The First Day of Christmas this year is about done. Our morning worship service was not well attended, but last night's (6:00 p.m.) was well attended. Katie made clam chowder (which had been a traditional Christmas Eve meal with us) according to my recipe.
After church, I stopped by Ginny's house to eat lunch with the family there and Chester (Katie's and Ginny's brother).
This evening, I went to a dinner party upstairs--Katie's son, his wife, 8 and 1/2 9ths of their baby and his mother-in law, two of Katie's three step-sons, and a friend. Stocking-opening was before dinner and present opening came after we ate. Altogether, it was a good celebration of the birth of our Lord.
Again, a blessed Christmas season and a blessed New Year for you all.
Johnny
On Christmas Eve, we went caroling at a nursing home with another family. Out of a party of 10, we had 9 very good singers... and me. All 3 of our sons have wonderful, loud, bass singing voices. We went up and down the long halls of the lonely Prince of Peace retirement village. If there was an open door, or someone in the hall, we stopped and serenaded them. We got lots of smiles and thank yous. One lady started crying, and I wasn't sure we'd be able to finish our song. As we walked down a long wing in the assisted living area, a resident followed us. When we got done serenading at the end of the hall, she said to us "When is someone going to come to my room, and see why I can't hear the sound?". We took that as meaning she wanted us to carol at her door, so we followed her back to her room. Garsh! We figured we were so good, that folks were requesting our presence! At here door, we started singing. She motioned us in. We all crammed into her little room, and sang about 3 verses of Joy to the World. When we were done, she smiled, and said "Who's going to fix my TV, so I can hear the sound?" A highschooler in the group figured out that the volume button on the TV had been turned all the way done. Problem solved, and we were on our way, a little humbled, but amused.Joy to the world you're TV;s fixed .... Sometimes, it's the little things, that remind us how blessed we are. Merry Christmas
Thanks to Chris / CopCarSS for my avatar.
As I finished stuffing myself with Christmas dinner, I heard my tablet, sitting next to my recliner, start making noises, which could only mean one thing - my Internet connection was once again working, after being down all day. That can only mean one thing - some technicians had their holiday ruined.
So now I can get caught up.
Once my dinner settles, I'll get to work on the apple pie...
Hope everyone got the gifts they wanted, and everyone ate their fill.
Merry Christmas!
Larry Resident Microferroequinologist (at least at my house) Everyone goes home; Safety begins with you My Opinion. Standard Disclaimers Apply. No Expiration Date Come ride the rails with me! There's one thing about humility - the moment you think you've got it, you've lost it...
Mookie And a Christmas funny to start your day: a church here in Lincoln is named "First Plymouth Congregational Church. Local television news reporterette has now renamed it to "First Plymouth Congressional Church.
And a Christmas funny to start your day: a church here in Lincoln is named "First Plymouth Congregational Church.
Local television news reporterette has now renamed it to "First Plymouth Congressional Church.
A beautiful, cold, clear, morning here today.
I wish you all a blessed Christmas.
So much for separation of church and state...I'd say more, but 'tis the season to be jolly.
Carl
Railroader Emeritus (practiced railroading for 46 years--and in 2010 I finally got it right!)
CAACSCOCOM--I don't want to behave improperly, so I just won't behave at all. (SM)
She who has no signature! cinscocom-tmw
Merry Christmas to you and yours wherever you may be from us here in Alamo City.
We woke up to six below this morning, with flurries. When we went around the southern tip of Lake Michigan, usually hammered by Lake effect, skies were clear! Then, into Michigan (the Land of No Trains), we ran into snowy skies, decent roads (for the most part...saw a couple of spinouts and jackknifes), and white-coated trees (snow over ice). Now that we're here, it's like a picture book out there!
Norris, I saw my first sign of spring yesterday...one of the local churches had spread salt on the walks, and it was a shade of purple, identical to Lombard's lilacs (some of them, anyway)! Tomorrow we repeat the drive, in the opposite direction. Tonight we visit various rooftops...A Merry Christmas to everyone in the Chatterbox!
The view across my front yard at noon on Christmas Eve. That's my neighbor's house. My pine has a definite case of the droops, and the box elders behind it didn't fare well at all.
Murphy Siding: Thank you for the kind words. I've taken a positive attitude to move thru this holiday season. Looking forward to my 9 pm Christmas Eve Service at the church....That has been enjoyable now for some years.
Have a very dear friend {but she's 500 mi. from me}, back in my life...it's a long story, 6 decades have had us in different directions in life.....
But I've been over the 500 mi. 4 times....and had her her twice....and more planned.
Lord has blessed us, and we keep working on that....{500 miles}.....Merry Christmas to all on here....
Quentin
Eleven degrees above here right now - with no real warm-up in sight. Doesn't bode well for all the ice encrusted trees, and it's possible the Christmas lights may not come down until spring.
Don't know how fast the wind is blowing because the anemometer is encased in ice.
Time to check the mail, then maybe I'll get started on the driveway again. I can get in and out, but there's still snow I want off so I can clean it right next time we get snow. If this season is anything like a winter some years ago, though, we may not see any more snow.
Wheeeeee!
-8 here this morning, thankfully with a calm wind. Got about 6 inches of snow on Sunday, we were all shoveled and plowed out by noon. Had another inch or so overnight last night, forecast is 1-3 inches through Christmas. Think I'll request a trip to south Georgia for New Years......
My Christmas and birthday presents to myself arrived over the past month, four undecorated GP35s from Athearn. Also saw that in the latest Soo Line Historical and Technical Society magazine, there is an article on modeling Wisconsin Central's GP35ms. I now have a project ahead of me........
Everyone have a good Christmas......
Randy Vos
"Ever have one of those days where you couldn't hit the ground with your hat??" - Waylon Jennings
"May the Lord take a liking to you and blow you up, real good" - SCTV
good morning
chilly this morning. someone down the road had a bad incident with a scented candle. Rivers still going down . Going to see what csx is up to for a bit. Tonight it's off to G+G house and church services as well. Merry Christmas to everyone here on the forums.
stay safe
Joe
Deshler Ohio-crossroads of the B&O Matt eats your fries.YUM! Clinton st viaduct undefeated against too tall trucks!!!(voted to be called the "Clinton St. can opener").
Modelcar Merry Christmas to Chatterbox crew.
Merry Christmas to Chatterbox crew.
Another 15 below zero night in the works. We were supposed to get a rail car in today. At 1:30, it went by heading southbound. It then would take the 5 hour trip to Marion and back before being spotted. That gives the elves 5 hours to unload it tomorrow morning in the bitter cold before we close down at noon on Christmas eve. Wind chill in the 30 below range won't help. Raise your hand, if you're ready for spring already.
The guessers missed it again; we had some more snow yesterday; clear skies are promised for the rest of the week. When I went out at ten this morning, the temperature was about forty, and it is expected to stay warm (comparatively) for a while. When Katie met me at my urologist's office (it's nice to have your private nurse who comes to the doctor's office with you living in the same house with you) this morning, she showed me a picture of the tracks that several deer made in the driveway some time during the night, and when I came back home, I also took pictures of them.
Weather? Sheesh!
Here at the house there was an ice storm. Apparently at least some power outages, as my Christmas light timer were several hours behind.
Snow in the driveway, with a significant crust on top. Took several tries to get down driveway, after I got stuck in the plow throw at the end.
A lot of droopy trees, and lots of broken branches. No major problems in my yard that I can see, but others weren't so lucky. Curiously, it looks like the deciduous trees took the brunt of it, probably because their branches were exposed to all the freezing rain, while the pines, etc, shed a lot of it.
Down in Utica, meantime, it was plenty warm (+50F not out of the question), with rain. All the snow is gone. Our "North Pole" was nice and green for the last trips of the year.
Today, I helped tear the North Pole down before heading for home. After the "afterparty" and an early rise to see off another volunteer, plus tearing down the set, I'm pooped!
But Christmas is just a few days away! Looks like ours will be white, but those who lost their snow over the weekend may have a green/brown Christmas, albeit a cold one.
Time to finish putting the groceries away and call it a night!
water starting to go down. made a muddy mess.work is done until Thursday. saw a late eastbound lake shore limited pass a westbound capitol limited this morning at work. no coal orders here for santa unless he wants to make it in Ho scale.
Understand Santa is talking to BNSF and UP about diverting several coal trains to settle and account due to a buncha dumb highway engineers in Western Colorado.
All this talk about cold--
Down here in Louisiana, last night around midnight the air conditioner was still cycling on.
_____________
"A stranger's just a friend you ain't met yet." --- Dave Gardner
About a half inch of freezing rain here overnight. Lots of power outages in southern Michigan. I'm lucky.
Norm
......I'm certainly thankful for the 40s and above these past several days here in central Indiana. The golf course behind me has a small lake on it this morning, meaning we've received copious amounts of rain....I
If the temp would have been down in the freezing area we'd be seeing roofs caving in by now...
Any more rain, and it might be time to build an Ark.
But in 42 yrs since we've had this house constructed here, that "lake" on the golf course has never come close to us....Thankfully.
morning
water water everywhere.some people getting stuck with the flash flooding. getting ready for church and Sunday school. Tonight Matt and cousin Carlie are in the Christmas program. I asked Carlie yesterday if she was being good for Santa.She said"nope not yet".
All of you out there driving in winter conditions, please be careful. Ice, black ice and snow are wreaking havoc out here on the high plains. On the 134 mile trek back into Denver from the jobsite tonite, I counted 19 accidents, some pretty ugly. A construction contractor working opposite us lost a 22 yr old employee this morning in a rollover/rear end collision on I-76. Rough day. Ice fog is nasty stuff. Top speed of 12 mph on a normally 75mph trip on an already long day makes for long drives.
Bad enuf getting the "survey widow" lecture from BossHen.
Tired Feathers
This is my Christmas Memo. I don't have enough excitement to do a whole note or letter! Besides, I can't remember what I did yesterday let alone the past year.
Well, being the domestic goddess that all know I am NOT, I changed the bed today. Changed it into a '65 Mustang convertible. Driver will be thrilled until bedtime.
We have one of those "temper"mental Swedish beds - we love it, but it weighs about 700 pounds - and that is just the top mattress. If you have never made a bed, skip this. Or if you have made a bed, you know what I am talking about and we are done!
Merry Christmas from Mookie and The Driver!
I do it that way, too. But instead of Times New Roman, I have Georgia on my mind.
Mookie,
The way I've been doing it is type it, then highlight it and change the font and size.
Norm48327 Gotta watch those microscopic letters Mookie. Too hard to read. I wish there was some way to permanently set my font choice to a more readable one.
Gotta watch those microscopic letters Mookie. Too hard to read. I wish there was some way to permanently set my font choice to a more readable one.
A little more snow this morning, but even more is promised for today. The forecast for the coming week is no more snow--and I will not be surprised if we again have a cloud of smog over the valley by the 25th. It is something to see the smog that I am about to enter when I have to go down the hill.
This morning, when I started to go out to get my paper, Katie offered to go out and bring it in for me. Often, she is not at this end of the house when I go out. It's nice to have such help. Tonight, she is serving dessert for a progressive dinner; I will go upstairs for that.
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