Christmas has come and gone…another year is upon us. The years seem to be coming faster these days. This is the time of year I like the least. No matter how hard I try I cannot bring myself to forgo the eventual failure of my New Years Resolutions…plural, because there are many. Most of my resolutions are the same every year. I want to loose weight. I want to be in better shape. I want to eat better. I want to finish some house projects. I want to save to go on a killer vacation. And, I will find the time to take some on-line classes. Some of my resolutions are short lived. Some are never more than a thought…a wish…a dream!
I haven’t given much thought to the New Year. I’ve been concentrating on my job and actually having to work 5 days a week now. I was used to my four days and having Friday to clean the house. Now I have to fit it into my normally busy weekend so I’ve been a little off with my schedule. I even started my Christmas shopping in December. For those who know me well……this NEVER happens. I’m the person with all Christmas shopping done by the first of November. It seems to be more difficult to motivate myself to do anything the older (& fatter) I get.
The last few years I have become a Grinch. Yes, Ms. Christmas turned green and grumpy. I haven’t put up a tree or even a single decoration in two years. I have become the polar opposite of my former self…the person who had a Christmas tree in every room, even the kitchen and bathrooms. Christmas cards were mailed on December 1st and I made personal phone calls to my friends to wish them a Merry Christmas. I baked cookies and fudge for all my co-workers and delivered the treats with a smile (and usually a Christmas hat or antlers). Now, my friends are lucky to even get a card. Last year Brian said he wanted me to put up decorations for Christmas so….. I politely, and ever so gently, pointed to the dark, dank underbelly of our house and told him “go for it.” As you can imagine, the house stayed stark, bare of any Christmas cheer.
This year was no different than the last two year. I had no intention of decorating anything in the house. It’s just another day for Christ’s sake. And, yes, it WAS for Christ’s sake that we have Christmas….and HE didn’t decorate any trees so I didn’t have to either. Poor Brian, tired of my humbuggery, left work early on the 21st, went to the store and bought a tree and ornaments. He came home decorated the tree and put my gifts under it (that he wasn’t supposed to get), all before I got home from work. I walked in the door and couldn’t believe it. The house was warm with Christmas cheer. Brian worked on the 22nd and feeling a little pang of Christmas joy I decided to head down the mountain to Jackson and see what other decorations I could find the Friday before “the big day.” I arrived at Wal-Mart at 6:15 am and THEY WEREN’T OPEN. At times I forget that I live in a backwards/backwoods location where Wal-Mart’s aren’t open 24 hours a day. So, I went to Safeway to do some shopping. At least they were open. By the time I was done Wal-Mart was finally open. I didn’t find anything at “cheap world” so headed to K-Mart directly across the street. Jackson is not a metropolis and we are limited on shopping. We have Wal-Mart, K-mart, and Lowes. We just got Staples and we have a dozen very quaint shops in touristy downtown that don’t open up until 10 am.
Now……..you have to understand Jackson K-Mart. If there are ever any more than 5 cars in the parking lot, something big is happening. The last time I saw more than 5 cars in the parking lot three of them were fire trucks trying to save a huge RV that had caught fire. Days later we drove by and it was just a hollowed out blackened shell. True to form I was one of only 10 people shopping that day, three days before Christmas. I found tons of decorations for 60% off and headed home to decorate. I guess Brian decorating the tree jump-started my spirit….a little…or it was guilt. Of course, with a 5 month old kitten in the house you have to be very careful what types of ornaments you have. When we got back from Modesto on Christmas Day I found ornaments in my bathroom….a long way from the living room.
Christmas Eve started early for us. We left the sunny mountains in the morning and somberly headed to the fogged in valley where the temperature was actually colder than at our house. We ate more food than we should have, more snacks and appetizers than should be allowed, then got ready for family poker night. It was pretty touch and go for a while. We each won our fair share of hands and large pots….each fighting to keep all we had for the coveted family trophy and collection of gift cards. We play by one rule…….WINNER takes all. Aaron’s girlfriend, Christina, said she had never played but it was evident VERY quickly that she was a little shark…..or had the best beginners luck we’d ever seen. Soon she was throwing thousands of “fake” dollars in the pot hoping to take down my father-in-law, Dale. It was just the two of them in the end and it was very close. Dale pulled it out with a last hand and an “all in” pot. He will keep the trophy for the entire year and bring it back for Christmas Eve Family Poker 2007 where any one of us could walk away with it…but I doubt it will be me. Last year Brian’s brother-in-law, Chris, was the first to win it and guarded it the entire year hoping to take it home again.
Christmas day was spent in French Camp with Brian’s grandparents and a handful of immediate family. We always have so much fun when we are there. And, AGAIN, we ate way too much great food, snacks, treats, and appetizers. It was a day of minor food disasters with someone either dropping something, dripping something, or burning something. I did one of those but won’t tell you which. Brian’s grandma Jewel loves her musical decorations. You can hardly walk in her house without setting off a creature or critter. A fat Santa breaks into a very LOUD rendition of Jingle Bells, moose sing, penguins sing and dance……..AND……as a present from Dale, she got a musical moving big top circus with very intricate parts that move all the while playing many different Christmas carols.
Grandma Jewel spends many days decorating her house! Everywhere you look there are decorations, in the lights, on the floor, in the plants, on the shelves, in every nook and cranny, every room, everywhere. She truly has some of the most beautiful decorations I have seen and takes great pride in decorating for the Holidays. She makes Christmas such a wonderful experience for the entire family. It just wouldn’t be the same if, on Christmas day, you didn’t set off the animated musical creatures throughout her house or bump your head on an ornament she has hanging in a doorway. I can’t wait to see what new noise maker she has for next year. I may even buy her one to add to her collection.
So this Holiday is quickly coming to a close and we have no big plans for New Years Eve. More than likely we’ll be in bed at 10 PM. Years ago we learned there is really absolutely no reason to stay up to midnight. We realized that once the clock struck midnight, we kissed each other then were asleep by 12:15, and surrendered to the fact it was ridiculous to stay up. Why ring in the New Year by yawning and crawling into bed? It will still be the New Year at 7:00 am the next morning so whoopty do! We don’t go out because we’re usually surrounded by drunks and we can’t drink because we have to drive a very dangerous road home. Staying home with a good bottle of wine and black & white movie is the best way. Plus, we won’t feel like crap the next morning when everyone else is tired or hung over.
This week should be fairly clear for us which, of course, clear means very cold weather. We had a huge storm come through with lots of rain and hail but it cleared up yesterday afternoon and turned to ice. Brian wants to go snow hiking tomorrow but I’m not so sure. He wants to go up to Hope Valley so the dog can play in the snow. The low is supposed to be 4 and the high 40. I have toe warmers and hand warmers, gloves, jackets, thermals, hats, earmuffs, and everything else I need to keep warm. But, I DON’T have any thermal lined jeans. Cabela’s has come out with a thermal flannel lined jean that is supposed to be good down to zero degrees. That sounds nice and toasty to me. Last time we hiked after a big storm I twisted my ankle so bad that it took 8 months to heal. Not only was it painful but I had to wear ugly shoes because my ankle was so swollen.
Well better get to bed if I want to get up early to freeze in the snow. Have a wonderful New Years and be SAFE!
All my love….Deb (Brian too)
