Grandma's House

Did everyone have a great Christmas? I did. We slept later than usual, then got up and opened our gifts. I got a great pencil sketch of Aragorn from Lord of the Rings, a wall clock with a pic of Dan Radcliffe from Equus (rated PG), and a fleece jacket with Dumbledore's Army on it. Sweet! Then we had a quiet dinner and watched some movies.

Friday the bottom fell out. I woke up with a sore throat... always a bad thing. By ten p.m. I had full blown bronchitis. It never fails. It always hits like a freight train, and always on the weekend. Not that anything can be done anyway. Antibiotics don't work on viruses. All I can do is treat the symptoms and try to stay out of the hospital. This sucks. It usually hits around Super Bowl time. I've got two big weeks of finals in school starting next week. I don't have time for this.

Today was the end of the football regular season, and this year I won! Sir Mugley owes me 81 cents. Woot!!

Tonight I'm wrapped in a blanket watching Sound of Music, drinking something soothing and taking meds for survival. I think I'll watch the Mod Squad (original series, not stupid movie) then try to sleep. Not an easy thing when you're coughing.

Are you all ready for Christmas? I think this little guy is:



I don't think this is the Santa he was expecting, though:



But seriously, let's remember what this day is all about. No matter what religion you may be, try to be respectful of the fact that for many people, today represents the day that our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ was born. Of course we know that he wasn't really born on December 25th, but we have chosen this day to honor Him. We will try to not disrespect your holidays, and ask that you don't disrespect ours.



MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL

Isn't that a pretty picture? Some folks are having a white Christmas this year. We're not expected to, although they are forecasting a little snow possibly later tonight. It's supposed to be in the 60's on Friday, with a chance of severe thunderstorms. Don't ya love weather? My arthritis is having a ball with it!

I won't be blogging for a few days, since it's the holidays and I'm gonna enjoy them. Not that blogging isn't enjoyable, but sometimes you want to read stuff on the internet and not ask yourself, "Should I post about that?". Of course, if something really weird comes up I'll post it. You know I will. Until then,

In honor of the fact that it's supposed to go below zero here for the first time since 2003 (global warming my Aunt Fanny), here are a couple more pictures to warm the cockles of your heart. If you want the heart of your cockles warmed, you'll need to get that somewhere else.





Poor little guy. I sympathize. I'm under a comforter, have a throw around my shoulders and a beagle on my lap. Unfortunately, I can't use my touchpad on the laptop with gloves on, or I'd be wearing those as well. But my flannel jammies are keeping me warm. Now if I could figure out how to go to the bathroom without getting out from under the blanket...

Here's hoping everyone had a lovely day today. I do have two questions:

1. Is it Hanukkah or Chanukah? Or is it something different? Pick a spelling already!

2. Why is this considered a strictly Jewish holiday? After all, it is the celebration of a miracle. Shouldn't everyone be in favor of that?

I got my first Christmas present the other day. Sir Mugley got me a beautiful Harry Potter and Fawkes music box/snow globe. Of course, I'll have to keep it in the box until after we move. But the box is pretty, too.

He's also got me three other presents. I told him not to spend too much money, but I don't think he listened very well. I think he's trying to make up for the gift I gave him for our anniversary (a replica of the double-headed axe Gimli used in Lord of the Rings). One of the presents is flat, like a picture or small poster. He said I'd probably want to hang it over my bed (Hmmm!).

I went ahead and gave him one of his presents as well, because I didn't want to use a mile of paper to wrap it. I got him a replica of the sword William Wallace (Mel Gibson) used in Braveheart. You might have figured out that he has a thing for knives/swords/anything with a blade. Not so much a thing as a passion. Wait until he sees the other gift (a copy of Aragorn's short blade). No worries... he doesn't read my blog so I can say this stuff. I know, no loyalty. On the other hand, no regrets. It balances.

Since I've been neglecting you, my dear reader(s?), I'm presenting a special, Sunday edition of Phriday Phideaux. Call this my tribute to cold weather.

It would be a lot more phun to play outside if we were covered with phur, wouldn't it? Too bad this little guy isn't wearing mukluks:



Naturally, somebody has to get cute instead of just playing nice:



Of course, after a day of play, this is where all good little phideaux want to be, right? I guarantee, this is where Bandit will be until spring!



This concludes our special cold weather edition of Phriday Phideaux. I'll be back before Thursday with a special Christmas edition. It's the least I could do, and anyone who knows me knows I always do the least I could do. See ya.

I'm not sure, but I'm guessing that there were drugs involved in this story. Two men break into a guy's house, hold him at knife and gun point (!), and demand he turn over.... his egg beater! They were arrested nearby with the cherished item still in their possession. Idiots!

I'm still alive!! Yes, I have been fighting the crud, and I think I've beaten it once again. Already passed through the drippy stage, then the anger stage (why am I always getting sick? ARGH!!), and then the depression stage (ooh, poor me...). Now that I'm feeling better, the weather is ridiculous. Right now it's 11 degrees outside and the wind chill is about -2000 or so. Seriously, we're under a weather advisory because our wind chill is expected to be about -20 until around Tuesday, plus there's a chance we'll get some ice or snow before it's over. Sir Mugley went out today before it got nasty and replenished our stock of food and bottled water, not to mention snacks for the goggie. Hard to believe that this time two days ago it was 62 degrees!

Another Friday, and I'm still fighting the creeping crud. I have absolutely no energy, so Phideaux will be delayed again. I'll try to get something up this weekend. In the meantime, I thought I'd brag about my "baby" boy, who now goes by either Mr. Attitude or Tony Stetson. He made the local news with his participation in a wrestling program. Stetson is his wrestling name. I tell ya, the one thing I never thought I'd see is my son in spandex. Hard to believe he weighed less than five pounds at birth now. Here is the link so you can see the video as well. It was difficult for me to watch, since we only have dialup. That means we get videos 2-3 seconds at a time. But I did my best. I'm proud of you, son.

Anyway, Phideaux will be back in a few days. I gotta get some sleep.