De-Ho Ho Ho-ed

The Tree In It's Prime

Yesterday's Sad State

Yesterday was one o the days I dread the most during the year.  The Christmas decorations came down.  I hate this day because it really does signal the end of the Christmas season in a definitive way.  It didn’t help that I was also recovering from a wee bit of over indulgence in demon alcohol from the great party the day before.

It was time though.  The tree was kept up longer so my wife’s family could see it and was so dry that we’re probably lucky it didn’t spontaneously combust over the last few days.  It still hurts though.  I always love coming down into the kitchen and looking to the right to see the Christmas tree and the large Ho Ho Ho atop my DVD case. 

My wife took advantage of her guests and sicked the Panamanians on the tree to take all the decorations off while I tried to watch the NFL playoffs.  They were very good at the work although my wife’s sister was a little adventurous atop the step ladder.  Luckily the paint can platform sustained her weight.

We dragged the tree out onto the deck but every time I walked by it made me sad.  This was probably the favorite tree I’ve had in this house and it seemed undignified to leave it lying on the deck.  After Ray Lewis started “preening” (my brother in law’s apt description) for the cameras I donned the winter gear and took the tree for its final drag. 

I always recycle the tree by cutting the limbs off and adding them to the detritus of the wood line out back.  I think of this as putting the majestic creature out of its misery (I’m hopeless about Christmas), allowing it some muted form of dignity.  Buddy accompanied me for this somber duty and quickly located a rabbit which he tried to follow into the middle of a very prickly wild rose bush.  The rabbit won that round.

The good thing about this year is that my house is full of Panamanian women and it is impossible to stay sad in their presence.  It seems every five minutes there is some mild provocation that sends the group off into either a lively discussion or gales of laughter.  They are a lot of fun to have around. 

My wife even unveiled a new dessert, left over from the party, which involved multiple levels of chocolate pudding, whipped cream, and brownies – talk about your basic food groups!!!!  That was an uplifting end for the day which saw two overly preening teams win (to my disgust).  This was followed by a shared viewing of the movie RED with Spanish subtitles – so much fun, even if I did have the only Y chromosome on the couch.

The Tree Awaiting Dismemberment

Still Proud Afterwards

The Magic Dessert



 

Party High

The Two Beautiful Moms Prior to Party

In a move that I hope will make my children intensely proud of their somewhat technologically challenged father – I solved the photo download problem with the blog!  I find myself childishly pleased with myself.  Apparently I reached the limit in terms of photo storage from the blogger app, despite no notification from Google to let me know.  I cruised the internet to see if others had experienced the same thing and learned how some other bloggers solved the problem.  I opened an account on photobucket and then figured out how to download the photos there and then on to the blog.  I know this is probably immensely simple to someone with even a modicum of computer ability but I fall well short of modicum level.  So, like I said, kind of proud of myself.

The party yesterday was even more fun than I imagined and I have a pretty good imagination.  I spent most of the afternoon widening the driveway, pushing back the snow banks.  The Panama gang did yeoman work in getting a mountain of food ready.  The MEF and her equally outstanding parents showed up in time to help us devour the remnants of the prior day’s turkey dinner and opening some much needed space in the refrigerator. An all too quick Skype check in with our bedridden daughter followed. 

The party kicked off with a steady arrival of guests, friends, neighbors, and family members coming to meet the gang from Panama.  We had a fabulous turnout from our neighbors, best showing yet.  I didn’t get to spend as much time as I would have liked with them but I did confirm what I already knew – I live amongst some really outstanding people (and beer drinkers!!).  I hope we can figure out a way to make these neighborhood parties something of a regular thing.

My college roommate and lifelong friend was a surprise party crasher – forced to attend by my Keene friend.  We also had the Cantankerous Friend in attendance so the party had a real feel of my hometown, which is always welcome.  As we were talking in a group near the pastry table (just a coincidence) we noticed the young son of one of my neighbors making at least a dozen trips to pillage the sweets.  I made a point to apologize to his parents in advance for the sugar high their son was sure to experience.

The dancing started (my wife was there – remember) and my Keene group quickly moved as far away from the dancing as possible.  They were joined by my sister and brother in law who claimed a waiver on the dancing due to a “crippling” knee injury.  I’m sure if not for the injury he would have given the Panamanians a run for their money on the dance floor (heavy irony in use here).

Back at the dance floor the neighbor’s young son was dominating.  He didn’t leave the dance floor all night and shifted partners as quickly as he pilfered cookies.  He was so much fun to watch and I think his parents were more than a little pleased to see him working off some of the sugar high.

I had such a good time at the party, reconnecting with old friends, making new friends, but most of all seeing how welcome my wife’s family from Panama felt in this crowd of former strangers. 

A Great Party - My Son on Dance Floor

 

My Wife's Sister During Party Prep
Because it Was Too Funny Not to Post

The Party in Full Swing - Keene Gang Gaurding the Sweets Table

Keene Friend, Partially Obscured College Roommate and Sister

The Panamanians Raiding the Gluten Free Snacks
Much to My Sister's Pleasure and my Amazement

My Wife with the Offical Hero of the Party on the Dance Floor
 

Turkey Talk

My Wife and Her Mischievous Sister

Yesterday was yet another appointment with the good doctor who excised so much of my ear recently.  The good news was the healing is going along apace while she said I cannot go back to swimming until it is fully healed.  Those extra Christmas cookies will stay firmly attached to my belly until that activity is re-established.

We’re gearing up for the welcome to the USA party on Saturday.  We got some good news that an old high school friend (my college roommate) is unexpectedly in the area and will attend the party; apparently forced by my Keene friend.  On the downside my daughter is still fighting her annual Christmas illness and cannot attend.

Yesterday I prepared another Christmas dinner for the visiting Panamanians.  Apparently I’m something of a legend down there when it comes to turkey dinners (I guess you have to accept fame when it comes no matter how insignificant).  I prepped the bird before I headed into work with detailed instructions for my wife when to put it into the oven.

These instructions were slightly modified due to the cooking requirements of arepas for the Panamanian ladies.  She called me late in the day to report that she and the ladies were making a quick dash to the grocery store for some needed items.  Knowing my wife and the persuasive vicinity of a Marshalls store to the grocery store I politely reminded her that she couldn’t spend three hours there because she had promised to prepare all the other dishes for the dinner.  She scoffed at my temerity to even suggest the possibility of being late.

I got home to an empty house and was soon greeted by my son’s arrival while I was preparing the other dishes.  Four after the phone call my and her posse came home burdened by Marshall’s shopping bags.  She was properly apologetic but I got to spend some quiet time with my son while they were gone so I didn’t mind, at all.  The turkey carving was something of an event as my wife’s cousin was aghast at some of the bones I was throwing away, claiming they still had a lot of meat on them.  She rescued several to gnaw on prior to the dinner.  I was a little challenged because usually I only had to worry about Buddy poaching during the carving.

The dinner was a huge success, liberally seasoned with almost non-stop laughter.  I’m a firm believer in the medicinal quality of an evening spent laughing with family and friends.  Last night I was fully medicated.

My Son at the Turkey Dinner

Some Late Night Avengers Viewing

The Gang’s All Here

The Gang At Logan Airport

Yesterday was day 1 of Panamageddon.  I was charged with the responsibility of driving into Boston and picking up my wife’s sister, cousin, cousin’s daughter, and sister’s friend who were flying in from Panama.  After slugging through some rush hour traffic I arrived at Logan with about ten minutes to spare.  I must have made a pretty interesting sight because I was carrying winter coats for the ladies (short supply of those in Panama) as well as a stylish grocery bag filled with mittens and scarves.  This made my frenzied trip to the airport rest room somewhat of a challenge.

I was waiting at the exit door where the passengers were supposed to come out but had no luck there.  I noticed in a distance that some passengers were taking a turn earlier in the restricted zone and guessed there was another way down to the baggage claim area.  Knowing that as soon as I went down there they would appear where I had been waiting I went anyway.  I found them down at the baggage carousel waiting for their last bag.  They seemed pleased to see me – go figure.  United Airlines, for reasons of their own, decided to send the cousin’s suitcase on a later flight so we had to negotiate its release and delivery.  Translators do not get paid enough.  I found myself speaking Spanish to the clerk and English to my wife’s cousin which was the opposite of what I should been doing but eventually we arranged everything and headed out.

I was under strict orders from my wife to minimize their exposure to the cold.  They seemed to endorse this guidance although they were excited to see snow for the first time.  We got home after a very entertaining ride through the winter evening and quickly adjourned to the friendly confines of Zorba’s for that mystical pizza that’s become our signature move in greeting guests.

I did not underestimate the noise level that the house would be subjected to with the introduction of four additional Panamanian females.  My wife has one of the world’s great laughs and I sat back last night and listened to an almost continuous rendition of that great noise.  She is so happy to be surrounded by family again and that made me feel better as well.

On news of a definitively more mundane level I stopped by Best Buy to arrange installation of the new TV my son and wife bought me for Christmas.  I was a little confused on how to go about doing that but there was a great sales associate named Jemal who did a superb job educating me without being condescending.  It was an extremely positive experience. I even went on line to fill out that survey they always burden you with because I felt Jemal should receive some recognition.

My reading has been slowed down by the holidays and the fact that I started reading one of the true epics of fantasy fiction, Glen Cook’s Black Company series.  I just finished the first of four books that compile all of the novels in the series, Chronicles of the Black Company.  I always wanted to read this series but there were so many books (a good thing) that I didn’t know where to start.  Amazon solved the problem by publishing Kindle editions of the four compilation books.

The Black Company is a mercenary unit in a fictional world fighting both sword and sorcery.  They are extremely good at what they do and the story is told through the unit doctor, Croaker.  I don’t know much about Cook but it’s obvious he spent some time in the military because he got the interactions within a unit just right.  He’s also a very good story teller because this first book covered three novels where the company is decimated over a couple decades as they get involved with reincarnated gods and find themselves fighting on the wrong side for half of it. 

There are a great number of battles fought but Cook kind of glosses over these to gain insight into the personalities of the company.  I truly enjoyed the ride along with Croaker and am already enjoying the next book which I started immediately.

A Great Time at Zorba's

 

 

 

 

 

Panamageddon Day

My Wife in "Preparation Mode"
(Kidding!!)

So today, four additional Panamanian ladies descend on my life for about a month.  My wife’s sister, her cousin, her cousin’s daughter, and one of her sister’s friends are coming in for a visit that will last until January 30^th.

My wife has been frantically cleaning her already spotless house in preparation and trying to plan every minute of the time they will be here.  Buddy and I have been caught in some of sympathetic detonations.  My wife is not fun to be around when she is the heavy preparation mode, as Buddy found out last night.

She decided Buddy needed a bath.  I didn’t think his funkiness was off the scale but I’ve learned that you do not contradict my wife while she is in the preparation mode. (My kids know of whence I speak)  Since it was 6 degrees outside we wouldn’t be doing the normal garden hose spa treatment.  She had already cleaned the guest bathroom which is his normal winter bathing spot so we headed for the whirlpool bathtub in our bathroom.

Buddy was intrigued to be invited upstairs but realized what was up when he saw the towels especially used for his bath.  I had a lot of fun getting him into the tub as he stretched out his rear paws in a vain effort to grab the towel rack and arrest his progress towards the hated aquatic environment. 

I tried reasoning with him that a warm bath was much better than his normal cold water dousing while also encouraging him to blame my wife for this.  He was having none of it.  I even promised to turn on the whirlpool jets but my wife opined (correctly) that this would probably send the skittish Buddy into orbit.

I had to tackle him into the water after he was soaped up.  I tried to stay ahead of his persistent shake offs but the entire bathroom was soon coated with short, wet, black lab hairs.  I don’t know who emerged wetter, he or I, but Buddy gave as good as he got.  He does really enjoy the drying off massage and I was shortly chasing him through the house down to his basement drying station. 

I then had the unenviable task of returning the bathroom to the pristine condition prior to the canine hair explosion.  I was able to get most of that done before my wife viewed the room, probably a good thing for my stated desire to keep Buddy around.  She did say I smelled like wet dog (wonder why) and then snapped a picture of my t-shirt which said, “The Dog Likes Me Best”.  We both agreed that this was probably not accurate at the moment.

Today the decibel level around the house will be going up dramatically.  Panamanian women love to talk, almost non-stop.  My wife is the perfect example of this tendency. When you have a group of Panamanian women together whoever is talking loudest is the one who gets to speak.  So the introduction of four additional competitors for “air” time in the house with my wife should be cacophonous – to say the least.

All kidding aside (well most of it) I am really looking forward to this visit.  My wife’s sister and cousin are two of my favorite people in the world and I’m psyched to show them the US.  Neither have ever experienced snow before so this will be interesting.  My wife’s sister’s last visit was at the height of summer and she was cold then.  It’s supposed to be 4 degrees when I pick them up,  Yep, interesting.

Buddy and I at the Spa Last Night

The Aftermath

2013 Unchained

Good Flick

New Years Day, I did watch the Rose Parade, due to my chronicled love of parades.  I was therefore devastated when not one bagpipe band was featured.  Somehow I think my daughter was involved but I haven’t figured out how yet.  Speaking of my daughter, she has come out of retirement to start her blog up again.  This is a very good thing because she is a very talented writer, as opposed to yours truly.  She blamed me in part for her return, an indictment I am truly pleased with.  Her blog can be found at:  http://jessicaxmaria.blogspot.com/    You can thank me later.

Apparently, that b****, Mother Nature did not like the most excellent job I did clearing the driveway.  I went out first thing in the morning yesterday and scraped off the last vestiges of ice and felt semi-proud.  This was real pride before the fall kind of stuff because the wind started howling almost immediately. 

The snow that fell a couple days ago was very light and therefore extremely mobile in the wind.  By noon time the driveway was almost completely covered again.  I launched a frontal attack with the now-trusty tractor, employing the wind to my own advantage.  I didn’t really aim the snow, I just got it up I the air and it kind of vanished down range.

I needed the driveway clear because my wife and I were heading out for a movie.  Our daughter warned us away from Les Miserables so I was spared that.  We went instead to see Django Unchained, the latest Quentin Tarantino offering. I was surprised that my wife wanted to see it but did a quick fist pump when I was safely out of sight.

The movie was really long but I hardly noticed because it was so entertaining.  It had Tarantino’s usually snappy, foul mouthed dialogue.   Waltz was perfect as the well meaning but extremely dangerous bounty hunter.  It’s pretty impressive that he steals every scene he was in from Leonardo DiCaprio, Jamie Foxx, and Samuel L Jackson with all of them at the top of their own game.  The action is bloody and almost comical in typical Tarantino style.  There were literally dozens of cameos by stars, and one time stars, which I always love.  It was Tarantino – a spaghetti western set in the pre-civil war Deep South with Jackson setting a new record for MF’s (impressive in and of itself).  I loved it.

We followed the movie with dinner at a nearby Chicago Bar and Grill.  This was unremarkable except for this new device on the table.  You could order drinks from the device and we even paid the bill, complete with receipt, without needing the waitress.  This was a good thing because her work ethic spoke of a very late New Years Eve party the night before.  I know these things must be out in a lot of places to have finally reached Sturbridge, MA but I thought it was kind of neat.

 

We returned home where my college football bowl watching was rudely interrupted (not a bad thing because the New Years Day bowls are just shadows of what they used to be) by my wife.  She impressed me into service making empanadas.  I foolishly demonstrated some ability in this area a while ago and I am therefore part of “Team Empanada” now. She makes them every time the kids come home, as they are this weekend, so I gladly paid the price.  Who wants to watch Northern Illinois play football anyways?

The Device I Thought Was Neat

2012 Out and Reflecting

My Date Last Night - Happy New Years Indeed!

My wife had been determined to find a series of wall signs that she saw back in October.  She wanted them as a Christmas gift but they seemed to have disappeared.  She had been to every Marshalls and TJ Maxx in a four state swath without success.  As a last gasp measure she had me stop by Marshalls on my way home yesterday.  I found a few signs and when I reported this she went nuts.  I had to send her photos via I-phone to view.  When I asked her which one she wanted she replied, “All of them!”.  She had received store gift cards for Christmas which took care of the cost.  As soon as I got them home I had to immiediately hang them on the wall.  She was right – they look great.

My wife and I enjoyed a semi-quiet New Year’s Eve last night.  This was definitely a break in tradition because New Year’s Eve is a huge deal for my wife, as with most Latinos.  It probably helped that she grew up in a country where this holiday takes place at the beginning of summer as opposed to the sub-freezing weather of New England.  Since we’re having a big party on Saturday to welcome my wife’s visiting family we decided to keep it quiet last night.

We dressed up and had a candle lit dinner and then commenced to dance.  With my wife, there will always be dancing. It turned out to be a lot of fun.  Buddy was extremely confused.  After we dressed up he expected us to head out for something and you could see him trying to figure out what was happening.  We established a Skype link with my wife’s family down in Panama and had kind of a shared party.  They spent a lot more time outside than we did. 

Since we consigned another year to the books I took some time this morning to reflect since these time periods seem to be increasing in speed as I head deep into the second half of life.  I’ve found I really enjoy writing in this blog.  I know the writing is semi-abominable and I may not have much to say to most people but I truly enjoy writing it, so deal with it.  Some of my family members like it because historically I’ve not been the best at keeping them updated about what I’ve been up to.  They now get a daily summary.

This was a good year for movies – if I have a hobby it would be movie watching.  A new theater open five minutes from home this year – so color me extremely psyched about the past year cinematically speaking.

In sports the Patriots made it to the Super Bowl only to lose because of a dropped pass by the usually sure handed Welker.  The beloved Red Sox were an absolute disaster this year, on all levels.  After a decade of unmatched sports success I guess we have earned a year like this – but it was painful.  We did have the summer Olympics to cushion the blow of the Sox implosion (a very little bit)

It was a year of reconnecting.  I attended a birthday party for the grandchildren of my sister whom I’ve been estranged from for years.  I loved the small time we got to spend with each other and look forward to more in the years to come.  Most of the reconnecting was with military friends.  I reconnected online with a bunch of Moatengators from the time I was a lieutenant back in the early 1980s.  I also found the best man from my wedding who I had not heard from in over twenty years.  He’s raising a young family in Thailand. One of the true highlights of the year was reconnecting with the Roothuggers, a tight knit group of friends from my Command and General Staff year.  We had an October reunion in Florida and it was as if almost twenty years had not passed at all.  I learned something about myself through all these reunions.  I’ve written many times in this blog about looking for home – being with these friends again was like returning home.

It was also a year for travel.  My wife and I celebrated our 30^th wedding anniversary in Panama and also made a memorable trip to San Francisco and Monterrey California.  We bought some land down in Panama to build a second home.  My kids were even more prolific in globetrotting with Paris, the Mediterranean, and Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan (of all places) falling victim.  My daughter victimized me with a devastatingly evil French puzzle to complete which added to the French reputation for being difficult.  My wife and I took the opportunity to do some day trips around New England which were so much fun – so important to stop and take a look around every now and then.

It wasn’t all good news this past year.  We lost a favorite cousin unexpectedly.  I found out I had cancer in my neck and ear which was successfully removed.  We had senseless tragedies in Colorado and Connecticut which defy understanding.  We also have an ongoing tragedy that makes no sense in Washington, DC as the government continues its inability to do the people’s work.

Most of all this past year was a chance to enjoy the family and friends I have been blessed with.  Thunder runs to Keene, my beloved home town, and the hospitality and easy camaraderie of friends.  Many trips to Rhode Island to enjoy the magnificent in-laws of my other sister – they, along with that sister, are literally too much fun to be around.  I am astounded with the young adults my kids have turned out to be, despite having to hang around me during their formative years.  They both have significant others in their lives now who I just love being around. 

As I survey the landscape of the past year – it definitely goes into the win column.  I owe this to a wife I find myself more in love with each day and family and friends who make life so much fun.

Happy New Year to You All

The New Wall - Some Great Words

Sharing the Party in Panama