I've tried calling and faxing my "undecided" Democratic senator to urge him to vote against the Senate health care bill. I have not succeeded getting through.

Others report "Senatorial phone lines in Washington have been jammed."

But with my senator, it wasn't a jammed phone line; it was simply nobody answering. I guess that my senator, a former naval officer, decided it's OK to run silent when an important bill is about to come up for vote.

I decided to send my senator a Christmas card, thinking that might get through. I wrote in it:

"Please vote against the health care bill. Merry Christmas. Your constituent, Mark Fitzgibbons."

Given the season, I refrained from writing anything else.

If you want to send a Christmas or Hanukkah card to your own senator -- which might be the only way to get through to some of these senate offices -- you can find his or her address here.