| Last night's roast chicken has become today's stock. Banana, chocolate chip & cranberry muffins are cooling on the table. Two loads of dishes have been washed so far. (And there will be more.) Some items have been added to the "leaving my house" pile.
Next up: going through tea and cookbooks while watching World Juniors Hockey. Go Canada! | |
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| Which movie should I watch first?
A Christmas Carol - Sim version in B&W (none of that colourization for me)
A Christmas Carol - Stewart version
White Christmas
Last Holiday (not a Christmas movie but I love it)
or
Forget movies for now. Keep watching the "Diners, Drive-ins and Dives" marathon. | |
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| We have a gorgeous White Christmas going on out there. Right now, the highly weather-dependent holiday plans are to have our first Christmas as a family mostly at home. We'll keep Christmas on Christmas Eve, then visit relatives in Wisconsin Christmas day. If the sky holds back. I enjoy going out in winter weather, but not while it's coming down on me. Could be we'll be camped here until Sunday. Fortunately we have enough butter-baked calories to supply a Vasco de Gama cruise. So, a little more cooking and baking today, and lots of Patrick Swayze movies. Nothing like a viewing of Roadhouse to keep you company as you wrap presents. I had some "New Christmas Classics" going this week, like A Very Brady Christmas and A Carol Christmas with Tori Spelling and William Shatner. Not to mention Patrick Stewart chewing the bed-curtains that have been miraculously returned from the rag-and-bone man in A Christmas Carol (for the record, my favorite version is Alistar Sim's). I'm more than ready to see a few JD bottles broken over people's heads to some blues rock. Sprog update: he's crawling around army-style and briefly getting up on hands-and knees. I predict he'll be hands-and-knees crawling by the New Year. Merry Christmas, all. | |
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| Two more work days and then I have five days off. I'm laying in supplies so I don't have to go out unless I want to - including some goodies. My only goal is to deal with my kitchen: go through cupboards, rearrange shelves, clean it up and clear it out. Okay, I do have two other goals: to relax and hopefully remove some of my sleep deficit.
In honour of the solstice, I offer some words by Melissa Etheridge. The shuffle function on my iPod gave me this song earlier today. Most appropriate.
From Light a Light:
Write down your excuses
And turn them into dust
Plant the seeds of change
Water it with trust
And light a light tonight we light a light
We light a light tonight we light a light
I know that this time is ending
And everyone is here
We light a light, a light this year
'Tis the season of change | |
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| The comrades of the Worker-communist Party of Iran have asked that this manifesto be posted far and wide, so here's my contribution ... ( cut for length; click here to read )What they have to say about cultural relativism cuts a sharp line between the right-wing thugs in the West who would relegate all inhabitants of "Muslim" countries to the dark ages while talking a great fight about their opposition to cultural relativism, and the real crusaders againt the religious repression of women and girls, homosexuals and religious minorities. The way to fight political Islam is not to ban minarets! | |
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| Here's Jean and a good crowd singing the Peace Round back in 1994:
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| Major Protest of Former Turkish Tobacco Monopoly Workers in Ankara | IUF Uniting Food, Farm and Hotel Workers World-Wide http://ping.fm/AKgkt | |
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|  Dear Santa...
Dear Santa,
This year I've been busy!
Last Monday I gave ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) larah33 a life-saving blood transfusion (50 points). In September on a flight to Colorado Springs, I stole the emergency flight information card (-40 points). Last week I donated bone marrow to pdaughter in a life-saving procedure (300 points). In August I committed genocide... Sorry about that, technophilic_42 (-5000 points). Last Sunday I ruled Iran as a cruel and heartless dictator (-700 points).
Overall, I've been naughty (-5390 points). For Christmas I deserve a spanking!
Sincerely,
wood_dragon |
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| New maritime security law will deputize U.S. officers "in every part of Canada" during integrated operations http://ping.fm/KKW0Q | |
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| Supreme Court's Ruling Would Allow Bin Laden to Donate to Sarah Palin's Presidential Campaign | | AlterNet http://ping.fm/jfkBb | |
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| Health Insurers Caught Paying Facebook Gamers Virtual Currency To Oppose Reform Bill http://ping.fm/zra30 | |
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| Things are beginning to gel for our first Christmas with the Sprog. Chats's sister will fly in to Chicago Friday night and stay with us for the weekend before going up to see her dad in Wisconsin. I'm looking forward to her being here.
Have to get some Christmas cookies and a few other goodies going.
We're planning to spend Christmas Eve here, just the three of us. Christmas Day will be in Wisconsin for a big family meal. I'll make some pies. Which reminds me: stock up on butter.
Speaking of Christmas, I'm really, really sick of a couple of Christmas songs. One is the old high-school romantics who meet by accident Christmas Eve and end up drinking a few beers together in the car, reminiscing (Fogelberg's "Same Old Lang Syne"). She, of course, admits that she doesn't really love her architect husband. If an old girlfriend admitted that to me fifteen minutes after an accidental meeting I'd be suddenly remembering a dental appointment. Anyway, yadda yadda yadda, they both head off to their respective Christmas celebrations smelling of canned beer and whatever air freshener he uses to cover up the smell of Jennifer Lopez signature perfume from his grocery store pickups.
I have two problems with that song. First, it's boring. Sitting in a car and drinking reminds me a little too much of my own high school years. That's not a good thing. Second, slice-of-life songs like this should have a meaningful resolution. This one just peters out with a line about the snow turning into rain.
The other song that has me punching the radio power button like I'm deactivating a DUM-series Pit Droid is "The Christmas Shoes." This one always brings to mind Oscar Wilde's line about it taking a heart of stone not to read of the death of Little Nell without laughing. Were it just a nice song about a kid in hand-me-downs who wants to buy his mom some shoes but he doesn't have enough change, so the guy behind him helps him out with a few bucks -- I'm a big fan of Random Acts of Kindness -- I'd say great. Touching, heartwarming. But they pour on the glurge with this one. The kid's not just poor, he's poor and dirty from head to foot (poor people never wash, remember. Also, they smell). His mom is dying. He wants her to have new shoes in case she goes to meet Jesus Christmas Eve.
Oh please.
The only thing that could possibly redeem this song is to have it end with the guy standing behind the child pointing out that with most caskets, you don't even see the corpse's shoes, so maybe he should look into an inexpensive bracelet. Alas.
Of course they made a movie version of the song. Show's you my flawless instinct for pop culture. I'm just more of a "Holly Jolly Christmas" type guy. | |
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