Reindeer Tales

It was another busy day. During this time of year, there is no such thing as a "weekend". In fact, Friday nights, Saturdays, and Sundays are big parade and tree lighting days in addition to the mall appearances. And all the production work has to continue in order to meet the demand. We can rest on December 26th. And I am going to do just that. In fact, I spent a little time earlier today searching internet deals to some nice little getaway spots for after Christmas. I'm thinking something warm, sunny, and on the beach.... for about a month. I'll keep looking as I didn't find anything too interesting yet.

At a mall in Springfield, Illinois today, a little girl told me she had been reading my weblog. She also asked me why I didn't share more about the reindeer. I told her I didn't really have a good answer and maybe I could occasionally tell a story or two about the most famous reindeer. So I may use my time tonight to tell you a little about the most famous reindeer of all... Rudolph.

I think most of you know a lot about Rudolph. Surprisingly, the classic TV show "Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer" is fairly accurate. The producers spent quite a bit of time up here at the North Pole researching the story and seeking direct input from Rudolph, Donder, Mrs. Claus, and others. I wish I could say the same for all the other shows about Rudolph... unfortunately, most of those are just the result of someone's creative imagination.

Rudolph is the son of Donder, one of my original reindeer team members. Unlike the TV show and the song, Rudolph never was alienated by the other reindeer. Quite the contrary. Yes, we were surprised by the red nose... but as the one of on of the most respected reindeer on the ranch, Rudolph was clearly destined for greatness from the beginning. The fact that he was also a well-behaved kid and excelled at the reindeer games only made him that much more popular. Of course, there were childhood pranks... and Rudolph was occasionally on the receiving end. In fact, one of the funniest stories I remember about Rudolph was the time Cupid decided to put purple cellophane over his nose. But I will save that for another day when we have more time.

Well, it is late and my alarm goes off again in a couple of hours. See you soon.