Macaroni and Cheese

The Time-Life Treasury of Christmas

I love macaroni and cheese. I always have. I’m a bit of a mac-n-cheese snob, as a matter of fact. My mom made Creamettes Macaroni and put in cubes of Land-O-Lakes American cheese. And it spoiled me. I can hang with my niece and nephew when they want to have Kraft Mac-N-Cheese, dinner-in-a-box lunch with their Uncle Roni. But some day, when they’re open to change, I’m going to make some of the real thing for them. It’s going to be a great day.

Schroeder, from “Peanuts”, once made the claim to Lucy that Beethoven’s favorite dish was macaroni and cheese. That touched my soul. Here was a man whose spirit and essence soared in the rafters of “high art” in music, but a simple comfort food brought him immense joy.

Anton Ego, the food critic from Walt Disney’s animated motion picture “Ratatouille”, proclaims this great truth towards the end of the feature:

“In many ways, the work of a critic is easy. We risk very little, yet enjoy a position over those who offer up their work and their selves to our judgment. We thrive on negative criticism, which is fun to write and to read. But the bitter truth we critics must face, is that in the grand scheme of things, the average piece of junk is probably more meaningful than our criticism designating it so … “

You, dear reader, have seen the height of my horse when it comes to my taste in Christmas music – Opera star Thomas Hampson, the King’s College Choir in Cambridge, the Turtle Island String Quartet, the choir of Westminster Abbey, and so forth. I will declare here, with a little humility, or maybe even a little humiliation, that my nose high in the air gets scratches itself on the ceiling a little more than often.

I don’t imply that the performances found on the “Time Life Treasury of Christmas” constitute “the average piece of junk”. But it’s a little closer to earth than others. And the innocence of days gone by, with sincerity to burn, shines through bright and clear. It's my Christmas comfort food. You can't go wrong with Julie Andrews, Perry Como, Percy Faith, Burl Ives, Dolly Parton and a little B-B-B-B-Bing Crosby. With maybe not just a little cheese on top.

Credits: To the Creamettes company, for their pasta products. Them’s good eatin’.

Only four more months until Christmas!

This is the third of my final forty-five CD's.