McNamara: The worst Christmas I ever had was the one that changed my life By Mary McNamara, Los Angeles Times Published: December 28, 2020, 6:00am Share: During this pandemic year, I have spent a lot of time praying for the children of alcoholics and addicts, trapped by one disease that demands we all stay at home — and cornered by another that can turn a loving parent into a frightening abuser at the drop of an ice cube, the squeak of a Chardonnay cork. I love and miss my mother, gone for almost 15 years, but I cannot imagine having to live through a lockdown with her while she was drinking; the holidays were bad enough.