Tuesday 16 December

So yesterday it warmed up (to 50!) and rained and melted most of the snow and some of the ice away. This morning is crunchy and frozen again, but I could walk with a normal stride on the turf and cleared pavement areas and that felt great. The wind is quite cold. The dogs were frisky and happy and alert. It was very quiet outside and I saw so few cars -- when usually I do see some -- that I wondered if some catastrophe had happened out there in the world.

The storm just past was bad enough. People I spoke with on the phone at work yesterday, from all around the country, asked about it. Apparently it was big news. You never really know that when your power is out!

Anyway. I got energetic last night and cleaned the floor and then decorated the tree and set up the Nativity. It all looks very pretty and cheers my heart.

I want to make the raspberry coconut bars and get some candy to put in tins as gifts. I have 2 nice decorative holiday tins that were sent to us as samples at work, and I rescued them from the trash and brought them home. One of them will be CG's gift. I got a card from her yesterday and she signed her full name -- first and last -- as if she were some distant acquaintance. She is weird. And a real control freak, I am realizing, and she is kind of getting out of control. Big for her britches. I plan to do the old duck and cover as much as possible.

I sent them all an email re: the Advent candle lighting on Christmas Eve and I suspect the royalty was not pleased by my expressed opinion. CT is the only one who had replied yesterday and he was genial, reasonable, cooperative, funny, and kind. I am sure the other 2 are sharpening their knives. It isn't pretty. It really isn't. And it is so much like high school mentality, I want to run away and hide.

So I am thinking I will bake tomorrow night since choir is the next night, and M is home the day after that.

I should probably wash my hair this morning.

Work was fine, not too busy. I plodded along, as did they. L got in late, and he and J are sharing the car while there is snow and ice lurking. We got some great chocolates from one of our vendors that we all ate with satisfied glee, like children.

I still haven't renewed that library book that was due last Saturday when the power was out. I meant to call last night and completely forgot in my burst of holiday decorating energy. I realized I have it engraved in my brain that you MUST vacuum before you set up the tree. That comes from childhood. It's how you do it. Tho my tree sits already upon the table, a living, breathing tree, I still have to clean the floor before I can decorate it. I like doing it alone and I like the simplicity with which I decorate it.