Too much trepidation...

Here it is New Year's Eve day - the last day of 2010. It came so quickly. I'm not quite sure I'm ready to let it go. Last year, as far as I was concerned, 2009 could not come to a close fast enough. For some reason it was a hard year. This year was a hard year also but 2011 will be even harder. Although I will still be employed for one more month I believe I've started to say goodbye - goodbye to a 14 year career with a good company, a great boss, fun co-workers (well several of them anyway :-)), fair compensation and a comfortable place where I knew I belonged. Although I have started to say goodbye I'm not ready to say goodbye (I'm known for my ambivalence).  I thought I was ready but I'm not.

I know people become unemployed every day - I know I've had plenty of time to look for another job - I know many would tell me to straighten up, cope and deal - but I'm not ready. The strange fact is I didn't even realize I wasn't ready until today when I was reading someone's thoughts on the end of 2010 and my eyes started welling up and the tears started flowing and then I realized I'm not looking forward to 2011, I'm not ready. 2011 is too much uncertainty and unfamiliar territory and budgeting and soul searching and trepidation. Too much trepidation. I'm not ready.

TTFN... May your 2011 be filled with good things in familiar settings and not too much trepidation.

The most wonderful time of the year...

The follow-up edition.  I love Christmas - I really do.  I love the hustle and bustle and good cheer and pretty lights and Christmas trees in windows and little kids singing and shopping and wrapping and seeing family and sharing the love.  What I don't love are the days following Christmas when the trees start coming down and the lights begin blinking off and the stores are filled with muddy foot prints and people returning the gifts that they just didn't like.  There isn't so much good cheer as resentful impatience.  And it's all happens so quick.  One day everyone is hurrying and scurrying and the next they are trying to figure out what to do with all their old junk.  I know it can't be Christmas every day but maybe once every six months??? 

Personally I won't be taking my tree and decorations down until New Year's Day so that leaves me six days to savor the season.

I'll just be over here - gazing at the tree and thinking about the memories of the season...

Merry Christmas...

Merry, Merry, Merry Christmas!

Let the Festivus begin!

Only two short days before the beginning of the biggest season of the year.  I'm not ready.  Cookies are not baked - except for one batch of Peanut Butter Star Cookies, which are tasty but falling apart because I used too much flour and the little helpers in the house were pretty heavy handed with the sugar rolling so the stars have all fallen off.  Guess which cookies I'm making again along with the others on my list?  I had plans of mixing up several batches tonight - I got ONE done.  And that one looked iffy along the way.  First I forgot to add and melt my chocolate chips, so back to step one.  Okay good, chips added and melted - now to add the eggs while beating.  Great - well except for that piece of egg shell which slipped in the bowl and never made it out.  UGH.  I'm claiming ignorance when someone gets that crunchy bite of cookie (Yuck and for some reason finding egg shell in my food TOTALLY grosses me out so I certainly hope I'm not the finder/keeper).  When I talked to my sister to find out if she was making her "famous" Swedish Creams she told me she wasn't because she wasn't stressing herself out about baking this year - which I sort of sneered at (sorry Nic, but it's true).  Now I'm wondering if she had the right idea - but darn if I didn't already buy the heavy cream to make those Swedish Creams...'
Along with the baking I have yet to wrap the majority of the presents to go under the tree and I never did make much progress on that Christmas card thing (I haven't given up on the dream - it could still happen).  So I am hoping to accomplish much in the next two days - along with finding my Christmas spirit.  The reason for the season has been totally lost on this soul lately.  SIGH.  I've had enough whine with my cheese so I won't even get into the cleaning I have yet to do before the present UNwrapping begins...

TTFN...  May the Spirit of Christmas find it's way into your heart.

BLIZZARD...

Yes, as the rest of the universe has heard we had a blizzard. The Metrodome collapsed. The Vikings had no where to play their little game. It was a weekend.

I haven't stepped foot outside of my home since Friday evening. I'm beginning to get a little stir crazy. That and as I was doing ANOTHER load of laundry I realized there is only one weekend left until Christmas and I now have an almost irresistible urge to venture out into the frozen tundra to complete my shopping. And really, how in the world does the time slip away from me every year? You would think after 40 something years of celebrating Christmas I'd get how the whole thing works. Not so much I guess.

Just a short post tonight. I wanted to include some pictures of the snow but I'm so sick of looking at it I couldn't bring myself to take a picture.

TTFN...

Well that snuck up on me once again...

It's Christmas Card time.  I always fail to remember I need to prepare for these things.  You would think the big green tree in the living room and those cards arriving in the mail would be a daily reminder but it doesn't seem to be doing the trick.  I haven't sent cards for the last two years.  No Christmas picture, no cheerful letter rejoicing in the wonders of my young Einstein's, no pretty glittery card - NOTHING.  Nothing for two years - but now I'm starting to get a little worried that people may cut ME from their Christmas card lists so this year I'm sending the cards - at least that's what I decided five minutes ago.

Sooooo, if I am on your list do not cut me - I really didn't cut YOU from MY list - NO ONE has received cards from me - really, I promise.  And I might even put together a little letter (note to people - I like the letters I really do so if you can send a letter do it - and a picture - a picture and a letter - that's the best Christmas card) just to let everyone know about our lives and the dog (it's always about the dog). 

Okay gotta run.  I've got places to go and things to do.   But if you see me out and about please remind me I said I was sending cards this year.  Really, I seem to keep forgetting...

TTFN... I found that card on Etsy - here: http://www.etsy.com/shop/studioflowerpower?ref=seller_info - Pretty cool!