Category: holidays

Crazy Single Girl Life – Let the Holidays Begin! The Struts at The Stork

Last Thursday, I kicked off the marathon of Holiday Festiveness!   The Struts were playing at a local dive, The Stork Club.   I picked up Kayphore, and we skipped off to the club, dodging cat calls along on the way.   (“You both know you’re damn sexy!”  YES!  Of course we do.)  We got there, bellied up to the bar to have a libation while the opening band warmed things up.

I was really hoping that Agent 99 and all her roommates would show up, and they did!!!   Also,  she brought us Strange Manor Christmas Volume 3 CDs.   I jumped up and down and shrieked at the top of my lungs in the middle of that bar and everyone, and I do mean Everyone, turned and stared at me.  I didn’t care.   I love those CDs.   They pretty much make the holidays for me.   

Anyway, soon The Struts took the stage.  I danced my ass off, and took some pictures, too.

 

We were having a blast; The Struts always put on a great show, and never fail to get me dancing.  When the band was done, Kayphore and I decided we should bail.  We didn’t want to stick around to see how dumb things could get.

“This party is Awesome.   Let’s get The Fuck outta here!”

That was a great way to kickoff the holiday shenanigans, dancing with good friends, and many giggles amongst the girls.   

Just sayin’.

May Day

The First of May is a holiday in a lot of different cultures throughout Europe. It is called a cross-quarter day, as it is equidistant between the solstice and equinox. Observances center around the coming of summer, spring’s renewal, and fertility. In England, traditions include dancing around the May Pole, Crowning the May Queen, and Morris Dancing. It is also associated with Beltane, a Gaelic holiday celebrated in Ireland, Scotland, and the Isle of Man, which is the beginning of the pastoral summer and includes the lighting of bonfires on hillsides. A lot of neopagans focus on celebrations of fertility in their revelry.

I couldn’t be more happy that it’s May Day. It means that April is finally over. I’m not much of a superstitious person, but I generally think that there’s some really bad juju in the month of April. Unpleasant stuff has a tendency to happen for me and my family in the month of April. Oh, and then there’s the taxes. So, today is a chance for me to start over personally, put all the negativity out to pasture, and do a little dancing, with or without the May Pole. Also, my birthday is this month.

Happy Arbor Day!

I’m working from home, so while I’m sitting here downloading delivery reports, and writing up my weekly notes, I’ve got Martha Stewart going in the background.    I’m watching Martha, because of a newsletter I get from one of my favorite new author’s Josh Kilmer-Purcell.    Yesterday, he let the cat out of the bag that his partner is Dr. Brent who does a regular part on Martha’s show.   So, I’m tuning in today to see a segment involving their goats, and natural soap made from goat milk.

Anyway, Martha devoted the first part of her show to Arbor Day, which is today.  I love Arbor Day.  When I was a kid, my dad used to always plant at least one tree, usually fruit bearing, in our yard.  I miss that.  And you all know I’m hippie.   Unfortunately, I’m a hippie in a studio apartment.

So I have a favor to ask.     Can someone plant a tree for me?   Or, if you know of some organization that I could donate to so that they could plant a tree for me somewhere, that would be awesome.

I want more trees in the world, even though I’ll just end up being allergic to them anyway.

Holiday Madness = No New Posts

I have been going non-stop since Friday afternoon.   Once I get to my parents’ house on Tuesday, I’m sure I’ll have to devote to writing some blogs, and giving the run down on all I’ve seen and done.

Tomorrow night – the Strange Manor Christmas party.  An annual tradition.   My favorite party of the whole year.  I can’t wait!

Jiminy Christmas

It’s a first. I finished with all Christmas shopping well in advance. Not only am I done buying it, but last night I wrapped it all.   I am way, way, way ahead of schedule.  There was  a time in life when I waited until the night before or Christmas morning to wrap the presents.   Usually this involved a beer or cocktail.   It was a ritual of sorts.

Of course, I only buy for four people. To the rest of the world, my gift to them is that they don’t have to bother with a gift for me. I think it’s a very equitable arrangement. I’m one less person that you have to buy for. That’s nice, isn’t it?

One of the other things I have to do to prepare is finish “the letter.” I started writing one of those year in review newsletters to include in cards to the family about five or six years ago. It was a joke, but it turns out that my family actually likes to get it. The one year I didn’t write it, my Great Aunt Imogene complained. She was actually pissed. Well, Aunt Genie has passed away, but knowing that she would have been hopping mad if I didn’t write it, I feel like it’s a tradition that I have to continue.   This year’s version came out quite snarky, so I may have to rewrite it.

So, Christmas Eve you’ll find me at Strange Manor, as always.   There will be dozens of friends, a gift exchange gamey thing, Rock Star the video game, maybe some karaoke.   (It’s my personal goal that my gift will be the most fought over in the exchange/steal game, but it never is.)   It’ll be good times.   Those crazy kids put out Volume 2 of their holiday CD, and I have to say, Mr. V-Rock blew me away.  Who knew that kid could sing?

Christmas Day, I’ll be hopping on a plane and floating off to Washington (state not district) to hang with the parents for a week.  It’ll be good to get away, and frankly, to be fed by my mother in a way that only a youngest child can be.

Oh, and did I mention that I’m still working my after school, holiday, part-time, retail, mall job at FYE?   Good times.   I actually yelled at a couple of little kids last weekend.     I may not be Santa, but I know naughty when I see it!

Just sayin’.

Three day weekend

I barely got out of my PJs the last two days.   I had this great idea to start out the new year with a trip to the beach.    That didn’t happen.   I was going to clean the kitchen.   That didn’t happen.   I was going to begin dismantling the Christmas tree.   That didn’t happen.   I was going to go to the bank.   That didn’t happen.    I was going to visit my parents.   That didn’t happen.    I was going to go see about joining a gym.   That didn’t happen.    Major set backs in the plot caused by PJs.   That’s okay, though, I still love my PJs.

Christmas Eve, the Strange Way

I hope you all had a great weekend.   Mine was pretty awesome, and I’d like to thank my friends at Strange Manor for that.   They had a party on Saturday, Christmas Eve, and I think that it’s safe to say that a good time was had by all.   The food was yummy, the liquor was flowing, and the karaoke machine was blaring.

The highlights of the evening had to be:

A living room full of various people singing along to Desmond Dekker’s The Israelites in karaoke.  Kudos to Vic for having it.

Chad walking about in the sexy man bikini underwear.

The Clark Griswald-esque lights on the neighbor’s home.

Avi’s late night, party to the bitter end, Micheal Jackson dance moves.

My terrible attempts at singing, including Abba’s “Dancing Queen”

Being the last to pass out, and the first to sneak out in the morning.

So, I would like to thank the folks of the Manor which is Strange, and also a home base for so many of us.   I’ve always enjoyed the times I’ve had at your place, and I appreciate you opening your home to me on several occasions.   Thanks for helping to make Christmas merry.   If I don’t see you before, have a Happy New Year’s Eve!

Current mood: grateful

Where am I supposed to be standing?

I noticed at a party the other day that I have returned to my awkwardly hovering ways.  I never seem to be in the right place at gatherings, or in the right conversations.   So, I end up standing there, pretending to look at something, trying really hard to be distracted.   Or at least look distracted enough so that people don’t wonder why I’m standing there, near by a conversation, but not quite in it.   So please, if you see me standing close at hand, staring a little too hard at your Christmas tree or bean dip, say ‘hi’.   Maybe it’ll snap me out of it.