Christmas Eve 2016

I went to Dad & Ma's for our annual Christmas Eve family get-together last night.

Dad & I watched the 2nd half of the Patriots' destruction of the Jets. I had some pepperoni, cheese and crackers. Kevin's clan arrived. Sarah's clan arrived (minus Hayden, who had popped in earlier). Then we ate dinner (I had meatballs with mushrooms & gravy, dinner rolls, and mac & cheese - very low-key) and watched more football.

The girls all loved the art supplies (high-quality drawing pads and colored pencils/art pencils). Jared & Drew liked the Hot Wheels, and Ma was thrilled with the Blue Moon glasses. Plus: Dad is psyched for the Celtics game on January 18th.

I lucked out (as usual), with the following:

From Kevin's family: $15 in scratch tickets.
From Sarah's family: $25 Amazon GC (gift card).

From Dad & Ma:

• A 3-pack of Strathmore paper pads (sketch/newsprint/drawing).
• $15 Starbucks GC.
• $25 Barnes & Noble GC.
• $50 Master Card GC.
• Two "Life is Good" brand tee shirts (see images below).
• A brown tweed & leather Red Sox cap (see below).
• A pound of Starbucks Christmas Blend ground coffee.
• A 19 oz tub of soft peppermint candy.
• A pair of GreenLife frying pans.
• A box of wooden matches and a giant Yankee Candle (Christmas Wreath scent).

They always take care of their 4 kids, I am lucky to be one of them!

December Goals

Health, Financial, and Social goals for December:

• Ten workouts: (I.I.I.I.I.I.I.I.I.)
• Three hikes: (2nd: Crow Hills; )
• Lose ten pounds by Christmas.
• Buy a new bed.
• For the car: a) 2 new front tires. b) emissions fix. c) bondo & paint touch-ups. d) inspection.
• No "super"-junk food (5th: pizza; 6th: rest of pizza; 9th: Ben & Jerry's; 14th: pizza; 18th: Chinese; 25th: Chinese ).
• No "night coffee" (8th, 12th, 14th, 16th,   ).
• Buy new eyeglasses.
• Two outings: (23rd: out w/SMU/UMD crew; 28th: @Mike's w/Pete & Keith).

As always, updates in RED or in the comments section below.

Birthday

Yesterday (the 24th) was my birthday (it was also Thanksgiving).

I had Starbucks Sumatra coffee & an apple spice muffin for breakfast. And I drew this:

"Revenge!"

Then at noon it was off to Dad & Ma's for Thanksgiving. Kevin's family (minus Holly, flu) and Sarah's family were there too. Dinner was awesome. We watched the Lions beat the Vikings, and had the birthday stuff for me and Jackie (I gave her $15 in a card). I received handmade cards from all 4 nieces (Georgia even gave me $5!), and $50 & a bag of Starbucks Anniversary Blend beans (plus a mug).

Everyone else left around 4:00, but I stayed and watched the Cowboys beat Washington with Dad, before I left at 8. Home, a giant Kit Kat, and several episodes of "Party Down" on the Starz network. It was a great day.

October Goals

A list of the things I'd like to accomplish in October:

• A day trip to Boston, and hopefully hang out with a friend or two.
• Visit a museum.
• Go to a beach.
• Spend an overnight in the Portsmouth, NH area, and hang out with old friends.
• Spend a day or an overnight on Martha's Vineyard.
• Attend two concerts (1: xxxxxxxxxxx @ xxxxxxxx. 2: xxxxxxxxxxxx @ xxxxxxxxx).
• Go on three hikes (1: Crow Hills 2: Mt. Wachusett 3: xxx).
• Work out ten times (I.I.I.I.I.I.I. ).
• Draw ten things (Jack O'Lantern, Jack O'Lantern, Headless 'Ken' zombie, wild pumpkin )

• Practice with my guitar ten times ( ).
• Go to a Halloween party!
• Find a new, better job.

All items accomplished will be changed to RED as they are completed!

Best Part of the Day

I worked 8:30 to 3, then sat around at home until 6. Then it was off to the lake with coffee (Peet's Major Dickason) and a book ("Kings and Emperors") and my iPod (Mike Posner; Charlie Pugh & Selena Gomez).

I took a bunch of photos (as usual) and floated with my coffee instead of a beer. It didn't feel quite right (haha). A good ending to a fast workday...

Days Off 2 of 2

I slept in til 9:30 or so. I had a banana, generic brand cinnamon toast crunch cereal and a giant mug of coffee as I built a Lego kit (Rey's Speeder) and watched "Side Effects" (Rooney Mara & Jude Law).

I hung out online for awhile, and then hung out with Kevin. He got his license back finally! He's so psyched. And his new truck is awesome too. I'm so happy for him.

At 5:00 I showered, packed some stuff, and headed down to the lake, after a quick stop at Mike & T's for a steak/cheese/mushroom grinder. I ate it with an Otter Creek Brewing Co Backseat Berner IPA and some Wachusett chips (best potato chips on earth), and then read some of the latest Sports Illustrated. Then it was into the water with my other beer, and a nice hour of floating/paddling/swimming in Wyman Pond. I took a few photos, and dried off, eating an apple and reading some of "1634". Home at 8:30 pm.

Days Off 1 of 2

I slept til 9 or so. Coffee for breakfast, then "Robot Chicken" x 2.

Annual eye exam:

Burger King for lunch, and the season finale of "Wrecked" (a "Lost" parody), plus some sports tv.

Later I fell asleep, did dishes, and then I went food shopping at 8:30. I had 3 Nathan's hot dogs (on buttered/pan-toasted multi-grain bread) for supper, watched tv for awhile ("America's Got Talent"), and then I read til I fell asleep, around 1 am.

California: Trip No. 2

Rainy Day Drive

I wanted to do something outdoors today despite the rain, so I packed my car with hiking gear and other stuff, and headed down Rt. 2 W and up 63 N to New Hampshire to hit the Pisgah National Park, with plans to eat dinner in Brattleboro, VT.

I never came across the entrance to the park, and it was raining and grey anyway, so I continued on to Brattleboro, and the Whetstone Station Brewery. The staff was very friendly (and all three bartenders were cute - bonus!), and the view of the Connecticut River from my seat at the bar was amazing. I had the Brewery Burger ("Fully Loaded": with maple bacon & sauteed mushrooms, hold the onions please!), which was awesome. And the fries were good too. They were out of their signature IPA, so I had a Brown Bear ale, which was good, but not spectacular. I'd go back with friends on a sunny day in a heartbeat. Also, I took a bunch of photos from inside and outside of the place.

Then it was off to downtown Brattleboro to get coffee and walk around for a bit. I popped into a building that looked like a museum, but was actually a high-end vintage furniture & art showplace. There were many cool chairs, cabinets, and carvings inside, which made it a great place to get out of the rain for a few minutes before heading off to Mocha Joe's.

I walked down the stairs into the basement coffee shop, and was warmly greeted by the cute brunette behind the counter. I ordered a large dark roast from Cameroon and a dried raspberry-encrusted chocolate bar (I snagged a logo sticker too), chatted with her for a minute (her dad is totally against fruit/chocolate pairings - "He's truly missing out!" she said, and I agreed), and then headed back out into the rain...

I stopped on the way back at the Connecticut River Paddlers Trail to walk around for a bit, took a few photos, and then headed back home. It was a great 4½ hour adventure, and I am glad I got out of the house on my day off.