I had the hardest time getting into the Christmas spirit this year. Part of the reason is things I’ve talked about here, like being unemployed/underemployed and fighting with the health insurance exchange (I still don’t exactly know what my health insurance is going to be on the first of January.). Part of the reason is…
I get at least two holiday cards every year. And I get no more than three holiday cards every year. I get one from my parents. Each year it has a picture of my kid, my niece, and my nephew. I get one from my friend, whom I wrote about in this post. That one…
I’ve listened to Christmas in the Stars: A Star Wars Christmas Album a lot over the years. I started listening to it as a little kid, and it’s still one of my favorites. When I was little there were two parts of the album that I didn’t really get. One was in the song, “What…
I went to my kid’s eighth grade winter concert tonight. It was really good. And it was only the eighth grade, so the whole thing took about an hour. It started with the band. They played Dominion, Forge of the Vulcan, and March to Castle Rock. They sounded good. As my grandmother used to say,…
One of the hard parts of the holiday season is deciding what gifts to give everyone. Just this afternoon, I had a whole conversation with my aunt about what to get my kid for Christmas. I didn’t have a clue. I don’t even know what I’m getting him this year. We finally settled on a…
It’s kind of amazing how much my holiday traditions have changed over the years. There are always reasons for the changes, and I like the new traditions, but sometimes I get nostalgic for the old traditions. For example, when we were kids, my family always decorated the tree on Christmas Eve. That fell away when…
I keep trying to start this piece, but some variation of the line, “I used to have a friend,” comes out. Then, I stop. I’m not sure if “used to have a friend” is a truthful or even a possible description. Is friendship temporal? If so, what does it take to keep a friendship going?…
My aunt stopped by my house today. She called first to make sure I was home, but I didn’t have time to do any real cleaning. Let’s just say the house didn’t look like I’d like it to look when I have company. There are lots of reasons why I have trouble keeping my house…
Good morning. It’s 9:11 in the AM on Christmas Eve. I’m listening to the Campbell Brothers’ Sacred Steel for the Holidays. I’ve woken up, brushed my teeth, pooped, and showered. It’s going to be a busy day. I have to go Christmas shopping, grocery shopping, wrap presents, help mom with pies, go to my brother’s…
Cats are better than dogs. I’m not saying you have to like cats better than dogs. I’m just saying that cats are objectively better. Let’s look at the evidence: I could go on, but ten is a nice round number. Most of these should be obvious and need no explanation. Number five might be a…
