Chaos is.. well, in some ways it’s my bread and butter. It’s what makes for change and amazingness and sometimes art and beauty and wonder.

It’s also kind of hard on a girl when it just. keeps. on. rolling. through. So, me being me, I realized that I needed to put myself back into a better headspace to cope without drinking all the things or killing all the people.

Though those thoughts did occur to me, I’m not going to lie.

Guided meditation is my thing, and the line I picked up from this morning was ‘Let go of anything that doesn’t serve you’.  Anything that isn’t helping me get something done, I started turning it loose. Bye, Anxiety! Bye, Irritation! Bye, Snarkbeastyness!

And you know? It did help. I started finding the humor and love for life again. I started really seeing what and who were around me, and appreciating all of the weird, wild mix that makes up my little corner of somewhere.

Then there was the conversation with Rick-

Rick: how hon
Me: Letting go of all things that don’t help me
Rick: Ok
Rick: Just want to say I help 😇
He really is my favorite person… but let’s keep that between us.

A few days ago, we had a winter storm warning and got the merest dusting of snow. Like not even enough to make good snowballs from.

So when we got another one for last night, we cancelled our going out plans, but didn’t really think much of it beyond that. And then we woke up to this-

Our current snow status- 4 inches or so, we think

Part of me is laughing evilly cause all those kids wanting snow days are SOL- it’s a holiday anyway, bahahahaHA.

In New Mexico, this means no going out, no food deliveries in. The temperatures are so low that we’ve kind of given ground on the rest of the house and are clustered into my office- fewest number of external walls, easier to heat than the rest of the place.

And lots of pups to snuggle down with in ALL the blankies

Luckily, I finally gave in and got myself a new Keurig, so there’s cocoa and tea and coffee, all wonderfully hot without Starbuckly assistance needed. I also accidentally got a package of bake and munch cinnamon rolls instead of crescent rolls when I went shopping last. And some spicy ground sausage, with a good cheddar already grated.

So this morning was Swiss Miss with a shot of Amarula, sausage cheesy poofs, and fresh baked cinnamon rolls.. not a bad way to start any day. In fact, I kind of highly recommend it. Come to think of it, kind of a good start to the year…

What I don’t highly recommend is random power blips, which started about an hour ago. Sad panda. Also feeling very bad for little Bree… while Zoe and Jaina will find spots on the patio to do their business when the weather’s like this, Bree insists on going out into the yard. I saw this little six inch tall corgi squatting to pee in a 4 inch high snowdrift. Yes, I gave her treats when she came in. Yes, she likes the snow in a general way; we went for a walk while the sun was out and she had a blast. She just gets cold easy, so we don’t overdo it.

Pretty sure Rick’s 5 day weekend is about to become a 6 day weekend.

 

Sausage Cheesy Poofs-

1 part sausage

1 part grated cheese

3/4 part Bisquick

Preheat oven to 350. Mix sausage and cheese with a hand or stand mixer. Once thoroughly blended, roll dough into balls and place on a cookie sheet/pizza pan/whatever. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until they are golden brown. Can be served with pancake syrup (maple or boysenberry are both good) if desired.

 

Yay for snow days.

 

Rick- So what do you want to do now?

Me- Why is it always about what I want to do?

Rick- Cause I don’t want to do anything you don’t want to do.

Me- Well, what if I don’t want to do anything YOU don’t want to do, huh?

Rick- We already established that I’m pretty much up for whatever it is you want to do.

Me- FINE! I want you to do the dishes!

Rick- Nope, don’t wanna do that.

Me- /flourishing remote- AHA, tough, cause we’ve already established that I have a certain amount of control over the decisions of others and free will is an illusion!

Rick- Except that you can fight it!

Me- GO DO THE DAMN DISHES! I HAVE THE CONTROLLER!

Current status… dishes not done. Free will exists. Bah humbug.

A long, long time ago, in our very own galaxy, people used to remind themselves that the long, dark, cold season would pass by bringing in boughs of evergreens. It was a symbol that life would go on, that the longest night would break with dawn and spring would come again.

In our home, we celebrate the passing of the longest night with friends, games, gifts, and food- all in the same spirit as those evergreen boughs. We remind ourselves that not only will times of darkness come, but that they will pass- and it is best to get through them by surrounding yourself with life, kindness, and love.

This post.. just for the fellas. Every year we see you struggle with the ‘perfect’ gift. Or even the ‘good nuff’ gift. Some of you figure it out, but some of you get it very, very wrong. This is me trying to help you before you do something truly dumb.

Ladies… get him beef jerky, socks, underwear, entertainment of choice (movies, video games, comics, strippers) and leave him alone to enjoy them. Don’t ask him to do the dishes or hand him a honey do list for at least two days. Trust me, he’ll be fine.

 

OK guys… here’s the kind of stuff she wants-

Mantraband– It’s jewelry with a deep message of inspiration and love! It shows that you get her, really get her, and she’ll love it.

Tee Turtle- Cute t-shirts, socks, games! Pick her favorite Disney character and off you go, nothing simpler.

Etsy– This one’s going to involve being a little sneaky. If your chica has an etsy account, it’s time to figure out her username and grab stuff off her wish list. Upside- it’s all unique, handmade, and omg how did you know? Better than Amazon cause you’re supporting an artist. Downside- if you get caught, good luck talking your way out of that one.

Date Night in subscription boxes– Means that you’re making your relationship a priority, you’re really into her and spending time with her, and the activities can be pretty fun. Slight downside- you may be getting yourself roped in to helping to make dinner on Date Night.

All of the above, and any gifting experience really needs to show some care and thought behind it… if you truly thought it out, it’s hard (but not impossible!) to get into trouble.

 

Here’s the stuff that could work but I’m throwing up the caution sign.

Fitness trackers- Anh.. be careful, cause this one, while a thoughtful gift, could lead to two really not great outcomes.

1. “Are you calling me fat?!?!” I don’t think I need to say anything more here.
2. “Oh honey, we can take this journey together!” This leads to all the laps around the mall when you could be at home playing your new video game/watching your new Die Hard ultimate collection/reading your comics. That’s even worse than getting dragged into the mall to return whatever lame/wrong gift you got her… the returns line has an end, after all, whereas that damned FitBit will need 10,000 steps every. damn. day. Or until she’s tired of it, and I guarantee you’ll be tired of it long before she is.

 

Matching undies/jammies- a little overcutesy, and you don’t want to accidentally pull on her stuff while searching through the laundry for your own.

Underwear/lingerie subscription boxes- If it’s not to her taste, she’s not going to feel good in it… and if she doesn’t feel good in it, she’s also not going to feel sexy in it. Poor rate of return on investment, is what I’m saying.

Gift cards- Super impersonal, basically the equivalent of Jane grabbing George’s wallet and buying herself a little something. As a stocking stuffer it can be okay, but not as a main gift.

 

Under the heading of ‘don’t you even fucking dare do it’-

Gifts that are really for you- this can be a new big screen tv, computer, books you think she should read, games you think she should play because YOU like them.

Clothes one size too small- it’s a dick move, don’t do it.

New decor for the home that’s all you, not at all her.

Hobby supplies for something you’re into but she isn’t… yet.

 

I know it’s daunting, but I have faith you can get there, guys. Good luck, and remember, we’re all counting on you.

No, that isn’t permission to go buy a box set of the Airplane! movies as a gift.

 

 

 

 

Sometimes, I feel sorry for Mr. Wellman. You see, I eat dinner quickly and tidily, and I rarely share, so the pups don’t really hang on my every nibble.

Rick… lingers… and is seen as the weakest link. It leads to fun moments like these. Enjoy.

 

1. Oh hai mom.. you has foods?
2. Dad.. I am starving corg. Must feeds me.
3. There’s still some left, dad… feeeeeed me!
4. Moooooooom.. dad isn’t sharing.
5. Father.. I am a starving scruffpup.. I need food
6. Depression.

Now that I’ve got the important things out of the way, like new books written and Tom Bodet, I’m turning to the serious issues, and what I’m about to say may be slightly controversial.

I’m not fucking matching my socks anymore. I don’t give a DAYUM if they are the same color or pattern. I might care about general height.

There, I said it, it’s off my chest now, and wow, do I feel better!

Look, at the base of things, I don’t want to dig in a drawer or a closet trying to find a perfectly fucking matched mate to a sock that no one but me and my corg sees. It’s a huge waste of time.

Match socks ahead of time? Eff off, I don’t do the laundry around here, and I’m not going to task Rick with hunting down my Hufflepuff socks only to find he’s got two different Hufflepuff prints matched and go off on the poor boy.

I tell you, I will wear Slytherin with Hufflepuff if I feel like it and I don’t care what you say.

I will try to keep things in the same fandom or solid color plus fandom, cause you know, I wouldn’t wanna be weird.