It’s worth a nickel

I really do feel like the holidays snuck up on me this year. Before I knew it, it was Thanksgiving… yay!

And then the next day, as I was making turkey soup, I realized I hadn’t even thought about Christmas cards yet, and I broke into a cold sweat. Normally, I’m the kind of guy who has them written out, addressed, stamped, and sitting in a box on my desk while I enjoy Thanksgiving dinner. The formality of waiting until December 1st to mail them is just so that people don’t make fun of me for the November postmark, you know?

Well, fast forward to my Christmas gift shopping. In the interests of full disclosure, I think gift shopping is a real pain in the you-know-where. My list is mercifully short, so I really can’t complain too much, and I do as much as humanly possible online (thank you, Amazon).

There are certain things, though (clothing, for example), that I really prefer to buy in the stores. I want to feel the fabrics, look at the sizes, and generally experience them before I plunk down my hard earned cash for them. And, since I had a lot of vacation time left this December, I’ve managed to do that in-person shopping without going nuts. (2 PM on Mondays is a great time to be at the mall if you don’t like crowds.)

It should have been so easy. I went into Baby Gap (hey, I’m a new uncle). I found what I wanted. I went up to the register.

And they had no boxes.

Great, so the Gap is cheaping out this Christmas. They “ran out” of boxes, which really means they’re cutting costs, and you can just run down to Target and buy your own. I mean, I did that, because I really liked the things I bought… but I am disappointed in the lack of holiday spirit.

Hey Gap: you owe me $6.88 for the boxes and tissue paper you should have given me for free.

Last year, I didn’t make it down to New York City to see the tree at Rockefeller Center. I know it’s just a tree, but it’s a fun experience and a good excuse to have a night out in Manhattan.

So this year, I promised myself I’d make it down there. Wednesday was the day … Luis, Paul and I left Poughkeepsie around 6 (after Paul’s class and a quick shower). As we’re cruising down the Taconic, it starts … the rain. I never even thought to check the weather, so we crossed our fingers and hoped it would be short lived or that it was only raining in Westchester and not in the city.

The closer we got, the harder it rained … not the best sign, right?

It gets worse.

Once we crossed the bridge and hit the Henry Hudson Parkway, Luis’s car just died. As in just shut down, no power, no nothing. We coasted into the shoulder (which is hard to do on the Henry Hudson, since much of the highway has no shoulder) and called roadside assistance. We quickly learned that because the Henry Hudson is a “restricted highway,” that we would get a nice tow compliments of the New York City Police Department.

Riding on a flatbed tow truck on the Henry Hudson and the West Side Highway is no picnic.

They towed us to 54th and 12th and left us there to be picked up by a tow truck from Luis’s insurance company. By now, the rain has picked up, and the insurance company says it’ll be about an hour before they arrive. We start looking around to see if we can find a Nissan dealer to leave the car — since it’ll probably need a new alternator. Thanks to the magic of Google SMS, we learn that Nissan of Manhattan is just 3 blocks up on West 57th, so Paul and I wandered up there to check it out.

It moved. To 47th and 11th. So not that far, and at least we knew where to tow the car, right?

Never let people in Wisconsin do roadside assistance for New York City. It’s like they’re totally brainless. After an hour, we get an angry call from the tow company saying, “we’re here … where are you?” After a short shouting match, we realize that we’re both at 54th and 12th … only we’re in Manhattan and the tow truck is in Brooklyn. Nice.

So Paul and I trudged over to the nice, warm McDonald’s on 56th and 8th. I’ve never been so glad to see a bathroom in my life! After a glamorous dinner, we grabbed some more food for Luis and headed back to the car to wait. And wait. And wait.

About 90 minutes later, the tow truck arrived, and we grabbed a taxi to Grand Central just in time to make the 12:10 train back to Poughkeepsie. Whew!

We never did see the tree. Maybe next year.

okay, i’m losing my mind. i’ve spent the last six weeks studying for this damn pmi exam. this material is boring and stupid. i finished all the lessons; i’ve practiced the formulas until i can calculate earned value in my sleep. so it’s time for a practice test … i took two this week, and got a 75 and 85 on them. i seriously tried to take one this morning, and it was so boring that i stopped after about 20 minutes. (i still answered about 45 questions in that time.) so that’s it. no more studying until 02 january. i’ll review all my note cards, review the formulas, and take one last practice test then. i need a break.

i’m trying very hard to feel the spirit of xmas this year. where is it? we’ve already celebrated with my parents and my sister … in fact my sister is already in oregon, spending the holidays with matt’s family this year. i have been down to the city to see the tree and the windows. our christmas tree is up in the window, and the lights are on the house! the shopping is done, the gifts are wrapped, and i’ve been listening to christmas music since thanksgiving. (okay, actually since before then, but don’t tell paul because he’ll yell at me. there are rules.)

tomorrow night should help. the boys are coming over for a fun and festive xmas eve dinner — i can’t wait! paul is going to be cooking several different kinds of fish, in a nod to the italian/polish/lithuanian/fill-in-your-nationality-here tradition of serving fish (and not meat!) on xmas eve. yummy yummy bacon-wrapped shrimp. for those of you who don’t know, bacon and shrimp are two of the best foods in the entire world. combining them is something akin to nirvana. i suggest you try it. (i recognize that these foods are not exactly kosher; i apologize if you happen to abstain from these foods, but seriously, you have no idea what you’re missing.) of course there will copious drinking, because there always is when we have parties at my house.

oh, and if you haven’t heard the forecast, it’s supposed to rain for christmas here in new york. so much for a white christmas, the one day each year when i endorse snow in any form. but 5°c is too warm for snow.

we’re on vacation all next week, and we’re planning to take down the gorgeous wallpaper in the kitchen. those of you who haven’t seen it yet, don’t worry … it will be appropriately memorialized. those of you who have seen it … don’t worry, you won’t be forced to view the memorial. we haven’t chosen a color to replace it yet, but we’ll be visiting the friendly folks at sherwin-williams on monday to decide. they have a “suburban modern” line of paints designed to emulate the colors of the 50s, and so of course i’m thrilled! i sort of think kitchens should be yellow. so we’ll see.

in case i haven’t already spoken with you this season, have a merry christmas and a happy new year. or if you celebrate another holiday or event, have a happy fill-in-your-holiday-here. in any event, thanks for another year of friendship and love, and i hope 2006 is even better still for everyone.