Drat, I just spilled tea on myself. I cleared my throat just before I took a sip, Zoe (sitting at my side on the couch) took that to mean something in her squeaky twittery alien cat language, butted my elbow with her head while uttering her weird "prrrowt?" (always questions with that one), and thus I sloshed on myself. And just now Oz tried to jump up to snuggle with me, Zoe growled at him, he jumped back down, and now he's sitting on the rug with his back turned and his ears expressing his disdain.

No snuggling in a patch of sunlight and giving mutual tongue baths for these two.

I have a load to do today, which is my penance for not having to work when Calvin does. I'm hoping to have the house clean, the groceries purchased, and the potato soup in process before he gets home. We never go out on New Year's Eve - too many drunk drivers, and neither one of us are fond of crowds. I usually make up a load of munchies that we can graze upon throughout the night, we mix cocktails galore, and watch movies until midnight.

Tonight's munchies include chips and veggies and dip, baby roast beef sandwiches on potato rolls, the aforementioned potato soup, cheese and summer sausage and crackers, and maybe I'll do up a batch of deviled eggs. If I could do "appetizer meals" every night of the week, I would. In fact, Calvin and I frequently order several appetizers at restaurants in lieu of actual meals. I guess our palates have ODD.

Tonight's movies include Shrek The Third (I do not have high hopes) and Stardust (I do have high hopes). Tonight's cocktails include the standard Fat Tire and 1554 brews, tequila, vodka, and possibly oatmeal cookie shots.

We're going to go out of 2007 the way we went into it... buzzed.

I'll probably post again later, but if I don't, Happy New Year you guys!!!

Labels: holiday, journal

Posted by Laura at 11:30 AM | Permalink | Comments

We're enjoying cocktails (orange juice and vodka, here) this evening while Calvin prepares to cook breakfast for dinner - steak and eggs with homefries and yummy goodness.

Calvin's playing DJ and I'm doing this entry while Marie is getting ready to go over to her maternal aunt's for the evening. Michael may or may not show up this evening - we warned him to call ahead, heh.

Calvin cleaned the kitchen - twice - while I wrapped presents and did laundry and got the grocery shopping list together. Then he and I went to Home Depot to pick up a thingamabobby to fix Marie's shower, then to Pet's Inc. for Kali's Christmas rat, then to the grocery store. He has been hugely helpful today AND he's cooking dinner. I just love him to little bitty bits.

It's a quiet evening, which will be followed by a day of furious cooking and present opening, and probably mimosas. Cuz that's just how we roll.

If I'm not around to say it tomorrow, I wish all of my friends, my readers (who are yet more friends!), my family, and any and all strangers that happen to stumble upon this modest little website a very Merry Christmas.

Labels: booze, Calvin, holiday, home

Posted by Laura at 5:44 PM | Permalink | Comments

Calvin and I are getting ready to go somewhere to watch the Patriots/Dolphins game (GO PATS!), so I don't have time to do the entry I was planning. That's forthcoming, but for now you can entertain yourselves with some new pictures.

See ya!

Labels: holiday, photography

Posted by Laura at 12:51 PM | Permalink | Comments

Today is the last day that I physically have to be in the office until January 8th. I "work from home" (picture air quotes on purpose) tomorrow, which really means I will be logged into the network and will periodically check for new e-mails or IM's, but really I'm going to be cooking, waiting for the FedEx guy to deliver the lobsters (de liver de lobsters de sooner de better de later de lobsters de madder I getter!), and wrapping presents. All without getting dressed. Because that's just how I roll. Then I'm on vacation for two glorious weeks. Weeks which will be filled with, well, glory. At least, they better be.

Yesterday was a Very Bad Day. I was Stressy McStresserson at work and had to work until 6:00 when all I wanted to do was get busy on the stuff piling up to be done at HOME. Calvin was not having a good day either, so what prompted him to go Christmas shopping for me at the MALL at 5:00 on the Wednesday before Christmas is beyond me. He rode off on his motorcycle while I was on a teleconference (having come home in time to take it in my jammies). I finished up and was in the process of making Walnut Chews in the kitchen when he came exploding back into the house. And I do mean EXPLODING.

While trying to pay for my gift, his card was declined at the counter -- in front of everybody. Now, nobody enjoys this particular experience, but for Calvin it's just about the worst, most embarrassing thing that can possibly happen. The card was declined because the bank detected fraudulent charges against his debit card number, so they shut off the card. Without informing us.

How rude. I mean, I appreciate them putting the brakes on after a whole three dollars and seventy-four cents got charged against our account from someplace in Maryland. But they could have at least called us to let us know. Especially since its, you know, Christmas, and the use of our primary method of, you know, paying for shit, should be, you know, accessible.

So Calvin comes busting into the kitchen, grabs the phone and dials up the bank. He gets the automated "press or say x" fuckbot nonsense that for some reason automated telephone system developers think actually makes things easier. More convenient. Faster. Except that all of that? Not.

He goes through several machinations, loud repeats, and cursing which confuses the automated phone fuckbot. He finally gets a representative. Who tells him to repeat all of the information that he already told the fuckbot. What followed was not pretty. Calvin kind of went off on the customer service chickie. Or maybe it was a guy? I'm not sure. When he was asked to confirm a bunch of charges and continue to repeat himself, he said, "This is bullshit."

The customer service chickie hung up on him. Calvin held the phone away from his ear, looked at it, looked at me. He turned red. He turned white. He started breathing in huge heaves. I could hear the dial tone from where I was standing on the opposite end of the kitchen.

Calvin very, very carefully put the phone down on the receiver. He turned around, walked across to the patio door, and exited the building. I have no idea what he did out there in the back yard to calm down, but five minutes later he came back in. Breathing normally.

Duuuuuuuude. I thought his head was going to pop right off his shoulders.

We have both decided that we hate Christmas, more and more with every year that goes by. This whole year has been a pisser, and we feel like we're just going through the motions of the holidays for the kids, who take turns between being deserving and being not particularly so. Next year we are going to be COMPLETELY OUT OF THE STATE when December 25th rolls around.

Fuck this noise.

Labels: Calvin, holiday, home, journal, wtf

Posted by Laura at 9:00 AM | Permalink | Comments

December 3rd - Place Christmas present order with Amazon
December 4th - 7th - Decorate house
December 10th - Mail Christmas Cards
December 14th - Acquire tree
December 15th - Buy stocking stuffers
December 16th - Make fudge
December 17th - Distribute fudge and cards to co-workers
December 18th - Make magic cookie bars for White Elephant gift
December 19th - Obligatory work-oriented celebration with aforementioned White Elephant gift exchange
December 21st - Lobster Dinner with Baked Potato Soup
December 22nd - Wrap presents
December 25th - Christmas/Turkey Dinner

December ? - Some family oriented event with food

December 21st - January 6th - 17 days of vacation bliss

Labels: holiday, listy goodness

Posted by Laura at 11:58 AM | Permalink | Comments

Continuing in my freakish tradition to have all Christmas-type purchasing finished before mid-November, I have:

• Picked out both of Calvin's gifts and both of Marie's gifts (I just have to click "check out" on Amazon).


• Picked out the non-candy portion of the stocking suffers (again with the "check out" clicking).


• Determined cost of lobster and crab leg extravaganza, and just have to firm up the Christmas Dinner date.


• Added up the money going to my sister's kids and Calvin's sisters' kids.

Really the only things left are to figure out what the heck we're getting Michael (sticking with the two-gift-limit, in an effort to downsize the loot now that we're all grown-ups), what we're sending the grandsons, and how decorative we're going to get this year (not very, I'm sure, but there will at least be a tree this time - we didn't have one last year OR the year before).

CALVIN: I'm going to have mercy on you and make this easy: please buy me perfume and this, and I shall act surprised. Oh, and please put Ferrero Rocher chocolates in my stocking.

Labels: holiday, listy goodness

Posted by Laura at 1:31 PM | Permalink | Comments