(no subject)
A belated Merry Christmas to everyone!
I'm going to try an experiment and use all the real names for this entry. I haven't been, for some time, to protect, la la la, but it really sterilizes the entries, so I'm going to avoid it at this time. It's Christmas, after all.
It's good to see the family again. You don't really know how much you miss people until you see them again.. it's funny. I've been dreading seeing everyone again, just because it's always so nuts around here, but it's actually quite nice for a change. It may have something to do with the fact that I haven't been home now for a few months. My baby sister sorta forgot my name again, which was sad. Things like that really make you want to come home more often. And I probably will, this coming term. I don't have anything else to distract me, since I'll be working again. (Plus it'll help me save on laundry. ; )
The funniest thing, to me, is that they seem to almost appreciate my offbeat sense of humour. They found me witty the first day, but I figured it was just the season. Second day, still laughing, I figured it was just 'cause it was Christmas. Well, it's the third day and they're still looking mildly bemused, so I guess either my sense of humour's improved since the last few times I've been home, it's been a long time and they kinda miss it, or they just expect it. Or maybe it's all of the above. Whatever; I feel loved. : )
The day before Christmas is the day we all open our respective presents to eachother. Since this year we all drew names, things were a lot simpler. (Some still bought presents for everyone, though.. kinda makes me feel a bit guilty, but oh well.) I hadn't done my shopping yet, and my sister Clare wasn't done hers yet either, so we went off to the Renfrew Mall together. There, I picked out a Christmas dress and top (of a velvety navy-blue material) for my sister Rachel, who I'd gotten. And since Clare let me pick out my own gift from her (she bought for everyone) and it was a bit more expensive (The Mask DVD) I got her something she liked in return. (A Boo poster, from Monsters Inc. I'm going to have to get one too. Too bad they don't make wallscrolls of north american material..)
Christmas eve, we all unwrapped our presents. The clothing I'd purchased for Rachel turned out to be too small, so it'll probably be returned or exchanged, but that's come to be a Christmas tradition around here. (Mom never quite remembers the sizes right whenever we ask for them.) It turned out my sister Julie'd had my name, and she got me a splendid gift; an optical mouse! I couldn't wait to hook it up.
Christmas was funny. I helped wrap presents the night before, so I had a good idea of what everyone else got, but I was a bit confused as to what I'd gotten. When they'd picked up the garbage bag of stuff for me, one of them exclaimed "hey, it's so heavy! He must've gotten some great stuff!" Well, they were half right. See, I'd already gotten a chair for Christmas, so the rest was.. filler? The first package I opened was a bag of pretzels. The rest were crackers and cereal. It'll make an interesting story to pass on in my latter years, that's for sure. ; )
The rest of Christmas day went fairly well. As we do every year, we headed off to visit with my mother's family for the afternoon and turkey dinner. Then everyone chats way into the evening, until the kids start complaining. It's traditional. Funny thing is, I got a migrane this year, so I ended up being the kid complaining. I also visited my place to plug in that optical mouse, and snapped a picture of my sister Clare on the webcam. But I shouldn't get ahead of myself, so let's backtrack..
This past week, my aunt (at whose place we all gathered this year) and her hubby Pete reopened the CJOH cafeteria. (Aside; CJOH has the world's most boring anchorman, Max Keeping. I've had insomnia on occasion, and a taped newscast by this guy works miracles!) Anyways, it's been vacant for quite a while, and they just took over. So they were very excited, and had lots to tell everyone.
Other exciting things happening in my family.. my cousin Susie was up! I love her, she's such a wonderful person. Anyways, she talked about her son, and had a photo album, and ... well ... I don't know what else, because I didn't get to talk to her much. (By the time I did get to talk to her, I had developed a cold sweat, and I fear I may have been slightly terse in my quick conversation before I beat a hasty retreat. I'm a horrid sick person, I'm afraid; I never want to let on that I'm sick, because then people are concerned.) She's got so much potential as a singer; I hope with the fullness of my heart that it all pans out for her.
Also up.. my uncle Robert! Again, didn't get to talk to him much, but would've loved to. He's one of those people who's been living the bachelor's life for a long time, and who's been an entertainer for quite a while, so he's always a great person to listen to. This year, he'll be back at Stratford, which'll be great for Susie. (I know she idolizes him. She told me how she felt this was the best present of all he or anyone could give her.) Robert's always all over the place, so having him nearby once more'll be great for everyone, I think.
The rest of the family was pretty much the usual. My cousin John's working his way up the ranks in Junior A hockey. The scouts have him pegged as an enforcer.. so naturally my dad tried to talk him out of his violent ways. ; ) My aunt Linda's still with Bert.. and I pray they'll be together forever, as Bert's one of the kindest most decent man I've met in a long time. He's a coach, so he's good with kids.. gotta love him. Marie's still with.. um.. that guy. .. Dangit, I hate forgetting names.. and Diane and Mike.. oh! Cindy was up! Her two kids are doing great, it's good to see.
Last, but not least, my uncle Kevin was there. Kevin's done a lot of things the hard way, and I respect him for it. He's always been very kind to everyone in the family, as long as I remember, and he's such a great character. I love talking with him, and it's a shame it's only once a year. It's not the stories, which are few, or stuff we do together, because that's rare, but it's the conversation. He doesn't try to keep the conversation going, or act like he's.. you know, whatever. He just is; he says what he thinks, and he speaks from experience. And he's never afraid to crack a joke or make wise. : )
A few years back, he started a tradition in the family of giving a small monetary gift to anyone in postsecondary education. For the past four years he's helped me, in his own way, and I really appreciate it. He's such a great fellow, and I can never find the words to describe my thanks. And I probably never will. Writing his thankyou card is always such a chore, because I never know what to say.. he's just such a great guy. What a great unc.
Anyways, I'd best wrap this up because it's time I got to bed. Boxing day's over now, and I suppose things'll soon start to get back to normal. I'm probably going to be going back to Ottawa later this week, so barring something bizarre happening, or extreme boredom, I won't be updating until then. So until then, good night, and God bless.
I'm going to try an experiment and use all the real names for this entry. I haven't been, for some time, to protect, la la la, but it really sterilizes the entries, so I'm going to avoid it at this time. It's Christmas, after all.
It's good to see the family again. You don't really know how much you miss people until you see them again.. it's funny. I've been dreading seeing everyone again, just because it's always so nuts around here, but it's actually quite nice for a change. It may have something to do with the fact that I haven't been home now for a few months. My baby sister sorta forgot my name again, which was sad. Things like that really make you want to come home more often. And I probably will, this coming term. I don't have anything else to distract me, since I'll be working again. (Plus it'll help me save on laundry. ; )
The funniest thing, to me, is that they seem to almost appreciate my offbeat sense of humour. They found me witty the first day, but I figured it was just the season. Second day, still laughing, I figured it was just 'cause it was Christmas. Well, it's the third day and they're still looking mildly bemused, so I guess either my sense of humour's improved since the last few times I've been home, it's been a long time and they kinda miss it, or they just expect it. Or maybe it's all of the above. Whatever; I feel loved. : )
The day before Christmas is the day we all open our respective presents to eachother. Since this year we all drew names, things were a lot simpler. (Some still bought presents for everyone, though.. kinda makes me feel a bit guilty, but oh well.) I hadn't done my shopping yet, and my sister Clare wasn't done hers yet either, so we went off to the Renfrew Mall together. There, I picked out a Christmas dress and top (of a velvety navy-blue material) for my sister Rachel, who I'd gotten. And since Clare let me pick out my own gift from her (she bought for everyone) and it was a bit more expensive (The Mask DVD) I got her something she liked in return. (A Boo poster, from Monsters Inc. I'm going to have to get one too. Too bad they don't make wallscrolls of north american material..)
Christmas eve, we all unwrapped our presents. The clothing I'd purchased for Rachel turned out to be too small, so it'll probably be returned or exchanged, but that's come to be a Christmas tradition around here. (Mom never quite remembers the sizes right whenever we ask for them.) It turned out my sister Julie'd had my name, and she got me a splendid gift; an optical mouse! I couldn't wait to hook it up.
Christmas was funny. I helped wrap presents the night before, so I had a good idea of what everyone else got, but I was a bit confused as to what I'd gotten. When they'd picked up the garbage bag of stuff for me, one of them exclaimed "hey, it's so heavy! He must've gotten some great stuff!" Well, they were half right. See, I'd already gotten a chair for Christmas, so the rest was.. filler? The first package I opened was a bag of pretzels. The rest were crackers and cereal. It'll make an interesting story to pass on in my latter years, that's for sure. ; )
The rest of Christmas day went fairly well. As we do every year, we headed off to visit with my mother's family for the afternoon and turkey dinner. Then everyone chats way into the evening, until the kids start complaining. It's traditional. Funny thing is, I got a migrane this year, so I ended up being the kid complaining. I also visited my place to plug in that optical mouse, and snapped a picture of my sister Clare on the webcam. But I shouldn't get ahead of myself, so let's backtrack..
This past week, my aunt (at whose place we all gathered this year) and her hubby Pete reopened the CJOH cafeteria. (Aside; CJOH has the world's most boring anchorman, Max Keeping. I've had insomnia on occasion, and a taped newscast by this guy works miracles!) Anyways, it's been vacant for quite a while, and they just took over. So they were very excited, and had lots to tell everyone.
Other exciting things happening in my family.. my cousin Susie was up! I love her, she's such a wonderful person. Anyways, she talked about her son, and had a photo album, and ... well ... I don't know what else, because I didn't get to talk to her much. (By the time I did get to talk to her, I had developed a cold sweat, and I fear I may have been slightly terse in my quick conversation before I beat a hasty retreat. I'm a horrid sick person, I'm afraid; I never want to let on that I'm sick, because then people are concerned.) She's got so much potential as a singer; I hope with the fullness of my heart that it all pans out for her.
Also up.. my uncle Robert! Again, didn't get to talk to him much, but would've loved to. He's one of those people who's been living the bachelor's life for a long time, and who's been an entertainer for quite a while, so he's always a great person to listen to. This year, he'll be back at Stratford, which'll be great for Susie. (I know she idolizes him. She told me how she felt this was the best present of all he or anyone could give her.) Robert's always all over the place, so having him nearby once more'll be great for everyone, I think.
The rest of the family was pretty much the usual. My cousin John's working his way up the ranks in Junior A hockey. The scouts have him pegged as an enforcer.. so naturally my dad tried to talk him out of his violent ways. ; ) My aunt Linda's still with Bert.. and I pray they'll be together forever, as Bert's one of the kindest most decent man I've met in a long time. He's a coach, so he's good with kids.. gotta love him. Marie's still with.. um.. that guy. .. Dangit, I hate forgetting names.. and Diane and Mike.. oh! Cindy was up! Her two kids are doing great, it's good to see.
Last, but not least, my uncle Kevin was there. Kevin's done a lot of things the hard way, and I respect him for it. He's always been very kind to everyone in the family, as long as I remember, and he's such a great character. I love talking with him, and it's a shame it's only once a year. It's not the stories, which are few, or stuff we do together, because that's rare, but it's the conversation. He doesn't try to keep the conversation going, or act like he's.. you know, whatever. He just is; he says what he thinks, and he speaks from experience. And he's never afraid to crack a joke or make wise. : )
A few years back, he started a tradition in the family of giving a small monetary gift to anyone in postsecondary education. For the past four years he's helped me, in his own way, and I really appreciate it. He's such a great fellow, and I can never find the words to describe my thanks. And I probably never will. Writing his thankyou card is always such a chore, because I never know what to say.. he's just such a great guy. What a great unc.
Anyways, I'd best wrap this up because it's time I got to bed. Boxing day's over now, and I suppose things'll soon start to get back to normal. I'm probably going to be going back to Ottawa later this week, so barring something bizarre happening, or extreme boredom, I won't be updating until then. So until then, good night, and God bless.