Friday, December 29, 2006
This week has certainly gone by fast! The week between CHristmas and New Year's Day is the end-of-year plant shutdown, a kind of mandatory vacation. Last Friday I went over to Keith and Carrie's for an informal Yule dinner, with curry as the main dish and a persimmon pie that I made. Saturday I spent trying to get the house in order before picking up Mom and Cliff from the airport in the evening. Sunday we stopped at the Golden Buddha for a quick dim sum on our way to seeing the fabulous new Nutcracker production at Symphony Hall. It was Mom's first experience with dim sum, and also the first time she'd seen the Nutcracker live.
On Monday we went to the Phoenician for our traditional Christmas brunch. The spread was quite impressive; IIRC more variety than the last Christmas we went there, two years ago. The dessert room was definitely more extensive. The weather was wonderful so they opened the door out onto the patio, where we were seated, and the music from the little jazz ensemble inside floated out. This occasionally mingled with the strolling guitar/violin trio we had outside, lending an Ivesian (Charles Ives, not Currier &) atmosphere. The grackles provided additional entertainment, stealing sugar packets from the bowls on vacant tables. The three of us left suitably stuffed; it's also traditional that this is our only meal for the day. That evening we took a walk around the nieghborhood to look at the lights. The lighted reindeer are popular this year; some people had whole herds in their yards. Tuesday we took a walk over to Park of the Canals, which I haven't been to in eons despite its closeness. Then we pretty much hung out in the back yard like lizards in the sun until it was time to run them out to the airport.
Of course, when the rellies come to visit there's always some friction over how you've decided to raise the kids. Mom and Cliff considered Savannah nosy and spoiled where I find her clever and charming - well, up until she jumped up on Mom's shoulders and I had to get out the first aid kit to deal with a scratch. Someone got a timeout on the back porch.
Wednesday I braved the mall to do my shopping for the Holt end-of-year party. The crowds weren't bad at all, but if it looks like I bought all my gifts in one store, well, there's a reason for that. And yesterday I thought it would be fun to take a 12.6-mile hike in the Superstitions. I don't know what it was like in town, but it was foggy all day in Peralta and East Boulder Canyons - Weaver's Needle wasn't even visible until about 2 or 3 in the afternoon.
Winding down towards the end of the year - what happened to all those chores I was going to get done?
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On Monday we went to the Phoenician for our traditional Christmas brunch. The spread was quite impressive; IIRC more variety than the last Christmas we went there, two years ago. The dessert room was definitely more extensive. The weather was wonderful so they opened the door out onto the patio, where we were seated, and the music from the little jazz ensemble inside floated out. This occasionally mingled with the strolling guitar/violin trio we had outside, lending an Ivesian (Charles Ives, not Currier &) atmosphere. The grackles provided additional entertainment, stealing sugar packets from the bowls on vacant tables. The three of us left suitably stuffed; it's also traditional that this is our only meal for the day. That evening we took a walk around the nieghborhood to look at the lights. The lighted reindeer are popular this year; some people had whole herds in their yards. Tuesday we took a walk over to Park of the Canals, which I haven't been to in eons despite its closeness. Then we pretty much hung out in the back yard like lizards in the sun until it was time to run them out to the airport.
Of course, when the rellies come to visit there's always some friction over how you've decided to raise the kids. Mom and Cliff considered Savannah nosy and spoiled where I find her clever and charming - well, up until she jumped up on Mom's shoulders and I had to get out the first aid kit to deal with a scratch. Someone got a timeout on the back porch.
Wednesday I braved the mall to do my shopping for the Holt end-of-year party. The crowds weren't bad at all, but if it looks like I bought all my gifts in one store, well, there's a reason for that. And yesterday I thought it would be fun to take a 12.6-mile hike in the Superstitions. I don't know what it was like in town, but it was foggy all day in Peralta and East Boulder Canyons - Weaver's Needle wasn't even visible until about 2 or 3 in the afternoon.
Winding down towards the end of the year - what happened to all those chores I was going to get done?
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Tuesday, December 12, 2006
Here's the latest photo of the kitchen, looking pretty good; a lot of stuff is waiting now on the counters, which the former was supposed to complete last week. The painters showed up today and did half the walls - actually I think someone forgot that the work order was for four walls not two - despite the fact that the drywallers never levelled the saggy windowsill. I finally managed to get ahold of the guy in charge this evening. Sometimes you just have to have a cow on someone's voice mail.The kitchen isn't quite that yellow - I took this by incandescent light.
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Sunday, December 10, 2006
It's so cute when Frodo and Savannah hiss & growl while playing with each other. It's like they're using bad language they learned from Peaseblossom, but they don't know what it means.
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Here's my first installment on my Fiji trip, which writeup is my project for this week. We'll see how that works out... NOTE: Blogger photo upload is not working right now. Check back tomorrow; I'll try to upload them again.
Day 1 – Thursday
I order a taxi to the plenty early based on past experience, and sure enough it arrives half an hour late. I get to the airport in plenty of time anyway, since there’s no line inside at international checkin. No further glitches either on the first leg of the flight or the transfer at LAX, though I thought I remembered a pizza restaurant on the far side of security. (That might’ve been Air New Zealand – they depart from a different terminal.) Did you know that more people can fit into a 747-600 than into the departure lounge?
Day 2 – Saturday
We land in Nadi (pronounced "Nandi") and pour out of the plane onto a covered walkway that leads to Immigration as mynah birds cavort in the bougainvilleas. A quartet (2 guitars and 2 ukes) entertains us with trad Fijan songs as we wait in line. Then it’s out, a quick stop at the bank to cash some traveller’s checks, and a transfer to the Raffles (no relation) Gateway Hotel across the street.
The horseback riding outfit that’s supposed to pick me up for a half-day tour never shows, much to my non-surprise. They seemed rather flaky by email and were charging a huge “single supplement” surcharge. After sitting in the lobby staring at an ad for an ice cream bar saying “Bite Me” for over an hour, I bought myself an ice cream bar and spent the rest of the day reading and testing my snorkel in the pool. Not simultaneously. I wish I could remember the brand of ice cream bar; it was really good.
Day 3 – Sunday
Captain Cook Cruises picks me up early for a day cruise out to the tiny island of Tivua. On the ride to the docks at Denaru I make friends with Barbara, a woman about my age who’s finishing up a round-the-world tour.
The ship is the Lady Ra Marana, a tall ship that runs both on engine and sail. Tivua is the stereotypical “desert isle”, all white sand, that you can walk completely around in about half an hour. The only visitors are the day tours plus anyone staying at one of two cabins, but it’s still fairly close to civilization just outside Nadi Bay. The snorkeling is meh; there are some fish and live corals, but having dived in Fiji before I know it’s just an appetizer for what awaits in the Somosomo Straight. There’s a barbeque lunch, after which we lie around in the sand. On the trip back to Nadi the crew entertains with music (incl. a rather bizarre version of “When the Saints Come Marching In” that sounds like a cross with “The Quartermaster’s Hall”) and our guide demonstrates how to shuck a coconut with nothing but a pointed stick.
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Here's my first installment on my Fiji trip, which writeup is my project for this week. We'll see how that works out... NOTE: Blogger photo upload is not working right now. Check back tomorrow; I'll try to upload them again.
Day 1 – Thursday
I order a taxi to the plenty early based on past experience, and sure enough it arrives half an hour late. I get to the airport in plenty of time anyway, since there’s no line inside at international checkin. No further glitches either on the first leg of the flight or the transfer at LAX, though I thought I remembered a pizza restaurant on the far side of security. (That might’ve been Air New Zealand – they depart from a different terminal.) Did you know that more people can fit into a 747-600 than into the departure lounge?
Day 2 – Saturday
We land in Nadi (pronounced "Nandi") and pour out of the plane onto a covered walkway that leads to Immigration as mynah birds cavort in the bougainvilleas. A quartet (2 guitars and 2 ukes) entertains us with trad Fijan songs as we wait in line. Then it’s out, a quick stop at the bank to cash some traveller’s checks, and a transfer to the Raffles (no relation) Gateway Hotel across the street.
The horseback riding outfit that’s supposed to pick me up for a half-day tour never shows, much to my non-surprise. They seemed rather flaky by email and were charging a huge “single supplement” surcharge. After sitting in the lobby staring at an ad for an ice cream bar saying “Bite Me” for over an hour, I bought myself an ice cream bar and spent the rest of the day reading and testing my snorkel in the pool. Not simultaneously. I wish I could remember the brand of ice cream bar; it was really good.
Day 3 – Sunday
Captain Cook Cruises picks me up early for a day cruise out to the tiny island of Tivua. On the ride to the docks at Denaru I make friends with Barbara, a woman about my age who’s finishing up a round-the-world tour.
The ship is the Lady Ra Marana, a tall ship that runs both on engine and sail. Tivua is the stereotypical “desert isle”, all white sand, that you can walk completely around in about half an hour. The only visitors are the day tours plus anyone staying at one of two cabins, but it’s still fairly close to civilization just outside Nadi Bay. The snorkeling is meh; there are some fish and live corals, but having dived in Fiji before I know it’s just an appetizer for what awaits in the Somosomo Straight. There’s a barbeque lunch, after which we lie around in the sand. On the trip back to Nadi the crew entertains with music (incl. a rather bizarre version of “When the Saints Come Marching In” that sounds like a cross with “The Quartermaster’s Hall”) and our guide demonstrates how to shuck a coconut with nothing but a pointed stick.
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