As diehard readers know — I’ve been working on a Chico-themed Christmas card for 2008. A lot of people, myself included, wanted me to create the Sierra Nevada Santa. However, logistics and time constraints made that really difficult to do. The good news is that I’m on course to do it next year.

With Sierra Nevada Santa out of the picture (no pun intended), I was scrambling for another idea. At the last minute, inspiration struck me and I went with a toy theme. Chico is home to the National Yo-Yo Museum and that is where I took this year’s card photo. I went to the Bird-in-Hand store and photographed a yo-yo — with a twist.

Here’s the front of the card (click to see the inside):

I wanted to give this to you for Christmas …
Click more to see the inside of the card.

… but shipping would have cost too much.Merry Christmas and may your 2009 have more ups than downs. — Ryan

The gag is that the yo-yo is the world’s largest wooden yo-yo which is on display at the museum.

Creating the card took a bit of time, but things flowed together pretty smoothly. I hope people enjoy the card as much as I did devising it.

And on that note, have a happy and safe New Year!