December 14, 2016
4:31 p.m.

The month is flying by, and I have accomplished practically nothing. Unless you count blowing my brains out numerous times a day because I have a sinus infection and my poor old nose is trying to run off my face--when it's not bleeding. Ugh!

It's hard to write an intelligent sentence without a brain.

I think it's getting bettterm finally, but it has made for a rather unproductive month.

I'm just proud of myself for getting the Christmas shopping done for my grandchildren. I feel very accomplished for having done that!

Can I just say that I love the ability to shop online? If I had had to leave my house to shop these last couple of weeks, nothing at all would be done. I was able to mindlessly scroll through the websites until I found what I wanted, order it, pay for it and call it good. Hurray! The children will now get a Christmas from Grandma. It's a miracle.

I had a good laugh at myself while shopping, though. It took me SO LONG!! And I waited so late in the month that many of the things I would have liked to get were not available. That made me sad. I am choosing to blame it on illness. Got whopped with the flu before Thanksgiving and it's been one thing after another ever since.

Plus I wrote 50,000 words on my book in November--go me--by signing up with NaNoWriMo and meeting the challenge, But the research involved kept me busy, so...no shopping. No planning for Christmas.

When I was younger--teen years, young adult with small kids--I used to start shopping really early. I have no idea what happened to me! I used to do it up so well! These days I'm lucky to get the shopping done in the nick of time, and it's a miracle if I manage to get it wrapped.

What happened to my Christmas Spirit?

I have spent the past month or so waiting to get to Wyoming to see my folks. One thing after another has been happening to get in the way of the trip: illness, snow storms, wacky work schedules. The plan as of this minute is that my brother is coming for me in the morning.

Please, please, pray that it happens this time!! I am very ready for a visit with my family back home.

I do feel bad that I won't have Christmas here with my kids and grandchildren who live in the area, but I see them a lot more often than I do my parents, and they understand. Plus, I finished shopping for the kiddos, so I think they'll forgive me.

The year is coming to a close, and I am going to be glad to see 2016 in the rearview mirror. This has been a tough one on so many different levels.

We lost over a hundred celebrities this year, including David Bowie, Prince, Gene Wilder, Alan Rickman, Dan Haggerty, Abe Vigoda, Florence Henderson, Alan Thicke, Garry Shandling, Garry Marshall, and the way, way too young 27-year-old Anton Yelchin. This list is way too short, so I will include a link to the many who deserve to be mentioned. http://www.thewrap.com/hollywood-notable-deaths-of-2016-photos/

More personally, I lost a dear friend this year who I still find myself trying to text message before realizing--again--that she's gone on. It was so sudden and unexpected that I still can't wrap my head around it. I miss you, Annette.

The USA went bananas and elected a complete and total expletive, colorful swear word, bleep as our next POTUS.

The government continues to screw the American Indians, who want nothing more than to save us from ourselves. We need clean water--duh!

Everyone wants to shoot everyone else, and no one wants to make guns more difficult to obtain, so I guess the government is also okay with everyone shooting everyone else.

*SIGH*

Maybe starting 2017 isn't the greatest idea after all.
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9:23 p.m.

Do you ever get the idea that I'm easily distracted? Hahaha!

I've got a houseful here, and we were all supposed to watch "Home Alone" together. I'm watching it--all alone.

It's quiet in here--at the moment, anyway. Weird.

I don't care; I love this movie almost as much as I love "A Christmas Story". My family groans out loud when I want to watch that one, but this is a favorite of us all. So...where is everybody??

I laugh when I watch this, but seriously...everyone should be either in the hospital or dead. Even Kevin; that fall when his brother's bookcase came down should have caused some serious damage to that little boy. Talk about a "don't try this at home" premise.

By the way, I read somewhere that the real house used in "Home Alone" recently sold for over a million.five dollars. I love that house. It's lovely. Of course, I could never afford it in a million years, but it sure is nice.
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Well, my bags are packed, I'm ready to go. Just watching the weather and hoping for the best. Winter--bah, humbug! 

Say a prayer for nice weather, clear roads and safe travel for my brother and dad and me, will you, please?

Thank you, and good night!