New Year's Eve

I always put an apostrophe in there--is that right?  I figure it's a possessive, you know?  Like "the eve that belongs to the new year?"  I dunno.  I think I think too much about things not necessarily requiring so much thought.

Noticing an online news trend of sorts--more and more news items are turning up in video form.  I don't like my news in small, 30 second videos.  Seems too much like fast food news, you know?  I'd rather read a more in depth piece, something with more meat and less on the "cute news reader" front. 

Considering returning our new cell phones and exchanging them for something else.  They're made by Motorola, and Motorola has some seriously troubling ties to the Israeli government and the IDF.  If we're against Israel's apartheid policies, if we support the BDS movement, then we shouldn't be buying from companies tangled up in that.  So it's looking like maybe we'll make the leap to Samsung or LG.   I know Samsung is made in South Korea, I'll have to look at LG's politics. 

Gets hard, voting with your wallet.  I haven't had a Stouffer's Macaroni and Cheese for years, and I'm sadder than sad about having to swear off Starbucks' Frappuccinos.  Well, not sadder than sad, but a bit put out.  I get over that by thinking about how much more put out I would be if someone bulldozed my house, shot up my little brother for getting too close to a wall meant to imprison my people, and tore up my olive groves to keep food off my family's table while denying my mother access to medical care and refusing to allow repair to the bombed remains of our sewage treatment facilities which continuously pump sewage into our fishing waters.  Puts it in perspective, makes going without flavored coffee a little easier. 

Did better on the blood sugar last night.  134 at two hours post-prandial is still a little higher than I'd like, but it kicks ass over 191. 

Tonight is the big, last hurrah, food-stupidity-wise.  I have really gone to new lows in the space between Christmas and New Year's, but that's okay--I went into it knowing I was going to.  Tomorrow it's back on.  And I feel like it's something I can do. 

My fancy hairspray came--Sebastian Zero Gravity.  It's a fantastic hairspray, great hold but brushable.  Sadly, the can was broken--the sprayer snapped off (not just come loose).  Amazon refunded the cash, but now I have a full can of spray I can't use.  I'm such a miser, I'm trying to figure out how to magically make that sprayer work. 

Speaking of fabulous products, notice the little "My Reviews" link up top?  That's a link to things I write, and it would make me happy if you took a look every now and then.

Watched the end of Walking Dead Season 2 last night.  A few surprises, but mostly not.  The dead folks I expected to die, though how one died was a surprise (or how one re-died, I should say), and a couple survived I expected dead.  My theory on who is what and why bore out, though not enough detail (yet).  Wish they could crank the gore down just a whit.

Sore throat two days running.  Not really bad, but not liking it.

Went to Costco earlier.  Turns out the cell phones would have been drastically cheaper there.  Oops.  Now we know.  Turns out returning the phones wouldn't ding Motorola--our carrier would just resell as pre-owned.  Next phones, we'll do better.

And that's that.  Popeyes and a burger for New Years dinner.  I hope everyone has a great New Years, and for goodness' sake, DON'T DRINK AND DRIVE.  Seriously, don't be that sloppy loser.  Call AAA (1-800-400-4222) and see if they can help in your area.  No, you don't have to be a member.  If not?  Sleep where you are, drive in the morning when you're sober.

Christmas Past

Well, another one under my (for now) increasingly large belt.  Nah, I'm not feeling guilty about the eating--I knew it was coming, and I enjoyed it immensely.  It'll almost certainly continue until New Year's, when we'll hop back on that wagon.

Christmas Eve brought the traditional "one gift the night before" thing.  For the boy and me, it was new cell phones--the ones I talked about earlier.  They are Razr Droids--quite fancy, and the screens are big enough that I can likely comfortably use mine without squinting and giving myself a headache.  Despite having opened the box, our boy was actually quite surprised.  Sadly, hubby had gotten himself a watch . . . which came pre-broken.  Since we don't know where the receipt is (grrrr!), we're not sure the store will take it back.  Hopefully, they will.  Yes, I'm the one who always yells to keep receipts.  No, they don't often get kept.

We ate Chinese and watched, of course, A Christmas Story.  It's become something of a tradition.  A good one, I think.

Christmas morning found me wide awake at 6 am.  Understand, I hadn't gone to bed until after 3 am.  So, in a totally out-of-character move for me, I went back to sleep.  Woke up at 9:45 to my boy gently taking my hand in his.  I sure do love him.  We had a wonderful morning, and there were even some surprises for me under the tree--candle-making gear and my Ojon shampoo and leave-in conditioner.  The candle-making stuff was suspected, but the Ojon was a total shock.  Not sure HOW it was a shock, considering Facebook's "targeted advertising" has been burying me under Ojon adverts for a couple of weeks now.  Hubby LOVED his hobbit slippers, so that was a happy thing.  Our boy, sadly, is finding that our computer isn't quite up to snuff when it comes to playing his new game, Skyrim.  It plays, but it's laggy and the frames per second are crap.  I'm sad for him, but I've got 20 years of "computer can't handle the game" disappointment under my belt.  It's rough, but it's one you have to learn to live with.  Still sad, though--hate to have him even a little disappointed on Christmas.

Dinner was steaks, mushrooms and onions, roasted butternut and sweet potato, mashed red potatoes with skins, and crab cakes.  Dessert was homemade brownies with homemade whipped cream, topped with ice cream and raspberries in Chambord sauce.  It was . . . not as good as it sounded like it was going to be.  The whipped cream, which hubby made, was spectacular, but the sauce just clashed with the brownie, made it too rich.  Oh, well.  Now we know.  We watched Love, Actually (another Christmas tradition, though this one makes my heart hurt a bit every time), and then watched an episode of Walking Dead, which features one of the actors from Love, Actually. 

Speaking of Walking Dead, I'm still not sure how I feel about it.  It is, for the most part, well-enough acted, and the story is playing out well.  Sort of a The Stand meets Revolution meets 28 Days Later.  All things I enjoy.  But the gore level is excessive--gratuitous, really.  And, truth be told, I'm sick to death of Zombies.  What was funny and silly, interesting and just a little scary five years ago has been so miserably overdone, so sickeningly incorporated and internalized that I really do feel that maybe it's becoming harmful.  Guess hearing eight year-olds talk about "getting that head shot" and "double tapping" troubles me.  That said, if zombie shows are the way you tend, Walking Dead is pretty good thus far. 

Had Charlie groomed this morning.  They did a better job with his face and neck this time, but utterly failed to do his ears and tail.  I guess, when you go to Petsmart for the great price, you maybe get what you pay for.  I'll trim them up myself tonight.  I do a pretty good job.  Took him to the vet after to have his microchip checked and ask why they want him tested for heartworm.  He's been on heartworm meds since before he was six months old, there shouldn't be any need for testing, but they insist it needs to be done.  Sounds like an easy way for them to make 60 bucks. 

Hubby and son are at the theater, watching "The Hobbit." I had no desire, really--I'm not a huge theater fan, it kills me that three folks at the theater with one large popcorn and three drinks is 85 bucks. There is rarely a movie I find worth that. I don't hate "The Hobbit," but it's not my favorite of the bunch, and we have a nice enough HDTV that it'll look just fine at home when it comes out on Blu-ray.


The weather this morning was amazing--snow, wind, chunks of ice (not hail, but ice), and freezing rain.  Now it's just rain, and it is POURING down!  Has been for hours, guess there are flood warnings out.  Just put on my new Christmas shirt, then promptly ran outside into this disaster to tell a neighbor that the back door to his car was open.  I remember the days when I just would have dashed over and closed it for him, but I don't really know these folks, they likely have a car alarm, and people get weird when you touch their cars anymore.  The days of sliding behind the wheel of a stranger's car and turning their headlights off for them are gone. 

Think we're finally going to thaw the turkey soup we made at Thanksgiving and serve it up. The weather outside is, after all, frightful.

Hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas!