0070.

Three Things, Christmas Edition.



Since I totally failed at writing a timely Christmassy blog, I will do it now.

I was going to add my New Years Edition as well, but after finishing the Christmas portion, I figured you will have had enough out of me for one day. So here it is.

Three Things I Loved About Christmas (And One I Did Not.)

1. CIT* Reunion Party.

I don't know what it was about those three weeks in 2006 that linked us together, but I will always have a special place in my heart for that group of people. And even though it wasn't quite the same as our 2006 Christmas reunion, it was good for my heart and I loved every minute of it. I miss Sarah's outrageous rants and apparently ninja-like fashion, the word "shladies" which was so lovingly brought back from obscurity by Michael Gold, and reliving our camp experiences one by one. Everyone has their individual quirks, and it's awesome.
Okay. Sorry about that for those who have no idea who those people are.

*CIT- Counselor In Training*

2. The Return of Guitar Hero.

I fancy myself a pretty mean shredder on guitar hero, but my brother took his XBox back from me after he moved into his apartment, so I was left guitar hero-less this semester while my skills waned daily.
But with the release of Guitar Hero 5 and Band Hero, which was my brother's girlfriend's Christmas present, the color coded frets returned to my life and I was able to rock out again. And by that I mean stare at the tv looking concerned, because if I rock out too hard, I start missing notes.

3. Mandolin.

My loving boyfriend got me a mandolin for Christmas, which may seem random to you, but I always contend that the sound of a mandolin can instantly make you feel better about life.
So right now I can play about 6 chords (knowing how to play guitar helps) and the intro to the REM classic, "Losing My Religion," which features a mandolin.

So...there's that.

Oh, and the One Thing I Didn't:

1. Helen and Ferris collectively ruining Christmas.

Who are Helen and Ferris, you ask? Only the two people responsible for us NOT hearing annually-worse a cappella rendition of O Come O Come Emmanuel sung by Helen, our music director, at my family's church's Christmas Eve Service. Now, this song usually opens the service and we look forward to it every year. Not for its sonic appeal, but for the sake of tradition...and because it's usually pretty bad.
This year, even though it was listed in the program, Ferris (our pastor--also a woman--I can't make this stuff up) marched herself up to the pulpit and just started welcomin' away without giving Helen a chance to sing.
Now, Helen, appearing to have forgotten her starring role, sat herself down in the choir loft, oblivious to the fact that there are fans in the audience whose Christmas joy hinges on her very solo [read: us].

...And Christmas was ruined.
After a song or two, a flustered Helen mentioned that she "forgot" to sing O Come O Come Emmanuel. But did she rectify the situation? No. She simply continued with the hymn and ignored her Christmas duty to society.

So there you have it, folks. My Christmassy Blog.