My birthday is days away, and I’m not as excited as I usually am. This will be my first birthday without my dad. He would always call me, and send me something I love. The great thing about my dad was without ever saying it, I knew he was proud of me. Even though I don’t feel like there was much to be proud of. The fact that we moved to the States made my dad sad, but I knew he was proud we were taking on such an adventure. He was really fond & proud of Geoff (aren’t we all?), and when I got into the radio station, he thought that was cool. He hoped I’d take it with me to Colorado, but whatever I wanted to do, he supported it. I was thinking about taking some classes at the Museum, but it isn’t financially feasible right now. But my dad would have loved that.

Just something I’ve been thinking about today. I think I should start a journal, because someday I want my kids to know about their grandpa. And I’m sure Dylan would enjoy these stories too.

This whole situation makes me miss my mom even more. We talk frequently, which I love, and I love being able to share what I’m going through with her. I’ll get to see her in 63 days. I hope to get her & Russ down here for a visit this year.

My cousin Kelly was on the radio last night, and she sounded good. For Christmas, she gave me a book by C.S. Lewis (which was really good), and The Tick on DVD. This is the Patrick Warburton live-action version. We started watching it, and it has episodes that didn’t air. It’s so funny! I’ll close with a quote from it.

Arthur: Yes I’m anal retentive. Fine. Believe me, I would change that if I could.

Tick: Good Lord man! Retain that anus. One day its fruit man be the only thing that stands between us and total oblivion.

(after hearing this story)

Captain Liberty: I don’t know about you Arthur, but if some guy brought up my anus the first time he came to my apartment, I would kick him out.

Arthur: Believe me, I tried.

For My PC-loving friends, or my Apple loving friends

🙂

Greetings!

It is great to be back in Denver & to my life. I enjoy visiting with family, but I enjoy much more having my privacy, my life, my kitty cat sleeping by my side. I was glad to go back to work at the museum, and today I got to set up a cart for the volunteers in preparation for Machu Picchu. That exhibit opens in February, and our volunteers need to be trained. I also catalogued an item for the exhibit. A neat thing happened when I logged into the computer at work, it wished me a happy birthday. 🙂 My birthday isn’t until next week, so I think I can expect it again on my next work day. Then the security guard asked me when my birthday was. I may think about bringing in a treat for the others in my dept. next week. Perhaps cupcakes. We’ll see what ingredients we have around.

I got a scrapbook from Debbie as an early birthday present, so I may finally tackle my boxes o’ photos. I’m just not sure whether to do it in chronological order, or by theme. I’m open to suggestions.

I think I will brave the cold and go see the building down the road from us that burned to the ground. It is really stinking cold out there. It may the coldest it’s been. It certainly feels that way. I’ll bring my camera to try to capture anything that may be left. Please pray for those families affected by that fire. I better head off while there is still light out.

Last night we watched Miss Congeniality, so I’ll close with the quote I always walk around repeating.

Stan Fields: What is the one most important thing our society needs?

Gracie Hart: That would be… harsher punishment for parole violators, Stan.

[Crowd is silent.]

Gracie Hart: And world peace!

[Crowd cheers ecstatically.]

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!

2004, how bad could it be? Ha ha, I am looking more optimistically towards the new year than I am letting on. There will be weddings, and hopefully babies, laughter & tears. I have a birthday coming up in a matter of days, and I will be 27. I find it hard to believe how old I am. I don’t feel that old. I still think of myself in my early 20’s, and I perhaps will always feel like I don’t have a lot to show for my life. But in reality, I have good friends & family who love me. A wonderful, supportive husband, a purrfect kitty cat, and most of all I have the Lord. He gives me hope, a future, gifts, mercy, love, forgiveness, and grace. I wish that for all those I love this new year. I wish it for all those I don’t love, those who drive me crazy, and those who need it most.

Well, we are off to see Return of the King again today. Yay! I will close again with a great quote from that movie.

Gandalf: Lord Denethor is Boromir’s father. It would be very unwise to bring him news of his beloved son’s death. Best not to speak of it. And don’t mention Frodo either, or the ring. Or Aragorn, say nothing of him. In fact, its best if you don’t speak at all, Peregrin Took.

Greetings from the GREAT WHITE NORTH! Today we went to Banff for half a day. We spent some time in the Upper Hot Springs, then had lunch in town.

I got to spend a day in Edmonton with my family. It was a lot of fun, seeing EVERYONE, and eating, eating, eating. I also received more Christmas gifts on my trip. I feel overloaded, and very blessed.

It’s too cold here, but I’m sure it’s just as cold as Denver. I miss my kitty cat. I know she’s in good hands with the cat sitter. Once we get home in a few days, I’ll post the pictures I took.

Well, I hope you all are enjoying your holidays. I’ll try to post again soon. I’ll close with some lines from Soapdish (I love Kevin Kline).

[Reading unrehearsed lines off the TelePrompTer.]

Celeste Talbert: [as Maggie] Dr. Randall, what a surprise! Are you having lunch here?

Jeffrey Anderson: [as Dr. Randall] I will if it’s that sample. Huh… I wish it was that simple.

Edmund Edwards: [offstage] This guy never heard of contact lenses?

Jeffrey Anderson: [as Dr. Randall] The test results have come back.

Celeste Talbert: [as Maggie] And?

Jeffrey Anderson: [as Dr. Randall] And I’m afraid the results are very disturbing. It seems that Angelique has a rare case of brake fluid…

[pause]

Jeffrey Anderson: Bran… fluid. Bran flavor.

Burton White: What the hell?

David Barnes: [offstage] Brain fever!

Edmund Edwards: [offstage, loudly] Say it!

Celeste Talbert: [as Maggie] Brain fever!

Jeffrey Anderson: [as Dr. Randall] Yes. Brain fever. Or what we call in Austria…

[they both goggle at the word]

Jeffrey Anderson: Kopfgeschlagen. At the current rate of inflation, her brain will laterally explore the…

Celeste Talbert: [as Maggie] Literally explode?

Jeffrey Anderson: [as Dr. Randall] Exactly, within the next three houses.

Celeste Talbert: [as Maggie] Hours?

Jeffrey Anderson: [as Dr. Randall] Yes, will literally explode within next three hours. I would suggest leaving the restraint.

Celeste Talbert: [as Maggie] Restaurant?

Jeffrey Anderson: [as Dr. Randall] Restaurant, yes.

Celeste Talbert: [as Maggie] Her brain will actually explode?

Jeffrey Anderson: [as Dr. Randall] Yes, yes, I’ve, um, seen it happen. It’s a dreadful, dreadful thug. Thing.

Armstrong Christmas Letter 2003 & Christmas morning picture!

Ho Ho Ho! Merry Christmas! I hope your holiday was a joyous & blessed event. We had a lovely time at church Christmas Eve, though I did start crying during the service. It was a hard night, and it was painful to think about my Papa. After service we went to the Jones’ which was awesome! They are a great family, and they have great family & friends. There was Catch Phrase, and Mad Gab, and 4 different soups to eat. We didn’t get home until late. Geoff was afraid we’d miss Santa (but he didn’t come). He apparently left us gifts at Glen & Diane’s, so we’ll pick those up next week.

I got some neat stuff…DVD’s, chocolate, candles, a C.S. Lewis book, and a gift certificate for iTunes! Whoo-hoo! Tonight we’ll feast on lasagna, and for dessert scotch shortbread cookies. Mmmmm.

I’ll close with a quote from one of my new DVD’s, When Harry Met Sally.

Harry: The fact that you’re not answering leads me to believe that (a) You’re not home, (b) You’re home but you don’t want to talk to me, or (c) You’re home, desperately want to talk to me, but you’re trapped under something heavy. If it’s either (a) or (c), please give me a call.

Tomorrow is Christmas Eve. Holy Moses did this month fly by. This year too. As is the Armstrong tradition we will go to church tomorrow. We were lucky enough to receive an invite from the Jones’ to come over after church, so we will go. It should be like Thanksgiving, according to Curt. I had a lot of fun on Thanksgiving. I’m a game person, and they are a game family. What a fit we are.

We will also watch the Mr. Bean Christmas episode, and The Toy That Saved Christmas. Geoff is anticipating us waking up at 6am Christmas morning to open presents, but we’ll see. Geoff’s family has a tradition of cinnamon rolls Christmas morning, so that is a certainty in our morning. And Geoff is making lasagna for dinner on the 25th. We went to Whole Foods to buy some italian sausage & cheese for the dinner. Yummy.

I hope you all have a blessed holiday season. We will be online Christmas morning if you want to IM us. I’ll close with a quote from A Charlie Brown Christmas.

Charlie Brown: (shouting in desperation) Isn’t there anyone out there who can tell me what Christmas is all about?

Linus Van Pelt: Sure, Charlie Brown, I can tell you. Lights, please. (A spotlight shines on Linus.) “And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the fields, keeping watch over their flocks by night. And lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the lord shone round about them, and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, Fear not, for behold, I bring unto you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you this day is born in the City of Bethlehem, a Savior, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; you shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel, a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God, and saying, ‘Glory to God in the highest, and on Earth peace, good will toward men'”. That’s what Christmas is all about, Charlie Brown.

It’s been brought to my attention, that my Top Five Places To Eat At In Edmonton, does not accurately describe the places I eat. So, Elephant & Castle, while a tasty place to eat, couldn’t be on my top five because I didn’t eat there often. So it was removed from it’s number four spot, and replaced by KFC. Because, as my friend pointed out, I was always there on Toonie Tuesday. Thus, all last night, I was dreaming about KFC. MMMmmmmm.

I’m so tired of shopping. I hope to avoid being in a store or mall until January. But while I was picking up a few items for our trip to Calgary, I went by Foley’s to see if the price had dropped on the sweater I had mentioned in an earlier post. And it had dropped $10! Yay! So I took the last one in the color I wanted, and at the counter they took another 15% off. 🙂 My $30 sweater was only $15. Can I shop or what!

Geoff was asking about the Top Five list on my blog, specifically how I came up with the songs on the list. These are my own choices, reflecting what I’m listening to that week. I do hope to expand the musical horizons of my loved ones. Just as friends have done for me.

I can hardly believe Christmas is 5 days away. We’ve been feeling sad thinking about those we’ve lost in the last year & a half. Namely my dad, Grandma Bessie, and Grandpa Jim. We received some posessions of theirs, and it made us miss them. But now we have things to look at to remind us of them. I don’t have anything of my dad’s, I just have pictures. But eventually I’ll bring some stuff down here, I hope.

I’ll close with a quote from Lewis Black, regarding the Atkins diet and the energy bars that Dr. Phil is hocking. The energy bars come in Apple or Pear, but those aren’t the flavors. That is suppose to be your body type.

“If you look like an apple or a pear, eat an apple or a pear. It doesn’t taste great, but hey, at least it’s not bread”.

To view the whole clip & listen to him make fun of the Atkins diet (sorry Kelly, but it’s funny),

Top Five Places I Miss Eating At In California

1. In-N-Out

2. Fat Burger

3. Claim Jumper

4. Gina’s

5. The Beachhouse

Mmmm, just thinking about all that food makes me hungry. You should try to visit these fine establishments if you are ever in Southern California. And if you live there, why aren’t you there now! 🙂

We’ve only found one place here we like to frequent that is distinctly Denver, The Bull & Bush. It’s a quaint pub down the road from us, and the food is fabulous. We’ve been twice, and we hope to make a monthly ritual. Geoff loves that he is able to enjoy a scotch after dinner, getting to try a variety of scotches.

I can hardly wait until Spring and we’ll get to visit CA and enjoy our favorite old haunts. But to fair to my Canadian roots, I’ll list my Top Five Places To Eat At In Edmonton

1. Moxies (Go Doug!)

2. Harvey’s

3. A&W

4. KFC

5. NY Fries

Mmm, the trend in case you don’t see it, is they have to serve gravy with their fries. 🙂 It’s a Melissa thing.

Today is the day…I’m going to bake gingerbread cookies. I’m a little concerned. But how do you learn to do something well, you practice.

To keep with the top five theme of this post, I will close with a quote from one of my favorite movies, High Fidelity. Rob is speaking about “the musical moron twins”.

Rob: I can’t fire them. I hired these guys for three days a week and they just started showing up every day. That was four years ago.

RETURN OF THE KING

Man on man, I loved it! Once it ended, Geoff & I both thought “when does it come out on DVD?” 🙂

It was wonderful. My legs hurt by the end, but it was such a payoff. Worth the wait. Thank you Peter Jackson! We went to see it in the afternoon, and every seat was taken. My favorite characters have always been Samwise & Meriadoc (hence the picture of Merry). Sean Astin was wonderful, as was the whole cast, so i’m a little bitter that the cast was ignored by the Golden Globes. Figures, but at least Peter Jackson got a nom. I hope the Oscar folks will be kinder.

I brought some kleenex in case I had to cry, but I just kind of swallowed it. It was pretty true to the book, and Geoff thought it was the most true to the books out of all three movies. If you haven’t read the books, I will write some stuff in inviso-text so as not to spoil it for you. I wanted to cry when Pippen & Merry were separated, but that part broke my heart reading the book. Also, at the end when all the Ring-bearers prepared to leave on the ship.

I encourage you to see the movie. I don’t know now what we’ll do without another movie. 🙁 But we’ll have it on DVD next year. I wanted to end with a great quote from Gimli, “Certain death, little chance of survival….when do we go?”