Express Christmas [Because the World DIDN'T END]

Holy smokes, ya'll. It's FRIDAY!

First things first: WELCOME back to the daily Friday grind, especially to all of you who had planned on the world coming to a close sometime earlier today. I really hope none of you are disappointed, especially if you've shelled out wallet weight on Christmas gifts this year or have plans for New Years ;). 

..... things that didn't happen today....

Funny story to get this rolling. Okay, well it's not so much funny as it is just plain weird. It's not really even a story, really, but it's still bizarre: Basically, it was an early night last night, only to awake at 3am to not one, but every single smoke detector in my house on high alert. It was synchronized in that they all started at the same time, but definitely not on the same pulse. For all I could tell, it was one steady blare on surround sound for about five minutes before it... just.... stopped. Weirdest thing ever. We're on a love/hate relationship, my house and me. Between the thermostat tantrums and the smoke detectors party rockin' at random hours of the night, I'm not sold that there isn't some sort of maniacal scheme brewing...... I even mentioned to my friend Rob that I thought this was indication of the world ending.... I don't think I sold him on it. Oh well.

ANYWAY,

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!
[early!!]

it's a good day for christmas sweaters, peroni & breakfast! (:

By that, I mean that today was my office Christmas party. Everyone in my office has a track record of excellence in the arena of potlucks. I work with all women and a man who used to run a restaurant, so it's pretty fail-proof that we'd be eating well. Oh, and we may have added some additional spirit to the party. Haha.

merry christmas! | with ♥, express

So yeah.... we made with it gettin' busy on some food, but the best part by far [as is customary with Christmas these days] was not only a blast, but hilarious all together. [I'll get some of those pics up soon, too].

Here's just a preview of how thoughtful these people are:



secret santa gift + mini christmas bonus + express columbia fleece?
.... we're loved.

yep. love it. & love her.
merry christmas!

My addiction to popcorn may have finally been satisfied on a whole new level; Diana had me as her secret santa draw, and because everyone here is fully aware of my obsession with popcorn, I got this little guy, all wrapped up and ready to go. Plus, we each got part of our Christmas bonus in cash form, and a suuuuper comfy Columbia logo'd fleece. We were as surprised as we were grateful. It's been a crazy year here, but we're sticking it out and enjoying ourselves.

Tonight I'll drive back to Ohio for the weekend; I can't wait to see my family and a few long lost faces before I get back.

Wish me luck......

&& very MERRY [early] Christmas to all of you, my dear friends & blogbots!

xo | cmd

Disconnected Thoughts of Gratitude (:

Well , I just have to say... Christmas shopping........ gives me anxiety. Am I the only one?

Call me crazy, but there's just something about shopping all together that rubs me the wrong way. There are days that I wish I had more feminine tendencies [i.e., shopping, the urge to get manicures, reading Cosmo... or whatever it is that contains all that useless celebrity news, etc...]. I do enjoy a wide range of retail goods, don't get me wrong, but the process involved with acquiring them often just drives me crazier than I think it's worth. The good news? I'm just about finished completely with my Christmas shopping list, and that... is that. #endrant.

I'm home now.. vegging out to the newest Mumford & Sons album [Babel]. I highly recommend.

Speaking of music...... [thank you]


I saw this today and got a little weak.. I love this song and I so appreciated it as a dedication [I think?]. Nice little surpsie for the day (:

It's been a crazy hectic week, but completely worth every bit of hassle and fuss. According to the Mayans, the world is scheduled to end this Friday, so perhaps that's part of the reason everything seems so jumbled. Laney may have thwarted my half-hearted hopes of being swooped off the planet by reminding me that she's 100% Mayan and that her ancestors had other reasons for not finishing their calendar. THANKS A LOT, LANEY. Haha. I'm begging to differ, seeing as how the thermostat in my house is still being cantankerous in spite of Rob's efforts to fix it. It could just be that the house itself has it out for me, or it coouuuuld be that I'll wake up tomorrow to a swarm of zombies milling around on my front lawn. We'll see.

oh. my. catie. | january2013: stl!!

Welp, whatever the case may be, I still feel so indebted for all of it and for the little things that make it worthwhile. To top it off, Catie is coming to see me in January! I'm not sure STL is prepared for us. We're something of a uniquely inappropriate combination. Hahaha. Life is good.

How's that for pre-Christmas gratitude?

Happy Midweek, blogbots. (:

xo | cmd