The Sickies Have Gone--HURRAH!

Right after opening my Christmas stocking, I was hit with a horrible terrible no good flu bug and spent the rest of my Christmas day curled up in my bathrobe sipping Sprite.

Hurrah.

Today--on day 4 of no Coffee *groan*--I awoke to a blazing headache and full body withdrawel caffine aches.

However, my tummy seemed (finally) calm.

So--I tenatively ordered a Mocha and took a tiny sip--testing the tummy status.

EUREKA! No rolling tummy!

I sipped the Mocha with glee and even managed to nibble on a bagel.

And now?

Hurrah! I feel grand!! GRAND I tell you!

So bring on the New Year. I'm ready for ya.

Bring it!

Merry Post Christmas!

How was everyones Christmas?

Mine was fantabulous! :D

Family was able to make it through the snow--and we had a beautiful, delicious ham dinner Christmas Eve--then fell upon the presents with glee.

MiniWarrior cracked us up.

Right after dinner, he stood up and started going around the table collecting dirty dishes from everyone and said, "Now, you guys just rest and let your dinner digest. That way when you open your presents you won't yell JACKPOT! and get a stomach ache!"

*Snort*

His angle was to get us to move into the progression of eat dinner--open gifts. He had been asking all day as to when we were going to open them but had not gotten a definitive answer.

The kid is a born politician!

God help us...

Santa was very kind to me!

Here are two of my gifts: (the fridge in the middle was from last year)
Loveeeeeeeeeee them *sing song voice*




Annnnnnd...my main gift?

A telephoto 70-300 image stabilization lens for Chanda! WOO!!

You can see the Christmas Sunset I took with her new attachment HERE


Everyone was delightfully spoiled by Santa and his relative elves this year.

But *other then the awesome lens* the thing I love the most?

Was being cozied up with family, snowbound, enjoying the Ham feast and sharing the excitement and laughter of the holidays.

Good times. Good times.

I have tracked myself all over your blogs this morning checkin on how your holidays were. Seems everyone (who posted: *hint*cough*hint*) had a fabulous Christmas time!

Yay us! :D

Merry Christmas Eve!

Hope you'v been good 'cuz Santa's on his way, Peeps!

WOO!!

Merry Christmas, my Peeps. Have a wonderful, fantabulous day!

Priorities!

I was hoofing it to Starbucks through the half shoveled sidewalks of Portland this morning.

There had been a slight thaw the day before but the cooler night temperatures had frozen the snow melt to a treacherous high gloss sheen.

I was walking on the snowy street along side the ice skating sidewalk when a man sightly ahead of me suddenly flew through the air and landed with a WHOMP! onto his back on the sidewalk.

He hit pretty hard and I was a bit alarmed.

"Sir, are you OK?" I asked

He didn't respond.

"SIR! Are you OK?" I asked moving closer to him.

He slowly moved to a sitting position and shook himself.

I reached down and started gathering up his belongings that had gone flying.

Handing him his book, I asked again if he was OK.

He didn't say anything but turned to look to to his right.

"Awww Sh*$! My COFFEE!" He suddenly bellowed.

I followed his forlorn gaze to his coffee cup laying upside down, spilling its contents onto the sidewalk.

"Bummer." I commiserated.

He rolled an eyeball to the Venti Mocha I held clutched to my chest and sighed.

I tsked in sympathy, helped him to his feet then patted him on the arm and stumbled my way to work.

Hey.

It may be Christmas time--but I ain't given up my morning Mocha.

No way.

Nuh uh.

*Z snaps*

New Photo Site!

I have organized my iPhone Portland City photos and have given them their very own home.

Check it out HERE!

Santa's Demise

I opened the front door to check on the snow status and found a grim sight...



Santa carcass!

Winter Storm

It's been snowing all night and day.




We stopped and bought chains for my truck this morning. The line of waiting people twisted around the store like a sleeping anaconda.

With chains on my truck tires making a comforting chug-a-chug-a-chug sound on the snow lined streets, we made a pit stop at the local grocery store to nab a few last stocking stuffers and groceries.



Every teller aisle was crammed with people loading up on supplies.

There is a strange sense of camaraderie that comes with such moments. Where normally people groused at long lines, they now stood patiently leaning on their filled grocery carts, texting on their phones or chatting with their companions.



Lord V and I spent the afternoon by the fireplace watching TV while the wind blew the falling snow in swirls around the house and across the river.



So wild. So beautiful. So cold.

I am thankful we have a warm house tonight.

Christmas Ships!

Christmas Party Goodness!

The Christmas party was awesome.

Our house was filled with the sights and sounds of many friends and their families.

You know what I enjoyed most?

No one stood around. Everyone flung themselves into the kitchen and started digging around and cooking--it was like one huge family gathering where no one was the "guest".

The Christmas ships passed our house all decked out in their light displays. Most people piled out of the house and stood by the fire pit to wave and cheer at the ships as they cruised by.

On the way back by us the ships stopped and turned their ships towards our house and played a bit of their music. My girlfriend, MiniWarrior and I were whooping and hollering at the ships screaming "MERRY CHRISTMAS! and THANK YOU!!"

I spent some time trying to get every individual family to pose by the Christmas tree so I could take their photo. I was able to get a lot of family shots. I'm so looking forward to my weekend and having some time to work on the photos! I feel passionate about being able to capture those rare moments where the entire family gets the opportunity to be complete in a casual photo. I tried to capture every ones unique personalities--I hope I was able to do so.

One of my friends asked if I would take her daughters Senior photos. I am a little intimidated by that as that's an important time of a kids life--but I am also honored that they felt it was something I could do. I lay in bed last night with my mind spinning with ideas of locations and ideas for the photo shoot. There will be no charge--but I feel the weight of the responsibility and want to be able to give them some memorable photos :)

When I was done with taking the Christmas family shots, I walked into my kitchen and my friends had cleaned the entire place! There was not a stray cup/napkin/plate or dirty dish to be found and they had packaged up all the leftovers in baggies for us.

They rock. Seriously. R.O.C.K.

I don't know how I got so lucky to have such wonderful friends.

I'll try and post some Christmas ship pics this weekend. Not sure how well they came out as I need to get a different lens for my camera that will allow me to take distant shots.

Good times, Peeps.

Awesomely good times :)

A Meme

To put a smile on Cindy's face I am participating in her Meme...

*i want. More coffee!
*i have. Too many hobbies and not enough time :)
*i fear. rejection
*i hear. space heater cookin' my feet under my desk.
*i search for. The rare gotta-have-sell-first-born-for purrrrfect Hello Kitty
*i wonder. If I'll ever do anything professional with my photos
*i regret. not being brave when I needed to be
*i love. my little family
*i always eat. unhealthy snacks
*i try not. to upset people
*i seem. too complicated
*i know. I am probably annoying to those close to me
*i feel. many things too deeply
*i dance. awesome in my imagination...and totally suck in real life.
*i dream of. making a living from my photos
*i sing. when I am alone :)
*i laugh because. I find many little things hilariously funny
*i can't. forget making someone upset at me
*i write. less then I used to
*i cry. when I feel helpless or angry
*i sleep. easily but not enough
*i am. excited about big christmas party at our house tonight :D
*i see. a slightly skewed version of the world then others around me
*i need. to belong
*i should. go back to work on my projects! :D
*big hug sent out to Cindy* Please visit her and bring a smile to her face today.

The Apple of Santas Eye

Its snowing in Portland!!

Not a big deal for some...but super cool for us Northwestern Peeps who are used to sky moisture drizzling on us in rain form.

Wanna see pics of our snow?

Go HERE!

Guido~ness

Mrowr!

I am most pleased that my Christmas lair is returning.

Stay tuned to my slaves Masters blog for adorable pics of me inside my Christmas lair.

*Purrrrrrr*

Guido-the-cat

MiniWarrior~ism

Mom? Do only married people have babies?

No. You don't have to be married to make a baby.

Oh. Hmm. Then how are babies made?

(oh crap)

Um. Well. You see. Um. Well...boys have things in their bodies called "sperm" and girls have "eggs" inside them. The sperm finds the egg and makes the egg turn into a baby inside the girls tummy.

Really? But how are babies made?

(crap crap crap!)

I'll tell you that when you're older. Just know that you don't have to be married for a girl to get pregnant.

(I so suck at this...)

Oh, yeah--that's true. You have to be careful when you sit by a girl...

(oh god, I've warped him against girls...)

...in the cafeteria. 'Cuz they may eat something they're allergic to!

Daily *snort*

Lord V just sent me THIS!



A nurse tends to a baby inside a Hello Kitty themed maternity ward inside a hospital in Changhua County December 4, 2008. Mommy, daddy -- and Hello Kitty -- welcome newborns at a cat-themed Taiwan maternity hospital that hopes the Japanese cartoon icon will ease the stress of childbirth as well as boost business. The 30-bed Hau Sheng Hospital in Yuanlin in central Taiwan claims to be the only institution of its kind authorised by the popular cartoon cat's parent company Sanrio Co Ltd. Newborns get everything Hello Kitty but a set of whiskers, including pink or blue receiving blankets, nurses dressed in pink uniforms with cat-themed aprons, cot linen and room decor. Picture taken December 4, 2008. To match Reuters Life! TAIWAN-HELLOKITTY REUTERS/Christine Lu (TAIWAN)

The header of his email?

"The next batch of future serial killers is being raised here"

*SNORT!!*

He's convinced Hello Kitty is evil and plots our demise. :P

Katmas Cheer!

Holiday Craze

After dropping MiniWarrior off at his Dads house yesterday, I decided to get a few errands done while in that neck of the woods--and then zip on home to enjoy some World of Warcraft play til you drool "me time".

It started off well.

I hit the Pharmacy to refill a prescription and had a relaxing time perusing the Christmas aisles while waiting for the pharmacy.

Prescription in hand, I headed out to the local Craft store humming a Christmas tune and plotting decorating ideas in my head.

La la la la.
La la la la...

Oh my. Lotsa people out and about today...

Dee dum dee dooooo
Dum diddly deeee...

Ooooh! Look at all the neat Christmas stuff!

la la la...

Oh, 'scuse me.

Pardon me.

'scuse me!

I'm sorry. If I just need to get over to this...

Just let me grab this....

OMG Peeps! MUST you ALL stand in the middle aisle?!

sorry sorry...let me just...

Where are the freakin christmas balls?!

OMG its crowded in here.

Sweet Jesus, just let me find the stupid christmas balls and I'm outta...

Oops sorry didn't mean to bump into you.

Good Lord that kids got a pair of lungs on him.

'scuse me.

Oh sorry! 'scuse me!

Where the frack are the &%#! Christmas BALLS!

'scuse me, Ma'am? Where are the Christmas balls?

Ma'am?

MA'AM!

I can't believe she just freakin' blew right by me!

ARGH!

OK. Can't find Christmas balls...gonna use gold packages instead.

Excellent.

Good.

Now let me just pay for...

'scuse me.

'Pardon me.

The line starts...WHERE?!

sweet Josephine. I'm never getting out of here.

Why isn't this line MOVING?!

Sweet mother of...is she pulling out a checkbook?

Who freakin pays with checks anymore?

oh sweet lord. I'm gonna die in here.

Archaeologists will dig up my bones and be mystified as to how a person died standing up without a sign of mortal woundage.

Finally!

Yes yes. Merry Christmas to you, Ma'am.

Yes yes. I found everything I needed.

'cept the freakin' christmas balls!

ARGH.

Here's a note my Peeps.

Never.

Never ever EVAHR

go out Christmas shopping on the weekend.

Ever.

ever ever ever EVER.

Amen.