I married into a family that takes Christmas very seriously. So December is a time when a lot of things have to happen - baking, cooking, buying presents, going to see Santa so we have a picture to put on the Christmas cards which by the way need to go out no later than December 20, and so on. It's very hectic. Once upon a time, I could just get by on less sleep, but these days that's less of a solution for me. In part, I'm sure, that's because I've stopped drinking caffeine because now I get fewer migraines, but mostly I just get tired more easily.

So in an attempt to get things done, I stopped going down to the gym at 3am to run. I figured I needed every scrap of sleep I could get, so as soon as each night's tasks were done, I'd just crash and wake up (generally a bit too late.) This totally backfired. In the final three weeks of the year, I didn't run at all. And apparently, when I'm not running, I need to sleep even more. Previously, I'd become accustomed to sleeping 5-6 hours a night and feeling fine, but in the crap end of December, I slept 8-9 hours a night, and was still tired when I woke up. So basically, not taking time to run meant I had less time available to get stuff done.

• I resolve to learn Mig welding. And then make a Goodness Gracious Adequate Ball of Fire.
• I resolve to get that room in DC, starting in Feburary.
• I resolve to clean up the lingering paperwork with the ex to make our split official. 
• I resolve to remodel the downstairs powder room.

Stretch goal : Murphy bed in guest room

Stretch goal 2: have more stretch goals 

I like to imagine that I have the power to recast the gun control debate to proscribe any argument that depends on the fact that we've made it too easy for evil people to get guns. Yes, maybe it will be painful when we enter that period when "only criminals have guns," but the current policy is just not working, and every day we continue to make guns freely available makes any other solution a little bit harder.

What bothers me most, though, is that no one really has the "right to bear arms" promised by the Bill of Rights anymore. One of the most powerful weapons used in the War of 1812, the privateer America, was not owned by the United States military. Now, I can't even buy a brand new machine gun, let alone an F-16 or a nuclear warhead. To the extent that the second amendment is founded in a need for our civilians to be an effective militia, it has completely failed.

Today was a rough day. Battery at <10%. ​

Vince gave me half a pint of Ben & Jerry's Chubby Hubby ice cream, and said, "You can finish this." 

Much like handing a kilo of heroin to Kurt Cobain. 

I felt guilty for making it disappear almost immediately. SCHHHLOOP! Gone.

Then I saw this: 

Hungry Girl Summer Freeze DIY Ice Cream Treats! 

Hungry Girl is some apologist for the processed-food industry. She has a blog that's supposed to offer lower-calorie versions of snacks and restaurant meals that people supposedly crave. They're lower in calories, sure, and lower in Weight Watchers points, okay, but they usually depend heavily on Cool Whip and/or mayonaise as ingredients. 

One 8-oz. container Cool Whip Free, thawed 
3 pieces Twizzlers Strawberry Twists, finely chopped
1 tbsp. mini semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 tbsp. chopped peanuts
14 Quaker Buttered Popcorn Rice Cakes (1 package)

Basically, this fits right in with what people were eating in Interstellar. It's mostly high fructose corn syrup, various hydrogenated oils, gums, and sodium caseinate. 

To make the filling, transfer Cool Whip to a medium-large bowl. Add chopped Twizzlers, chocolate chips, and chopped peanuts. Gently stir.
Set out 7 rice cakes, and evenly spoon filling over them, about a heaping 1/4 cup each.
Lightly place another rice cake over each filling-topped cake to form a sandwich, for a total of seven sandwiches.
Place in the freezer until filling is firm, at least 1 1/2 hours. (Use a few plates or a baking sheet, so the sandwiches are not stacked.) Eat up!

Yum-mo!  A mere 32 grams of carbohydrates per serving, and only 4 Weight Watchers Power Plus Points!

I no longer feel guilty for eating half a pint of Ben & Jerry's. I read the recipe to Vince, and it was so gross that reading it made me laugh until tears came out of my eyes. 

Good things:

• My son's eating, weight, and height have all moved in the right direction
• I have not yet failed at transforming from "only guy working on a project" to "guy in charge of multiple people working on multiple projects."
• I'm much better at running
• I did a bona fide chin-up for the first time in maybe a decade (although it still feels like cheating that the only way I could accomplish that was to lose 30 pounds)
• I learned to make pasta
• My biggest financial disaster of the year was losing $450 on the FSA account

Bad things:

• I still freak out that I'm doing the parenting thing all wrong
• I also still freak out that I'm doing the being in charge of people at work thing all wrong
• I wanted to finish the year with 200 miles run, but only made it to 180
• I made no progress at all on any project that wasn't directly related to work or my family
• I read only one book from cover to cover this year
  
• One of my dogs died
  

Goals for next year:

• Run to Rivendell
• Help my son learn to read
• Read at least two books from cover to cover
• Make something new

This could be the most artsy-fartsy photo I have ever taken. 

Ted Harris, with Shark Vagina and Septugenarian. A study in perspective. 

Also: 

There's a lot to be said for having a child you've met four times in the three years he's been alive spontaneously grab your hand as you walk through a crowded aquarium together, because you wanted to take him to see Real Live Sharks.​ It makes me feel like Glinda The Good. 

Was...

the year I became  a Master of Fine Arts

the year I learned what exhausted really means

tomorrow we're going to go see some sharks. 

Today I released a short story, "Dakrah's Familiar," on the Kindle bookstore. Obviously I hope you'll pick up a copy and enjoy it! But even more than that, I would love it if you would write reviews. ;)

Cover art by Dawn McLaughlin.

Finally a good enough inspiration to plop some words down here.

Neil Diamond. 

My mom was/is in love with the man. Enough that he was my first concert. And I've seen him live several times. That was a fact I tucked deep into my closet during adolescence and high school years. Then I grew up as a person and a musician enough to embrace the awesome. 

Because the man is. Absolutely awesome. His voice is like velvet on gravel, saturated with that impossible-to-train, sublime quality of pure music. And as a songwriter he's a fucking genius. 

Yesterday I was trawling the internet for deals and picked up his "All Greatest Hits" in digital format for $3. I'm sad to say until now my library has been woefully lacking in Neil. Mom has all the CDs. 

So, tonight, it's Forever In Blue Jeans, Sweet Caroline, Holly Holy (ooooh I actually didn't know that one, and it's... *fans self*), even Hello and Love on the Rocks. 

I recommend it. In headphones. 

But you know what's even more awesome? The man is in his 70s and still completely rockin' it. Embracing his own cheesy reputation with his latest video including puppies and sparkles. At the same time, he's active on twitter, and even did a really awesome AMA on reddit a month or so ago. 

Seriously. Neil fucking Diamond. Get it.