I'm eager to show you a new outdoor decoration that popped up in our neighborhood this year. I have to admit that I'm a bit charmed by it despite my overall disdain for most holiday yard characters. You all know my antipathy for inflatables, except for the one-time appearance of a small and endearing Christmas Eeyore many years ago. I still look for him wistfully (and unrequitedly) every year.
But I digress.
Here is a photo of the newest Holiday Resident on my walking route:
Noel The Narwhal. I'd lose the scarf, which I think is Too Much, but other than that, how cute? And, as I found out on an evening errand, the horn blinks. I deem it Acceptable.
*******
In other Holiday News, the following conversation occurred Saturday night.
Scene opens in Rick and Nance's living room. Rick is on the recliner; Nance is lying on the couch under her quilt and both cats.
Nance: What's your plan for tomorrow?
Rick: I thought we'd get out the bows and wrapping paper and wrap. What do you say?
Nance: Yo.
Rick: (chuckling, surprised) Wha-at?
Nance: Well, you were talking about rapping and rap.
Rick: That went right past me. You know I don't have your street cred.
Nance: True. (pause) I didn't choose the thug life, Rick.
Rick: (after a moment of surprised sputtering) It chose you?
Rick's Apple Watch: Here's what I found on the web!
End scene.
And that about wraps it up.
Inflatables are terrible what with their constantly deflating. But that narwhal is absolutely adorable! I'll have to keep my eyes open to see if there's one around here.
ReplyDeleteNGS--Many years ago, there was An Incident in which someone went around and shot or slashed a bunch of inflatables (I forget which). Readers here immediately suspected me. Thankfully, there was video evidence of the perpetrator (NOT ME).
DeleteWho knew narwhals were so festive? Or, at least, could be?
the couch conversation is hilarious. I also really like Noel the Narwhal. I'm much better today, but alas I tested positive for covid yesterday and I'm stuck in my bedroom. There are THINGS TO BE DONE. I've assigned my kids a few things to do and that has been, well - interesting.
ReplyDeleteErnie--Not the dreaded Christmas Covid! (cue horror music) That's some awful timing. I hope you have a very, very mild case and that the family comes through for you.
DeleteI agree; Noel the Narwhal is cute and the scarf is Too Much.
ReplyDeleteThe conversation is too funny and kinda sounds like a conversation that could happen around here!
Gigi--I like that you, too, have street cred.
DeleteNoel is accompanied by Festivo the Flamingo, but it's not as wonderful as Noel.
Dee--Way to put your street cred out there, however subtly. ;-)
ReplyDeleteOh that conversation is the BEST!! Down the street from us (thankfully not visible from our abode) there is a house with what appears to be an inflatable graveyard. They have SO MANY inflatables that almost no lawn can be seen. Inflated or Deflated they are just plain ugly. But, a narwhal? Splendid and creative.
ReplyDeleteVera--Every once in a while, Rick and I click.
DeleteThat's exactly why I love this little narwhal. Not inflatable and not the usual Christmas fare. I applaud its singularity and charm.
Not having kids or grandkids I had no idea who Noel the Narwhal was so my first reaction to your yard blow up was not kind. He would look pretty silly here sitting in a pile of snow, whales belonging in the sea and all.
ReplyDeleteJean--I just made up the name Noel the Narwhal. He's not an established character that I know of. I think it's creative and unusual, far more fun than the usual snowmen, Clauses, and reindeer that I'm bored with seeing. Come on! What's happened to your sense of Whimsy?
DeleteWell, it's clear that I am totally out of it with regard to mainstream vocabulary. I had to look up narwhal (which I have decided is a 'unicorn whale', lol) and 'street cred' (of which I clearly have zero.) That said, my Gen-Z students, a.k.a. "Zoomers," do their best to educate me. Recently, a student asked how to say "touch grass" in Spanish for an assignment where they had to recommend things students could do to reduce stress. Apparently it means to just get away from the computer screen/electronic devices and go outside for some fresh air, lol. I love the expression and have duly educated my other 'Boomer' friends.
ReplyDeleteThat narwhal yard decoration is truly refreshing and a unique Christmas decoration. I could absolutely see it as a Christmas tree ornament, too. (But, yeah, lose the scarf and... is that also a Santa hat behind it?).
Hope you have a great Christmas, Nance, and that nobody gets in the way of your rapping. Yo! XXOO
Ortizzle--Since you are still in the classroom, I'm afraid I cannot Give You A Pass when it comes to much in the Mainstream. I've been out for more than a decade, and I'm managing to keep up here and there. I will say that checking in on Buzzfeed.com is helpful; so is reading widely. You have less time than I do, but again, you're In The Thick Of It.
DeleteNarwhals are indeed a sort of unicorn whale. I love how odd animals have become de rigueur now, like sloths and llamas.
Yes, that is a Santa hat on the narwhal, which makes it Christmassy. Required, I think, but the scarf is a reach.
Good to see you here. Stay safe and whole! XXOO
Lol. In my defense, here are my pathetic excuses: (1) My vocabulary is still catching up on 24 years of living out of the country, even after all these years of being back. (2) I am trying to teach my college students Spanish, so... not a lot of English is used/allowed in the classroom, even with beginners. (3) I don't have kids of any age to keep me in the loop. (4) I have less than zero time to be reading widely, but thanks for the tip on Buzzfeed which I will definitely check out! :-)
DeleteO--I never thought of the fact that you teach a foreign language, so there isn't a chance for American Slang to be heard very often in your classroom! Point taken. That's huge. And you don't traverse crowded hallways or do any other duties as you would in high school.
DeleteAsk your students to teach you one new slang term every day or week before you formally begin class. They'll love it. You'll love it, too. Keep the list on your computer or phone. (And share it with me!)
That's an awesome idea, Nance! And I'll legitimize it by getting the current equivalent in Spanish from my friends in Spain / Mexico who have kids and are in the loop. Will share my discoveries. :-)
DeleteI also find the Narwhal acceptable; so stinking cute. I still love Elf. It's one of my favorite holiday movies and we quote it all year long!
ReplyDeleteI'm giggling at your conversation with Rick. You two are so fun and funny...my kind of Gangsters!
BB Suz--I've never seen Elf. I have a very low tolerance for Will Ferrell.
DeleteYes, Rick and I are both quite gangsta. After our wrapping marathon, we were both ready to cut someone, except we were too sore and tired to do it. We instead took some drugs, ate dinner, watched something on HBO, and fell asleep. 'Cuz we about that life.
I didn't even know what a narwhal was until a few years ago while reading my grandson's ABC board book. Reading is fundamental!?!
ReplyDeleteThank goodness we haven't seen inflatable super heroes that look like our former president! That may be his next sale scam! ;)
Ellen D--Bite. Your. Tongue. Don't give them any ideas.
DeleteI love that you learned something along with your little grandson. Reading IS fundamental! LOL
Oh that narwhal is ADORABLE! I follow Sharon McMahon on Instagram (SharonSaysSo) - she's a former government teacher who helps people figure out what the heck is going on with the government/supreme court. She also loves animals and spent a great deal of time the other year convincing people that narwhals actually ARE real creatures. (And also that Texas isn't really allowed to secede.)
ReplyDeleteBug--Isn't it so cute?
DeleteI don't recall when narwhals were first put on my radar--maybe one of Sir David Attenborough's wonderful nature shows did it--but I've known about them for quite some time. (And how long could it have taken Ms. McMahon? Don't Instagram people know about Google? Duh.)
Oh my yes! I am so over Christmas. But, the overseas daughter is home and the family is coming here and I am stuck with it. So, we have a tree, and I put the lights on and decorated it, with editorial comment from the Gilmours, but no actual aid. The daughter arrived here Sunday night and spent all day Monday making dozens and dozens, I think eight or more, of Christmas cookies, and she then, after I had helped her put icing on most of them, tinned them and is off to the city today to hand them out to her friends. Now we do get a marvellous fruitcake from one set of these friends in return for the cookies and JG and I get to eat it. After he and the daughter pour brandy into it.
ReplyDeleteNow that I think of that, there is Christmas spirit. yes, indeed. And I went, this morning, after I taught my ESL class, to a store I love and bought the son-in-law, who is an avid fisherman, socks with fish on them. Without, I hasten to add, having been into the brandy. No, indeed. That is for tomorrow, when I will settle in and wrap assorted 'stuff' including a small splitting maul (ask Rick) that weights a lot.
My fun this morning was watching the face of my student as I broke it to him that 'bark' is used both for the noise a dog makes and the outer layer of a tree. It took pictures to do this, but luckily the internet at the library was responsive this morning. Why 'bark'? Well, birchbark. Birchbark canoes, voyageurs, New France, beaver hats, the fur trade. Canadian history for his citizenship exam, a few months from now. If we keep on at the glacial pace we have used so far (glaciers, migration, the Canadian Shield, the undefended border), we might (imagine italics) finish in time for the exam. I love this student, who is deeply interested in everything Canadian, but keeping him on track is a job.
His eight year old came home from school and announced to his Muslim mother that now they were in Canada, he expected a Christmas tree and presents.
I delivered two wrapped packages this morning, for the eight and his little sister. Yeah, they have a tree.
Ho, ho, ho and the little whale needs snow. I assume the scarf is to hold his Santa hat in place.
Mary--Personally, I find fruitcake a sad trade for cookies. But that's me.
DeleteI'm glad you get your daughter home for the holidays. That must have been a very happy arrival. I hope she has a nice, long stay and that you get some quality time with her. It's going to be difficult for her to try to see everyone she'd like to and squeeze everything in.
I don't envy you, teaching English with all its ridiculous twists and turns. And then there are the idioms. I remember a friend from Peru being quite taken with the term "sweetheart" when he heard it. He found it touching in the extreme.
We're on tap for the BIG! WINTER! STORM! starting on Friday. I am morose. The narwhal will hopefully survive it. The inflatables...may not. 60mph winds, significant snow and ice...they won't even take a guess at how much yet, thanks to the capriciousness of Lake Erie. Ugh.
(And I know what a maul is. Not from experience, but my reading and schooling have taught me much.)
And there is more than one way to use 'maul' at that. It is presently Friday evening and it is Storming. But, so far, we have power. Hang in there, little narwhal. Love that word. Love you, soul sister.
DeleteMary--I have not left the house in this brutal weather to check on our little narwhal (it's even pleasant to type!). We shall finally get rid of the high winds on Monday, but not this polar cold until we rise to 22 on Tuesday. We can make it. Love you, too, my dear, dear friend. Happy times! XO
DeleteNance--I had to go to my CVS today and most of the staff was wearing Christmas pajamas. I'm not kidding. Of course, I immediately thought of you. Let me tell you, it was not a good look. The staff didn't look any happier to be wearing them and the customers didn't seem to be infused with Christmas cheer from seeing them. Maybe everyone is already out of Christmas cheer?
ReplyDeleteThe Narwhal is cute. I can see why they added the scarf and Santa hat for a splash of color. Not a win but I probably would have done the same.
Christmas decorations are not the best these days. I miss the days of tasteful decorations. Now in general, the idea seems to be just throw a lot of bright stuff together in the yard. I know. I sound Scrooge-y and old. LOL
We are doing the family get together at the end of the month so I'm still very relaxed as I don't have much to do yet. There's something about celebrating on a day other than the holiday (before or after) that always makes it seem less stressful. Anyway, my whole family will be together for the first time at Christmas in years so it will be nice. No stress inducers (other than Mom) will be present.
You know your Rick conversations always crack me up. This one is an instant classic!
I will be happy if the storm of a lifetime turns out to be underwhelming. Especially for areas like yours where it's supposed to be particularly brutal. All we're getting is the high winds and very low temps but that will unpleasant enough. I'm glad I won't have to go anywhere.
Merry Christmas, Nance!
xo,
Shirley
Shirley--Winds are gusting here at up to 54mph as I reply to you. It's -3 and snowy, but not too much snow, about 2-3 inches. We're hibernating and readying for Christmas Eve/Christmas.
DeleteIt's painful to think that a nationally-owned drugstore is asking its adult employees to wear pajamas TO WORK. I am still wounded whenever I encounter anyone wearing pajama pants in public. Hell, I can't stand seeing sweatpants in public, even though I am teetering dangerously close to that line myself by parading around in black leggings. But I am always tasteful, truly.
Down the street from us is a VW Bus with hippy Santa inflatable. Sigh. That narwhal is redemption for me almost daily. I join you in being Scroogey and Old.
You bring up an interesting point about celebrating on a day Other Than Christmas. I think you're right. Let's face it: Christmas (and other big holidays) is fraught with memory and tradition. It's pumped up even further by Perfectionists on the internet on sites like Pinterest and Instagram, etc. It's a holiday full of Responsibility and Obligation, and consequently, Stress. Holding a gathering after the Day kind of relieves all that and lends a nice, casual, low-key atmosphere.
Until all the Internet "influencers" ruin that, too. LOL
Have a lovely Post-Christmas Party, my friend. Stay warm. XO
I hope that you had a lovely Christmas, Nance, you and your family. I love the week between Christmas and New Years Eve, it is often pretty low key and people are generally still in a good mood.
ReplyDeleteI love the narwhal, he's adorable.
J--This *is* a low-key week for me, for the most part. I'm glad to have all that falderal over and done with. Today, I'll de-Christmas the house, I think, and really feel free.
DeleteThe poor little narwhal is lying on its side after being buffeted by blizzardy weather. We are in the forties for a few days, heading toward even a 60 (!) soon, so perhaps his owner will either right him or hopefully put him away for next year.
(I note with great interest and relief that you are getting rain!)
Nance, you are so kind to pay attention to California and our ongoing drought issues! Yes, we had several very dry weeks, which is NOT good in our rainy season. So we are VERY happy by the rain we got the other day, and the fact that more is in our forecast. YAY!
DeleteLiving where we do, as you can imagine, we have many neighbors who put out inflatable holiday decorations but none have Noel The Narwhal. She is a treasure, even with the scarf on. What a great find. Happy New Year, nance.
ReplyDeleteAlly--Happy New Year. Noel got battered pretty well during the severe winter storm and high winds a while back. Upon last observation, I saw Noel safely ensconced upon the front porch, waiting to be put into storage until next year.
Delete