Enough of this Christmas Cheer already. I woke up feeling a little crabby and fussy today, and despite our mild weather and a good, brisk walk, I'm not getting any better. Let's see if I can Write It Out of my system.
1. Food: I have a New York Times subscription. It includes access to NYT Cooking and all their recipes. "Oh boy!" one would think. "That sounds like a great resource." Well, it can be, but for the past 18 months, all the food editors can think/write about is gochujang and chili crisp. Before that, everything was about chickpeas. Salmon is featured constantly, and I detest salmon in any form. (That made our Alaska vacation awkward, let me tell you.) Do not get me started on their fixation with kale, which I think tastes like dirt.
2. Hair: Once again, I waited too long (no pun intended!) to book a haircut, and now I am in Ugly Mode. Absolutely nothing is working with my hair. The ends are dry and terrible. The layers are too long. It is flat. I have completely butchered my bangs so many times that--what? what can I even say? I am in such Desperation that I dragged out my old hot rollers and tried those with predictably clownish and frightful results. Susie booked me for 11:30 on 3 January thank heavens and she will get a sizeable tip.
3. Amazon: I'm happy to say that Rick and I did the vast majority of our Christmas shopping In Real Life and I only used Amazon for a handful of gifts. However, those gifts, although they were ordered on 11 December, did not come until TODAY, 27 December. Sam, whose Christmas shopping is almost done exclusively online and at the very last minute, had all his gifts arrive on time. I struggle to understand WHAT I HAVE LEARNED.
4. Old: There is no getting around it; I am Not Young Anymore. I thought I was Perfectly Fine with this fact, but apparently I am NOT. Did you know that, as you age, your body starts aching and bitching when you do stuff you always used to do? Right now, my neck and shoulder hurt a lot. And they have for days and days. So do my feet. Did I do anything different to cause this? No I did not.
5. Over It: I want my house back. All this Christmas stuff has got to go. Tomorrow, the tree comes down. Trust me, I don't decorate the house even a tiny fraction of what I used to, but I need the serenity of Things Back To Normal. Things would have been put away today, but Rick is now a Social Butterfly in retirement and had lunch plans and dinner plans today with friends. While he is gone tonight, I am going to take a muscle relaxer, put on my jammies, finish my book, and watch something not at all cerebral on television, and I will take recommendations.
Are you feeling a little crabby, too? If not, make me feel better in Comments.
YES. Let's have a little crab fest! I am with you, Nance!
ReplyDeleteI get SO CRABBY about the Christmas decorations once Christmas is over. Everything feels like it's closing in on me and I swear the dust collects extra thickly on Christmas decor! Out! I want it out! Complicating things this year is that I feel like I should (want?) to keep them up until my parents can visit which probably won't be for another week. Also on my crab-causer list is the laundry. So. Much. Laundry. I need to ban people from wearing clothing.
I am with you on the amazon frustration. I too tried to buy from other stores, and buy in advance (ish) because the shipping times were all wonky. And then some people sent gifts AT THE LAST MINUTE and they arrived just in time and that should make me feel glad for them and lucky for their gift recipients... but it just makes me cranky.
Suzanne--
DeleteOh, goody!
I, too, feel claustrophobic as soon as Cmas is over. Not that you asked, but I say get rid of it all even though the parents are coming. They don't want to see the tail end of Cmas, either, I'm sure. Take photos if you want to show them what it all looked like.
Sigh. Laundry. My appliances are in the basement, so I really hate it. At least Rick does his own, but I occasionally have to Do The Switch, and he loves to overload the washer. And his clothes are big. It's just a lot, as you know! Hang in there; we've got this.
Not crabby exactly. More just let down.
ReplyDeleteI did a thorough un-Christmasing and blast cleaned the downstairs yesterday. After our guests left the upstairs got the same treatment. Now I just have Mt. Washmore to tackle.
Hoping I sleep well tonight and hope you are feeling better soon.
Dee--I am jealous. Not only are you deChristmased, but you are also all clean on the first floor. I vacuumed and cleaned a bathroom and thought I was going to die. I cannot wait until we rip out this carpeting.
DeleteI hope you sleep the sleep of the just tonight (where did that saying come from, anyway?). And thank you--I want to avoid a trip to a medical professional.
(I hope your guests were pleasant and gracious.)
Oh dear. The hair, yep, totally with you. I waited too long too and was thrilled to get it cut at the beginning of December. But already it feels like it needs cut again.
ReplyDeleteAnd getting older? I don't get it. Why, just because we are older, should we get these sudden aches and pains? And I get tired much faster too. It must be a conspiracy, that's all.
But as for Christmas, well...took it kinda easy yesterday, then today took the pup to be neutered and cleaned up some of the mess from the tree that smashed my van, washed rugs, priced stuff and loaded the van for the booths. Tomorrow we have company coming for the weekend, so all I have done is tidy up, mop, and plan what to feed them.
So no time for un-Christmasing yet, but I'm okay with leaving it up a while. I like it. I packed away the usual decor in the Christmas totes, so I am not feeling claustrophobic...yet. Next week I will be watching out for the pup, have a doc appointment Tuesday, then it's New Year's, but I am not planning any big hooha for that!
Not crabby EXACTLY, but certainly not full of joy either and this cold, rainy, gray weather isn't helping matters at all. Usually, I would try to get Christmas put away before the 1st since I knew I wouldn't want to do it after going back to work...but since I don't have a job to go back to on the 2nd - I don't know when I'll get around to it; but I do want my house back.
ReplyDeleteI woke up with a bit of a head cold this morning, which sucks, but is also getting me out of things. Ted and I usually go to dinner on Fridays, which is lovely, but it means hair and makeup and sometimes I just don't feel like it. In honor of my head cold, we will have pizza instead. Ted went out and had the oil changed in one of our cars, and then took it to have a smog test. Usually I would go with him. I went to a volunteer gig this morning, cleaning up after kittens, came home and had a shower, and now I'm watching Bake Off (old episodes) and am trying to catch up on blogs.
ReplyDeleteWe generally take down our Christmas decor on January 1st. I suspect that is what we will do this time.
I'm sorry you're feeling crabby. I hope the muscle relaxant and good book help, as well as something non cerebral on TV. Bake off?
It sounds like you are having the post Christmas blues... I get what you are saying and sometimes it is a lot. I had a wonderful time with my family and friends but am kind of ready to be on my own again. I know that sounds horribile, but the last few weeks have been a lot of time with and around people and my introvert self is definitely ready for a bit of solo time!
ReplyDeleteThe Post-Christmas Crabby Complaint Fest: —Yes, let us all have a wail here!
ReplyDeleteIn Casa Ortiz, I was hoping we would get a breather from all the doctor and dentist appointments over the last few months. Since September, Mr. O. has gotten a new upper denture and also had to visit a nephrologist, an ENT, and a gastroenterologist (the last two related to problems swallowing.) The week before Christmas, he had a body wide attack of gout and could barely walk. He has had gout for years, but normally it only kicks in once or twice a year. We were thankfully able to get an emergency appointment with the rheumatologist who put him on the magic medicine that always works for this. Three days later, just when the pills began to take effect and he could walk normally again, Luis developed a strange bubbly rash on his neck. The urgent care doc immediately diagnosed it as shingles. This is ironic because I have been meaning to schedule a Shingrix vaccination for both of us, but too many other doctors were lined up for all of the above. The Good News: the meds prescribed seem to be working really well and controlling the spread. The doc said if we had waited a few more days, he wouldn't have been able to take it.
Taking down Christmas stuff was not an issue because I haven’t decorated for Christmas in years except for maybe a poinsettia in the living room and a couple of Christmas stockings I like to put up for each of us. Lucky me! And honestly, it just seems like a lot of pointless fuss in our case because we have no family in the Big D that would be visiting us. Even if we did, we would have cancelled Christmas plans this year anyway because: Jingle Bells got taken over by Shingles Bells.
Re: hair... I actually squeezed in an appointment to get mine trimmed in early December. Completely agree with you on the old electric rollers (which I also still have, lol.) Lately, if I have the energy, I use Ms. Jessica’s Jelly-Soft Curls. It’s a gel you put on your hair right after washing and then crimp your hair off and on until it is almost dry. After that, I use a special diffuser attachment on the hair dryer to give it a “loose perm” look. Makes my hair feel super soft instead of like straw, and lasts for several days. But, yeah, very worky, and not on the haircare menu lately.
I sent a few pressies via Amazon to close family members who live Elsewhere. They got them on time, but I also ordered stuff pretty early.
So sorry to hear about your neck and shoulder pain, and hope it goes away soon! I get pain in my right shoulder that I dislocated years ago, but mostly when I am cooking and have to stir something for a while. Lately, my hips have also started aching. Conclusion: Getting Old Sucks!!! God knows what 2025 will bring, but Luis and I both got Covid in 2024 (in spite of having our vaccinations), so I am hoping things will settle down a bit next year. Politically, I am expecting fireworks in all directions, but I have declared a moratorium on news headlines to (somewhat) preserve my sanity.
Take care, dearest Nance. I enjoyed your Christmas post and plan to snuggle up to a good book and some nice plonk very soon. XXOO