Picture Sunday

Yes, it's back and badder than ever (take that as you wish), the mighty and feared Picture Sunday! I said I was going to try to blog more this year, so here we go. If I can make myself do it on a Sunday night when there's still laundry and trash duty, it'll be a good start.

So, I rang in 2010 happily, doing the podcast with Stennie. Then on Friday I watched the Rose Parade, which I'm a total sucker for, and headed off to the Sauerkraut Band New Year's party.

Now, as you all know, I don't know how those people put up with me. I'm so glad most of them know me out of the SKB realm, because otherwise they'd think I was a hopeless alcoholic, and an obnoxious one at that. There's something about the Sauerkraut Band that keeps me from spending a sober evening.

I'm not quite sure how it happened this time, if it was that I've been sick or that I hadn't eaten a proper lunch in the day, but I was seriously buzzed after the first J�äger shot and singing of "Ein Prosit." It just went straight to my head. Then with whiskey and beer added in, well, I remember only bits and pieces of the party. I do, however, remember Druken Uno.

It's become a sort of tradition at our parties to play Uno. Now, I don't know how to play Uno. I doubt I ever will. I tend to let everyone pick the cards I play, and you know, oddly enough, I've never won a game of Uno with the Sauerkraut Band! I wasn't alone this time, though - Seth joined us, and he ended up about as confused as I was.

I came back home Saturday in the freezing wind, then today I've stayed in all day. It's frigid here, in the single digits. Every time Milo wants out, I just cringe.

However, one thing I did do tonight, along with cooking and laundry and stripping beds. I finally got a chance to try out the Wii Mr M got me for Christmas! I was pretty much in love with it before I even started playing, it was so easy to set up. Then I created my Mii (the little cartoon version of yourself who plays), and let the good times roll. And boy, did they. It took me about 10 minutes to realize I was totally addicted to Wii Tennis, and I became determined to play till I won a match. That took about 40 minutes, not bad considering I'd never as much as seen anyone play before, and my arm started to feel like someone had punched it, and a screen came up telling me maybe I should take a break for a little while. So my Wii could either feel the grip change with the sore arm, or it saw that I made my Mii really fat. Anyway, can't wait to get back at it, and may I quickly add that although Milo's not so keen on the Wii (he barked a lot as I was setting it up), he stayed out of the way and watched me from the couch.

Now, speaking of Mr M, he is the subject of tonight's Picture Sunday. It's an odd thing.

Last year for Christmas, Mr M said to me, "You know what I'd really like? I'd like you to make me some postcards that I could send to people." So I set about the task of photographing and drawing and learning the whole deal about making postcards. I gave him a nice portfolio with postcards and stamps. He said thanks, and I really kind of thought he just stored them in a closet somewhere, he never mentioned them again.

Then about a month ago, I started getting some odd mail.

I got this postcard, one I made from him from a photograph my friend Susan gave me. Susan's a real photographer now, so I feel very honored to have something she did. As you'll see, there's a reason she gave it to me.

























The back of the postcard said simply:

Greetings from Blacksburg. The surf is up and my board is waxed and ready to go!

Mr M

Well, I chuckled, and put it on my desk at work.

Then a couple of weeks later, I got this postcard. It was one I made of a clarinet fingering chart.

























The back of the card said:

Hello from Christiansburg! [town 5 miles from B'burg]

Climbed the main pyramid, then toured the Egyptian Museum. Our guide, Mustaf, has a hard time with English, but he certainly helps with bartering for souvenirs.

Wish you were here!

Mr M

Well, that made me giggle a lot, and I stored that one away to bring home and put on the refrigerator.

And within 10 days, I got another. It was of a picture I took at the University of Richmond when Mr M and I were there visiting our buddy David.

























On the back was written:

Greetings from Narrows! [tiny town about 25 miles from B'burg]

Sad day here today for the locals. Philomena Pratt, 81 years old, was attacked and eaten by a Great White while wading. (She was well known here as the town's only hooker.)

RIP Philomena.

All I can say is - keep sending me these cards! They're cracking me up.

And since I'm just not feeling a recipe du jour, and I'll have to decide later whether or not I want to keep it up, I'll throw in a little extra.

At one point during the Uno game on Friday, we decided we needed to take a little break for a musical interlude. We'd been watching that You Tube video of the Beer Bottle Band, so we took a swig and gave it a go.



So here's your New Year's greeting from us. This is especially good because only my finger is in it.

Happy week!

Betland's Olympic Update:
* I just this second realized that I don't want to go back to work. I want my vacation back! I wanted a well vacation!