Christmas Day

Because of the blizzard, Christmas Day was put off until the day after Christmas. My grandma was not impressed with this ("in 88 years, I've never had to put off Christmas," to which my mom replied something like "well, then, you're getting a new experience this year, aren't you?"). But my mom and I vetoed grandma, explaining that an 88-year-old woman had no business being out in unsalted, mostly unplowed streets, in single-digit weather. The food we'd prepped the day before would keep one more day.

On actual Christmas Day, Mom and I shovelled the drive anyway, figuring we'd save us some work the next day when Grandma and her partner John actually came over (Mom always moves her car out of the driveway so Grandma and John can park in the drive). Then on Saturday, we had to shovel again (although not nearly as much, which was the point), but since they'd plowed we also decided to shovel part of the street so Grandma and John would be able to turn the corner and zip right into our drive (we're full-service shovellers!).

Once inside, this is what the living room was like. The Christmas tree was decorated, despite Mom's threat to leave it in the attic this year. I think she believed me when I told her "no tree, no presents." One of the dog's, Sasha, made herself at home on one of Dale's (Mom's husband) presents.



















I got a lot of NASCAR haul: a Robby Gordon shirt that I had picked out at Kansas Speedway, Grandma made me a set of Kyle Busch pillowcases (they say Kyle's name and have "18"s dancing across the end in various sizes and M&M's colours), Mom made me a pair or sweatpants with Scott Speed's, Kyle Busch's, and Carl Edward's names embroidered on them, and I got a few Kyle Busch t-shirts Mom picked up (two at Cargo Largo and one at M&M World in Las Vegas).

And, of course, I got a lot of Michael Jackson haul, too. Grandma had saved pretty much every KC Star (the local newspaper) that had MJ on the front page. I got the soundtrack to "This Is It," the 12-month wall calendar, the 25th anniversary "Thriller" CD, and the DVD to HIStory, Part I (I have it on VHS, but not DVD, which Mom noticed when she was here earlier this month).

And I was really happy with what I was able to give, too. The big knitted gifts I gave this year were to the women of the family: Mom got the Shalom cardigan I blogged about earlier, my grandma got a ruffled scarf, my sister Laura got a beaded hat, and my niece got a bag that I did as a test knit (I will be blogging about each of those projects later). But trust me, the men did pretty well, too. I hadn't really planned on knitting for only the women, it just kind of shook out that way!

There were many other gifts (both given and received), but the best of all was the good ol' fashioned sitting around gabbing, both as we opened gifts and while we stuffed our faces. Sharing stories as we caught up on family gossip throughout the year (wait - Harold got married again? when did he get divorced???). The funniest part was when Grandma found out that Mom hadn't told me about Karen.

Mom: She has no idea who Karen is.
Me: I do, too!
Mom: You do not.
John: Do you know where she lives?
Me: Illinois.
John: Does she have any kids?
Me: Yes. Three.
Grandma: See? She knows more than you think she does.
John: And where does she work?
Me: Um... uh....
Mom: SEE? She DOESN'T know who she is!
Laura: Well, I don't know where Min works, but I know who she is!

Welcome to my family, folks.

Blizzard in Missouri!

So I escaped a major snowfall in Philadelphia, only to fly into a blizzard in Missouri, the first since the early 1980s. I knew that the KCMO area was expecting snow, but I had no idea it was a major snow storm!

The airlines were still trying to catch up from cancelled flights from our snow storm, so they were offering $500 flight vouchers for anyone willing to "be flexible with their travel arrangements." I called Mom to ask her if I was such a person because we're planning a trip in May which will require me to fly again. She said that ordinarily she would jump at the chance, but since KC was expecting a HUGE snow storm the next day and they had JUST shut down Chicago, I was to get my butt on that plane immediately. As luck would have it, I was among the last of the flights to arrive at MCI before the blizzard hit.

This is what our front yard/driveway looked like, and this is what Mom looks like when she's preparing to go shovel snow. Mind, the snow pics are a bit deceiving because we live at an intersection at the top of a hill. Since it was so windy, most of the snow drifted down the hill, away from us. But, trust me when I tell you that Mom and I still spent a LOT of time shovelling... two days in a row.

Shalom Cardigan

First, an update on me: Here's why the blogging has been sparse lately. I've been dealing with a moderate level of dysthymia lately. It's nothing too serious, and I've back on track with seeing my therapist, who I'd been blowing off with terrific success. Mostly it's just life's little stresses, but they decided to all come at me at once. And, okay, some of them aren't so little.

As I was telling Nancy (my therapist), when it's one huge stressor that I'm handling, I can do that like nobody's business. I know how to compartmentalise that so I can go to work, still socialise, etc. But when it's a bunch of smaller things all at once, it really and truly confounded me. I've been so busy juggling them all that I didn't know how (or have time to figure out how to!) to manage those stressors.

And the reason I haven't blogged yet about the trip to Victory Junction Camp with my mom is because that week was absolutely the best, most carefree week that I've had in the past two months. It was like walking past the store that has their door open and AC blasting on the hottest summer day, and I just haven't been able to get in the right mindframe to give it the blog post it deserves.

NOW, on to the Shalom Cardigan.

*************

After four years of knitting, I decided to FINALLY knit something for me. Enter the Shalom Cardigan (link for Ravelry users only). But I liked the modifications that Ravelry user ishi has done: She added sleeves, the waist shaping was gone, and two more buttons were added. So, once again, Brook to the rescue. She helped me figured out some maths when I needed to redo the pattern to my measurements. Had I been sticking to the regular pattern, I could have figured out the maths myself, but figuring out the maths at the same time as I was taking into consideration a pattern mod was making my head explode.

However, once it was completed and I tried it on it had the unfortunate effect of making me look several months pregnant. But I thought it might just fit my mom. The biggest hurdle (no pun intended) would be her bust since her bust line is larger than mine. But if she would be comfortable wearing it without buttoning it, it might work. So when she visited me the first week in December she tried it on (sans sleeves, since I'd halted progress in disgust when I'd realised it was no longer for me). It was a perfect fit. I wouldn't even had to frog the garter stitch hem to make the body longer!

She asked me to make the sleeves as long as I could with the remaining half skein of yarn. Brook helped me out with that, recommending that I knit one sleeve from the outside of the yarn ball and the other sleeve from the center pull. That worked well, and I ended up having MUCH longer sleeves than I anticipated!

The finished product on Christmas Day (well, fake Christmas Day due to the blizzard):

VJC Trip Recap

Note: This is all just a quick recap. More details with pics to follow in days to come.

Thursday: Picked Mom up from airport. Loop, then Spool. Trader Joe's for road trip snackie snacks. Supper with Sarah, Peter, Sue, Margaret, Brook. Fibre Night. Home.

Friday: Started loading car at 8:00 a.m.. Target for snackie snacks (and five pounds of potatoes for 50 cents!). Hit Charlotte around 6:30 p.m. Hit IKEA - Mom's first IKEA experience, so we supped there, too.

Saturday: Lowe's Motor Speedway (raining, of course). Tour of infield. Met some Richard Petty Driving Experience mechanics. Got to hit the Speedway at 80 mph. Found out if RPDE was there the next day, I'd have gotten a SWEET birthday present five weeks early. :( Went to RaceWorldUSA where MWR is housed where you can watch the cars, engines, etc., being worked on. Met Cristi for lunch and yarn/fabric crawl.

Sunday: Met Cristi again for lunch and yarn crawl. Headed to Greensboro.

Monday: Victory Junction Camp tour/afghan drop. Went to RCR for a stealth visit and an interesting non-run-in with security despite our best efforts (yes, you read that correctly). Met my friends Dave and Carolyn in Fairfax for supper. Decided to overnight in King of Prussia instead of making it back home.

Tuesday: Hit KoP mall where Mom finally found a chocolate-caramel-covered apple. Went to Brook's house where we picked up Brook and Alex and hit The Pop Shop for lunch. Dropped off Brook and Alex, then home where Mom and I cried about what a great time we had and how we'd miss each other. Watching us, you'd never guess it would only be FIFTEEN days until we see each other again for the holidays.

This Is It

Last night, Ella and I had an evening on the town. We decided to have supper at Marathon Grill and then take in the Michael Jackson documentary, "This Is It."

I didn't get to catch up on Ella's life as much as I wanted to since I hogged up much of the conversation telling her about the dysfunction at work. And, unfortunately, we spent some amount of time trying to flag down restaurant personnel in an attempt to find out if we would actually get to eat our supper before we had to leave for the theater (it took us about 40 minutes to get our food).

The food was good but not spectacular, but props to the restaurant for hiring some excellent eye candy. Well done, hiring people! I won't speak for Ella, but I felt slightly skeevy upon finding out the server who I'd been eyeing wasn't even old enough to drink. Oops.

We headed over to the theater with ten minutes to spare. After we had put in our order, Ella had run over to get the tickets and there was reserved seating, so there was no particular rush, although I did have to wait in line to get the assistive listening device headset. Then, when we got seated, there was a whole seating debacle. I won't go into the whole thing because it was too stupid to take up my energy here and now, but it was ridiculous. Ella summed it up neatly in three words: sense of entitlement.

The movie. OMGWOW. Since I found out last night when I got home that the domestic run has been extended through the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, I WILL be seeing this again in the theater. If anyone would like to go with me, just say the word. I also called my mom (an MJ fan, although not as big of a fan as I am) and encouraged her to go see it as there are certain parts that just absolutely will NOT translate to the small screen ("Thriller" special effects, I'll talking to you).

There were times in the movie where I giggled, laughed, and (of course) cried. I came prepared with plenty of tissues, and I used them liberally. I sat next to two middle-aged women who were also pretty familiar with MJ's body of work, and they kept a running dialogue throughout. With my headset on, I couldn't make out what they were saying, though.

I was worried that I'd be upset by the treatment of some of the songs or the dances, as if it wasn't MJ doing them, which is ridiculous. But you know how it is sometimes... you go to a concert and the artist decides to "jazz up" your favourite song and completely ruins it. I guess I've become SO jaded and SO cynical and SO defensive on Michael's behalf that ANY time the media does something about him, I get my guard up.

However, I was only disappointed three times, and I think only die-hard MJ fans would have looked for the moments I was looking for. Once was when he did "Billie Jean." When he did "Billie Jean" for the "Motown 25th Anniversary" special on television, he debuted the Moonwalk. But when he rehearsed the number for the concert, he broke out a LOT of moves and he seemed to be working up to the Moonwalk, but, no. Turns out that MJ is just a cocktease.


The second that disappointed me was when he did "Smooth Criminal." The moment in that video that blew most people's minds was The Lean. And while they recreated a lot of the dance for the concert, there was no lean. Boo. ALTHOUGH I love love LOVE what they did do. I think maybe some moviegoers might have had a "WTF?" moment when they started that segment of the movie, but as soon as it came up, I knew without a doubt that it was going to be "Smooth Criminal." MJ is SO predictable sometimes (and I say that with love. L-O-V-E.) No spoilers here, though. Go see it. (or buy it on DVD at a store not named Wal-Mart on 17 December. /Shameless plug.)

The third (and final) disappointment was that his treatment for "The Earth Song" was almost an EXACT replica of the video. While the video WAS good, I daresay that only the most diehard MJ fans could tell you what it was, the premise of it, or how it unfolds. It certainly isn't one he's KNOWN for. And while I know that environmental issues were always near and dear to Michael's heart, I wish he had come up with something different. He certainly never had a dearth of creativity; I'm not sure why he'd choose this video to recycle.

Overall, though, the movie was amazing, spectacular, wonderful, and then amazing some more. It made me remember how gentle and humble Michael is. How much he cared about the other artists and their talent being showcased. How much he just LOVES what he does. How much he loves music and dance and performing. How much he KNOWS music and IS his music. How much of a technician he is. How much he craved perfection, and how much he wanted his fans to see The Best Show EVER.

The atmosphere in the theater was almost like seeing a mini-concert - there was a small-ish crowd of people who clapped after most songs (not after every song because of the nature of how the movie segued); when familiar songs came on (like "I Want You Back" by the Jackson 5"), I wasn't the only one rolling my arms back and forth; it was nice to be a room where I could sit in my chair at the end and sob and feel like everyone understood.

One of the most heartbreaking moments for me was when he performed "Human Nature." He seemed to just completely get lost in the moment and let loose and have fun with the dance moves and the vocals. And that song... what a classic. The other moment when I just about lost was when the first strains of notes of "Man in the Mirror" played. See, when Michael's memorial service ended and they took his casket out of the stadium, that was the song they played. And since then, I can't hear that song without seeing the image of his casket leaving the room.


Missing you, Michael, as always.

SEPTA Strike: Day Four

SEPTA strikers, how dare you!
by Ronnie Polaneczky

YO, SEPTA WORKERS.

As a fellow trade-union member, I'm having a big problem with you, solidarity-wise.

Not only is your strike strangling the city - keeping kids from school, people from jobs, patients from doctors' appointments - but it's a thumbed-nose to something for which most folks reading this paper would give their back molars: The promise of a paycheck for the next 60 months.

I'm thinking about the 400 employees at Crozer Chester Medical Center who lost their jobs this year. And the 22 staffers axed last Thursday at Drinker Biddle & Reath. And the Comcast employees who learned on Wednesday that the cable giant plans to pink-slip a number of workers, even though the company is enjoying a fabulously profitable year.

Hell, it's a promise I wish we had right here at the Daily News.

We've lost dozens of staffers in recent years, and the paper's possible demise is a topic of endless speculation.

So let me get this straight: Unemployment is rampant in this region, and your union actually chose to strike rather than continue hammering out the details of your already excellent jobs? Jobs that we, the transit-dependent public, need you to perform so that our own financially teetering lives don't crash and burn?

Where do you people get off?

Your good jobs would only get better with SEPTA's opening offer - a deal that Gov. Rendell rightly described as "sensational." The contract calls for you to pocket a signing bonus of $1,250, just for agreeing to the damn thing. It would give you a 2.5 percent raise next year. And a 3 percent annual increase for three years after that.

The proposal doesn't require you to donate even a nickel more to your health-care plan. Do you have any clue how sweet that is?

It even comes with an offer to increase pension contributions to 11 percent over the next five years. I know, your leadership disputes that figure. But at least you still have a pension to argue about. Not everyone is so lucky.

Yet you looked at all of this and said, "Let's walk out."

So, please, tell me: When you're behind the wheel of the bus, what planet are you driving on?

This is the part of my rant where I think I'm supposed to toss you a bone. To concede that interacting with the city's rough citizenry can be punishing to even the sunniest people in the transit business. That moving millions of people from here to there is so much more grueling than we could ever know.

Sorry, no bone.

Your 3 a.m. walk-off, which left tens of thousands of us stranded without notice, was outrageous. It cemented the worst belief about SEPTA workers - that you hold us, the people who pay your wages through taxes and the fare box, in contempt. Good luck trying to improve that image once the wheels start rolling again.

Sadly, your strike also unfairly strengthens the perception that all unions are as entitled and grabby as you are. Your president, Willie Brown, actually said, "We agreed not to strike during the World Series. We took people to the game because we are professionals. Now it's time to reward us."

Reward you? For doing the jobs that we pay among the highest fares in the country for you to do?

Can we wipe your noses for you while we're at it?

You also have a bizarre notion that you're in some sort of profit-sharing relationship with SEPTA. Brown has pointed out that, while the economy is doing badly, SEPTA is not. Ridership is up, and the agency has gotten money from state and stimulus funds. So, your warped thinking goes, you're entitled to a fatter slice of the pie.

News flash: It's not your pie. It's ours. If SEPTA is flush, it's incumbent on the agency to plow that money back into new equipment, improved routes and - here's a fun idea - customer-service training for workers whose job protection keeps them from caring whether they snarl or smile at us.

Are there some outstanding issues you have with SEPTA management? No doubt. All grown-ups have issues with the boss. Unlike you, though, what we don't have is the ability to hold a city hostage for as long as our tantrum lasts.

So, please, get back to work. And admit that your negotiating hasn't been just about getting more for yourselves.

It's been about getting more - much, much more - than the rest of us.

SEPTA Strike

Yep, another strike.

My life is all about strikes right now. As a lot of you know right now (either from my status messages on Gchat, my incessant phone calls, or my nonstop IMs), SEPTA (that's the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority - or mass/public transit - to you non-locals) is on strike.

Their contract expired last March, but they didn't strike then because they wisely decided that it wasn't in their best interest to strike then. They issued a statement then that they recognised that it wasn't a good to strike, that too many people were depending on them to get to jobs, etc. Then, last week, they suddenly decided that they couldn't work without a contract any more and that they would strike at 12:01 a.m. Saturday morning.

And, oh, it was just a coincidence that this was the same weekend as three World Series games, three Pearl Jam concerts, a Philadelphia Flyers game, and a Philadelphia Eagles game. Now, for you non-locals, all of these events take place in the same area - the Sports Complex in South Philly. And the best, fastest, easiest way to get there? The Broad Street Subway.

Governor Rendell finally stepped in and threatened to withhold SEPTA's state funding if they went on strike. So they didn't. And the city breathed a collective sigh of relief. And all was well.

Until the Philly part of the World Series ended in the wee hours on Monday. People went to sleep happy because the Phillies had won, extending the Series. Not knowing that SEPTA employees would walk out mere hours later.

Tuesday morning, I woke up at 5:20 a.m., got ready for work, walked to my trolley stop and waited. And a women walked by and informed me that I shouldn't continue to wait for the trolley because SEPTA went on strike as of 3:00 a.m. that morning. WTF???

So I walked to the nearest train station. Last week, I had purchased a train pass, in case they went on strike (it only costs $6 more than my usual pass since I'm in Zone 1 so, for me, it wasn't much of a gamble) so that was okay. I walked the five blocks to the train stop, practically running so I could catch the first train, mistakenly thinking it came at 6:15 (it comes at 6:07). However, it didn't come until 6:39 anyway. So I ran (in my dress shoes and work clothes) for nothing. Yay me.

I meet up with my coworker on the train. We get off at the main university campus stop, which is two miles from the hospital campus. My coworker and I end up meeting up with some other random hospital worker, so now there are three of us facing a two-mile walk to the hospital. My coworker decides he doesn't want to walk, so we get to red light, he picks a car, knocks on the window, asks the guy if he's going up to the hospital and if he minds giving the three of us a ride!!!! AND THE GUYS SAYS OKAY!!!!

So, yeah, we hitched a ride. And the guy didn't kill us. Getting home was another story. I had to walk the two miles from the hospital to the main campus, catch the train, and get off in the city because I had an appointment. Then to actually get home, I had to wait in a long-ass hour-long line at the train station. At each station, they only let a certain number of people get on so that they can still guarantee people getting on at each station, which is pretty smart of them.

Today, instead of hitching a ride with a random person this morning, we flagged down a random empty SCHOOL BUS. Yeah, you heard me. The hospital is supposed to run shuttles, but all HR will tell us is that the shuttles run a 40-minute loop and that the shuttles are clearly marked with the university logo in front. Well, this bus was clearly marked with the Philadelphia Eagles logo all over. And one of the women in our group flagged it down and asked him if he was going by the hospital. He said he was, so he gave us a ride.

Who knows what tomorrow's adventure will be.

Oh, and by the way. The offer the SEPTA union turned down?

Wages: No raise this year, but a $1,250 ratification bonus; a 2.5% raise in Year 2, and 3% raise in Years 3, 4, and 5. An 11% increase in pension contributions, and no increase in workers' contributions to health insurance benefits for five years.