Original settings

Mica and I went to Aquaman. She likes superhero movies and I like popcorn. I don’t mind these movies but I wish there was more emphasis on character and plot than action. I realize I’m missing the point of the franchises. I still don’t know the difference between DC and Marvel—I can’t tell you which characters belong to which—but I prefer Ironman, Captain America and their ilk over Batman, Spiderman,...

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Out of the house

Saturday I met Allison, Eve and Eve’s daughter, Caitlin, for coffee this morning. Conversation was challenging because my voice is still weak. At full volume it is a raspy whisper. Allison filled me in on Eli's church program and their Christmas gatherings. I thought Blaine had done a nice job of giving me the details but women are much better at that sort of thing. I enjoyed having a chance...

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Christmas, at last

Friday  Having come far in my convalescence, I decided it was time to rejoin society. (And back off on British TV.) I went to my brother's this evening to celebrate Christmas. When I had to cancel Christmas Eve, I apologized to him for not being able to get presents to him. I admitted I hadn't wrapped anything yet so I couldn't even have him come to my house to pick them up. He said he hadn't...

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Christmas mirage

Of the six of us who went to the brew pub to sing Christmas carols last week, five of us came down with the flu. Only Blaine escaped it. Group text, Christmas Eve day:   Kim: I'm glad you're healthy but how have you escaped this, Blaine? Paul: He lives alone. No one is spreading their germs to him. John: As the only one of us with a girlfriend, you would think his exposure would have been...

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Walloped

Several people came to me on Thursday asking for help on projects they need to complete by the end of the year. Since I'm taking next week off, I had until end of day Friday to give them what they wanted. I stayed at work until 9:00 that night and went in early on Friday. I wanted to be sure I would have enough time to take a long lunch hour since Eve and Susannah were taking me out for my birthday. Just...

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Methodists and their crazy fun ideas

All is bright. A Methodist church hosted the "Beer and Carols" event at the bar. But that wasn't the strange part of the night. There's nothing quite like singing "O Little Town of Bethlehem" while drinking craft beer beneath a bank of televisions airing college football bowl games. But that wasn't the strange part. When the last song warning was given, people at two tables began trash talking...

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First Christmas present

 Tuesday I sent the holiday card out this afternoon. Shortly after, I received an email from one of the recipients, someone from another company who liked it and wondered if he could have his assistant call to find out how they might do something similar. I can’t say for certain but I think the assistant had turned a bit green by the end of the call. It’s a bit too close to the holidays to dive...

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Key ring

Monday After we cleaned up from last Friday’s office party, I was able to get back to my regular work. Today it was more closed captioning of Henry’s videos. There’s a portion in one where he talks really fast and there’s no way the captioning can keep up. I asked him if he wanted to re-record that portion. He doesn’t. He sounded like this was one problem too many for this week. I think many of...

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Lucky suit

Friday Paul sent a text cancelling the slot car idea. He’s succinct in texts so I don’t know why. I didn’t have time to follow up with him because Eve and I were up to our ears in prepping for the office party. Our office doesn’t have a big holiday party this time of year. Instead they throw a dinner in the spring for employees and guests. This is the first year since I’ve worked there that we've...

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Paul's plan

Wednesday  Minutes after Eve left for the day, Paul showed up in my doorway. I wasn’t surprised to see him--he sometimes drops by to see Eve if he finishes work early and is nearby. “You just missed her,” I told him. “I know. I was parked across the way waiting for her to leave.” The last time he did that he wanted to have flowers delivered and needed the correct office address. This time...

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Dear Charles

The smaller box of letters. MondaySaturday’s post is here and explains this one. Blaine came over for dinner (meatloaf, mashed potatoes and the last package of fresh corn from the freezer). While the meatloaf was baking, I showed him the boxes of letters. I could tell he didn’t understand my interest, never mind my excitement, to have letters from people I don’t know. He did think it was remarkable...

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Under the trumpet section

Sunday I knew I would fail at Holidailies on the weekends. There isn't time to write and post Friday through Sunday so I cluster post as soon as I can. Tonight I posted Friday's entry. I hope to add Saturday's tomorrow. As for today, Mica, Sophie and I went to a Christmas cabaret at one of the vineyards. One of the singers is someone Sophie knows from church. She was fantastic, as was the man who...

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Christmas market in the country

There was fog this morning that left the trees along the highways frost covered. I took the picture as we were driving out of the city to reach the farm where the winter market was being held. The temperature was still in the teens when we arrived. I don’t think Eve and Mica were thrilled with the landscape. We parked in a field, waited in a long line to buy a ticket and then were left to wander...

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One holiday party down

FridayOn the way to Blaine’s firm’s holiday party, he asked,  “Would you like to go to the Nutcracker tomorrow night? I can still get tickets but they won’t be great seats.”With his eyes on the road he couldn’t have caught my knee-jerk yeek expression. “If you would like to,” I answered brightly.He glanced over at me . “I will go for you, but please don’t say yes just because I asked.” I wonder...

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Making everyone less than happy

ThursdayPreparations for the office holiday party are progressing but I wouldn’t say it is going smoothly. Committees and strife go hand in hand, never more so than when the charge is related to a social activity. For better or worse Eve and I have taken on most of the work and expense with the hope that it will be festive and fun without too many feeling put upon.The other day I made the mistake...

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Squirrel Syndrome

Wednesday  A few weeks ago I smashed my middle finger between the seat and frame of a chair at a restaurant. Since then I've had a black splotch beneath the nail. It's slowly going away but not fast enough. I complained to Eve about it today and said I was going to get a manicure after work to cover it up. All of the Christmas parties are about to start and the black splotch will not go with...

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So that's a Christmas tree

Tuesday The other week I bought a string of battery operated Christmas lights. I put them on a 12-inch “tree”--eucalyptus leaves and pine needles--that someone gave me years ago in an attempt to help me have some kind of seasonal decoration. As much as I love Australia, the eucalyptus doesn’t say Christmas to me so I never opened it. This year I wanted a few Christmas lights and thought this was...

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Glad I couldn't dodge the invitation

Monday It was a long day. I woke early thinking about the problems I’m having with the holiday card and decided to go to work early. I beat the snow removal team to the parking lot, and the only person inside was our cleaning person. She was riding the floor polisher up and down the corridors and waved each time she passed my office. Made me smile. In solving one problem with the card, I created...

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Snow, cookies, holiday cards--sounds nice

Sunday A snowy day and a houseful of freshly baked Christmas cookies is a bad, bad idea. I kept a plateful out and put the rest into the freezer where I will leave them alone until they’re needed. Pretty sure I will. It didn’t snow much, about two inches. I peeked out the window when I first woke and decided there wasn’t any reason to get in a hurry about cleaning the walks so I climbed back...

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Cookies

Sophie and I happened to arrive at Mica's at the same time. It was just after 9 a.m. and we were loaded down with shopping bags, some filled with flour, sugar, baking chocolate, pistachios and other items needed to make a long list of Christmas cookies. As I punched in the code to the garage, we joked that Mica was probably still in bed. She isn't a morning person and wasn't all that happy when we...

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