"The Expendables" is super explode-y

Actually, really watched "The Expendables" and "The Expendables 2" tonight. Brian would not let me start "The Expendables 3," because it was too much man-murder-testosterone-blood-puns-guns for one night. I was disappointed, but I did record "3" so I can watch it tomorrow.

Also tomorrow, I shall begin wrapping presents. I did some more shopping today, and have more orders coming, but I have enough already to get started, for sure. And since my Patriots aren't playing tomorrow, I really don't have anything to make me be anywhere other than the room where the Christmas happens. (The room where it happens, the room where it happens...)

I did find one of the presents that I had bought at one place for cheaper at Target though, so that's an issue. I bought it, of course. The gift is still on order, and will probably be shipped in the next couple days, but once it gets here, it will be returned immediately. I mean, $15 is $15, right?

Sleeping in is a good thing!

I'm looking forward to not waking up to an alarm tomorrow morning. There's something so decadent about sleeping in a nice, warm bed when it's cool in the house, and not having to brave the coolness until you want to... or have to pee. And it's even better when I'm not staying up too late the night before. So tonight is the normal 11 p.m. bedtime, and no alarm tomorrow. All good things.

Also, my dogs got groomed today so my bedmates smell good.

So I'm having a wonderment about my handwriting dystonia issue. I'm thinking that, since the botox didn't work properly, and the whole problem is the arm muscle that's always tensed, that maybe some form of forced relaxation may help make it better. I have a couple thoughts on that. First, perhaps one of those handgun massagers. They seem super violent, but also like they are efficient and purposeful.

My second thought is acupuncture. I did actually google acupuncture and dystonia, and it was a positive search, in that the acupuncture worked for some dystonia, just not specifically the one that I have. So I'll be the guinea pig for that one. I've asked around and no one in my circle here knows an acupuncture technician, so again, I'll be the guinea pig, I guess. I'm at the mercy of Yelp and Google reviews, I suppose.

I'm thinking I'll start with the massage gun though, and then move on to the acupuncture as my second self-diagnosed solution. I have figured out how to fix it. Let's see if either one of them work.

Making my list, which seems to be ongoing

I spent a lot of time on Christmas today. My afternoon was pretty well consumed with organizing what I've already got, ordering what I need, and realizing where the big gaping holes in my list are. My first act was to dig through all the bags and shopping that I'd already done, and organize it into piles for my people. Happily, I discovered that I was better along than I thought.

Still, there is work to be done.

No, I didn't get my cards addressed.

Cooper got his first allergy shot yesterday, and the results in his behavior and comfort have been pretty remarkable. He'd been licking his feet, scratching his ears, and itching his butt on the floor. After he got his shot, he hasn't done a single one of those things. Last night, we had our first full-night sleep without being awakened by his licking and scratching. And I've got to tell you, I feel like Cooper is feeling so much better. He just seems so relaxed and chill, and comfortable. I'm horrified with how long he's been irritated by the allergies before I made the decision to get him his shot.

This will not happen again. Allergy shots for everyone!

ITEM!: Only 15 days until Christmas.

ITEM!: First and foremost, I need to tell you that I got more envelopes at Walgreens this morning. The associate at the front was very helpful, exasperated that I didn't get all my envelopes the first time, and was quick to hand over the extra ones I needed. So, that fixed that. I have no motivation to address them tonight though, so that task will wait another day or two.

ITEM!: I'm watching an HBO documentary, "The Mystery of D.B. Cooper." HBO does an amazing job with their documentary films, and this particular subject is intriguing to me. It's been sitting on my DVR for a few days, and for whatever reason, tonight is the night. I'm interested because they just said that there are several key suspects. I feel like this is going to get super cool and interesting.

ITEM!: When Brian and I were at the mall yesterday, we visited a pastry, cookie, sweets shop. We stocked up on cookies, for certain. I'm always a sucker for a snickerdoodle, and when I saw one there, it was my first request. Brian chose a molasses one, and then we bought a package of day-old cookies, which included chocolate chip, s'mores, almond glaze and frosted sugar. We haven't dug into those yet, but I have definitely tasted my snickerdoodle. And it is so, so delicious! I'm eating it in parts, so I still have about 30 percent of it left, and while I'd like to say that I'm savoring it, every time I eat a piece, I end up eating another piece.

This is not my card, but I do like it quite a lot

I'm in a bit of a snit right now.

I ordered my Christmas cards from Walgreens; two orders of 20. Which, if my math is correct, is 40 cards. With those 40 cards, one would expect there to be 40 envelopes.

Well, not today, Satan. Today, I have 22 envelopes for my 40 cards. I was all ready to address my envelopes and fill them with cards, but now I can't do it yet. I'm adding Walgreens to my list of stops tomorrow, and hoping that I don't get anyone trying to tell me that I actually did get 40 envelopes.

I have the time, of course, because I don't have my Christmas stamps yet. (Mom orders those for me.) But I do want them addressed as soon as I can get it done, because any task that's finished now is no longer on my still-to-do list, which in itself is quite overwhelming.

This kind of hiccup is annoying.

Damn, those iPhones can take a picture

This one of the famous Cabazon Dinosaurs, and as you can see, he's dressed for the holidays. Usually, on most days, he's painted a more "dinosaur-y" green, and without the Santa suit. We were surprised to see him in a Santa suit when we drove up, but were even more surprised to see that the suit is painted on him. That seems like a big use of random resources, but I guess if they were going to paint him a very un-dinosaur-like green anyway, they might as well throw on the Santa suit for a couple weeks first.

Anyway, when we drove past him on our way out to California, it was dark, and Sydney said, "Mom, I think the dinosaur is in a Santa suit!" We decided that no matter what, we'd be stopping on our way back. And quite obviously, we did just that. And it was totally worth it in every way.

This really is a great picture with the bright blue sky behind him.

Excited for a not-dismal season after all

When Tom Brady left the Patriots at the end of last season, I had little to no hope for a decent season this year. When the Patriots signed Cam Newton I had perhaps more faith than I should have that we'd have a better than decent season this year. Alas, my team is not performing well.

During that weird, quiet offseason, before Cam was signed, Brian and I had a conversation in which he said that the Pats would go 4-12 for the season, but I said that we'd at least go .500 for the year. I am excited to announce that we are quite far into the season, with only four more games to play, and the Patriots are 6-6. We may not end the season with an 8-8 record or better, but at least it won't be as dismal a record as 4-12. Already, the Pats and I have won something: Brian's having to admit that he didn't give them enough credit to do some damage this season, and that *I* was right.

Brian's other question for me based on my team's performance this year, when I'm going to be ready to cancel our NFL Sunday Ticket. I'm not sure, but I'll hang on and spend the expense for another couple years. If they're in the toilet for a couple in a row, it may be a line item that gets deleted from the budget. I'll only get to watch the nationally televised games then. Who knows how that will go...

Title for blog on December 5

I had pledged to blog every night this month, but last night I got sucked into more of "The Queen's Gambit,"and was up watching that. I'm five episodes in, currently watching episode 6, and texting my coworker/friend Bri about all the things that happen. She seems to be enjoying my watching it as much as I am.

And in news with a Griswold Christmas angle, we bought our Christmas tree today, and out up our lights outside. Our tree, of course, ended up being about six inches taller than our ceiling, so we had to trim it to get it to stand inside. We decided last year that we needed a few new strings for this year, so that's on our agenda for tomorrow. So our very tall tree is un-lighted in our living room, and awaiting its dress-up tomorrow.

Also, Brian has decided that our icicle lights are too bright and white, and they somehow outshine the multicolor lights and they need to be taken down. And maybe perhaps replaced with something else? I can't say that I disagree with him, which is why I'm okay with his blanket announcement, so we're heading to get new lights for two things tomorrow.

This post is very disjointed and not written well because I'm watching my show, so I'll be done now.

Official Ritz cracker declaration

It's official now. No longer do I buy gimmicky Ritz cracker shapes.

When I saw the "snowflake" shapes, I said to Brian, "Will they be the same size of the regular Ritzes?"

My concern about their size was quickly assuaged. What I discovered though, as I continued to pack the crackers into my snack bag every day for work, was that the structural integrity of the snowflake Ritz crackers was the real problem. I pack six crackers a day, and repeatedly and annoyingly, the crackers are cracking into pieces. Note the crackers in the pic there to the left. That is an actual image from my actual crackers on Monday. Half of them are in pieces.

And before you're all, "How are you transporting them and where do they sit?" I'll tell you that they are treated the same as the original Ritz crackers, and those crackers never crack up. So normal Ritzes survive the ride to work, but the snowflake Ritzes do not. And I'll not buy them again.

Learn from my experience, friends.

COUNTDOWN: 23 days, and 4,000 list items

It's the second day of December, and it's getting done. I made another Christmas present purchase. One less thing on my list. I have a couple other things to be ordered, and will get to those tomorrow, I think. Or at least one of them, for sure.

My brain is a constantly shifting and nebulous Christmas list. A list of to-do items, plans, ideas, and wants that already is somewhat overwhelming, and to make it worse, I can feel the days slipping away.

Having said and whined all that: Today, I got the Christmas card photos taken, and just might get to ordering the cards tonight. I made an order, as I said; started working on the Christmas dinner menu; took the pics; and started creating the actual, working paper list. Also we watched the last 30 minutes of "Elf."

Christmas spirit is full-up in my house right now!

The beginning of the end of the year

You guys, it's December. Already. It's December.

Isn't it weird how this year has flown by but also taken so long to be over?

I'm really pretty pleased with where I'm at for this point in December. I've got a good portion of the big shopping done, uncharacteristically. I need to do the smaller stuff, and intend on getting to that this weekend, but really, I'm in good shape. This month's avatar reflects that, I think. I've got my Christmas shit together, and I'm feeling it.

Also, I finished watching the last three episodes of "The Right Stuff" on Disney+ tonight, and I'm hoping there will be another season of that. (I just Googled, and it looks like there will be, even though it didn't bring in the ratings that were hoped for.) Anyway, it's a good show and I recommend it. You know me; if it's about space, I'm in.

I returned my library book unread a couple weeks ago. I realized that I probably won't get to it during the holidays, and why hold on to it in case there's someone who does want to read it? So I turned it in, and I'm feeling unburdened by that. Come January and the new year, there will be an EXPECTATION regarding reading. I failed miserably at it this year, so next year can't help but be better.

We're basically mainlining movies now

We finished the last of the Harry Potter movies yesterday, and again, they are so good. I mean, the movies are good, but the story itself is so amazingly well written, and outlined and planned to perfection. How the characters are brought together, and then return again and again with significance and purpose, is fantastic. And I can tell Sydney, until I'm blue in the face, that the books are that much better, but she'll still probably never read them.

So for the next series of movies based on books that she'll probably never read: "The Hunger Games." With this group at least, the movies are just about as good as the books, so I'm less irritated to sit and watch these with her as her first exposure to Katniss. And also, Jennifer Lawrence is frickin' stellar in these films. 

I'm not sure what we'll watch after "The Hunger Games," but really, this next month is about the holiday movies that both I have not seen, and that Sydney needs to see. So I'm preparing that list for us, too.

Bring back Sirius and Dumbledore ... spoiler alert

We've been rewatching the Harry Potter movies over this week. Tonight, we watched my least favorite of them, "Order of the Phoenix," and "Half-Blood Prince."

As I told Sydney, "I read the end of 'Order of the Phoenix' like five times right after each other because I was in such denial about Sirius dying." I honestly couldn't believe that what I read was indeed what I had read. I still reject the idea of this particular character dying. Also, there's really not a single good thing that happens in that entire movie.

"Half-Blood Prince" is almost as bad when it comes to disturbing deaths, of course, as well as where the entire story begins down the darkest of dark turns, and begins our descent into "Deathly Hallows."

Anyway, I have a feeling that we'll log hours watching both "Deathly Hallows" films tomorrow, and finish our Harry Potter Appreciation Week with a flourish.

Rose petals optional, of course

I hate shaving my legs. It is a tedious and ridiculous task, and one that I tend to only a few times a year. (Relax any judginess; of course, I shower regularly, I just don't shave my legs that often.) I don't like doing it, is all. And my husband knows better than to comment or complain.

A few months ago, I came upon a fairly obvious solution to my particular problem: waxing. Waxing my legs is my new regular body maintenance. I was getting my legs waxed every eight weeks, as my eyebrows get done every four weeks. I've had the legs done maybe six times by now, and now I've decided that I'm going to wax them more often so as to accelerate the cool result of regular and constant waxing, the hair stops growing. So now every four weeks I get my eyebrows and my legs waxed, and I'm hoping that in a year I'll be able to not have leg hair growing anymore.

So, yes, new body maintenance item in the monthly budget, but it's all good stuff. Especially if after the year or so it makes the whole shaving thing utterly unnecessary. And then this entire thing won't even be a line item or peripheral concern anymore.

Sign me up for the movies on Dec. 25

So the word came out today that "Wonder Woman 1984" will be opening in theaters, and released on HBO Max, on December 25. I won't lie, we are totally going to see it in the theater. Because it totally needs to be seen on the big screen. We've been waiting a couple years, and certainly a number of months, to see this film, and it's finally going to happen! I'm so excited!

This year has been a trip in regards to movies. Every year, early in the year, I make a list of the movies I want to see, and this year's list is WOEFULLY un-crossed-off. Like maybe five were seen, and the rest are on my list for 2021, tentatively, and I guess that makes next year a remarkable one for films? I'll admit that not spending money on the movies two to three times a month was interesting in the pocketbook and savings account, but I've certainly missed the entertainment! I'm intrigued to see how the schedule works out in 2021, especially if the vaccine gets out and about relatively early in the year.