I’m sitting here in the glow of the Christmas tree, sipping a dram of good scotch, and reflecting on my day.
I laugh at the kids because even though they are older, they still are up early to see what Santa brought even though Santa only brings stocking stuff these days. They were up by about 7am this morning which is a bit later than when they were really young but still up earlier than I was at that age.
The kids were happy with their gifts. G was happy with his gifts. I was happy with my gifts. Definitely a good Christmas.
The oldest kid’s cat is hating life right now. He came into the unwrapping fest, plopped down to give himself a bath, then revealed that his skin irritation is back because he hasn’t left it alone. The vet told us if he did not leave it alone, that it was the cone-of-shame for him. I have never seen a cat look so murderous. And that was before he tried to walk around.
That cat kept getting his cone caught on everything. Chairs, boxes, door jams – you name it and it got caught on it. At one point, he just laid down almost like he was giving up. What is worse for a cat versus a dog? They aren’t comfortable trying to jump on anything or climb on anything. Their sight is so much part of what they do that his limited vision was keeping him from trying anything.
The upside? He is being fairly tolerant of the kitten. The kitten has figured out how to get out of his room – aka the safe zone. We came home from the Star Wars movie to find him and the big guy at the top of the stairs together. The big cat turned and touched his nose to the kitten’s nose. So very cute. And HUGE progress in getting them together full time. After we got home, they came downstairs, and the kitten was playing like crazy. We felt so bad for the big guy because he wanted to join in but couldn’t because he can’t see his paws.
Christmas dinner was burgers at the brew-pub theater that we saw Star Wars at. My gut told me that we should get there really early, and it paid off. There are no bad seats in this theater, but the last two years were challenging because we got the last sets of seats in the “food” section. Getting there early, we were able to have our pick of seats. I shook my head at the people arriving about 5 min before the movie started and getting upset there were no seats. I should mention that all showings of Star Wars at this theater were sold out. I bought our tickets a week ago when I knew we were going to be here to see it. Others in line said they bought their tickets a month ago. Someone showing up 5 min before the start of the show and getting upset they couldn’t find seats they wanted just made me shake my head. One trio of people just stood in front of people – blocking their view – because they couldn’t find seats. Finally the staff shoo’d them away.
The movie – ah, the movie……Definitely one of my favorite Star Wars movies of all time. If you have not seen it yet and are avoiding spoilers, close this post now. You have been warned.
I applaud the editing of this movie. The tension was kept throughout – and in a good way that had you on the edge of your seat. I also applaud them for how they handled Carrie Fisher. There were several times that made me wonder if they were going to take the out – let her character be killed instead of how maybe they filmed it originally. But they let it play out as it was meant to play out. There were some very prophetic lines in the movie between her and other characters. I loved that in the end, her character lived.
One observation that the family made after the movie was how now – all of the characters from the previous trilogies (outside of Chewbacca, C3P0, and R2D2) are gone. No Skywalker family, no Hans Solo – all that are left are the new guard for the rebellion and for the First Order. I like that the transition is complete – now a whole new set of characters have a chance to fully take the reins. Makes me really excited to see where the story goes.
Oh, and I do appreciate the visit to the planet that is like Monaco – land of the rich and famous. We learn from that visit that this is where all of those who have profited off of the war between the First Order and the Rebellion go to spend their money. I thought it added some depth to the universe because I have always wondered how they keep going – on both sides. Seeing and learning that there are people out there making money off of the conflict while not having to be directly involved in the conflict explained it in a believable way.
Tomorrow is my last day off. One kid has a dentist appointment. Then we are off to the in-laws for luncheon. I am hoping that the ice is gone when we are supposed to go there because getting up their hill with ice will be nearly impossible. Here is hoping we warm up so it melts.
