"Hallelujah, holy s**t....

.... where's the Tylenol?" -- Clark W. Griswold (Chevy Chase) in National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation

I'm utterly shocked. Completely speechless. This is the first time we've put up the tree in ages where there were no serious arguments, no real fusses (the occasional jibe and smart-azz aside were spoken, but......). I don't know what happened!

I'm honestly thinking that it's because we did it so early in the day. Most of the time, we wait until one evening, and we're all tired and grumpy and have had bad days at work, and it's one big friggin' nuclear meltdown.

I must remember this for next year!!!!

Gobble gobble gobble!

Turkey day has come and gone, and -- surprise! surprise! surprise! -- we got along without a major argument. Only one or two minor ones. I admit that I instigated one, because the broccoli casserole (which I normally make) was done differently from the usual. It's one dish I tend to pride myself on, so it made me a little miffed. Like I said, though -- minor in the grand scheme of things. And in no surprise at all, the tryptophan kicked in, and we were all snoozing before long.

In the day's shocker, the Lions beat the Packers. Don't know what's up with the Packers this season.....

What's on tap for tomorrow? Avoiding retail stores at all costs!! Instead, we're going to figure out where to put the tree this year. Last year, to my everlasting horror, my folks did not put up the regular tree (artificial... I prefer the real thing, but I'll take what I can get). Instead, they bought a 24-inch-high fiber-optic tree to put on our tabletop. It was cute, but it sure didn't seem like Christmas without the taller tree -- I mean, GEEEEZ! You couldn't decorate the other one. So tomorrow will be "hell day" of rearranging the furniture to try to make it work.

Ya know, I wish I could travel back to the 20s or 30s or whenever it was that houses like ours were designed. I'd love to bring the architect or contractor or whomever to 2003 and go, "Listen, jerkwad, here's your problem! Don't make bedrooms which connect only to the main room.....!" (we have 2 that way).

Our Lady of Migraines, pray for us.......

Willkommen, bienvenu....

"...welcome... c'mon in." -- Madeline Kahn as Lili von Shtupp in Blazing Saddles.

Well, here we are. The initial entry in my blog. Yeah, I'm behind the times compared to everyone else. I never claimed to be on the cutting-edge, anyhow...... So, what inspired me to do this now? I'd been working on a "Meanderings & Musings" page for my website for several years, but just never got around to actually finishing it. This seemed easier.

So here are my random thoughts for today:

1. Was Michael Jackson purposely trying to look like Faye Dunaway's rendition of Joan Crawford in his mug shot? And who brings a makeup artist with them? Hello!!! It's a mug shot, not a freakin' family portrait!!!

2. Why are holidays so stressful? Every year, it's the same. We have all these expectations for the perfect holiday (a la Clark Griswold) and inevitably, every year, they end up as hellish as we imagine they will be. Someone drinks too much or there's a fight over how to prepare the food or where things are going to take place. No wonder Robert Earl Keen's "Merry Christmas from the Family" is one of my favorite Yuletide songs.... and that's coming from someone with an intact nuclear family! YIKES!

3. There was some freaky letter to the editor in our local newspaper today about how God didn't create men and women equal.... different, but not equal. I got pretty fired up about that one, let me tell you! Rants are no fun if there's no one there to hear them...... I'd write a response, but here it is in 3 simple words: "Bless his heart......" As all Southerners know, "bless (x)'s heart" is a nice way of saying, "they don't know any better" or "I'm about to really slam this person, but this makes it sound nicer." Bless his heart, indeed!!!!