Christmas 2015

Is anyone else as skeeved out by this warm weather as I am?

I know things are sort of varying if you’re reading in the US.  It’s hot as balls – literal balls – here in North Carolina, and yesterday, when I went for a run and did a little bit of speed work, I was dripping, summer-style, in my eyes and in my mouth.

So Austin and I have been making horrible jokes about how the high is going to be 120 degrees every day this summer, all the while feeling really nervous about global warming.

via Instagram
via Instagram

I’ve also heard that this is maybe like an El Nino type thing, and we could be fine. But all I’m saying is that I’m not trying to live through hellpocolypse ’16. So please, mother nature, if you can hear me, I just want you to know that I drinking out of non-disposable bottles and I recycle. So give me some good points for that, pretty please?

Christmas ’15

So, we’ve had a sort of eventful last week or so.  In addition to work being busy (as usual), Austin’s grandmother passed leading up to Christmas, and the week was full of a lot of phone calls, a day off work, and a lot of busy things with family.  We are at peace with her death.  She lived a really long life.  I enjoyed writing her letters, and actually, the Saturday before she fell ill (this is literal hours) we got a card from her.  She rocks.

So instead of heading down to Charlotte or Mint Hill for the holiday, we laid really low, and on Christmas Eve, we went to Irregardless Café for some vegan dinner.

Irregardless Cafe
Irregardless Cafe

I almost ordered something different, but I went with my standby, the vegan shepard’s pie. We drove around, and settled in and listened to a little bit of this week’s episode of Serial. Which, by the way, if anyone would like to discuss Serial, I really would love your insight. All I will say, so I don’t spoil it, is that Bowe’s logic is seriously screwy.

The night before Christmas, we watched A Christmas Story, and listened to my neighbors music.  They’re big reggae fans evidently.

Christmas Day, I woke up super early, and throughout the night, my neighbors continued playing their music.  They’re old hippies and really sweet though, so I can’t quite bring myself to go over there and crush their spirits.

Austin and I finally dragged ourselves out of bed, and managed to go for a long walk.  I made some dinner – salads to counter our nonstop holiday eating, and we walked again.

The next day, the day after Christmas Austin and I sort of split up.  He worked on the yard, and I went to Starbucks, and then took myself on a gorgeous run near our old condo.  I love that area because it’s always sidewalked, and I get to go house shopping in an area where it would not be financially advisable to buy.

IMG_6010

It was warm enough for no shirt, so I continued the workout in the driveway, until I decided to finally clean my car.

And THAT was Christmas ’15.

How was your Christmas ’15.  Was Santa good to you?

I saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus

Fun fact: This is the best x-mas album ever, and if you grew up as a black child in the states, this and the Temptations x-mas album were a main staple of any holiday.
Fun fact: This is the best x-mas album ever, and if you grew up as a black child in the states, this and the Temptations x-mas album were a main staple of any holiday.

Okay, so I know this is really random, but another blogger wrote this random fact the other day, and it completely, 100%, blew my mind.  So, I grew up listening to ‘I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus’ and I really thought it was a song about, in my case, Katherine Jackson kissing on some other dude, the other man in her life.

Now imagine when my mind was blown into the Milky Way when this blogger revealed that she had just learned this (and it educated me), that the song was from the kid’s perspective, and the reason why the Mom was kissing on Santa was because it was the dad dressed up like him and evidently, they have a healthy physical relationship.

WHAAA?!

Anyone else’s mind blown by this?  Like, 1000%?

Also, ‘Baby It’s Cold Outside’ is kinda gross and assaulty, but that’s another discussion for another day…

What are some crazy things you figured out as an adult?  

Happy Belated Christmas, folks!

I think it’s the law that the WiFi in your childhood home has to, has to, be incredibly horrid, so I’m blogging a little late from the McDonald’s a few minutes from the border of South Carolina.

I’m avoiding eye contact with like 4 youths who’ve taken an interest in me, and seem to be trying to catch my attention.  I’m wearing my headphones and pretending I can’t hear them – but nothing is really playing.

But I digress.

I hope your Christmas, or whatever you celebrate, was wonderful.  Mine was really really nice.

I started with some Redbox action with my brother upon my arrival.  We watched that Melissa McCarthy/Sandra Bullock cop movie, ‘The Heat’, which I was totally sure was gonna be hysterical, but it was honestly a little off-putting.  There wasn’t a minute in the movie that you didn’t hear the f-word.  Now don’t get me wrong, I totally live for some some dirty language, but it was really too much for my delicate sensibilities.

Christmas Day, I woke up, and once we got everyone up, we started opening presents.  The fan fave?  This:

Soda Stream

The Soda Stream!  My pops, like me, is a huge fan of some seltzer, and we got into making a few glasses before we even started breakfast.  My dad kept looking at his glass and saying, “This is amazing!”

So I’m pretty sure I went with the right choice.

So knowing that I’d be probably indulging in a few more cookies than I usually do, I made sure to hit the run in some way, shape, or form a few times while here at home.  So when I was sent out for our Christmas dinner, some key Chinese dishes (veggie lo mein, sesame chicken for my brother, and general tso’s chicken for my dad), I put in the order, and left the restaurant on foot to make sure that I wouldn’t make an excuse to skip my run.  I ran around the back of the building….and right onto a golf course.

Golf 1

Seriously.  I ran, and found myself on a golf course, and it almost looked like another planet, with the amount of balls (hee hee) that were back there.

Golf 2

Like, doesn’t that look just like Mars or something?  So my quick run turned into one that was a little longer, around a local golf course as the sun went down.

Golf 3As predicted, I ate a few more cookies than I planned to before I went to bed last night and watched some Sherlock Holmes with my brother, so this morning, I hit it again, with some time on the treadmill, followed by some time spent with weights.

Some of today’s highlights?

  • I got to be lazy, aside from my workout, which was fabulous.
  • I used the Starbucks gift card that my mom got me!
  • I went to the Whole Foods in Charlotte, and they have a wine bar there.  A glass was on special for like $3.00, so of freaking course I indulged!  I also walked around, picked some produce with my mom, ate lunch from the hot bar, and got some handmade soap, which is super spensive, but awesome.
  • And I found my wedding dress today!  I’m keeping it super secret, otherwise, I’d post a little pictorial evidence for you.

So onword and upword!  Next up!  New Years!

What are your New Years plans?  Any running related ones?

Merry Christmas Eve!

A quick check-in with you all.

Hope everyone is having a great holiday.  I’m finally tucked in in Charlotte with most of the family, but not before I put in a full day in Raleigh.

I started with a plan to leave the homestead for my parents’ around 12 noon, but that was not to be.

Thankfully, I don’t think my mom will be reading this before she gets her gift tomorrow morning, but my dad asked me to stop by the Best Buy to pick up something called the Google Chromecast.  Little did I know that this was such a hot item in Raleigh, North Carolina.

I hit the Best Buy on Capital.  Nope.

I hit the Best Buy near my home. No way.

Wal-Mart told me they had them.  I drove there.  They did not.

I hit Tiger Direct.  They didn’t even stock the item.

I tried the AT&T store.

And finally, I had to call my sister in Charlotte to run to the Best Buy near my parents’, hours after I’d embarked on my journey.

Cooked a little tofu, banged out a nap, and stole away for a few miles before I had to get into the Lancer (which someone hit in the parking lot of Best Buy while I was trying to make my way back home, at this point, almost with tears in my eyes).

Greenway
A swollen Crabtree Creek after a night full of rain.

And…

Greenway 2
Some chilly greenway – if nothing else, Raleigh is hilly!

Anyhoo, I made it. Have a Happy Holiday! I will check in with you guys soon!

Old school blogging: Holiday Edition

I saw this on Olive’s blog last week, and this cute little survey has been making the rounds since then, so I thought today might be a good time to play.

1 Holy Night or 8 Crazy Ones? (Do you Celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah, both?)

Our family (my maiden family, I suppose you call it), celebrate Christmas, but the past few years, we’ve added a little bit of a New York touch.  When we were kids, all of our Jewish friends would get Chinese food and go to the movies on Christmas, so we started adopting this tradition to avoid the huge kitchen cleanup after.

Peppermint or Chocolate?

In a York Peppermint Patty, I’m going for both.  But generally, I hate for peppermint to be involved in anything other than my toothpaste.

Sing us into the Holiday Season, what is your favorite Carol this time of year?

I love the Jackson 5 Christmas album, and I’ve always loved their version of ‘Up on the Housetop’.  It’s so sassy!

Tell us about a Favorite Family or Personal Holiday Tradition.

I love eating Chinese Food and watching a Redbox with my family.  It’s very New York.  It’s very summer camp with my Jewish friends.   And it’s my favorite.

C’mon you remember your favorite  (Christmas, Hanukkah) gift, tell us all about it:

Debbie got me a Starbucks gift card last year for like $150.  I know people say gift cards are impersonal, but that gift was personally made for me.

That magical moment? (Your favorite scene from a Holiday movie…it’s okay if you have 2)

I love the scene from ‘Love Actually’ where…you know what?  Who am I kidding, that entire movie is like a delightful treat.

Kissing under the mistletoe?  Who do you hope is standing underneath (We know it’s normally your spouse, if it did not have to be, who would you choose?)

  1. Austin Samples.

But if for some reason the following people appeared under the mistletoe, I would have to take one for the team and accept that kiss.

  1. Denzel Washington
  2. Channing Tatum
  3. Adam Levine
  4. Will Smith

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Swans a swimming, lords a leaping, golden rings; which gift of the 12 days of Christmas would you like most?

5 (rose) golden rings designed by Jeanine Payer, one of my favorite designers in the world, who is closing her doors come January 😦

Play Secret Santa, what inappropriate gift would you love to give this year?

I love making people uncomfortable.  I think I would love to send Austin Samples, my husband-to-be, sexy pictures of Justin Bieber.

Martha Stewart or the Grinch? What is your decorating style? (Pictures would be awesome!)

College chic.  As in, I have not decorated since the days of yore at Elon University with my dear roomie.  I think we had a little pink x-mas tree in our apartment.

What is ONE WORD that defines the holiday season for you? (Examples: Believe/Wonder/Bah Humbug?)

Family.  Food.

If Santa could assure its delivery, what’s the first thing on your holiday wish LIST?

A PUPPY!

Now your turn to do a little LiveJournal style blogging!