Cristmas Memories

This just in: Aimee has no more tonsils. She's starving and can't wait to get back to her steady diet of christmas baking and appetizers only (until the new year).

So, I have many many great Christmas memories. In fact, Cristmas is my absolute favorite holiday. It means so many things to me. Every Christmas we put up a fabulous tree all decorated with ornaments collected through the years. We always have christmas tunes, and christmas drink (usually eggnog, or apple cider) while we put it up, and every year it looks equally fantastic. This year we were lucky enough to enjoy our tree for months, and I'll still be sorry when we have to take it down.

Closer to christmas day, we finish all the food shopping, and get all the gifts wrapped, and you can feel everyone getting excited. On christmas eve, we have appetizers all day long. We hang out together and eat and chat and be merry. In the evening we have a special dinner (surf & turf) where we eat for hours (well I do at least...) and we unwrap one (or two...) presents each. Now it can't just be any presents. It's always PJ's so that we can wake up in style on christmas morning. And in more recent years, we have been opening a movie also. We then finish hanging out, and head to bed so that santa can finish the set-up, and get some sleep before morning.

On christmas morning, noone goes down stairs first. When someone wakes up, they wake up all the others (assuming it's past the designated wake-up limit) and we all play with the pets in mom's bed until everyones got their teeth brushed. Then we go downstairs and make coffee and open stockings (my personal favorite part). After that we make breakfast and open gifts. We like to stretch it late into the morning. Then we all take naps and pitch in for christmas dinner.

Lots of food, family, and fun. Every year we get a new christmas family game. These are the things that make the holiday special. I will continue these traditions if I ever have kids. If I don't have kids, mama dukes can expect me to continue coming back home to enjoy the holiday as much as I do now.

Merry Christmas Everyone!!

To Date, or Not to Date

That is the question.

So I play pool with my mom once a week. I like to play sometimes, but at other times I wish I could just sink a ball or two. I guess it comes with being a beginner.

Anyways, two weeks ago I was playing this guy. He seemed a little grumpy to start, so my natural reaction was to make jokes and try to have fun. I missed a few easy shots, but he did also. He was ranked a 4 (better than my 2!), so I had a handicap. I had to sink 19 balls before his 36 or something. But he hadn't lost a match all session, and frankly I didn't think I had a chance. But the stars were aligned for me and I started sinking all the balls that he was leaving over the pockets. He sais "how about I just leave them all over the pockets for you, and you can get all the points". Of course I said "deal!".

Anyways, I was doing really well at first, and then he got like 10 balls in a row, and I asked him what happened to our deal. He just laughed. I eventually got the last 2 balls I needed to win. He took it well. He bought me a beer, congratulated me on winning, and said he had fun. Good to hear. It sucks when someone is a bitter loser, cause that's my job, and someone's gotta loose. He said he has another team, and if I wanted to join it, I'd be welcome to. Of course I wont, cause if I wanted to play on two teams, I would play tuesday nights with mama dukes too.

Anyways, last week he asks mom if he can ask me out. I think that's a little weird. I love my mom, and it's hilarious that she gets to screen my dates! Anyways, he's older (but I don't know by how much...?). It makes me nervous. I don't think I want to date...ever. It's too nerve racking. I'm not good at having fun under pressure. It's a confidence boost if nothing else, but it makes me scared to grow up a cat lady (actually, I'd choose yorkies cause they're way cuter!). But you get the point.

And apparently I give "bad body language" to people without even realizing it. I'm a dating disaster. And how come I don't have cute boys closer to my age trying to date me? Geeze.

Cheer Bear my ass.

What Care Bear Are You?

See what Care Bear you are.

Ah hahaha, this would NOT be what I would have expected. Cheer bear?? I guess I balance Mama Dukes (grumpy bear).

Vent First... Work Later

It's Saterday and I'm at work. I'm not complaining because I like work. But this morning I was disappointed on my commute. In humanity. In Toronto's stupid people.

I marked tests on the GO train. I was happy. It was sunny (and Snowing!). It's December, so that's ok. I like the train on the weekend. People aren't in as much of a hurry, and I can sit down because the train isn't packed. It's comfy.

But then I get to the subway station and I see a homeless guy. Normal in Toronto, but disturbing just the same. He lunged at me and I kept my head down and kept walking. I can't help eveyone. And then I get on the subway. I'm avoiding eye contact with people, except this cute kid on her way to dance class with her mom. Cutie.

So I look down and what do I see? A syringe. A needle from some doped-up a$$hole who didn't think that it's PUBLIC transit, and mommies will be taking their kids Christmas shopping, or to dance class. And kids are curious. They pick things up and play with them. They don't know what a syringe is, or that it's dangerous. My first reaction was anger, and then panic. What do I do? I don't want to leave it there, so I picked it up. It was capped (the only good part about it). Then I'm holding it between my thumb and forefinger. I don't want to put it in my pocket. But there isn't a garbage, and I don't want to be seen tossing it.

I have a sharps container at work. It would be the safe way to dispose of it. But then I have to carry it on my walk to work, and I don't want to. So I'm freaking a little, and the cute girl smiles at me. I knock on the "transit employees only" door (thankfully I was on the first car) and I'm nervous thinking "please don't get me in trouble". And a guy opens the door and gives me a weird look.

"Umm...do you have a garbage in there?" I ask. He sais "no..." So I looked at him for a minute and told him I found this needle. He sais to me "You shouldn't really be touching it. Just drop it there in the corner, and I'll get someone to pick it up" I'm thinking..."NO! I don't want to leave the needle on the floor, which is why I picked the damn thing up in the first place! There are children on the train!!" But of course I don't say this. I drop the needle, and contemplate just taking it to work with me...

But before my stop he opens the door again and says thank you to me. He moves the needle into the "emplyees only secret compartment" with his foot. He sais someone is coming to get it. I smile. But I'm still disappointed that it was there in the first place.

I smile at the little girl and get off the subway at my stop.

Now back to work.