I'm watching Year Without a Santa Claus . Half watching, but enough is seeping through to trigger a bunch of dusty yuletide memories. And I'm in the mood to share!
My parents worked pretty hard to keep my sister and I believing in the jolly fat guy. They came up with some pretty smart cover stories. I really have to hand it to them.
Early on, all I wanted was Star Wars toys for Christmas. I guess I was 5 or 6 when I became concerned about something. According to the TV, Santa had a bunch of elves toiling away up in the North Pole. Well, I knew full well that my Star Wars toys were made by the good folk at Kenner . I knew they were trademarked as well. So, I wondered aloud, how could elves be making them?
To which my parents spun this: Santa was a wholesaler of sorts. He had deals with all the toy manufacturers, and bought at a deep discount. This helped explain two other potential issues:
There are so many kids in the world, no one man and a team of elves could keep up with demand. And, what kid in the 70's wanted a wooden train?
Second, why didn't I get everything I asked for or wanted? The answer to that was as follows...
Santa talked to each and every parent and determined what they could afford to spend on their children. Santa then selected from the child's list what he was able to get. Mom and Dad had to pay for the toys. Santa, of course, passed the savings on. But the stuff wasn't free.
That kept me believing for a long time.
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