Category: Family

Today’s Agenda

So Robert, what’s the plan for this fine December Saturday?

Oh nothing…

First I pick up the antibiotic cream stuff that was prescribed for the mess that is my left eye (ouch). Then I put some clothes in a backpack and maybe some gas in the car and maybe pack up some protein bars and snacks and water bottles. You know, like you do.

Then Jen and I hop into the car and mosey on up to New Hampshire to pick up my mother in law. Then we mosey on over to Vermont to meet up with the kids.

Then, later tonight, it’s nothing special. We just go to see my step daughter, Bellana, perform with the Vermont Symphony Orchestra again. They are doing a string of holiday shows this weekend and tonight’s the night for us. She’s in the chorus. You know, the Vermont Symphony Orchestra Chorus. Nothing special.

(Your humble narrator takes a moment to squeal with pride and glee)

I mean… is your step daughter in the Vermont Symphony Orchestra Chorus? No? Oh. Groovy.

Road trip!

Lunch Break

It’s Wednesday afternoon. My lunch break is coming to an end. If I were to sneak a post in before getting back to work, what would I write about?

I have no idea. My mind is a blank! So I guess we stream of consciousness this sucker? Ready… Go!

The Bruins beat the Red Wings last night. They play the Blackhawks tonight. Two teams that aren’t very good. Theoretically we should beat them both pretty easily. Last night they needed overtime to squeak out a win. Tonight? I’m almost afraid to watch.

If I could watch, that is. The NESN app is being a jerk. Well, I don’t know if it’s NESN or FiOS. I think it’s FiOS. It tells me I’m signed in, but when I try to watch something it tells me I’m not signed in and then won’t let me sign in. Maybe during tonight’s game I’ll pop in a single air pod and listen to the radio broadcast. I’m following each game but I am not listening to the goings on and I am starting to feel very much out of touch. I feel like I am too old and easily distracted to really give my full energy to a team that isn’t very good… lately they have been better but… yeah. They are currently in third place in the division so they are higher than a wild card seed for the playoffs. That’s good. Let’s keep it up, folks.

Current television binge watching projects:

  • Star Wars Skeleton Crew season 1
  • Silo season 2
  • What We Do in the Shadows season… 6? I think it’s 6. Only a couple more episodes before the series ends for good. All I can say is, BAT!
  • Better Call Saul season five. Two seasons left.
  • Gotham season 1. I hear it gets easier once you get past the first season. Here’s hoping that rumor is accurate. I want to watch this show but some of the episodes have been tough. Some of the acting is really bad. I don’t want to give any names because I am afraid Will Smith might slap me at the Oscars. Sorry. Just calling them as I see them.
  • Dark season 3. This one is a slog. I am having a really hard time getting through it, but I am determined to finish it.
  • Black Mirror. I don’t remember what season I am on, but I am having a hard time sticking with it.
  • Doctor Who, rewatching the last season to prep for this year’s xmas special.
  • The Walking Dead season 3. Rewatching along with the The ‘Cast of Us podcast. I fell behind by one week but I am caught up on both the show and the podcast now.

Seriously, does anyone really believe that Juan Soto is going to sign with the Red Sox? Seriously?

We are going to Vermont this weekend. I want to bring my new/ancient film camera but I can’t really see a time or place where I could use it. Maybe. We’ll see. I did order my first roll of 120 color film yesterday. It won’t be delivered until after we get back though. Oh well.

I have to buy a gift for our work yankee swap. It’s Tuesday. Holy crap that came up fast. Yikes.

Okay. Back to work, Robert.

Empty Nest

And just like that, our very full nest is an empty nest again. Harry left this afternoon and Bellana left a few minutes ago. They are both heading home to Vermont.

It was a wonderful weekend and I loved every second of it, but now I am sad. Jen and I will have dinner together and I’ll probably be pretty mushy and lovey (no spoilers) because I know she’s sad the kids are gone too.

Getting old sucks but it’s better than the alternative.

It is On

I can’t remember the last time we did it… Was it pre-Covid? Probably.

The Secret Santa between my siblings and I and all of our significant others is officially on. My sister brought it up in a group text. I was going to but she beat me to it. We’re all in. My brother in law set up the app we use and it’s all like game on now.

I need to make an xmas list now. One that isn’t all guitar gear and laptops and cell phones.

There’s no denying it now. Tis the season and shit.

French Toast

Oh, the bliss! I feel alive again!

Pre-gastric bypass surgery (2.5 years ago) I was a big fan of French Toast with Maple Syrup.

Post-surgery, where sugar can make me super sick, I avoided French Toast. My wife would make it for the kids and I’d have something else.

We were discussing it last week. There is nothing in French Toast itself that would make me sick. It was just the maple syrup that was a risk. I realized that was the only reason I hadn’t partaken in the delicacy.

Knowing that Jen was going to make it for breakfast today I went looking for sugar free maple syrup and I found some. Fast forward to today’s breakfast and I’m in!

It was delicious. Soooo good!

December

Good morning and welcome to December. Ugh. If I were looking on the bright side I’d say something like, one day closer to spring… but we haven’t even hit winter yet. December sucks.

Thanksgiving Part Two was a huge success. Dinner was fabulous, thanks to my wife. The xmas decorations are all up. I plugged in the lights on the outside of the house (that I never took down after last year) and a couple of short strands are out. I’ll have to figure out what to do about that. We had the annual Muppets Christmas Carol viewing. We did not manage to get a watch of Elf in, but maybe we save that for xmas eve?

Our kids are still here. They are both going back to Vermont today. One is going after breakfast, the other after dinner-ish. I love every second we can get with them here. I selfishly hate to see them leave but we are actually going to see them again next week. There’s something huge brewing in Bellana’s world and next weekend is when it hits. We’ll be there for it.

Until then, tomorrow I go back to work after a glorious five day weekend and I am sad about that. What can you do. I’ll be in the office which is making it feel worse, but oh well.

December is here. I put it off for as long as possible. Oh well, what can you do.

Tradition

We had our Thanksgiving celebration today and it was excellent. Afterwards we started decorating for xmas. The kids are here and they are going back to Vermont tomorrow so it was either do it as a family today or Jen and I do it on our own later.

Right now, right at this very moment, we are celebrating another holiday tradition. We are watching The Muppets Christmas Carol as a family. Literally the only xmas movie I care about. Except for that Tiny Tim song… that scene can be skipped.

The Turkey Smells Delicious

The turkey is about to come out of the oven. It smells delicious. The stuffing is about to go into the oven too and the potatoes are boiling and will eventually be mashed.

Thanksgiving is the best, even when it’s not actually celebrated on Thanksgiving. If we can just keep xmas at bay for a little while longer.

Thanksgiving Part Two

The kids and my in-laws are coming over today for a second round of Thanksgiving dinner. Jen and I are going to start cooking in about half an hour (at 7:00am). If Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday, then today is the day that I am talking about when I talk about my favorite holiday, even though it is not technically a holiday.

Based on the previous sentence I should create a new holiday to celebrate run-on sentences. That would be a gas, don’t you think?

We are also going to put up the xmas decorations while we have the kids here. I’m not sure what else we’ll do for our holiday festivities but we’ll think of something.

Happy Thanksgiving, Part Two.