Sunday Salon, Dec. 22, 2013

View from our box seat, Benaroya Hall, Handel's Messiah, Dec. 21, 2013

Weather: Icky. Rainy and foggy. It feels like we are living in a cloud. Ugh.

Yesterday: Our daughter's Christmas present to her father were tickets to see (and hear) the Seattle Symphony and choir perform Handel's Messiah.  It was the very first time that I heard the whole program in a concert.  It was lovely. I felt like crying during the Hallelujah Chorus just because I've know this masterpiece my whole life but never actually been in a hall when everyone stood for it.

Funny moment: When we got home from Seattle the family sat in the living room, the girls played with the dog, and my husband picked up my daughter's long knit scarf which she had tied into a circle. My husband started playing cats cradle with it, the girls continued  with the game for three moves. It was one of those funny moments that I know will live in my memory forever.

"Are you excited for Christmas?", a student asked: I told her that I was a mother so I'm not sure if I get excited by Christmas or just exhausted by it. The last day of school before Winter Break was Friday so I certainly haven't had a feeling of being done with all my preparation tasks for Christmas, yet. Yesterday Don did help me wrap presents, so that big task is almost done. I still want to make a few Christmas cookies, spritz and gingerbread; shop for groceries; and find a few more stocking-stuffers.

Pneumonia: my youngest daughter came home from college with pneumonia. She is not running a fever, but definitely rattlely lungs and feels puny.

Kitty comfort

Inventory over 95% complete: As part of the library system "crash" and the loss of data of student accounts, the district required that we complete a library and textbook inventory as quickly as possible.  A team of five people came to my school on Thursday and helped up scan all our books. We discovered that the recovery process duplicated several records at two or more schools. That mess will have to be cleaned up by the district. I am feeling much better now that this task is nearly done.

4th Sunday of advent: today the church service focused on the three wise men and what compelled them to seek the Christ child. Scripture: Matt. 2:1-12.

From the kitchen: The best chocolate cake ever. I made it for my daughter's 22nd birthday. The frosting, however, was so thick we renamed it fudge.

Reading funk: I did finish the graphic novel, Saints by Gene Yang, but didn't finish anything else this week. I am in a bit of reading funk right now. Perhaps all the stress I have experienced at work, compounded by the holidays and other family commitments, has really cut into my desire for reading. I did reach my weekly goal on Lacuna by completing 13 of the 16 CDs. September Girls is still unfinished and may remain that way.

Funny video of the week: My daughter really wants a Roomba (Robot vacuum) for Christmas. She and I were talking about it while looking at the internet and found this funny video of a cat, dressed in a blue alien outfit, riding a roomba around the room. We both think it is so funny, especially when the dog entered the scene.  He is also wearing an alien outfit. Enjoy.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!