Greetings of the Season! My topic will probably be only relevant to some, but nevertheless, here I go! I present to you "Celebration Etiquette," to observe when honoring your family members and friends’ End-of-Year Birthdays and Anniversaries. For me this is near, dear, and personal – I was born on Christmas Day. I speak with authority, so I will offer solutions to make your loved ones feel “special” on their “special” day, like other celebrants feel, who are born, married or whatever on just a regular day. Start out by NOT mentioning, as in my case, “ Oh, Christmas Baby.” I have known that since I was four years old! It's often followed by, “I bet you get cheated on the gifts.” Often forcing me to defend my parents or declare that I was a spoiled only child. Or the couple who married on New Year's Eve, I guess they retort with “It will ensure that we never forget an anniversary.” What if they divorce? It's a bummer that every NYE they will remember the beginning of the end. So offer the appropriate message without comment on the fact that they share it with the holiday. You wouldn’t say "Happy Birthday, your March 23rd date typically falls in the fourth week of the month," would you? If gift giving is involved with the celebration: •Rule #1: NEVER WRAP IN HOLIDAY PAPER. Wrap it just like you would if the event was on a non-Holiday day. Warning: Hanukkah can be tricky, since dates vary each year…. But Rule #1 still holds. •Rule #2: See previous paragraph. •Rule #3: IF cake and pastries are involved, the carrot cake, for example, should not have a Santa, Dreidel, or Father Time on it. •Rule #4: Do Not Celebrate as an add-on to the holiday event. (I remember too many birthday cakes with Christmas colors, figures, etc. served at the end of the Christmas feast). It was anti-climatic at best, and friends were never present. One solution for me was to celebrate on June 25, as my official half-birthday party. Friends, Family attended and a cake actually had my name written on it. Or a surprise party, either before or after the date, is a fabulous way to celebrate the honoree(s). •And last, Rule #5: Never say you forgot, because of the Holidaze! Better to say you were in the hospital or the dog ate the cake. Well, I may have just built a case for celebrating FESTIVUS on December 23, with all the same-date-as-the-Holiday day Celebrants, and the “airing of grievances” during Festivus may prove to be a big hit! Bonus, all the 12/23 birthdays or anniversaries are often forgotten so you may have a large turnout! Now that I got that off my chest, I want to give a shout out to two of AVL’s newest gifts to me. GINGER’S REVENGE at 829 Riverside Dr. It's another craft brewery but offers a twist: It’s brewed like it was way back, with Ginger. It's tasty and smooth, and served in a nice bright environment that offers weekend entertainment. And REVOLVE at 821 Riverside Dr, located behind Ginger’s, is also housed in a warehouse conversion. REVOLVE offers a salon environment that features creative forms of expression – art, music, spoken word…check out Revolve's website and their full calendar of events, plus news about the space, right here. And coming soon to Woodfin is Baked Pie Company, opening on N. Merrimon, next to Chupacabra restaurant in Reynolds Village. I hope to be there for my first flight of pies, to celebrate my birthday, with friends, before 12/25, maybe on 12/23 for Festivus.