Christmas 2016
by Scott Hardie on December 30, 2016
After a hectic househunt and move, it was nice to have a family vacation to take a break from everything. The whole visit had already been planned back in the summer, and we had spent six months saving up plenty of money to pay for it, so all we had to do was relax and enjoy it. Kelly's father Russ and brother Andy, and Andy's boyfriend Joe flew in for a week.
Among the highlights: Breaking in our (very cold) new swimming pool. Watching an alligator show and chimpanzee show and big cat show. Zipping through clusters of mangrove trees in an airboat. Watching a fire dancer at a Hawaiian dinner show. Taking flight in a hang-gliding simulator. Eating Amish food and Mongolian food and German food and Polynesian food and fancy custom-made donuts.
My favorite part had to be Christmas dinner. We invited over Joe's father and stepmother and her mother, as well as my mother and her partner. Luckily, our new dining set easily sat ten people at the very busy table. Growing up, my family's Christmases were fairly quiet and sedate and formal, so having a big family Christmas with plenty of food and noise and laughter among strangers was a delight. We also took a page from Kelly's family traditions and stuffed a stocking for each guest with treats and small gifts, and I was in heaven getting so many smiles from people as they discovered what I had tucked away just for them.
I am so incredibly lucky! So many people are suffering these days (one of Andy's friends passed away while Andy was here), ill or miserable or fearful of the future. I don't know what I did to deserve this bounty of good fortune in my life lately, but I intend to enjoy it while it lasts. Bad luck has been around before and could return at any time.
I hope that everyone else in my life had a good holiday season and will enjoy a happy, prosperous, and safe new year.
Three Replies to Christmas 2016
Matthew Preston | January 3, 2017
Very nice! It looks like it was great holiday spent with family. Much like you I am extremely grateful for my good fortune of late and haven't taken any of it for granted. Here's to a prosperous 2017!
Lori Lancaster | January 19, 2017
[hidden by author request]
Logical Operator
The creator of Funeratic, Scott Hardie, blogs about running this site, losing weight, and other passions including his wife Kelly, his friends, movies, gaming, and Florida. Read more »
Notes from Milwaukee So Far
Bad flight Friday. Late dinner at the local 24-hour Greek diner, first pasta I've had in a week and so good. Matt thought the waitress was ignoring us; I thought she was attentive. Go »Shadows
Lindsey Stirling combines her violin, electronic music, and hip hop dance moves into a really unique pop act. She was a semi-finalist on America's Got Talent, but YouTube seems to be a better showcase for her. I'm really digging a number of her videos, but especially this one because it's mostly a single uninterrupted shot. Go »Week from Hell
It's my first week as manager, but there's no time for a honeymoon. On Monday, I got zero sleep the night before, and ran on fumes the whole day. Tuesday was spent almost entirely managing a single project and letting other fires burn. Go »Logic Rules
(link) Thanks, John. Go »Sweet
Even unconsciousness can't keep my brain from coming up with lousy puns. I just dreamed that another GM was telling me about this adventure game he was putting together... "So the heroes enter the forest, and before long they come across this little gingerbread house, with a sign that says PAY TOLL. Go »
Scott Hardie | January 2, 2017
I have edited the above to add links to photographs.