Satisfied.

This year, I did very well with my gift-giving.

Ahhh.

For starters, I collected funds from several sources so that I could buy my mother a new sewing machine. (One just like yume_no_tenshi's new hotness!)

I managed not only to pull this off, but also to do so in complete secrecy. Then I made her follow a "scavenger hunt" to find it, so that each of the people who pitched in could identify themselves. allura629 was represented by thesigother, for the purposes of this exercise. The hunt led her to the spare bedroom and I got to do the big reveal.

Mom burst into tears. TEARS. She got all choked up and had to hug us all and wail uncontrollably.

Um. So, yeah. "BINGO!"

If some of you don't hear from her, it's because she's playing with her new "toy". She's all excited, and rightly so since this machine is actually fancier than MINE!

Then there's my father. We discovered his present at the mall, of all places.
It's a pocket watch. A mechanical one, with visible gears on both the front at the back. And the case opens... on the front and the back.
We spent a pretty penny (and an ugly one, too) on that piece of shiny.
Once again, lost to playing with the new "toy"... He enjoyed showing it off, and my Papa doesn't really get into the whole "Showing it off" thing.

But then, there's the Big Damn Heroes present.
My StepMom is going to school right now. She's at Logan college and is in the big crunch. It's an accelerated program so she is kind of trying to drink from the fire hose... and somehow got roped into hosting Greater Family Christmas on Christmas Day.

All five of her kids and their Significant Others, the New Baby, Grandma and Grandpa, and her in-town siblings. That's not counting the three of us, our significant others (and dogs), and any random friends that we invite.
23 people.
Her family... made a MED STUDENT... host the big family Christmas dinner.
(facepalm)
So we stepped up. thesigother and I cheerfully took on the responsibility of buying, cooking, and serving the meal. I was the sous-chef and he was the Master Chef. (Cast-Iron Chef, actually, according to his apron...) Her family insisted upon a Turkey, but much of my family won't eat it, so we did a pork roast too. We mashed potatoes (my specialty!) and he cooked up a saffron rice dressing dish that was just to DIE for! It was based on the stuffing he had made for a pumpkin for Thanksgiving (which was requested this time, but pumpkins are not to be had this time of year.) I smell delicious right now, lemme tell ya. Family members brought salad, roasted sweet potatoes, and plenty of dessert. My step-sister made delicious gingerbread cookies. (I made Nitey-Nites.) There was three kinds of pie, strudel, coffee cake, irish soda bread (Psst! SevenStar! I saved you some!) cookies, and the like.

Nom nom nomtastic! What's more, the Med Student didn't have to run the kitchen, just serve tea in her fancy teapots and visit with everyone.

Poor thesigother had to go have a Christmas Nap, though. He was all tuckered out from being Head Chef. (Also he's got sinus troubles, surprise surprise.) Fortunately, I follow directions well and managed the second half of Kitchen Duty very well. And I got to make gravy! (I make some damn fine gravy, if I do say so myself.)

So I am very satisfied with my efforts this Christmas. Not everyone has received their gifts yet, but I'm feeling pretty pleased with the result of my choices.

Oh. I got good loot, too, and not too much of it, either. (Bonus!)
What I really got for Christmas this year, and I mean the BIG gifts were new glasses, new contacts, and a root canal.

This may also be the first of the doll-less Christmases, but I have Shirley U. Jest in my living room, and she is more than satisfactory.







***Shirley is the Mannequin. She prevented us from being burgled. I <3 my Mannequin, and I get to dress her up!

*****By "<3" I do not mean that I have any kind of physically romantic relationship with her, I just mean that I think she's really cool and I'm glad to finally own a mannequin of my own.

Girls Night

Ladies?

Remember about how we discussed a Christmas Decompression Session at a hotel somewhere?

It's on. See professor's journal for more info.

Sign in, please. The post is Friends-locked.

And in other news...

"Santa Baby, slip a sable under the tree... for me..."

Eartha Kitt passed away today.

Well, piratebob, you wondered who the third one would be...

Farewell, Catwoman. Go shake things up in Heaven and give St. Peter a thrill for me, will you? And if your desire to be evil was a success, then go give the Morning Star a run for his money! (Knock those horns off of him and take over, girl!)

This would be the third icon of feminine power and beauty to leave us in the last year:

Yvonne DeCarlo passed away in January of 2007, and the world lost some of its brightness.

This year, this *month* even, we lost Bettie Page and Majel Barrett-Roddenberry.

Don't worry, though, ladies. We still have Angelina Jolie and Uma Thurman and Britney Spears to look up to.
Oh, crap. We're f*cked, aren't we?

Ladies? Hello? Aw, never mind. GUYS! Where are you!?

So the Professor has graciously hosted a get-the-hell-away-from-your-family Christmas party at the Embassy Suites just across the river in St. Charles.

While the original idea was for all the ladies to get together and enjoy the company of the out-of-towners (specifically professor, piratebob, and allura629), we're not going to be bitchy and tell the guys they can't come.

Because (duh) that would be rude. I apologize in case I hurt anyone's feelings.

So, come one, come all and spend some time with rarely-sighted Professor Moriarity!

(As for the Pirate and the Princess, they're obligated elsewhere.)

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