Last issue we observed, with reverence, the spirit of the holiday season. Production week rolled around and my list for the lineup was pretty skimpy. No cover, no editorial, no center spread. In very short order, however, everything we needed found us. I wasn’t looking for a cover when I went through some saved Christmas cards and found my son’s illustration from 2008. It made me laugh and brought up some sweet memories, but I didn’t think of it as a cover until I tentatively asked our Creative Director Nira Lichten, if it might work for a cover. She texted back a resounding “Yes!� I was also rooting around for a photo for Thinking Out Loud (Page 3) when Topanga artist Megan Rice asked if I wanted some cartoons and “Hot Santa� (above) appeared among a fistful of cartoons. The same happened with our center spread, “Roz’s Christmas Wonderland,� an article that I was holding for a future issue but mislaid. It was perfect timing for the season, but author, Andrea Shreeman, had to remind me and resent everything. So glad she did. (Pages 8-9) Sarah Spitz suggests you see Ain’t Too Proud: The Life and Times of The Temptations, starring Jalen Harris before it wraps up on Jan. 1 (Page 10); and if you’re planning Christmas Eve at home, tune into the L.A. County Holiday celebration, a tradition since 1959, on Saturday, Dec. 24 from 3 to 6 p.m, airing on PBS SoCal live from the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion. KCET rebroadcasts it in the evening and on Christmas day. What’s in the stars for 2023? Check in with Kait Leonard for some hints. (Page 14)