State Senator-elect Eric Lesser and Santa Claus on December 24 appearing on the same radio show. (via Facebook/Lesser campaign)

NORTH POLE, Disputed Territory—Continuing his preparations for taking office on January 7, State Senator-elect Eric Lesser met briefly with Santa Claus after appearing on a Springfield radio show ahead of Claus’s annual international sojourn.

Lesser, who is Jewish, said he was pleased to meet someone who brings cheer to so many people, something Lesser said was essential. “I’m willing to work with anybody to make sure the people of the 1st Hampden & Hampshire District have a great holiday, ready to ring in a happy 2015,” Lesser, 29, said. “We’re going to have a lot of work ahead of us in the New Year.”

Claus, age unknown, said despite the religious differences, he was well aware of Lesser, having spent years reading periodicals like Politico and The New York Times Magazine as a sort of “cheat sheet” to the beltway’s naughty & nice. “I really like Eric. Ironically, when he lived in Washington, he was one of the few DC denizens who regularly qualified as ‘nice’ in any given year.”

Lamenting for a moment that it would have been gratifying to actually have a “Washington insider” who was NOT getting a lump of coal in his stocking, Claus paused and added, “Come to think of it, Lesser got a pretty amazing gift last month, didn’t he?”

Nothing evokes the spirit of the season more than a good laugh. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from WMassP&I! Please enjoy your holidays and holiday season!