Casting Gifts to the Wind
I woke up this morning around 7:30 (8 by my bedroom clock). When this happens I am usually faced with the dilemma of going back to bed or staying up and getting more things done in the day. Normally I choose to go back to bed anyway. This morning I stayed up and got ready for the day. Because we were having our Christmas party with friends today I spent extra time getting ready and felt really in the Christmas spirit when I was done. ^_^
Breakfast
Since I was up so early I decided I would take the kids out to breakfast again. This does not mean we left early by any means. -_- I probably spent an hour on the computer going through Gaia and doing various things.
Ingrid called during that time to tell me that she was going to pick up the bread for me that she had promised. She arrived a short while later with some bread from Safeway. Apparently she had forgotten about getting it from work and picked up a substitute for us. I guess I should have reminded her sooner than yesterday. That's ok though because the bread was good. :D
Around 10:15 my daughter had finished with her shower but my son wasn't up yet. So I got him up and told him to get ready without the shower so we could get going. By 10:30 we were on our way.
I asked my son if he wanted to drive but he said no so I drove us to McDs. I am not thrilled with how frequently we have been visiting this place but they do have good breakfast so I will let it pass for now.
Breakfast was good and filling. I am starting to think we need to cut back though because we had a lot of food for three people. -_- I do enjoy the time spent with my kids though. Naturally the conversation included the subject of Dead Rising. I don't think we can go through an entire meal without that game coming at least once :D
Around 11:15 we headed back to the house. I noted that not many people were in there for lunch yet and I was surprised. Looking out over the parking lot at Wal Mart it was FULL! I expected more people to want lunch. Perhaps McDs is not on the menu. ^_^
Heading Out
Bo was still sleeping when we got back and I let him sleep some more. There was no rush to wake him yet so I just let it be. I spent time organizing what needed to go and making sure all the gifts going with me were wrapped and ready.
He actually woke up on his own somewhere around 12:30. This was also right about the time that Dustin called to see what the plan was. I told him we would be ready to go probably around 1:30 and I would try to call him before we headed out.
We got things organized and packed in the car which took a while. We were finally ready to leave around 1:15. We headed out, got gas and headed to my grandma's to pick up the fondue pot and forks she let me borrow. I talked with her briefly about our plans for the next two days and then headed out on our way.
Our next stop was to pick up Dustin at Gran's. He wasn't finished getting ready to go so we visited for a while before leaving. He had forgotten his gifts at my house from the night before so we dropped those off as well as his left over dinner that he had put in our fridge. He showed off his figured of John Lennon in New York and Edgar Allen Poe to Ellen and Gran who both thought they were nice. ^_^
One other thing I noticed before we headed out was just how many stockings are hanging on the walls there. I know his family is huge. I was at gran's 55th wedding anniversary. Still it always seems to surprise me when I see things like the stockings not only hung by and over the fire place but all around the living room and filling the dinning room back wall as well. That's one heck of an extended family.
We got back on our way around 2pm. I changed over the music so we could listen to "Cast Your Pod to the Wind" by TMBG. I hadn't gotten to this one yet and wanted to hear it. Naturally we didn't get far before we had to stop again. I forgot that we were going to charge the batteries for the Christmas Lights in my car while we drove. They run off re-chargeable batteries and I could tell they were running low. Amway Bo had to get the charger out of the trunk before we could continue.
Once we were back on the road again it was a pretty smooth and uneventful drive. We talked about a number of things. Bo stayed out of the conversation for the most part opting instead to play his games and listen to the album.
Costco
Our first stop in town would be Costco. For some reason I thought we had to take Walker to get there but only after I took the exit for 217 did I realize that I probably should have just gone down to Cornell for this one. -_- Thankfully the traffic wasn't bad and it wasn't much of a detour to go the direction I choose.
As probably should have been predicted the parking lot was pretty full. I had to circle at least once all the way around before finding a spot. I am not picky about this though so being out at the end is no big deal for me.
We headed inside and Dustin had to make a detour. Bo and I continued on to pick up the one thing on our list. This never stops me from deviating though. I ended up getting a gallon of Eggnog before I finally found the butter for my grandma. _~_
With the items in hand we headed back to the front. There must have been a lot of Asian women there today because Dustin was pointing them out all over. As he put it, it wasn't like the Target incident, but it was pretty close. Some time after we got in line to check out Bo disappeared. My guess was that he headed to the restroom. I hate it when I suddenly realized he left like that. After paying for our items it was my turn for the bathrooms.
Uwajimaya/Kinokunia
Once we were all set we headed out. The next stop would be Uwajimaya's and Kinokunia's. I discovered while trying to get out of the parking lot that as long as I want to go to the right I can actually exit the parking lot by 153rd. This turned out to be perfect because I didn't have to fight the traffic in front of the store which can be really hard to get through. This exit wasn't always there though. I believe this is what they were adding the last time we came and were not able to get through this entrance. It's a nice addition. ^_^
Well our course really needed to be Walker road but Jenkins was close enough and we could get to Walker down Murray. So we headed that direction and were quickly on our way to the next store.
As we got closer to Uwajimaya's Dustin remarked on the store windows at Fantasy Video having some kind of display. They weren't lit but they were still there. We had told him about it from our last visit to the area. It's kind of disturbing in my opinion but at least It's not too over the top. That is except for the mannequin guy in chains and leather. O_o I wish someone had had a camera. Mostly so I could show people like Erik who I think would get a kick out of it all. ^_^
In the store we headed to the book store first. I found the books I was looking for as well as volumes 10 and 11 of Host Club in Japanese (I just can't wait sometimes). ^_^ Before I found anything else to spend my money on we headed out. ^_^ I stopped by the beverages area in Uwajimaya's to see if they had anymore of the green apple soda but they did not. It's made by a company called "Elyshia" and is AWESEOME stuff. I also like the Star fruit and Lychee flavors.
On to the Party
After making a small detour to the candy section we were again on our way. Partly for the heck of it and partly because we take that way to leave the parking lot anyway, we drove by the Fantasy Video store. Dustin laughed pretty hard at the mannequin I mentioned previously. It's a sight that can only be seen, not really adequately described.
I was sure it was going to be trouble getting on to 217 because they were metering traffic but it turned out that was probably just a precaution to keep traffic jams to a minimum. We were on the highway in no time and back off it just as fast.
Dustin had mentioned previously that he wanted to pick up a drink from Starbucks. I had forgotten that we were going to stop at the one in Albertson's so I had to quickly detour out of the turn lane I was in and go to the next light to get back on track. Bo and I waited in the car while Dustin picked up his equivalent of crack. :D
Arrival
I was surprised to see that even though we arrived around 5pm I was still able to park in the driveway of Tom's house. Only Alan and Don had arrived before us, which was also surprising.
We unloaded the Coca Cola cooler and all the items we brought with us then relaxed and conversed. I was a little disappointed to find that Tom hadn't bought a tree this year but came prepared any way with a small LED tree (white with blue lights) to display on the table or somewhere in the area.
We set up the coke cooler and so far people were impressed with the replicas of vintage coke bottles that I had bought for everyone to drink out of. Tom also had some soda which he brought out of the garage where it had been chilling.
I went over what we had and what we might possibly need for the fondue and we started a list. Ultimately we would be waiting until everyone arrived though so that we would have a clearer idea of what was needed.
James arrived next followed by Chris and Valeska. I was overjoyed to find that Valeska had also opted out of the gift exchange and brought gifts for as many people as she could find gifts for. Even better she had the same reason's I did (feeling that it's too impersonal and we want to be able to put thought into our gifts). ^_^
Alan showed off his new Zune to me at one point as I walked through the living room. I told him I had been considering the Zune after looking at it in the store once. He was thrilled because it has a metal backing much like my DJ. ^_^ We conversed about it's features for quite a while.
Trish, Dan, Heather and Trish's husband arrived a little while later. Trish came loaded with stuff so we sorted through what she brought. She had vegis, chocolate, oil, broth, teriyaki chicken, Steak, chicken, Starfuit, bananas, peaches, marshmallows (covered in coco powder), rice crispy treats and her own fondue pot. Talk about a spread! We were really left with very little to get at the store.
Heather arrived with a new D40 in hand and began by taking many pictures. ^_^
Heading to the Store
There were still a few things to get at the store. Cheese for the fondue was the biggest item. Chocolate was also on the list because Trish had brought chocolate with almonds which would have left me out of chocolate fondue completely. I know it's kind of selfish but if we have to leave the alcohol out of the cheese fondue for one person then I think it's ok to ask for the almonds to be left out as well. Besides if someone wants them then they can always ad them. Taking them out doesn't work that way, especially in a fondue situation. I don't think this made Trish very happy but I am glad she didn't protest. I didn't want to make a big deal out of it but no one seems to understand my aversion to nuts.
Tom, Valeska and I headed out to the store. We took my car because it was parked where I could get out of the driveway easily. Tom and Valeska both liked the Christmas lights in my back window. ^_^ Valeska pointed out that police aren't so tolerant of that in Oregon but I was willing to take my chances. Besides my license plates clearly state that I'm not from this state. As it turned out we had not problems over the entire trip.
At the store Valeska headed straight for the fruit section and picked out two cartons of strawberries. I hadn't even thought about the fact that they were missing from the selection but Valeska was on top of it and I'm glad she was. ^_^
Next up was the chocolate so we headed over to the baking section. Just as we turned the corner I noticed some silicone spatulas that were only $2 each. I promptly picked up two for my grandma for Christmas. ^_^ As I was pulling them off the rack who should come around the corner but Dan. He had taken his own vehicle and met us at the store.
We picked up the chocolate, some cheese soup, Velveeta to go in the cheese soup and (at Dan's insistence) more shrimp. After that we headed up front to pay. Dan was practically charging to the counter so we nearly had to run to keep up. I know this was partly to pay for the entirety of the order but still! I just managed to grab my spatulas out of the cart before he paid for them. Valeska also grabbed a few things before he could pay for it all. ^_^
I was still paying (for two items mind you) and Dan had already disappeared! I figured he had headed back to the house already. I mistakenly made the comment that he was heading back quickly to get my parking spot. Sometimes I really should just keep that stuff in my head. I can't say I wasn't worried about it, that's just who I am. But I didn't need to announce that. _~_ Anyway that only made me look bad like it was some kind of competition or something. As if karma just wanted me to look worse Dan reappeared with ice in hand that he had purchased. She was just off picking up the rest of the groceries. -_- Oh well, can't do anything about that now.
After paying for our items we headed back to the car. In my obsession to getting back to the house I decided I was going to back out of the parking lot to the left (it was a 45 degree slanted parking to the right) and head straight out. Well Tom caught me on it and insisted I go the other way. I was embarrassed but complied. These are times when I wish Bo was with me because I would have felt better knowing there was someone in the car who at least knew why I was acting like I was (and who wouldn't make me feel like I am over obsessing). -_- In the end I needed to get over it anyway. Sadly also because of all this I wasn't listening to what Tom was talking about. I had to go over in my head what I had actually hear to try and catch up to the conversation.
When we got back to the house a few minutes later my fears were quelled and I saw that Dan was not actually after my parking spot. I know it's stupid but I still can't help myself sometimes. -_-
Dinner Prep
Once back inside we set to prepping dinner. Trish had made good use of the time we were gone and gotten a lot of the food that was already there prepped. Valeska and I started on the cheese fondue using Valeska's pot and I got the oil into the pot I brought. I realized we hadn't thought to pick up any garlic while we were at the store so we had to come up with something else to add. Trish also pointed out that we had forgotten the pound cake. In our defense she only mentioned that she had forgotten it (not requested that we pick some up… at least not to me), but we still should have thought to get it at the store.
Ultimately we solved the cheese fondue problem by using garlic powder. I helped with cutting up the Velveeta then decided I should probably work on the chocolate fondue using Trish's pot. I was using a plastic spatula which was probably the worst choice I could make. I wasn't so sure it wasn't melting on the bottom of the pot and I was having a hard time keeping the chocolate melting properly. I also had been messing with the temperatures because I wasn't quite sure which to set it at. When I decide to switch out the spatula with a wooden spoon I turned down the heat but it wasn't enough. By the time I returned it had started to burn. Yeah and it was a complete loss. -_-
Longer story short I had to throw out the entire two packages of chocolate chips that we had picked up and clean up the pot. Valeska offered to go to the store to pick up more chocolate (thankfully no one suggested the chocolate bars with almonds) and pick up pound cake as well. Meanwhile I busied myself with prepping more food for dinner.
I asked Trish what I could do to help and she handed me a tray and told me to put the meat on it. Ok so I would have been fine with complying if it weren't for one thing. One of the meat choices was teriyaki chicken. I know it was me being me again but food should never mix like that. So ultimately I decided it was better to keep the meats (which had lots of juices) in their respective bowls and put the vegetables on the tray instead. I am sure this did not make Trish any happier than my last comment or burning the chocolate but I think it really worked out better in the end. The vegis were easily consolidated on to the tray and the meats were available on the end of the table with the oil close at hand.
After finishing the vegi tray (which someone commented was really nicely put together like it was fancy ^_^) I moved on to the meats. Most of them were already done but a few things needed to be fixed up. I put the chicken into bowls (they were in zip log bags). I also consolidated all the steak into one bowl. Then I moved on to the shrimp.
Dan had picked up two more kinds of shrimp from the market both of which were mostly frozen. So to thaw them I had to run the water hot over them in a colander. I started with the big shrimp and pulled the tails off while I defrosted/cleaned them. What I didn't think about was the temp of the water. I left it on the hot side but shut it off to conserve water at one point. Tom came in to wash his hands and without thinking just turned it on. Well you can see where this is going, he burned his hand. So I am just batting for zero at this point, trying to be helpful but only causing trouble in my wake instead. -_- I apologized profusely and went back to washing the shrimp, this time with the temp down lower.
Dinner
After all the prep was finally finished people began eating. This year I opted to wait until people had cycled through a bit before jumping into the fray. That and I had already sampled things along the way as we were trying out different things like the cheese and chocolate.
At some point in the night Alan had suggested that I save a Coke bottle, clean it out and re-use it by filling it with soda for myself. So when Bo finished his soda I had him rinse it out for me and I used that for the rest of the night. It was nice to be able to participate in something where I wouldn't normally be able to. It was also nice to see so many people enjoying the bottles. I think they were a little afraid to try them at first because of the novelty of the bottles. Eventually people got to trying them. Even people like Dustin and Trish's husband who wouldn't normally drink the Coke.
Dinner was nothing short of GOOD! I didn't get a whole lot of meat but that was fine with me. Some shrimp, cocktail wienies and steak were enough for me. I stuck to the cheese and chocolate most.
Trish cut up some of the harder bread to use in the cheese fondue (Ingrid had picked up some hard rolls and soft ones). I grabbed one of the soft ones for myself because the hard bread would hurt my tooth and the gums around it. Again I don't think she was too happy but I didn't cut it up for everyone, only myself this time.
I put items on my plate then covered them in cheese or chocolate (having one plate for each mind you). It turned out to be the best way and I was able to stay out of the way of people making dinner. I just relaxed in the corner at the breakfast counter eating my food and watching others enjoy the food.
Tom came over to talk with me for a while which was nice but I spent a good portion of dinner talking across the table at Dustin or Valeska. At one point Dustin was done and going to move into the living room to talk with Bo. I remembered something my son had said earlier in the day pertaining to Dustin and wanted to tell him before I forgot. Unfortunately at that point he wasn't able to make it over to me so I could tell him. I was going to flip him off but instead decided to sign something to him we haven't done in years. It skillfully required no one else to be looking which I am completely surprised I got away with! It made him laugh so hard and he said it would have been funny if that girl from Pokey Jo's had been there to see it too! :D
A few minutes later I noticed he had managed to maneuver closer and was able to whisper what I wanted to tell him. Naturally it cracked him up, too. He wandered back to sitting in the Papasan chair in the front room.
Valeska came by to visit with me and we conversed for a while more. At one point she asked me why she wasn't able to focus on my toes. I laughed because I knew exactly what she was talking about. Because of the shoes I was wearing for the day I was not able to wear socks. I didn't want to go barefoot either so I had knee highs on under my jeans. ^_^
After Dinner
I finished up dinner and was feeling a little tired. Part of this was because I had been sitting by the fondue pots most of the night so far and it was hot in that area. I also noticed there were a LOT of people upstairs making the room kind of stuffy. It wasn't helped by the fact that I was actually getting tired.
Tom noticed and suggested opening a window. I told him that was fine that I would just step outside for a minute to cool off and be fine. Then he suggested going downstairs instead. So I grabbed my bottle of soda and headed to sit down stairs for a while. He was right it was definitely cooler! I felt a lot better almost right away. He sat down in one of the reclining chairs and I got to sit in the other one (something that rarely happens for me). I was probably too vocal about this too. I commented on how nice it was to sit down in a comfortable chair. -_- Anyway we talked for a while just the two of us. I talked about how my grandma was doing and other subjects.
Soon Don joined us down stairs as well as Dan. I suddenly remembered that I had wanted to look at Tom's art book for the movie Tokikake (the Girl Who Leapt Through Time) and he found it for me to look over. ^_^ I really like the book and might have to pick one up for myself at the convention in March. I had just finished the book when one of my coughing fits started to take hold. I tried to quell it with the rest of my soda but ultimately I knew I was just going to have to go back up stairs and get water. I held it down long enough to give Tom the book back then I grabbed my soda bottle and headed back up stairs. I was going to come back down stairs when I was done but ultimately stayed upstairs.
Casting Gifts
Every one seemed to be done with dinner for the most part and I decided it was getting close to gift giving time. I asked Valeska (who was sitting in the red chair in the living room) when she wanted to give her's out and she wasn't sure. So I just took a chance and lead the way. I gave Valeska her gift first.
I decided that to make the moments more memorable I would wait until each person had opened their gift before going on to the next one. Valeska liked the necklace from KH that I gave her. I told her I got it at Small World Surprise so she could see the others if she wanted. It was Sora's Keyblade but a different version than the first.
Next I decided to give James his gift. James was thrilled to get the Transformers ornaments of Optimums Prime that Bo and I had chosen.
Next I gave my gift to Chris to open. Valeska started to take the cue and got out her own gifts. She handed mine to me but I wanted to wait until Chris had opened his before getting to mine. For Chris we got a Wiimote keychain and I put it in a small Wii tin. ^_^ He liked both! :D
I then opened Valeska's gift to me. On top was a gift she said she had from last year. It is a stuffed Robin from One Piece that comes with a little cardboard thing behind to emulate their devil fruit powers. ^_^ I opened the wrapped part of the gift. I got a model of Nausicaa on her glider. I love it and can't wait to assemble it. ^_^
I had given Alan his gift as well but he was busy with a French Press he brought over to show every one and didn't open his right away. Eventually I gave up trying to wait and gave Tom his gift next.
Tom wasn't quite ready to take it so I waited patiently and then handed it to him. He was surprised at how heavy it was and that made me smile. I joked that I got him bricks. ^_^ Anyway he opened it to find the 6 jars of Blackberry jam that I made special for him. He was very excited about it and commented that he would be using it tomorrow morning for breakfast. ^_^
Valeska then put her gift for Alan below mine and we both waited for Alan to finish what he was doing and open them. I actually stopped him and asked him to open them while he was waiting for some water to heat up. He was very impressed with the deck of cards I had chosen (from the Fate Stay Night series). I also made sure he saw that there were two gifts. The second gift was an Air Freshener from the series Ah My Goddess.
After my gifts he moved on to opening Valeska's gift. She mentioned (while he was opening it) that she had wanted to get him a maid statue, but that Chris had said no because it was from a hentai show. I can see why Chris would say no to that. Alan was just amused. Instead they got him two Stick Faa's. Which are pretty cool. ^_^
After Gifts
I sat down at the table after the gifts had been distributed. Apparently it was around this time that people who were participating in the gift exchange headed downstairs. Valeska was knitting to my right. I was sitting in the chair by the coat rack, Bo was on my left and Dustin at the other end of the table. Alan was finishing up the French Press demo for people.
I don't know how I had any room but I snacked on a few tortillas and some more of the left over strawberries. ^_^ We were conversing for a while when people started coming back upstairs from the gift exchange. Heather had received a nice Transformers Monopoly game. Tom had received a Transformer's art book. I don't know what everyone else got.
A little while later Tom came over and set a gift in front of me. Now before I go on I want to say that I had set the bar for this gathering pretty low. I was more than aware that I could easily walk away with nothing again this year and was fine with it. Most importantly I had not expected to get any gift from people who were in the gift exchange. So when Tom actually had something for me I was a more than a little surprised.
He made some comment about me being able to keep the tin if I wanted it. I unwrapped the gift to find a very nice tin with more gifts inside. I opened it to find Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends season 2 (YAY!) and a Pinky St. figure. The Pinky Street figure is the second edition paint of the one that was in the gift exchange last year. More than once I had considered buying it and passed it up. When I saw the repaints I liked the second paint better. I still never picked it up. I think in part I have Bo to thank for that because he convinced me not to pick it up just the weekend or two before citing my rule of not buying before Christmas.
I can tell you I don't think I could have been more surprised. I don't quite know what to say except that Tom must have read my mind. They were both just what I wanted! He even picked out the Pinky that I liked best. I didn't want to diminish the other gifts I had gotten, but these were definitely awesome! It would have been too hard not to smile big! :D
Thinking back now I probably should have picked up Season 2 for Tom and believe me I thought about it but I didn't want to take the chance that he had already picked it up for himself. It had been out for a while already (at least 4 weeks I think).
After that I took sometime and tried Tom's homemade cheesecake. I am not kidding when I say it was the best I have ever tasted. Damn that was good cheesecake…no really! I was going to originally top it with chocolate but opted just to enjoy it as it was instead. I am actually surprised I was able to eat it all. Dinner had been pretty filling, though I guess I didn't have too much meat and such so that probably contributed to me being able to eat more later.
Winding Down
I eventually moved over to relax in the Papasan chair myself for a while. It's nice to be able to sit in a chair like those. It makes me wish mine wasn't broken. -_- Anyway, while I was sitting there I got into a conversation about travels and places visited. Tom said he had no interest in Hawaii. Valeska and I talked about how much we had both enjoyed it. We conversed for a while talking about places we had been. Valeska mentioned Hawaii, Baltamore (for Odacon) and the Grand Canyon. ^_^
While we were talking about trips we have taken and would like to take Trish and her family decided to head out. Don also took off sometime after Trish left and during out conversation about travels. The next to leave was Dan. I was fading as well but not ready to head out just yet. I did call Bo over to have him help me by cleaning up the fondue pot and forks for me.
Eventually I got up to help with cleaning up the items that were mine in the kitchen. I realized that a lot more was going to need to be done before we could go so I got to helping out. One thing that needed to be done was draining out the cooler. I noticed that only 2 bottled sodas were left. I felt good about that because I was worried that no one would really feel they could drink out of them. I also gathered up all the bottles and put them in a bag so we could transport them home.
While I was working on cleaning up my part of things Chris and Valeska decided it was time to head out. I thanked Valeska for her help with dinner and for her gifts. I will truly enjoy putting the Nausicaa model together. ^_^
Stragglers
There were still people left around mid night. Only Dustin, Bo, Tom, Alan and James were left (besides me). I know we should have been out of there faster but I just couldn't get motivated to move. I was just beat and nearly sleeping on the kitchen window ledge thing in Tom's kitchen. Still we kept on talking.
I kept trying to move out the door. Little by little I got closer to leaving. Tom was mostly asleep and had been this way for at least two hours by now. We really should have left sooner. By 12:45 we were finally pushing the last of our stuff out the door. Alan and James were also leaving. As we headed out the door with the last of our stuff I gave Tom a hug and thanked him for everything.
Heading Home
Bo was driving home so I grabbed the blanket and pillow out of the back and settled down in the front seat. Dustin sat behind Bo so we were able to talk on the way home (a little) and I was able to recline. He commented somewhere around Portland proper that he hates the drive back home (our town not his). He drives it every week and is tired of it. I told him to relax and enjoy this one because he wasn't driving. I feel for him though. I know how much I hate some drives (especially ones that take me near work or head me back home after a relaxing week away). To top it off he isn't able to relax and rest as well as some people and I think that makes it worse.
I tried to sleep for the trip home but didn't get much accomplished. I did sleep between Vancouver and home but it was a restless sleep. To defrost the windows we had to have the heat all the way up. Well I turned it down when that was finished but it still remained hot in the car. This made for a restless and uncomfortable sleep.
We dropped Dustin off first and I said good bye the best I could while still being out of it. He said he had a good time and then headed in the house. I rested again in the car until we got home. I wanted to go straight to bed but ended up watching some of Scrubs before doing so. It was 4am by the time my head hit the pillow. -_-
Breakfast
Since I was up so early I decided I would take the kids out to breakfast again. This does not mean we left early by any means. -_- I probably spent an hour on the computer going through Gaia and doing various things.
Ingrid called during that time to tell me that she was going to pick up the bread for me that she had promised. She arrived a short while later with some bread from Safeway. Apparently she had forgotten about getting it from work and picked up a substitute for us. I guess I should have reminded her sooner than yesterday. That's ok though because the bread was good. :D
Around 10:15 my daughter had finished with her shower but my son wasn't up yet. So I got him up and told him to get ready without the shower so we could get going. By 10:30 we were on our way.
I asked my son if he wanted to drive but he said no so I drove us to McDs. I am not thrilled with how frequently we have been visiting this place but they do have good breakfast so I will let it pass for now.
Breakfast was good and filling. I am starting to think we need to cut back though because we had a lot of food for three people. -_- I do enjoy the time spent with my kids though. Naturally the conversation included the subject of Dead Rising. I don't think we can go through an entire meal without that game coming at least once :D
Around 11:15 we headed back to the house. I noted that not many people were in there for lunch yet and I was surprised. Looking out over the parking lot at Wal Mart it was FULL! I expected more people to want lunch. Perhaps McDs is not on the menu. ^_^
Heading Out
Bo was still sleeping when we got back and I let him sleep some more. There was no rush to wake him yet so I just let it be. I spent time organizing what needed to go and making sure all the gifts going with me were wrapped and ready.
He actually woke up on his own somewhere around 12:30. This was also right about the time that Dustin called to see what the plan was. I told him we would be ready to go probably around 1:30 and I would try to call him before we headed out.
We got things organized and packed in the car which took a while. We were finally ready to leave around 1:15. We headed out, got gas and headed to my grandma's to pick up the fondue pot and forks she let me borrow. I talked with her briefly about our plans for the next two days and then headed out on our way.
Our next stop was to pick up Dustin at Gran's. He wasn't finished getting ready to go so we visited for a while before leaving. He had forgotten his gifts at my house from the night before so we dropped those off as well as his left over dinner that he had put in our fridge. He showed off his figured of John Lennon in New York and Edgar Allen Poe to Ellen and Gran who both thought they were nice. ^_^
One other thing I noticed before we headed out was just how many stockings are hanging on the walls there. I know his family is huge. I was at gran's 55th wedding anniversary. Still it always seems to surprise me when I see things like the stockings not only hung by and over the fire place but all around the living room and filling the dinning room back wall as well. That's one heck of an extended family.
We got back on our way around 2pm. I changed over the music so we could listen to "Cast Your Pod to the Wind" by TMBG. I hadn't gotten to this one yet and wanted to hear it. Naturally we didn't get far before we had to stop again. I forgot that we were going to charge the batteries for the Christmas Lights in my car while we drove. They run off re-chargeable batteries and I could tell they were running low. Amway Bo had to get the charger out of the trunk before we could continue.
Once we were back on the road again it was a pretty smooth and uneventful drive. We talked about a number of things. Bo stayed out of the conversation for the most part opting instead to play his games and listen to the album.
Costco
Our first stop in town would be Costco. For some reason I thought we had to take Walker to get there but only after I took the exit for 217 did I realize that I probably should have just gone down to Cornell for this one. -_- Thankfully the traffic wasn't bad and it wasn't much of a detour to go the direction I choose.
As probably should have been predicted the parking lot was pretty full. I had to circle at least once all the way around before finding a spot. I am not picky about this though so being out at the end is no big deal for me.
We headed inside and Dustin had to make a detour. Bo and I continued on to pick up the one thing on our list. This never stops me from deviating though. I ended up getting a gallon of Eggnog before I finally found the butter for my grandma. _~_
With the items in hand we headed back to the front. There must have been a lot of Asian women there today because Dustin was pointing them out all over. As he put it, it wasn't like the Target incident, but it was pretty close. Some time after we got in line to check out Bo disappeared. My guess was that he headed to the restroom. I hate it when I suddenly realized he left like that. After paying for our items it was my turn for the bathrooms.
Uwajimaya/Kinokunia
Once we were all set we headed out. The next stop would be Uwajimaya's and Kinokunia's. I discovered while trying to get out of the parking lot that as long as I want to go to the right I can actually exit the parking lot by 153rd. This turned out to be perfect because I didn't have to fight the traffic in front of the store which can be really hard to get through. This exit wasn't always there though. I believe this is what they were adding the last time we came and were not able to get through this entrance. It's a nice addition. ^_^
Well our course really needed to be Walker road but Jenkins was close enough and we could get to Walker down Murray. So we headed that direction and were quickly on our way to the next store.
As we got closer to Uwajimaya's Dustin remarked on the store windows at Fantasy Video having some kind of display. They weren't lit but they were still there. We had told him about it from our last visit to the area. It's kind of disturbing in my opinion but at least It's not too over the top. That is except for the mannequin guy in chains and leather. O_o I wish someone had had a camera. Mostly so I could show people like Erik who I think would get a kick out of it all. ^_^
In the store we headed to the book store first. I found the books I was looking for as well as volumes 10 and 11 of Host Club in Japanese (I just can't wait sometimes). ^_^ Before I found anything else to spend my money on we headed out. ^_^ I stopped by the beverages area in Uwajimaya's to see if they had anymore of the green apple soda but they did not. It's made by a company called "Elyshia" and is AWESEOME stuff. I also like the Star fruit and Lychee flavors.
On to the Party
After making a small detour to the candy section we were again on our way. Partly for the heck of it and partly because we take that way to leave the parking lot anyway, we drove by the Fantasy Video store. Dustin laughed pretty hard at the mannequin I mentioned previously. It's a sight that can only be seen, not really adequately described.
I was sure it was going to be trouble getting on to 217 because they were metering traffic but it turned out that was probably just a precaution to keep traffic jams to a minimum. We were on the highway in no time and back off it just as fast.
Dustin had mentioned previously that he wanted to pick up a drink from Starbucks. I had forgotten that we were going to stop at the one in Albertson's so I had to quickly detour out of the turn lane I was in and go to the next light to get back on track. Bo and I waited in the car while Dustin picked up his equivalent of crack. :D
Arrival
I was surprised to see that even though we arrived around 5pm I was still able to park in the driveway of Tom's house. Only Alan and Don had arrived before us, which was also surprising.
We unloaded the Coca Cola cooler and all the items we brought with us then relaxed and conversed. I was a little disappointed to find that Tom hadn't bought a tree this year but came prepared any way with a small LED tree (white with blue lights) to display on the table or somewhere in the area.
We set up the coke cooler and so far people were impressed with the replicas of vintage coke bottles that I had bought for everyone to drink out of. Tom also had some soda which he brought out of the garage where it had been chilling.
I went over what we had and what we might possibly need for the fondue and we started a list. Ultimately we would be waiting until everyone arrived though so that we would have a clearer idea of what was needed.
James arrived next followed by Chris and Valeska. I was overjoyed to find that Valeska had also opted out of the gift exchange and brought gifts for as many people as she could find gifts for. Even better she had the same reason's I did (feeling that it's too impersonal and we want to be able to put thought into our gifts). ^_^
Alan showed off his new Zune to me at one point as I walked through the living room. I told him I had been considering the Zune after looking at it in the store once. He was thrilled because it has a metal backing much like my DJ. ^_^ We conversed about it's features for quite a while.
Trish, Dan, Heather and Trish's husband arrived a little while later. Trish came loaded with stuff so we sorted through what she brought. She had vegis, chocolate, oil, broth, teriyaki chicken, Steak, chicken, Starfuit, bananas, peaches, marshmallows (covered in coco powder), rice crispy treats and her own fondue pot. Talk about a spread! We were really left with very little to get at the store.
Heather arrived with a new D40 in hand and began by taking many pictures. ^_^
Heading to the Store
There were still a few things to get at the store. Cheese for the fondue was the biggest item. Chocolate was also on the list because Trish had brought chocolate with almonds which would have left me out of chocolate fondue completely. I know it's kind of selfish but if we have to leave the alcohol out of the cheese fondue for one person then I think it's ok to ask for the almonds to be left out as well. Besides if someone wants them then they can always ad them. Taking them out doesn't work that way, especially in a fondue situation. I don't think this made Trish very happy but I am glad she didn't protest. I didn't want to make a big deal out of it but no one seems to understand my aversion to nuts.
Tom, Valeska and I headed out to the store. We took my car because it was parked where I could get out of the driveway easily. Tom and Valeska both liked the Christmas lights in my back window. ^_^ Valeska pointed out that police aren't so tolerant of that in Oregon but I was willing to take my chances. Besides my license plates clearly state that I'm not from this state. As it turned out we had not problems over the entire trip.
At the store Valeska headed straight for the fruit section and picked out two cartons of strawberries. I hadn't even thought about the fact that they were missing from the selection but Valeska was on top of it and I'm glad she was. ^_^
Next up was the chocolate so we headed over to the baking section. Just as we turned the corner I noticed some silicone spatulas that were only $2 each. I promptly picked up two for my grandma for Christmas. ^_^ As I was pulling them off the rack who should come around the corner but Dan. He had taken his own vehicle and met us at the store.
We picked up the chocolate, some cheese soup, Velveeta to go in the cheese soup and (at Dan's insistence) more shrimp. After that we headed up front to pay. Dan was practically charging to the counter so we nearly had to run to keep up. I know this was partly to pay for the entirety of the order but still! I just managed to grab my spatulas out of the cart before he paid for them. Valeska also grabbed a few things before he could pay for it all. ^_^
I was still paying (for two items mind you) and Dan had already disappeared! I figured he had headed back to the house already. I mistakenly made the comment that he was heading back quickly to get my parking spot. Sometimes I really should just keep that stuff in my head. I can't say I wasn't worried about it, that's just who I am. But I didn't need to announce that. _~_ Anyway that only made me look bad like it was some kind of competition or something. As if karma just wanted me to look worse Dan reappeared with ice in hand that he had purchased. She was just off picking up the rest of the groceries. -_- Oh well, can't do anything about that now.
After paying for our items we headed back to the car. In my obsession to getting back to the house I decided I was going to back out of the parking lot to the left (it was a 45 degree slanted parking to the right) and head straight out. Well Tom caught me on it and insisted I go the other way. I was embarrassed but complied. These are times when I wish Bo was with me because I would have felt better knowing there was someone in the car who at least knew why I was acting like I was (and who wouldn't make me feel like I am over obsessing). -_- In the end I needed to get over it anyway. Sadly also because of all this I wasn't listening to what Tom was talking about. I had to go over in my head what I had actually hear to try and catch up to the conversation.
When we got back to the house a few minutes later my fears were quelled and I saw that Dan was not actually after my parking spot. I know it's stupid but I still can't help myself sometimes. -_-
Dinner Prep
Once back inside we set to prepping dinner. Trish had made good use of the time we were gone and gotten a lot of the food that was already there prepped. Valeska and I started on the cheese fondue using Valeska's pot and I got the oil into the pot I brought. I realized we hadn't thought to pick up any garlic while we were at the store so we had to come up with something else to add. Trish also pointed out that we had forgotten the pound cake. In our defense she only mentioned that she had forgotten it (not requested that we pick some up… at least not to me), but we still should have thought to get it at the store.
Ultimately we solved the cheese fondue problem by using garlic powder. I helped with cutting up the Velveeta then decided I should probably work on the chocolate fondue using Trish's pot. I was using a plastic spatula which was probably the worst choice I could make. I wasn't so sure it wasn't melting on the bottom of the pot and I was having a hard time keeping the chocolate melting properly. I also had been messing with the temperatures because I wasn't quite sure which to set it at. When I decide to switch out the spatula with a wooden spoon I turned down the heat but it wasn't enough. By the time I returned it had started to burn. Yeah and it was a complete loss. -_-
Longer story short I had to throw out the entire two packages of chocolate chips that we had picked up and clean up the pot. Valeska offered to go to the store to pick up more chocolate (thankfully no one suggested the chocolate bars with almonds) and pick up pound cake as well. Meanwhile I busied myself with prepping more food for dinner.
I asked Trish what I could do to help and she handed me a tray and told me to put the meat on it. Ok so I would have been fine with complying if it weren't for one thing. One of the meat choices was teriyaki chicken. I know it was me being me again but food should never mix like that. So ultimately I decided it was better to keep the meats (which had lots of juices) in their respective bowls and put the vegetables on the tray instead. I am sure this did not make Trish any happier than my last comment or burning the chocolate but I think it really worked out better in the end. The vegis were easily consolidated on to the tray and the meats were available on the end of the table with the oil close at hand.
After finishing the vegi tray (which someone commented was really nicely put together like it was fancy ^_^) I moved on to the meats. Most of them were already done but a few things needed to be fixed up. I put the chicken into bowls (they were in zip log bags). I also consolidated all the steak into one bowl. Then I moved on to the shrimp.
Dan had picked up two more kinds of shrimp from the market both of which were mostly frozen. So to thaw them I had to run the water hot over them in a colander. I started with the big shrimp and pulled the tails off while I defrosted/cleaned them. What I didn't think about was the temp of the water. I left it on the hot side but shut it off to conserve water at one point. Tom came in to wash his hands and without thinking just turned it on. Well you can see where this is going, he burned his hand. So I am just batting for zero at this point, trying to be helpful but only causing trouble in my wake instead. -_- I apologized profusely and went back to washing the shrimp, this time with the temp down lower.
Dinner
After all the prep was finally finished people began eating. This year I opted to wait until people had cycled through a bit before jumping into the fray. That and I had already sampled things along the way as we were trying out different things like the cheese and chocolate.
At some point in the night Alan had suggested that I save a Coke bottle, clean it out and re-use it by filling it with soda for myself. So when Bo finished his soda I had him rinse it out for me and I used that for the rest of the night. It was nice to be able to participate in something where I wouldn't normally be able to. It was also nice to see so many people enjoying the bottles. I think they were a little afraid to try them at first because of the novelty of the bottles. Eventually people got to trying them. Even people like Dustin and Trish's husband who wouldn't normally drink the Coke.
Dinner was nothing short of GOOD! I didn't get a whole lot of meat but that was fine with me. Some shrimp, cocktail wienies and steak were enough for me. I stuck to the cheese and chocolate most.
Trish cut up some of the harder bread to use in the cheese fondue (Ingrid had picked up some hard rolls and soft ones). I grabbed one of the soft ones for myself because the hard bread would hurt my tooth and the gums around it. Again I don't think she was too happy but I didn't cut it up for everyone, only myself this time.
I put items on my plate then covered them in cheese or chocolate (having one plate for each mind you). It turned out to be the best way and I was able to stay out of the way of people making dinner. I just relaxed in the corner at the breakfast counter eating my food and watching others enjoy the food.
Tom came over to talk with me for a while which was nice but I spent a good portion of dinner talking across the table at Dustin or Valeska. At one point Dustin was done and going to move into the living room to talk with Bo. I remembered something my son had said earlier in the day pertaining to Dustin and wanted to tell him before I forgot. Unfortunately at that point he wasn't able to make it over to me so I could tell him. I was going to flip him off but instead decided to sign something to him we haven't done in years. It skillfully required no one else to be looking which I am completely surprised I got away with! It made him laugh so hard and he said it would have been funny if that girl from Pokey Jo's had been there to see it too! :D
A few minutes later I noticed he had managed to maneuver closer and was able to whisper what I wanted to tell him. Naturally it cracked him up, too. He wandered back to sitting in the Papasan chair in the front room.
Valeska came by to visit with me and we conversed for a while more. At one point she asked me why she wasn't able to focus on my toes. I laughed because I knew exactly what she was talking about. Because of the shoes I was wearing for the day I was not able to wear socks. I didn't want to go barefoot either so I had knee highs on under my jeans. ^_^
After Dinner
I finished up dinner and was feeling a little tired. Part of this was because I had been sitting by the fondue pots most of the night so far and it was hot in that area. I also noticed there were a LOT of people upstairs making the room kind of stuffy. It wasn't helped by the fact that I was actually getting tired.
Tom noticed and suggested opening a window. I told him that was fine that I would just step outside for a minute to cool off and be fine. Then he suggested going downstairs instead. So I grabbed my bottle of soda and headed to sit down stairs for a while. He was right it was definitely cooler! I felt a lot better almost right away. He sat down in one of the reclining chairs and I got to sit in the other one (something that rarely happens for me). I was probably too vocal about this too. I commented on how nice it was to sit down in a comfortable chair. -_- Anyway we talked for a while just the two of us. I talked about how my grandma was doing and other subjects.
Soon Don joined us down stairs as well as Dan. I suddenly remembered that I had wanted to look at Tom's art book for the movie Tokikake (the Girl Who Leapt Through Time) and he found it for me to look over. ^_^ I really like the book and might have to pick one up for myself at the convention in March. I had just finished the book when one of my coughing fits started to take hold. I tried to quell it with the rest of my soda but ultimately I knew I was just going to have to go back up stairs and get water. I held it down long enough to give Tom the book back then I grabbed my soda bottle and headed back up stairs. I was going to come back down stairs when I was done but ultimately stayed upstairs.
Casting Gifts
Every one seemed to be done with dinner for the most part and I decided it was getting close to gift giving time. I asked Valeska (who was sitting in the red chair in the living room) when she wanted to give her's out and she wasn't sure. So I just took a chance and lead the way. I gave Valeska her gift first.
I decided that to make the moments more memorable I would wait until each person had opened their gift before going on to the next one. Valeska liked the necklace from KH that I gave her. I told her I got it at Small World Surprise so she could see the others if she wanted. It was Sora's Keyblade but a different version than the first.
Next I decided to give James his gift. James was thrilled to get the Transformers ornaments of Optimums Prime that Bo and I had chosen.
Next I gave my gift to Chris to open. Valeska started to take the cue and got out her own gifts. She handed mine to me but I wanted to wait until Chris had opened his before getting to mine. For Chris we got a Wiimote keychain and I put it in a small Wii tin. ^_^ He liked both! :D
I then opened Valeska's gift to me. On top was a gift she said she had from last year. It is a stuffed Robin from One Piece that comes with a little cardboard thing behind to emulate their devil fruit powers. ^_^ I opened the wrapped part of the gift. I got a model of Nausicaa on her glider. I love it and can't wait to assemble it. ^_^
I had given Alan his gift as well but he was busy with a French Press he brought over to show every one and didn't open his right away. Eventually I gave up trying to wait and gave Tom his gift next.
Tom wasn't quite ready to take it so I waited patiently and then handed it to him. He was surprised at how heavy it was and that made me smile. I joked that I got him bricks. ^_^ Anyway he opened it to find the 6 jars of Blackberry jam that I made special for him. He was very excited about it and commented that he would be using it tomorrow morning for breakfast. ^_^
Valeska then put her gift for Alan below mine and we both waited for Alan to finish what he was doing and open them. I actually stopped him and asked him to open them while he was waiting for some water to heat up. He was very impressed with the deck of cards I had chosen (from the Fate Stay Night series). I also made sure he saw that there were two gifts. The second gift was an Air Freshener from the series Ah My Goddess.
After my gifts he moved on to opening Valeska's gift. She mentioned (while he was opening it) that she had wanted to get him a maid statue, but that Chris had said no because it was from a hentai show. I can see why Chris would say no to that. Alan was just amused. Instead they got him two Stick Faa's. Which are pretty cool. ^_^
After Gifts
I sat down at the table after the gifts had been distributed. Apparently it was around this time that people who were participating in the gift exchange headed downstairs. Valeska was knitting to my right. I was sitting in the chair by the coat rack, Bo was on my left and Dustin at the other end of the table. Alan was finishing up the French Press demo for people.
I don't know how I had any room but I snacked on a few tortillas and some more of the left over strawberries. ^_^ We were conversing for a while when people started coming back upstairs from the gift exchange. Heather had received a nice Transformers Monopoly game. Tom had received a Transformer's art book. I don't know what everyone else got.
A little while later Tom came over and set a gift in front of me. Now before I go on I want to say that I had set the bar for this gathering pretty low. I was more than aware that I could easily walk away with nothing again this year and was fine with it. Most importantly I had not expected to get any gift from people who were in the gift exchange. So when Tom actually had something for me I was a more than a little surprised.
He made some comment about me being able to keep the tin if I wanted it. I unwrapped the gift to find a very nice tin with more gifts inside. I opened it to find Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends season 2 (YAY!) and a Pinky St. figure. The Pinky Street figure is the second edition paint of the one that was in the gift exchange last year. More than once I had considered buying it and passed it up. When I saw the repaints I liked the second paint better. I still never picked it up. I think in part I have Bo to thank for that because he convinced me not to pick it up just the weekend or two before citing my rule of not buying before Christmas.
I can tell you I don't think I could have been more surprised. I don't quite know what to say except that Tom must have read my mind. They were both just what I wanted! He even picked out the Pinky that I liked best. I didn't want to diminish the other gifts I had gotten, but these were definitely awesome! It would have been too hard not to smile big! :D
Thinking back now I probably should have picked up Season 2 for Tom and believe me I thought about it but I didn't want to take the chance that he had already picked it up for himself. It had been out for a while already (at least 4 weeks I think).
After that I took sometime and tried Tom's homemade cheesecake. I am not kidding when I say it was the best I have ever tasted. Damn that was good cheesecake…no really! I was going to originally top it with chocolate but opted just to enjoy it as it was instead. I am actually surprised I was able to eat it all. Dinner had been pretty filling, though I guess I didn't have too much meat and such so that probably contributed to me being able to eat more later.
Winding Down
I eventually moved over to relax in the Papasan chair myself for a while. It's nice to be able to sit in a chair like those. It makes me wish mine wasn't broken. -_- Anyway, while I was sitting there I got into a conversation about travels and places visited. Tom said he had no interest in Hawaii. Valeska and I talked about how much we had both enjoyed it. We conversed for a while talking about places we had been. Valeska mentioned Hawaii, Baltamore (for Odacon) and the Grand Canyon. ^_^
While we were talking about trips we have taken and would like to take Trish and her family decided to head out. Don also took off sometime after Trish left and during out conversation about travels. The next to leave was Dan. I was fading as well but not ready to head out just yet. I did call Bo over to have him help me by cleaning up the fondue pot and forks for me.
Eventually I got up to help with cleaning up the items that were mine in the kitchen. I realized that a lot more was going to need to be done before we could go so I got to helping out. One thing that needed to be done was draining out the cooler. I noticed that only 2 bottled sodas were left. I felt good about that because I was worried that no one would really feel they could drink out of them. I also gathered up all the bottles and put them in a bag so we could transport them home.
While I was working on cleaning up my part of things Chris and Valeska decided it was time to head out. I thanked Valeska for her help with dinner and for her gifts. I will truly enjoy putting the Nausicaa model together. ^_^
Stragglers
There were still people left around mid night. Only Dustin, Bo, Tom, Alan and James were left (besides me). I know we should have been out of there faster but I just couldn't get motivated to move. I was just beat and nearly sleeping on the kitchen window ledge thing in Tom's kitchen. Still we kept on talking.
I kept trying to move out the door. Little by little I got closer to leaving. Tom was mostly asleep and had been this way for at least two hours by now. We really should have left sooner. By 12:45 we were finally pushing the last of our stuff out the door. Alan and James were also leaving. As we headed out the door with the last of our stuff I gave Tom a hug and thanked him for everything.
Heading Home
Bo was driving home so I grabbed the blanket and pillow out of the back and settled down in the front seat. Dustin sat behind Bo so we were able to talk on the way home (a little) and I was able to recline. He commented somewhere around Portland proper that he hates the drive back home (our town not his). He drives it every week and is tired of it. I told him to relax and enjoy this one because he wasn't driving. I feel for him though. I know how much I hate some drives (especially ones that take me near work or head me back home after a relaxing week away). To top it off he isn't able to relax and rest as well as some people and I think that makes it worse.
I tried to sleep for the trip home but didn't get much accomplished. I did sleep between Vancouver and home but it was a restless sleep. To defrost the windows we had to have the heat all the way up. Well I turned it down when that was finished but it still remained hot in the car. This made for a restless and uncomfortable sleep.
We dropped Dustin off first and I said good bye the best I could while still being out of it. He said he had a good time and then headed in the house. I rested again in the car until we got home. I wanted to go straight to bed but ended up watching some of Scrubs before doing so. It was 4am by the time my head hit the pillow. -_-