Pictures

Here in no order are Christmas pictures.
This is my boy. Many of these photos are Photoshoppe. Full disclosure, you know. Remember to click on the picture to see a larger version.


Here's Wendell and Wynn.


Me and Steve.

The mantel


Christmas Eve Day in the kitchen.


Opening gifts.

Toasting something.


A coven.


The Big


Partay


My baby at the Tommy Hilfiger corporate Christmas pary.




Tonight I will win the lottery. $37 million. Who's my friend?
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Big plans

Look! If I take off my allotment of vacation days in 2009 in a judicious manner, I can have four entire weeks off during the year. I'm taking 5 days in February for Mexico, so if I take 4 the week of Fourth of July and 4 the week of Labor Day and 4 the week of Christmas, that'll be my 17 days!

I had already decided I wasn't going to do so many 4-day weekends like I did in 2008, when I took 6 of them. So out-of-state visiting will have to happen in conjunction with this schedule. Although I am flexible about the Christmas week and could take just 2 days off and have 2 days for other stuff. Like the Madison Ribberfest. And that would only be one day of vacation.

But, the best laid schemes o' mice an' men, gang aft agley. As it is said.

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Upcoming Shows

I'm starting this entry and I'll put a link to it at the right in Other Good Interweb. That way you can always see what's coming up for musical events instead of me posting them throughout my ramblings. More user friendly. That's what I'm all about.

Nov. 6 Griswold birthday at Hines Farm

Nov. 13 John Prine at the Stranahan

Nov. 20 Doko Benjo at GFT

Nov. 20 Gandalf Murphy and the Slambovian Circus of Dreams at the Ark
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Those holidays are exhausting

It was non-stop activity. Monday, I had the Karen Schaller party where a lot of whiskey was drunk and a lot of cigs were smoked and later that night, Tom and Jessica show up and eat deviled eggs and drink wine, which nearly a case of was consumed in 4 days. I wasn't expecting them until Tuesday so I start making snacks on Tuesday including those great pinwheels with cheese and chutney (I am definitely making these for New Year's) and caprese salad on a stick. I got a sun-dried tomato/artichoke heart/spinach quiche from Myles Baker Street which was good filler food for the vegetarian Jessica. I make more deviled eggs and caprese salad for Anne. Those kids leave for downtown to try and find an NBA game on TV and Anne shows up from the airport at 8:45 after a grueling 2 hour drive on ice. So Amy and I drink wine with her while she drinks whiskey and regales us with tales of the Tommy Hilfiger corporate Christmas party and it's 2 a.m. for the second night in a row and I'm sleeping on the couch.

Wednesday, I go pick up my mom but not until noon which I was expecting to be home by 11:30. Mom wants to go to Wal-Mart to buy my kids presents with some credit she has from there and it's icy and raining and I just want to be home. Plus we had to go to my mom's bank and get some bank statements printed out for her move to the old folks apartment complex. So by the time we get home, it's after 3 and I haven't got any presents wrapped/bagged which is my own fault, I could have done that on the weekend.

It was a very nice weekend that started with Sherry hosting me and Amy and Connie for cards and gift exchange on Saturday. Sunday Amy and I went to the Hakels holiday brunch where I knew many people and ate some great buffet brunch. It was brutally cold that day, with giant wind.

So back to Christmas Eve. I had called Anne to put the pulled pork that I had cooked in the crockpot the day before back into the crockpot with Stubbs barbecue sauce. And then I made corn casserole and reheated Wynn's stuffing and roasted a pound of asparagus and made crescent rolls. I also wrapped/bagged the presents and filled the stockings. Meantime, the kids watched some Entourage. And miraculously we sat down to eat at 6 and by 7 we were ripping open gifts while drinking coffee or wine and eating pumpkin roll for dessert. Two things my mom had never had: pumpkin roll and asparagus. Both of which she ate.

I got great gifts. My mom got me a plain white casserole in a wire rack and Tom and Jessica got me some fancy chocolate and a bottle of fancy whiskey and Anne got me three scarves, including the houndstooth cashmere one and a fabulous Tommy Hilfiger one with silver threads.

Tom and Jessica have to leave at 7:45 for another gift exchange and Anne hits the twin bed for a nap before the kids have to show up at their dad's at 10 p.m. I cleaned up the kitchen and talked to my mom while falling asleep and missed any Christmas Eve drinking downtown.

My mom said a few things about her moving out from Karen like the animals had destroyed her furniture and Karen wouldn't make dinner until 9 at night and she was concerned that Karen will quit paying on the land contract for their mobile home and ruin her (my mom's) credit as she was the one who signed for it. I think having your credit ruined when you're 78 is probably not a big deal. So I will go down there sometime in January and pack my mom's stuff and some mover will come and move her Jan. 20, Bush's last day in office.

Christmas Day I took my mom home after feeding her both breakfast and lunch. Sal had called to say they would be at Howard's later and she would call me. I think. Maybe I was just supposed to show up. But I did not. Somebody said Thompson and JD were in Howard's shooting pool. The kids all come back later with their cousin Jessica, who brought me some homemade pierogi. Later I went to Amy's and drank some wine and decompressed in a big way because today I had to work.

And of course, the icy drizzle is predicted so I leave early and get there just before the badness starts and cars start sliding off the road. So I work like crazy, putting up contests and straightening out ad contracts and slinging news and video to the website. Anne calls from Frank's truck because they are stuck in a long line of cars on 25 just south of Levis Commons. There had been some wreck on 75 and all the cars diverted. I looked at the ODOT cams and could see that 75 north was clear once they got on it. Her plane was delayed an hour and half which is good because they might not have made the original time and she got home only an hour later.

I left work about 4:30 and Tom and Jessica got back here about 6 and bustled around and took their stuff out to Frank's to have dinner and stay overnight and leave in the morning when I hope it is not too foggy. After days and days of freaking freezing, it is now at 11:30 p.m., 49 degrees.

The whole time the kids were here it was extremely cold and the yard and drive and street were iced up like skating rinks.

Poor Miss Jenks had paid for her son to come Dec. 22 but alas, a snowstorm hit the northwest and Nicholas couldn't get out. At least she got her money back. And it's like a blizzard out there AGAIN. I saw some guy on the news in Chicago saying we are just all so tired from this weather. I know the feeling.

So now I'm resting which I will do all weekend. My entire plan for Saturday is eat, get CDs together for radio show, eat, get ready for GFT show. Sunday the weather is supposed to be terrible like cold and windy but they have not done so well with the predictions this week, like it was supposed to be 46 today but only got to 35. Until now. So I guess they are vindicated.

And I have the new Coen brothers movie coming in the mail tomorrow so I am set for Sunday. Many leftovers in my fridge and the meat for meatloaf that I did not make.

Studebaker John and the Hawks Saturday at GFT. Next week, work Mon., Tues., half a day Weds. and then Friday. And then it will only be 5 weeks to Mexico.

I have some pictures but that'll have to wait for another post.

Graphing the holidays

moar funny pictures

Merry, hic, Christmas

Here is a pic Karen took last night with her fancy camera. We were having a high time.

Full speed ahead

OMG I call my mom today to firm up some Christmas plan and my sister answers the phone and says that they've talked about it and Karen will take my mom to the McDonald's at Upper Sandusky Weds. AM and I can pick her up there and then we can exchange her again on Christmas day. Bonus. ALSO she tells me my mom is moving into Oakhurst, some retirement apartment complex outside Delaware on Jan. 20 and will I come down the weekend before and pack her stuff because Karen can't lift anything over 10 lbs. Whatever. THEN my sister giggles, says she's lost her train of thought and it must be because of the OXYCONTIN she's on. I am delighted my mom is moving away from that mess. Karen says she doesn't know why but my mom never has any money so maybe she will have more now if she lives by herself. Ya think??? No word on how the loss of my mom's income to Karen's household is gonna work for Karen as she is jobless AND on drugs AND has five animals to take care of. Sheesh.

Bought a bunch of stuff to prepare for Christmas snackage and meals but am sure I'll have to go again. At least I am off Mon. Tues. Weds. so I'll have time to figure it out. Ordered a quiche and an espresso tart from Myles Baker St. to pick up Tuesday.

The soiree for Karen Schaller is now Monday night. It is a small gathering of people Karen used to know like Connie D and Donna and Wynn and their spouses. Plus she wanted me to invite Tony Duda so I called there and left a message although this sounds like a losing proposition. It would be somebody for Wendell to play guitar with and I said that on the Duda message machine. We'll see how that works out.

So Sunday is looking pretty calm. Monday, cat to vet, massage, probably more shopping and trying to figure out how I (1) left my mastercard bill on the backseat of my car for several weeks and (2) how much money I actually have left, and then, soiree. Tuesday, not much, baking cookies, wrapping or bagging gifts. Don't know if Anne will come here when she gets down from the airport where her dad is picking her up at 6 p.m. Cross your fingers for good weather. Still don't know about Tom's arrival.

Did the Christmas radio show and recorded a good chunk of it. I'll take that to Sherry's tonight to see if she can copy it.

13Abc phone bank

Another fabulous weekend

Friday night, I relaxed. Well deserved. Saturday I went to the Grill for breakfast about 11 and put up some lights on the porch and did a radio show and then made mediocre stuffed mushrooms for Amy's party which was BIG FUN. I believe I won $10 at poker or else there was a lot of confusion at the end and I ended up with $10 more than I started with. It was a jolly hubbub crowd and lots of cheese dip oriented snacks.

Sunday I took it easy again. Watched In the Name of the Father which was really good. Then I went to my ex mother in law's for dinner. She made meatballs at my request. Mmmmmmm. Salad, bread sticks. Homemade tapioca pudding for dessert. I stayed til 9 p.m.

Tonight I cooked, as I had not yesterday. Broccoli soup and a pork roast (only have 1 left, I think) and a cheese and onion quiche. So all prepared for the rest of the week which is only 4 days until I have 6 days off. And the kids will be here. Well, Anne will. I know when her flight gets in. Tom, not so much.

No further discussion with my mom and crazy sister.

Today I tried to find a place online where you could send beer to somebody (Miss Annie) but alas it cannot be done. Found one place that looks shady. Maybe I'll try it anyway. Tomorrow I am sending her a loaf of bread and a CD and 4 pumpernickel bagels from Barry Bagels as her present.

Now I'm going to watch last week's 30 Rock and yesterday's Desperate Housewives online and then it will be bedtime.

convergence

Tonight, it took me half an hour to go from work to the 475 Airport Hwy exit. Most of the time I was going less than 15 mph. So by the time I get home, 55 minutes after I left work, I was worked up. Fortunately, the icy snow layer in Toledo didn't extend south of Dussel. But then it started snowing again around 582. I get home and it feels cold in here and I think the furnace is not working so I lie down on the bed with my head on the contour pillow and the little kitty stretches out on my stomach and pretty soon I feel normal. Ish.

Factors: No time off since September. Driving home in the dark everyday. Chained to my computer at work for 9 hours. Work is hard. Or as Dubya would say, It's hard work. Holiday angst. Subliminal fear about my mom and sister thing.

At least this is not our forecast. It is Miss Annie's:
BLIZZARD CONDITIONS WILL OVERSPREAD WESTERN AND CENTRAL NORTH
DAKOTA LATE SATURDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING. THE DANGEROUS
CONDITIONS WILL PERSIST INTO LATE SUNDAY NIGHT. SNOWFALL WILL
GENERALLY BE BETWEEN 4 AND 8 INCHES. WINDS SATURDAY NIGHT AND
SUNDAY WILL BE 30 TO 40 MPH WITH POSSIBLE GUSTS TO 45 MPH. SUNDAY
MORNING TEMPERATURES WILL START OUT IN THE SINGLES DIGITS AND
WILL THEN FALL TO 5 BELOW BY NIGHTFALL. CONSEQUENTLY WIND CHILLS
WILL RANGE FROM 35 TO 45 BELOW SUNDAY AND SUNDAY NIGHT. DURING
THE STORM VISIBILITIES MAY DROP TO ZERO IN THE OPEN COUNTRYSIDE...
AND SOME ROADS MAY BECOME BLOCKED BY DRIFTS

Have got the CD cabinet emptied to cart to the basement temporarily.

Bought a box of chocolates today to take to Frank's mom's as a gift on Sunday when I go for dinner. It looks like it might rain that day but the low will only be 39 so no ice.

Bought the new Lucinda CD Little Honey today. It's really good. One song she does a duet with Elvis Costello but alas, she uses the f word and the s word so no radio play for that one. Tomorrow the show is some Christmas, mostly other stuff. Next week though, 2 hours of the best of Debbie's Christmas stuff which I will record in two one-hour segments for later duplication.

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Girls, loosely speaking

Here is the picture taken at Deb H's when we had a birthday thing for Connie D turning 60. I think my head is too small.



In the photo below, I photoshopped my head on in a bigger size. What do you think?

but wait! there's more!

Of my exciting weekend activity! We did go down and see Polka Floyd and as Amy says, "The whole time I am watching them, I am grinning." So hard our jaws hurt at the end of the night. I shoulda taken my camera to record some. They are recording their second CD live at the Ohio Theater on Jan. 24 so maybe we will have to think about that.

Sunday, I watched The Savages with Laura Linney and Philip Seymour Hoffman. It was very good.

Then I tried to get a jar of jam out of the fridge and it was stuck fast. This leads me to cleaning out the fridge in a SERIOUS manner and now it is all sparkly for the holidays. Today, I angsted further about the Christmas Eve meal but now I am thinking the small plates thing. Or maybe pulled pork with corn casserole and a couple other things but at least not one big meal on the table all at once. This will also solve my seating problem.

Later Sunday, I made a roast in the oven and it is mediocre. Possibly I could have started with a better cut of meat. I don't know. Meat is not my thing.

Then I watched the Simpsons and Desperate Housewives and hit the sack. Overall, a very good weekend, which I see in reviewing my blog from all of 2008 I said many times, a very good weekend. Sometimes the best weekend ever.

Now I have an acorn squash in the oven and will pop in that salmon when that's done and voila, more food for lunches and stuff.

That's it for now. Starting on the CD sorting and boxing up some to take to the basement so I can move that CD cabinet to the basement for the holiday guest period. Possibly, I will bring decorations up out of the basement as I take the other stuff down. Multi-task. And later, sadly, the two-hour series finale of Boston Legal.

OMFG I just now call my mom about Christmas and she says my sister got fired last Friday from her job because of all the calling in sick she does. So Karen is going for unemployment and disability because of her many ills including fibromyalgia and vertebrae she has had to get fused because of all her years of horse riding. So my mom is noncommittal about Christmas which, as you know, would be just fine with me. JFC I just look at this as when will the money start bleeding out of my pocket.

Mmmm squash and salmon for dinner. I made this recipe Tim had given me years ago that has the Chinese 5-spice powder and vodka and ginger and several other things that you wrap in foil and bake and, while it took a lot longer than the 5-8 minutes I had written down, it was DELICIOUS. Plus I fried in a pan the rest of the bacon I have been eating off and on for 2 weeks so I can put it on salads for lunch.

And all the dishes are done! And I have laundry in! And it's 15 minutes to Boston Legal! A perfect night.

Hmmm, didn't get to the CD sorting......

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holiday spirit

Trying to single-handedly revive the economy, I went out shopping at 10:30 this morning and got home about 4.

First, I sent my mom a Christmas card with a book of Nutcracker stamps in it. Then I went to Big Lots looking for a bathmat to match my towels or a rug for the kitchen table area. No luck. So I went to Calico Sage and bought a bunch of stuff, creams and a couple things for the kids I'm not saying here on the off chance they read my blog. I stopped myself from gifting ME a cashmere black and white houndstooth check scarf.

Then I went to Elder Beerman and bought my mom four tops, probably only one of which she will like but she likes to open presents. $61 for all 4 though. Also no matching bathmat there.

I ate breakfast at the Grill about 1 and then went to Meijer and loaded up on some stuff, including a new 5x7 rug for the kitchen area for $24 and a gift for my assistant Erin. No matching bathmat there either. Plus I must mention the challenge in buying bathroom tissue. It took all my powers of multiplication and attention to determine that the best deal was a 9-roll pack that has 3,600 sheets for $5.69 although you could also get at 6-roll pack with 2,400 sheets for the same money and the same brand. How goofy is that?? Then I went to the liquor store and bought whiskey and vodka and some Scotch to take to Amy's party.

Then I went to GFT and bought some bags of Christmas Spirit coffee, which I never got any of last year. I called Sal while I was there to see if she wanted more than the 1/2 pound bag I was getting her. She says deer-hunting is almost over and they have not bagged one. I told her I would try to bag one with my car. Then I went to Ben Franklin looking for a tree topper and bought a 99 cent decoration for a window.

So in one hour at home I have laid the new rug and changed my bed and done 2 loads of laundry and some dishes and took out the trash.

It's been snowing steadily all day, not real hard, but we have at least an inch of snow if not more.

In about an hour, I'm going over to Amy's for macaroni and cheese before we go to Grumpy Dave's to see Polka Floyd.

Friday night we stopped in to Martha's birthday celebration at the Eagles and then ate at Cucina di Betto which was very tasty. I had shrimp and portobellos and basil tossed in marinara on fettucine. Then I came home and called Annie for 2 hours.

Thursday Amy and I drank too much wine. Wednesday was GNO where massive gift exchanging took place and now I have 3 new ornaments and some airline bottles of coconut rum and a biscotti and a bath scrubbie and a little puzzle in a box and a teddy bear that was holding a bottle of honey, among other things.

Monday was the radio meeting where Mark Zaborney the jazz DJ told me that I was the hit of GFT last Saturday morning when I commented on that crazy woman who heckled Spencer Day at the High Note last weekend.

So an exhausting week as you can see as I also worked 5 9-hour days. Only 10 days to work til Christmas frivolity and days off.

Amy's having cards next Saturday. Sherry and Fred are having New Year's Eve. Woo hoo!

Text msg from Anne

Happy christmas time!!
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