sean, Timmy and Kevin all in the same zip code for over a week was pretty ridiculous, and I'm sad it's over. It's just really special to me that I have that many people in my life that not only do I love, but even if they hate, hate, hate me, still have to love me.

So, yes, friends, there indeed is no place like home. Sing it with me!

"Oh, there's no place like home for the holidays. 'Cause no matter how far away you roam, when you pine for the sunshine of a friendly face. For the holidays, you can't beat home, sweet home!"