Joy Joy for Christ is Born

If I could sing like this, I wouldn't have to lip sync in church. To think she's 15 years old. That voice is a true gift.

What Child is this, who, laid to rest
On Mary's lap, is sleeping?
Whom angels greet with anthems sweet

The Darker Side of Forty

Today. 46. Yikes.

I'm giving myself a pretty birthday song. And if you recognize it, just ignore that you may have first heard it in a Chrysler commercial. It's sweet nonetheless.

Blokus

Son #2 and I were in Barnes & Noble looking for ideas for the neighborhood gift swap. I came across a strategy game I had never seen before and asked, "What about Blokus?" which I pronounced BLOWkus.

He looked at the box and started laughing at me, "Uh mom, judging by the box, I'm guessing it's pronounced BLOCKus." He then spent the rest of our time in the store chuckling and repeating BLOWkus under his breath.

Now he's using it in all sorts of sentences.

The hubby and I were laughing our heads off the other night. Son #2 came down from his bedroom where he's supposed to be sleeping, "What's all the BLOWkus down here?"

This morning I told him he looked very handsome. "Yeah, that's a lot of BLOWkus."

I'm afraid of what's next.

Hooray for Geeks

This morning, I awoke to go swimming but first checked the RAC website to make sure there were no classes in the pool. Nope, none until 9:00 a.m. I arrived to find an 8:00 a.m. class beginning in 15 minutes.

Me: Your website is wrong. It says the Aqua-Cise class is at 9:00 a.m.

Front desk chick: I don't handle the website.

Me: Well, I don't appreciate driving all of the way here to discover that I cannot swim.

Front desk chick: (blank stare)

Me (leading the witness): Is there someone I can contact to get this corrected?

Front desk chick: I don't know. Maybe I could ask someone else when they get in?

Me: That would be great.

I love her not-my-problem, out-of-my-functional-silo, maybe-do attitude.

So I went home and on the way stopped at Tim Hortons because we had a sleepover last night and Son #2's friend loves vanilla dip donuts. (If you can't exercise, might as well eat disgusting sugar encrusted lipids for breakfast.)

Aside from the Geek Squad truck pulling in, the parking lot was otherwise empty. Being lazy from a lack of exercise at the gym, I opted for the drive-thru.

Me: I would like a dozen donuts.

Drive-thru dude: That'll be $6.49; drive up to the window.

Me: Don't you want to know what kind I want?

Dude: It's just assorted in the drive-thru. If you want to pick your donuts, you have to come it.

Me: But no one's behind me and the restaurant is empty.

Dude: Yeah, but you still have to come in.

So in I went. I love his follow-the-rules-even-when-ridiculous, no-can-do approach to customer satisfaction.

On the way in, the Geek Squad held the door for me. I, in turn, offered to hold the inside door for them but they wouldn't let me.

Geek: We're not only friendly guys, we're representing the fabulous Best Buy brand.

Say what???? Um, did I just hear that correctly? A delivery crew who is trained to serve customers, or potential customers, well even when popping in off the clock to grab donuts? And mention their brand name in the process?

Best Buy. My new heroes. Really, it doesn't take much.

Winter Wonderland

I find it hard to believe that it could get any more beautiful outside than it is right now. And I am not even a winter girl.

Thanks to my favorite great uncle (a.k.a. my grandfather's sister's husband's sister's husband's sister's husband thrice removed) who penned this fabulous song 30 years before I was born, I am facing unafraid, the plans that I made, walking in a winter wonderland.

When it snows, ain't it thrilling,
Though your nose gets a chilling
We'll frolic and play, the Eskimo way,
Walking in a winter wonderland

Hallelujah

Last night, due to a boss-related snafu, I had to drive back to work through the frozen tundra and grab a document from the fax machine. As I was driving home, the streets were quiet and blanketed with snow -- and Jeff Buckley came on the radio. Powerful song but even more gorgeous in the dark of night with the snow falling and Christmas lights twinkling everywhere. I heart Christmas!

Vacation Day!

Guess where I am? *&^%$#@#$%$^%&&^%$##(*%$#@^^

It's the most wonderful time of the year
There'll be much mistletoe-ing
And CPUs will be glowing
When coworkers are near
It's the most wonderful time of the year

There'll be meetings for hosting
Strategies for toasting
And driving out in the snow
There'll be scary client stories
And tales of the glories of
vacations long, long ago

It's the most wonderful time of the year

Fauxbriety

On behalf of a girlfriend who I love and who will remain nameless, I just coined a new word: fauxbriety.

Definition: "Even though I'm swerving all over the road and catapulting my car over snowbanks, I swear I haven't had a drink in weeks."

She claims it was a combination of cold medicine and queasiness so, unless it happens again, I'll have to take her word for it. To the best of my knowledge, it's never happened before so the benefit of the doubt seems to be in order here. In the meantime, I simply plan to stay clear of her car.

Taxi!

Update: So much for being proud of myself. I just Googled my new word and it's been on Urban Dictionary since 2008. Darn it all. 

Photo Per Day: Town Hall

The Pittsford Town Hall looked so pretty this morning on my way to work. It was covered in snow and looked all Gingerbread House-y.

Seriously, I need to take photography lessons just to raise the bar to "presentable." I don't need to be the next Stieglitz just a tad less blurry. I could blame it on the fact that I was driving (slowly) at the time but that's just a cop-out.

Love and Other Things

Over the weekend, I discovered that:

1. A single martini feels much stronger when you subsequently have to navigate an airport. But cocktails with girlfriends trump more rational decisions any day.
2. JetBlue still doesn't have its act together. Their computer system somehow assigned more than one person per seat on our 10:40 p.m. flight to the ROC so they gave up and shouted to the boarding passengers "ignore your seat assignment and just grab the first seat that's open." Unable to bear the thought of a night in Queens, lil' ole alcohol-bolstered me forged ahead taking no prisoners. To quote Ted Nugent, it was a free-for-all. And I won. (Clasped hands raised in trophy pose.)
3. Playgrounds are very, very slippery when covered with snow. Dangerous yet heaps o' fun. Note to my vast readership of playground equipment developers: you should conduct in situ research during winter conditions to avoid lawsuits. Seriously. Even the wood chips underfoot were frozen. 
4. Snow covered slides will launch you (or in this case, me) into the air like a human cannonball.
5. Landing on your back is more palatable when dressed like Nanook of the North.
6. Lastly, ten year old boys have girlfriends. And they kiss. And use the word "love." They also share these details openly with their friend's mom (i.e., me) over hot soup. 

Photo Per Day #30: Creche and Burn

Ach. I missed the very last day of November. But in keeping with the spirit of the season, I have fully decorated my office. I put a couple of festive deer with a Christmas tree on my windowsill.

And I put a little nativity scene, purchased in Cancun a few years back, on my desk. Oh Joy!

But the more I glance over at Joseph, the more I'm convinced that he and and director Kevin Smith were separated at birth. Silent Bob. Silent Night.

 

My inner, underdeveloped Ansel Adams can now rest.