Holiday Happenings

Well, it's been a busy few (holi)days. Jeffro's dad came to visit on Sunday and we had a nice lunch at Bebo Trattoria in Crystal City. Christmas Eve, his mom came to stay with us through the holiday. We spent Christmas Eve at my mom's house having a traditional Italian (almost) seven fish dinner. Christmas Day was at my sister's and that was a lot of fun and food. I got some really cool gifts this year and hopefully people felt that way about what I gave them. My sister has 6 kids, so it's fun to spend the holiday in a house full of kids.

Jeffro and I are driving up to NY on Friday for a party for my grandmother's 90th birthday. It will be a long ordeal, but I guess I'll wind up being glad I went . . .

Meanwhile, I had today off work, and I'll be off again tomorrow. I have to say I've been so lazy, mostly watching tv all day. It's been great and a much-needed break. I may run some errands tomorrow if the weather cooperates, but it was just too nasty outside to be running around.

Days Eight through Twelve

I guess I was rather ambitious thinking I'd have time to come up with clever things to last 12 days of Christmas . . . so here's a blanket wish for health and happiness for everyone and we'll just be done with it, unless I get another inspiration.

Moving on, yesterday was the start of a week off work! We are moving our offices, so we are closed next week until Friday and don't have to take any vacation time for it. How great is that! Of course, I've scheduled too much stuff already for next week--like doctors and vet appointments, but hey at least I don't have to be at work.

Today I've been cleaning all day in preparation for holiday guests. Tomorrow Jeffro's dad is coming for the day, and Monday his mom is coming and staying till Weds. It's a disaster in here, and I've just finished vacuuming. I have a lot cleaning to do still, plus I have to finish my wrapping, but I'm almost done.

BTW, it seems like my sister is going to be ok. She has some blood clots that they didn't know about, but it looks like it's nothing further than that (we were scared her cancer was back). So, that will make for a happy holiday . . .

On the Sixth and Seventh Day

Since I'm battling a cold or some such bug, I will make my sixth wish once again for everyone's health. You just can't wish for that too much.

As far as the seventh wish, I wish for life to be less stressful, and for more downtime in the coming year. I have been monitoring my blood pressure since my doc found that weird heart thing, and I have noticed that my blood pressure is fine except--you guessed it--when I am stressed. Then it really spikes. So I hope to get my stress under control and to have more time to spend doing the things I enjoy.

Fifth Day and Tribute

I learned last night that Dan Fogelberg passed away at age 56 and was very sad. I really liked his music, especially Same Old Lang Syne. At one point I used to own his Greatest Hits but I can't seem to find it, so I will have to repurchase now.

This is the inspiration for my day five of Christmas, my wish for healing for those who have lost loved ones, particularly over the past year. I hope we can remember them without too much sadness this holiday season--my grandmother passed on Christmas Day last year, so this year will be a little tough.

Fourth Day

Today I slept in really late, then spent the rest of the day doing things that I really enjoy. I've decided to volunteer for an editorial position for our community newsletter and we had our first meeting today. Then I had my drum lesson. So day four is devoted to giving thanks for having gifts and talents for certain things like music or writing/editing, and for the opportunity to pursue those interests. Otherwise, life would really suck if all we did was work (though often it feels to me like that's all we do). Anyway, here's to pursuing your passions this holiday season!

On the Second and Third Day

Yesterday we had our office Christmas party at work at Sequoia in Georgetown, and much food, drink, and merriment was had by all. They gave us all copies of the award-winning Planet Earth and $100 to go spend on ourselves before lunch. I bought 2 sweaters from Ann Taylor.

Later that night some friends and I went to see the National Christmas Tree in DC then to Old Ebbitt Grill for a very late dinner. Needless to say after my crazy lunch, I didn't really eat much. So this brings me to my second day of Christmas hope. I hope that people will not go hungry this Christmas. I plan on making a food donation to the Capital Area Food Bank, or you can make a monetary donation. Just $1 will go towards 3 meals. Another good option is to make a donation to So Others Might Eat (SOME).

Today brings me to my third wish, for the end of cruelty to animals and needless killing of animals at shelters. I say this because this morning I ran into one of my neighbors, who is going to put her 15-year old dog down today. It's sad, but understandable, as the dog is in really bad shape. But it got me thinking about the ASPCA, which I donate to each year. Consider making a donation this year or buying some of their cute merchandise as a holiday gift.

On the First Day of Christmas

I thought I'd do a little countdown to Christmas with a little twist on the classic song. Instead of writing about what "my true love gave to me," which I don't know yet cause I haven't snooped enough, I thought I'd write about my wishes for the season and the coming year.

Today's wish is for health. For me, my family, friends, and anyone reading this. I just got news today that my sister who has been struggling with cancer this past year is having some problems again, so I hope that it winds up being nothing serious.

Blog Fixed!

My blog has been having problems for a while now, but I finally took the time to redo things tonight, and hopefully it's looking a little better now. Yeah!

Thanks to Jeffro for helping!

Last Minute Holiday Shopping?

Try wishingfish.com, where you'll find great gift ideas, such as poo-pourri, the office anger management kit, and Vosges bacon chocolate bar.

In all seriousness, the site does have some great stuff like Kobo soy candles and lavendar fleece booties. Check it out!

What Have I Been Up To?

I had a pretty busy weekend of parties and socializing.

Saturday Jeffro, my neighbor, and I had an invitation for a complimentary meal at Wildfire, a new steakhouse at Tysons Galleria. We had to take a very early reservation cause it was a free deal, so it was a bit odd eating steak and having wine at 11:30 in the morning . . . that night it was on to a party at MJ & Computerguy's place for their collective December birthdays. A fun evening, excellent mulled wine and TJ food, and I even got to see Wii in action for the first time, though I didn't feel like playing.

Sunday I cleaned for most of the day, then NOAAgirl and DH came over and we headed to Duangrat's for some great Thai food. I just love their Green Curry Shrimp. Then to Trader Joe's for a little silly shopping.

Overall, a fun weekend. We even got our little tabletop tree set up and some gifts wrapped, so it's starting to look a little like the holidays.

Farewell to Evel Knievel

I was so bummed today to hear about Evel Knievel's death. I used to love him as a kid . . . he was very cool.

Photo courtesy of AP Images.

Thanksgiving Update

I just realized it's been forever since I've made a post. Outside of work, I just haven't been getting on the computer as much as I used to. I think cause work has been really busy and computer-intensive, and I'm just burned out and sick of work.

Our Thanksgiving was very fun thanks to NOAAgirl! Hands down, the most tender, delicious turkey I've ever eaten. She apparently rubbed the outside of the turkey with butter and herbs, and stuffed the inside with more herbs and fruit. Just divine! The side dishes were equally as delicious. I brought a green bean casserole and a cranberry sauce that turned out pretty yummy. Overall, it was a fun group of people and very lively. Jeffro's mom even joined us for the fun, and we got a great tip off about terrible traffic before leaving for NOAAgirl's house, so that was nice not to have to deal with that.

Friday night we had a party for my mom and her boyfriend, who both have birthdays in November. We ate at Bazin's on Church in Vienna, and it was just wonderful. I couldn't believe how crowded it was the day after Thanksgiving! I highly recommend it unless you're strapped for cash.

Yesterday we had brunch at Bob & Edith's before Jeffro's om headed back to NJ. So needless to say, I never want to eat again after all the eating I did this weekend! Then Jeffro and I went to see Lars and the Real Girl, on recommendation of my yoga teacher. Jeffro really liked it. I didn't dislike it but it was very, very strange.

Today is just hanging out and doing grocery shopping, things around the house, etc. And not eating!

Christmas Carols?

Believe it or not, this week local radio station WASH FM 97.1 started playing Christmas carols all day, every day! Hello, it's not even frickin Thanksgiving yet. I'm thoroughly disgusted, between that and the malls already all decked out. The holidays suck.

A Weekend of New Restaurants

This weekend Jeffro and I decided to go to Bebo Trattoria for lunch after our classes on Saturday morning. It was perfect, cause my class is Italian, so I got to continue the experience a little longer. It's owned by Roberto Donna, acclaimed chef of Galileo, probably the best and priciest Italian restaurant in DC. Bebo is a more affordable option. We got sucked in by the lunch menu posted on the outside of the restaurant, but unfortunately when we got the menu at our table, it showed about 1/3 of the food they normally serve for lunch. We still enjoyed ourselves immensely, splitting the culatello (proscuitto), condiglione, and carciofini pizza. Check out the Saturday menu here.

Today I finally got a chance to go to Busboys and Poets, one of the newer restaurants in Shirlington. They have an awesome brunch menu, and really good French Toast. It's a neat, artsy vibe, kind of like a library, bookstore, coffee shop, and restaurant all rolled into one.

Other than eating "molto" this weekend, we got a lot of work done on the basement. I have two huge bags of trash ready to go out, and four bags for Goodwill. Yeah!

An Interesting Week

I laughed, I cried . . .

This Wednesday was the annual CMAs, and I have to say it was a pretty good show, except for Martina McBride not getting a much-deserved award for either song or single of the year.

I got a $1,000 bonus (sadly, the largest bonus I've ever gotten) and a 5% raise this week, so that was some good news.

Bad news . . . I had a doc appointment and that didn't go so well. Last time I went she was concerned about my blood pressure. Apparently this time was much better, but we discovered a potential new problem--short pr syndrome. One of the associated risks is sudden cardiac death. Boy does that sound like a good time.

Jeffro and I tried to buy tickets during the presale for Bon Jovi/Christ Daughtry, but those bastards were putting us in nosebleed seats for $65, so we might wait till tomorrow's regular sale or scalp the night of. We'll have to see. Boy does that piss me off.

So now I'm having some wine and that's fun.

Affordable Places to Live Well

For many years now I've had this crazy idea to get out of the DC rat race and move somewhere where the dollar actually goes a little further and I can afford to purchase something more than a 1,400-sq. ft. condo. This list shows the top 10 places to be able to do that. Now of course, I really wouldn't consider most of these places because they're too cold or too Midwest, but there are a couple good options here I would think about. You'll just have to guess which ones.

Hard to Believe It's November

I just don't know where these past few months have gone. With all the warm weather we've had this fall, it doesn't seem possible that the holidays are almost here. So as we're all frantically making our Thanksgiving plans, thinking of recipes, anticipating all the great food we're going to eat, and struggling not to pack on the holiday pounds, here are some great tips to keep in mind to ward off the seemingly inevitable holiday weight gain.

Top DC Chef?

In the tradition of Iron Chef, DC is having its own competition, "DC Capital Food Fight" to benefit the DC Central Kitchen. There will also be tastings from 40 top restaurants, including my personal favorite Farrah Olivia, and a silent auction with great prizes like a "Year of Dining" (dinners for six plus wine at each of 12 restaurants) and a stint as production assistant on Jose Andres's new PBS series. How cool is this? If you had an extra $175 sitting around, and if it wasn't sold out, you too could go.

Hopefully not a Trifecta

So far this week, country legend Porter Wagoner, who launched Dolly Parton's career, and singer Robert Goulet have died. Hopefully this will not be a trifecta week . . .

Crazy Inventions

This is the kind of stuff we send around at work for entertainment . . . this first crazy invention called the Transition, a small plane that turns into a car. So you can fly yourself somewhere, land, then get on the road and go. Can you imagine?

The next is the Walkstation--the answer to stopping the weight you gain by sitting on your ass at a desk day after day doing useless, pointless work and getting no exercise. Pretty crazy!