They Forgot to Invite Me to Christmas—So I Bought a Mountain. When They Came to Take It, the Deputy Was Already Waiting.

that didn’t apply. I bought expensive wine for myself. I learned to cook a perfect crown roast for one, timing everything so that dinner coincided with the sunset. I transformed my exclusion into what looked like choice.

The scent of oranges studded with cloves—the classic pomander that most people associate with Christmas—doesn’t smell like holiday continue reading …