It seems like it was just yesterday when I was sitting down with family and friends to enjoy our Thanksgiving feast. And now Christmas is only two short days away.

Which is my cue to start panicking.

As you may have guessed, I’m not ready. I still have presents to buy, not to mention wrap, and scores of Christmas cards left to mail. And we’re not going to even talk about the fact that the tree isn’t up yet.

It’s true to form, really. But please have the decency to at least act surprised.

Oh, I started the holiday season with all kinds of grandiose plans to have my shopping done by mid-December at the latest. I set an even earlier goal for the tree, which was slated for assembly and decoration three weeks ago. Ditto the cards.

I also had intentions of baking batch after batch of Christmas cookies, and whipping up some of the chocolate merlot truffles my friends and family have been clamoring for since I last made them. In 2001.

I planned to make them last year, too. Even purchased all the necessary ingredients and festive little tins to package them in. Still have it all too. Well, except for the merlot, of course, which we uncorked months ago.