On my mind...

Welcome to the 2005 Christmas Edition of Getting to Know Your Friends!

1. Egg Nog or Hot Chocolate? Neither. I am not a fan of Hot Chocolate, and Egg Nog's just weird.
2. Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree? All presents should be wrapped. Except for one, which should be left out to make us all excited when we see it. Somehow, this is usually the same gift that is the biggest pain to wrap. Crazy how that happens!
3. Colored lights on tree/house or white? I didn't decorate this year (no point, when we really don't have anything to decorate in an apartment) but last year we did a colored/white combo. We're very big into diversity.
4. Do you hang mistletoe? Nope. Gotta go with Jenn on the allergic cats. But, back in my single days, I WAS a fan of getting "caught" under it :)
5. When do you put your decorations up? Well, the weird german shephard tree (don't ask) got put up before Thanksgiving... I don't know if we're bothering with anything else other than stockings this year.
6. What is your favorite Christmas dish (excluding dessert)? I guess the pork roast from mom's if I have to admit to eating anything other than cookies on Christmas.
7. Favorite Christmas memory as a child? Waking my sister (not a morning person) up ultra early because if I can't sleep, no one sleeps.
8. When and how did you learn the truth about Santa? About a year after I figured out that mom and Santa had the same handwriting. For that year, I believed mom that she was helping Santa out. I was probably about 8 or so.
9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? Only the ones from the family we see then instead of Christmas Day. I agree with Crash Davis.
10. What kind of cookies does Santa get set out for him? A pretty big mix of whatever's available -- usually a press cookie, chocolate chip combo.
11. Snow! Love it or Dread it? Love it if it means a day off. Hate it on days like today when I had to drive through it.
13. Do you remember your favorite gift? LOVED the cabbage patch kid. LOVED the race cars.
14. What's the most important thing about Christmas for you? Family
15. What is your favorite Christmas Dessert? Cookies, cookies, cookies.
16. What is your favorite Christmas tradition? probably the cookie and bagel breakfast. Although the thing that bothered me the most when I didn't have it was the IMMEDIATE opening of presents on Christmas morning.
17. What tops your tree? An angel.
18. Which do you prefer Giving or Receiving? Both. Love the giving if I've done a good job picking things out.
19. What is your favorite Christmas Carol? Little Town of Bethlehem, sung by Elvis.
20. Candy Canes! Yuck or Yum? Yummy. Especially the fruity ones.

Merry Christmas!

Well, here we are at the end of month 1 on the new job. So far so good. Haven't shot myself in the foot TOO much yet -- though I think I may have come close today. There seems to be a lot of whining and complaining and "woe is me"-ing, which is a little tough for me to take since I am just not that type of person. I always figure that things'll work out if you give them the time.

The bigger problem is that some of the folks here are used to being steamroller types -- the kind that figure if they push and push and push enough, you'll just get out of their way. Now, the problem for them is that getting out of the way is not really something I do. I'm more of the "keep pushing me and I'll push back harder just because I can" type. So, I've already got one person trying to go around my position because she things she can get things done "her way" if she does and another person who hasn't yet come to grips with the fact that my position exists for a reason. Now, to hear her talk, she is THRILLED that I'm here -- it's going to make her life so much easier, blah, blah, blah. But then when something comes up that is part of my job, she skips right over me. We're gonna work on that one -- maybe I'll just yell out "Respect my Authorit-I" (like Cartman).

I don't know -- maybe it's the weather, maybe it's my current state since I can't solve the current issues on my own and no one is available to talk them through -- but I am cranky cranky cranky. Hopefully, the coming weekend will make it all a little better. Princess's birthday is monday, so her party Sunday should brighten up my otherwise sour mood.

Well, if you read my sis True's blog, you already know about this, the mob hit and body found in my hometown. For those of you who have been out to dinner with me EVER and wondered why I can't sit with my back to the door, you now have a window into why. But I digress...

So, I was sitting down to talk to my new boss who, as fate has it, also grew up in my hometown. So I said to him, "Have you heard the news from the hometown?" and he said, "which news?" to which I very bluntly replied, "about the body in the trunk."

To which HE replied, "Yes. It's my cousin." My response, "Uh.... um.... uh..... sorry." Open mouth, Insert Foot.