Adventures in the world of Christmas

I was apprehensive about spending the holidays in the community.
Now, I know that seems to be the opposite of what you'd expect me to say, but its true.
Last year I benefited a lot from getting the hell outta dodge.
But, this year, seeing as the planes have been grounded for months, the boats are highly unreliable, and we really only have like 10 days off school...
I stayed.

The following is a short list of what we have done so far:
On Christmas Eve we went out to dinner. We dressed up and went to The Stone House, which is a Japanese restaurant past the bridge....
Dressing up was really bizarre. I havn't warn a tie and been told I looked liek Regis Philbin in a very very long time. Mos tof hte time I played with it like a cat toy or tried to figure out exactly what made it make me look any different or special. Steve told me a few minutes ago they make you smarter... which is true, but I didn't wanna be smarter for Christmas, just cuddlier really.
I mean, its Christmas for goodness sakes!
I'm a little concerned about having to do it more often when I get back.
OR maybe I'm really just concerned about thinking its normal again.

Midnight mass was fun, as Bata Rich pointed out at the beginning, we had some Japanese visitors all the way from Japan.
Like at every Catholic Midnight mass, there were more poeople there than I had seen ever in the last year in that church, since the last midnight mass... since we weren't here for easter...
The decrations were lighttastic, and i didn't fall asleep! (see, mom!)

On Chistmas day we went to our vice principal, Luke's house. I ate more food than I have ever eaten in 2 sittings in my entire life... at teh end of desert I literally felt like exploding, it hurt to move, and brething was a fantastically difficult thing for about 4 hours...we all just lay around for 4 hours, and then we went home and watched a Charlie Brown Christmas... and I watched Evan Almighty, read and went to sleep. I really liked that day.

And yesterday we went to the resort, where our friendly neighborhood Condons got themselves a room for the holidays. I took a hot shower, had some vodka and orange soda, laughed really hard, and talked way to much about demon manifestation adn vajayjays... while sittin gon a veranda on the lagoon looking at the full moon... amazing maybe?

Really selfish things this holiday season:
I wish I had an Ipod and it wasn't stolen and possibly at the bottom of the ocean if rumors can be trusted
I wish I could take all my friends and hang out in one big party full of love
I wish I could drink more, even though its not that big a deal, it only is because I feel like I its not really my own choice
I wish I had a "job" and could buy and get presents.

Really good things this holiday season:
I think i finally really understood and enjoyed the "Holidays is about people thing"
I felt at home a lot on this vacation
Holidays are really about children, and I'm slowly falling in love with them again
Also, the whole birth of Christ saga hit a warm spot, and whether or not he's God, that story blows my mind, and the idea that God would give himself so fully to humanity, even if its just in our hearts, is mindblowing, and it makes me feel undeserving and ungrateful and loved like nothing else.

I think I'm going to order myself His Dark Materials trilogy as a present.
I want to know what happens after end of Season 2 of the American office!
I'm excited that we're going to Micronesia for ReO/DisO.

That's all for random facts about the week. I have 2 specific things in mind fo rthe next 2 goes, so... later
and Merry Christmas.