Tag: holiday

Shanah Tovah! (Happy New Year)

Lucky us – beautiful perfect weather for the weekend and holiday

Oh wow have I been busy!!!!!! 🙂 And it’s been (mostly) wonderful. Sunday evening began the Rosh Hashanah holiday, or (one of) the Jewish New Years. This year is extra sweet for me because my son is home for not just ONE holiday but for all THREE holidays occurring in the next 3+ weeks. In celebration of that, and because I really, really need it, I’m on vacation from work for 2 1/2 weeks. 🙂

simple bedroom – a bed, clothes, a light (hanging from window sill), privacy for windows, fan. new wood trim, baseboard and doors

The renovation is still ongoing. SO much has happened and I’ve not blogged most of it. We got new floors, we got trim, we got doors, I was FINALLY told I could start designing the tile walls for the new shower. (I’d been begging since May.)

This room even has a door! no doorknob. a closet . no knobs, no clothes bar.

My husband and I spent hours on Saturday laying out the 3 walls of the new shower. We got along quite well on this except for the discussion of how to indicate which tiles get cut to fit. Mind you – we didn’t disagree on which tiles. What we seemed incapable of communicating was how to tell that to someone else (as in the person who will do the tiling). We did not come to blows but I confess I DID raise my voice. Several times. 🙂

We don’t plan to leave the big window in the shower. 🙂

After that we were both aching and exhausted. I was aching and exhausted from hauling boxes and boxes of tiles out to the work area in the driveway, and from clearing the deck and rearranging all the furniture (more on that later). My husband was aching from hours bent over arranging tiles.

there is a 3rd frame but foolishly (in hindsight) we put that in the house upstairs. I got creative for the 3rd wall

I think I was brilliant and correct about how we’d do the tile arrangement.

Marking the cutouts for the window and the wall recess

My husband has a good color sense and a good eye. It wasn’t feasible for us both to work on the frames at the same time and I had other chores that needed doing.

close up of the first wall. this is the back wall of the shower with the awning window. roughly 5’x 8′. the sides are roughly 3′ x 8′

I suggested that he start – layout the tiles in away that pleased him. Then I would critique/edit, then he would critique/edit my revisions and we’d be done. Except for labeling every single tile for the person to tile. *grin* Look at all those tiles that need to be labeled.

I’m a very good scullery maid and lackey. I brought all of the boxes out of the garage and arranged them

We chose 3 different “large” tiles and 5 small crackle-glaze tiles as accent pieces. We agreed we did not want the same color next to each other. In this case “next to” means side by side, not above/below. The pictures in this post were taken before my final critique/edit/labeling. That will happen later this afternoon.

we need to pick grout. You can see the floor, the shower walls, shower floor. what’s missing, I realize because of this photo, is the backsplash for the sink – also tile that needs grout

Once we finished with the tiles and the deck, we both collapsed in the hot tub with the jets on high.

The left-most panel was done on brown paper I marked to fit the wall measurements. It’s also the only panel that I have “aligned” and reviewed. The other 2 frames are today’s task. 🙂

Then it was time for me to head to the airport to get my son. His plane was a few minutes early so I didn’t even have to wait in the cellphone lot – I could go straight up and get him. Sunday was bake-bake-bake and food preparation for 2 holiday dinners. Sunday night was at my sister’s house for which I made 4 desserts: 3 sugar free and 1 sugar full. It was a lovely dinner with family.

deck is totally rearranged and ready to entertain in “fall-season style”

Monday was religious services in the morning where we got to see friends we haven’t seen in 3 years because of Covid – zoom services, not in person. Then home to cook-cook-cook and set up the deck for dinner for 12. Well eleven and a half because one of the 12 is 3 years old and did not actually sit at the table. We had a wonderful time with family and friends, and post-dinner conversation and drinking lasted until after 11:00 pm. It was glorious.

the guests are gathering, the food is cooking, the wine glasses are ready!

Shanah Tovah!!!! A happy, sweet, healthy new year to us all!!!!

holiday candles, challah, wine glasses and the shehecheyanu fruit.

Boo!

I hate Halloween. Yep, I’m one of “them”. I started hating it WAAAAAAAY back in 4th grade, I believe. I had a costume that I LOVED – a black cat. My mother had actually MADE it for me. A tail. A hood with ears. I wore black pants and socks and shirt. She drew whiskers on my face. I LOVED it. I was a black cat in 3rd grade. In 4th grade I was a black cat again. And my classmates made fun of me. I’d been a black cat the year BEFORE. THAT wasn’t a good costume. Just like that – the holiday was totally ruined for me. Every year after that, the whole thing became a drag. To this day I hate it. The best costume that I have ever heard of is no costume. Get a picture frame, and when people ask what/who you are, look through the frame and say “I’m an extremely life-like portrait of myself.”

Over the years as a homeowner, I grew to despise this “holiday” even more. First there were all the years when hooligans roamed the streets, soaping cars, smashing pumpkins and in general destroying whatever they could. The “kids” who knocked on my door (despite the darkened lights) were rarely in costume, were old enough to spawn their own offspring, and never even said “trick or treat”. They’d grunt and hold out pillow cases. Right.

Times changed and now it really is more little children in costumes with parents waiting at the sidewalk. Most of them are cute and some even have costumes. Perhaps 50% of them say “trick or treat”. The other 50% merely shove their bags at you. I do think that most, even the ones who do NOT say T or T, do say thank you.

But why are we doing this? There’s no purpose. It’s blackmail. I have to go out, buy a bunch of whatever to give away to a bunch of beggars. Even after we turn off our porch light there are people who come and pound on the door. Our doorbell has not worked for years. My dog goes crazy at the noise and the people. It’s not MY holiday. That wouldn’t matter if the trick or treaters actually followed “the rules”. I remember what it was like to be little and go out trick or treating. You had to knock. You had to say “trick or treat”. You had to wait to have the homeowner GIVE you something. You had to say thank you. If the light was off, you didn’t go there. *shrug*.

Sorry. For me, this is a colossal nuisance and a holiday I could live without. I confess that I had no problems with having the holiday cancelled by the governor for the last 2 years. Tomorrow is supposed to be near 70 and clear weather. Sigh. Maybe it’s not too late to take me dog and flee.

Festival of Booths

Sukkot has arrived!
Booths appeared all over town
Love this holiday!

This has to be up there in my top 3 festivals: Pesach, Sukkot and SuperBowl. *grin* Had dessert & drinks in my sister’s sukkah on Wednesday, after dining in mine. Friends over for dinner last night. Guests expected for lunch today, probably tonight, and tomorrow dinner. 🙂 The weather has been cooperating sensationally! Absolutely perfect! Too bad the “kids” are all grown and dispersed about the world. I miss the boys (and the one hardy girl) sleeping over in the sukkah, baking them buttermilk biscuits in the morning. I’m trying to teach the kitten to except a harness/leash so she can come outside with me. She spared me the “crippled cat” routine but she meowed and meowed. I gather being outside was NOT her idea of having fun, although I’m not sure if it was the leash or the noises or the general memory of being a little lost hungry kitten in the big world. Good thing my dog likes the sukkah!!!

Time to go pick up some more fresh veggies and fruit at the farmers’ market in town. More people to feed today!! Hag Sameach everyone!

Season’s Greetings 2010

The ducks are at that difficult age. They no longer wish to cooperate for family pictures. If Mallory and Drake face the camera, Bill makes sure he’s not there. Or Bill and Drake block Mallory, which she hates. Somehow Mallory thinks everything is about her. Go figure. Bamboo of course is sweet and cooperative, but it didn’t seem right to include him and not them. Don’t worry – we are still family. 🙂 We all wish you Season’s Greetings and a happy healthy new year to come! *hugs*

My Holiday Wish List

The holiday referenced is New Year’s Eve. My wish – to recapture a little of SL glory past. I have been thinking on how to word what I want to recapture. I realized that the “peak” SL moment typically differs from person to person. There are the oldies who say it happened in 2003 – the first moments. Then there are those who claim it was 2006. For me, obviously, it happened between July 2008 and now. *grin* And it IS all about me, let us not forget. Even my own “peak” moment does not encapsulate everything. It’s missing a lot of people who I knew then but weren’t part of the selected locale. It’s missing all of the building and learning I did for work. Most of the people that I want to be there would tell me that I’m wrong – that was NOT the peak time for that place. That is all true. But I want what I want.

I want a New Year’s Eve party at the Crown and Pearl this year. Yes, I know there is no more CnP. I know that everyone has moved on to other places, other pursuits. I know that many of the people who I think of when I think of the CnP are not even in SL anymore. Many of the people I want there were not on my Friends List nor am I on theirs. But they were there.

I want Prad and Bailey to reopen the Crown and Pearl for a holiday party. Dress-up. I want to see the people I think of as “my” regulars. I want all my other friends to come also, so they can experience a CnP moment too. I want to hear the DJs. I want a sploder. I want silliness and good humor. I want sheep. *grin* I want to see: Bails, Prad, Alann, Aribeth, Bailey (yes, there ARE two),Dark, Hell, Jellen, Mowgli, Nat, Rrish, Stoo, Landsend, Marisa, Clare, Ryker, BabyGlock, Kumi, Lucien and all the other people who used to be there but now I can’t remember their names because my brain is a sieve for things like names. But I want them all. (I’d really like all my NCI friends and my work friends and friend friends showing up as well.) And I want my New Year’s Eve day dance with Dale.

Educating Ahuva

I THOUGHT I was well-educated. Informed. Versed in other cultures and religions. *grin* There is more in heaven and earth than is dreamt of in MY philosophy, apparently. Christmas Pudding. Oh, sure, I’ve READ books and stories that had Christmas pudding mentioned. I got the fact that it was a traditional food and I moved on. That had seemed sufficient for my needs.

Until today. Many of you scorn Twitter and Plurk. I certainly did. But my attitude about Plurk did a 180 when my sister’s RV, um, “broke down”. (Let’s just leave it at that, shall we??) I Plurked and all my friends in that geographic vicinity responded. I didn’t need to take them up on their offers of hospitality and assistance but they lightened my heart by knowing that they were there.

Now, Plurk has taught me about Christmas pudding. To protect the guilty, I shall not name names. A friend Plurk’d about the inability to find the requisite Christmas pudding at the local store. I guess I had too much time on my hands today, because I decided to ASK about Christmas pudding. LOL. Here is the description I received: It is a nasty disgusting British cake-like substance, a bit similar to a fruit cake but with more alcohol. Wow. Makes you want to rush right out and BUY one, doesn’t it??? I made that comment and heard back: Yeah, it’s disgusting stuff. The best part is dousing it with rum and setting it on fire. No one eats it but you must have it. To which there is nothing I can say but “Tradition!!!” and I jump on the roof with my fiddle and begin to play.

At this point another friend chimed in, although I must say, with no more luck in selling this item than the first friend: Now now.. The better ones are kind of charming. In a “Wow, they do odd things with suet, fruit and flour” sort of way. And to that all I could say was that I have always found the word “suet” disturbing. *grin*

Back to first friend: I have had them imported…, sent from Harrods, made by English grannies. They all suck. There are no “better ones”. Rofl. Okay, tradition, tradition, tradition. You buy it, set it on fire and toss it. I’m sure I have some tradition that is equally weird. Yeah – “dip the apple in the honey”. I HATE honey. What a waste of a good apple. *grin* I suppose I could discuss the pitom on the etrog also.

But my good friends do NOT want me to miss out on the joys of Christmas. I may be late arriving to this holiday, but my SL friends are making sure I get it “right”. Tonight a Christmas Pudding was delivered to my home. LOL. I rezzed it and wow!! It burns!!! But I KNOW not to eat it!!!

*hugs* to my good friends. You know who you are. I love you both.

Season’s Greetings!


Wishing you and yours all the best of the season. May your holiday (or non-holiday) be joyous and may you have a happy, healthy, successful new year (or January through December). *grin*

All of you in-world know that the snow on this card is scripted. For those of you not inworld – that means that the snow appears to be falling. *grin* Yes, I stole the idea from a picture given to me by Calli, done by Random Pandar. But I have loved the picture since I first saw it in Calli’s home. I am thrilled that I made my own snow and figured out how to make it “fall”.

My best to you and yours.

❤
Ahuva, Bamboo, Mallory, Drake and Bill (had Frenis been here, he’d send his best too)

Timely Presents

callis-calendarI posted the present pictures too soon. See – I told you this was really my first Christmas. I didn’t realize Santa would be delivering all the way up til midnight. 🙂 Time seems to be on many people’s minds this year. Dale made the wonderful 24-Hours-per-sim-sun-day-clock, which is up by my pool. I also got a 2009 calendar from an extremely talented photographer friend. Another friend gave me a regular clock, set to SL time AND the scripts so that I could learn how it works. 🙂 Never one to miss a teaching opportunity, huh? And since WordPress is STILL not cooperating and letting me click through, you can find the calendar here, although to see all the great photos you will have to come and visit me. To see the clocks more clearly, use this link in a timely fashion.

no-excuse-to-be-late-or-sunburntI also got a Humbug. I have to confess – I didn’t know what a humbug was. Is. I thought it was something that followed the word “Bah”. But apparently in the UK a humbug is a candy. Well live and learn. Everyday I learn something new in SL. (Teehee – learned the expression “on the pull” just last week. ) At first I thought perhaps the humbug was a chair. It actually worked quite nicely as a chair. But now it is lined up in my room along with the other wonderful gifts and presents. It’s going to take me a loooonnnngg time to deal with a piece of candy that size. Check out my humbug at this location.

darks-humbug