Mail-Order Surprise

I have to admit….I don’t check my mail every day. I usually check it every other day or so, but it all kind of depends on what time I come home. We have those community boxes where the number of your box isn’t the number of your house, and all the boxes independently lock, so I take my chances and figure I’m not getting anything good enough to steal.

So, anyway last night I checked my mail and among the grocery store ads, Comcast cable solicitations and a few late-coming Christmas cards for my room mate there was an envelope that caught my attention. My name and address were typed on a label affixed to the front and it was kind of bulky and ripped, no return address, no postmark that I could discern. Being curious, I opened the envelope while still in my car, not even waiting to drive the rest of the way home. Inside was this poem with a message along the bottom of the paper:

I have a list of people I know
All written in a book
And every year at Christmastime
I go and take a look
And that is when I realize
That those names are a part
Not of the book they’re written in
But of my very heart
For each name stands for someone
Who has crossed my path some time
And in that meeting they’ve become
A treasured friend of mine
And once you’ve met some people
The years can not erase
The memory of a pleasant word
Or a friendly face
So when I send a Christmas card
That is addressed to you
It’s because you’re on that list
Of folk I’m indebted to
And you are one of many folk who
In times past I’ve met
And happen to be one of those
I don’t want to forget
And whether I have known you for many years or few
In some way you have a part in
Shaping things I do
This, the spirit of Christmas, that
Forever and ever endures
May it leave its richest blessing
In the hearts of you and yours.

Please take this gift as a small thank you for being who you are. In return, all I ask is that you allow me to remain anonymous and to have a wonderful Christmas season.

The bulky item was a small business-sized tin with a gift certificate inside. Curios-er and curious-er. There was a phone number on the back of the gift card and a pin number to call and access the card amount. I figured it was a very nice gesture (I misted up while I read the poem), but that the gift card was for maybe $5. It was not. It was significantly more, and I am stunned.

I’ve spent a great deal of time thinking about who may have sent this and why, but every time I come up with a possible “suspect” it seems completely un-likely to be them. It is, quite frankly, driving me a little crazy.

So to whoever sent me the lovely gift:
1. Thank you so much; I am very touched, and
2. Show yourself!

Happy Birthday, Nanners!

Well she finally arrived at 1:04 p.m. after 14 hours of labor and a couple of scary moments. 7 lbs 14 oz, 20 in long, dark hair and perfectly healthy. Welcome to the family, little one!

Holiday Update

My Christmas was wonderful; I hope y'all had a great holiday as well. I got 5 beautiful Steven Meyers prints and a lot of gift cards to a variety of (what else) book stores.

My Christmas-born Grandmothers celebrated her 90th birthday yesterday and will probably live to see 95. She is now living in an assisted living facility and not lucid very often, but she has surprised us all with her resilience.

The elusive Nanners has not yet made an appearance, although she is making her parents miserable with lots of contractions and a couple of visits to the hospital. N&K can hardly wait for their bundle of joy.

I am getting ever closer to my 50 books in 2005 goal. I finished The Silver Chair and The Horse and His Boy both by C.S. Lewis and both 217 pages.

Last, but not least, congratulations to my roommate, L, and her brand-new fiancee, N. He is a really great guy and I'm very happy for them both. (Although, I think N is definitely getting the better end of the deal!) Wedding plans are tentatively set for late spring...a very long engagement in Utah/Mormon-time.

48/50 17096/15000

The War on Christmas

Rarely do I comment on anything political here. I am not deeply involved nor qualified enough to comment on what is going on in Washington, but there are a great many things that make my head nearly explode; anyone who knows me can vouch for my passion and frustration with certain points of view. This one though, well, this one I have to talk about.

If you ever listen to any of the right wing radio talk shows all they talk about is the war on Christmas. How so many stores won't wish their customers Merry Christmas, how city trees have been renamed "Holiday Trees", etc. In fact, I have repeatedly listened to a co-worker complain and complain about how to be "politically correct" he has to use Happy Holidays. "Well screw that!" he says, "I'll say Merry Christmas to whomever I want!"

How do basically good people fail to understand that Happy Holidays isn't about being politically correct; it isn't about the undermining of Christmas; it isn't about non-Christians taking over the world. It is about understanding that there are those who do not share my religion and including them in my wishes for a wonderful season. After all, wasn't Christ all about inclusion, not exclusion; wasn't He about loving your neighbor and respecting them, and that by forcing your Merry Christmas on someone you are behaving in a decidedly un-Christian way? If you really believe Christ is the reason for the season then why aren't you thankful that stores aren't using the birthday of your Lord and Savior to sell crap?

I grew up in a very Christian area (not only Christian, but nearly 100% Mormon). I had met a couple of Catholics, a handful of Protestants, but never anyone *gasp* Jewish. In fact, I was 29 years old before I met someone Jewish. And now I wonder how many times I may have offended or added to a burden because I unthinkingly excluded someone. I read Hilary's post and wonder what that must feel like be force-fed Christmas music, Christmas trees, Christmas gifts, and Merry Christmas-ed every where you go.

So, while I don't claim to be a very good Christian, I will take the time to say:

Happy Hanukkah
Happy Kawanza
Season's Greetings
Happy Holidays
Merry Christmas

May there be peace in our hearts and throughout the world, regardless of what holiday you celebrate or what religion you practice.

My New Favorite Song

Sarah McLachlan

"Song For A Winter's Night"

The lamp is burnin' low upon my table top
The snow is softly fallin'
The air is still within the silence of my room
I hear your voice softly callin'

If I could only have you near
To breathe a sigh or two
I would be happy just to hold the hands I love
Upon this winter night with you

The smoke is rising in the shadows overhead
My glass is almost empty
I read again between the lines upon the page
The words of love you sent me

If I could know within my heart
That you were lonely too
I would be happy just to hold the hands I love
Upon this winter night with you

The fire is dying now, my lamp is growing dim
The shades of night are liftin'
The mornin' light steals across my windowpane
Where webs of snow are driftin'

If I could only have you near
To breathe a sigh or two
I would be happy just to hold the hands I love
And to be once again with with you
To be once again with with you

Botanical Update

The Christmas bulbs I planted should be blooming, but I'm not having much luck with either of the Amaryllis I planted. One is not growing at all (and I can't figure out why) and the other has sprouted several tall green stalks but nothing that looks like it will bloom.

The paper whites, however, have started to bloom already and they look awesome! One thing I did not know is that they have a very *unique* smell that I'm not sure I like, but they do look lovely.

I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas

Really, I enjoy any Christmas with clear roads...so I'm actually hoping for either no snow, or snow that only falls on grass. I did, however, just finish watching one of my favorite Christmas specials, White Christmas. It is one of the 3 shows that I MUST watch every Christmas season. I watched my guilty pleasure, A Very Brady Christmas on Saturday. Now I just have to pop in Christmas Eve on Sesame Street and I've completed my "must see *Christmas* TV"!

Friday brought the long awaited ultrasound of K&S, but no known sex of the baby to be. Such a shy, modest little one. Good news, baby is healthy....bad news, boy or girl? nobody knows. They've scheduled another test next week.

Friday night I went to dinner with some of my family, followed by a movie. We saw Chronicles of Narnia...and I really enjoyed it. I liked that it was very faithful to the book, and I enjoyed the way the kids looked like regular people, but everything else in Narnia (CGI effects) looked vaguely video-game-ish. I've heard some people were distracted by the effects, but I thought Narnia should look slightly un-real.

Saturday I finished book #46 for the year, Whisper of Evil by Kay Hooper. The first book in her psychic detectives series...I really liked it, but was also very creeped out by it. It was very unsettling; I think perhaps I shouldn't read her any more. We'll see how long that lasts. 392 pages

In my growing desperation to meet my 50 books goal, the next 3 books on my list are all part of the Chronicles of Narnia. Good books, quick reads...I'm still not sure what my final book will be, but it will be short. I WILL reach my goal!

Saturday was little S' funeral. His parents have been incredibly strong throughout the whole ordeal and have been an inspiration to all around them. They have handled a devastating tragedy with dignity, strength, hope and peace. I wish I were that strong as I face adversity. The hospital is doing some testing to figure out what caused him to stop breathing. Hopefully, the find the cause and are able to prevent this happening to any future T&D children.

We are anxiously awaiting the birth of "Nanners"...she is due Christmas Eve, but K is ready for her to come NOW! She'll be the 12th "nubbin" and I'm very excited for her arrival. Guaranteed she'll be spoiled rotten by Aunt Caoimhe.

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Deepest Sympathy

T&D's week started out with such great joy and hope and ended with tragedy. On Tuesday, they welcomed their first child, a beautiful baby boy into this world. Not long after he quit breathing. Nobody is sure how long he was down or what caused this tragedy, but after another "incident" the MRI came back showing massive and irreversible brain damage.

They had to make the terrible decision to remove life support. Sunday afternoon, the men stood around his tiny bassinet in the NICU, placed their hands on his tiny head and gave him and name and a blessing...telling him his work here was done and his return to his Father in Heaven would be a peaceful one. Then they disconnected the ventilator.

As of this posting, little S is hanging on. T&D were prepared for him to stay for several hours, but he is stubborn little guy. After assessing his condition the doctor told them he could last possibly a couple of days and that if he survived the night they could take him home.

What a terrible tragedy and my heartfelt sympathy, compassion and condolences go out to them and their family. You are in my thoughts and prayers.

Busy, Busy

It has been an incredibly busy couple of weeks. We had our Utah office holiday party last Tuesday at a great little authentic Mexican restaurant. Unfortunately, Tuesday was also the first full-blown snowstorm of the year, so turnout was a little bit low. "More drink tickets for everyone else," I say...Especially since we all knew we were going to be sitting there for at least a couple of hours until the roads were salted and plowed.

Wednesday I flew to Boise (I know, I know, try not to be jealous) for the Idaho office holiday party. We went to a nice, neighborhood bar and then walked down the street to watch the Steelheads from a suite. (Actually, we had 2 suites to wander between.) Sadly, the Steelheads lost, but the fun part of the evening came while trying to get the 3 (literally falling down) drunks back to the hotel safely. Luckily, there were plenty of *mostly* sober drivers to go around.

Thursday, it was back to Salt Lake and a rush to finalize plans for yet another party (this one for vendors and clients), scheduled for next week.

Friday, I had plans to grab dinner with my brother and sister-in-law, but they had to cancel, last minute.

Saturday, I attended a baby shower for my SIL. She is due Christmas Eve and they are expecting a little girl. We have already christened her "Nanners" and when my 3-year-old niece says it I just melt. After the shower I headed out to Podunk-ville
USA to babysit the nubbins. Since it was nearly bedtime, it was a really easy job for me! My favorite little nephew was all excited to show me a surprise. He had looked up his name in one of those baby name books and wanted me to see its meaning. His excitement is so contagious...we spent some time looking up all the names in his family.

Sunday, resting, relaxing, dinner at my folks, and watching the Survivor finale with a big group. I hadn't been a very faithful viewer this season, but I was happy for Danni...although any of the final four could have won.

Last but not least, a finished Prince Caspian, second book in the Chronicles of Narnia. I cannot believe I never read these books before, but I an really enjoying (and probably appreciating them more) reading them now. 216 pages


45/50 16230/15000

50 Books Update

I am seriously way behind on my reading, but hope to catch up before the end of the year. Regardless, I've finished The Historian by Elizabeth Kosova. It was absolutely intriguing. All about the hunt for Drakulya and the dangerous nature of that search. As with any 600 page book there were unnecessary parts that could have been shortened or taken out completely, but overall I was hooked start to finish. However, I was limited to reading the book during my lunch hour as I had vaguely disturbing dreams if I read it near bedtime. Not necessarily scary dreams, but unusual nonetheless. 642 pages

Next Up:
Prince Caspian, C.S. Lewis
Predator, Patricia Cornwell
The Egyptologist, Arthur Phillips
Whisper of Evil, Kay Hooper
The Big Over Easy, Jasper Fforde


44/50 16014/15000

Unusual Quiz

This is an unusual paragraph. I’m curious how quickly you can find out what's so unusual about it. It looks so plain you would think nothing was wrong with it. In fact, nothing is wrong with it! It is unusual though. Study it, and think about it, but you still may not find anything odd. Try to do so without any coaching.