I have had a lovely summer so far. Judi had asked me the other day how it was going and I just texted her a bunch of photos. So I decided to do something similar with this. Oh, BTW, the little kitty got a name. He’s Pippin, my little pipsqueak. Maybe I’ll post a couple of videos of him later. But now, on to the show!
Considering that my last LJ post was in the summer, I think I’m going to have to admit that how I “journal” my life has changed. It used to be paper. Then it was LiveJournal. Now I do “microjournaling” via Twitter and Instagram (username pagefillers). And even there I’m not as thorough as I once was. But they’re quick, and that often fits my lifestyle more.
I know a number of “old time” LJers who are jumping ship due to the Russians or somesuch. Haven’t decided if I will or not. But I do want to get a good backup of this journal and soon – my last backup was a few years back. And then maybe I’ll decide what to do.
My own website (pagefillers.com) is still very barebones since it was hacked at some point. Perhaps I’ll get my old LJ stuff onto there. At least my trip stories would be good there. Perhaps 2017 will be my year to get that sorted out. 🙂
I’m currently sitting in my library with Linus on my lap and Lucy sitting on the back of the comfy chair. We’ve got soft Christmas music playing in the background and, when I’m not writing this, I’m working on my eBooks’ meta data (like you do). I had a wonderful birthday today (46 years – sheesh!) Although Amy was back in MSP, the folks and I had a nice time. I cooked pork & kraut & mashed taters and then they came around for lunch. They brought cake & presents!
Since I’m 6, er 46, the gifts were toys & games. 😉 Amy, OTOH, got me an IKEA gift card – to help me get a display case to, um, hold my LEGO… OK, so I *am* 6!
Amy was here for Christmas – she arrived Christmas Eve and left on the 30th. We had a great time and, as per usual, we won at Christmas. And according to WW, I only gained 4.8lbs. Heh.
In 2016, I hit my lowest weight (in December) at WW which is over 40lb lost since I started the program, and probably closer to 50lb lost since I started trying. Yeah, it’s taking years, but I’m working on lifestyle changes, not looking for quick fixes. I’m wondering if, in 2017, I finally get under 180lb. We’ll see!
I managed to reach my book-reading goal for 2016 (read 75 books – I got 76 read – whee!) and I’m going to see if I can read 80 in 2017. You can keep tabs on me through goodreads.
OK, enough rambling from me. Linus has changed his position so that now when I type, I’m having to move him with me. He’s too zonked to care, but I think I should let him rest without being wiggled around.
I hope that 2017 is a good year for you all. I know there’s a lot of uncertainty right now and it has the potential to be truly horrible, but I hope that this isn’t the case. Love to you all!
Welp, here it is, 2016 already! I’m now 45 years old (doesn’t feel any different from 44. Or 43. Or any of those other post-40 years.) Was thinking of posting an end of 2015 entry, then saw
Visited Scotland & Wales! Travelled abroad with my mother & sister!
2. Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
I don’t do resolutions. Probably should, but I don’t.
3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
Heh heh – not for 2015. But just yesterday, my cousin Deanna had a little boy.
4. Did anyone close to you die?
Sadly, two of my former students died this past year. One of suicide, the other in a car/bike accident (he was on the bike). That doesn’t need to happen anymore.
5. What countries did you visit?
England, Wales, and Scotland. Whee!
6. What would you like to have in 2016 that you lacked in 2015?
It’s the opposite – I want to have less procrastination than I had in 2015. I seem to be getting better & better at procrastination!
7. What dates from 2015 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
I’m horrible about actual dates – ask my history teachers. But the summer of 2015 when mom, Amy, and I went to Great Britain will remain with me forever. 🙂
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
I finally got under 200lbs! OK, so it was only for a day, but this year, by golly, it’s going to become more often!
9. What was your biggest failure?
I’m fortunate in that my failures, as far as I could tell, are minor. Not keeping up to date with the “family spreadsheet” that mom, Amy, and I keep for weight loss. Procrastinating on grading. Spending a wee bit more than I probably should (though I am independently wealthy… Heh.)
10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
Not really. Here’s hoping 2016 is illness & injury free too!
11. What was the best thing you bought?
Heh – the “new” cell phone for mom for Christmas. She’s really been enjoying it. I’m also pleased that I subscribed to Big Finish’s 2020 subscription when it first came out. (I think they’re offering it again for a short while). So I’m good for Doc5, 6 & 7 stories till 2020. Here’s hoping the boys are able to continue to make the audios!
12. Whose behavior merited celebration?
The Supreme Court when they put the “gay marriage” issue to rest – and in the right way!
13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?
The GOP. My grandfather would turn over in his grave if (a) he knew and (b) the supernatural existed.
14. Where did most of your money go?
Stuff for Trina, my trip to Britain, mortgage.
15. What are you really, really, really excited about?
Hmm, good question. I may get back to you on this.
16. What song will always remind you of 2015?
Another good question. I don’t actually think that songs make me think of times as much as places.
17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
a) happier or sadder
Probably the same, maybe on the happier side of it.
b) Bigger or smaller?
Slightly smaller with plans to go even smaller than that!
c) richer or poorer?
Moneywise: Poorer, but only because I’m not quite recovered from the Britain trip. Will be soon, however! Then I’ll be richer.
Everythingelsewise: Richer. 🙂
18. What do you wish you’d done more of?
Reading & being creative. Writing, coloring, building robots, etc. If I did resolutions, that would probably be one.
19. What do you wish you’d done less of?
Procrastinate. (Hmm, I sense a theme here!)
20. How will you be spending Christmas?
Guess this meme originated before the Christmas season. I spent it with mom, dad, and Amy. Was a blast, as always. Amy got home safe und sound.
21. What was your favourite month of 2015?
December and June. December for Christmas et al and June for Britain.
22. Did you fall in love in 2015?
Yeah, fell in love with Cardiff. 🙂
23. What was your favourite TV program?
Doctor Who. Capaldi is just kicking ass right, left, and center! 🙂
24. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year?
Hate is such a strong term. Probably hate those who stir up hate in others (I’m looking at you, Trump!)
25. What was the best book you read?
The Steerswoman by Rosemary Kirstein because it got me hooked into the series. There were quite a few others, and I hope to post a 2015 reads list before too long.
26. What was your greatest musical discovery?
Hmm, that will take a bit of thinking. Maybe 2Cellos. I also want to do a 2015 music list as well.
27. What did you want and get?
I wanted lots & got most of it. That’s the “trouble” with being independently wealthy – I want, I get. Heh.
28. What did you want and not get?
Nothing important.
29. What was your favourite film of this year?
I didn’t really watch a lot of movies in 2015. I can’t even say The Force Awakens, because we watched it yesterday, in 2016. Maybe Song of the Sea.
30. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
Lordy, that was over a year ago now! 😉 On the first day of 2015, I turned 44. My sister was home and we had pork & kraut and they got me nifty gifts (including a question-mark handeled umbrella from Amy). Then we took Amy to the airport. Just a few days ago, I turned 45. My sister was home and we had pork & kraut and they got me nifty gifts. Then we took Amy to the airport. (Deja vu!)
31. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
In that one couldn’t even measure it? Less procrastination by me.
32. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2015?
Frumpy & comfortable.
33. What kept you sane?
Family, friends, a great job, fun co-workers, nifty students, kitties, and all the fun toys & shit that I have.
34. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
As always, Sylvester McCoy.
35. What political issue stirred you the most?
That gay marriage is now legal on my country. Woohoo! It’s a small step in progressiveness, but an important one!
36. Who did you miss?
I haven’t seen
37. Who was the best new person you met?
Haven’t met too many new folks. Guess I could say my new co-workers are wonderful folks, and the people I meet at FreethoughtDayton.
38. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2015.
It’s the same lesson I learn every year, but in light of the deaths of my former students: enjoy having one more day above the roses.
39. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.
“And I said to myself, what a wonderful world!”
I hope that everyone has had a wonderful Christmas this year (or fabulous Friday, or both!) It’s been great for me this year (as it is every year – whee!) Amy arrived safely at the airport today. Her luggage, not so much. Eep!
Still, the Shorts are not put out by such things. We made lunch (hamloaf, roasted taters, sauteed Brussel sprouts, and beer bread), which we then ate and enjoyed immensely. Then we rested up, then had dessert (cookies, pumpkin roll, cheesecake cupcakes) and coffee (for those who drink coffee). Mom and I took a short walk. Then we decided to unwrap presents till we got down to where Amy’s gifts to us were needed. (They are in her luggage, which is supposedly on its way here.)
Once again, we won at Christmas. We’ve gotten really good at it. 🙂 Adult coloring books were a popular item. Everyone got some sort of books or other. I got mom a “new” phone (Samsung Galaxy S5) to work with and dad a drone+camera to play with. I got Amy the Star Wars trilogy & some sketch books/pencils/pencil case/etc. They gave me all sorts of good stuff (games to play, books to read, a new toaster) and I’ve still not seen the “encyclopedia set” that Amy has apparently gotten for me. 🙂 (She claims her bag weighs as if it contains the Encyclopedia Britannica, but with the bag not here yet, we can only assume she’s telling the truth.)
The weather is… hella warm for this time of year. We have been fortunate NOT to be inundated with tornadoes like some areas of the country. (Those poor folks!) Though two days ago I was sitting in my basement waiting for the all clear on a tornado warning. Warmest December on record apparently. Bleh.
I’ve been doing all sorts of things since I last posted in June. The trip to Britain, as you probably saw, was a blast. School has been good. I might actually be caught up on grading for once (thanks to taking much of this last Monday getting caught up). We have Amy till next Friday (whee!) and all of the family gatherings are already over or aren’t scheduled till January. So it’s just the 4 of us to have a great week together and I’m looking forward to it.
So Happy Holidays to everyone out there! If I don’t post again till 2016, HAPPY NEW YEAR! (And even if I do post before then, I still hope you have a happy new year. Heh.)
Oh! Update – Amy just got a call from the luggage deliverer – she should be here in half an hour. Christmas unwrapping can continue! (Once Amy wraps the gifts up, of course).
So years ago my dad was asked by a neighbor lady how old he was and he said that he was “four with the fumb down.” (Or at least, the neighbor lady told him that he said this as he doesn’t remember it himself.) So we’ve had the expression in our family vernacular for many years. And today, I turned forty four, with both fumbs down. 🙂
Our Wonderful Christmastime has continued to be wonderful. On Monday, mom, Amy, and I went to AAA to talk with a travel agent about going on a tour of Britain. We met for an hour and a half and left with some homework to do. And we spent much of Monday afternoon researching and reading up and trying to decide which of the various package tours we wanted to do. We scheduled a second meeting for Wednesday whereupon we’d have our decision.
On Tuesday, Amy had an appointment with a couple of folks in Columbus to film for the BMC Oral History Project she’s been working on for a few years now. Dad had volunteered to be her gaffer (and to provide the lighting equipment so she didn’t have to bring her set up with her on the plane). Since it was going to take a couple of hours, I suggested that mom and I head off to Polaris Fashion Place to go shopping. So once we had Amy and Dad ensconced in the Columbus Mennonite Church, we headed north to the mall.
Mom and I have been fans of Chico’s for a couple of years now. She had a pair of jeans which were a little baggy on her that she wanted to return, and when we got there, they were having a sale. I found a pair of jeans and a long jacket (think Bea Arthur long) on sale and she found two pairs of jeans. We then stopped into a shoe store where I found a VERY cute pair of shoes in my size. Decided they’d be my birthday present to me. Mom then found a jacket for herself at Christopher & Banks that she wound up getting for $15. We topped the successful excursion off with Auntie Anne’s pretzels.
As we were leaving the mall, Amy texted to say they were done at the church. So we returned and Amy toured around Columbus reminiscing about her days of living in the “big city.” (Columbus is huge for me, but small for someone who lives in Minneapolis. Heh.)
That night, we finally decided on which of the package tours to go on (it was basically a competition between the Scottish highlands and Ireland, Loch Ness vs Guinness brewery tour, Liverpool vs Waterford Crystal. Scotland et al won in the end). Wednesday’s meeting then was getting the tour booked and then the flights figured out. We opted for trip insurance – not something we usually do, but with the total cost of the trip and the fact that we’re not as young as we once were, it seemed like a good idea this time around.
For New Year’s Eve, we met up with Deb & Ben, friends of my folks, for dinner at Trojan Horse. Then we adjourned to mom & dad’s home for an evening of games and snacks and booze. We played Ticket to Ride where Ben managed to win instead of Amy (who’s won every other time we’ve played). Then Amy and I took on mom and Deb with a game of pinochle. We won and then the ball dropped and 2015 arrived!
This morning I made us some baked French Toast (which I’d made shortly after midnight and let sit in the fridge overnight) and bacon. And lunch was our New Year’s staple: pork, kraut, and mashed potatoes. We’d invited my cousin Patty around and the five of us had a wonderful lunch and spent most of the afternoon chatting and laughing. Then mom, Amy, and I returned to Kevin Spacey and Robin Wright and House of Cards (we managed to watch 16 episodes this week). In between episodes, we had a light supper and then I opened presents and we had cake & gelato/ice cream. Judi had gotten me a World of Warcraft game time card (surprise!) and Elsa a nifty sweatshirt with “All of the good chemistry jokes Argon” on it. 🙂 Mom & dad got me moolah to do a subscription to Big Finish. And Amy got me a 7th Doctor brolly! Whee!
So this has been a wonderful time with my sister and folks and other loved ones. Tomorrow we take Amy to the airport so she can be reunited with Curtis (her cat) and Charlotte (her godcat whose currently staying with her). Thanks all for a lovely birthday and Christmas and all that jazz. 🙂
Although I haven’t been posting, I have been having a great end of the year. Amy arrived on Christmas and we had lunch at Waffle House* on our way back from the airport. That night was festivities with dad’s side of the family, and next day was a party at our house with mom’s side of the family. And that night I Skyped with
We have Amy with us till the day after my birthday (so till Friday) and we intend to enjoy her company as much as we can. Yesterday, after presents, we took a walk downtown and wound up doing Happy Hour at the Caroline. Mom and Amy and I have been mainlining episodes of season 1 of House of Cards*** (the US version with Kevin Spacey and Robin Wright) while dad hides in his den. (He’s not into political maneuvering and shenanigans, and I’m beginning to see why. Heh.)
I’m hoping y’all are also having a nice end to 2014 and I hope that 2015 starts out wonderfully for you.
*Well, it was one of the few places open on Christmas day. Though we felt bad for the joint – busy as they were, their ATM, phone, and credit card machine all crapped out at the same time. Basically, the phone died and took everything with it. Thankfully we had cash as did other customers. Christmas is one of Waffle House’s busiest days. We even had a 20 minute wait before we had a seat. I decided to have second breakfast and it was yummy.
**Lots of fun stuff from the folks and Amy and others. Some new outfits, sweatshirts, books, Doctor Who DVDs, and a couple of new appliances – egg hardboiler (cuz I was envious of mom’s) and smoothie maker (cuz my blender just doesn’t have the power). We all had stockings this year, which was fun to help fill. Mom made the stockings and they’re lovely.
***Last time I had the DVD set from the library, I managed to get the first three episodes watched before my 1 week time was up. This time I have the set for 3 weeks and recommended to mom and Amy to catch up and we could watch together. Amy did her homework (she has Netflix) and mom got started on hers and finished up once Amy had arrived. We’re all pretty captivated for now.
This has been an interesting winter, to say the least. We wound up having two days off the week before last and even had a snow day last Wednesday. That now puts us at 9 days missed. Sounds like Ohio might be nice and give us 4 days beyond our normal 5 calamity days, so we shouldn’t have many to make up (hopefully!)
Anyhoo, I’m sitting on mom’s sofa and watching the Olympic Opening Ceremony. It’s always a damn shame when politics gets in the way of the spirit of the Olympics (Putin, I’m looking at you!), but that’s pretty much what happens anyhoo. I shall watch with the same optimism that I always do – here’s hundreds of people from around the world coming together to NOT kill each other, but instead show off how well they’ve been working on their particular skill or talent. And I just love that and have since I was wee.
The Rite of Spring part of the opening ceremony is currently showing on the telly and it’s quite beautiful. I do wish that NBC would allow people to watch the ceremony WITHOUT the stupid color commentary. This part of the show is NOT a sport, so needs no color commentary. (I also wish NBC would sell a “see it all online” package to those of us who’ve “cut the cable.” I’d pay good money to see the Olympics without having to subscribe to cable or satellite. (Still, this gives me an excuse to visit the folks. Not that I really need an excuse to visit.)
On Wednesday, our last day off due to snow, I made my first loaf (actually, first two loaves) of sourdough bread. I bought some sourdough starter from King Arthur Flour which arrived last Saturday and it was plenty ready to be used by Wednesday. I donated blood that afternoon (thankfully the roads were much improved by then) and brought a loaf along to share with the folks. Mom had invited me to supper afterward, so we had chilli soup and sourdough bread. Yum!
Tonight, I brought the second loaf with me and dad and mom made toasted cheese sandwiches (which we had with leftover soup) with the bread. Yummy! I intend to try another sourdough recipe on Sunday.
Anyway, I need to stop and just enjoy the rest of the opening ceremony. For those of you who watch the Olympics too, I hope you enjoy them!
In 2013, I purchased 1840 individual MP3 files (17.3GB) which is over 161 hours of material. Of that, the majority (1437 files, 14.5GB, 134 hours) is what I classify as “Spoken Word” (AKA Big Finish and other audio adventures). What with Doctor Who turning 50 in 2013, I wound up purchasing quite a few Big Finish (and BBC Audio) stories. And enjoyed pritnear all of it. 🙂 (I was also fortunate in that the audiobooks for Ben Aaronovitch‘s first three novels were on sale this year, so I bought them and they’re all well done, too.)
But, on to the music, which is what I wanted to focus on in this post. I wound up adding a couple of new genres to my mix: Zydeco and R&B. This summer at one of the Downtown Troy concerts, the folks and I enjoyed the music of Creole Stomp, so pop and I bought a couple of their CDs after the concert. The R&B (which is a very loose description as the music covers a variety of genres) is for the Janelle Monáe albums I bought.
Janelle Monáe and Fleur Mainville are probably my two favorite additions to my music collection this year. It’s great adding females to my collection and these two ladies are both gifted singers/songwriters/performers. It was thanks to a tweet by Anita Sarkeesian (of Feminist Frequency fame) that I even heard of Janelle Monáe. Turns out Monáe has been working on a story about an android who falls in love with a human and all of the excitement & adventure (including bounty hunters, zombies, etc) that entails. There’s 3 albums thus far and I’ve enjoyed all three.
While doing Yet Another Pointless search for more MacKeel stuff, I found out about their fiddler, Fleur Mainville, doing some solo albums. It didn’t take much listening for me to realize I needed to add her to my collection. Indeed, her piece “Bedlam Boys” immediately found its way into my “Most Favorites of All” playlist (5 star songs). She even has a Christmas album that I had to buy too. Heh.
Other new albums include Daft Punk‘s Random Access Memories, the soundtrack to The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (along with the Neil Finn single “Song of the Lonely Mountain”), albums by Midas Fall and My First Tooth, the songs of Kaila Picard (and I backed a crowd-sourced music video of hers, too). Oh, and thanks to the tap dancing that Amy, Rachel, and I saw this summer, Train‘s “Hey Soul Sister” had to become part of my collection. (I even bought a copy for each of the girls, too. Hey, it was on sale for only $.69 at the time and the girls are worth it – LOL – and then some!)
I have quite a few “regulars” that I always buy new albums, no matter what. Well, maybe Lady Gaga isn’t there yet, but I did finally buy Born This Way. (Well, I did love “Americano” in Puss in Boots, so it was inevitable.) Pet Shop Boys had two new albums, Ricky Martin had one, Enter the Haggis had one as well. I also got the most recent Gaelic Storm album and Garbage album.
2013 started out very well, musically, when my folks gave me money to buy Neil Innes‘ complete Recollections set for my birthday. It’s pretty obvious from my last.fm statistics that Neil is my favorite solo artist (with Kirsty MacColl coming in second). But not only is it his solo work, but also his work in The Bonzo Dog Band, The Rutles, Monty Python and GRIMMS that I love. So yeah, I had to get that compilation (which also came with a little autographed note – whee!) I’ve come a long way from hunting down rare Innes/Python/GRIMM/Bonzo albums at record collectors conventions! The things you do when you’re 16!!!
Anyhoo, a great year in music with lots of new stuff from my old favorites AND some new favorites to watch out for. 2014 has started out very strong with regards to music since I spent some Amazon gift cards on new (old) music – Hank Williams, Roger Miller, The Beach Boys – gee thanks Sirius (which mom has for her new car – heh)! Hope that 2014 is a great year of music for all of you!
We were very fortunate to have a long Winter Break – two full weeks. And then Mother Nature decided that wasn’t enough. Heh. Today was our third calamity day for 2014 and the fifth for this school year. And I ain’t complaining! I love unexpected days off (and today was a particularly unexpected one).
Sadly, the 3rd was Amy’s last day with us, so we spent the morning just watching her. Heh. We got her off to the airport and she arrived home safely. Her luggage took longer, but she was finally reunited with it in the late evening. I also made my way home and got to spend the weekend (and the past 3 days) with my kitties.
Well, actually, Saturday I spent the day with the parental units. Mom and I attended WeightWatchers (ouch – up 5lbs from before the holidays!) and then the three of us had breakfast at Bob Evans. Then we went to see Catching Fire (the second Hunger Games movie). Mom and I were impressed with how faithful it was to the book. Dad isn’t really a fan of this style of story. (Postapocalyptic just isn’t this thang, I guess.)
Sunday was supposed to be the next big snowstorm followed by ultra-cold temps. Well, the snowfall wasn’t all that big, then it turned to rain. Still, I spent the day making soup and baking bread. It was lovely. The ultracold temps did come and turned the wet into ice and the rain into snow. And thus school was closed Monday. And then Tuesday.
By Tuesday afternoon, I was getting cabin fever, so I put on double/triple/quadruple layers and walked to the post office. Amy’s birthday gift to me (the game Ticket to Ride) showed up. Yay! I returned home with all of my appendages doing just fine.
Last night the school called to say we would be on a 2-hour delay this morning. So this morning I was up an hour later than I normally would be, and getting ready for work. And then they called again to say that, due to poor roads, school would be closed again. Whee!
I figured the main roads wouldn’t be as bad as the country roads and by 11am, I headed off to Piqua to go watch The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug for a second time. Turns out Piqua can show it in High Frame Rate. No more going down to Fairborn for HFR! Whee! I followed it up with a late lunch at Red Lobster. I also baked my first focaccia bread today (after making the dough yesterday and letting it proof today). Photo also included below.
So anyhoo, my Winter Break is now over (probably! Hopefully the salt could finally melt the ice on the streets!) and tomorrow I can be a responsible adult again. Heh. Till then, however, I’m gonna sit in my comfy chair with my kitty (Lucy right now) and veg out. Hope y’all have had an interesting start to 2014, too!
My first attempt at focaccia! It looks (and smells) wonderful!
On Jan 1, 1971, at 12:16am, I came into the world. So for the past year, I was 42 years old. And I often wondered, in a solipsistic way, maybe Douglas Adams’ question is something along the lines of “What age will Trina be when she …?” “How old will Trina be when …” (put in your own humorous or not-so-humorous fill-ins for the blanks). With, of course, the answer being 42. But since the universe does NOT revolve around me (I was 99.9999% sure this was the case), I got through the year with nothing untoward happening.
So anyhoo, we’ve been having a fabulous time with Amy in town.
I started Friday morning with a doctor’s appointment. (I’m quite healthy – whee! – and 19lbs lighter than my last appt.) Then I headed off to mom & dad’s for the family gatherings. We first went to Uncle Bob’s (mom’s side) at Indian Lake. It was good to see my cousin (currently living in Texas) and her girls again. Hadn’t seen her oldest in a couple of years. We had a lovely afternoon of food and fellowship.
We then headed back home to refill on cookies and then headed off to Aunt Becky’s (dad’s side). There was even more food and fellowship there (and I was surprised that I was hungry after the Anderson gathering). We left from there to go pick up Amy at the airport.
Amy’s flight got in early, but they had some tarmac wait time. Still, we were hugging her around the time of the original arrival time. Yay! Once home we chatted for awhile before finally getting to bed.
Saturday morning was our “Christmas.” We had Egg McMikey sammiches (dad’s specialty) and opened our stockings. Then present opening occurred. We know how to do present opening! It was after noon before we finished. Heh. Lunch was hamburgers and mac&cheese.
We took a walk that afternoon since it was going to be the warmest day Amy was in town. Since it wasn’t really Christmas, Mojo’s (a local bar) was our destination. We had drinks and snacks and then tottled back home.
Sunday included lunch at Harrison’s in Tipp City with friends (we wanted to show off Amy) and then some resting and relaxing. Monday included a shopping trip to Kohl’s where I got a new watch band and a WeightWatchers approved scale for under $5 (yay Kohl’s Bucks!)
Yesterday (New Years’ Eve) I popped home to check on the kitties and then mom, Amy, and I went to the Y for a Zumba Gold class and a line dancing class. We were the only folks who showed up, so we claim that we were the best students that day. 🙂
Our evening plan was to go to The Filling Station for NYE along with mom’s BFF Debbie and her hubby, Ben. When we got there around 6:30, they asked if we had reservations. Mom had TRIED to get reservations earlier in the week but they claimed then they weren’t taking reservations since they were having a live band. Thankfully, since we didn’t want to sit on the side of the bar where the band was, they had room for us. All but dad ordered the prime rib special (which wasn’t all that special) and dad had fried shrimp.
Mom, Deb, Amy and I played games (Pass the Pig, Zombie Dice, Euchre) while we waited for 2014 to show up. Part of the cover charge fee paid for party favors and champagne. They were running out of favors when they got to us, and the champagne may not have even had grapes, let alone alcohol. Still, we graggered the new year in once midnight hit.
We returned home around 1am and then mom and I prepared for breakfast: Eggnog French Toast.
Today was my birthday (no, duh!) so we started off with a great breakfast of eggnog french toast and bacon. Mmmm! Then I got to watch my parade. Love those folks in Pasadena – they always give me a parade. Lunch was pork and kraut and mashed potatoes and apple sauce. My cousin, Patty, joined us for lunch. We then had cookies and conversation. Uncle Doug and Aunt Charlene joined us after awhile and we continued eating and chatting.
Now I’m typing this up and looking over at my birthday presents. Whee! I think we’ll get to those soon enough!
Happy New Year to all of you! May 2014 be a great year for you!