Well. The thermometer shows - 23 degrees F which is pretty darn cold. The house is banging quite a bit - sounds like something is crashing into the side of the house. It can be startling. I can't watch TV because we keep getting errors that we are losing the satellite signal. Not sure why - it's clear and cold out there and this time there is no snow covering the cable satellite dish. Also having some issues with Internet Explorer alternately hanging and crashing. Can't play my Yoga DVDs because it says I need a driver updated. I did some rumaging, tried to update the driver but now it says something else is not supported. Not sure what changed, I was watching videos a few months back without a problem. Darn computer!
I did pick up a couple of books from the library so I guess it's a good time to just turn on the personal heater and get cozy in a chair with a book.
Ceejay - how nice that you had fun with the uncle's granddaughter. I'm not going to even attempt to figure out what relation that is - only that you had fun with her! Good job for minding your lunch meal and getting in some cycling time. You have a jump on the new year's clean living goals. That's nice that you got some old time pictures. They are fun to look at.
Laura - did you have to do something special to the cranberries for the loaf? Not just wash 'em and toss them into the batter? I have a turkey breast to roast and I'm looking forward to making a batch of cranberry sauce - gotta start using up those cranberries I froze. That's great that you put together a donation bag - great start to get prepared for the new year. I should follow your lead.
Susie - wow you are really getting things organized. Glad that you enjoyed the movie. Did you get your nap in?
Annie - yum on the chicken and noodles. That sounds really tasty. I wonder if I can mock it up with frozen Rheams egg noodles and some rotisserie chicken. As to my Mom, I'm not sure what is going on - is she just becoming more stubborn and childish because of her age? Is she scared because she is losing some of her capabilities - ie. the arthritis in the knees really slowed her down and stopped things like jumping on the city bus to do things on her own? I don't really know and of course if you try and talk with her she doesn't realize or see anything wrong so Sis and I will just have to be patient with her and overlook ALOT.
Were you able to get a good sleep last night?
Geez the way the house is banging - very frequently - I wonder if that's going to interfer with sleeping tonight. Not sure what's going on, DH said the house is just settling and such - nothing to worry about. It's loud enough to spook the cats too and seems to be happening on the upper level of the house. This is a frame house - all our other homes were brick. I was talking to DH the other day and said while there are aspects of this house I really like - closeness to town, a nice yard - there are other things that I would definitely change if I could. And being in here for a while now, I'd have to say that this house is not as well made as we first thought it was. NOW he tells me that maybe we could have afforded a home on a lake after all.
Still probably would not have bought one tho - too many negatives overall to lake living - the biggest of which is too close of a proximity to your neighbors
Michelle - I totally get you wanting to move back to California. The midwest is a totally different culture from California. I think each area of the country is rather unique and they are all quite different. It has to be hard to assimilate into something unless you are a small town kid who moves to the big city for excitement when they are fresh out of college. The older we get, the more difficult it is to change. Back in the 80's we were seriously considering relocating to Atlanta or San Francisco. In retrospect I probably would not have liked either place as a permanent home. Yes, the cold and snow I could do with a shorter season of, but I don't have to get up and go to work in this and that makes a BIG difference. Also the crowds and the bugs are almost non existent during the winter months which is a huge bonus. I could not deal with the crowded city - people and traffic - ever again, and the earthquakes, high living expense, water shortage and restrictions you face along with a state that is in deep trouble financially would not make for a happy retirement for us. Alot of the issues with California are very similar to why we knew we couldn't stay in Illinois. The thing is, no matter where you go, where you are happy is the place you need to be! Hope you had a nice dinner with your friend the other night.
Shad - are you still visiting with DS and S? I guess you will be packing soon to head back to the office. How depressing that the holidays are over and it's back to business again. But there is nothing more motivating to me as a fresh start as New Year's Day so that's a good thing.
Finally I was peeking at a friend's page on FB and saw that one of the people I once worked with - a lovely couple - the husband has been diagnosed with a terrible degenerative disease. And it's progressing fast. They were just two of the nicest people you could want to know. He got a bum deal at work once upon a time and one of their children had some serious medical problems so they have had their share of sad times. I was devastated to see this. I will have to write her a note. I especially thanked God extra hard last night for the blessing that is my life. And DH has relaxed a bit and with 2 years under our belt, we are holding our own financially and he said I can turn the gas fireplace on as much as I want to (it heats the front of our house which gets rather cold, especially in this weather). So thank you God for health, peace of mind and as much propane as I want to use
Anyway I should be getting to sleep. When it first snowed DH thought it was a fluke and that there would be some meltings in between snow storms. Not this year. So the deck that covers 3 sides of our house went unshoveled except for the part to get into the door. Can't leave that because it will get too heavy so yesterday DH and I were out for hours slicing and shovelling snow that was crusty and 30 inches deep. It was not fun. We got 2/3 of it done and we have the back part yet to tackle tomorrow. So it's not even morning and a full day ahead.
Have a good sleep all.
to Shad, Susie and Laura! I hope you're all having a wonderful weekend. 
???? IT WOULD BE FASTER THAT WAY! YOUR DINNER SOUNDS GOOD TOO BUT IF YIOU GIVE ME THE WINE FIRST...YOU CAN EAT ALL THE RIBS BY YOURSELF....I'LL BE PASSED OUT ON THE FLOOR 
!! UNLESS I WEAR MY SEATBELT 