I find that whenever I don't blog for a week or more, it's always so hard to get started again. There are so many blogs I want to catch up on. Do I read those first, or do I start by writing back to the nice folks who have recently commented on mine, or do I mark my return by writing a post about what I've been up to all this time? Then there's the question of what do I write about? There are so many possible stories swirling through my mind.

Of course, blogging shouldn't feel like a chore or responsibility, and I know that I'll catch up when I can. So for now, I'm gonna keep this first blog back nice n' simple. (If not short...)

Here are five good and bad things that have happened since my last visit to MyBloggers...

1. The Good News: I received a nice Christmas card from my Great Aunt (or at least it was written on her behalf by her daughter in law.) I grew up just around the corner from my Great Aunt, and she used to be a frequent player in the story of my life... but for the last ten years or so, since I moved away from home and she moved elsewhere to be closer to her children, our connection has gradually faded. I still send her Christmas cards though and the very occasional letter... but I've never really thought to give her a call.

Anyhow, in the card, her DIL said that Great Aunt was very happy to hear from me, and while she is going blind and cannot write, she still loves to chat. DIL included her phone number so I could give Great Aunt a call. I received the Christmas card just as we were heading out the door to J's folks for the holiday. I decided I'd call her once we got back after Christmas.

The Bad News: Unfortunately, that same night we went out to J's folks, I received an email from my mom. Great Aunt had taken a massive stroke earlier that day which left her paralyzed and unresponsive. I felt horrible that I had never called. Great Aunt died last week. She was 91. (She took the stroke a day before her 91st birthday.)

The Good News: I've made my peace with it, and feel better about it now. It was a lesson well learned about procrastination. I should've just given her a quick call before we headed out the door. In any case, I know she lived a good life and at the very least she received my Christmas card, and knows that she was always in my thoughts.



2. The Good News: Christmas with J's folks was alright. We took things more low key this year, which was really nice. I’ve never been a fan of all the excess – which includes excessive spending and excessive receiving of clutter we don’t need. While his folks lamented on how bare bones this Christmas was, in my opinion, it was absolutely perfect.

The Bad News: We both realized that his parents, who we often refer to as "The Cleavers” are actually a lot more like Frank and Estelle Costanza. It’s no wonder they have high blood pressure! They need to learn how to chilllllll. I’d say that their antics are comical if the shouting wasn’t so annoying and out of sync with the Christmas spirit. I know it's always been this way, but for some reason J n’ I really got sick of it this year. We agreed that next year we’d much rather have our own little Christmas at home. Unfortunately, it seems that you must have children first in order to earn that right of passage.

The Good News: Because J n' I were going stir-crazy and wanted to get out of his parent's house, we went to the mall for an afternoon. While we were there, some lady encouraged me to enter a draw. So I just entered my name, without checking to see what the draw was for. The next day I got a call - I won! I don't know what I won... but J's dad picked up the prize for me after Christmas. He said there's a water colour painting of a canoe on a lake and a bunch of other "jibber jabber" and crafty stuff in a big basket. Coolio... can't wait to check it all out!



3. The Good News: As we returned home on Christmas day, we stopped in to visit J’s Grandma A who is living in the hospice. (I don't recall if I mentioned this before, but her cancer has spread quite a bit and her dementia has gotten much worse on a daily basis - hence, her moving into a hospice.) In any case, at least she knew us, and was very happy to have a visit.

J’s dad brought her a 6-pack of beer, and she was just so darn cute when he asked if she’d like half a glass. Her tired eyes lit up and she said, “Ohhh yes!” After a couple sips, we asked how it was, to which she replied, “Oh… sooo good.” She’s so precious. She might be dying, but her humour and spirits were still in great shape.

The Bad News: Since Christmas, Grandma A took a mild stroke, and her health has obviously further deteriorated even more rapidly than before. J went to visit her today, (mainly to support his dad - I decided to just stay home), and the situation is pretty grim. She’s pretty much unresponsive, and her body is slowly shutting down. Because she’s not eating or drinking anything, it really only a matter of days - if not hours, really.

The Good News: Well, I don’t know if there is any good spin for this one? Then again, maybe there is… I guess the good news is that she’s 89 and has lived a great life. And even though she’s pretty much unresponsive and on the brink between life and death, J said that you could tell that she still tried to manage a smile from time to time. That’s just like her. What a fine example she is - standing on death’s doorway, but with what little consciousness she has left, she’s still trying her best to smile. A positive spirit to the bitter end.



4. The Good News: On Boxing Day we had J’s family over for a smorgasbord of finger foods, to which they’re all still talking about. It's nice to be so appreciated.

Hmm… Maybe I can use the tasty spread as a lure to host Christmas in town next year instead of us going out there? What do you think?

The Bad News: J’s bro spilled cocktail sauce all over the place, and his mom accidentally splashed red wine all over the room. The glass didn’t break, but boy, she must’ve knocked it over with some kind-of impact! It was *everywhere!*

The Good News: The cocktail sauce mopped up easily enough, and thank gawd the wine came out of our light coloured carpet and couch! I just hope Grandma M has as much luck with her socks. Ha. They turned purple instead of tan.



5. The Good News: New Year’s Eve was low key, which was kinda nice.

The Bad News: It was low key because J had a bad cold, so we had no choice but to stay in.

The Good News: We watched the Wizard of Oz, which I hadn’t seen in forever, and we ate jello shooters. Our friend RM came upstairs with a bunch of balloons he nabbed from the pub next door, and rang in the new year with us. All in all, it was a pretty fun night.



And on that note, I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas holiday and have a very happy 2009. It’s going to be a great year. I can feel it.