This is an ornament my Mother colored in 1990, her last Christmas, after I sent for it. Rich and I think we must have 1000 ornaments on the tree. Some column I read talked about the agglutinative property of Christmas, and my tree certainly demonstrates that. Once something happens, it becomes traditional. So, the new ornaments this year are the lobster necklace from Pittsburgh and the Pittsburgh Zoo key (yeah, yeah, I'm getting to it.) I also, on Rich's suggestion, added the koalas given to us by my Australian RATSA (rec.arts.tv.soaps.abc, since you ask) friend last year.

We finally got all the ornaments on and I put on the icicles. It's an ice storm kind of tinsel rather than a few little strands. Quite like the VERY cold outside, in fact. My Mom was also responsible for that, (the look of the tree, not the weather, pay attention!) since she always liked lots of icicles. She used to put the strands on individually. Of course, in those days the strands were actual metal (lead, I swear, but probably tin) and wide and heavy. I still have a few of those, antique tinsel. The current skinny plastic icicles have to go on in a group. Then the dog wags his tail and cleans out the bottom rows.

Today I'm wearing the sweatshirt and socks I got my Mother for that last Christmas. Kittens, stockings, glitter: she was the hit of the nursing home.

Yesterday Bernadette and Rich went out shopping. They also took the dog walking in the afternoon, and Rich really came limping home. He's had a sore foot even worse (at least to hear him tell it!) than my sore shoulder. Last night I finally looked for the Big Gun painkillers, the few hydrocodone pills we have left from Vince's broken collarbone and my bunion surgery. (I know, I know, they should have been thrown out, but who knows when you might need one, as I did last night? Note to any druggie burglars, don't bother. There aren't enough left to satisfy or to sell.) I slept well for the first time in a long time. Then today I was careful putting on my sweatshirt and around the limited movement (I can't massage the opposite shoulder, I can't put my hand on my waste arm a-kimbo. If things haven't improved past New Year's, I'm definitely going to the doctor!) Then my Big Mistake was reaching for the ticket dispenser at the car park. Ow ow ow ow ow!

This was a big mistake in more ways than one. We were trying to go to see Babe II but I wound up driving around the lot for 15 to 20 minutes, with no luck. (Drat! I forgot the Mother Cabrini prayer!) This wound up costing me 50 cents! I complained that they should have "Lot Full" signs out front. I wonder how much the lot is making on people like me, probably quite a bit. Usually I get the ticket validated.

So Wowbagger took us to lunch. And interrupted his way through the whole thing. I can get that at home, you know. I told him to read my Christmas Eve entry if he wanted to know what I was saying! (Not that it will help, apparently. Pagan seems to think we're going out of town for the holiday, and I know he reads this all the time. I have no idea where he got that idea!)

Rich had bought CHRISTMAS FOR WINDOWS, so now my wallpaper is a riot of candy canes and my screen saver a batch of muddy-footed elves.

There was another movie disappointment last night. We went to look at Fargo and the tape is all stretched out. I'll exchange it after Christmas. Irritating. We did watch The Full Monty which was just as much fun as I remembered.

This morning the back smoke alarm was blaring. No smoke that I could see. We finally just took out the batteries.

It's been COLD! I worry over the macadamia tree. My basil is dead, my chives very unhappy, and the big spider plant is not doing well. So far the jade trees on the porch and the boston ferns are hanging in there. The hummingbird feeder was frozen solid this morning. Poor little birds! They certainly should have headed south, WAY south, this year!

On the way home from lunch I saw Santa heading into an apartment, so I tooted the horn and he looked at us and waved. I've been good, Santa!

Rich went to Sharing God's Bounty. He says there were 500 - 700 people (what am I doing worrying about the hummingbirds??) Loretto has taken on the Christmas present thing, and all the gifts Santa brought the guests were great. The classes have competitions, and they also wrao the things, and Rich says the kids were delighted. Their hands were full so the elves were looking for pockets to stuff the candy into.

It's not just my tree, my whole life is agglutinative!