Happy New Year's Eve! I have never been very good at celebrating this holiday, maybe thats why I'm not a big fan. Last year Jon and I spent it by painting my kitchen cabinets, but Jon got sick from the paint fumes, and had to go to bed.

This year Jon and I worked on demolishing his bathroom. I smashed up tiles in the closet, while he tore down drywall and smashed up more tile. It was a productive day, but we felt like we should do something, so we found some friends to have dinner with.

In Jon's family, they exchange books for New Year's. He doesn't know why they started it, but it seems like a good tradition. Jon gave me a pulpy detective novel, a genre that I love. I gave him a book on using a compass and navigating in the wild. I can remember playing Risk all night on New Year's as a kid, but you can't play Risk with only two people. We're playing Battleship instead. May seem lame to you, but what do you for New Year's? Drink? We didn't make it to midnight, we got tired and went to bed at 11:30.

I got tired of the surgical strips covering my scars, so I tore them off. The scars look pretty good, and are all healed up.

My house almost burned down tonight. Jon and I were in the living room when the power blinked out for a second. We thought it was just the snow that was coming down. An hour or so later my dad goes into the garage, where it was smoky and smelled of ozone. He found this. Apparently the power strip did not pop like it was supposed to. Luckily none of the stuff in the garage got a spark to ignite. I don't have a fire detector in my garage. I need to get one, and a few more in the house too (I only have one). I have 2 fire extinguishers, but a few more of those strategically placed might be a good idea too.

I couldn't think of anything to take a picture of today. But someone once told me that a picture of me smiling was always acceptable. :-)

Jon and I were in the grocery store, and saw a display of Rubbermaid containers. Jon said he wanted to get some large tubs to store his electrical and plumbing supplies in. The next thing either of us remembers is being in the Container Store buying a bunch of elfa shelving units. Unfortunately we measured wrong the first time, and had to make a return trip to the store. But this finished storage unit looks awesome. Previously, there was a wooden shlef above the water heater, and a pile of stuff in the floor. Now, Jon's garage is neat, organized, and there is space for more stuff. Not bad for a spur of the moment thing.

Karyn has given me a deadly weapon. Her neighbors keep giving her Christmas cookies, and she said "Here, here is a cookie jar full of cookies. Eat them for me." I have no willpower to resist. They are very tasty, especially the gingersnap ones. I do only eat 1 or 2 a day, and Jon helps me, but I cannot finish the cookie jar. There are just too many.

Merry Christmas! This is the first white Christmas in central Texas since 1926. Its wonderful. We opened presents with Jon's family through Skype, which was fun. We were at his house, but our Christmas stuff was at my house. The roads were pretty icy, so we decided to walk. Its only a mile, and it was so much fun to be out in the snow. When we got to my house, my dad had the cinnamon rolls ready. Some of my neighbors had a snowball fight, and I'm so jealous that I can't throw.

This is my present from Jon. He wraps stuff in brown paper, which is wonderfully fun. He got creative this time and tied it up with copper wire. Inside I found a two-person four-season backpacking tent. I can't wait to go use it. He unwrapped his giant package to find a large tile wet saw. It may not sound that romantic to you, but he's in the middle of a bathroom remodel, and also has a kitchen and laundry room to tackle.

We went to dinner at a friend's house, and came home with full bellies and lots of leftovers. A nice Christmas.

Its Christmas Eve! And the weather outside is frightful. It started raining last night, and turned into snow today. The wind is about 30 mph, with stronger gusts. Jon and I made a lovely little Christmas Eve dinner. We ordered a smoked turkey from a barbecue restaurant, and made green bean casserole, garlic mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, and stuffing. We're now making smore's in front of a very nice fire. I managed to get the last bag of marshmallows at the grocery store.

Today was a gorgeous day. It was around 75 degrees, sunny with no wind. I didn't want to spend the whole day indoors, so I came outside to be productive. I spray painted my rain barrel to match my house today. It looks glorious. And I'm sure this ring on the grass will go away soon.

Jon decided to stay with me this Christmas instead of going back to New York. How sweet. So we are having fun. We went to see Avatar today in IMAX 3D. We went to a 2:00 show on a Tuesday afternoon, but the theater was packed. The line was down the hall, around the corner, and down the hall again. We took Dramamine, and I was a little naseous before it kicked in. The movie was really good though.

I went to the gym today and rode the recumbant bike, and as I was leaving, I ran into Joy. She told me they were going to open the pool again next year! Yay! Its the only olympic size pool in town, and part of the city's budget plan for next year was to close all of the public pools. I like swimming. I'm not that good, or fast, but its fun. Its also a great core workout.

Its a beautiful winter day, so Jon and I decided to take the opportunity to trim his shrubs. I helped, even though I only have one arm. I trimmed the fig tree and hollies, while Jon planted a new bush and trimmed the Texas sage and the other shrub that I don't know the name of. We also cut down the oak tree that was growing inches from his foundation. It was a lovely tree, 11 years old according to the rings, but its location was just terrible. We cut it into firewood, so it will be used for something.

This is a parsnip. I've never eaten a parsnip before, so Jon and I decided to try some. I think they are very tasty, sweeter than carrots. They are also in season right now. I want to learn to eat seasonally and locally when I can. Right now, citrus, carrots, parsnips, sweet potatoes, peppers, and greens are in season in Texas. I should also go to the farmers market, but I always forget.

This is the book I got from the library. I think its really good, even if it was kind of scary in places. Since I've been home I haven't done much besides read. I have cleaned up my office a little, and gotten pictures for my travel collage frames. I take George for walks, and yesterday I even went to the gym and rode the recumbant bike. I've been to the dentist, and the physical therapist, and the doctor, and even went and got my H1N1 vaccine. They gave me the nasal mist instead of the shot, I guess because I already have one arm out of comission they didn't want to mess with the other. With the rest of my recouperation time I want to organize my closets, plan my garden, go birdwatching, and re-evaluate my financial portfolio. I do have a few more books I want to read, and I'm researching bathroom stuff for Jon's remodel.

This afternoon I walked to the local library and got my library card. It was nice and sunny out, and it felt good to be outdoors. According to Google maps, its only 0.8 miles one way anyway. I used to go to the library all of the time. When I was in elementary school, I was one of the only kids in my class to have a library card. I went to the library when I first moved here, but haven't been in a long time. I will look up books I'm interested in on their website, but they never have what I want. This time they had the book, so I decided to go.

Archie has to go to the vet today. Poor kitty. She does not like to go anywhere, least of all the vet. Its very hard to get her into her carrier in the first place. She doesn't like to be picked up much, and most mornings she's not even in the mood to be petted, so she normally avoids you. My dad and I spent about five minutes chasing her around the house. We had all of the bedroom doors shut, so she couldn't escape. My dad was wearing a leather coat and oven mitts, so she couldn't fight back. She was running around, yowling, hissing, swatting, and trying to hide. It was so sad. She went behind the Christmas tree, under the end tables, and then, looking for a safe spot, she ran into the carrier. My dad and I decided that worked, and we shut the door. Poor thing, trying to escape and instead she runs straight to her doom. I felt bad, but it really wasn't her doom, it was just a rabies shot.

This is the last antibiotic pill I have to take. Ever since the surgery, I've had to take one every six hours. Its a pain, especially in the middle of the night. They are just a precautionary measure, its not like I was exposed to anything.

These are my surgical stitches. There is a fourth hole on the back of my shoulder. They don't bother me, except for the fact I have to keep band-aids on them. They have to be waterproof band-aids when I take a shower, too. Tearing off band-aids evey day or so for a week hurts.

It was really nice out today, so Jon and I went for a walk around his neighborhood. I think getting up and doing things makes you feel better faster than just laying around.

The black thing on my arm is the Ultrasling II, complete with the red squeezy ball holster. It has a thick pad attached to keep my arm out from my side a bit, and lots of velcro and adjustable straps. The gray thing is the icepack from my Iceman machine. All around the shoulder and upper arm is a water bladder, and there are two hoses that come out the bottom. I can hook the hoses up to a cooler I have full of ice and water, and the ice water will be pumped up to my shoulder. I only have to use the Iceman for the first few days, and then whenever I want. I have to wear the sling for 3 weeks day and night, and then for 3 more weeks just at night.

I made preserved lemons from some of the lemons from my tree. This is my first canning experience, although its not the normal pressure or boiling canning. The acid and salt and olive oil keep the lemons good. We made lemonade from the rest of the lemons, and it was the most delicious lemonade Jon or I have ever had. The Meyer lemon is crossed with an orange, which makes it more sweeter, and you can taste it. Yum.