The Chit Chat Chit Chat Thread

[Gabe1]

speaking of vacations.. the interesting part of living in a touristic town is.. everyone comes to visit US on vacations.
aka me and my family. (it helps that a lot of our family members live here too )

Yeah we thought about the same thing when contemplating buying a home in Florida in the future.
I'm not big on house guests now. My niece is different but it is awkward when my Sis and husband are here too. They almost always stay with my folks when they come in which is better, more for them to do uptown there and a much quicker trip into Chicago which my BIL loves.

 

[Goofyernmost]

checks are still critical for high number of money moved easily.
Like buying a car.
You cant do that with a credit card

Depends on your credit limit. If I were foolish enough to pay the mob like interest on them, I could buy a new car with mine. I wouldn't, of course, but I could.

If, heaven forbid, I were to ever be given a "terminal" diagnosis from a group of credible Doctors, I might use it for that. At least then I could go out smiling.

 

[Gabe1]

checks are still critical for high number of money moved easily.
Like buying a car.
You cant do that with a credit card

My folks have bought new cars as well as my sister with credit cards. They immediately pay them off but they receive a lot of frequent flier miles. Works when you have the $$ to purchase new cars outright.

 

[Gabe1]

So this is an optional work from home day for my DD before the 2 holiday days. She missed the eve before Christmas Eve because they had not finished building her a new laptop. So fun to see her in her sweat clothes, sitting up in her bed with her headset on plugged into her laptop and snuggled with the Pup. Just brought her a cup of tea. Yep, she is so happy she held out to work for a University.

 

[SagamoreBeach]

Been watching the weather report this morning, and we're also having a rainy few days, including Christmas morning. The temperatures will be around 55-60--way too warm. Christmas is supposed to have at least a dusting of snow and nice, cold, crisp weather. How is Santa going to fly his sleigh here without any snow, and deliver all my toys? I am completely bummed . . .

The wind swept rains on Christmas Eve was trecherous!
I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas! Mine started on Christmas Eve...I had two last minute soloists who wanted to come and sing at our Candlelight Service. Since both are incredible singers I made room in the program for them and it was well worth it! Then back home for a catered dinner with family & friends - catered since I didn't have time to cook and getting home from the service would've been too late to get a meal out. Turns out having it catered was a great experience, too! Coming home to a hot, sit down meal was great!
Christmas day I spent with my mom at my brother's house. It was a very nice...just what Christmas should be... type of day.
-T

 

[Gabe1]

Busted!!!

 

[Gabe1]

The wind swept rains on Christmas Eve was trecherous!
I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas! Mine started on Christmas Eve...I had two last minute soloists who wanted to come and sing at our Candlelight Service. Since both are incredible singers I made room in the program for them and it was well worth it! Then back home for a catered dinner with family & friends - catered since I didn't have time to cook and getting home from the service would've been too late to get a meal out. Turns out having it catered was a great experience, too! Coming home to a hot, sit down meal was great!
Christmas day I spent with my mom at my brother's house. It was a very nice...just what Christmas should be... type of day.
-T

Happy to hear you had a great couple of Christmas Days. Sure envy people who sing well.

My Sis always caters dinners for guests in her home. She even orders containers of all sorts of glasses, silverware, plates etc and they go right in the bins dirty and are picked up the next morning. The first time I catered was for my DD Communion, wasn't sure how it would work but it was perfect. I ordered all sorts of Chinese food, tons of choices and it was a buffet, some of the elders were at the dining table, kids went off to family room etc. Before church I had put various boxes on table, used several matching table cloths to drape over the boxes and small serving dishes and spoons on all the tiers of the big round table in my kitchen that guests could walk around. It was so fun.

Different, for my DD graduation had delivered picnic foods, salads, jellos and mini subs sandwiches etc all cold as it was an open house with tons of family, friends and all her friends. I bought a small had plastic wading pool, put it on top of my kitchen table and it was filled with ice. I bought the $1 sand-pails with shovels attached and some other odd sand toys. Those were my servicing dishes. Next to the table I had 2 crock pots with baked beans and hotdogs. I put all the condiments bottles right in the ice along with the toppings in smaller sand toys. We have a massive multi tiered bar in the backyard and I put on each end two pools with ice, adult beverages I could keep my eye on and the other pop and water. Having had competitive swimmers I have a warehouse of beach towels. I strung clothes lines and made an L shaped facade of beach towels to frame in the outdoor area on the other side of the bar and gazebo. It was so simple and festive, much cheaper than I could have pulled off all on my own if not catered. And everything was recyclable in the end. Once everything was filled in the kitchen I never had to attend to it again and everything stayed at a safe temp.

Big fan of catering for events now.

 

[JenniferS]

It was 17 years ago today that my Father-in-law passed away.
Despite having been with Hubby for 12 years prior to his passing, and actually living with them for six weeks while my house was being renovated, I didn't know my FIL very well at all.
Which is too bad, because by all accounts, he was a real prince.
RIP Austin. 1923-1997.

 

[Gabe1]

Wow. Just read DL is going Magic Band. Now won't that be interesting with the amount of guests that are annual pass holders.

 

[seahawk7]

Wow. Just read DL is going Magic Band. Now won't that be interesting with the amount of guests that are annual pass holders.

I think it will be very interesting given the amount of locals that go there. Kind of what you said.

 

[SagamoreBeach]

I love the lights, too. Mixed in with some of the hideous light displays, are some really gorgeous ones. By gorgeous, those ones run the gamut from big, professionally done displays, to very small, but tasteful, light displays. I love them all. In the back of my mind, I always have this "contest" for the best decorated house in the area! (Fame to the winner? None. Prize to the winner? None. But, it's my own little "game" I play every year! )

I believe Christmas is the time to pull out all the stops and go big with the lights and the color. I could never live in one of those little New England towns that only allow white lights outside.
-T

 

[SagamoreBeach]

Our town has a contest, 1st, 2nd, 3rd place for best decorated house a week before Christmas. It is done by members of our community council the same residents that hold secret the families in need that need some assistance during the holidays. My friend sat on the council and the people she rode with in the large community extended van were mainly men.

She got a chuckle out of the criteria they picked. All winners had over the top amount of lights and the tackier the better in their eyes. Beauty in the eye of the council seemed to be Tim, the tool man Taylor version of Beauty.

Yep! That's about right!
-T

 

[StarWarsGirl]

Our mail lady is very nice and she talks to Walter in his window every day but likely she is a cat person. When we are out she keeps a body length between her and Walt, the furious beast.

Sounds about right. My parents and friends laugh at me because when I see a dog higher than my knee, I back up about ten feet. But then the few times I've been out and seen a cat wandering, I'm all friendly with the cat.

 

[Cesar R M]

I'll try and take a picture for you today if I remember. My DH goes to work in the dark and comes home in the dark. At least he has a window at work for those rare occasions the sun comes out lately.

the only days I lived the same, was when I had to wake up at 5:00 am to go to University and then go to work to return at 12:00 in the night from my restaurant job.

 

[Cesar R M]

My folks have bought new cars as well as my sister with credit cards. They immediately pay them off but they receive a lot of frequent flier miles. Works when you have the $$ to purchase new cars outright.

yikes, the limits in the US must be huge.
We always get 1,000 USD to 9,000 USD at most.
anything above 9,000 USD is considered "corporate" over here.. and only platinum cards offer these levels

 

[StarWarsGirl]

More on the pool music saga...


Now they are playing some weird version of "Let's Go Fly a Kite" with Mickey, Donald, Goofy, and Minnie singing it.

 

[StarWarsGirl]

speaking of vacations.. the interesting part of living in a touristic town is.. everyone comes to visit US on vacations.
aka me and my family. (it helps that a lot of our family members live here too )

Sounds like how locals in Hawaii go to Vegas for vacation.

 

[StarWarsGirl]

Busted!!!

I've seen this before. It's hysterical

 

[FutureCEO]

Urgggh...facebook is emailing me saying that they miss me. I don't miss them.

I forget my password to facebook all the time and have yet to reset it.

 

[Gabe1]

First sign of Spring.