Some good things that happened this week

So I've had 4 straight days of cruddiness but there have been some good things this week too. I thought I should capture them to help remind me that life isn't always crappy.

1. I became an auntie again! My sister Jaylene had her 4th child, a son, early this morning. For awhile it looked like he would be called Stryker (I know, I know) but he's going to be Carsen "Vroom Vroom" James instead. (Four year old Makenna added the Vroom Vrooms.) I just got back from the hospital where I snapped this picture with my phone. He only weighed 6 lbs 8.5 oz and I think it's all in his face - he has the best cheeks! You can't see it but his hat has a gold skull and crossbones. Nice! There is nothing like holding a brand new baby.

2. Last Thursday's Office was probably the most hilarious one I've ever seen. From Michael saying Pam's chair was "urkelnomically correct" to Andy stepping in manure in Dwight's kitchen and later getting hit in the head with a ball thrown by Mose to Angela giving Andy a huge kiss right after he took a big bite of his tuna sandwich, it was a laugh a minute episode for me.

3. We had an awesome fast and testimony meeting today. It was just what I needed.

4. I was able to see my dear friend Michelle while I was at the hospital tonight. Her husband is the one fighting lung cancer. He's been in the hospital for a week and I'm worried (if you'd like to pray for him, his name is Rick.) She's staying very positive so I'm trying to rely on that. So while the fact that Rick's in the hospital doesn't count as something good, seeing Michelle was good for my soul. I love her.

5. It only cost $19.50 to fill my gas tank yesterday.

And finally, I've saved the best for last: my laptop is on its way. Wahoo!

I used to love my Christmas tree.

Most years, I adore my Christmas tree. I bought it 3 or 4 years ago from Fred Meyer, on sale. It's a pre-lit artificial tree and a slimline style which is completely perfect for my tiny living room. I love a fake tree because I don't own a truck to haul home a live tree and I don't have a garage to let it dry out in. I love that it's pre lit because hanging lights is one of my least favorite things in life. I also love the fact that my fake tree does not have spiders on it nor does it fall over in the night because it's too big for its stand.

There are some things I don't like about a fake tree: the lack of tree smell, the fact that you can see metal where wood should be, and it's not a Noble Fir (my personal favorite tree.) I have an addition to that list this year. I hate the fact that an entire row of lights will not stay lit.

I have been working on this tree for the past 5 hours, on and off. I've taken it apart and put it back together again, plugging and unplugging everything. My arms are completely scratched up (one more thing I hate about fake trees -- they're scratchy and I will likely have more horrible scars on my arms because of today.) I've shed more than a few tears of utter frustration and that same stupid section is still unlit.

What this all means is I'm giving up and I'm going to start hanging my lovely ornaments on a tree that's not fully lit. Oh and I'm buying a new tree next year.

Will you all do me a favor? Please go give your fully lit tree a hug. Let it know how much you love it because like Joni Mitchell, Amy Grant and many others have sang, you don't know what you've got 'til it's gone.

p.s. Oh and my computer is still broken. Hug your working computers too after you get done hugging your tree. Thank you.

Payback!

Because I've been a jerk all week, my home computer just decided it no longer wants to boot up (some sort of "chipset heat sink" problem that is apparently prevalent in my type of computer.)

I talked to my nice computer sensei at work and it could be a quick/free fix or it could be a new motherboard and he said I could bring it in and he'll try to fix it. The good thing is, I knew my computer was getting ready to give up the ghost so I ordered a laptop the day after Thanksgiving (thus bringing to an end my year of excessive spending on electronics.)

But the moral of this story? Don't be a jerk! It always comes back to bite ya!

p.s. My coworker confronted me right after I got to work yesterday. I sincerely apologized and expressed my regret for being such a jerk and she seems to be fine now.

Sometimes I'm a jerk.

I try hard to be a good person but sometimes I fail. Big time. I will now share two items that will prove my jerkiness.

Let me preface this first anecdote by saying that the sales associates at Penneys should always address you as "would you like a gift receipt?" because apparently their computers are so antiquated and stupid that they have to void your sale and then re-ring it if you happen to ask for your gift receipt mid-sale or after. And they complain and act majorly put out if you ask for it too late.

Reason #1 I'm a jerk:
Tuesday night I was buying a gift at Penneys and for the 2nd time in 5 days, the sales clerk did not ask me if I wanted a gift receipt. On Black Friday, I forgot to ask until the sale was complete so that's my fault. Yes the sales clerk should have just given me one rather than give me an excuse but it was Black Friday so I didn't push it. But last night, I remembered to ask! I was so proud of myself! But the poor sales clerk didn't know what she was doing and proceeded to take ten minutes to try and figure it out before she finally gave me the "we'll have to redo the entire sale" spiel. I now had 20 minutes to get home, pick up my sweet, elderly neighbor and get us both to Enrichment on time and I was at least 25 minutes away from home.

So I reacted as any mature, Christian, 41 year old woman would react.

I threw a little hissy fit.

Another sales woman came up to show the girl how to do it but she stalked off because I was such a jerk. I apologized to the 2nd sales clerk and said "I'm really not mean, I'm just late and tired of waiting and I really am sorry." She took care of it in less than 2 minutes and was very kind to me, even though I didn't deserve it. I felt like a jerk. It's not her fault that Penneys computers suck. I've worked retail so I've been on the other side. I need to remember how I felt last night the next time I want to snap at a rude sales clerk.

Reason #2 I'm a jerk:
I work with someone who is not very good at her job. She spends most of her day asking me or my friend how to do simple tasks that she should know how to do. Most of the time, we can take it. However, Wednesday was not a good day. I went to work crabby and my friend was crabby as well. We stood in the kitchen and snipped and griped about the "bad" coworker after she had left to go get lunch. Well, guess what? We stood there saying mean things long enough for "bad" coworker to come back and overhear part of our conversation.

I'm such a jerk.

She was more mad at my friend because she only heard me agreeing and not saying much but that's no excuse. I know better. I shouldn't talk about people like that - it's mean. I would feel terrible if someone did that to me so why did I do it to her?

I've learned my lesson. I'm going to be more kind. I'm going to be more careful about the things I say. I'm going to treat people as I would want to be treated. I'm going to try and be less of a jerk too. Wish me luck!

My most favorite Christmas songs

Since posting about my most despised Christmas songs ruffled a few feathers, I thought I would try and calm everyone down with a list of my most beloved Christmas songs. I think I'll first list my favorite albums (um, CDs??) and then go to individual songs.

Fave Christmas CDs

• Merry Christmas -- Mariah Carey. This would be a desert island CD for me. It's perfect from start to finish. Not one song is a "skipper."
• Cool Yule -- Bette Midler. Such a fun CD. Her versions of "Mele Kalikimaka" and "I've Got My Love to Keep me Warm" are two that I play the most. I ignore the Christmas version of "From a Distance" however.
• A Christmas Album & Home for Christmas -- Amy Grant. Her first two CDs are my most favorite. "Heirlooms" on the first CD and "Breath of Heaven" on the second are the standout songs for me.
• Noel -- Josh Groban. I love this entire CD. His version of "It Came Upon the Midnight Clear" is absolute perfection.
• This is Christmas -- Luther Vandross. I love Luther and this CD would be perfect except for the "My Favorite Things" error in judgement.
• Christmas at Home -- Donny Osmond. With the exception of two songs, this is a really great CD. One song was on my naughty list a couple of days ago and the other is the ridiculous "Who Took the Merry out of Christmas." I know it makes my friend Kim laugh but it makes me hit the skip button. My favorites on this CD are "Come to the Manger" (shout out to Grandpa H!) and "Baby What You Gonna Be" which we sang in junior high choir. I love that song!

Fave Christmas Songs (besides those mentioned above)

• We Need a Little Christmas -- It's not really Christmas until I hear this song by Percy Faith and his orchestra. This song makes me very happy.
• Baby, It's Cold Outside -- I'm partial to the Zooey Deschanel/Leon Redbone version from "Elf" but I also enjoy the Rod Stewart/Dolly Parton version and the Vanessa Williams/someone else versions too.
• Pine Cones and Holly Berries -- The Osmonds. I make my friend Michelle sing this as a duet with me as we drive to Portland for our yearly shopping trips. This is another "happy place" type of song.
• Merry Christmas from the Family -- The Dixie Chicks and Rosie O'Donnell. Not a song for children since it starts out "Mom got drunk and dad got drunk" but I love, love, love it.
• A Marshmallow World -- Lots of people sing this song but the Dean Martin version is the best (not the one I linked from You Tube where he's totally drunk and slurring the words, however!)
• Winter Wonderland -- I love the Jason Mraz version I linked last week but the Collin Raye version is fantastic and features backup vocals by the Beach Boys. So fun! I also really love the Louis Armstrong version -- it's very romantic and would be great to slow dance to (I'm guessing!)
• Tinseltown and That's What I Want for Christmas -- SHeDAISY. The rest of the CD is way too wacky but these two songs are so good. Tinseltown is a great one to sing along to and the latter is a nice, romantic song for Christmas.
• O Holy Night -- Point of Grace. Kim introduced me to this song when she had some of our YW sing it a few Christmases ago. Beautiful harmonies.
• Silver and Gold -- Vanessa Williams. This song is just smooth, relaxing and beautiful.
• Hard Candy Christmas -- Dolly Parton. Now I know this song is probably a little depressing to some, but I love it. Classic Dolly and just so pretty.

Okay, I think I'm done talking about Christmas music. Finally. ;)

Things I Love About Christmas

After yesterday's negative post, I thought it best I counteract with a post full of positives. Besides the obvious (celebrating our Savior), here are some things I love about the Christmas season:

1. Singing "Angels We Have Heard on High" at church. It has the most fun alto part ever (well, it's right up there with "Let Us All Press On" but it's pretty good!)
2. Christmas pajamas from Wal Mart! I hope you are all buying yourself a pair because they are only $10 and they are so cute. I've bought a different pair the last three years. This year I got these darling pink ones. They are cotton and comfy and I wear them well into spring, usually. The picture up above is from two Christmases ago when we got coordinating pajamas for my mom, sisters and me. So fun!
3. Christmas candles! I used to sell Salt City Candles and I love digging my candles out. My favorite holiday scents are Christmas Trimmings (which is great to burn if you have a fake tree -- it's tree-like but not TOO much) and Victorian Christmas (which is sweet and spicy and just yummy) but my most favorite thing to do is burn a Candy Cane candle while burning an Evergreen candle. It's the BEST combination.
4. Fun ads in the paper every week! I love seeing what's on sale.
5. BAKING! I love looking for the best recipes for fudge or snowball cookies every year. (And if you have the perfect fudge recipe, please share! I'm really still looking!) This is also the time of year for Caramel Chex Mix. I'll add the recipe at the end of this list. I think that might be what I make for the girls at work this year. It's so good and very festive with holiday M&Ms.
6. Christmas movies!!! I have three favorites: Elf, The Year Without a Santa Claus and then my number one most favorite is White Christmas. That is the movie I watch while wrapping my presents. I can't wrap a gift without it on in the background.
7. Time off from work! We get the 24th through the 1st off -- paid! Wahoo!

What do YOU love about the Christmas season?

Caramel Chex Mix

1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup Karo syrup
1 cup brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp baking soda
4 cups rice chex cereal
4 cups corn chex cereal
1 cup peanuts or mixed nuts
1 cup M&Ms (holiday - add as many as you want, really)

Mix cereal and nuts in a large bowl, set aside. Preheat oven to 250 degrees. Spray a cookie sheet with Pam. In medium saucepan, combine butter, karo syrup and brown sugar. Bring to boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. Allow to boil for 5 minutes without stirring. Remove from heat and add vanilla and baking soda, then stir. Pour over cereal mixture & mix together then pour onto cookie sheet. Cook for one hour, stirring every 15 minutes. Remove from oven and stir to break apart clumps. When cool, add M&Ms.

Most despised Christmas music

I forgot to mention in my previous post that I'm also writing my testimony about visiting teaching for the December RS newsletter. Again, too much of me in such a short time period!

Okay, finally, here is my promised post about my least favorite Christmas songs!

I love schmaltz and sap, honest I do, but I have a list of Christmas songs that I really dislike. Some are specific versions of songs but others are just the song in general -- doesn't matter who sings it! The following is in no particular order:

• Christmas Shoes - Newsong. ICK ICK ICK! A major eye-roller, as my mom and I would say. I hate songs that were written just to make people cry. I can't believe there's an actual movie (and a sequel to that movie!) as well.
• Santa Baby - Eartha Kitt version only. I think it's because my mom hates it so much and it's rubbed off on me. I like the Madonna version just fine.
• Jingle Bells - the barking dogs version
• Most anything by Trans Siberian Orchestra (with the exception of Christmas Canon) and Manheim Steamroller - I know many of you will disagree with me but I call this "angry music"
• Same Old Lang Syne - Dan Fogelberg. Way too depressing to be a Christmas song.
• Mary, did you know? Major melodrama -- way too much.
• Anything on Rick Springfield's Christmas album. I bought it for a friend last year because she just loves him and it has got to be the worst CD ever. EVER. Okay, this particular song I linked is dedicated to the troops so while I appreciate the thought, it is seriously a bad CD.
• Christmas in America by Kenny Rogers. Blech. Plus I think he does the talking over the music thing partway through. Say it with me people...blech.
• Feliz Navidad. I mostly tolerate the original version but the Jon Secada version? BAD.
• You Make it Feel Like Christmas by Neil Diamond. I don't totally hate the song but hate the way Neil says ChristMASS.

Note: O Holy Night used to be on my "list" because people sing it who have no right singing it (meaning they aren't good enough singers) or they oversing it completely. I've since changed my, ahem, tune and I like it a lot more now.

And another song category? Songs that are not Christmas songs so quit calling them that! (I really hope all of the "Warm" music station program managers are reading my blog right now.)

• Get Here - The Oleta Adams version is my favorite but seriously there is not one bit of Christmas in that song.
• My Favorite Things - just because it talks about packages tied up in string and says the words "sleigh bells", doesn't make it a Christmas song! Who started this anyway? They need to be smacked around a little. Oh and I specifically linked a version sung by Dionne Warwick. Not my favorite singer.
• Seasons of Love from Rent. I've read the lyrics and I still don't know how that one became a Christmas song. I've never seen the play or movie -- maybe the song is played during Christmas time or something???

Okay - your turn. Agree or disagree? Anything I've forgotten?