Thanksgiving Weekend
So, as previously noted, my parents came down for Thanksgiving. After perusing the various possibilities in the area, we ended up at Ryan's for their buffet, rather than someplace pricier. There's actually a bit of a history here, since my younger brother worked at Ryan's while in college, and often didn't get Thanksgiving off, so we drove a couple hours to eat at the Ryan's where he worked for several Thanksgivings. It's something of an amusing family tradition at this point, so we went.
Of course, me being me, I still cooked for dinner. I figured that the menu had gone well the last time I'd had friends over, so I did the same thing--ham in the crock pot with Woodchuck Autumn Cider and sauteed brussels sprouts on the side. I was going to fix rice for a starch, but Mom insisted on fixing mashed potatoes, and I wasn't going to stand in her way. (It was a good test of my kitchen, since she was mashing potatoes while I was cooking the sprouts and the crock pot was on another counter.) I'd fixed a no-bake pumpkin cheesecake for dessert.
Interestingly, on a tangent, a friend of mine and I had had a discussion just last week regarding mashed potatoes. He'd grown up on instant, so he dislikes really smooth mashed potatoes and preferred the "country" style, with bits of skin and lumps of potatoes. I grew up with homemade perfectly smooth potatoes--which is what I got yesterday--so I prefer smooth. Just a matter of taste, really.
The parents ended up going back up yesterday evening, though I think Mom wanted to spend the night. She'd brought a bag and everything, but Dad decided to head on back. I think he didn't want to have to leave when I left for work this morning, though I'd have to point out that they'd've been leaving almost 2 hours later than they left their place to come down, and I had plenty of sleeping space. Ah, well. Maybe next time. Mom did find the couch comfortable enough for an afternoon nap.
About 5 minutes after they'd left, my younger brother called me over Video Kinect to chat. He was hoping to get them before they left, or before they settled down to bed if they were staying, so he'd called as soon as his family got home from Thanksgiving at his sister-in-law's. I called the 'rents on my cellphone, put them on speaker, and we all chatted. (They had Mom's cellphone on speaker through the Bluetooth hookup in the car.) It was kinda neat; it was the first time I'd used the Kinect just to video chat.
Today, after the annoying time in the office, I've mostly been doing some dishes and starting to pull out the Christmas decorations. It's nice to have some of the Christmas decorations out, and seeing where they best go in the new place. One of the garlands that used to go on the balcony railing at my apartment is now on the stair-rail, and I suspect the longer one will end up (after the intermittent showers end) on the patio gate. I need to get more LED candles for the windows, and some LED solar-powered lights for the patio. I may end up with multiple Christmas trees--probably not this year, but maybe next.
I haven't done any shopping this Black Friday, since none of the ads really turned me on. (When we stopped to get potatoes on the way home from lunch, we grabbed a paper simply for the ads. It was an amusing way to whittle away yesterday afternoon, but enh. Nothing really grabbed me.) I did a little shopping online, getting presents for my mother, younger brother, and a little something for myself, since I hadn't picked up The Dark Knight yet, and Amazon had a nice discount.
After the Hell that the rest of the week had been at the office, the past couple of days (ignoring the time in the office today) has been a breath of fresh air, a re-centering of the self, and a reminder of what's actually important. I'm thankful for my family, my friends, and good food; for the material blessings (the main reason I put up with the job I am growing to hate) and the spiritual ones; for enjoyable times solo and especially shared, whether it's a meal, a movie, a game, a LARP event, or whatever.
Of course, me being me, I still cooked for dinner. I figured that the menu had gone well the last time I'd had friends over, so I did the same thing--ham in the crock pot with Woodchuck Autumn Cider and sauteed brussels sprouts on the side. I was going to fix rice for a starch, but Mom insisted on fixing mashed potatoes, and I wasn't going to stand in her way. (It was a good test of my kitchen, since she was mashing potatoes while I was cooking the sprouts and the crock pot was on another counter.) I'd fixed a no-bake pumpkin cheesecake for dessert.
Interestingly, on a tangent, a friend of mine and I had had a discussion just last week regarding mashed potatoes. He'd grown up on instant, so he dislikes really smooth mashed potatoes and preferred the "country" style, with bits of skin and lumps of potatoes. I grew up with homemade perfectly smooth potatoes--which is what I got yesterday--so I prefer smooth. Just a matter of taste, really.
The parents ended up going back up yesterday evening, though I think Mom wanted to spend the night. She'd brought a bag and everything, but Dad decided to head on back. I think he didn't want to have to leave when I left for work this morning, though I'd have to point out that they'd've been leaving almost 2 hours later than they left their place to come down, and I had plenty of sleeping space. Ah, well. Maybe next time. Mom did find the couch comfortable enough for an afternoon nap.
About 5 minutes after they'd left, my younger brother called me over Video Kinect to chat. He was hoping to get them before they left, or before they settled down to bed if they were staying, so he'd called as soon as his family got home from Thanksgiving at his sister-in-law's. I called the 'rents on my cellphone, put them on speaker, and we all chatted. (They had Mom's cellphone on speaker through the Bluetooth hookup in the car.) It was kinda neat; it was the first time I'd used the Kinect just to video chat.
Today, after the annoying time in the office, I've mostly been doing some dishes and starting to pull out the Christmas decorations. It's nice to have some of the Christmas decorations out, and seeing where they best go in the new place. One of the garlands that used to go on the balcony railing at my apartment is now on the stair-rail, and I suspect the longer one will end up (after the intermittent showers end) on the patio gate. I need to get more LED candles for the windows, and some LED solar-powered lights for the patio. I may end up with multiple Christmas trees--probably not this year, but maybe next.
I haven't done any shopping this Black Friday, since none of the ads really turned me on. (When we stopped to get potatoes on the way home from lunch, we grabbed a paper simply for the ads. It was an amusing way to whittle away yesterday afternoon, but enh. Nothing really grabbed me.) I did a little shopping online, getting presents for my mother, younger brother, and a little something for myself, since I hadn't picked up The Dark Knight yet, and Amazon had a nice discount.
After the Hell that the rest of the week had been at the office, the past couple of days (ignoring the time in the office today) has been a breath of fresh air, a re-centering of the self, and a reminder of what's actually important. I'm thankful for my family, my friends, and good food; for the material blessings (the main reason I put up with the job I am growing to hate) and the spiritual ones; for enjoyable times solo and especially shared, whether it's a meal, a movie, a game, a LARP event, or whatever.