With apologies to C. Clement Moore

Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house
There was bedlam galore and it frightened the mouse.

The children were bouncing up and down on their beds
As the sugar from candy rushed straight to their heads.

Mamma she was screaming, and I hit the roof,
I went for the bottle marked 70 proof.

I started drinking the stuff, in a very swift manner,
And I fell off the chair, hit my head with a spanner.

While down on the floor under the dining room table
I rested a bit and moved when I was able.

When what to my wondering eyes did appear,
But little pink elephants with plenty of beer.

Now I knew not to mix high spirits and low
‘Cause you’d just get sick and possibly blow.

Now I know that there should be more to this poem,
But I think I am finished, cause I can’t find my comb

Merry Christmas! I hope you find peace and hope during this season, and the rest of the year too.

As many go to bed tonight awaiting a certain jolly old gift-giver to pay them a visit when fast asleep, it pays to remember the gift given to us from above that bears no comparison to the trinkets we give each other.  Praise God for His gift of salvation through Jesus Christ, for lowering Himself to live as one of us and die an unjust death as atonement for the sins of all who put their faith in Him.

The rest of these are just for fun.  Watch them, search for more on Youtube, but most important of all please watch the above video before leaving this blog.

Merry Christmas!

We hope this Christmas Blogcard finds you and yours happy, safe, and healthy.  We want to thank all of you who thought of our family this year and sent us the wonderful Christmas cards.  I was going to send out Christmas e-cards with pictures of the kids this year, but somehow time got away from me (somehow?  I have 4 kids!) and wouldn’t you know it – it’s already Christmas and we never even got our family Christmas picture taken!  So I gathered the kids, put them in front of the Christmas tree, and viola!  Our family’s 2008 version of Christmas cards, and this is the fastest way to make sure we sent our Christmas wishes before the holiday is over.
As for our family, 2008 was busy but great.  The kids are doing wonderfully!  Taylor just turned 9 and really likes 3rd grade.  She loves to read and is a very talented artist.  Sammie is 4 and in preschool.  She is learning to write her name and loves Barbies.  Disney is 2 and still very sweet.  She loves to play with baby dolls and play-doh.  Baby Christopher has learned to jump in his bouncy seat, and he loves to use his hands, especially to grab his toes.
God Bless everyone and we wish you and your family a truly happy holiday season, as well as the rest of the year, of course!  We are so lucky to have such wonderful friends and family!  Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Love,
Chris, Lisa, Taylor, Sammie, Disney, and Christopher

Going against the more traditional holiday movie fare (a big chunk of it takes place during the Christmas season so it counts), it has become tradition to celebrate with what has become the most underrated, overlooked Bond flick (which is a shame). On Her Majesty’s Secret Service is by far the most emotionally charged film in the cannon.  It leads the secret agent to abandon his “bachelor’s taste for freedom” for the daughter of the head of an underworld organization.  At first, Bond enters into a bargain with Draco, father of Countessa Teresa di Vicenzo.  In exchange for help in tracking down the evil Blofeld, 007 would “look after” the head-strong, resilient, resourceful woman.  Bond’s first encounter with Traci was almost tragic as the countessa was about to drown herself.

No Bond movie is complete with a love story alone.  James tracks Blofeld to his hidden Alpine chalet where he has been cultivating his crop of female lovelies in another of his plots for world domination.  The spy’s disguise as a genealogist is discovered and he is locked in one of the endless array of death traps from which he undoubtedly escapes.  With the bad guys in pursuit, James again meets up with Traci who saves his life.  However, she is captured and taken to Blofeld’s lair.  In the rescue mission led by Bond and Draco, Traci proves her resilience in hand-to-hand combat with several baddies.

I have always liked Bond in wintery climates.  Breathtaking scenery, action on skis, bobsleds, and a demolition derby on ice are just some of the action sequences.  OHMSS is very slim on gadgetry.  It does feature two of the worst inventions created by Q.  Radioactive lint?  Plus a large, cumbersome safecracking device that takes forever to open a safe. Thank goodness James brought along some reading material while waiting… have your name prominently displayed in the comment box if you can tell me what that material is.

I think the reason for the underappreciation of the movie is the acting choice for Bond, himself.  Poor George Lazenby was an Australian model with no acting experience attempting to fill the shoes of a character who was so well established by Sean Connery.  Telly Savalas played the role of Blofeld with a devine sense of villainy.  And the gorgeous Diana Rigg used her talents from the television series The Avengers (skip the big-screen movie adaptation) very well as the ill-fated Traci.

Given my fear of frogs, no matter how illogical it is, this video terrified me to the very core.  I couldn’t even watch the whole thing, and what I did see was watched with my feet picked up off the floor – just too creepy.  But I still hope none of the buggers were injured in the filming of this video from youtube called “Who Needs Pockets?”

Raise your hand if you remember Winnie the Pooh and his tendency to get his head stuck in the pot of “hunny.”  Okay, you can put your hands down now.  This story isn’t about Winnie the Pooh, but rather Gracie the horse.  I honestly can’t say I have ever heard before of something like this happening.  Fortunately the horse is relatively unharmed from her ordeal.  Story below picture.  Click picture or headline for original story with a second picture.

Having a mare: The horse who got its head stuck in a tree

By Daily Mail Reporter
Last updated at 1:00 AM on 21st October 2008

They say curiosity killed the cat. It didn’t do this poor filly any favours either.

When she managed to squeeze her head into a hole in a tree she had been keen for a good nose around.

The only problem was she couldn’t get it out again. Tired of trying, and stuck fast, she looked as silly as Winnie the Pooh with his head in the honey pot.

Finally, neighbour Jason Harschbarger heard her dismayed whinnying across the fields in Pullman, West Virginia, and came to her rescue.

Gracie, as the horse is called, was left with a dislocated jaw and a few cuts and scrapes from her ordeal.

The tree, however, was considerably worse for wear.

Mr Harschbarger had to resort to a chainsaw to cut Gracie free.

He said: ‘She has a few cuts on her face and ear.

‘Last I heard her jaw was a little dislocated but I think it is healing up and she can eat on her own again.’

I guess that’s what happens when you start horsing around!

Today we are receiving more winter weather today. While the temperature has warmed up, we are getting more snow and a possibility of more freezing rain. With me having to drive to Toledo tomorrow. I hope the weather clears up before I need to leave.

Rain, snow, and other freezing stuff. I guess I am glad that there will most likely be a white Christmas. More fun and games, at least I don’t have to drive to work at 6:00 in the morning.

Sounds like the freezing rain has started. We will see about tomorrow.

My husband, aka Admin, logged into my computer to check stats, and never logged out, so my spellbinding account of unusualhotelsoftheworld.com was posted as an admin post and is now on the front page of tangents.org!  Just wanted to let you know what happened.  Check it out here – it’s called, “I Feel Like I Already Am Sleeping In An Igloo”.

Over the past few weeks, I have been blessed to become re-acquainted with someone who used to teach at the local elementary school.  She has since moved to North Carolina.  She started commenting on my blog during the worst couple of weeks I have had in my 35 years when Emily became seriously ill and lost her battle with leukemia.  I helped Terri and Emily direct the high school’s production of Bye, Bye Birdie a few years ago.  I am extremely sad to say that the theatrical tradition that was once so strong at my alma mater has disappeared.  Growing up I remember watching great musicals performed on the gymnasium stage.  The first being The Wizard of Oz in 1977.  I was introduced to my favorite musical, Carousel, in the early 80s, as well as Finian’s Rainbow, You’re A Good Man Charlie Brown (which justj‘s daughter will be part of in her high school’s production next Spring).  I also watched both of my brothers on stage.  THEN, I guess I made my mark in Fiddler on the Roof, I Remember Mama, and (finally) as Rooster in Annie.  I also helped stage The Sound of Music, South Pacific, and the aforementioned Birdie.  Do any of my faithful readers have any memories of school musical productions they would like to share?

Terri recently sent this holiday greeting which features my favorite version of my favorite carol set to a beautiful scene which signifies the true meaning of the season.

This will be our final song to you before Christmas, which truly symbolizes our belief of the true meaning of Christmas.

https://youtube.com/embed/Z_ypUnnqr8Y

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO YOU ALL!

“…in this room, that I know of, to carry this force.” says the DEA agent teaching a class on gun safety seconds before he shoots himself in the foot! Seriously, this really happened, and it’s kind of funny.  Well, maybe that’s the wrong word to use since someone did get injured…  But admit it, the irony of the situation is tremendously thick.  And if he’s the most qualified person in that room to handle the weapon he accidentally shot himself with, how scary is that?!?

I consider it a small miracle that no one was seriously injured.  Obviously this guy should not have been teaching this class, and I would bet that he was not the only person in the room “professional enough to carry that force”.  But why was the gun loaded in a classroom in the first place?  And why was there at least one little kid in the class?  You can see someone carrying her out of the classroom near the end of the video.  I don’t really know what else to say, so watch it for yourself…  and don’t worry if you surprise yourself with a chuckle – I don’t think it means you’re twisted or anything…  just a healthy dose of irony.  If I was not writing this post so close to bedtime, I would use the opportunity for jokes on puns aplenty about shooting oneself in the foot, putting one’s foot in mouth…  oh, too easy, but not when I’m this tired!  Enjoy, and note how the guy is able to keep his composure and regain control of the classroom, all while being in tremendous pain and presumably bleeding all over the floor – he finally just limps on out of the classroom!