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I just went over to my friend's house this afternoon and we had things like cheese, crackers, sausage, chips and dip, stuff like that. She invited me to dinner with her family tomorrow, but I was up all night till 8am this morning and got only 5 hours of sleep before I had to leave, so I'm sleeping all day tomorrow. Besides, I got some huge floaters in my eye this afternoon and they really are making it hard to see. It was bad enough coming home and I really don't want to drive up there again in the dark and the rain. I guess I'm going to be calling my ophthalmologist on Monday if the floaters are still there then.

I got to take home a lot of the leftover cheese and crackers and ham slices, so that will be my Christmas meal tomorrow. It'll be a treat, since I rarely buy stuff like that for myself.

I got a wonderful present today. I ordered a book which had collections of articles form a Doberman magazine I used to subscribe to. It's the third book in the series and I didn't even know it existed. So I ordered it a couple weeks ago and it was at my door when I got up this morning. I opened the book to browse it a few minutes and found a picture of my dog in a reprint of an article that had been published in the magazine in 1982. I recognized my dog right away. It took a couple minutes to recognize me. Well, that was 34 years ago. LOL

'Bad Santa' is my choice for a holiday movie with a large cup of hot apple cider. I'm watching that tonight and then hitting the hay!
 
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I just went over to my friend's house this afternoon and we had things like cheese, crackers, sausage, chips and dip, stuff like that. She invited me to dinner with her family tomorrow, but I was up all night till 8am this morning and got only 5 hours of sleep before I had to leave, so I'm sleeping all day tomorrow. Besides, I got some huge floaters in my eye this afternoon and they really are making it hard to see. It was bad enough coming home and I really don't want to drive up there again in the dark and the rain. I guess I'm going to be calling my ophthalmologist on Monday if the floaters are still there then.

I got to take home a lot of the leftover cheese and crackers and ham slices, so that will be my Christmas meal tomorrow. It'll be a treat, since I rarely buy stuff like that for myself.

I got a wonderful present today. I ordered a book which had collections of articles form a Doberman magazine I used to subscribe to. It's the third book in the series and I didn't even know it existed. So I ordered it a couple weeks ago and it was at my door when I got up this morning. I opened the book to browse it a few minutes and found a picture of my dog in a reprint of an article that had been published in the magazine in 1982. I recognized my dog right away. It took a couple minutes to recognize me. Well, that was 34 years ago. LOL

'Bad Santa' is my choice for a holiday movie with a large cup of hot apple cider. I'm watching that tonight and then hitting the hay!

If they are that bad and still there, I don't know that I'd wait until Monday. They can be a sign of retinal detachment and you could lose your vision.
 
Here is a Swedish poem called the Tomten in Swedish, Robin as he is called here is brownie/brouine/urisk/hob / gnome. Yes, a household spirit, looks like a gardengnome, you need to be nice to it or your house will be poor and starvation will come and every year you give the spirit a bowl of porridge as thank you for his hard work. Talk about low wages, but it seams happy.



Midwinter’s nightly frost is hard —
Brightly the stars are beaming;
Fast asleep is the lonely Yard,
All, at midnight, are dreaming.
Clear is the moon, and the snow-drifts shine,
Glistening white, on fir and pine,
Covers on rooflets making.
None but Robin is waking.

Grey, he stands by the byre-door,
Grey, in the snow appearing;
Looks, as ever he did before,
Up, at the moonlight peering;
Looks at the wood, where the pine and fir
Stand round the farm, and never stir;
Broods on an unavailing
Riddle, forever failing;

Runs his hand through his hair and beard —
Gravely, his head a-shaking —
»Harder riddle I never heard,
Vainly, my head I’m breaking.» —
Chasing, then, as his wont for aye,
Such unsolvable things away,
Robin trips, without hustling,
Now, about duty bustling.

Goes to the larder and tool-house fine,
Every padlock trying —
See! by moonlight, in stalls, the kine,
Dreaming of summer, are lying;
Heedless of harness and whip and team,
Pollë, stabled, has, too, a dream:
Manger and crib, all over,
Fill with sweet-smelling clover.

Robin goes to the lambs and sheep —
See! they are all a-dreaming!
Goes to the hens, where the cock will sleep,
Perched, with vanity teeming;
Karo, in kennel, so brave and hale,
Wakes up and gladly wags his tail;
Karo, he knows his brother-
Watchman, they love each other.

Lastly, Robin will steal to see
The masterfolks, loved so dearly;
Long have they liked his industry,
Now, they honour him, clearly;
Stealing on tiptoe, soon he nears
Nursery cots, the little dears;
None must grudge him the pleasure;
This is his greatest treasure.

Thus he has seen them, sire and son,
Endless numbers of races;
Whence are they coming, one by one,
All the slumbering faces?
Mortals succeeding mortals, there,
Flourished, and aged, and went — but where?
Oh, this riddle, revolving,
He will never cease solving!

Robin goes to the hay-shed loft,
There, is his haunt and hollow,
Deep in the sweet-smelling hay, aloft,
Near the nest of the swallow;
Empty, now, is the swallow’s nest,
But when spring is in blossom drest,
She for home will be yearning,
Will, with her mate, be returning.

Then she’ll twitter, and sing, and chat
Much of her airy travel,
Nothing, though, of the riddle that
Robin can never unravel.
Through a chink in the hay-shed wall,
Lustrous moonbeams on Robin fall,
There, on his beard, they’re blinking,
Robin’s brooding and thinking.

Mute is the wold, is nature all,
Life is so frozen and dreary;
From afar, but the rapids’ call,
Murmuring, sounds so weary.
Robin listens, half in a dream,
Fancies he hears the vital stream,
Wonders whither it’s going,
Whence its waters are flowing.

Midwinter’s nightly frost is hard —
Brightly the stars are beaming.
Fast asleep is the lonely Yard,
All till morn will be dreaming.
Faint is the moon; and the snow-drifts shine,
Glistening white on fir and pine,
Covers on rooflets making.
None but Robin is waking.
 
Your house looks so festive, Steve! Love the picture rail in that "tree" room. With our house's 7 1/2 foot ceilings, though, I could just use a chair rail if we had them.
CG, I love the picture rail, too. When I moved in, there were complete sections of it missing, so I ended up having to make some pieces from scratch to fill in the empty spots. They actually turned out well, and you really have to look close to spot the newer sections. There are times I wouldn't mind 7-1/2 foot ceilings. My ceilings are a just a titch over 9 feet, which is also kind of a weird height. Even mundane things like cleaning cobwebs out of the nooks and crannies requires a step ladder.

Steve, I am printing your picture on nice glossy paper and hanging it up above my monitor. Since all our Christmas decor is in storage waiting for this place to sell, I have to live vicariously through someone else and I picked you - love the tree, love the house! :)
Wow - thanks, LPB! I'm flattered! :)
 
Here is a Swedish poem called the Tomten in Swedish, Robin as he is called here is brownie/brouine/urisk/hob / gnome. Yes, a household spirit, looks like a gardengnome, you need to be nice to it or your house will be poor and starvation will come and every year you give the spirit a bowl of porridge as thank you for his hard work. Talk about low wages, but it seams happy.



Midwinter’s nightly frost is hard —
Brightly the stars are beaming;
Fast asleep is the lonely Yard,
All, at midnight, are dreaming.
Clear is the moon, and the snow-drifts shine,
Glistening white, on fir and pine,
Covers on rooflets making.
None but Robin is waking.

Grey, he stands by the byre-door,
Grey, in the snow appearing;
Looks, as ever he did before,
Up, at the moonlight peering;
Looks at the wood, where the pine and fir
Stand round the farm, and never stir;
Broods on an unavailing
Riddle, forever failing;

Runs his hand through his hair and beard —
Gravely, his head a-shaking —
»Harder riddle I never heard,
Vainly, my head I’m breaking.» —
Chasing, then, as his wont for aye,
Such unsolvable things away,
Robin trips, without hustling,
Now, about duty bustling.

Goes to the larder and tool-house fine,
Every padlock trying —
See! by moonlight, in stalls, the kine,
Dreaming of summer, are lying;
Heedless of harness and whip and team,
Pollë, stabled, has, too, a dream:
Manger and crib, all over,
Fill with sweet-smelling clover.

Robin goes to the lambs and sheep —
See! they are all a-dreaming!
Goes to the hens, where the cock will sleep,
Perched, with vanity teeming;
Karo, in kennel, so brave and hale,
Wakes up and gladly wags his tail;
Karo, he knows his brother-
Watchman, they love each other.

Lastly, Robin will steal to see
The masterfolks, loved so dearly;
Long have they liked his industry,
Now, they honour him, clearly;
Stealing on tiptoe, soon he nears
Nursery cots, the little dears;
None must grudge him the pleasure;
This is his greatest treasure.

Thus he has seen them, sire and son,
Endless numbers of races;
Whence are they coming, one by one,
All the slumbering faces?
Mortals succeeding mortals, there,
Flourished, and aged, and went — but where?
Oh, this riddle, revolving,
He will never cease solving!

Robin goes to the hay-shed loft,
There, is his haunt and hollow,
Deep in the sweet-smelling hay, aloft,
Near the nest of the swallow;
Empty, now, is the swallow’s nest,
But when spring is in blossom drest,
She for home will be yearning,
Will, with her mate, be returning.

Then she’ll twitter, and sing, and chat
Much of her airy travel,
Nothing, though, of the riddle that
Robin can never unravel.
Through a chink in the hay-shed wall,
Lustrous moonbeams on Robin fall,
There, on his beard, they’re blinking,
Robin’s brooding and thinking.

Mute is the wold, is nature all,
Life is so frozen and dreary;
From afar, but the rapids’ call,
Murmuring, sounds so weary.
Robin listens, half in a dream,
Fancies he hears the vital stream,
Wonders whither it’s going,
Whence its waters are flowing.

Midwinter’s nightly frost is hard —
Brightly the stars are beaming.
Fast asleep is the lonely Yard,
All till morn will be dreaming.
Faint is the moon; and the snow-drifts shine,
Glistening white on fir and pine,
Covers on rooflets making.
None but Robin is waking.


What a lovely story. That is a beautiful poem.
 
CG, I love the picture rail, too. When I moved in, there were complete sections of it missing, so I ended up having to make some pieces from scratch to fill in the empty spots. They actually turned out well, and you really have to look close to spot the newer sections. There are times I wouldn't mind 7-1/2 foot ceilings. My ceilings are a just a titch over 9 feet, which is also kind of a weird height. Even mundane things like cleaning cobwebs out of the nooks and crannies requires a step ladder.


Wow - thanks, LPB! I'm flattered! :)

Steve, you have done a wonderful job decorating your new home. The tree only enhances it. Merry Christmas!
 
Gee, I just realize that we didn't post any trees decorated. Is it too late? If I were to post mine, it is the very same at last year. The same one they put up every year down in the Community Room.
 
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If they are that bad and still there, I don't know that I'd wait until Monday. They can be a sign of retinal detachment and you could lose your vision.

I know, but I can tell you from experience that ERs do not treat eyes and teeth. Besides, it's not a bunch of them, just three large annoying ones. I'll call in tomorrow. I was just in to the ophthalmologist a week ago, so I'm not tool worried.
 
Here is a Swedish poem called the Tomten in Swedish...
Very nice. After I finally got comfortable with the meter, I could hear a melody that would fit nicely with the words. Turns out my memory put the words to the music from an old Christmas song, "Caroling, Caroling (Christmas Bells are Ringing)". Here is nice nice version of the song.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kFSPGIHjak8
 
... There are times I wouldn't mind 7-1/2 foot ceilings. My ceilings are a just a titch over 9 feet, which is also kind of a weird height. Even mundane things like cleaning cobwebs out of the nooks and crannies requires a step ladder...
You don't need 7 1/2 foot ceilings, Steve, you need a Webster!

41I1rL8no0L._SY445_.jpg


I've had mine for decades and it still works like new! A shake-shake here, a quick swish through a tub of water with a drop of detergent, the thing will last longer than me!
 
If we're sharing holiday photos, this is what our living room window looks like. It's a bumped-out picture window; the decorations are on what should be a seat but act as a plant shelf most of the time. The angel to the right is a wooden cut out that my Dad made, using a pattern sold by one of the Cleveland newspapers. He made them for the second Christmas in our home, back in 1958! "Mary Christmas" is definitely showing her age, with a ponytail and candle holder handle both sitting on a ledge in the garage. I'll have to take her to Salvation Army before we move, because there is no way she will survive another move.
 

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I know, but I can tell you from experience that ERs do not treat eyes and teeth. Besides, it's not a bunch of them, just three large annoying ones. I'll call in tomorrow. I was just in to the ophthalmologist a week ago, so I'm not tool worried.

Well that's odd because yesterday alone, I edited or typed ER reports for both teeth and eyes from different parts of the country. Granted for the teeth abscesses, all they got was antibiotics and pain meds, and told to see the dentist, but they did treat. The eyes were a suspected retinal detachment and it was, and I also got "lucky" enough to catch the op report on that too, and a chemical contamination injury. What kind of hospitals are in your area that don't treat things bad enough for people to come in for, especially on a holiday weekend?
 
If we're sharing holiday photos, this is what our living room window looks like. It's a bumped-out picture window; the decorations are on what should be a seat but act as a plant shelf most of the time. The angel to the right is a wooden cut out that my Dad made, using a pattern sold by one of the Cleveland newspapers. He made them for the second Christmas in our home, back in 1958! "Mary Christmas" is definitely showing her age, with a ponytail and candle holder handle both sitting on a ledge in the garage. I'll have to take her to Salvation Army before we move, because there is no way she will survive another move.

Pretty window, CG. Merry Christmas! ?
 
Well that's odd because yesterday alone, I edited or typed ER reports for both teeth and eyes from different parts of the country. Granted for the teeth abscesses, all they got was antibiotics and pain meds, and told to see the dentist, but they did treat. The eyes were a suspected retinal detachment and it was, and I also got "lucky" enough to catch the op report on that too, and a chemical contamination injury. What kind of hospitals are in your area that don't treat things bad enough for people to come in for, especially on a holiday weekend?

I had a nerve infection in my tooth once and I went into the ER, and the nurse there said they don't treat teeth or eyes. All I got was Demerol and that wore off before I got home (although it was fun while it lasted). So treat in the form of pulling an abscessed tooth, no, they don't. I'm sure they do emergency treatment of eyes, but beyond that, I don't know.

I really don't want to go into the ER and my ophthalmologist is closed today and maybe for the entire week, so I thought of Urgent Care. I tried to call them, but the phone book I have only lists the Urgent Care down the street and they don't answer (I have to go to an Urgent Care way over in Port Orchard as per my health insurance), 411 on my phone gets Direct TV, and my own insurance service is also closed today.

I have to be out and about tomorrow, so I'll drive over there then. If they can't help me, maybe I can find another ophthalmologist who is open.

Anyway, it's Christmas - did everyone have a good time?
 
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If we're sharing holiday photos, this is what our living room window looks like. It's a bumped-out picture window; the decorations are on what should be a seat but act as a plant shelf most of the time. The angel to the right is a wooden cut out that my Dad made, using a pattern sold by one of the Cleveland newspapers. He made them for the second Christmas in our home, back in 1958! "Mary Christmas" is definitely showing her age, with a ponytail and candle holder handle both sitting on a ledge in the garage. I'll have to take her to Salvation Army before we move, because there is no way she will survive another move.
I love old, traditional decorations at Christmas time. I have some ornaments that have been passed down through the family, and that I continue to put up every year. Even when I don't put up a tree, I find a place to put them. Some are over 100 years old, and were first given to my grandmother by her mother when she got married. I'll continue the tradition by handing them off to my daughter when she's married. I've had few break over time, and some are barely hanging on, but I pack them back up into their little boxes every single year.

Steve, you have done a wonderful job decorating your new home. The tree only enhances it. Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas to you, Addie.
 
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I love old, traditional decorations at Christmas time. I have some ornaments that have been passed down through the family, and that I continue to put up every year. Even when I don't put up a tree, I find a place to put them. Some are over 100 years old, and were first given to my grandmother by her mother when she got married...
We have a number of those in our collection, too, Steve. No matter what, I make sure there is a place of honor for two of my Grandma's hand-me-downs: a glass bird with the filament tail...that keeps slipping out because the glass hole is so worn, and a cardboard house that was made in Czechoslovakia. I added multi-color glitter to it when I was small; some of it is still there.

Himself and I have collected ornaments from our vacations over the years, too. He is amazed that I can remember the place and/or event that we bought each one at. Meanwhile, I still have trouble remembering where I'll leave a coffee mug from time to time...
 
I have two of those red ruby carnival glass candle holders that my grandmother got from her mother. They both say Christmas 1907 on them and I take those out every year.

Here I thought they were so valuable but when I looked them up on eBay, they're worth only about $10. I don't plan on selling them anyway.
 
Remember those silver trees with the color wheel? Well my daughter still has hers and this is the first year that she didn't decorate at all. She even has the original sleeves that the branches go into for storage. Every year she has done her Christmas in silver. We looked on ebay and some of them are selling for as much as $500.
 

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