While looking at some Rosicrucian websites yesterday, I came across a Cycles of Life calculator. You input your date of birth, chose either the 7 year cycle or 52 day cycle, and voila! This is what it had to say for me for the last 52 day cycle of this year, November 25 - December 31, 2005:

This period is considerably different from the preceding one, inasmuch as in it we have the cosmic forces strongly influencing and strengthening the mental, nervous, and psychic side of the nature rather than the physical. It is an excellent period for the writing and mental creation of books, plays, plans, business schemes, and other matters requiring a fertile mind, quick thinking, smooth-flowing language, and an unusual ability to express the thoughts in the mind. In fact, the mind will seem to be highly charged with new thoughts, new ideas, and easily contacted expressions of the Cosmic Mind.

It is a good period in which to deal with literary persons, reporters, messengers, to engage stenographers and writers, bookkeepers, engravers, artists, and persons whose work is primarily mental and rapid in expression. Artists are more inspired and more nimble in their work during this time.

Went to a Tastefully Simple party at Megan's tonight; the beer bread is to DIE for! YUM! The dirty martinis were damn good, too :-)

Is it a full moon tonight? Wolf woke me up at 1 in the morning (see the time?) cause he had to "go"; I'd much rather be woken up then to clean up a mess, so it's all good. Couldn't fall asleep so I decided to check out bloglines. My reward came from a couple of posts over at the Leaky Cauldron; the first mentions a Forbes article, listing the top fifteen wealthiest fictional characters. Apparently, it pays to be bad:

Then I clicked on another interesting piece of news; Isetan, a department store in Japan, is featuring some Harry Potter items for sale, from November 29 - December 9th. Do I have any readers in Japan who'd like to send me the robe ornament? Perhaps one of the owls? Or...is that a card ... of the Dark Arts classroom, there in the middle?

and c'mon...a chocolate Sorting Hat on top of a cupcake? How cute is that!

Hey...it's 1:30 AM, what do you expect, sense?

Night, all :-)

ala Megan:

1. What kind of pillow do you like? (Thanks Heather !) Latex Foam! I was housesitting for Julie once, and laid my head on her pillow and was all OMG, this is SO comfy. I immediately ran out and got one or two and that's all I've used since.
2. Do you wear slippers? (Thanks Heather !) Only when it's cold; the rest of the time I wear flip flops in the house.
3. Do you sleep with socks on? (Thanks Heather !) Only when it's WICKED cold! I don't like my feet covered if I can avoid it.
4. What were you doing a year ago today? Probably getting ready for Christmas ;-)
5. Do you send out Christmas Cards? Yes! I love sending out cards...anyone want one, just let me know!
6. Do you like to wrap? Yes; I like to be creative in the things I wrap with, too. For example, for Christmas I might use a holiday cotton dishtowel to wrap something with, then, instead of ribbon, tie it with some twine, and attach a sprig of evergreen or maybe some rosemary from the garden.
7. What are your plans for the weekend? Zip, zero, nada! I have nothing scheduled, other than getting my hair done tonight. I'm sure I'll finish decorating the tree this weekend, take the dogs for walks, finish up shopping, go to that new tattoo place to check it out, visit a craft fair or two. Maybe ;-)

The old maple tree, last view

Originally uploaded by fondofelves.

NationalGrid (which is the stupid new name of our electric company) mailed their customers recently. I received the letter yesterday which said they were going to send out a certified arborist to check trees on people's property that may pose a threat to their power lines; if it was determined the trees were weak, damaged, cracked, etc., they would either take the tree down and remove all debris or prune the limbs that overhang the wires, both at no charge.

Well, I'd been thinking about having this tree looked at, as you can see, it TOWERS over the house and I've...not exactly been worried...but concerned whether it was healthy or not.

So the guy came today, nice guy, and he said the wet crack between the two limbs (no laughing) worried him...he said that's a sign of [insert arborist word here]. Because the base of the tree is about 5 feet before it splits into two branches that I swear are probably 100 feet tall, it makes me think that if it did fail, my god, it would be a catastrophe. It is situated, as you can see, so that if one side fell, it would probably fall towards either side of the house, but is that a chance I want to take? When my father bought the house back in 1960, the next door neighbor offered him a bit of advice, which was: "first thing you should do is cut that tree down."

I love the tree, it totally shades the house in summer, and I HATE cutting a tree down, but...they are doing it for free and it's something I've been giving much thought to.

What do you think? Is it this tree's time?

My friend, MaryEllen's ("opinions for free") advice: "Oh absolutely have it taken down, don't take any chances (hey sell the firewood). You can plant another tree come spring and have the thrill of watching it grow."

MB? Need some firewood? Come and get it!

Originally uploaded by fondofelves.

Slowly but surely I'm getting the tree (and house) decorated! Found this ornament a couple years ago (look familiar? It's an Annalee) at a little shop down the street. Hmmm...maybe I'll do a picture a day for the rest of the month. That'll motivate me to get things done!

Saturday:
- Went by the photo shop where I want to get the photos I'll be selling done; will go back during the week so I can talk with the owner; weekend help not too helpful
- Went to craft fair in Salem, NH...not too impressed
- visited new tattoo place, will be taking my business there from now on...VERY impressed
- baked cookies til midnight (want some?)

Sunday:
- Awoke to sirens; Santa & elves going by on fire truck...sheesh!
- Put on some music and started setting up the Christmas decorations
- Took the dogs for a quick walk, and shot some pictures in the back yard
- Decided to cheer Krista up by letting her take me back to the tattoo place to see the design that the guy had done (the design got my stamp of approval; the appointment is on the 11th)
- Early dinner/late lunch at Polcari's along with some sangria. Yum!
- Came home, put beef stew in the oven for Dad's dinner
- Partially decorated Mom's room at the nursing home with Christmas decorations

And how was your weekend?

I set this up in my office at work today; $1.00 from Target. The decoration on the tree is from Germany; the castle vase is Belleek china from Ireland; the snowman had lost his arms, so I made new ones from the stem of a dead plant in the office and the cat looks ready to torch the tree!

Anyone else decorate their office/desk/computer for the holidays?

***This post will stay at the top for awhile, in this edited form, ahem, so that more people can put themselves on the map ;-)***

Blatantly "borrowed" from Zoot, who, I forgot to tell you, SAVED MY LIFE yesterday. Well, ok, it wasn't quite that dramatic (yes it was!!!); you see, my Tivo didn't record Lost for me Wednesday night! Imagine my horror when I discovered that! I quickly sent an emergency email to Zoot, asking her if she still had Lost on her Tivo. She did AND she said she'd be more than happy to copy it to tape for me and mail it out!

Did I tell you how much I love me some Zoot?

So, yeah, I wanna be a map geek too! If you feel like it, please enter your location on this map; if I only know you by your blog name, use that as an identifier, mmmkay? Feel free to attach a picture (of yourself or something that will make me laugh), or if you want to stay anonymous, use whatever name you like...I'm easy!

Found over at Running 2Ks:

Seven Things to Do Before I Die
1. Learn Japanese
2. Drive cross country
3. Sell a photo
4. Re-connect with Michele
5. Read & see the last book & movie in the Harry Potter series
6. Spend at least a month in Europe, traveling to Scotland, England, Ireland & France mainly
7. Fall in love again (if it's not asking too much) (preferably with a man with a Scottish accent) (and tattoos)

Seven Things I Cannot Do
1. Touch a spider with my bare hand
2. Not offer advice when a friend uses me as a shoulder to cry on (altho I'm working on it)
3. Be married to someone that doesn't like or respect me
4. Math
5. Stop talking about my obsessions ;-)
6. Be "normal"
7. Eat natto!

Seven Things that Attract Me to My Husband I Look For In A Friend
1. Sense of humor, first of all!
2. Understanding
3. Caring
4. Kindness
5. Generosity
6. Adaptability
7. if they have cute guy friends they want to fix me up with that's a plus (joking! No one I know has ever fixed me up with someone they know.)

Seven Things I Say Most Often
1. Dude!
2. Snape, mmmm
3. Wolf, NO!
4. Max, stop growling!
5. Dad, you've told me that story 5 gazillion times.
6. I'm ugly/fat/old/variations thereof.
7. Extra, extra dirty martini, please.

Seven Books (or Book Series) I Love
1. The Hobbit by JRR Tolkien
2. In Watermelon Sugar by Richard Brautigan
3. The Harry Potter series, and especially The Half-Blood Prince by JK Rowling
4. The Stand by Stephen King
5. All Over Creation by Ruth Ozeki
6. A Cook's Tour by Anthony Bourdain
7. The "Dead" series by Charlaine Harris

Seven Movies I Would Watch Over and Over Again
1. Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
2. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azakaban
3. Tombstone
4. Forrest Gump
5. The Wizard of Oz
6. Dogma
7. The Ghost and Mrs. Muir

You wanna be tagged? Be tagged. Let me know

Courtesy of I Miei Pensieri; she got them from here:

It starts off with, "Ah good morning, Severus, do you have an update for me?"... made me laugh my arse off and trust me, I could use a laugh right about now...

I also liked this one:

Borrowed from Megan

Step One

* Post an entry on your blog with 10 holiday wishes.
* The wishes can be anything at all, big or small.
* The important thing is, make sure these wishes are things you really, truly want.
* If you wish for real life things, make sure you include some sort of contact info in your post, whether it's your address or just your email address where Santa (or one of his elves) could get in touch with you.
* Post these guidelines so that the holiday joy will spread.

Step Two:

* Surf around your blogroll (or friend's blogrolls, or just random journals) to see who has posted their list.
* IIf you see a wish you can grant, and it's in your heart to do so, make someone's wish come true.
* Sometimes someone's trash is another's treasure, and if you have a leather jacket you don't want or a gift certificate you won't use--do it.
* You needn't spend money on these wishes unless you want to. The point isn't to put people out, it's to provide everyone a chance to be someone else's holiday elf--to spread the joy. Gifts can be made anonymously or not--it's your call.
* There are no rules with this project, no guarantees, and no strings attached. Just...wish, and it might come true. Give, and you might receive. And you'll have the joy of knowing you made someone's holiday special.

My list:

1. Go to Kennebunkport to see the holiday decorations
2. See Spamalot before Tim Curry is gone!
3. A happy, joyful, memorable occasion during this holiday season
4. Anything on my wishlist :)
5. A trip to Paris in the springtime or Edinburgh at New Year's
6. Photograph Johnny Depp
7. A fenced in area in my back yard
8. Go dog skiing
9. Dinner or brunch at Sel de la Terre in Boston
10. Snape A companion to go through life with

ps - if anyone would want to surprise me with anything, you can get my snail mail address from Megan, or you can email me/comment for it.

Tada! Meg's Friday Questions!

1. Do you give yourself a Christmas present? If you did, what would you treat yourself to? No, not really...I'm good to myself all year long :-)
2. What are you enjoying about this holiday season? My friends, my creativity and the blue lights on my Christmas tree!
3. If you could chose a place to visit as a surprise gift for someone close what place would you chose and why? [Thanks Leigh!] Great question! I would go to ME's next weekend, because ... well, just because!
3. Would you rather it snow hard on a weekday or weekend? [Thanks Janet!] Weekday...no work!
4. Have you heard of James Blunt, and if so, what do you think of him? [Thanks Janet!] hehehe, I love these self-serving questions! Why, yes, I HAVE heard of James Blunt! I saw him on SNL last week, and was blown away by his voice (reminds me a bit of Marc Bolan)...and then this morning I saw his video...two words for that: "Yum!" and "brrrrrr"!
5. What are your plans for the weekend? Well, I'm getting my tattoo finished on Sunday and I'm TOTALLY looking forward to that. Other than that, the usual: dog walking, cleaning, cookie making. You?

And far be it from me to disturb them by getting ready to go to work! Actually, it's snowing like crazy...and from what I can see from my little window, it's slippery going; as a friend said "...roads are scary yo." I think I'll stay home, and if I do venture out, it will be to take Dad to visit Mom, as it's her 83rd birthday today.

I'll finish up my Christmas cards, finish decorating, make some cookies...

What are YOU doing?

***UPDATE***

I meant to wish a very Happy Birthday to two blogfriends, funny they share a birthday with my Mom:

ABrownCow
Watergirl

Go wish them a Happy Birthday, too, won't you?

Originally uploaded by fondofelves.

I guess we're making up for NOT getting the snow the weather people forecast last Tuesday...and it's STILL coming down!

Anyone have a copy of Father Christmas by the Kinks, or Santa Claus And His Old Lady by Cheech & Chong?

Mischief Managed!

Originally uploaded by fondofelves.

Thanks to Michelle for bringing her camera and to Krista for photographing; finally...it feels finished! This capped off my weekend. It was so nice to walk into a tattoo shop where the guy greets me by name, asks what music I want to listen to while being tattooing (um...Led Zeppelin, please!) and does a fantastic job. It hurt more than I let on, more than any other tattoo I've had done on my ankles, but it was well worth it :-)

Late lunch at "that cracker barrel cheese place" and then off to the Bizarre Bazaar at the Boston Cyclorama, followed by a drink at Sibling Rivalry (not so good) and two more at Rock Bottom Brewery (very good).

Mischief managed!

How was your weekend?

snow pile

Originally uploaded by fondofelves.

Took this shot Saturday after the big storm; ended up getting 14 inches (haven't said that since 1986; wink wink nudge nudge say no more!!!).

Today, it's flurrying...little flakes drifting, drifting down...not in a hurry to go anywhere, looking pretty, the kind that (now I'm going to jinx myself) doesn't amount to much. That's the kind of snow I like!

I wasn't really going to talk about this here, but...my cousin wrote a beautiful post and so I'll share that with you.

5 Weird Habits about Myself

Rules: "The first player of this game starts with the topic "five weird habits of yourself," and people who get tagged need to write an entry about their five weird habits as well as state this rule clearly. In the end, you need to choose the next five people to be tagged and link to their web journals. Don't forget to leave a comment in their blog or journal that says "You are tagged" (assuming they take comments) and tell them to read yours."

1. I love mint chocolate chip ice cream...but it has to be white ice cream, not green (but green is my fav color, go figure)
2. Once I pour a cup of coffee, I'll sip on it all day ... and woe unto those who throw it out!
3. I'll talk to anyone...unless it's a guy I like...then I let my friends talk to him for me.
4. It's impossible for me not to personalize my workspace, y'all should SEE my office!
5. If I love a movie, I can watch it over and over and over; same thing for music...it takes a really, REALLY long time, if ever, for me to get sick of a song. Once I like it...I could listen to it day in, day out...as anyone who's ridden in my car can attest to. Led Zeppelin, anyone?

Ok. There you have it. Now, to tag:

1. AtypicalFemale
2. Tramps Like Us
3. Blogarella
4. DackelPrincess
5. Carl

You're it, bitches!

Stolen from Sassy Femme who happily swiped it from someone else, who had swiped it from another, and on and on.

Anyway, let's have a little fun. How well do you think you really know me? [everytime I do a meme like this I can just see MaryEllen cringe]

Here's what you do: Pick ONE from each pair that you think describes me the best & leave it in the comments. It would be great if you'd then copy and paste this in your own blog to see how your blog friends view you.

On with the fun.....

* dominant or submissive
* logical or intuitive
* social or loner
* kinky or vanilla
* cute or sophisticated
* kitten or puppy
* warm flannel sheets or sleek satin
* leader or follower
* quiet or talkative
* spontaneous or planned
* football or chess
* hiking or golfing
* tequila or vodka
* top or bottom
* barefoot or shoes
* jeans or Dockers
* tender or rough
* aware or dreamy
* nerd or geek

*rubs hands together in glee* Hee hee hee I can't wait to see these answers!

I added a TON of stuff to my Amazon wish list for the Secret Santa...and my Santa got me the most perfect thing on the list! No it wasn't the $999.99 camera; it was the Harry Potter Desk Calendar! Of course, I had to open it right away...and flip the pages looking for Snape!

He first shows up on February 6th, nice close up, mmm, mmm, mmm! Then again on March 16, another nice close up and so stern! Next is April 24 where he's shown seated next to Professor McGonagall, followed by May 5, where he's smacking Harry & Ron on their heads, then a vague glimpse of him on June 5th, waaaay in the background July 6th, side view on July 12, Aug 23 with Karkaroff, McGonagall & Dumbledore, and lastly Oct 30th-Snape (with Karkaroff) in the snow.

There's also a nice one of Lucious on Dec 23/24th and the pictures on May 4th, July 8/9th, & Sept 15 I'm saving for Megan ;-)

Thank you VERY MUCH, Secret Santa!!!

On a totally different subject: Lez Zeppelin - Middle East - Feb 18th - 11PM - Who's in?

I was tagged by Running2Ks for this one; as I just did it in October, I'm not going to tag anyone again, but if you feel like doing it, please do!

The rules for this particular meme are as follows:

Remove the blog in the top spot from the following list and bump everyone up one place. Then add your blog to the bottom slot. Simplicity itself!

1. Annush
2. Vince
3. Hanuman
4. Running2Ks
5. fondofsnape

Then you get to select five people to pass the love on to. [This is the step I'm going to skip...yeah, I'm a scrooge! You there! Five of you! Do this, please!]

What were you doing 10 years ago?

I was living in Newport News, VA, freshly returned from Japan, just started working at Langley AFB, and catching up with old friends. I was also madly deeply passionately in love with He Who Will Not Be Named (and no, I don't mean Voldemort...).

What were you doing 5 years ago?

I was living back in MA, working for my present company, going thru a long distance relationship and trying to get pregnant.

What were you doing 1 year ago?

Exactly one year ago today, I came home from work to find a Christmas present from my cousin, Maribeth, waiting for me! She'd send me a magnetic to-do list with a picture of a shiba at the top and one of those plastic signs you put in your car which said: Shiba Inu Taxi Service!

What were you doing yesterday?

Yesterday I visited my Mom at the hospital, made tuna casserole for Dad for dinner, talked to my brother, worked and talked with friends.

Five snacks you enjoy

1. potato chips!!!
2. raw almonds
3. maple sugar candy
4. triscuits & laughing cow cheese
5. popcorn & raisinettes

Five songs I know all the words to:

1. Father Christmas - The Kinks
2. Silent Night
3. It Came Upon A Midnight Clear
4. Hark the Herald Angels Sing
5. It's Beginning To Look Like Christmas

Five things you would do if you had a million dollars:

If I had a million dollars, if I had a million dollars, I'd buy you a house...oh wait, that's what BNL would do. WWFOSD?

1. I'd buy myself a house
2. I'd invest
3. I'd pay off my bills
4. I'd buy that wicked expensive camera I want and set myself up in business
5. I'd do something nice for my family and friends, and I'd let them choose what it was that they'd most enjoy.

Five bad habits:

1. Confronting people that don't wish to be confronted
2. Not being able to walk away
3. Hating my job, yet doing nothing about it in a positive way
4. Not eating healthy foods all the time
5. Not exercising as much as I should

Five things you like doing:

1. Walking in the woods with my dogs
2. Doing the unexpected
3. Spending time with friends
4. Reading
5. Taking pictures

Five things I would never wear again:

1. A wedding dress
2. Gold jewelry
3. leg warmers
4. a white crocheted bikini
5. tube tops

Five favorite toys:

1. my camera
2. my ipod
3. my Snape wand
4. my tivo
5. My friend Di's made up game, Salad Bowl

I am now passing the MEME baton to anyone else who wants to play!

Sent this in an email to two friends: "Seeing as how you beyotches should know these things about me, I'm going to let YOU ALL fill in the answers!" after receiving yet another email meme!

Here are MaryEllen's answers:

1. Eggnog or Hot Chocolate? Hot Eggnog [if by hot she means spiked, yeah baby!]

2. Does Santa wrap presents or just set them under the tree? He unwraps it at some point [this is a reference to my taking a long time to do things I say I'm going to do]

3. Colored lights on tree/house or white? colored [this is a reference to past dating habits]

4. Do you hang mistletoe? Nope, cameltoe [this is just wrong]

5. When do you put your decorations up? The minute the bra goes on [this, of course, is a reference to my over endowment]

6. What is your favorite holiday dish? Snape on a bun [oooh YES]

7. Favorite holiday memory as a child? I’m an adult? [hmmm, probably so!]

8. When and how did you learn the truth about Santa? In bed [hahaha]

9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? Depends, whatcha doing? [does this mean she wants to open me?]

10. What kind of cookies does Santa get set out for him? It's more like buns than cookies [hey, Santa ain't complainin'!]

11. Snow: Love it or hate it? Love it [snow is like men, only opposite; anything over 3 inches sucks]

12. Can you ice skate? yup [and I stubbornly will NOT let her teach me to skate backwards!]

13. Do you remember your favorite gift? CRS [no, I HATE this gift, take it BACK!]

14. What's the most important thing about the holidays to you? Buying one for you, one for me [hehehe, about right]

15. What is your favorite holiday dessert? Whipped cream [especially if it's on Snape]

16. What is your favorite holiday tradition? Hide the candy cane [hehehe]

17. What tops your tree? Three of a kind [this is a reference to MaryEllen's gambling addiction]

18. Which do you prefer--GIVING OR RECEIVING? Giving it [I do like giving!]

19. What is your favorite Christmas Carol? Ho Ho Ho it's Christmas [I think this is a reference to the fact she thinks I'm a ho]

20. Do you like to pretend you're Santa Claus, and give out presents and cards to all of your friends/families/relatives? Dressing up is extra $$ [this is a reference to MaryEllen's dominatrix past]

Courtesy of Megan:

1. What is your #1 winter beauty product? Thanks Michele! I don't think I change products seasonally...um...lotion and socks on my feet at night?
2. What's your favorite kind of Christmas cookies? Have you ever baked pornographic cookies? Thanks ME! B's Favorite Gingersnaps!!! A close second is my parents' Sand Tarts, and yes, of COURSE I've baked pornographic cookies...have YOU, ME?
3. Does your company do a holiday party? Yup, dinner and a yankee swap at a local restaurant or at one of the senior people's homes.
4. What's the most embarrassing thing you've done at an office holiday party? [Thanks Janet!] I've never embarrassed myself ;-) Altho I think last night after the party, I did pee my pants in TJ Maxx...
5. Have you ever had a martini? If so, what is your favorite? [Thanks Janet!] hehehe, yes, and my favorite is the defunct Karmal Sutra!
6. What's your cure for a hangover? [Thanks Janet!] One glass of water for every drink you have, and then one more glass before you go to bed. It helps, I swear!
7. Who do you think is the cutest person in your office? [Thanks Janet!] Hehehe, let's just say it's one of the IT guys and leave it at that ;-)
8. What are your plans for the weekend? Things are kind of up in the air for me right now, but if all goes well, I'll see mah girlz tonight in Boston, Saturday my cousin & her husband are coming down, and Sunday I'm going for brunch. How about you?

My mom passed away last night...

December 9, 1922 - December 17, 2005

My cousin, Melodie, sent me this poem this morning...I thought I'd share it with you.

I am standing upon the seashore. A ship at my side spreads her white sails to the ocean. She is an object of beauty and strength. I stand and watch her until at length she hangs like a speck of white cloud just where the sea and sky come to mingle with each other.

And that is dying.

- Henry Van Dyke

Originally uploaded by fondofelves.

I took this picture earlier in the day Mom passed away...

I'd like to thank everyone who commented over the last couple days. It's amazing, the outpouring of love and good thoughts and I appreciate it more than you can know.

I wanted to share another poem that I received today ... it captures exactly how I feel:

- Henry Scott Holland, Canon of St Paul's Cathedral, 1847-1918

I thought I'd be done in a day...not turning out that way! The pictures I'm finding, the art is just amazing. Today I found a photograph of my Grandmother, taken on her wedding day--amazingly gorgeous!

I want to thank, again, everyone who has sent flowers, plants, food and also those who have signed Mom's online Guest Book...it's nice to read people's memories of her. Today, my cousin Rikki, whom I haven't seen or spoken to in years said:

"Uncle Betty will be missed here, but my Mom and Dad will be very happy to see her - they've been waiting for some more company up there."

I can see them now, popping a beer, sipping a gin & tonic and waving their cigarettes around.

Mom would have loved a sip of this concoction Megan and I came up with the other night (my first batch of homemade blueberry vodka, some Bailey's and a bit of half & half:

Did any of you see Barbara Walter's special on Heaven last night? So many religions, so many definitions of what heaven is. I found it amazing that 90 percent of people think there is a heaven and that most of the religions agree it's a place where one is happy and peaceful.

I STILL need to finish my Christmas shopping...help!

Courtesy of Santa's Divine Helper

1. What is your favorite family tradition? [Thanks Michele-my belle!]
2. What's the best gift you ever got from a yankee swap? What's the worst?
3. Your work yankee swap is in 5 minutes and you forgot to buy a gift. What item from your desk do you wrap up?
4. What would you do if Rudolph went on strike? How would you convince him to do his work tonight? [Thanks sLeigh-ride!]
5. What is your earliest memory of Christmas? [Thanks Kristamas!]
6. What's your favorite Christmas movie?!
7. You're spending Christmas in a place you'd always dreamed of...where is that place and why? [Thanks Santa-Snape!]
8. What kind of presents are you looking forward to this year? [Thanks Heather the red-nose Reindeer!]
9. What do you prefer candy canes or christmas chocolate? [Thanks Smoochy-Claus!]
10. What is your favorite christmas food that you only eat at christmas time? [Thanks Smoochy-Claus!]
11. What are your plans for the holiday?!

1. What is your favorite family tradition? It was making Sand Tarts with my parents...when I was a teen, I kind of begged off it...but I loved those cookies!
2. What's the best gift you ever got from a yankee swap? What's the worst? Nothing stands out, really...this year I got some Scotch cream liqueur and a bottle of port which was good! The worst? Probably the gold lame key holder thingie...UGH!
3. Your work yankee swap is in 5 minutes and you forgot to buy a gift. What item from your desk do you wrap up? The bottle of Champagne someone gave me!
4. What would you do if Rudolph went on strike? How would you convince him to do his work tonight? I'd tell him if he'd consent to work, I'd make sure his family would be in carrots for a long time to come!
5. What is your earliest memory of Christmas? Nothing really stands out...
6. What's your favorite Christmas movie?! Scrooged!!! The one with Bill Murray...LOVE IT!
7. You're spending Christmas in a place you'd always dreamed of...where is that place and why? I'd love to spend Christmas in Paris, or Edinburgh, or Hawaii ... just to see what it's like :-)
8. What kind of presents are you looking forward to this year? The kind people give me :-)
9. What do you prefer candy canes or christmas chocolate? Candy canes!!!
10. What is your favorite christmas food that you only eat at christmas time? Molasses cookies, yum!
11. What are your plans for the holiday?! Cooking, cleaning, making phone calls. Lots of long walks with the dogs.

Michelle sent me this cool link last night, and this is the house I drew:

It said some stuff about me, too, but I can't remember all it said and in any case, most of it didn't ring true!

I met up with my friend Diane & her daughter, Chloe (she's 6) today for breakfast at CrackerBarrel. Chloe had fun coloring and showing off her writing & spelling skills, and I had fun watching her. I gave her one of my Mom's bears (Mom collected them) and told her it needed a new home and someone to love it. She said she'd be happy to!

Now off to pick up some food for tomorrow's dinner, and then if the dogs are lucky, to the beach for a romp!

Are y'all having fun today?

I love to go to church on Christmas Eve...or during the holiday service when the choir sings only Chrismas songs! These are my particular favorites:

- Hark the Herald Angels Sing
- Silent Night
- Away in a Manger
- Deck the Halls
- Joy to the World
- It Came Upon a Midnight Clear
- Oh Come All Ye Faithful
- We Three Kings
- Angels We Have Heard on High

I used to sing in the choir when I was a kid...stopped going to church at 12 and that was that (probably a relief to those that used to have to listen to me...I can't carry a tune). So when I do go to one of these holiday services, I make sure to sing very softly, almost to myself...

Some of my other favorite, more secular holiday songs:

- Father Christmas - The Kinks
- River - Joni Mitchell
- Santa Claus And His Old Lady - Cheech & Chong (not really a song, but...)
- Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire - Nat King Cole
- Jingle Bell Rock (the one by Hall & Oates)
- Rudolf The Red-Nosed Reindeer
- Santa Baby
- Santa Claus Is Coming To Town
- White Christmas
- Over The River And Through The Woods
- Let it Snow
- Sleigh Ride
- Winter Wonderland
- Mr Grinch ;-)
- O Christmas Tree
- Jingle Bells
- Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas
- I'll Be Home For Christmas
- I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus
- It Came Upon A Midnight Clear
- It's Beginning To Look Like Christmas
- It's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year
and my newest fav:
- Sled Zeppelin - Bob Rivers

Instrumentals:
- Nutcracker Suite
- Charlie Brown The Christmas Song

*post inspired by Deb!

Ok...off to church, cross your fingers that lightning won't strike it, it just got a new steeple, and the temps WERE in the 50s today ;-)

Wolf & Max (and I) would like to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and a happy, healthly & prosperous New Year! Now, you'll have to excuse me, I still have presents to wrap LOL!

All it needed was a bit of prosciutto!

It was great fun reading your answers to: Why does this amuse me so?. Five answers were unanimous: Leader, spontaneous, hiking, barefoot & jeans. Just for fun, make a sentence out of those five words about me!

Here's how I see myself:

* dominant or submissive: maybe my answer will make some folks laugh, but it's how I see myself… [Krista was the only one to agree with me on this one]

* logical or intuitive: Intuitive, by far. Logical? AHAHAHAHH [Running2Ks was the only one to get this wrong; but that's ok, she doesn't know me too well yet]

* social or loner: I’d go with loner [Michele, Krista, Laura hedged their bets on this one, Gina got it right, tho!]

* kinky or vanilla: *snort* kinky [Mel and Gina got that wrong, the rest of you did well!]

* cute or sophisticated: um, neither! [I think it's funny that only my two cousins, Mel & Maribeth, thought that I am sophisticated LOL!

* kitten or puppy: puppy, my shibadibado, my little Wolfie…oops, sorry! [Everyone but Empress got that right, altho Laura went with both]

* warm flannel sheets or sleek satin: mmmm, satin [Empress, Mel & Gina got this one right...you'd think flannel, especially here in the northeast, but I love the feel of satin!]

* leader or follower: depends, but usually leader if only cause I can't stand people sitting around indecisively saying, "Well, what do you think?" [That was unanimous, everyone said Leader...hey! Does that mean you think I'm pushy? ;-)]

* quiet or talkative: quiet [Only Maribeth & Empress agreed with me on this, I think it's hysterical that most of you said talkative, I always thought I was very quiet LOL!]

* spontaneous or planned: wicked spontaneous [Another unanimous one!]

* football or chess: chess before football [Maribeth, Laura and Krista were the ones to get this right; I find football very boring, and while I certainly wouldn't want to WATCH people play chess (unless it's Wizard's Chess played by Ron, Harry & Hermione), I do enjoy playing it myself!]

* hiking or golfing: hiking!!! Max, Wolf & me in the woods, a slice of heaven (except for ticks) [Three unanimous ones! Damn, you people are good!]

* tequila or vodka: straight-tequila (body shots!); mixed drinks-vodka [Apparently, only Maribeth knew of my love for body shots...ROFLMAO!]

* top or bottom: hmmm…so many connotations to this question: top of the body or bottom…I’d say top; sexual position, I’d say bottom [5 top; 3 bottom; 1 both...hmmm, I think I'll let this one well enough alone!]

* barefoot or shoes: ha, barefoot!!! [the 4th unanimous one, very good!!!]

* jeans or Dockers: ha, jeans!!! [the 5th unanimous one, impressive!!!]

* tender or rough: hehehe, um, rough, please ;-) [Heather got this one right, which makes me wonder LOL! Laura guessed both, and that's a correct answer, too]

* aware or dreamy: dreamy [Empress, Gina & Heather got this one wrong, kind of. While I AM very dreamy, I'm aware that I'm very dreamy ;-)]

* nerd or geek: After reading the definitions for both:

nerd: A foolish, inept, or unattractive person; a person who is single-minded or accomplished in scientific or mechnical pursuits but is felt to be socially inept.

geek: A person regarded as foolish, inept, or clumsy; a person who is single-minded or accomplished in scientific or technical pursuits but is felt to be socially inept; a carnival performer whose show consists of bizarre acts, such as biting the head off a live chicken.

I think I'll go with nerd, as I've never been a carnival performer, altho...I have done some bizarre acts (but never have I bitten the head off a live chicken)! [7 geeks, 2 nerds, damn! Do you all REALLY think I've bitten the head off a chicken???]

I'll think I'll award the "Waffler" prize to Laura for having the most "or both" answers!

First day back to work...blah...that's all I have to say about that.

Tomorrow I have to take my car in to have some work done that can't be put off. This will make me late for work and further empty my wallet. So sad...

Today, a friend sent me an article about coping of the loss of a parent. In it, it says there are 5 steps to grieving:

Shock and denial
Anger
Bargaining and guilt
Depression
Acceptance

Do I have to follow these steps? Cause I think I skipped right over denial; I'm between shock & anger right now. I've yelled at my father twice. The first time was after the Christmas Eve church service, the second was last night after he plugged in something which caused some other electrical thing to not work properly [insert electrician talk here]. Yes, I'm a horrible person.

The article included 10 tips on how to cope:

~ Give yourself permission to grieve in your own way. [check]
~ Let others in your family grieve in their own way, too. [check]
~ Express your feelings about your loss. [uh...having a problem with this one.]
~ Be honest with children about your sadness. [not applicable]
~ Take care of your health. [um...having a problem with this one, too]
~ Keep in touch with people who know how much your parent meant to you. [I don't think this applies to me]
~ Honor your beliefs. [um...ok]
~ Let your manager know what happened. [like he cares]
~ Cherish your memories of your parent. [check]
~ Join an informal support group. [for a fee]
~ Look into grief counseling if the strain becomes unmanageable. [I don't think so]

Really, all I want to do is withdraw. I don't have the energy to be the friend my friends want me to be, and the nature of my friendships is such that if I can't be there for them, then they don't know what to make of this development--it changes the dynamic of the relationship (me listening to their various problems) and they just kind of don't know what to do. It's hard to comfort someone who seems to not need it and, for me, it's easy to fall into the role of seeming to be that kind of person.

If Death is Kind

Perhaps if death is kind, and there can be returning,
We will come back to earth some fragrant night,
And take these lanes to find the sea, and bending
Breathe the same honeysuckle, low and white.

We will come down at night to these resounding beaches
And the long gentle thunder of the sea,
Here for a single hour in the wide starlight
We shall be happy, for the dead are free.

~Sara Teasdale

Nov 2005 = 337
Dec 2005 = 950
Total = 1287

Not bad, considering I started back up November 17th, 2005.

Overall Thursday is my peak day, followed closely by Wednesday and Sunday [ditto!]

Busiest time for viewing 9 - 10 am and then 12 - 1pm

Biggest referrers (links from other sites)
Lauren
my old temp blog
Laura
Megan
Carl
OceanLady
Zoot
Smoochie
Jenn
Running2Ks
Fireflies & Frogs
Looloo

I'm guessing many of the folks who visited from these referrers came after reading about the passing of my mother on the referrers blogs.

158 visitors stayed longer than an hour

The top 10 keyphrases that brought people to my blog were:

fondofsnape
snape
roasted asparagas recipes
sand tart cookies
snape christmas
dark mark tattoo
barbara walter heaven
tattoos of snape
death eater tattoos
snape quotes

(sense a pattern here?)

The top 10 keywords were:

snape
fondofsnape
christmas
walter
barbara
heaven
severus
asparagas
french
tattoo

So that's fondofsnape...in a nutshell...2005. Blatantly stolen from Michelle

The last Thursday Thirteen of 2005...

This was my original idea for the Thursday Thirteen today...don't read if you're in the least sad or don't want to feel sad or for various other reasons. I'm not looking for sympathy or anything like that, it's just how I feel and I wanted to write it down and get it out.

Sippin' on a rum & coke (new dark rum from Captain Morgan called Tattoo), cooking up some meatballs for an hors d'oeuvre tomorrow at MB's and debating with myself about going to return the presents I bought for Mom for Christmas. I dropped off 5 bags of clothing at Goodwill today, there were some unused purses and brand new shoes in there as well, hopefully they can use those things and not throw them out as the clerk at Zoot's Dry Cleaners said they might. I also have a bag of teddy bears...anyone want some teddy bears?

I woke up with a wicked headache this morning, don't you hate when that happens? I can't get rid of it, and the child that whined non-stop at Crackerbarrel didn't much help. Note to parents: when your child is whining that much it kinda ruins it for those sitting close by. Just thought you might like to know. Or not.

Wolf cut his leg when we went out for a walk today...we were running, me on the asphalt, him on the curb, and he slid off ... must've skinned the inside of his leg. Didn't seem to bother him, which is VERY good, cause shibas can obsess on things like that...i.e., lick it raw.

The Christmas cards are still coming in...got two cute picture cards from my friends Betsy of her 3 girls and from Diane, of her 2 girls:

Yesterday I got a very interesting card from my friend Masayo in Japan:

Tonight I think I'll try to relax and watch my Christmas present from Gina. It's a strange movie, but one of my favorites...cause I'm strange, you know ;-)

Finally, for MaryEllen...a picture of my Christmas tree this year:

1. What did you do in 2005 that you'd never done before?
Stay in a sumptuous hotel room in NYC overlooking Times Sq!
2. Did you keep your New Year's resolutions, and will you make more for next year? Last year I said, "I make no resolutions! Damn things! And I won't make any this year! So piss off! ;-) [same as 2003]"; this year I AM making a couple of resolutions :-)
3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
Julie, Cherie & Zoot!
4. Did anyone close to you die?
My mother passed away on December 17th.
5. What countries did you visit?
France, Jamaica, Bahamas, Canada

6. What would you like to have in 2006 that you lacked in 2005?
A companion [same]
7. What date(s) from 2005 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
December 17th, when my Mom died
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Keeping my sanity
9. What was your biggest failure?
Not getting in shape [same]
10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
Nothing serious
11. What was the best thing you bought?
Tickets to go see Robert Plant! Oh wait...I didn't buy those, they were a gift...um...my Paris vacation, I guess.
12. Whose behavior merited celebration?
No one that I can think of, certainly not mine!
13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?
someone who shall remain nameless
14. Where did most of your money go?
credit cards LOL
15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
Going to see Robert Plant in concert
16. What song will always remind you of 2005?
You're Beautiful, by James Blunt
17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
i. happier or sadder? Sadder
ii. thinner or fatter? thinner, amazingly enough!
iii. richer or poorer? definitely poorer
18. What do you wish you'd done more of?
Exercise!
19. What do you wish you'd done less of?
Being alone
20. How will did you be spending Christmas?
With my family, opening gifts, cooking, cleaning up.
22. Did you fall in love in 2005?
well, not IRL, but with Snape, yes!
23. How many one-night stands?
Still: 0! Zero! Zip! Nada! I'm so proud!
24. What was your favorite TV program?
Lost, followed by Medium, Surface, Supernatural, Invasion, My Name is Earl & Everyone Hates Chris
25. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year?
Nah...well I really dislike my old boss, but that was my answer last year and the year before that, too LOL
26. What was the best book you read?
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince!
27. What was your greatest musical discovery?
James Blunt
28. What did you want and get?
Quite a few things, actually: tickets to see Robert Plant, discovering Tuscany at Mohegan Sun, cafe creme at Paul's in Paris
29. What did you want and not get?
A lover, a new camera, a trip thru the catacombs of Paris
30. What was your favorite film of this year?
Howl's Moving Castle
31. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you? The exact day, I worked, and went to the mall with a co-worker...I turned 48
32.What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
A lover, perhaps, but a good one...I'm a bit spoiled in that area, fortunately or unfortunately!
33. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2005?
Comfortable.
34. What kept you sane?
My obsession with all things Snape, Led Zeppelin, Johnny Depp
35. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
Johnny Depp/Professor Severus Snape
36. What political issue stirred you the most?
Well, it's not a political issue yet, but I sure as hell hope it will be one day and that's the selling of pets in pet stores DON'T BUY PUPPIES IN PET STORES!!!
37. Who did you miss?
Still, Calvin and Michele
38. Who was the best new person you met?
Monique!
39. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2005.
That people can and do change, no relationship stays the same, and sometimes those changes result in the loss of a friend.

Once again, many of these were the same as last years...and the year before that...hmmm...