Goal #5

Goal #5: drink 64 oz. of water every day.

I matched this week with this goal because I'll be skiing near the end of it.  All that work out of doors, plus the high altitudes to which I am unaccustomed, make it seem like a good week to drink lots of agua.

Recap of Goal #4:
Well, I meant to take a picture of the totally cleaned-out pantry.  I can't say its spotless, but it's pretty close, and there's no food left in it at all.  True, much of that food came with me to my new digs, but much of it also went either down the drain or in the trash.  Some of it even went to a different good home that would actually use it.  So all in all, I'd say I did an okay job.

What I'm Reading Now -- The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks

Many moons ago, mom gave me the book-on-CD version of The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks.  I was still overrun with podcasts at the time, so despite her insistence that it was wonderful, I didn't listen to it.  But now I'm caught up on podcasts and I've been doing lots of listening to my iPod while I'm packing and cleaning, so I'm getting to the books.  It's about time - and it's entertaining!

But, why are the dresses gone?

Sit tight, the dresses are not gone.

Many things have contributed to the current dearth of "52 Weeks" posts.  First, I took a blogging break, as you'll recall.  There were no posts of any kind, not just the52 Weeks posts.  Then it was the holidays, so I was busy and traveling.  And now I'm moving out of my house; all my stuff is packed away in storage.

But as I said, don't fret!  The posts will return, just give it some time....

Her Fearful Symmetry -- Take 2

Well, this is certainly an interesting book.  I hesitate to say too much about it why I liked it, because all the interesting stuff happens late in the book and I don't want to give anything away.

By by way of a plot summary, it goes like this: a set of twins inherit a flat in London from a long-lost aunt (their mom's estranged twin sister).  The only requirement is that they live in the flat for a year before they can sell it.  So off they go at the age of twenty-one leaving Chicago to take possession of their new residence.  Which, it turns out, is still occupied by the ghost of their aunt.  Family secrets explode all over the place.

The building is full of quirky characters, who were a joy to read about.  Actually, I think I liked many of them more than the main characters themselves, whom I often found to be a bit whiny and tiresome.  But on the whole, it was an enjoyable read.  It wasn't quite the masterful work of weaving stories that The Time Traveler's Wife was, but good.

Goal #4

Goal #4: Purge the pantry

So, this whole moving thing is actually helping me accomplish some of my goals!  Isn't that convenient?  Well, not really.  But it is a silver lining.  I've been wanting to go through the pantry for a few months, and just get rid of stuff that's old, unused, mysterious, etc.  So here we go...!

Recap of Goal #3:
- Day 1: cleaned the stove
- Day 2: opened up some space on my bookshelves by loading audio books into iTunes so i can pass the CDs on to someone else
- Day 3: cleared my mind (is that cheating?) in preparation for a new art exhibit [Monet] and a new class I'm taking this semester [nonfiction seminar].  Update: surprise! House sold!  So...speed-packing ensues.
- Day 4: packed up all the books in the library
- Day 5: cleaned a bunch of stuff out of the house with a trip to Goodwill
- Day 6: cleaned out my closet!
- Day 7: cleaned out the kitchen

The Songs I'm Loving Today

Anything by Kenny Chesney, whom I love, love, love!  This post goes out to my good friend BK, who gave me my first ever Kenny album!

Some favorites, although this is by no means a complete list:

Summertime - an appreciation of the great things that happen when the weather is warm
I'm Alive (f/ Dave Matthews) - two great artists together on a great song
Old Blue Chair - an ode to something special
Livin' in Fast Forward - a note to himself
The Woman With You - a thank-you to the hard-working women out there (although the spelling and grammar of the person who put up this song are atrocious)
Beer in Mexico - Kenny pondering the future, and enjoying the present
The Road and the Radio - a song of searching
Somewhere with You - one of his newer, sadder songs about lost love that he can't let go
Anything But Mine - a melodic throwback to a time when all that mattered was summer
The Good Stuff - a song about what matters in life
Big Star - one of Kenny's earlier hits about a girl who makes it big
No Shirt, No Shoes, No Problems - an ode to easy, breezy island life in the Caribbean
I Lost It - a love song, and I love it
You and Tequila - a can't-live-with-you-can't-live-without-you bittersweet song
How Forever Feels - a dopey but sweet love song (although the video is horrible)
Back Where I Come From - a sentimental rock song about being at home in the country
When the Sun Goes Down - a lilty, beach anthem, great for summer!

You can listen to all these and more here.  But now, for your present enjoyment, two of his older songs.  The first is one of BK's favorites, and the second is my choice.



Walkin' along beneath the lights of that Miracle Mile,
Me and Mary makin' our way into the night.
You can hear the cries from the carnival rides,
The pinball bells and the skiball slides,
Watchin' the summer sun fall out of sight.

There's a warm wind comin' in from off the ocean,
Making it's way past the hotel walls to fill the street.
Mary is holdin' both of her shoes in her hand,
Said she likes to feel the sand beneath her feet.

And in the mornin' I'm leaving, making my way back to Cleveland,
So tonight I hope that I will do just fine.
And I don't see how you could ever be anything but mine.

There's a local band playin' at the seaside pavilion,
And I got just enough cash to get us in.
And as we're dancin', Mary is wrapping her arms around me,
I can feel the sting of summer on my skin.

In the midst of the music I tell her I love her,
And we both laugh 'cause we know it isn't true.
Oh but Mary, there's a summer drawin' to an end tonight,
There's so much that I long to do to you.

But in the mornin' I'm leaving, making my way back to Cleveland,
So tonight I hope that I will do just fine.
And I don't see how you could ever be anything but mine.

Oooh

And in the morning I'm leaving, making my way back to Cleveland,
So tonight I hope that I will do just fine.
And I don't see how you could ever be anything but mine.
Mary, I don't see how you could ever be anything but mine.

Oooh, oooh

In the morning I'm leavin', making my way back to Cleveland,
So tonight I hope that I will do just fine.
Hey I don't see how you could ever be anything but mine.



Ain't nothing out here but me, the road, and the radio
Lookin' for an exit and a song that I might know,
Countin' down the memories, addin' up the miles,
Searching for a feeling I ain't felt in a while.

Clarity and inspiration,
Happiness is a destination that's hard to find,
It may take some time.
But in my mind there's something more
And I'll open up a brand new door,
And find the strength to close the ones I left behind,
And I'll get there leanin' on some friends I know:
The road and the radio.

Spent the night in Carolina, got up early out of bed,
Bought a Red Bull and a road map and an old Stones cassette,
Set my sights southbound, no reason or rhyme,
Threw up a prayer just lookin', just lookin' for a sign.

And some clarity and inspiration,
Happiness is a destination that's hard to find,
It may take some time.
But in my mind there's something more
And I'll open up a brand new door,
And find the strength to close the ones I left behind,
And I'll get there leanin' on some friends I know:
The road and the radio.

Well in my mind there's something more
And I'll open up a brand new door,
And find the strength to close the ones I left behind,
And I'll get there leanin' on some friends I know:
The road and the radio,
The road and the radio,
The road and the radio.

Mmmm

The road and the radio,
The road and the radio.

Mmmm

Monet

Two days ago, T and I managed - just in the nick of time - to see the exhibit at the St. Louis Art Museum on Monet's Water Lilies.  It's a very small exhibition, only a few studies for the crowning work: the Agapanthus triptych.  But it's quite impressive to see all three pieces together, and to put it into context of the time that Monet was painting, as well as to realize how it sat unappreciated for 30 years after his death!

Added props to the art museum: the informative sidebars on the walls have big enough font that everyone doesn't have to crowd in to be able to read it - one of my pet peeves about museums!  Anyway, the exhibit is only open through the 22nd of this month (three more days), but you should go if you haven't!

What I Watched -- Crazy Stupid Love

I borrowed Crazy Stupid Love from S, and it was totally worth the investment to relax for a couple of hours.  It's not super-deep, but it's clever and enjoyable.  Ryan Gosling is great as Jacob Palmer, the smooth-talking ladies' man who helps the hapless Cal Weaver (Steve Carell) recover from his wife's decision that she wants a divorce.  The cast also includes Emma Stone, Julianne Moore, Marisa Tomei, and Analeigh Tipton as a shockingly not-annoying teenager.

Bottom line: rom-com fun!

What I Watched - Sybil

I'm too young to remember the controversy caused by Sybil (which was originally a book) and the recognition of Dissociative Identity Disorder/Multiple Personality Disorder.  In fact, I only heard about the movie with the release of a new book, Sybil Exposed: The Extraordinary Story Behind the Famous Multiple Personality Case.  There was an episode of Science Friday in which Ira Flatow spent I think a full hour talking to the author as well as other experts about the issue, and they got some roiling debate going.  Entertaining, in a sick sort of way, to listen to.

Aside: DID/MPD have ended up in lots of other popular culture as well.  If you're interested, look here.

Anywho, the movie.  Is super creepy.  Sally Field does an amazing job playing Shirley Ardell Mason, aka Sybil Dorsett.  There is a happy-ish ending (which I knew from listening to Science Friday), which makes the whole thing a little easier to take, but mostly it's a combination of sad, horrifying, and train wreck.  You just can't look away.

Bottom line: fascinating, but not really in a good way.

Goal #3

Goal #3: clean something every day.

Today, I cleaned the stove.  Granted, I cleaned it because we made bacon for breakfast and made a mess out of it first, but still, I cleaned it.  And I did a lot of laundry!

This goal doesn't require a huge cleaning project every day, but something - some kind of improvement.

Recap on Goal #2: I did make progress on the piles on my desk, but they're definitely not all gone.  They're not even as far along as I hoped they'd be.  Boo hiss.  Witness:

I'll have to keep working on that this week, if I can.

What I Read -- Wonderstruck

Wonderstruck is Brian Selznick's second book.  His first, The Invention of Hugo Cabret, won the Caldecott Medal, the highest honor bestowed on illustrated children's books.  I never read Hugo Cabret, though it was just made into a movie which has gotten laudatory reviews.

While Wonderstruck is classed as a book for kids, it does contain some advanced subject matter.  It's the story of a deaf boy who runs away from his aunt's house in Minnesota after his mom's death.  He heads for New York City, on a search for the father he never knew.

Interspersed with the text containing the story of the boy is a story about a girl, and it's told in pictures.  We don't know who this girl is, or how her story ties in with the boy's.

As you near the end of the book, the stories begin to converge, and I couldn't stop reading until I was finished.

What I'm Reading Now -- The Cellist of Sarajevo

Upon E's urging, I starting reading The Cellist of Sarajevo on the plane on the way home from NC.  What I forgot, though, is that I have two book clubs I'm supposed to attend in the next couple of weeks, and I haven't started either book!  So while I really enjoyed the first four chapters or so that I read in Cellist, I have to put it on hold for a bit.  But hopefully I'll be back to it soon!

What I'm Reading Now -- Her Fearful Symmetry

A long while ago, I read Audrey Niffenegger's first book, The Time Traveler's Wife.  It's been a long time coming, but I'm on to her second one, Her Fearful Symmetry.  I'm listening to it on audio (thanks to Mom), and I'm about three CDs into it.

So far it's entertaining, but not quite what I expected.  The synopsis makes it out to be about a set of 21-year-old twins who inherit a flat in London from an aunt they never knew.  So far, it's all about the surrounding characters, but I'm sure we'll get into more about the twins the farther along I get.

What I Watched -- Prince Caspian

I saw The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe ages ago.  I think I might have seen it when it was in theaters even.  And though I recall enjoying it, I didn't see the second one.  I rented the DVD of Prince Caspian to watch over my Christmas vacation, and it was okay.  I remember liking the first one better, but that was a while ago.

If you've read the books, you know the plot.  And if you haven't, chances are, you're not interested in the movie either.  Ergo, I will skip the plot synopsis.

Bottom line: okay if you want some kids' entertainment, but for that purpose only.

Goal #2

Goal #2: clean off my desk at work.

My desk isn't the worst I've ever seen, but it does have piles of stuff.  Mostly piles of stuff that really isn't that important, so I set it aside saying "I'll get to that later."  Well, now is the time.  Hopefully by the end of the week, it'll be mostly clean.

And stuff always piles up on the right side of my desk.  I have an enormous desk (it's awesome - like working at a big library table).  My computer's on the left, so the piles accumulate on the right, where I don't have to look at them.

That's right, I said mostly.  I have no illusions that I'll get every scrap of paper off my desk.  But I want to see improvement.

Recap on Goal #1: I love my list-maker!  So far, so good.  I'm getting things done!

Mobile Productivity Tools

I can't count how often I've heard or said the old line: "I thought all this technology was supposed to make our lives easier...."  And sadly, it's often true that this new-fangled stuff, while it sure is nifty, sometimes doesn't work as well as, say, an old-fashioned paper calendar.
But I've found a few tools that I really do like.  The irony of these "mobile" tools is that many of the ones I like also have a web-based option, for when you're sitting at your computer and not mobile at all.  But anyway, here they are:

Evernote. Best note app ever.  Syncs with an web-based version, and it's easy to use.  Love it.

LoseIt!  Technically I think this counts as a weight loss app, but it's also really useful even if you don't want to lose weight.  You can track your food intake (which can certainly be surprising) and log your exercise.  It's not good for detailed workout recording, but it is good if you want to see how many times you worked out in a week or month.  Also has a web version.

Banking and news apps.  These guys were some of the first "business"-type apps around, and they're still some of the best.  I haven't met one I didn't like (though I have by no means tried them all).  Some favorite news apps are the biggies: BBC News, NPR and the New York Times (though they're both a little slow to load and in spite my lack of a NYT subscription), the Washington Post, and NASA (so I can follow my guys!).

Ultrachron.  This is just a stopwatch app, but I actually use it more often than you'd expect.  I time my rowers, I time my own exercise, I time food in the oven, etc.  Super handy to have.

Big Oven.  I'm currently pretty wedded to recipes.  It's partially because I feel like I still need them to get proportions right, but also because I just like the ideas.  I'm not so creative on my own.  But Big Oven has a feature that allows you to type in up to three ingredients that you have on hand, and it'll find recipes for you to make using those items.  Yes, I know these are still recipes.  But for some reason it seems a little easier to wing it with varying ingredients this way than with a recipe that sounded so good when I read it that I want to make it exactly as it sounds.

EasyTether.  This is the only paid app on this list (though lots of the ones I have are free or "lite" versions of apps that also have paid or full versions).  You can use it to turn your phone into a mobile hotspot if you don't have free wi-fi somewhere (which is technically probably a violation of your end user licensing agreement, but, you know, details).  It's $10, and it's awesome.  Don't let the miserable-looking website fool you.

Other favorite apps, not really related to productivity, include:
The Weather Channel: accurate, easy to use, and you can store multiple cities as favorites
PriceCheck by Amazon and GoogleShopper: great for comparison shopping; just scan a bar code and you'll see what that product is available for elsewhere
GasBuddy: ever stop for gas only to drive two blocks down the street and find it for 20 cents less?  That's annoying.  You can (nearly) eliminate that problem with this app, though content is user-generated, so every now and then I'll find a price that's wrong.  Mostly good, though.
BeFunky and FxCamera: lots of fun stuff you can do with your pictures!

In case any of you needed to become more attached to your phones, I'm here to help you out.

Calendars, This Year

As you will recall from last year (and the year before that), I love paper calendars.

Like anything, they're not perfect.  Their biggest drawback is that if you lose it, or even don't have it with you when you need it, there's no backup. You're out of luck.

Last year around this time, I was discussing my frustrations with using my Google calendar.  I think I've gotten those ironed out by virtue of my Android phone (although I do still miss my PinkBerry).  But irrespective of my now completely functional use of GCal, I still am not over the paper version.  I just love them!  Being able to follow your progress through the year, look back at what you've done, remember all the times you had to reschedule that lunch date....you get the idea.  Actually, there was a really great commentary recently on NPR making exactly that point.

Anyway, T and I were having dinner at Winslow's Home a while back when we saw this total awesomeness:

I was sort of mid-freak-out about lots of things in life, so he got it as a reminder for me.  And as you all know, I love...well, I probably don't have to say it again.  Until next year.

But since I'm now GCal-capable, I've decided to use it as sort of a daily to-do list.  Until now, I've kept both a big paper to-do list on a legal pad, as well as some broken-down versions of that list on my phone.  But I like the daily idea.  "Too much to do already today?  Move it to tomorrow."  (Actually, there's an app for that too, called Do It Tomorrow, but it limits you to only two days at a time, and I don't like that.)  "Need to remember to do it next week?  Go ahead and write it down."

Now hopefully, per my Goal #1, I can remember to use my nifty list-making skills properly.

Christmas Extravaganza, Part V

Here it is: the cookie!

What I Watched -- Midnight in Paris

Another movie I loved!

In fairness, I loved Midnight in Paris even before I saw it, because it has Van Gogh on the poster.  I was biased.

But then I loved the movie too.  It's a little bit wacky to describe, but I'll try.  Here goes: Gil (Owen Wilson) and his super-annoying fiancee Inez (Rachel McAdams) are in Paris.  He loves it; she wants to go back to California.  He can't stop imagining the wonder that must have been Paris's golden age: the 1920s. One night as he's wandering alone, he is mysteriously transported to the 20s.  He meets Hemingway, the Fitzgeralds, Gertrude Stein, and other literary idols of his.  While there, he also meets a lover of Picasso's, and it's her opinion that Paris in the 1890s was the best of times: the Belle Epoque.  Together, they go there.  In between these nightly adventures back in time, Gil returns to the present day, and to his deteriorating relationship with Inez.

I'm not a Woody Allen connoisseur by any stretch of the imagination.  I think the only other movies of his I've seen are...well, I'm not actually sure I've seen any of his other movies.  But I think this was a good one to start with.  The main theme is so obvious that Gil comes right out and says it near the end, in not so few words: "everything else is always something better."

And it's hard when you feel that way.  On the other hand, it's easy to love Gil's romantic notions of the city.  It's just that he needs to learn to accept the vibrant, romantic City of Light as it is now, rather than 90 years ago.

There were a few points when I felt like the characters were just making obscure cultural reference so Woody Allen could show off how superior he is, and that was a bit annoying, but really it's my only complaint.

Bottom line: if you like cities, or Paris/France/Europe, or art and literature, you should definitely see this.

More on the New Year, and Goal #1

Blah, blah, blah, New Year's resolutions, blah, blah, blah, I prefer guidelines.  You all remember that.

Last year's guideline was to read more.  And I think I actually may have done it.  I'm not going back and counting books on my blog, though there may well be more - I have no idea.  Last year, though, I read a lot of magazines.  Tons.  Probably literally.

Is that super-smart, brainy literature?  No.  And some of it was super-dumb Glamour and People.  But some it was Time and The Economist, and I'm currently busy having a love affair with New York Magazine, which has some really interesting articles, plus a couple of St. Louis Magazines for good measure.  Besides, I didn't say what I wanted to read, just that I wanted to read.  So there.

This year, I think I'm going to try to do a weekly one.  Something small, but hopefully a step in the right direction.

So, goal #1: use my nifty new list-maker.  (You'll get more info on this in a couple of days.)

Happy Birthday, Mom!

What I Watched -- Moneyball

Sorry this is going to be so short, but it's late and I need to go to bed!

Mom took T, K, and me to see Moneyball when we were in NC, and I loved it!  Have I told you about this thing I have with Brad Pitt?  I really want to dislike him because he seems like kind of a scum bag.  But he's such a good actor that I love his movies!  Okay, I haven't seen Tree of Life yet, so that's TBD, but as a general rule....  And he's pretty cute when he takes a shower and cuts his hair.

So, bottom line: if you like baseball at all, see this movie.

North Carolina, Days 5 and 6

Day 5 was supposed to be when T and I went to Charlotte for the day.  Instead, I decided that sleeping in (again!) would be a better use of our time, so we instead went only as far as Raleigh.  E and M stayed in Chapel Hill working for the day, so we took just mom and K with us.  We went to the exhibit at the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences on Ghengis Kahn, and also saw the special 3-D movie about tornadoes.

Sword and bows from the era

Leather armor and chain mail

An image of the warrior on his horse

Everyday items from the late dynasty: a bowl and woman's dress

We left there and stopped at Cafe Helios for an early dinner (not part of the plan, but we were hungry).  But my sandwich (and apple and brie grilled cheese) was quite satisfying, and the coffee was so pretty!  Also, I have to say that around here, they've mastered the art of the simple side salad.  Just greens with a super-good lemon vinaigrette is all you need.  (The one I had with my omelet at Rue Cler was delicious also - same idea.)

Our coffees, which would have been too pretty to drink if they hadn't tasted so darn good

We ended our outing with a trip to the Varsity Theater in Chapel Hill to see Moneyball.  More on that later.  And I got some belated birthday flowers from mom!

 

Day 6: our last full day in the Research Triangle area.

We started out (again) with lunch, which was at an Indian restaurant called Saffron.  It was mom and the three of us, as the boys were off taking care of some work things.  We opted for an Italian-style family meal: we got one appetizer, three entrees, some sides, and a dessert, and everything just got passed around the table.  It was all quite good; my favorite entree was the lamb korma, although I wouldn't turn up my nose at the nargisi kofta or the gobi mussalam if someone offered them to me again!

We made one more trip to Raleigh, this time to do the one thing we had planned on even before our arrival in North Cackalacky: the NC Museum of Art. They had an exhibition called Rembrandt in America, which (obviously) consisted of works of Rembrandt's that had found their way to the States one way or another.  Most of them had been acquired by museums over the course of time, but a few were still in private collections.  It was a large exhibit, but no pictures allowed.

Outside the museum

Personally, I find Rembrandt's works a little dark, but I guess that makes his skill with the invisible light shining on his subject stand out even more.  Right near the end of the exhibit was one gallery in which they focused on the work that goes into investigating the authenticity of works of art, as many of the works on display had originally been attributed to Rembrandt but were later determined to have been painted by a student or another painter in his school.

We also briefly pondered the question of intention of the artist.  There were a couple of paintings that had been "restored" to their original condition; that is, later changes or additions to the painting (by the original painter) were removed to reveal the "true" work of art.  But is it really the true work, if the painter felt as though it was so unfinished that he needed to keep touching it up or making changes?  Seems like it's not really for the restorers to decide what paint to remove, just to make sure it's cleaned and archived properly.

Anyway, our last big outing (though not our last NC meal) was at Piedmont in Durham.  E heard about the NYE menu, so we added J to our group and gave it a shot.  It was a prix fixe menu, so I started with deviled eggs with a Calvander cheese sauce and paprika oil.  It's hard to go wrong with deviled eggs.  My entree was rosemary chicken on a bed of kale and a cornmeal sauce.  The chicken and kale were good, but I'm not a fan of cornmeal.  (I'm not sure why that didn't occur to me when I was ordering...?)  Dessert was a chocolate mousse cake with caramel ice cream.  Delish!  (And also predictable.)

We all crashed at E's pad for our New Year's celebration, champagne and all.  We were joined by a number of her friends.  It was lots of fun, although I was up way too late for my own good!

A new year, a new season

Most people who know me know that New Year's is not my favorite holiday.  I don't really see that it's anything to celebrate.  Usually I just stay home, safe from all the crazies, and am asleep before midnight.

However, over the last nine months or so, as I was seriously considering leaving St. Louis, I did come to appreciate a few things about the general location; in particular, we have a lovely turn of the season four times a year.  It's certainly not unique to St. Louis, but it's not true everywhere.

There's spring.  Those first days when you can finally leave your heavy coat at home.  The days when the air is still cool but the sun is warm.  For some reason they always remind me of Easter, although if I think back on actual Easter Sundays, a lot of them were overcast and rainy.  But even the rain is good.  It's still cool enough that you don't mind being inside for the day - spring cleaning was never so focused as on a rainy day - but warm enough that you can go play in the rain if that suits you better. 

And then there's summer.  The sun is hot and the air swells with the promise of all the adventures to be had.  (And also with humidity.)  Everybody goes outside - to eat, to listen to music, to see movies and theater productions, just get some fresh air.  There are a million things you could do and enough daylight that you feel you might actually have a chance to get them all done.  Just make sure to leave enough time to sit by the pool and have a Pimm's.

Fall.  Autumn.  Whichever you prefer.  Even call it Indian Summer.  The heat finally breaks, and the cool mornings remind you to appreciate the warm afternoons.  The leaves start to turn, and in a good year, you could spend the whole day just looking at the rainbow of colors.  Ovens are turned back on, and food gets heavier and heartier.  You build your first fire of the season, and your fleece carries the scent of burning firewood for days.

And then winter.  The trees are bare, and sound carries for miles through the cold, crisp air.  But then it snows.  You get that deep, clingy snow, and the whole world is quiet.  You can curl up in the window with a good book and a mug of hot chocolate, buried under a pile of blankets and stay there for days.  You can get caught up on all the things you were having too much fun to do during the warmer months.  The holiday season comes, bringing lots of good food and good times, and then it goes again, not to return for another year.

But rest assured, it will come around again.