Where have I been

Took a bit of an unexpected blog break. A lot has happened since the summer. After weeks of working from home in a small one bedroom apartment, we decided to buy a house. Apparently we weren't the only ones who had this idea. House hunting is stressful and I really don't plan on doing it again any time soon. I wasn't prepared for how emotional it would be to lose out on a house and we lost out on a few. One house we lost out on because the seller's agent was "overwhelmed" with the amount of offers and picked one to show to his seller because they had a dog. Our offer was higher and we could have gotten a dog! I don't think the seller's know they weren't presented with the highest offers. Talk about a bad agent. That house wasn't meant for us but at the time it stung. We stayed in our price range and the house we ended up with has most of the features we were looking for. We closed in October and are slowly getting things in order. Yes there are still unpacked boxes. I fully admit to being a procrastinator. 

I did find the time to start decorating for Christmas. I'm going to leave these snowflake lights up well after the holidays. 

Let me tell you the story behind these GIGANTIC ornaments. I thought they were normal sized and well as you can see they are not. Derek hates them, they're growing on me. When I found the box on the porch I could tell someone had opened it to see if there was anything worth taking and they decided they didn't want some giant ornaments. None of my other packages have been touched since we moved in. Now I'm paranoid about my packages being stolen. It's not a bad neighborhood at all but I guess it is the season for porch pirates.

My mom gave me the tree. She said it was too big for her apartment. My living room ceiling is not low so I think you have an idea of how tall this is. Currently our living room doesn't have any furniture. The couch is backordered until February (ordered in September!). We do have a finished basement where our old futon and loveseat is so we're not completely seatless. Maybe in a future blog post I'll talk about how my wall got damaged by a dresser delivery. 

Another decoration from my mom. It's in the dining room on the sideboard.

Very proud of how this wrapping job came out. This is a Lego set for my nephew. I need to mail out my gifts this week. Christmas is really sneaking up on me. Wasn't it just Thanksgiving? This table is in the kitchen and was left by the previous owners which was very nice of them considering how long it took for our dining room set to be delivered.

Yeah, pretty much sums up the past few months. I took this photo in Barnes & Noble to send to someone as part of a little inside joke.

I know I didn't show many photos of the actual house but I'll post more once I feel like things are more put together. It's an old farmhouse built in the 1860s. I was actually shocked when I saw the year it was built on the listing. There's been some renovations done by prior owners but if you look closely you can tell that it's an older house. The first night in the new house we thought we heard knocking at the back door when we were in the kitchen. Turns out it was either the washing machine or a ghost. There was no one at the door.

Christmas Vacation

Christmas break is finally here! I met up with Derek and two of his co-workers at the Merchant after work for some Christmas drinks. They had a drink called the I Love You Ginny which of course had to be ordered.

It was cold and rainy but a few drinks (and Uber) helped with that. I'm still not used to coming home without being greeted by Bosco. I've caught myself a few times sticking my foot in the door when I open it so he doesn't escape into the hall. It takes a second or two to remember that I don't have to do that anymore. I know it will get better with time but right now it's rough.

Tomorrow we'll cook our new Christmas Eve traditional dinner of beef wellington and scallops wrapped with bacon. We did this last year and really enjoyed it so why not keep it going?

It's feuerzangenbowle season

It's been a minute hasn't it. I've been busy at work and at life in general hence why the blog has been a bit quiet. Let's jump right in. I'VE GOT THE CHRISTMAS SPIRIT!

I would love poinsettias everywhere but Bosco would eat them. Did I tell you how I found him inside the garbage can when we came back from Thanksgiving? He was busy picking out chicken bones. He's still a pain in my ass even when he's sick.

I ordered 4 bottles of wine on my phone right after this photo was taken. I then realized I'd have to pick them up in Everett. No thank you. I assumed I could have it shipped to my house but SURPRISE you have to pick them up at some random liquor store in Everett. Debating cancelling the order and finding the wine closer.

I've already been to a Christmas party too. The feuerzangenbowle was especially good this year.

Made it through Elf and half of Christmas Vacation before I left. Warm drinks and lots of food makes Ginny sleepy.

Now it's time to make a rice and sausage stuffing for a friends Thanksgiving today. So much food....

Merry Christmas!

I hope every had a great Christmas. We went to my Uncle Scott's house and stuffed our faces. As an adult I find the Christmas feasting to be my favorite part of the holiday. I got some great gifts too. I'm very excited about this copper pot I got in the yankee swap. It has a fry basket and a veggie steamer. I do love my veggies.

I've mentioned before on my blog that I'm terribly allergic to Christmas trees. Usually they make me sneeze. But this year I've been around two real Christmas trees and had zero sneezing. Am I growing out of this allergy? I really hope so. I'd love to have a real tree. I think I'll see how I do next year around other people's trees and if there's still no sneezing I might give it a try.

I had today off of work but it's back to the grind tomorrow. But after work Derek and I are having our annual stay at the Omni Parker in Boston. Now to decide on where to go for dinner.

Here's our family Christmas photo.

My little allergy free tree

I was reminded today of how much I despise young college kids. There was a group of them decked in their school gear on the T going to some sporting event (hockey maybe?) and they were obnoxious. Is it necessary to be that loud and high five each other multiple times on a packed train? The correct answer is no, it is not necessary.

My little tree came in. It's super cute.

And it won't make me sneeze. Maybe I should get tiny little presents to put under it! Or maybe I should just go to bed.

What's this?

Your favorite idiot blogger did something stupid. I take a medication that helps me not feel like I have to pee every minute. That is not an exaggeration. I literally feel like I have to pee constantly if I don't take this medication. Last night I was pretty sure that I forgot to take it but I wasn't 100% sure. I had two options. 1. I could wait and see if I woke up at 4 a.m. feeling like I'm going to pee my pants or 2. Take a pill and not be able to pee well for twenty some odd hours. I chose option 2 and guess what? I must have taken it twice. Sigh. I might need to be an old lady and get a pill organizer.

I know it's not even December yet but I'm feeling the Christmas spirit. I never know what type of mood I'll be in around Christmas. Am I going to be Ebenezer Scrooge or Jack Skellington discovering Christmas Town?

Me at my goal weight. 

I'm kidding! The skin tone is the right color though.

One thing I don't do is Christmas music. I hate it. It's the same songs every year repeated over and over until I want to hang myself with a string of Christmas lights

Even the hipster watch store is getting into the spirit of the season. I really love the copper colored trees but are they artisanal?

Glad I could be your elementary crush

Christmas is done. Faces were stuffed and drinks were drank. Derek and I had a nice hotel stay at the Omni Parker following Christmas. I'm just glad to be done trying to figure out what to buy everyone. Derek and I stay a night at the Omni Parker rather than exchange gifts. If we want or need something we just buy it for ourselves. I did get him a new winter hat but that's because he needed one when his other hat mysteriously disappeared. 

I wish Christmas was "magical" still. As a kid it was the most exciting time of the year. School vacation! Cookies! And of course PRESENTS. I despise Christmas music but I do appreciate a good Christmas tree and I'm not going to say no to Christmas ham and cookies. So I guess I'm not a total Grinch.

A funny thing happened on Christmas night. A guy I went to elementary school with facebook chatted me that I was his elementary school crush. I was home at this point, just relaxing on the couch and certainly not expecting anything like this. I had a good laugh about it. A) I had no idea and B) I was so awkward in elementary school. I mean does anyone think they're weren't awkward in sixth grade? I thanked him for letting me know. What else can I say really? He then told me he had been drinking.

I literally have never talked to this guy on Facebook despite being Facebook friends. I guess he got the old liquid courage.

Sorry my elementary school friend by I'm a taken woman.

Don't give me a pen when I've had a few drinks....

How bazaar

I don't have much to report for the blog this week so let me tell you about the Etsy bazaar my mother and I tried to attend.

I saw on Facebook that there would be an Etsy bazaar at a local mall featuring many local Etsy sellers. I told my mother about it and we thought it would be a fun mother daughter thing to do. When we got to the mall we stopped in a few stores on our way to where we thought the bazaar was. While in line to purchase a pair of shoes the woman in front of us tell us the wait is two hours to get in and there are only a few tables, definitely not worth the wait. I check on the event page on Facebook and people are complaining about how poorly the event was planned and that the wait was so long and not even worth it once you got in. Some people had come from out of state to attend and were pretty angry that they couldn't get in.

My mother and I decided that we weren't going to wait in line for two hours for that. We walked by just to see what was going on. The bazaar was in a small empty store space and they were letting in 5 people at a time. They were also charging a dollar to get in which is fine but wasn't mentioned on the event page. The line was going all the way back through the mall. I think we made the right decision by not going.

We did get a nice holiday photo and got a little shopping done. I bought a pair of comfortable heels for work. That was my shopping triumph of the day. Comfortable heels are not easy to find. I'm still on the hunt for new boots.

After shopping we got some lunch and visited my grandmother. A successful mother daughter day.

Christmas is happening

This blogpost is brought to you by sugar in the form of Snickerdoodle cookies.

I can't believe Christmas is next week! I keep telling myself I have plenty of time to do my shopping since Christmas is in two weeks. It most definitely is not in two weeks and I better get to shopping like right now.

Yesterday was our office holiday party at the Capital Grille. Somehow I ended up eating three different types of potatoes.

The fries and the mashed potatoes came for the whole table while the chips came with my meal. I sampled all but tried not to go overboard. Potatoes are my weakness. 

My secret santa got me wine and a cat coaster. Well done secret santa.

New Years Eve plans are being thrown around but nothing is firmed up yet. I have a feeling we'll end up out somewhere but I'm fine with staying home too. Not having to bundle up to head out and deal with crowded bars is certainly appealing. Although with the way our weather has been so far this winter it could be 60 degrees. There is the possibility of attending a Star Wars themed New Years party at a bar in Boston. Admission includes a lightsaber!

Speaking of Star Wars, I do plan on seeing Episode VII but I'm going to wait for the initial frenzy to die down. I can only imagine how crazy opening night will be. The critics have been reviewing the movie very favorably and I'm a big J.J. Abrams fan so I'm pretty excited to see it. 

Check out this Star Wars duel at the Fencing Senior World Championships. Impressive and fun to watch.

A true treasure for all cat lovers

The weekend has blown by and now it's Sunday night and I'm bored. I'm waiting for my kindle to charge so I can read the new book I downloaded. I did laundry and cleaned the bathroom and walked to the supermarket and bought groceries. Boredom makes me productive at least.

Friday night I had dinner with friends at Live Noodles.They are known for their hand pulled noodles.

Lanzhou beef lamian, or Lanzhou beef hand-pulled noodle, is a type of Chinese noodle dish originated in Lanzhou, China, and generally popular in China. It is referred to as "beef noodle" or "beef big bowl” in Lanzhou. It is sometimes simply called lamian , which means hand-pulled noodle in Chinese, or "beef lamian" elsewhere in China.

Kit ordered for everyone and it was delicious.

Mmmm now I'm hungry for noodles and scallion pancakes. I ended up not making it to a friend's birthday party after dinner. Just too tired. Friday's are rough I tell ya.

Saturday I traveled to the far away land of Chelsea for an ugly sweater party. I mean you have to drive over the Tobin bridge which costs a small fortune in tolls. My co-worker Dana picked out this sweater for me because cats. I should also point out that my sweater is not ugly. It's beautiful, a true treasure for all cat lovers.

Target was out of adult sizes so this is actually from the kids section. I definitely am not kids sized so I really have no idea how this fits. My red hair has faded so much and I didn't blow dry my hair so it looks like utter crap in these pics. I'm still posting them though to show off the sweater.

Why you live so far Lilly? Thank you for hosting. I better win the guess how much candy is in the jar contest. I can't eat the candy but I'll take the money thanks.

Besides the excitement of cat sweaters and cleaning my bathroom I watched a lot of Psych. I've seen episodes here and there but now I'm watching it from the beginning. The show speaks my language which is sarcasm and witty retorts.

I have to actually do some Christmas shopping this week. Everyone's getting bacon, how about that. Easy and delicious. I have no clue what to get for my boss. Suggestions welcomed.

And all was quiet on Christmas Eve (hopefully)

The college students have returned home for the holidays and it's finally quiet in Allston. I'm going to savor every moment.

I'm working today. I usually end up working on Christmas Eve. It's a popular day to take off but our office is open so I volunteer as office tribute! We have a few people holding down the fort. Fingers crossed that there isn't a client crisis.

It's funny how Christmas changes the older you get. I sometimes wish I could have that I'm so giddy I can't sleep because I have butterflies in my stomach feeling on Christmas Eve again. I do enjoy opening gifts but I think Christmas is now more about the family and food. I mean I really love a big Christmas dinner.

At least I don't have that paranoia that I would catch Santa in the act and get in trouble. I don't know why I thought that but boy did that worry about that as a child. Oh yes I am still just as anxious as an adult just over different things.

I hope you have a stress free holiday full of food and family.

Teeth talk, thoughts on family and winter on Boylston Street

Today was the first visit for the start of my dental work. The red areas below are what they are filling due to erosion. I had the left side worked on which is on the right side of this picture.

Longest two hours of my life! I have a temporary inlay for now which looks kind of funky (it's very very white) but it's in the back of mouth so you can't really tell. My mouth is still a little sore but I ate some ice cream and chicken nuggets (not together) and now I feel a little better.

After the dentist I went to visit my grandmother with my mother. Although this is my father's mother, my mom still visits which I think is nice. My parents divorced when I was about five but I have always been close to my father's side of the family. My mother and my grandparents made an effort to make sure we saw each other. My mom is pretty much the best.

When my mom was driving me back home we talked about how my grandmother is still hanging in there despite everything she's been through (major stroke follow by mini seizures) and how there's nothing we can do once we get old. At some point you're not going to be who you were, your body or mind will start to betray you. I can't picture my mother or even myself like that, but then again I could have said the same thing about my grandmother two years ago. Her mind is still there, I'm thankful that she knows who we are but it's tough seeing how small and frail she looks.

I'm sure you've had enough of teeth and heavy family talk so here's some pictures of the cats and Boylston Street.

Newbury Street lights

Newbury Street is all dressed up for the holidays. It looks really pretty when you're in the middle of the street because you can see the lights all the way down. You'll just have to imagine that though as I will not be the ass who blocks traffic in the middle of the street for a picture. This was taken safely from the sidewalk.

I successfully avoided buying new clothing on Cyber Monday. I did buy my brother (and myself...) this Legolas action figure though. How could I resist? He's adorable.

The Christmas pickle in the candle tree

A few pics from Christmas.

I stuffed my face and found the Christmas pickle which was not on the real tree.

Derek gave me the necklace you see in the picture above. I love it. He also gave me a kindle! (which I knew about).

We ate around 5 so when we got back to Derek's we continued the face stuffing and ordered Chinese food. We then watched some Netflix and passed out. I had to wake up at 6 a.m. to get back home and feed the cats before I went to work. Derek got to sleep in as he was smart enough to take the day off.

Not having a car and not living together is a real pain. Walking to the T while it's still dark and while half asleep is a blast. I'm pretty sure I saw my former roommate Todd walking his dog on the way to the T but it was too much effort to call out and find out if it was him. Plus I'm sure the people sleeping appreciated me not yelling at 6 a.m.

I've had too much good food lately so now I don't want to eat any of my boring food that I have at home. My taste buds have been spoiled. Does this happen to anyone else?

I hope everyone had a happy holiday. I'm so ready for New Years, once I find a dress to wear.

Christmas Eve 1991 style

Happy Christmas Eve everyone. I'm eating Velveeta mac and cheese and cookies while watching Law and Order reruns.

I remember being so excited about Christmas when I was younger. I would get butterflies in my stomach and think there was no way I'd be able to fall asleep. My brother and I would drag my mother out of bed at 6 a.m. because we couldn't wait. Sorry about that mom. Christmas is not the same as an adult. You enjoy it in a different way I suppose. Now I get excited and can't sleep when I'm going on vacation.      

Here's my brother and I Christmas morning 1991. Check out my crimped hair.

                                                                                                      

This is not offensive.

This is just ridiculous. If you don't want to click over, the RMV in Braintree took down their Christmas decorations after one person complained that it was "offensive" to only have decorations up for one holiday.

You might think it was a manger or something else that has religious meaning but no, it was a tree and some Santa decorations hanging on a wall. As someone who actually went to CCD I can tell you that nowhere in the bible does it say "and then Jesus was born and they decorated a pine tree with lights and angels. Then Santa came and left Jesus a wooden toy hand craft by tiny elves."

I don't consider Christmas trees or Santa religious. In fact I know a few people who are Jewish and put up a tree and decorate it because it's fun. Santa and trees have nothing to do with Jesus. And if I walked into the RMV and saw a Menorah. I wouldn't care. You know why? Because it doesn't change my life. It's not forcing someone else's beliefs on me. So get over yourself and focus that negativity towards something that actually deserves it.

I don't like Christmas music.

It's confession time.

I don't like Christmas music.

The same songs every year played for 25 days straight. I'm over it. The only time I'm ok with Christmas music is Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Maybe if I only heard these songs for two days rather than 25 I'd be more into it.

If you think I'm the Grinch, there are many other things that get me in the Christmas mood.

Christmas lights
Christmas trees
Eggnog
Presents (who doesn't like presents! This is my favorite part of Christmas)
Food and stuffing my face with food.
Christmas cookies
Snow (if only it would stop after January 1. After that I am very much done with snow)

See? Look at all of those Christmas things I like.

I still can't believe it's already December. It was snowing this morning. It wasn't sticking much but this is only the beginning. We got off easy last year. It's only a matter of time until I'm sliding backwards down a sidewalk while the snow bitch slaps me in the face.

Jesus is Jesus and I like presents.

Ok I admit I've got the holiday spirit. Thanksgiving is tomorrow and after that it's full steam ahead to Christmas and then New Years and then I cry until spring because it's cold and there's no more feasting days and presents.

You know what really got me in the holiday mood? Derek telling me he already got my Christmas present. If presents don't get you in the Christmas spirit than I don't know what will. Oh, maybe baby Jesus.....Do you ever wonder if Jesus gets pissed that he never gets the presents for his birthday? I'd be pissed. Everyone else gets presents to celebrate your birth but you get a pray. I guess that's why Jesus is Jesus and I'm not, because I would so care about that. I'm also not a carpenter and my crib wasn't a manger if you needed any more proof of me not being Jesus.

I'm not good at waiting for presents. I always want them NOW. At least I won't search for them anymore. When I was a kid I would try to find my Christmas presents. My mom was smart though and hid most of them in the trunk of her car. I never thought to look in the trunk of the car? I always looked in the closets or under the beds.

My mother would also put a note on our tree from Santa saying that we won the best decorated tree in the world award. We were so proud. Number 1 in the world is a big deal.

Look at me getting all wrapped up in Christmas memories when it's still November. This blog is just as bad as the malls.

I hope all of you have a good Thanksgiving and if you're going shopping on black Friday you are absolutely out of your mind. But if you are out and see anything that just screams GINNY please feel free to get it for me.