New Year's Eve Eve

 I'm feeling more melancholy than usual for this time of year.  Maybe it is the beer I'm drinking tonight, but probably not.  The last 10 days have been filled with a roller coaster of emotions.

 For starters, one of my nephews [because for me, divorce does not sever family ties] has been missing for the past nine days.  I know that he would not have missed his 12~almost 13-year-old~ son's Christmas, and so when I woke this morning filled with sadness and dread it was almost confirmation of my fears even though he has yet to be found.  Honestly, if he were found alive at this moment, I would just rip his head off for scaring us for the last 9-10 days, but I'm afraid that won't be the case.  He was last known to be using meth again, so I am praying that he is just holed up in a dealer's hole, or in rehab, but with all the media attention that his absence has gotten ... well, I'm just asking for prayers.  I keep hoping he shows up at my door so I can save everyone else the hassle of killing him.

  I am a rock, in the middle of a raging river, feeling the current crashing over me.  Trying so hard to be the solid foothold for my niece, Xzana, who is dealing with a missing brother and a mother's mental illness; and also trying to support my nephew's wife and autistic son who doesn't understand why his dad isn't there for him.

  Christmas was a non-event, which was for me very ... depressing.  Yes, my plans changed (from going to VA to staying home) which added a bit to my depression, but apparently how I'm expected to celebrate also changed.  The household is once again ruled by May who decided that gifts and stockings would not be opened until New Year's Day.  I thought at first that was a cultural, Philippines, thing but according to Bing ... not the case.  

  To be totally honest and transparent ... I will be very glad when the five from the Philippines are gone from my life.  That sounds mean to say, and even think, but it is the truth.  Some of them have to be the most inconsiderate people I have ever met.  Not just because of how they interact (or don't) with me, but because of how they interact with each other. 

  For example, they had a party on Christmas Eve [here at "my" house] to which an additional eight or ten were invited (not me) and one of them was asleep because he had to be at work at 4a on Christmas Day.  They woke him up at 1230a so that he could partake in the "grace" over the food.  Then, they proceeded to party and sing karaoke (quite loudly) until 230a just outside his bedroom door after he went back to bed.

  I will be profoundly sad, however, when Bipin leaves.  He is an old soul from whom I have learned much.

  Here is all that I have to offer tonight, which truthfully isn't much.

  Life is short.  Life is precious.  Treat yourself with kindness.  Forgive. Love one another.  Be kind to each other.  Be kind to yourself.  Hold on.  Hold on.  Hold on.  It will get better.

Happy Christmas Eve ...

 The weekend's plans changed, but that is the plus side of being flexible.

 Friday a book I won in a holiday giveaway at work arrived.  "Greenlights" by Matthew McConaughey [<link]  So far it is a very good read and I highly recommend it.

 Yesterday, Charlie's besties from across the street (Brenda & Joey) surprised us with some gifts.  One of the chew bones is missing because we have no adult supervision and Charlie insisted we open the package right away.  Needless to say, we love all of it (they know us so well!), and I know he will appreciate the Chill Out bandana in the summer.

 His hind legs seem to be about 97% back to normal.  Or at least they've sobered up when he walks.  He moves a little slower, which is fine because I do too, and sometimes he wants more help than on other days.  If I were a Reiki practitioner, I would say that his injury was just a little below his shoulder blades because that is where I sense more heat when he is getting a massage in the evenings.

 This morning I went to a Christmas Eve church service and saw my friends Will, Erica & baby Hazel.  I'd share a photo of Erica, me, and Hazel, except Hazel was hangry and screaming, and I looked like I had a fat bottom lip because I was trying to comfort her for the camera (but it looks like I'm going to take a bite out of her instead).  So you get instead a picture of the ornament I got from them.

 In a previous life, "Cici" was going to be the nickname the step-grandkids were going to call me, but that never happened so now it is the nickname that Hazel will have for me.  I'm somewhere between an auntie and a granny in the hierarchy of things, which is a good place to be in any hierarchy.  

 Erica made the ornament and also gifted me with a scarf she had dyed with mushrooms!  I mean, for one thing, it is so beautiful and looks like tree bark.  But secondly, dyed from mushrooms?!?!?  Who knew you could even do that?  Erica, obviously, but I just love homemade gifts!  Oh, and the cookies she made?  Didn't even make it all the way home, and YUM!

 Speaking of cookies ... I have to give a huge shout-out to my friend, Maureen, who sent me a box from Texas of ... homemade gingersnaps and sugar cookies!!!  I don't have any pictures to share of those because ... ahem, NO adult supervision!  If she doesn't open a post-retirement, gluten-free, Harry Potter-themed bakery, I would gladly pay to have cookies shipped for the holidays!

 For a parting shot this evening, I leave you last night's Waxing Moon in Aries as seen through the tree limbs in the front yard.

 I wish you the very best of the holidays, no matter where you are or which holiday you celebrate this month.  I think we are all grateful that 2023 is coming to an end, and we are all hopeful that 2024 will be better for each and every one of us.

  Hugs ................ Ci

t'was the week before Christmas ...

   I've been having issues with insomnia lately which is very frustrating.  I've had to reschedule Charlie's last laser treatment twice now because I've not been able to sleep until after 330a or later ~ Saturday I didn't get to sleep until after 6a.

  When I finally did wake up Saturday, Bipin and I drove to Roanoke to bargain shop for some warmer winter coats for him.  At least, that's my story and I'm sticking to it.  I know nothing about the three pairs of boots/shoes that somehow made their way into my car.  

  To be honest though, one is a pair of knee-high "mud" boots.  Something I can wear when gardening, or when slogging through a creek as I sometimes want to do.  Another pair is Sperry "duck boots," a style of wet weather shoes [Like these ~ link> only for $16, not $100!].  But the last pair ... really didn't "need."  They are sage green short boots that will be super cute with leggings and a sweater I have of the same color.  What can I say, they were close to the register ... by a few aisles, and they were on clearance so I got them for $8.

  I also picked up three lined winter beanie-style hats that I actually did need.  Well.  I needed one, but couldn't decide on a color so I just got all three.  The price was right.

  We then went to another store, Gabe's, where I mostly shopped for Charlie.  It's kind of like Ross where they offer huge discounts on fashion and home goods.  Plato's Closet, where we shopped first, is a store that buys gently worn name brands and then resells them at up to 70% off.  I could have spent days in there looking at the clothing because there really wasn't any organized chaos.  It was straight-up chaos times 100.  There might have been some kind of dividing line between his/hers/kids, but it would have been really hard to find.  

  When the sun is out Charlie likes to spend some time people-watching on the front porch where he can get warmed up by the sun.  So I got him a little bed with a waterproof bottom to sit in and keep his toes warm.

  There is a winter storm currently blowing outside that brought several inches of snow this afternoon.  More is expected tonight through midnight, but it is unlikely to be a white Christmas for us here.  Daytime temperatures will reach the mid-50s on Sunday, and even with a few nights below freezing, anything that will get some sun during the day will melt.

Art class and a craft show ...

 Mondays are usually very hectic for me.  I'm catching up on computer stuff I should have done over the weekend but didn't because I'm trying to spend more time "hands-on" and away from the screen.  So I have receipts to enter, and emails to answer.  Photos to upload and edit.  Oh, and then there is that thing called work that actually pays for the things I have receipts on.

 Saturday was a rainy day with low clouds and mist over the Greenbrier River.  A cold front ... actually, a freezing front ... was moving in.  It snowed last night about two inches, which thrilled my roommates but because the ground was so wet it really didn't stick long.  They were up late taking pictures and getting out in it.  Fortunately for them, I had purchased some puffball snowballs for them to have snowball fights in the house because today hadn't gotten above freezing, something none of them were thrilled about.

 I took Charlie to another laser treatment that morning, and he continues to improve.

  After his appointment, I took another alcohol ink ornaments class to refresh my memory since I'd purchased materials to make some at home.

 These > were gifts for Charlie's BFFs (Brenda & Joey) across the street whom he just adores spending time with.  When I think back to how he was when I first got him, seven years ago last Tuesday, and how much he has changed it makes my heart happy to see how much more he enjoys making (human) friends and how he is living his best life.  We're still working on the dog friends part.

 Sunday I went to a craft show/fundraiser for the local domestic violence shelter.  One of the vendors was selling amazing dog treats, so of course, I had to get a 12-day Advent calendar for Charlie who gave it two paws up.

 I picked up a few small items and an idea for a future project (naturally).  I've always loved the look and feel of the "hand crochet" big chunky blankets, and now apparently a yarn maker has come out with an easy-peasy way of making them. 

  They market pre-looped yarn so that all you have to do is run the loops from the new row through the previous row without looking like you are wearing wings on your arms.

 But it's not like I'm lacking things to do.  I still have the Scottish soldiers I started in January to finish ~ just have to find all the supplies I bought before the move because there was help at the last minute with throwing things into bags, baskets, and tubs and I have no idea where anything is.

 I've also been working on this mosaic piece and might have waited too long to clean off the grout I used on some of the sections.  Plus, using grout on the mirrors may have also been a mistake.  It has been one of those projects that gets picked up on a slow night at work.  So when I get a ping to assist someone, it gets put to the side, sometimes indefinitely.

 Oh, and a circular weaving I've been doing off and on ... watercolor painting in a tiny sketchbook ... a Yule Blessings Ball I really must get done before the 21st of this month.  The list goes on...

 I hope your weekend was much more relaxing than mine .... Hugs, Ci

St Nick's Eve ...

Gripper socks arrived for Charlie.

He absolutely hates them.

Refuses to walk, even to get a treat of leftover turkey.

But on the good side of things, he is improving.

My December tree.  Filled with memories of trips.

I follow a woman on Instagram who teaches simple art.  Mostly from blobs of watercolor paint.

Or triangles.

The spider web tree wasn't planned.  I added the spider as an after thought when the design I was going for didn't look as I imagined it.  Then I heard a story of the spider in the tree being the origins of why people put tinsel on their trees and decided it was just what it was supposed to be.

Reindeer blobs.

It's kind of relaxing for me, which is a good thing.