The evolution of Christmas shopping

I was up and out the door at 6:30am, driving down to Plymouth to meet friends for breakfast and drop by our house to check on things. On my way back up, I stopped at a few malls in Plymouth and Kingston and was pleasantly surprised to waltz in and easily find a parking spot. A disturbing sign of the economic times... I also, once again, wasn't impressed by the bargains. I got a few good deals, but for the most part, just window shopped.

Tonight's shopping, however, was more productive and worth posting. We were tired of leftovers and opted for a low-budget dinner and drinks at the nearby 99 where our friend's wife works. We were hanging out at the bar, and I began sorting through the wads of paper in my bag. Coupons, circulars, lists, more coupons, expired coupons. The next thing we knew, we were online on my Blackberry, sitting at the bar, ordering one niece's Christmas gifts online at Amazon. My how the times have changed -- and talk about multi-tasking!

Happy turkey!

Happy Thanksgiving all! Tom and I were at the Gobble-Gobble-Gobble, Somerville Road Runner's annual Thanksgiving Day road race, celebrating ten years since my friend Cindy first introduced me to him at the race in '98. Always makes for a fun story when people ask how I met my husband!

This afternoon we deep-fried a turkey for the first time. We've heard horror stories about how folks have almost burned down their houses, so yes, a fire extinguisher was on hand! In the end, no flames and probably one of the best, juiciest turkeys I've ever had. Clean-up, however, is bound to be a pain -- we're hoping the oil coagulates overnight and we can scoop it out, but I'm wondering if it will be cold enough...

Oh no! My favorite cookie factory...closed!

Tom and I were catching up on things today, one of which was some serious grocery shopping. For years, I've snacked on Archway Cookies, whether the large, soft iced oatmeal variety or the bag of crunchy ginger snaps.

So I'm in the snack aisle, doing loops up and down, wondering where they've moved my favorite cookies to. A stockboy stops me and asks what I'm looking for. When I tell him, he laughs, saying "oh, you must be one of the last people who buy them. Archway went out of business last month."

Oh no -- say it isn't so! Sadly, this cookie did crumble...

Miami trip: day 5

Our last morning in sunny Fort Lauderdale. We headed south around 9am to Miami airport, and became somewhat concerned when the GPS led us through several miles of really down-troddened neighborhoods. Trailer houses, check cashing facilities, strip joints, lots of homeless. We stopped briefly for gas, and even though he was only three feet away, Tom had me lock the car doors as soon as he stepped out. Makes you grateful for what you have...

Uneventful, yet long flight home connecting in Dulles again. We laughed at the onslaught of inaugural tourist-traps inside the airport. The capital is gearing up for January's main event!

Tom's already talking about planning a return trip to Florida this spring -- oh for a money tree!

Miami trip: day 4

Today was the second highlight of our trip: New England Patriots at the Miami Dolphins. Two friends from Boston flew down to Tampa yesterday to stay with another friend and his wife (he's formerly of Boston), then drove down to meet the six of us to go to the game. We joined up with the two boat captains (also Patriots fans) with their friends (all Dolphins fans) for a great tailgate. Hubie struggled without his usual stash of every-supply-under-the-sun, and there were lots of jokes about how next time we'll be shipping down a box.

Patriots fans travel well -- perhaps not quite to the same level as Red Sox fans who seem to travel in droves across the country -- but definitely to Miami. When we came down for the game two years ago, it seemed like 75% Patriots fans. This time, we were probably just over 50%, as Miami has improved dramatically this season, but suffice to say we were in good company. Likely because there are so many transplants (see our Tampa friend and our two boat captains as case in point).

Unlike some cities, Miami fans are also good sports and very friendly. No harassment out in the lots or in the stadium. Some good-natured ribbing when the Patriots fell behind during the first half -- it didn't last long when Miami fell apart in the second half.

The girls sitting behind us (more former Boston folks!) took a fantastic picture of me and Tom. Yes, I'm wearing a pink jersey -- the kind I make fun of at every game. But I can defend my apparel -- we were all the way to Logan when I realized I forgot to pack a Patriots jersey. When we connected with our friends that evening, Hubie's wife Meghan immediately offered one of her two jerseys, Moss or Welker. I picked Welker, only to see seconds later the shirt was pink. Needless to say, our friends at the game who have heard me make fun of the women-wearing-pink-or-blue-sports-apparel-phenomenon gave me a lot of grief!

Miami trip: day 3

Today was our recovery day, with no set agenda. Tom and I enjoyed a lazy breakfast at the hotel, then headed down to the pool for drinks. Two of our friends staying at another hotel joined us. Kind of a crummy pool day -- a little bit overcast and fairly windy. We eventually made our way inside and found seats at the bar. To our surprise, next to us were three men who will be officiating Sunday's Patriots-Dolphins game!

Miami trip: day 2

It should be a sin to get up at 4am while on vacation, but sure enough, there we were. Up at 4am, left our hotel at 5am, pit-stop for bagels, met the rest of the crew at the second hotel at 5:30am, and leaving the dock at 6am. Did I mention I'm not a morning person?

However, you are rewarded with views like this...

We sailed for about 20-30 minutes and stopped for an hour or so to "make bait," collecting about a hundred or so small fish to use as live bait. I have to admit -- I chose to skip this process and instead nap inside, so I can't speak to the experience, but Tom thought it was fun to catch five or six fish at a time!

We then sailed about five miles off the coast and began the real fishing for dolphin fish (aka, mahi mahi) and sailfish. Tom and I had fished for dolphin back in May, so reeling in the first two or three was old hat.

The sailfish, however, was an entirely different story. Much larger, a lot more fight to them, and it's catch-and-release. I actually gave up on my first sailfish and handed the rod and reel over to Tom's friend, Hubie, to finish the job. Then I was feeling really sorry for my lack of upper body strength when I reeled in a puny, rather sorry looking fish that had to been about 15 lbs. Tom had a huge battle on his hands with a very feisty fish and nearly fell off the boat when a wave knocked us around at the same time the fish was giving him a run for his money. He successfully reeled in the fish, but had a nasty egg on the top of his knee for good measure.

I had the last word with the sailfish, however, reeling in the final fish of the day. Adam and the mate brought the fish aboard for a very quick photo op, then gently returned it to the sea. Unfortunately, that photo was taken with another couple's camera, so I'm still waiting for the evidence, but check out our photos online.

Miami trip: day 1

After a long night trying to get caught up/ahead of my work, Tom and I left for Florida. The good news is that we used frequent flier miles to pay for our flight. The bad news is that we were boxed into connecting flights through Dulles and thus ended up traveling most of the day.

We finally arrived in the late afternoon in Miami and spent a good 40 minutes wandering around the airport trying to find the proper path to the car rental companies. I guess we should have read the fine print -- they're off-airport. Even better, the streets surrounding their neighborhood were under significant construction, and within minutes we knew we would never find our way back through the detours. That made a last-minute decision to pay $12/day for a GPS system easy...and it paid for itself within the first 15 minutes getting us out of a rather crummy neighborhood and on our way to our hotel in Ft. Lauderdale.

Low key evening spent driving from our Marriott (thank you again, frequent stay miles!) to have dinner at our friends' digs at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino. I think I created a new world record for successfully losing $20 in a slot machine in about 70 seconds. Gambling has never been my forte. Early night tonight -- big day fishing tomorrrow!

Our favorite annual laugh for a great cause: Comics Come Home

Last night, Tom and I went to see Comics Come Home, benefiting the Cam Neely Foundation. Now in its 14th year, CCH is apparently the longest running charity comedy show in the nation. I started going in its early years, a year or so before I met Tom. He's gone with me to at least 8 or 9 of the past ten years, so I'd say this is a strong annual tradition.

Neely was one of my favorite players on the Bruins -- #8. A heavy hitter when you needed him to be, he retired far too early in his career after taking a nasty shot that debilitated his already-shaky hip. On the personal front, both of his parents died of cancer in the 1990s, and he and his brother quickly realized that there are not nearly enough resources for families dealing with cancer. The Foundation established the Cam Neely House, a home away from home similar in concept to the Ronald McDonald House. They've been very successful over the years, raising $19M and establishing several different cancer centers in the Boston area, including the most recent addition, the Neely Pediatric Bone Marrow Transplant Unit at the Children's Floating Hospital in Boston, a fantastic hospital at which Tom's nephew was treated years ago.

The show last night was AWESOME -- probably one of the best in a few years. They've decreased the number of acts and lengthened their time on stage. They also got rid of a few all-to-familiar faces, such as Steve Sweeney, whose acts were simply a regurgitation of the previous year's and no longer funny.

Denis Leary is the perennial emcee and steals the show every year. Local boy, swears every other word, and a fantastic singer (here's an old video of The Asshole Song for the uninitiated - -warning, it's pretty off-color and not for little ears to hear!). I'm still laughing at his hilarious story last night about shitting his pants by accident while traveling in Italy with his family. He's irreverent as hell, and took a few minutes to make a very personal and clearly angry statement about the backlash against his upcoming book in which comments he made about autistic families were completely taken out of context and politicized. George W was also a big target this year -- Denis started with a song about how much he'll miss making fun on him.

Jim Breuer was pretty hilarious - Tom and I saw him Friday night at Montien when we had dinner before the Smashing Pumpkins, and yes, he always does look stoned. Lenny Clarke, another Boston boy done well, was simply fantastic -- he's lost a lot of weight, his material is fresh and always taking a jab at Boston politics. Al Madrigal, who co-stars with Jay Moore on a show that I haven't watched, was a pleasant surprise -- his bit was about his new baby and how his world view has changed. My personal favorite was his bit about children who are tethered on leashes. He went over to pat one, the parent said "my child's not a dog," and he responded, "exactly, so why the F*** is he on a leash." Who hasn't wanted to say that!

Tom Shillue and Anthony Clark were both okay -- Clark needs new material. Mike DeStafano got heckled by some jerk in the audience who was promptly escorted out (score 1 for security for acting so quickly!). The show ended with Patrice Oneal who is disgustingly funny - not for the faint of heart!

A shameful, not smashing end for the Pumpkins

Last night Tom and I went to see the Smashing Pumpkins play at the Wang Theater. Totally last minute, Tom picked up newly released seats five rows from the stage on Thursday afternoon. We're not huge Pumpkin fans and don't have a single one of their newer albums, but the tickets were so good, yet cheap that we couldn't pass them up (and given the choice between a family baby shower and the concert, the Pumpkins won hands-down -- sorry Wally!).

At first, we were REALLY impressed. Show started on time (never happens) and with no opening act (another thing you rarely see). They played for 2 1/2 hours straight -- again, impressive. Of the original band, only lead singer Billy Corgan and drummer Jimmy Chamberlin remain. There's a girl playing bass who blew me away -- first of all, she's all of 5 feet, maybe 100 pounds soaking wet, and I swear the bass was bigger than she is! She was dressed up in an outfit that made me think of the Jetsons. But all joking aside, she rocked! There was another girl who played keyboard that within the first few minutes, Tom immediately commented "she's a babe." She totally looked like a 1920s pin-up girl, and I was immediately jealous -- not of her looks, but of her clear talent on the piano!

Billy Corgan is either completely out there or absolutely brilliant. We were so close we could see his fingers flying over his guitar, and he did a rendition of the national anthem that was completely Hendrix. But let me ask you: isn't he creepy? Does he look more like a Jack-O-Lantern or more like James Carville?










But I digress. At the end of the show, after a 15 minute jam session on some song, they walked off stage. No good bye, no nothing. The crowd was a little taken aback and confused, so there was what I like to call a "smattering of applause." After a few minutes, the house lights came on. Applause now turned to booing. Security is running around like crazy -- they don't know what's going on either. After about 15 minute of this nonsense, they come back on stage. First it's someone dressed up as Manny Ramirez poking fun at Red Sox fans. Then it's Billy Corgan berating the audience: "We're just back from Europe, and they have this thing over there that you may have heard of: cheering." WTF? He gives the crowd a hard time, then the band comes out and they do two lame numbers, once of which is "Everyone is Beautiful" on kazoos.

Now I've been to a lot of concerts, but never have I seen the band give the audience a total "F.U." What started out as a fantastic show ended on a completely sour note. Brilliant or not, Billy Corgan behaved like a spoiled brat. Read the review from the Boston Globe the following day and see if I'm totally off-base on my assessment.

Manners

How many times have you held the door open for someone...and never get thanked?

How many times have you let another car cut into a line...and never get a wave?

For everyone who has (and you KNOW you have!) on occasion sarcastically muttered "you're welcome" in response to no thanks at all, this article on "reverse etiquette" is for you!

Sign up to be a bone marrow donor

I received an email from Dana-Farber today, and they're spotlighting the need for bone marrow donors. I signed up several years ago -- it's a very simply blood test, and your record goes into a bank that is culled daily for those in need. While I haven't been called to donate, I've heard from others that the marrow collection is a relatively simple, although somewhat uncomfortable process -- but imagine saving someone's life just because you have similar genetics!

Democracy...

"Democracy is...the conviction that there are extraordinary possibilities in ordinary people."

Harry Emerson Fosdick in Harper's Monthly Magazine in November 1925, reprinted in Real Simple November 2008.

Here's hoping we've found an extraordinary man...

Get out and VOTE!

My Dad used to joke about voting early and often, and today I practically did. Tom and I stood in line for an hour this morning in Somerville, with approximately 200 folks ahead of us all waiting to vote. Very, very cool stuff -- no matter who you vote for, this year's election has turned out voters like never before.

Part two came when I headed to Lexington to take my grandmother to vote. Unlike Somerville, there were no lines, no waiting. Thankfully so -- she had a hip replacement last Christmas and never could have stood in line like we did.

Tom sent me a link to a blog that he read earlier today that I want to share with you -- this really summed up today's events...

Obama's informercial

I was tied up Thursday night and couldn't watch Obama's infomercial, so Tom DVRed it for me. I finally sat down this afternoon to watch it. I couldn't help thinking we're watching history being made -- next week's election is going to be interesting.

What did you think of the infomercial? Good use of time and money? Did it change your opinion?