Fun and Games Dept

Earl and I are in the process of planning this year’s vacations. Because of the way my work likes to schedule things, we’ve already planned our two vacations for the year. We have a five day weekend coming up in February and then a 12 day vacation in May. The February plans are falling apart all over the place, as we were planning on going to Disney but there’s no space at Mickey’s place the weekend we wanted to go. (Time to bank the time share points!)

Our May trip on the other hand, is coming together spectacularly well. We’re driving to Phoenix and back on a grand Jeep tour. I wonder who’s idea that was (as I bat my eyes innocently).

I’ve always wanted to drive across the country. While we’re not making it from coast to coast, we are driving across a substantial portion of the U.S. and back, and we’re going to barrell right through the “red” states with our blue state sensibilities in check and in practice. I’m looking forward to seeing the gradual change in terrain and accents and weather and all as we drive from Upstate N.Y. to Arizona and back.

Now the task at hand is to plan the activities for the trip. I want to drive on Route 66 a bit. I want to experience local diners and back roads. I wish I could be guaranteed a tornado while we drive through Oklahoma.

So much planning to do!

J.P. and his Mom.

Originally uploaded by macwarriorny.

Earl and I are celebrating our 9th anniversary of our commitment ceremony today. My mom offered her congratulations by taking us out to lunch and giving us a card and stuffed black bear for our bear collection.

She’s pretty neat.

A Day In The Life.

Originally uploaded by macwarriorny.

Here is the first picture I’ve taken with my new camera, a Sony Cybershot DSC-S40. I had mentioned to Earl that I was tired of taking photos with my cell phone because the camera in it wasn’t that good. I’d rather use a real digital camera and upload photos on my laptop instead of doing the cell phone thing. We have a beautiful digital camera, a Sony Cybershot DSC-F828, which takes absolutely gorgeous pictures. Unfortunately, it’s a little too bulky to use for spontaneous shots out in the wild. With my new baby Sony camera, I can now take quality shots and share them on my blog. I’m am psyched about it.

Earl and I are winding down after an absolutely wonderful Christmas day. We got in last night around 1:30 a.m., slept most of the night and got up early around 7:30. We opened presents… oh wow, the things I have. Wonderful gifts include my aforementioned Sony camera and a Hercules DJ Console which will allow me to spin at clubs using only this new console and my PowerBook G4.

w00t!

Mom stopped by around 10:00 for brunch and merriment. As I mentioned in the previous entry, we kept in touch with my sister and her boyfriend in Russia throughout the day via webcam on MSN Messenger. It’s good to see technology contributing to life instead of just making it a little more chaotic.

Dad and Karen stopped in around 3:00 for dinner and great conversation as well. It’s nice to be able to honestly say that we had an absolutely wonderful Christmas.

Per tradition, Earl is now relaxing on the couch watching television and getting ready to nap while I sit on the loveseat, blogging with Tom curled up near my feet.

Festive times with family and friends- that’s what Christmas is all about.

Earl on Christmas Eve.

Originally uploaded by macwarriorny.

Earl posing in front of his Dad’s in suburban Philly on Christmas Eve 2005. Notice how beautiful the weather is. It felt like mid-March outside, but the mood was festive inside.

He’s so handsome.

Earl and I are en route to his dad’s house for the Christmas Eve celebration. We considered stopping at Chick-Fil-A for lunch on the way, but decided to stop at the local Borders Café and use the WiFi HotSpot to check e-mail and update the blog.

It’s all so T. Johnston.

The weather here is absolutely gorgeous, with temps slightly above 50 and the sun shining brightly. We have the dirtiest car in the area with all the imported Upstate N.Y. sand and salt on it. A stop at the carwash is definitely in order.

Rick and Helen bought us a beautiful orange juice pitcher from Crate and Barrel (I wish we had one of those nearby) and a gift certificate to Williams-Sonoma. We bought them bathroom towels and acoutrements. We are all turning into such homebodies.

Earl is talking to our friends Steve and Tim as I blog. Tim just reminded us to be careful driving home, especially through Bethlehem, Pa., he hears there’s wise men milling about.

We are jazzed about the parties that lie ahead. There’ll be lots of conversation and lots of food and the exchanging of good tidings. It all makes up for the chaotic pace we’re keeping up.

Merry Christmas to all!

Earl and I are safely in suburban Philadelphia visiting his family for the holidays. We’ll be here until tomorrow night, when we leave around 8:00 p.m. or so to make the five hour trek home. We have a rule in our merry little family, and that’s that we wake up in our own bed on Christmas morning. We’ve adhered to this rule since our commitment ceremony back in 1996. It’s nice to have a constant in the chaos of the holiday season.

We just got back from a great dinner at a place called “The Churchville Inn” in Churchville, Pa. Fabulous place! A couple of beers, some nachos and some bbq pork and we’re good to go!

Now Rick and Helen (Earl’s stepbrother and his girlfriend) are decorating their Christmas tree with Earl and I, along with their cat Jones and dog Seamus, as an audience. It’s good fun. They have a real tree that will be planted in the spring. If we had a real tree, we’d do the same. The score from “A Charlie Brown Christmas” is playing in the CD player, the mood of the room is festive.

Now that the shopping is done and work has been set aside until the 27th, we can actually sit down and enjoy the holidays.

It’s a nice change of pace.

Newest Holiday Decoration.

Originally uploaded by macwarriorny.

Today was finally the official “put up the Christmas decorations” day in our merry little household. Life has been moving so quickly for the past couple of weeks we didn’t have time enough to catch our breath, let alone lug the decorations up from the basement. But today was an on-call day, so that meant being home, which lent itself to being productive.

As you can see by the picture above, we were inspired by blogger friend Thom’s beautiful 60s-retro aluminum Christmas tree, so we decided to add an all-white tree with green ornaments to the music room. It’s a festive look and something that makes us feel rather en vogue with our decorating.

Decorating the house for the holidays is such a joy; new decorations, old decorations, ornaments from our travels and gifts from friends and family, everything has a story and is a beautiful contribution to our holiday merriment.

We’re finally in the festive spirit. Now to wrap the gifts this week!

2005 Christmas Tree.

Originally uploaded by macwarriorny.

Earl standing next to our traditional Christmas tree in our Great Room. After a little debate, we decided to stick with an artificial tree this year.

All Dressed Up.

Originally uploaded by macwarriorny.

Earl and I just got back from my work’s Christmas party. It was an enjoyable affair with great company, delicious food and lively conversation. I am truly blessed to have a job that I enjoy with a friendly group of people at a solid, stable company.

It’s rare that we take the opportunity to dress up when the occasion arises as we feel more comfortable in our street clothes. Nevertheless I like to think that we’re somewhat presentable when we work at it.

At least I remembered not to lick the salad dressing off my elbow when it was running down my arm from picking through my salad with my hand. I wiped it off with my sleeve instead. I am a gentleman you know.

Fuel Up for Holiday Shopping.

Originally uploaded by macwarriorny.

I was hoping that I could get my Christmas* shopping done tonight, but there’s a few things I still need to pick up. I feel confident that I’ll actually have it done by the holidays though, and I’m pleased with what I’ve purchased.

A trip to our local mall is not complete without supper in the food court. Most food court meals are crap, but I really like the Flaming Wok here. Best sesame chicken this side of the Atlantic. I also have Bourbon Chicken there on the plate, they were apparently out when I asked for it, so the server walked over to the neighboring Cajun Café and put some of their Bourbon Chicken on my plate instead. I certainly hope they’re owned by the same company.

It’s not well known in these parts, but if you return your tray to the Flaming Wok, instead of leaving it on top of the food court trash cans, they’ll give you your fortune cookie.

* This whole “Christmas” vs “Holiday” thing that has gripped our country this season is driving me insane. I knew the day would come when the “stupid” would take over and this controversy is evidence of it. I can not believe people have the energy to get their panties in a twist over the nomenclature of the holidays. First of all, that fire trap in the corner is a “Christmas Tree”, not a “Holiday Tree”, and this is coming from a man that has leanings towards celebrating the arrival of the winter solstice this time of year. I’m not calling it a “solstice tree” for crying out loud and I’m not falling into an emotional heap when someone wishes me a Merry Christmas. I hope it is a Merry Christmas! Wishing someone a “Happy Holidays” should be taken in the spirit for which it was intended, not as a slap across the face because someone offended you by not saying “Merry Christmas”. On the other hand, renaming everything to be all politically correct is just dumb. “Oh, look at the pretty candlesticks in front of the synagogue!” All the bitching about what to call this time of “good will towards men” is making Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanza, Winter Solstice, this holiday season, whatever the heck you want to call it, much less merry.