Tis the season to tend to the lonley

and the easily depressed or discouraged. Depression, anxiety, and worry derive from and are strengthened by a mismatch between expecations and observations. While this has a biochemical component, the holiday blues, which as some reporter will talk about at some point in the next few weeks, can be lessened if not prevented altogether by having a healthy attitude about what the holiday season "should be" like. Flexible, low key plans that emphasize sensible, realistic expectations will provide much happier results than overly elaborate schemes that attempt to satisfy perceived judgments from people you'd rather not be with anyway. And if you have any depressive friends or acquaintances, consider inviting them along to whatever you have planned. No pressure, just an open invitation. Whether your holidays plans are primarily religious or secular, if they aren't fun and uplifting, then we've kind of missed the point, haven't we?