best christmas tree ever

a good friend of my mom's turned up for a little get-together on friday with a lovely bag of goodies - yummy smelling candle, bottle of wine, and a homemade christmas tree. i think the picture speaks for itself....

thank you sir, may i have another?!

so there we were - self and i at a thank you reception for a charity giving campaign at a major hospital. execs and hospital administrators lined the back wall in rows of chairs set up for the event. the hospital CEO stood on the dais at the front of the room, thanking everyone for their generosity and then announced he would be presenting oversized, cardboard checks to each of the three charity partners. he called the name of the first charity and i rose from my seat to walk to the front of the room to accept the check on behalf of my organization. and this is what happened....

self: don't trip, for god's sake. seriously do NOT trip.

me: totally ignoring you right now.

self: ok, we're almost there. firm handshake, then smile pretty for the camera

me: (reaching out to shake CEO's hand) i've done this a million times. don't talk to me.

self: ok, fine. just get in the group pic with the CEO and the other 2 execs and smile.

me: stop annoying me. i know how to hold a huge cardboard check and smile.

self: ok, ok. oh wait, picture lady wants you to move forward a litte. better hold that check at the side and the bottom.

me: ok, ok. i'm not going to drop the f'ing check. i'll just step forward.....

self: oh my god. you did not just do that.

me: yeah, pretty sure i did.

self: you realize that when you stepped forward, the CEO did too, and you grazed his....

me: yes! i know. i may have accidentally brushed him with my hand in an inappropriate place.

self: ha ha!!! you touched his penis!! how embarrassing!!!

me: it was an accident!!

self: wow. you get an $11,000 check and you cop a feel. nice. classy.

me: please shut up.

self: i just hope that look on your face got caught on camera! see if we get invited back next time!

me: walking back to chair now and pretending that did NOT happen.

self: live in denial. fine with me.

me: you're enjoying this too much.

self: you should have just tripped. would have been less embarrassing.

me: i hate you.

reason #128 why i love coming home for thanksgiving

thanksgiving with parents

thanksgiving with self

no contest.

season of change

the other day i was walking down the street, kicking my way through the piles of orange, red and gold littering the sidewalk. looking up at the trees, i realized they had shed most of their leaves and were starting to look rather bare, a sure sign that winter is just around the corner. as i thought about how quickly the summer had become fall and now fall was turning to winter, i began to wonder where that time had gone and how it had passed me by so fast. i thought surely it must have been because nothing of note had happened and i had just gone along with my normal routine in a daze, not really paying attention to particular events. immediately after that thought crossed my mind, i almost stopped in my tracks and laughed at how ridiculous it was that i could dismiss these past few months as anything but exciting.

the more i thought about the last few months, the more i realized that many things and people near and dear to me had changed. one friend became a new wife, my sister became a mother for the second time, my niece became a big sister, other friends became pet owners and car owners. some started new relationships, some ended old ones. new jobs, new apartments and new experiences were the norm. this autumn has been nothing short of - appropriately so - a time for turning over new leaves.

on a grand scale, we saw the election of the first african-american president, a man who is promising change and hope to a country starved for better government and leadership. i attended the rally fondly referred to by chicagoans as "obamapalooza" on election night and i still cannot find the appropriate words to describe the atmosphere among the hundreds of thousands gathered there in grant park that night. it was exciting, motivating, inspiring, and moving. people were cheering, crying, chanting and celebrating. saying i'm not sure that it will ever be possible again in my lifetime to feel that sense of camaraderie is probably a gross understatement.

as we all make changes in our lives and our new leaders strive to provoke change throughout our country, let's keep in mind that change is a good thing. with change comes hope - hope for a better life, a better future, a better understanding of each other and ourselves.

"You must be the change you wish to see in the world." -Mahatma Gandhi

tickets?!! i LOVE tickets!!

well, it's official. i am one of 65,000 lucky recipients of a ticket to attend the election celebration, dubbed in chicago as "obamapalooza", tomorrow night. wooo hooo!! yes, it will be a giant pain in the ass to get down there and back home, but this is history in the making and i'm going to be there!!!

don't forget to vote!!!

why my sister is awesome....

she sent this little treasure back with my mom after her recent visit to the UK. she just thought i'd love it. she was right. thanks sis!