Unfortunately, I have one of those newer, compact scanners, and a newer, not-very-well-bound book...

I think my attitude toward "Santa" (though now that I think of it, calling him "Santa" is rather like calling him "Mister" -- it's his title, not his first name) started with my mother.

She cringed at the song "Santa Claus is Coming to Town", especially when she overheard a grown-up saying to a cranky or impatient child: "Now, be good -- or Santa won't bring you anything!"

As she put it: "Santa Claus is the personification of Love, and you don't withold love, or even threaten to, just because someone bisbehaves!" And she was right...

But there's another side to the coin: You get back from the universe what you give to it. If you're miserly and greedy, and don't give anything away, than you won't get anything back... nothing to do with witholding love. It's just a force of nature, like painful things happening when you disrespect gravity ;-)

Well, I need breakfast... I'll be back!