Blog of the Future! (Or my first blog of 2010)
Christmas trip: There were 5 of us at my grandmother’s around noon on Christmas. Then a cousin and his wife showed and then another boy, and that’s when we ate. Then another couple showed when we were done eating and another boy cousin after them. We did presents (yay for Michael Bublѐ CD) and my grandmother didn’t kill me for the prezzie I gave her. Then the first boy left. Later yet another couple showed (with 2 kids in tow) and one of the uncles came by. That was it for our Christmas guest list, 16 people out of a family of roughly 40 that usually has extra guests pop over on holidays, it was seriously weird. We had a ham (it was spoiled, but my grandmother only acknowledged that as we were putting food up at the end of the day), a chicken, and fried fish. My uncle had his son drop off the ham and a turkey a few days before Christmas and I was fully prepared to wrestle my grandmother to the floor if she so much mentioned bringing the turkey out. She actually said “it’s Christmas, we have to have too much food” and I think maybe my head exploded a little from it, I like food too, but c’mon, there were only 8 of us there at the time. My Uncle G is still an awesome cook though so I ate quite well on fried fish and fried potatoes and ignored the ham and chicken. I did not eat any cranberry sauce since it was leftover from Thanksgiving (I think it went back in the fridge, yes it does make me crazy, no she won’t listen to me, if it’s still there at Easter I will be making a stealth raid of her fridge and trashing things like a crazy person). [My grandmother actually tried to tell me about food safety on Saturday before we left for home, something about not re-freezing food. I would not have any part of it- I think I said something to the effect of ‘the woman who uses milk 3 days past expiration and will eat potato salad after it has sat outside all day in July in TX does not get to lecture anyone about food safety’. She just laughed at me. I hadn’t said it rudely, mostly jibing, but I really kind of meant it.] I exchanged presents with a few relations secretly. I was awake at 6am Christmas morning and in bed after 1am so I was a tired wee one, but the day was good. Day-after-Christmas shopping is tradition and that’s the only reason I went. Waking up at 6am to wander around in Wal-Mart is not something I really love doing, but I do love my grandmother so I go. She got Christmas cards cheap (though she still has some from past years, that’s something else she won’t listen to me about) and I found some stuff for my mother to buy for my sister’s Christmas next year. My nephew called before 7:30 because my sister’s mother-in-law woke him up before 6am to help her pack up to leave (he was happy to get her gone); she’d said her goodbyes the night before and only woke my nephew, it was weird to me. We picked up a snack and headed out to Tyler to see my aunt at the hospital. We were in my grandmother’s car which is a Buick boat and she was driving, I was in the back seat and sick as a dog. I don’t know if it is the car, her driving, or just being in the back but every year I get at least a little sick the day after Christmas with her driving. It was bad enough when we had lunch at a little Mexican restaurant that the smell of cheese was making me sick and I had to eat the kids chicken strip plate instead of something good. Then when we got on the road I was too queasy to practice driving as I’d planned. My youngest nephew had his first tooth come through Christmas day.
Family health: Aunt J’s surgery went well; she was moved to her own room shortly after Christmas and has since been released. She is supposed to do rehab and such for 2 months. I figured the family would be out there taking care of her, but she’s been okay alone according to my uncle. Her youngest son didn’t ever visit her in the hospital, though he did come to my grandmother’s for Christmas and he did go to a party or two in that time. He has not helped his mother since she came home and he was having a party in their yard last I heard. That’s all I’ll say about that. [I think all my other relatives are okay barring a few colds and one thing I’m not going to talk about.]
Giftwise: I finally own a copy of “Jaws”. You have no idea how squeeful I am. No. Really. You have no idea. Also “Supernatural” season 3. Also “The Complete Worst-Case Scenario Survival Handbook” (first entry is about fighting off a shark, this book now owns me). The squeeing this Christmas was high pitched and extended. Many of my other presents were also awesome (paring knives, a disher, pix of my nephews, some clothes, a couple CDS, a couple movies, and some other cool stuff). I’m very grateful for all of it and I’m working on thank you notes now.
New Year: Our New Year’s Eve was quiet and full of the “Twilight Zone” marathon. It has been tradition for several years now, we must watch it and see who can decide which episode it is first. And there were still episodes neither of us had seen, how is this possible? I’m sure next year I’ll have the same complaint, either I’ll have forgotten some or missed some that played while I was sleeping. On New Year’s Day my mother cooked black eyed peas and cornbread (tradition AND tasty) and we went to my sister’s. My bro-in-law made ribs (done at 5ish, my sis had us come over at 4 to eat, I was quite hungry by the time food got put out) and sausage; I haven’t eaten ribs in over 10 years, after eating one I remembered why, just not for me. I ate the tops of a green onion to get my “something green” (yet another tradition), there was also celery and a can of spinach, but I’d rather gnaw my shoe than eat cooked spinach. I hope everyone had a good NYE and we’ll all have an excellent 2010.
Misc: (1) I don’t have any resolutions yet really, but I saw a community on LJ where you make a list of 101 things you want to do in 1001 days. I’m mulling over whether I want to do it. (2) Still not written anything of any significance, very frustrated with my brain. (3) Still finishing up holiday crafts and gearing up for all the January birthdays, why couldn’t some of you people have been born in April when I have nearly no b-days? (4) I don’t have some people’s birthdays written down and it makes me feel bad. (5) Why does all the family crazy have to happen at the holidays? And not just my family’s crazy. (6) I think my body has cut off circulation to my hands and feet for some reason, my feet and hands have been icy for days. (7) Crafty pix will be posted eventually. (8) Being broke sucks. Job hunting sucks. Adulthood is not really shaping up how I imagined.