Christmas

Merry Christmas!

I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas (though I realize not all my readers may celebrate—have a great day either way!). 

Enjoy your time with family, friends, loved ones, pets, hams, etc.  And remember, I always appreciate presents Winking smile

(I will be catching up on reverb10 and other interesting blog posts after the holiday.  Relationships are more important than blogging.)

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Me, circa 1983

 

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My family the last time we spent Christmas together.  Leslie didn’t have her boyfriend with her at the time, but it’s just as well as she has a new one now Winking smile  Maybe in a year or two we’ll get another group photo!  (serious alert!—) It’s amazing we were all together—later that day my dad left to go up to Ohio to say his goodbyes to my Grandpa, and then the rest of us drove up the next day. 

That’s Christmas for you—sad for those who are no longer with you or cannot be together, but happy to be with those whom you can. 

If you want to make a donation to help fight pancreatic cancer, you can do so here.  I have lost two of my grandparents to this disease, and it doesn’t get enough attention. 

Christmas, Random thoughts

Christmas Memories

Feeling a wee bit maudlin this evening…

I’m not visiting my family over Christmas at all.  This is the first time ever that I haven’t seen my family over Christmas at all.

I grew up in South Carolina, and my Dad’s family lived in western Ohio, and my Mom’s family in eastern Pennsylvania.  We would set out for one or the other the day after school let out (usually PA first), spend a few days, drive to the other, spend a few days, drive home.  In between we’d eat lunch at my great-aunt Wilma’s house near the border of Ohio and PA.  She would always make us hot ham sandwiches, oyster crackers with ranch seasoning, and whatever cookies were on hand, which were often not very good.

Pennsylvania:  Memories of weirdly bad cookies, playing with cousins, the apartment in the basement, lots of Amish people, church, ice, snow, “Trade hands sight unseen”, riding in the huge front seat of the car with Grandpa driving, Christmas lights, taking forever to get to the exit from the Interstate, singing in the car on the way there.  Ham loaf, Grandma trying to get us to clean our plates, Mom trying to stop us from cleaning our plates, eating in the cold sunroom, playing in the backyard, that steep steep driveway, Grandma watching cable tv, the two chairs in the family room, Grandma saying “ay, ay, AY, ay, ay” and sleeping on the floor.  Matching outfits, sledding, playing piano duets, scrapple, Mom wearing knee-high boots to church, Grandma trying to send sandwiches along on the trip, Grandpa’s pointy ended glasses and saying it was “Christmas Eve Eve” (that’s today, btw—and for some reason that is the memory that sticks most in my head…I believe by the following Christmas he had had his stroke).

It’s hard to believe how long it has been since I have been to my family in that area.  After my grandparents passed away I really haven’t been back.  I miss them…I wish I could have known them longer.

I have many more recent memories of Ohio, since I lived just 2 1/2 hours away for many years.  However, I also have some memories as a child:

Ohio:  Eating so many homemade cookies I threw up, playing in the snow with my cousins, PONG, ping-pong in the garage, the kitties, ice skating on the pond, singing a cappella at church, sleeping in the parlor, fancy dinners, date pudding, mince pie, the cuckoo clock, playing games, snow, wanting to play outside when it was actually 20 below zero and not understanding why, white bread toast, orange juice, “let me get my socks on!”, sitting around just visiting…I actually seem to have less specific memories of Ohio—I think it’s because we did more varied things in PA since it was more of a city-type of place, and more of the same thing repeatedly (i.e. playing with cousins) in Ohio.  But I loved visiting both so much!

I will always have those memories Smile

HBBC: December 22:  60 minute various cardio (run, bike, elliptical): 4 points, 7 f/v: 1 point: total: 5 points. December 23: ?.  December 24:  ?  .  Week of December 18-24 total: ?.

 

Random thoughts

Travel #reverb10

Prompt: Travel. How did you travel in 2010? How and/or where would you like to travel next year?


reverb10.com

This is an interesting question.  Not, where did you travel, but how did you travel?

Well. 

I traveled by car mainly—around town for daily work and errands, to Ohio for work in the spring, to Chicago for a friend’s wedding in April, to South Carolina to visit family over the summer. 

I traveled by plane to Tampa for vacation in August. I traveled by cruise ship to the Caribbean.

I traveled by jet ski while I was on Grand Cayman Island.  I traveled by parasail over the waters of Cozumel, Mexico.  I traveled by a tender boat to and from the cruise ship.  I traveled by bus in Belize to visit the ruins of Xunantunich. 

I traveled by shuttle van from the parking lot to jury duty. 

I traveled by golf cart at the Missouri Botanical Gardens to get to a wedding that had been moved due to rain.

I traveled by my own two legs through a variety of races, including a half-marathon. 

How and/or where would you like to travel next year?

I’d love to take a cruise to Alaska.  That would involve car, plane, ship, and possibly train.

If I don’t go to Alaska, I’d like to travel somewhere else that I have to fly to…

Maybe a trip to Chicago or Colorado to visit friends over the summer–

I will be traveling to Phoenix by plane, and then running a race…

Maybe I should get a bike to ride around town, but I worry about safety.  It would be nice to take bike rides in Forest Park though! 

I’ll see if I can think of more ideas while I’m traveling today…

Christmas

A few pictures…

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Christmas dinner that we made last night

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What is that?  A SARDINE???

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I’d better lick it all over and roll around on it! (obviously speaking from the cat’s point of view here…)

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A couple fun gifts from Leslie and Peter (not all are pictured)

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Some sweet purple cross-training shoes from Chris

 

I also got a Garmin Forerunner 205 from Chris (a fancy watch that can track how far you run and how fast using gps), a nice apron from Leslie which I want to get a picture with it ON, and a KINDLE from my Mom (and Dad too, I think!).  I am very happy with ALL of my gifts—it has been a fantastic Christmas so far.

I will be spending the holidays with Chris’s family, which is why my family sent gifts in advance.

Now I am doing errands, meeting Mike for a workout later (edited:  he had to cancel so I went for a run instead), and meeting friends for a happy hour at Modesto to celebrate the “Winter Solstice.”

I will not be able to blog as much the rest of the week.  Don’t be sad Winking smile I imagine people will not have as much time to read blogs, so it will all work out.

HBBC:  3.5 mile run: 3.5 points, 7 f/v: 1 point, total: 4.5 points

Random thoughts

relax. enjoy. #reverb10

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Prompt: Future self. Imagine yourself five years from now. What advice would you give your current self for the year ahead? (Bonus: Write a note to yourself 10 years ago. What would you tell your younger self?)

reverb10.com

About five or six years ago, I was sitting at a restaurant with a small group of friends, and one of my friends asked if we had “five year plans,” as in, where did we want to be in five years.  I did not.  Sure, I had ideas of what I might want to be doing, but I’m more of a “go with the flow” person when it comes to life.  Maybe that puts me “behind schedule” (aka, not married, no kids, still working freelance), but at least I haven’t been disappointed by failing to reach my goals, right?  As a musician, you just can’t always choose what you want out of life—there is just too much luck involved.  I wonder if my friends are now where they wanted to be then?  I would rather not know…

SHOULD I institute a five-year plan?  There’s just a few things I’d like to change for sure—I don’t want to be renting or paying my student loans anymore.  I’d still like to get married and have a kid, and probably should do that within five years.  I’ll still be playing violin and teaching, and I’ll have a different car than the one I drive now.  I’ll, sadly, probably have a different cat as well.  My clothes will probably be different, according to the fashion.  I’ll still be working out regularly, running, and eating well.  I’ll still be wearing jeans, and my hair will be some shade of brown.  I’ll probably still own a large amount of black clothing—or at least I want to.

Things I can’t imagine because there are just too many variables:  where I will be living (honestly, I don’t care as long as I’m with Chris Winking smile ), what sort of house/condo we’ll own, whether the new cat would be fat as well, what sort of car I’d be driving, etc.  Friend-wise, well if I’m still in this city I’ll have lots of good friends, probably many of the same ones I have now, if we’ve moved I’ll have new friends and keep in touch with some of the old. 

What advice would I give my current self for the year ahead?  Relax.  Enjoy.  It’s out of your control anyway.

(Bonus: Write a note to yourself 10 years ago. What would you tell your younger self?

I would remind myself to read the Harry Potter books many times, to enjoy the Lord of the Rings movies, to treasure my friends while I can because we will all be moving, that it’s okay to leave the Charlotte Symphony because happiness is more important…and to relax.  Enjoy.  It’ll turn out okay. Oh, and don’t panic and accept every possible teaching position!)

Christmas, Food

First Christmas Dinner

Chris and I had a lovely dinner tonight—Ham, Corn Pudding, Parmesan-Roasted Broccoli, Smoky Cheddar Loaf, and for dessert, Egg Nog Tres Leches Cake..  I wanted to make a fancy dinner before we exchanged our gifts (we are heading out of town soon and didn’t want to bring them with). 

I got some neat stuff, but I think it’s too early to share Christmas presents Winking smile  I’ll share later!  Just wanted to say the menu was a great success, and I received some excellent gifts.

I also had a tough workout with Mike—I had to use the gym’s new Stairclimber machine tonight.  That was super tough!  Probably doing a workout today after my 8.5 or so mile run yesterday (soon to be much more precise in measurement—hint of a Christmas gift I may have received) wasn’t the best idea, but with traveling up ahead, you do what you can.

Chris and I did a tad bit of Christmas shopping today.  Ordinarily I hate crowds, and today was definitely crowded.  I decided to tell myself it was fine—it WOULD be crowded, and I would simply accept that as a fact.  That seemed to help me keep from getting annoyed. 

I’m enjoying my Christmas vacation now—I have two whole weeks to relax and not teach violin.  I’m sure when I return I shall be well rested and ready to face the students again.

HBBC:  7 f/v: 1 point, 1 mile walk: 1 point, Workout with Mike:  5 points (way tougher than somedays and more high impact), total: 7 points

thoughts about violin, teaching, running, life.