JennyO, I finally, finally, finally, the elves got off of their duffs (they were out on an extended vacation in Cancun to soak up some sun) and sent your replacement box. The reindeer refused to have anything to do with take-offs and landings in the thaw around the pole, so I had to beg and wheedle and finally, well, I'm embarrassed to say, but I finally bribed a postal employee to stick it into the back end of one of those silver birds. If they can't manage to fly over your house to drop it on your porch they may have to land and hand carry it.

There was one freelance elf helping on this, but I haven't seen any trace of that one's activity (nothing mentioned here about billet-doux arriving from hither and yon). I hope they have been arriving, so you knew this Santa hadn't forgotten about you.

Your contrite substitute Secret Santa