Almost time for Santa to visit - the stockings are hung by the chimney with care. We are done shopping, the house is decorated, and have consumed several batches of Christmas cookies already (that's what all that running is for) so we are ready and waiting for the big, jolly guy. Work is finally slowing down and we are looking forward to catching up with some items around the house and each other.The good news is mother nature finally cooperated and gave us our first snow accumulation which allowed me to fire up the snow blower - Yipee. Of course, you might want 
to check back in around March where the thrill of another snow plummets. We had a really impressive snowfall of 18-24 inches which made for some serious snowblowing. Between doing our driveway and helping our neighbor with theirs Jo and I managed 6 hours of snowblowing/shoveling today. Lots of fun to be outside in the cold, crisp air with getting some exercise. We'll probably regret it later tonight and tomorrow, but for now it is all fun. Before the snow came I got out in the yard and cut up a tree we had taken down last year to let more light into the garden - for all the good that did in our crop yields this year.
Last night we waded through the snow to see our last play of the season with Sheri and Bruno - the ever popular "Christmas Carol". During dinner we reviewed our annual predictions for 2009 - Sheri won with 9 right predictions (in case you were curious, here are the winning 9 - 1) Pittsburgh Steelers winning the Superbowl, 2) her boss having a new job, 3) Sheri and Bruno rented their house in Westerly, 4) Pfizer closes either the New London or Groton site - it was New London, 5) Sheri doesn't lose her camera - trust me on this one, that is a major accomplishment, 6) One of us goes to India - that was Jo, although only for 24 hours, 7) a colleague is no longer at Pfizer, 8) Gitmo is still open, and 9) Sheri and Bruno put in a hardwood floor on their second floor). Of course, this out of around 25 to 30 total predictions so we aren't exactly clairvoyant. We always enjoy doing this and the quality and number of predictions correlate significantly to the amount of alcohol consumed (in terms of quality it is an inverse correlation). Like any good bunch of scientists we have laid out an effective set of guidelines - for instance, any prediction that you have control over the outcome you only get half credit. What is more amazing is this was started back with my first boss twenty years ago - we used to predict what organizational changes were going to happen the next year. We will be making our 2010 set of predictions next Sunday and given my recent history, I need to work hard on improving my ability to see the future.
to check back in around March where the thrill of another snow plummets. We had a really impressive snowfall of 18-24 inches which made for some serious snowblowing. Between doing our driveway and helping our neighbor with theirs Jo and I managed 6 hours of snowblowing/shoveling today. Lots of fun to be outside in the cold, crisp air with getting some exercise. We'll probably regret it later tonight and tomorrow, but for now it is all fun. Before the snow came I got out in the yard and cut up a tree we had taken down last year to let more light into the garden - for all the good that did in our crop yields this year.
Last night we waded through the snow to see our last play of the season with Sheri and Bruno - the ever popular "Christmas Carol". During dinner we reviewed our annual predictions for 2009 - Sheri won with 9 right predictions (in case you were curious, here are the winning 9 - 1) Pittsburgh Steelers winning the Superbowl, 2) her boss having a new job, 3) Sheri and Bruno rented their house in Westerly, 4) Pfizer closes either the New London or Groton site - it was New London, 5) Sheri doesn't lose her camera - trust me on this one, that is a major accomplishment, 6) One of us goes to India - that was Jo, although only for 24 hours, 7) a colleague is no longer at Pfizer, 8) Gitmo is still open, and 9) Sheri and Bruno put in a hardwood floor on their second floor). Of course, this out of around 25 to 30 total predictions so we aren't exactly clairvoyant. We always enjoy doing this and the quality and number of predictions correlate significantly to the amount of alcohol consumed (in terms of quality it is an inverse correlation). Like any good bunch of scientists we have laid out an effective set of guidelines - for instance, any prediction that you have control over the outcome you only get half credit. What is more amazing is this was started back with my first boss twenty years ago - we used to predict what organizational changes were going to happen the next year. We will be making our 2010 set of predictions next Sunday and given my recent history, I need to work hard on improving my ability to see the future.My next post will be during the post-Christmas high so - MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL and TO ALL A GOOD NIGHT!
One side note for the season: It would be great if every playwright on the planet was required to write a Christmas play - one that had nothing to do with Ebenezer Scrooge or Dickens - and every playhouse was prohibited from running "Christmas Carol" until they had put on all the other plays. Don't get me wrong, Christmas Carol is a wonderfully heartwarming story and well written (and Ebenezer always reminds me a bit of my Dad, especially when it comes to buying something) - but a little variety year to year would be nice. While I'm on this theme, maybe all the ballet writers (or whomever writes ballets) should have to do the same with the Nutcracker.
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