Post Christmas Post

Uneventful X-mas.  Family came over for dinner (ham and etc.), we sat around and talked for a bit and that was that.  T'was even more quiet than usual.  It was OK though, as it gave dw and I plenty of time to think about the giganto dental bills we're building up.  It's our contribution to the general economic recovery --- Sakes alive! Money sitting around in a savings account -- collecting 1/2% interest per year -- isn't doing anyone any good.   DA

Christmas Is Nigh

   We just finished dinner -- a vegan variation on a Moroccan carrot dish we had at Patrilary's.  Since my heart annoyance stuff has happened I try to cook vegetarian  several times a week.  This particular meal was entirely edible, but not a taste treat.  It really needed sausage.  We also just finished watching Green Bay lose to New England -- it was a close game but Cheeseheads everywhere are now broken-hearted. 
   dw is getting close to completing the Christmas decorations.  Again the main motif is kirigami but the installations are smaller this year than last, and are mainly confined to the living room.  As always I am firm with my moral support. 
   Yesterday dw had a small luncheon with three friends (Larissa, Mary, and Laura)  Everyone seemed to have a nice time -- dw also did the menu planning and prep -- I watched --  .  I visited with everyone long enough to be polite and then retired to the study to write all of my X-mas cards.  This year I'm a bit earlier than normal with the cards .  I write at least a brief note in most of the cards (and I didn't exactly practice due diligence)  so I didn't finish the cards until everyone was leaving -- (that wasn't intentional).
   And today I went to the rock gym with John and Bob.  dw met with Kate (John's wife) and they had coffee while we climbed.  I rode with dw in her car to the gym, and then rode my bike back to the house.  An easier workout for me, just riding one way.  I was unenthused exercisewise so I only did one hard climb along with 6 or 7 easier ones.  And was leisurely on the bike ride home.  Better than nothing.  DA

Action!

Yes, the holiday season has arrived and I am in action - ideas percolating, hauling Christmas boxes down from the attic, cutting and pasting kirigami (real cut and paste not that electric computer stuff), and artfully displaying the percolated results.  Putter, arrange, rearrange, take down and put back up.  I love it!  The living room could now be considered The Red Room as a grid of red/green/white kirigami squares adorn the west wall.  The grid has alternating diagonals of green, white and red backgrounds.  Dennis bailed me out of that when I messed up the order and the grid had a green where a white background should have been.  Horrors!  Red bulb ornaments, red poinsettias, red wreath, red and white table runner on the entertainment center and a live green Charlie Brown tree with red (and a few green, blue and yellow) bulbs.  Kirigami cutouts with red, green or white in them cover the woodwork arch and hang from the window curtain rods.  You get the idea.  That's it for holiday preparation.  I am working Christmas Eve day and on call Christmas Day.  It's my turn and that's okay.  Twelve days til Christmas and hopefully, no 'partridge in a pear tree' when we get there.  Happy Holidays, dw.

I haven't been nearly so active, Christmas-wise, although I am considering writing my X-mas cards.  Otherwise I'm still working on the metal sculpture, occasionally exercising and generally messing about.  Yesterday I made a device to hang another bird feeder.  After I install it, we'll have east (old one) and west (new one) feeders.  When we get really bored we can count bird-visits and compare and contrast, to find which feeder has the most curb appeal -- bird wise.  DA

Dec. 5, I think

Dennis has informed me it's way past my turn to blog so here I am with no significant news.  Sunny and cool today - no rain - a pleasant change from the usual weather.  Dennis used the nice day to mow the lawn and rake leaves - on December 5, that's almost criminal!!!!  I spent the day indulging myself in holiday decorating i.e. taping a variety of kirigami cutouts on the wall, woodwork and windows.  It's very festive as I selected out red, green and white cutouts and backgrounds thus creating a color theme.  The tree will be a "Charlie Brown" tree that is growing in a container outside.  Really, it is about as crooked as a tree can get and still be standing.  Needs conditioning in the garage for a couple of days before being brought into the warm (and I use the term very loosely) house.  And that's it - lawn care, decorating and waiting for a tree to heat up.  Happy Sunday evening.  dw