10 things I love about my dad

My dad passed in 1999 and every year that goes by I miss him more.

I’m sure I cannot miss him more than my mom, who I know will forever feel a huge void in her life left by his absence. But like her, I do miss him something fierce, and especially during the holiday season.

Just in case you’ve never met him here are 10 things I love about my dad (and if you knew him, you would too.)

10. He had sparkly crystal blue eyes. Gorgeous! (My sister inherited those eyes. I hate her! No, I don’t. But I would trade eyeballs in an instant!)

9. He was the king of bear hugs. Nobody could give a hug like him.

8. He insisted on having Black Eyed Peas every New Year.

7. Sang a capella around the house.

6. He never said a bad word about anyone. It wasn’t his way. My mother still marvels about that.

5. He always called me Marge. I don’t know why.

4. When I was a little girl, he let me drive his golf cart, drink his beer and puff from his cigar. This has turned me into a delinquent of an adult, but I loved that he let me do it way back then.

3. He enjoyed gentlemanly manners—opened doors, pulled out your chair, held your coat. He never raised his voice in public places. And he never understood how his kids turned out to be such uncouth hooligans.

2. He was a world traveler. He taught his kids to love traveling as much as he did. His best advice: learn to say “beer” in just about every language. What more does one need to know?

1. He was quick to smile.

Love,

me

Still procrastinating

Our little household is hunkered down and working hard.

I’m studying. Jack’s prepping for his conference. The dog and cats are snoozing in their respective nests.

The lights are down to a mellow glow and there’s Christmas music floating in the background. The Christmas tree is twinkling at us and you can smell pasta sauce simmering on the stove. It’s a quiet melancholy Sunday.

And I’m about to go out of my mind, I’m so sick of studying!

What better time to shake things up and look for some new Christmas tunes, eh?

To followup on my a capella theme, here’s Take 6: The Most Wonderful Time of the Year.

Jazzy. Soulful. Beautiful!

Procrastination

I’ve got an exam tomorrow and finals next week. I’m up to my eyeballs studying.

I know for a fact I had a better memory 20 years ago! Where did it go?

If you find it laying on the side of the road, bedraggled and tired, gasping for breath … will you please send it back to me?

I miss it.

I’m sure it misses me, too.

We would like to be reunited.

In the meantime, since I can’t find my memory, I’m going to take a break tonight and watch the Sing-Off.

I only recently discovered the Sing-Off, an a capella group competition. It’s ANOTHER reality singing show. I know, I know. I haven’t seen any of those other ones so I can’t compare, but I’m a sucker for a capella—my dad was an amazing a capella singer, so I have a soft spot in my heart for it.

It’s too bad not all in my household are as enamored by the whole singing and dancing thing as I am.

Bobby McFerrin on Sing-Off. Showing the power of “just voice”. Awesome.

This was the conversation that took place recently between me and Jack. He was working late on a project and wasn’t yet home.

Me: You’re so glad that you’re not home tonight and watching TV with me.

Jack: Did Glee move to Mondays instead of Tuesdays? (meaning he would miss the show)

Me: You’re not that lucky.

Jack: !@#$!

Me: No, I’m watching this terrific competition singing show.

Jack: !@#$!

Me: blah, blah, blah, blah, blah … love the show!

Jack: (silence)

Me: Hello? … Hello? … Anyone there?

Heh.

Anyway … it’ll be a nice break from studying tonight.

And no, I’m not procrastinating … why do you ask?

Alaskan Vodka

Lat night we went to a Vodka tasting party at my good friend Simone’s house. It’s a fun way to kick off the round of holiday parties that are coming forth.

Our contribution to the tasting bar was Permafrost, a vodka distilled in Alaska.

With curiosity we waited for everyone’s “tasting” verdict  …

Christmasfying the house

We flew out to Oklahoma for the Thanksgiving holiday. We had a great time with the family, especially spending time with Baby Bree. (She’s such a great baby.) There’s something wonderful about mornings in the kitchen, everyone hanging out in their pajamas, cooking breakfast, sipping coffee, chatting and laughing.

It was a good time.

We arrived back home late Saturday night.

First thing Sunday morning we grabbed a couple cups of coffee and headed out to the local Christmas Tree Farm to chop down our perfect holiday tree. Boy, was it a zoo! But a fun zoo, filled with families, fake Santas, tractor pulled sleighs and barns decked out in holiday decorations.

Ever since we’ve been de-pumpkining the house in favor of Christmasfying.

(Yes, I just made those words up. They don’t actually exist. But they sure do hit the spot, don’t they? That’s the way we roll around here. Who cares about being articulate? When in doubt, make it up! Whoo! Livin’ it up here in wacky California! We’re such innovators.)

Anyway, there’s a fine line when it comes to holiday decorations. On the one hand, you want it to be full so that there will be an impact—invoking that oh, so cozy holiday feeling. But on the other hand, you don’t want it to look like Santa’s Workshop threw up all over the place either. Yeesh, it’s a slippery slope to tacky, folks.

Where did we land?