Throwback December
November 30, 2013
I have a 5 year old MacBook Pro that I fire up every once in awhile in order to sync my phone. I never figured out how to transfer my Itunes onto my MacBook Air, and despite many children and children in law telling me they'd do it for me, it hasn't happened, so I have to use the dinosaur laptop. I found this old profile pic on it and thought it seasonally apt to post.
I don't mind using the old laptop, but I'm afraid one of these days it isn't going to fire up. One of the hinges for the lid is hanging by a wire. But all my old photos are on this old laptop or on a hard drive. I find that putting them on a hard drive is like putting them out to sea on an iceberg. Either I'm too lazy to get up and find the hard drive and the cable, or I can't find either, so I never even see these old pics.
Since I just have my 11th year blogeraversary, I am going to make December "Throwback December" and post from this dinosaur lots of Christmassy photos from years past. I promise not to deluge you with them, though!
Hmm, so I used to change my banner seasonally back in the day? Wherever did all that energy go??
So far Thanksgiving weekend has been pretty perfect. We entertained, cleaned, served it all a second day, cleaned, and now Saturday, we are doing much of nothing except the usual chores and some organizing.
I can sit at my drawing desk once again and I am working on our Christmas card. I can't guarantee that it will go out before Christmas, but it will go out.
Tomorrow is the first Sunday in Advent. There are only 3 weeks and two days until Christmas. I, for one, am truly unprepared. It will all come together, in some semblance or another. If only I could convince the kids and Mr. Pom that all we need is lots of candles and some greenery from the woods. I have a 4 foot silver tinsel tree and I'd be glad to decorate that instead of the usual 6 feet of mammoth greens. Also, if we would all pretend that we were going on a cruise and say, go on a cruise? I'd like that wrapped up with a bow, please. (Actually I hate cruises, but an island by plane would be fine.)
This is great picture. I was so color coordinated! It's like finding a blueprint for decorating. I'll just run down and whip all this out.
Candles. We only need candles. Repeat after me
Also, on the subject of Christmas presents, all I want is to replace all the tubes of gouache that dried up over the last 5 years. And don't try to pawn off some student grade stuff on me, thank you very much. I want the good stuff. Along with all new groovy ink pens (check out Roz Stendahl's blog today). I can always use some great paper. I think a trip to New York Central Art Supply is in order as I haven't been there in 2 or 3 years.
I have the itch to sew/embroider/bead. Micalangela suggests that I start with the ripped seam on her favorite sweater that's been on my sewing table for 2 years. I suggest she learn to sew or buy another sweater (don't tell her I threw it out awhile ago thinking that if she hasn't asked for it by now...). How did these kids not learn to sew? It's not like I wasn't always making a quilt or something. Along the lines of leading a horse to water....
This is what Christmas is really like at the Pomegranates. The Youngest is always sick and Mr. Pom succumbs about 4 hours before he goes to pick up 4 trays of highly garlicked seafood, and then I fall over midway through the Christmas Even meal, and all our guests go home, wash their hands in Clorox and swab their orifices with Listerine.
One of these crazy days, I am going to save ALL my vacation time and take off the month of December. I will make felted ornaments beaded with antique rhinestones from my aunt's button jar. I will go into the woods and cut fresh greens, bittersweet, holly, and not get poison ivy, and wreath this house in white lights, red bows, and fresh greens. I will bake a different cookie every day of December, revive the annual cookie swap, have all the girls over for tea, go ito the city and visit each Christmas Fair, see all the shop windows during the weekday mornings when no one is around, go to all the bookstores in Brooklyn, every Anthropologie, eat at the Russian Tea Room, hear all the Christmas concerts at all the churches, visit Lichtfield, Ct., and then do the Martha's Vineyard Christmas stroll.
Or just look at the pics on this laptop of what we did a few years ago. Like drool over the giant gingerbread Chatham Bars Inn.
A cookie boat and candy canal!!
Instead, I am will probably manage the gingerbread cookies, hang my big "Believe" glittered sign on the front door, take out all my felt and beads and pat it lovingly every time I pass the pile on the way to bed, manage one trip to the city and be smothered by tourists, probably convince Mr Pom to go to Brooklyn for Brunch, and be happy next weekend to go to the Cape for his birthday and take lots of pics of the Christmas lights.
That actually sounds pretty good.
I would like my hair back to this color and style, but it means returning to an old hairdresser and y'all know how complicated that can be.
I also would like this lamp back but someone cracked it right down the middle and then somehow put it together and I didn't discover it for a long time until I tried to move it and it fell apart in my hands. The crime has never been solved......
I have to admit that ever since the kids graduated from wanting "THAT" i.e. Tickle Me Elmo, Barbie's Dream House, or the X Box that will only be released 5 days before Christmas, I have lost my Christmas anxiety. How bad can it be? With online ordering, the marvelous invention of gift bags instead of wrapping paper, and nieces who use Pinterest, I am pretty set.
How about you? What is the distance between the fantasy and the reality of your holidays? Christmas in Connecticut versus the bus on Long Island? Channukah in Costa Rica versus your grandmother's apartment at the senior center? The Von Trapp Family Inn (a real place) versus Walmart before the kids wake up on Christmas morning?
These, my friends, are how memories are made!