You wake up and go check your email? There’s your problem. Next time, try waking up, turning your pillow over, and closing your eyes — it will making going back to sleep much easier.
The kids here are off till the 8th which is why I’m taking two weeks off — for some reason, I can take an entire summer of Jim not working but it drives me crazy if I don’t take off over his winter break.
Jim’s figuring that the kids won’t remember his name by the time they get back.
Morning Folks!!!! Christmas is almost here and I will be glad when it is over. LOL I am already doing designs for Valentine’s. You have to be 2 to 3 months ahead of a holiday with an online store so that it gets read by the web spiders that rank web sites.
Morning Andi!!! I use to be a holiday freak but now I just enjoy making money off of them. LOL
I remember only to well how hard it was to get back into school after christmas break. The local school district closed foe the holidays last week. The kids are actually out for 3 weeks. I feel sorry for their teachers. Tell Jim he has my sympathy. LOL
John Irving wrote something in A Prayer For Owen Meany about how the hardest part of death, from his narrative character’s pov, was that it doesn’t happen all at once, it happens in pieces, spread out over time, like a series of little deaths. And that has certainly been my experience with it.
It’s already been a very difficult time for E. Even shopping has been full of wistful “Mom would’ve loved this” or “I’ll bet this is the sort of tacky thing we’d have gotten from Mom” memories. The first year without someone you love is always so crazy-hard, and nothing makes it any better.
I know you’ll take good care of her in your usual way. Give her my best wishes, as I had intended to send out cards to everyone and just never did this year. Hence the email I owe you. 🙂
I am sending warm thoughts for you and E also. I know what the loss of a loved one can do to you at holidays. I quess that is why I really don’t do holidays anymore.
I usually escape from having to entertain too much but this year is turning into the year of the cabin. I’m having Christmas, New Year’s and one more get together in between those. After I panicked for a few days I just gave in and started cleaning. I cleaned like a crazy woman for Thanksgiving, so that’s a plus.
Andi, I signed up with Skywayusa for a 2 way satelite internet system. Worked great for a week then their east coast system went down, so it’s been 2 weeks of using their dialup. Of course, the first week and a half the system was probably overloaded so I had major connectivity problems. The connection is at least stable now, although slow. Sob. Whatever you do, stay away from Skyway. It was wonderful while it lasted.
Hey, everyone, have a great holiday. I’m off like a pair of dirty socks.
Good morning & happy Solstice, froggies! Tonight will be the year’s longest. Then we’ll only have lengthening days to look forward to, until Equinox in March, when the darkness & light are balanced.
Hope you’re all enjoying the day as you can.
SN, I do hope Ryan’s doing well & quickly beginning to heal.
Alas, I seem to have lost my ethereal way & instead of joining The Pack in canine play, I’ve become a porcupine, tucked away in the leaves at the bottom of a hump.
Actually the pcak is currently wrapped into individual moping balls fur because it’s pouring rain and we are all stuck in the house — so more proof that there is a spiritual connection between you and them.
I’m sorry the Pack are sad. Let’s hope the weather clears a bit & you can all get outside today.
As for me, I guess I’d best waddle out of this low spot.
I’m happy that you’re only a day from vacation, Andi. How’s Jim doing?
Jim has more to go through than I do to get to vacation — I just have to make myself care about work (so far I’m being less than successful) while he has to deal with hopped-up 6th graders. I’m expecting some significant grumpiness until tomorrow night.
‘Soon come’, as they say.
I understand it looks very different this year!
Can’t wait to see the river again, in any case, as you & I share a feeling for them.
I’d love to have a river that size around here but having the creeks is nice enough (if it does stop raining I’ll can go see them doing their class 3 rapids imitation).
I wonder if we’ll see a few images of the rapids (she hinted greedily)?
Agreed, the creeks are great. There were quite a few very healthy ones at my old home place up on the mountain; the hike to the river took about a half-hour. I heard it quite often, though — especially after very heavy rains.
Poor pack. Poor you. But … it COULD be worse. We just got an e-mail update from the secretary of one of my co-workers who left for a Christmas ski trip with his family:
He just called from a Holiday Inn in Hayes, Kansas and said that they are lucky to be in a hotel room. The highways are still closed, and it is still snowing in Denver and the temperature last night in Breckenridge was 7 degrees, with a wind chill of 10 below. They are going to wait out the blizzard til tomorrow afternoon and decide – if the roads re-open – whether to go on or to turn around and spend christmas in st. louis.
Not surprisingly, they are all disappointed, but trying to keep a bright outlook. While he was on the phone with me, his triplets (age 14) were using the hotel beds as trampolines.
Don’t let the pack read that — they might get the idea that they should use the beds as trampolines 🙂
I’m fine, Ryan’s awake and in minimal pain and not taking her pain meds. Ate some scrambled eggs and toast this morning. Looks like a fine day! She’s troubled that she’s going to have a Miss Piggy nose and she specifically asked him not to make it turn up at the end. I think it’s because of the swelling that it looks that way. I hope?
According to my experience, SN, what she sees now doesn’t resemble what she’ll eventually have, at all. Naturally, the swelling will drop & so will the skin.
I’m hesitant to base this on my nose surgery since I didn’t have anything done to cartilege but even after the packing was removed my nose looked like I’d gone 10 rounds too many for a couple of weeks — you couldn’t tell what it really looked like.
So she’s really premature in her worrying. Hey, you can tell her that if she doesn’t like the results she can always break it again; that’s what my sister did.
Iirc, my nose really didn’t settle fully for months.
My rhinoplasty basically involved a total re-shaping, with cartilege & all. Wish I could share an image of it post-op & then a current one. (Un)fortunately, I can’t.
That’s good that she has minimal pain since meds don’t usually agree with her. And good she has an appetite.
I’m sure her nose will look beautiful once all the swelling goes down. Hopefully she won’t have a Jennifer Gray experience where her nose looks SO good that people don’t recognize her.
… one wonders that if Dirty Dancing star Jennifer Grey had to accept career ruination because her nose job made her beautiful but unrecognizable, what would the rest of us average Josephine’s do if we hated what the surgeon did to us?
Oh boy, yes — I know the feeling very well. There’s no sound like it, in my book.
One thing I can say for my current urban adventure, it’s made me even more appreciative (incredible!) of what we’re offered, gratis, by nature that can seem so horribly elusive otherwise. I can’t tell you how many goddamn ads for sleep-aids I’ve seen on the tv.
Do you have any tendency at all to grab a nap during the day? I don’t seem to think so.
I rarely nap anytime but never during work hours which since I work from home is probably just as well — you guys are enough of a don’t-wanna-work temptation.
I figured as much, since I’ve never seen you make an FM-type-sleepyhead announcements.
I’m not the napping type at all, either, unless I’m truly ill. That’s how I know it, in fact: OMG, I fell asleep!
Speaking of FM, I’m guessing he’s drifting toward seasonal hybernation these days. I hardly ever see him anymore — but in springtime he seemed active as a chipmunk!
happy solstice day! sounds like Ryan and everyone other than the snowed-in coworker w/the triplets is doing OK. i had to stay off work yet again but went to the new acupucturist this morning and felt good enough to eat some soup and sorbet just now. maybe it’s just ’cause i’m sickly but he sure seemed magical. things happen on the solstice though so who knows?
Happy, happy Solstice, ‘soup! So glad you’ve seen an acupuncturist who seems proficient.
For my (meager) money, there’s little as effective for overall health maintenance as continual work with a decent acupuncturist. I hope yours has training in TCM, also – which generally involves herbal medicine.
I’ve been helped enormously on this account by one of my oldest friends, an exceptionally gifted acupuncturist & TCM practitioner. What can be accomplished is truly amazing.
I’m glad folks are finally checking out this form of medicine & finding relief. May your own course of treatment prove exceptionally helpful!
As for the day’s potential for transformation, I shared the following with him, this morning:
Certainly hope, on many counts, that the light will indeed gain strength over the darkness as it will in nature.
Hi…I am up way too early.
Dogs get you up?
Ah well, two more days till vacation — although I guess that’s sort of good news/bad news for you.
Nah, I woke up to a shitty email from someone and couldn’t fall back to sleep.
I’m actually looking forward to not having to deal with school and homework for a week, so I think it’s good news that there’s only 2 more days.
They’re only off for a week?
You wake up and go check your email? There’s your problem. Next time, try waking up, turning your pillow over, and closing your eyes — it will making going back to sleep much easier.
They go back on the 2nd, and then CBtE is supposed to go to Outward Bound on the 8th.
I usually get up, let the dogs out, check my email and go back to bed…I have coworkers who email at 11:00 at night.
The kids here are off till the 8th which is why I’m taking two weeks off — for some reason, I can take an entire summer of Jim not working but it drives me crazy if I don’t take off over his winter break.
Jim’s figuring that the kids won’t remember his name by the time they get back.
depends on how much eggnog they drink. LOL
I usually like to take the week between Christmas and New Years because I never feel like doing much work then anyway.
so you go to work with a battle ax and say Merry F-ing Christmas to you to. LOL
The battle ax does have a certain appeal… 🙂
I bet it does. That is why only about 5 people from work have my email address. I have to work with them but I don’t have to socialize with them. LOL
Morning Folks!!!! Christmas is almost here and I will be glad when it is over. LOL I am already doing designs for Valentine’s. You have to be 2 to 3 months ahead of a holiday with an online store so that it gets read by the web spiders that rank web sites.
OOps I meant to include a design. I am one of the few people who can turn anything in to politics.
To My Favorite Democrat
I’m not keen on all the holiday gush but I do like having the time off.
On the kids and eggnog — 6th graders don’t need any artificial stimulants to lose their minds. 🙂
Morning Andi!!! I use to be a holiday freak but now I just enjoy making money off of them. LOL
I remember only to well how hard it was to get back into school after christmas break. The local school district closed foe the holidays last week. The kids are actually out for 3 weeks. I feel sorry for their teachers. Tell Jim he has my sympathy. LOL
I’ll tell him — of course, first he has to get through the sugar-induced craze that is the last day before the break.
LOL I remember those as well. I think every mom in the world sent treats to school and we ate junk food all day for almost a week. LOL
Have a great day folks. I have to go take a quick shower and get myself to work.
sleep in a little and totally miss the morning crew. Seems like you guys get up earlier and earlier.
Still mild here but it looks like we’re in for 3 days of rain.
Looks like maryb and teach and KS ate some funny brownies last night and got giddy.
My thoughts exactly. Damn morning people. ::grumble mutter::
How are things around there this morning, SN?
Quiet and cloudy, Indy. I owe you an email. 🙂
No owe. I understand you’ve been preoccupied with your daughter’s surgery. I hope she’s feeling much better today.
No, I really owe you one. 🙂
This will be a hard christmas for E, won’t it?
John Irving wrote something in A Prayer For Owen Meany about how the hardest part of death, from his narrative character’s pov, was that it doesn’t happen all at once, it happens in pieces, spread out over time, like a series of little deaths. And that has certainly been my experience with it.
It’s already been a very difficult time for E. Even shopping has been full of wistful “Mom would’ve loved this” or “I’ll bet this is the sort of tacky thing we’d have gotten from Mom” memories. The first year without someone you love is always so crazy-hard, and nothing makes it any better.
I know you’ll take good care of her in your usual way. Give her my best wishes, as I had intended to send out cards to everyone and just never did this year. Hence the email I owe you. 🙂
Will do. Meanwhile, I’m off to go brave the suburban crowds to buy her an iPod. Catch ya later. 🙂
I am sending warm thoughts for you and E also. I know what the loss of a loved one can do to you at holidays. I quess that is why I really don’t do holidays anymore.
Thanks RF, I appreciate the kind wishes.
Sending Good thoughts for Ryan and you!!!!
Oh, man, my head is killing me.
Sounds like you might’ve put the wrong thing in those brownies, Teach. The right thing doesn’t leave you with a headache. Uh, I’m guessing.
It may just be the amount of brownies, as opposed to any particular ingredient. Or it may be having to go to school.
I usually escape from having to entertain too much but this year is turning into the year of the cabin. I’m having Christmas, New Year’s and one more get together in between those. After I panicked for a few days I just gave in and started cleaning. I cleaned like a crazy woman for Thanksgiving, so that’s a plus.
Andi, I signed up with Skywayusa for a 2 way satelite internet system. Worked great for a week then their east coast system went down, so it’s been 2 weeks of using their dialup. Of course, the first week and a half the system was probably overloaded so I had major connectivity problems. The connection is at least stable now, although slow. Sob. Whatever you do, stay away from Skyway. It was wonderful while it lasted.
Hey, everyone, have a great holiday. I’m off like a pair of dirty socks.
Good morning & happy Solstice, froggies! Tonight will be the year’s longest. Then we’ll only have lengthening days to look forward to, until Equinox in March, when the darkness & light are balanced.
Hope you’re all enjoying the day as you can.
SN, I do hope Ryan’s doing well & quickly beginning to heal.
Alas, I seem to have lost my ethereal way & instead of joining The Pack in canine play, I’ve become a porcupine, tucked away in the leaves at the bottom of a hump.
Actually the pcak is currently wrapped into individual moping balls fur because it’s pouring rain and we are all stuck in the house — so more proof that there is a spiritual connection between you and them.
Funny how it works out that way.
I’m sorry the Pack are sad. Let’s hope the weather clears a bit & you can all get outside today.
As for me, I guess I’d best waddle out of this low spot.
I’m happy that you’re only a day from vacation, Andi. How’s Jim doing?
Jim has more to go through than I do to get to vacation — I just have to make myself care about work (so far I’m being less than successful) while he has to deal with hopped-up 6th graders. I’m expecting some significant grumpiness until tomorrow night.
So then we all look forward to a much brighter weekend.
Here’s a river image for you, from last year’s Solstice, to help carry you along.
I wish you were there.
‘Soon come’, as they say.
I understand it looks very different this year!
Can’t wait to see the river again, in any case, as you & I share a feeling for them.
I’d love to have a river that size around here but having the creeks is nice enough (if it does stop raining I’ll can go see them doing their class 3 rapids imitation).
I wonder if we’ll see a few images of the rapids (she hinted greedily)?
Agreed, the creeks are great. There were quite a few very healthy ones at my old home place up on the mountain; the hike to the river took about a half-hour. I heard it quite often, though — especially after very heavy rains.
Poor pack. Poor you. But … it COULD be worse. We just got an e-mail update from the secretary of one of my co-workers who left for a Christmas ski trip with his family:
Don’t let the pack read that — they might get the idea that they should use the beds as trampolines 🙂
I used to live in Breckenridge!
And spending Christmas in a motel room in Hayes, KS with 14 year old triplets sounds like such fun!
How are YOU? And how’s Ryan feeling today?
I’m fine, Ryan’s awake and in minimal pain and not taking her pain meds. Ate some scrambled eggs and toast this morning. Looks like a fine day! She’s troubled that she’s going to have a Miss Piggy nose and she specifically asked him not to make it turn up at the end. I think it’s because of the swelling that it looks that way. I hope?
According to my experience, SN, what she sees now doesn’t resemble what she’ll eventually have, at all. Naturally, the swelling will drop & so will the skin.
Glad to hear all’s well!
That’s what I was hoping! 🙂
I’m hesitant to base this on my nose surgery since I didn’t have anything done to cartilege but even after the packing was removed my nose looked like I’d gone 10 rounds too many for a couple of weeks — you couldn’t tell what it really looked like.
He said it would be swollen for up to 3 months.
So she’s really premature in her worrying. Hey, you can tell her that if she doesn’t like the results she can always break it again; that’s what my sister did.
Yeh, that seems right. Even then, the nose continues to settle. It’s like a new house.
😉
Iirc, my nose really didn’t settle fully for months.
My rhinoplasty basically involved a total re-shaping, with cartilege & all. Wish I could share an image of it post-op & then a current one. (Un)fortunately, I can’t.
Ditto to that.
That’s good that she has minimal pain since meds don’t usually agree with her. And good she has an appetite.
I’m sure her nose will look beautiful once all the swelling goes down. Hopefully she won’t have a Jennifer Gray experience where her nose looks SO good that people don’t recognize her.
I doubt that just the nose can do that, maryb.
🙂
Well …
I went to the experts for my proof: the celebrity plastic surgery blog:
Shows you what I know about celebrity life. Or Jennifer Grey.
Speaking of celebrity life, it seems you’ll be getting a white Christmas.
That’s kind of funny, because my beauty is also why my Hollywood career never took off. They are so jealous of us beautiful types in Hollywood.
Just imagine what they’d think of you in DC!
😉
Seconding ‘how’s ryan?’
Poor pack. Poor you
Said with such gorgeous insincerity that I was completely underwhelmed.
The pack, unlike 14 year olds, know that beds are for making sure you get your half out of the middle.
Hell is being snowed in with 14 year-old-TRIPLETS in a Hayes, Kansas Holiday Inn. I would be an axe away from “Here’s Johnny!” time.
Could be worse — what if it was your principal?
so here are your requested pics (it didn’t manage to “pause” the whole time but I like wet dog smell).
Wow. Stunning! Love those creeks! They sure look ‘vital’ today — on the first day of ‘winter’, no less.
Thanks so much for the post, Andi! If you can imagine a porcupine wagging its tail, you know how I feel.
You’re so very nice to me.
🙂
I’m sure the Pack was very happy with the wet dog smell, too.
The overall movement in that second shot is really terrific — as if everything’s singing, in syncopation.
Just beautiful.
The sound was lovely too — made we want want to lie down and take a nap (except for fact that the ground is slick, muddy, wet, and cold).
Oh boy, yes — I know the feeling very well. There’s no sound like it, in my book.
One thing I can say for my current urban adventure, it’s made me even more appreciative (incredible!) of what we’re offered, gratis, by nature that can seem so horribly elusive otherwise. I can’t tell you how many goddamn ads for sleep-aids I’ve seen on the tv.
Do you have any tendency at all to grab a nap during the day? I don’t seem to think so.
I rarely nap anytime but never during work hours which since I work from home is probably just as well — you guys are enough of a don’t-wanna-work temptation.
I figured as much, since I’ve never seen you make an FM-type-sleepyhead announcements.
I’m not the napping type at all, either, unless I’m truly ill. That’s how I know it, in fact: OMG, I fell asleep!
Speaking of FM, I’m guessing he’s drifting toward seasonal hybernation these days. I hardly ever see him anymore — but in springtime he seemed active as a chipmunk!
About that cold, muddy ground: I’ve actually been known to take out a tarp & blanket & do it anyway.
Then again, I’m a loon.
🙂
Yeah but you have cats — I’d need something more than a tarp if I didn’t want wet-dog-smell very up close.
Okay, now I have to be a good girl and go do some work. 🙁
Ah, but it’s not as if my cats ever stayed still outdoors (unless the mercury hit 90 — then they’d hide.)
Thanks again for the pics, Andi. Meaning: thank you for slacking.
happy solstice day! sounds like Ryan and everyone other than the snowed-in coworker w/the triplets is doing OK. i had to stay off work yet again but went to the new acupucturist this morning and felt good enough to eat some soup and sorbet just now. maybe it’s just ’cause i’m sickly but he sure seemed magical. things happen on the solstice though so who knows?
Happy, happy Solstice, ‘soup! So glad you’ve seen an acupuncturist who seems proficient.
For my (meager) money, there’s little as effective for overall health maintenance as continual work with a decent acupuncturist. I hope yours has training in TCM, also – which generally involves herbal medicine.
I’ve been helped enormously on this account by one of my oldest friends, an exceptionally gifted acupuncturist & TCM practitioner. What can be accomplished is truly amazing.
I’m glad folks are finally checking out this form of medicine & finding relief. May your own course of treatment prove exceptionally helpful!
As for the day’s potential for transformation, I shared the following with him, this morning:
Certainly hope, on many counts, that the light will indeed gain strength over the darkness as it will in nature.