December 2005
Beer and music
Did you know that there’s a brewery in Gloucester, Massachusetts? I sure didn’t, and I grew up five minutes away from it. As it turns out, their Fisherman’s Brew is pretty tasty, though I’m not sure it actually “reflects the spirit and courage of the sailors of the North Atlantic fishing fleet.” Maybe it does, though - I’m not really sure what spirit and...
Merry merry, and so on
So Christmas has come and gone, though I’m still in Massachusetts soaking up the crazy North Shore wilderness (as well as a wide variety of booze). Friday afternoon, Chris and I piled into a big friendly Volvo with my brother and his girlfriend for what ought to have been about a four hour drive, but - it being 23 December, after all - it ended up taking about seven and a half hours....
Buh
Got kicked out of a bar last night for the first time in many years. Although strictly speaking it wasn’t me that got kicked out - just the fresh-faced NYU students I was with. But we all ended up leaving, so it amounts to the same thing. Ah, youth.
It’s freakishly warm here today (52 degrees) and rainy. We were told it would be cold and snowy, but I guess that’ll learn me for...
Cold, Depeche Mode
It’s been very cold this week - Chris and I generally prefer cold weather to warm, but even we have been blasting the heat during the nights. I wear socks at all times, including while showering. (Okay, maybe not while showering.)
I’m aware that the New York definition of “very cold” is probably pretty wimpy compared to the North Dakotan or Canadian notion. Hell, my...
Etc
Sorry for my absence the past couple of days - I came down with a brutal cold and didn’t do much except cough and complain all weekend. (Chris was overjoyed.) One pleasant surprise, though, was the fact that those noxious Cold-Eeze lozenges actually seem to work - I faithfully took them for the first couple days of symptoms, and sure enough my entire cold only lasted four days instead of my...
Reading
I tend to have at least two books going at a time ā one large one I read in bed, and one smaller paperback I carry in my bag and read on the train. I just finished both of the ones I was working on, so I thought Iād mention them briefly. The train book was The Little Country, a favorite of mine from high school that I was rereading for fun. The bed book was Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrel ā a...
Miscellaneous Merriment
On the one hand, I’m thrilled that we didn’t have to wait until late January for our first snowfall this year, but on the other hand, I’m a little vexed that the cold weather came so quickly. I haven’t actually gotten around to digging out hats and scarves and gloves yet because, after all, it was barely a week ago that I was wearing blazers and sweatshirts instead of giant...
Snow
We got our first snow of the season yesterday, or maybe Saturday night. Either way, I woke up on Sunday to see snow falling outside and a fair amount on the ground already. Our courtyard filled up pretty quickly with lopsided snowmen and kids having snowball fights. I guess this means it’s officially winter, and I think I’m okay with that - at least this year I have boots.
Booze + TiVo + Chocolate
I am, of course, even more tired today after my excursion last night, but it’s Friday - so who cares. In a few hours I’ll be settled in at home with some wine and some TiVo and will probably fall asleep on the couch catching up on a week’s worth The Colbert Report. Which is as it should be.
Actually, speaking of falling asleep on the couch, Chris and I have been sampling a...
Zzz
Feeling really sleepy this week - I’ve been having trouble getting up in the morning and then yawning all day when I finally do. I guess I didn’t really catch up on my sleep last weekend as I usually do, so probably what I need to do is just pass out for about twelve hours. Instead, I’m going out drinking tonight. (I have never claimed to be sensible.)
I just had another...
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