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December 31, 2006
Josie Got Her Ball Back
Josie our cat has a little cloth soccer ball that she hearts in a big way. In the past only rolled up paper balls would do, but these days she is cloth all the way. She loves this thing so much that she will carry it around the house in her mouth and will intentionally wedge the ball in tough corners, just to have the pleasure of rescuing it. She is a funny cat.
Not so funny in the middle the night. Over the last few nights Josie has seemingly lost her ball in our bedroom. So despondent is she, that she will wail out in the night until Flounder either finds the ball for her or he kicks her out of the room. I usually just mumble something about "stupid cat" or "idiot ball" and roll over to sleep again. It's become part of our routine -- like brushing our teeth, or driving to work. Personally I liked the old routine, where our cat would come and sleep with us now and again throughout the night. Much more restful.
Short of setting up a ball-rejecting forcefield or taking the ball away at night (Gasp! Flounder the Marshmallow would never allow it) I think we are in for the long haul of nightly disturbance.
Quote of the Day:
“I want to die in my sleep like my grandfather... Not screaming and yelling like the passengers in his car.”
-Will Shriner
December 28, 2006
One For My Baby, And One For The Road
I am continuing to have a delightful time giving things away. Today I have passed along 10 of the white paper parasols and 42 placecard frames left over from the wedding. These giveaways more then make up for the number of items I brought in over Christmas.
Speaking of...Christmas celebrations this year were different. We had all of the usual componants -- food, family, gifts, rest, chatting, cheering and even a little Jesus -- but they all seemed to arrive a bit out of order. Long story short I visited with about 35 members of our closest family, and it was good.
I love our very own Christmas tree so much this year we are keeping it up for an extra week. This means We have 9 more days of Christmas tree goodness.
Flounder and I are off of work until January 2nd, and it is good. We have spent a good deal of time shopping, cuddling with the cat and just hanging together. There has even been some cleaning, sorting and neatening up. In a desperate move Wednesday, I went and got a facial yesterday which was lovely, extractions aside. We got a terrific treat yeaterday as well when we had the pleasure of having lunch with G. Skinnee and his wife Lil' Skinnee. They were delightful and good times had by all. In short, vacation is the best.
Quote of the Day:
If you want to know your past, look into your present conditions.
If you want to know your future, look into your present actions.
--Buddhist Saying
December 20, 2006
Wednesday Wonder
I imagine this is going to seem like really mundane news, but I am pretty proud of myself.
I have given away my back catalog of Real Simple magazines.
I started getting this magazine years ago, like 2001-2002? I have kept nearly every copy, very neatly on a shelf. When Ms. RBT was visiting on Sunday and helping me move some furniture in my office/sewing room, she noticed my stash. That's when I noticed it too and thinking back I realized that I hadn't looked at a single issue since we moved into our house in the Summer of 2004. Sad. No excuse. Out they go!
I found a very happy taker on Freecycle who is interested in the magazine but hasn't had the extra income to buy it.
Win-Win people!
Earlier this week I gave away an extra set of luggage that have been taking up space in a closet. How could I stop-up prime closet real estate with 3 pieces of luggage I would never use again. Really, my mind boggles.
Those of you out there who once reorganized and redecorated my bedroom back in September 2003 (you know who you are!) will know all to well that I have a hard time parting with my possessions. I have gotten much better about both my finances and parting with trash these days -- but getting rid of my "stuff" is still hard. But look! I'm improving.
Yeah me!
Quote of the Day:
He wins every hand who mingles profit with pleasure.
Horace
December 18, 2006
All Wrapped Up
I am not quite sure how it happened, but it seems I spent all of Saturday wrapping gifts. I know this can not be, I am not that wealthy, nor so generous, but all the same where did Saturday go? I vaguely recall going to the grocery store. Otherwise, half my weekend is a gift wrap speckled blur. Strange.
I am happy to say that I just might pull this Christmas thing together afterall! I have had to abandon the idea of making my baby secound cousin a little quilt. Not abandon it entirely, just leave it off until after December 26th. I will make the thing before Valentine's day. The house is decorated, the tree is trimmed, the gifts are wrapped and very nearly every card has been sent...which leads me to another issue.
I slipped up while marking off my list of Christmas cards. I have managed to scramble up my list (thanks Excel!) such that it's unclear if a handful of people have been sent cards. So, if you rather expect to recieve one from me this year, and yet do not -- it is not for lack of trying. Classic La, No?
Quote of the Day:
No matter how lonely you get or how many birth announcements you receive, the trick is not to get frightened. There's nothing wrong with being alone.
Wendy Wasserstein
December 14, 2006
Parallels
It's been really nice having Mi Mama around a bit more lately. Between the new house, new beau and most importantly all the traveling she has been doing for work, she has been very absent.
Tuesday, (Hereafter remembered as the day I won back my freedom) Flounder and I set about decorating the house for Christmas. By the time Mi Mama arrived at the house the Christmas Tree was shining and the halls were decked. It was quite lovely to settle down with my two favorite people over some chinese take out to watch Miracle on 34th Street (Thank you TiVo!). It was the perfect end to a stressful time.
Back over the summer, having Mi Mama underfoot was becoming a bit of a challenge. Looking back, it is actually pretty funny that I was adjusting to having Mi Mama in my home, just as Mi Mama was dealing with moving her own mother into their new shared home. Parallelisms are a kick. These days I am pretty happy to have her around and miss her if she is gone more than a few days.
Meanwhile, I have been giving myself a hard time over Christmas. I have just run out of time to do everything I want to do, and as a result I have been making bargins with myself. I won't bake for my co-workers before the holiday, but I will bring them a treat after the new year. I won't get worked up because all of the food for the get together we are hosting isn't homemade -- no one will care anyway. It really will be ok if all of the wrapped gifts under the tree don't match. It was that last bit of negotiation that made me start to wonder if I had lost it. When Poor Flounder offered to help me out by having some of the gifts we purchased professionally wrapped and I actually responded, "But, then all the gifts won't match", with a totally straight face mind you, I really started to wonder. Where did this perfect holiday mania come from?
The answer? Mi Mama. She always managed to create a beautiful and thoughtful holiday celebration regardless of how little money we had or what else was going on in our lives. She has never pressured me to be anal about the holidays or criticized my efforts, but Oh the Joy of positive reinforcement. Really, one compliment of my decor/baking/wrapping job is all it takes to make me reach for even greater heights of Seasonal Greatness.
Approval. Breakthrough! Now I know why I do it, how do I stop it? Or do I really want to?
Quote of the Day:
A man cannot be comfortable without his own approval.
Mark Twain
December 11, 2006
Last Chance
This evening I will attend my last class of this semester and I can't wait. I honestly threw my last paper together in only a few hours and I can honestly attest it isn't very good. I can also sincerely sware that I really don't care. Truly. I am just so glad to be free of the EN 109 shackles, I can't even begin to tell you.
Freedom will be mine at 9:30 tonight!
And then I have an awful lot to do.
I am very close to being done with my shopping and I have completed my canning, which is VERY good news. However, I have a big pile of presents to wrap, about a million cookies to bake, a blanket to make, the house to decorate, a few cakes to make, the tree to trim...etc. However, I will do all of these things with love in my heart as opposed to the pure resentment I was starting to develope toward my course this semester. I just couldn't get into it. Now, Christmas -- that's something I can get into!
Speaking of Christmas, I have made a pact with myself this year. For every item that comes to live in my home this holiday season (i.e. gifts, decorations, new clothes) 1 item will go out. I will do my best to make the item that goes out in someway comparable to the item that comes in; either in size, function or costliness. I already have a mental list of items to Freecycle.
I have also decided not to make any New Years Resolutions this year, not even secret ones I don't share. Having resolutions have never gotten me anywhere good. So out with the useless. I have better things to do.
Quote of the Day:
How vain it is to sit down to write when you have not stood up to live.
Henry David Thoreau
December 7, 2006
Sick House
I have been sick for weeks on end. And it's getting really truly old. Poor Flounder is also ill. Though I am pretty sure our illnesses are independant of each other. Really he just needed some serious rest and I think he will be back on his feet tomorrow.
Unfortunatly my sinus problems have finally started to affect my brain. My mental abilities are totally impared. Which does not bode well for the final push on my class project. I am livin' for Tuesday! I can't wait to wake up Tuesday morning and KNOW that I don't have any more class work to do and I can concentrate on what's really important -- CHRISTMAS!
You might be wondering how I felt about the whole NaBloPoMo failure. Well, It was a very hard to blog everyday, and I don't anticipate attempting it again. It was a real bummer when I missed an entry and decided not to post-date. I did my best.
Quote of the Day:
To look almost pretty is an acquisition of higher delight to a girl who has been looking plain for the first fifteen years of her life than a beauty from her cradle can ever receive.
Jane Austen
