There has been a meme circulating on FB about the day after Christmas, when some people went back to work, being the "Mondayest Thursday ever." I think that is today. After almost two weeks off, we are back to our normal school-work routine. The kids went back bright and early (the sky was bright, not them), as did Mama. I go back next week, but I am full into my chores--tons of laundry, a messy kitchen, a chaotic house, since we spent the whole time here.
Bud had asked for an at-home holiday but he got more than he bargained for: Mama and I had severe colds, with sinus infections, most of the holidays. Mama slept some of Christmas away; I lumped for days afterwards. We were supposed to go to Old Sturbridge Village candlelight with Ma and Gong, but we kept pushing it back and eventually had to cancel, disappointing us all. We're both only now starting to move more energetically.
We did do a few things. The kids and I went to see Cats on Christmas Eve morning, drawn by all of the horrible reviews we'd seen. First, I love the musical Cats, even with its lack of plot, and have seen it on stage three or so times, plus some filmed versions, so I was not bothered by the string of songs without much narrative glue. I didn't mind the kitty ingenue introduced to guide us through the story, which had been made more clear with the villain McCavity. And I really liked several of the actors, though not the fat-phobia for laughs inflicted on Rebel Wilson and James Corden. But, secondly, I found it really hard to watch all the CGI. I didn't mind the odd perspectives/size differences of the cats and the surrounding sets. But I was particularly bothered by the nude-like costumes (cats are fluffy with fur, not skin tight and smooth) and the synchronized snake-tails. Idris Elba looked very oddly nude-not-nude and I can't un-see Taylor Swift shaking furry-not-furry cat boobs. And I became entranced by how in some places the cats' feet weren't really touching the floor, which was also CGI'd. If they had just filmed them as-is, like the Broadway show, esp without those dancing tails, it might have been better. Because the dancing was extraordinary, the singing mostly good (except Jennifer Hudson's "Memory" which was about the worst I've ever heard), and several of the actors entrancing--love, love, love Judi Dench and Ian McKellen. So, not a waste of two hours, not awful, but still the CGI was terrible. We had fun.
Later that evening, we went to Vespers at church, taking a plate of cookies to share. I loved the carol singing, though I got teary through many of them. Not because Christmas carols make me sad, but because I missed hearing my mom and dad singing along. They are both good and enthusiastic singers. Our interim minister was very warm in his welcome of Mama and the kiddos, whom he hadn't met yet. We headed home and hung out until Goo arrived. We didn't stay up too late, as far as Christmas Eves go.
And then it was Christmas morning. Even though the kiddos are older, they still got us up at 7 in the morning and were excited to get downstairs to stockings and gifts. There were a lot of Dungeons & Dragons presents for Bud--books, Monster and NPC (non-player character) cards, setting tiles for visual ambiance--plus a beautiful dice tower for the whole family. I gave a lot of t-shirts to everyone--a Monty Python for Goo, "Significant Otter" plus some horse t-shirts for Mama, a horse hoodie for Sis, and #teamtrees shirt for Bud (who got an Amnesty shirt when Mama and Sis got holiday horse shirts.) I got some lovely soaps (I love smelly-goods like soaps and candles) and some tasty, fancy chocolates. Indeed, there were a lot of snacks in the various stockings. But not as many books this year. Sis got a few YA fantasy books to go with Bud's D&D books. I got an IKEA cookbook with my favorite little mazariner almond tarts.
We had breakfast just as Ma and Gong arrived and then hung out the rest of the day. Mama napped upstairs while I lounged on the couch; everyone else played a long and competitive game of Rummy. It lasted half the day. We had our usual gumbo and muffalattas for dinner, with Ma making some fried rice as well.
And then the next several days are a blur. We hung around, watched movies (Christmas Vacation, ELF, Emmet Otter, all of "Watchmen" and "Gentleman Jack," one episode of "His Dark Materials" and John Mulaney's musical kids special), ate lots of snacks and cheese and sweets, played Pokemon and Celeste and the new Zelda. I crocheted on a blanket for one of their friends having knee surgery. I also did some Zentangle.
I did manage to go out with Mama Teacher on Monday, to our local tea shop, during which we had a nice chat and exchanged gifts. Then we went grocery shopping; I was exhausted at the end of it all.
New Year's was similarly subdued. We did stay up until midnight, which is a rarity. See, BTS was performing two songs in Times Square so we stayed up to watch. I thought they did a wonderful job, with the slower, melodic "Make it Right" and the more iconic "Boy with Love." I also liked that they walked past the crowds between the two stages, since fans had trouble seeing the stages and had been their all day. And then they were there when the ball dropped--taking selfies, poking confetti, pointing and dancing! So cute.
We made an abbreviated Thanksgiving dinner, since most of us hadn't had Thanksgiving (with the stomach flu.) We had roasted turkey (well, thighs, drumsticks and a few cutlets--all the whole turkeys were frozen solid.) And then watched the new Doctor Who, which surprised us all.
And now it's back to the grind. It was sorta restful but not at all memorable, a huge contrast to last year in Thailand, which was never restful and completely memorable.
