it’s time to pause for reflection on the year past. a lot has happened. and even though it went by fast, it seems like such a long time ago.

a year ago:
i was working.
i was depressed.
i wasn’t with an amazing lady.
i wasn’t sure about anything.
i was pretending not to care.

this year:
i will find new ways of living (make playing only logical harm).
i will continue to pursue happiness.
i will continue to love my amazing woman.
i will be all i can be (not in the army).
i will not be afraid anymore.

this is my goodbye to a strange year of a rollercoaster ride. i won’t forget this year, nor do i plan on repeating it.

always move forward.

one of the perks of staying at a big house is that there’s a driveway where a car can be maintained. it’s been a long time since i performed my own lube job. today, i got to do just that.

i jacked mr. y up and went to work. everything went smoothly except for the extra tight oil filter. i had to get both my hands around it and ended up scorching my knuckle. but what are car repairs without the occasional injury?

it felt good to do something productive on my car instead of letting things go or taking it to some place where you don’t really know what they are doing to it.

oh, and if you need to see a good movie, check out big willie style in the pursuit of happyness. you won’t be disappoynted.

there will be no hot tubbing tonight. it’s cold, it was drizzly all day, and they’re saying it might even snow at our slightly elevated position. i’m ok with it, because it would make lady friend happy.

we’re watching jewel of the nile now and drinking white zinfandel. don’t worry, i’m not turning into a wino. my moms brought it over last night and i’m giving it a shot. it’s fine, i guess, if you’re into that sort of thing.

we went to trader joe’s earlier and picked up some specialty foods. stuff like gourmet pizza, spicy hummus dip, and tiramisu gelato. i can’t wait for dinner. i may even be putting on weight, but i’m not sure yet.

it rained tonight. the doggies got scared. we turned on the dryer to calm them. it’s the white noise. it’s peaceful to canine brains. sometimes i want my own canine brain, so i can be soothed by putting my head next to a dryer.

i’m ready for the rich lifestyle to go away. i like the simple life (the one not starring paris hilton or nicole ritchie). our apartment. our plant(s). our queen size bed that i fit on.

of all the indulgent things, i think the hot tub will be missed the most. having a private warm bubbly place under the stars is wonderful. if i could sleep in it, i would.

waiting for the hot tub to warm up, i sit here pondering the events of a wonderful day.

we went to lady friend’s parent’s place for family festivities. this lasted the majority of the day, but was fantastically fun.

we ate: homemade tamales, homemade tacos, homemade beans, homemade rice, and cake with ice cream. the tacos were great. you open the pre-meated taco shell and place lettuce, mexican cheese, peas, radishes, salsa/sauce, and hot sauce. sounds odd, but tasted wonderful.

the children were wild and crazy. they danced the santa dance (a.k.a. the twist) and sang songs about tony hawk and humpty dumpty. when left unattended they played in a toilet. hair was wet, laughter ensued.

i ended up getting a toolkit, a nice shirt, and a mad libs card game. pretty nice for not expecting to get anything.

my faith in christmas has officially been restored.