Recommended Holiday Gift Seller

Are you looking for a unique gift for the girlfriend or Christmas lover in your life? How about these origami Christmas carol ornaments made by Sweet Goodness?

And if she doesn't have them in the shop, ask about her hand painted earrings.  They're my favorite!

Thanksgiving Trip

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Here are some pics from our trip to Texas.  We got to see the aptly named Black Cat who meows for you to turn the faucets on so he can drink out of them.  We also got to see friends in Fort Worth and see another friend's coffee shop!  It was the most relaxing Thanksgiving in recent memory.

Murphy's Law Strikes Again

Scene:  I am washing dishes.  Adam is finishing lunch at the kitchen table.  A heavy dish slips from my hands and onto a fragile glass.

"Ahhhh!" I yelp.  Adam looks up from his plate, obviously more annoyed than concerned.

"What?" he says.  Sensing his annoyance, I retort,

"You don't care!  You just want me to stop screaming!"  A grin breaks out across Adam's face.

"You're right," he says.  "I don't like it when you scream."

"Guess what?" I taunt.

"What?"

"I'm really glad about that."

"Why?"

"Because it means that when we have kids...we'll have GIRLS!"

Texas Sunset

One evening in Texas, we followed the sun west into Fort Worth.  As they say, everything is bigger in Texas, especially the sunset.  The land is so flat that you can see for miles, and the evening colors light up the sky in a way you aren't usually able to see in a more hilly part of the country.

Here is the Fort Worth skyline against the glow of the sky.

Black Friday

This will be the first Black Friday in at least three years that I will not be going to the mall... and I can't exactly say I'm sad about it. It's fun to be out and about before 10 am, but after that, it starts to feel like New Years in Times Square.  After 10am, people start showing up with their children, their grandmothers and their visiting relatives from Montana.  I don't mind ripping a $500 dress that's on sale for $14 out of the hands of a teenybopper, but knocking Great Aunt Betty down the Macy's escalator?  That's not fair play.

Besides, discounts on Black Friday during a recession aren't that great, anyway.   Last year when we ventured out to a mall in Connecticut, the deepest discounts we saw were 30 and 40%.  I tell you what, I'm not getting out of bed at 5 am if it isn't at least for a 50% discount.  Luckily, this year, I don't have to.

We Got Hosed

Instead of falling asleep in a tryptophan-induced haze in front of the football game, watch this more realistic version of a Thanksgiving play.  I guess not having smallpox is something to be thankful for.

Be Safe!

Adam and I have been in Texas since Sunday, and it seems like this week is whizzing by!  It's funny; when you go on "vacation" to see family and friends, you end up being even more wiped out than you thought you would be. Instead of time standing still so you can spend quality time with those you love; time goes speeding by like a runaway train that's caught on fire and then plunges off the track and into a deep canyon.   Minus the screaming and the death.

Speaking of death, Adam and I have been driving around the Dallas-Fort Worth area and we've noticed that the traffic has been, shall we say, a little harrowing for us yokel North Carolinians.  I refuse to drive, and instead, I take on the very difficult and most serious job of "Back Seat Driver."  It is my sworn duty to scream, "OHMYGOSHSTOPSTOPSTOP!!!" and "AAAAHHHH WE'RE GONNA DIEEE!!!!" whenever I see impending doom.  Adam is of course immensely appreciative of my services.

While driving in rush hour traffic yesterday evening, and witnessing the lack of turn signal usage, several cars cutting across 3 lanes of traffic, many people cutting others off, and many other dangerous driving activities, I said,
"These people are crazy!  They make me feel like a grandma!"
"What do you mean?" Adam said.
"I just want to sit them all down and tell them that they're making irresponsible driving choices that could affect other people's well-beings."

So if you're in the Metroplex and you see a young woman in the passengers seat, wagging her finger at the traffic while her stressed out husband wisely bites his tongue and tightly grips the steering wheel, don't mind us.  It's just the traffic.