So Long, 2016!

I've seen a lot of mention over the last week about 2016 being such a bad year and how many people are glad it is just about over.  Personally, I found it to by like any other regular year (other than that damn election).  On the news front, I guess it would seem that it was a rough year, but part of me wonders if it's just the constant inundation and quick-but-lack-of-facts-news that we get anymore.  A year or so ago I read an article that said something along the lines that "things" aren't getting worse, we just hear about the worse "things" more often than we used to.  And I tend to agree with that.  With that being said, this comedy group made 2016 into a horror movie, and it's pretty funny.

Right now, my new year's resolution is to write more.  The last few months I've had a lot of ideas swirling around in my head, but not a lot wherewithal to get it down or blog about it.  I've just been doing other things.  

I wish you a safe and fun New Year's Eve and Happy New Year!  See you in 2017!

Done and Gone

Decorating for Christmas is always a double-edged sword for me.  I really like having the house decorated for, but I really dislike the process of decorating and (even worse) taking it down.  On the other hand, when I haven't decorated it is hard to get in the Christmas spirit.  On the couple of occasions I haven't decorated it was because I was traveling over winter break and couldn't be bothered to worry about it.  This year, knowing I would be gone a couple of times (including over Christmas) to Minnesota but having a couple of holiday parties at my house, I was limited but impactful with my decorating.

My favorite part of decorating for Christmas is the tree.  I have a large collection of sentimental ornaments that I enjoy hanging, and it's all so pretty once it's done.  The thought of putting up a tree this year was daunting though, so I decided against it.  Instead, I made a much easier "tree" and used it to hang my Christmas cards on this year.  Most of the Christmas cards sent out anymore are those flat, one sheet photo cards that come from the printer, and I've never before known how to display them.  They don't "sit" on the mantle or a table, so they end up just getting stacked up and then thrown out after Christmas.  This year's "tree" gave me the opportunity to display them, for a little while anyway.

The tree is just a few strips of washi tape, garland, a star ornament, and some sparkly silver clips I found in the dollar bin at Target.  It took a bit of time to measure and mark it, but not nearly as long as decorating a real tree.  Plus there were zero needles to sweep up and it's a piece of cake to take down.

I leave on Friday to spend Christmas in Minnesota and won't be back until next week.  The thought of coming home to a decorated house made me grumpy, so I spent today de-christmas-ing my house.  Christmas is over in the Delight household!  Time to start packing...again!

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I've just returned from a whirlwind trip to COOOOLLLLDDDD Minnesota.  Overall, the travel went well, even in the snow and the way below freezing.  All my snow instincts slowly came back into play and all was fine...although I'm glad I don't have to do that all the time anymore.
Even though I flew into the Twin Cities, my visit actually took me to Rochester, home of the Mayo Clinic.  My mom had knee replacement surgery there on Monday, and since my winter break doesn't start until Saturday, I had to come back and finish out the week - otherwise I would have stayed a bit longer.  All went very well as far as the surgery goes.  Recovery is a bit more challenging.  She started PT today, and it wiped her out.  I'll most likely head back to Rochester to be there for Christmas.  BRRRRRRRRRR.
It's 9:35, and I've unpacked, taken a swig of Nyquil, and have crawled into bed hoping 5 am doesn't come too soon.  THREE MORE DAYS...

Snow

As I get ready to head to the airport for a quick trip to Minnesota, I'm remembering what it's like to travel when there's "weather" beyond 80 degrees and sunny.  My flight is expected to get into Minneapolis around 4:00.  Snow is expected at 70% chance today as well.  There's a bit of a nervous pit in my stomach as I start my day about the weather - delays, flight issues, landing - which I have not felt since moving back home 17 years ago after living in New England for 8 years.  There, anytime there was predicted snow, there was always a low grade worry over snow or ice in the forecast.  As much as I enjoyed living back east and the four seasons and even miss it sonetimes, I don't miss that feeling at all.  I've got it now...wish me luck!

PS: In case anyone is wondering, this is a trip of necessity.  I did not decide to travel to one of the coldest places in the US in December for fun.  I'll share more about it in another post.  :)

An Evening

On Thursday evening, some friends and I made a field trip to the Getty Research Center for (what I believe was ) a once in a lifetime opportunity.  Filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola spoke to an audience about the making of "The Godfather".
After reading Mario Puzo's The Godfather years ago, I've had something of an obsession with organized crime.  The movie (along with the second one) is in my top 5 favorite films.  We got the tickets back in October I believe, so I've been looking forward to the event for awhile now.
He was introduced by the Director of the Research Center, and then again by the interviewer.  Upon coming onto the stage and taking a seat, his pant legs crept up a bit, revealing bright red socks.  And his whole time on the stage was as endearing as those socks.  The stories he told about the filming of the movie were fascinating and funny.  It was so interesting to go "behind the scenes" so to speak on one of the greats.  The Getty is quite close to UCLA so there were several film students at the event.  Having gone to UCLA Film School himself, Coppola was very accommodating, answering their questions about his role as a filmmaker.  

Coppola has a new book out, which was the reason for the visit.  It's not a book he's authored per say, but rather notes and documents kept during the making of The Godfather.  Rather than using the script, Coppola's process (which he shared that evening) is to create a binder or notebook of his vision of the film he is working on.  The new book is actually a reproduction of his The Godfather notebook.  Being sold for $50 a book at the museum, I didn't purchase one.  It is probably quite interesting for anyone interested in the film and would be kind of fun to read through before watching the movie again - maybe giving a new perspective.  I might see if I can eventually borrow it from the library.
Even though he was born in Detroit an raised in Queens, he does have strong ties to California. In addition to studying at UCLA,  he moved to Norther California over 30 years ago.  He's also the owner of the Family Coppola Winery in Napa whose wines were served at the event.
I don't usually do evening events on a school night due to my early mornings,  but this one was worth the missing hours of sleep.
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