The Holidays are upon us

We’ve already had our first snow of the season.

I’ve already had my first cold / sinus event of the season. 

The plants haven’t lost all their leaves yet. We’re still having warm enough days that when I’m working in the yard I’ll get sweaty.

I know that all too soon that will be a fond memory and I’ll not be leaving the house without a jacket.

I’ll also not be wandering around the house without socks on.

I’m glad that we chose the hardwood floors and the tile when we rebuilt the house. Both are easy to clean and while we still have a lot of dust (the windows are open most of the time) there’s a lot less places for dirt to hide. 

The old carpet was filthy! No matter how many times I cleaned it rinsed it and cleaned it again, the water in the bissell was black. 

The down side of having the hardwood floors and tile is that in Winter time these floors are COLD!

Getting out of bed in the morning is a shock to the system in more ways than one!

This year I’m planning to get some nice long underwear for those days when I’m outside shoveling snow. I had a couple pairs pre-fire, I’ve never gotten around to replacing them. I think its’ time…

The seasons have been strange this year. It seemed like we went from Winter to Summer without really having Spring. It doesn’t feel like Autumn now it’s as if something is “Off” I just can’t put my finger on what the proverbial “It” is.

We’re putting the fear of fire behind us now. The fireplace photo is our fireplace during the first rain/snowstorm of the season. We actually went out and purchased fireplace tools. I suppose that’s a sign of healing. 

We even went so far as to re-arrange the deck so we could have a small fire pit for the times in the Spring / Fall when it’s nice to sit outside in the evening but there’s just a bit too much chill in the air.

This time last year, I thought that I’d have a new Job and would be once again contributing to my 401K and the economy. 

No such luck!

I’m dubious about any opportunities presenting themselves before the New Year.

I’m sick and tired of the headhunters contacting me from India, with “Excellent 1 month Opportunities” in MAINE and can I be in Bangor tomorrow morning for an interview? 

However I’ve got to keep looking for a job which means continuing to expose myself to these fly by night headhunters. 

I am Thankful though.

I have a home, I’m loved, I’m relatively healthy, even with things getting tighter I’m still optimistic that I’ll find something to do that will provide me a modest income. 

Our Holiday season is probably going to be another season where we are reminded of the real meaning behind the holidays.

In many ways, I prefer the non-commercial version to the Hallmark version.

Those of you on the Christmas Card List will be receiving another original card. You might want to hang onto them… if I ever get famous… You’ll be able to ebay them.

Given the problems we had last year with the Postal Service, I will probably be sending an electronic version in addition to changing the way I mail the cards. I’m still working on that so it will be a surprise when you get it.