Barry Manilow ruined Christmas for me again.

I get it. There are people in the world who appreciate the music of Barry Manilow.

I am not one of them.

Personally, I think the guy’s so square, he’s divisible by four. He has all the emotional color of beige paint. And this is coming from a guy who was once married to a card-carrying Barry Manilow stan. And she dragged me – kicking and screaming – to TWO Barry Manilow concerts. Ugh.

So anyway…

Right now I’m dealing with a very difficult Christmastime. My car is still in the shop, and I’m feeling about as alone as the last heartbeat. Then I heard a siren outside my apartment.

Fire? Ambulance?

No, wait … I think it’s …

I grabbed my camera phone, went outside, and sure enough …

It’s Santa Claus. Well, at least Green Island’s version of Santa Claus. It’s Green Island’s annual event where Santa Claus rides through the Town and Village, and this year he’s driving right down my street.

Okay, Google Pixel 6 Pro … do your thing.

Got it. Okay, that made me smile. Let’s share the joy. I’ll post this video on Facebook.

And, to my surprise … I received this message from Facebook. And I had to edit my comment to reflect same.

Yep. Facebook blocked the audio on my video because the parade loudspeakers were blaring Barry Manilow’s “White Christmas” loud enough for Facebook’s algorithms to automatically block it. And if there was ever a version that sounded more vanilla than Bing Crosby’s classic, well, there it is.

Thanks a pantload, Barry Manilow. It’s not like I really WANT to promote your vacuous material, but hey … if that’s what it has to be, then so be it, I guess.

Just another reason why this Christmas has a real chance to turn out to be the worst Christmas in my entire life.