GinohnNews

G: What did we do Friday? I remember being up late. What was it? We were up really late. Or was that Saturday night?

Saturday I did yoga, then ??? until that night we went to see Dan Hart for the last time for real, maybe. He put on a great show; very personable. Goodbye and good luck! Then we went to College Perk where we just missed Maloney's gig. Then we went to Noelle's to hang out and we had fun. The next morning I went to yoga at RnA's. Margit and Alison came back to my house for smoothies. We hung out for a while.

Then what?

Monday I worked, classes and studio. We went out to eat at Chef's Secret, then I finished up The Office. Tuesday I flew to FLA. My brother got in the same time, Dad picked us up and we went to eat at Sweet Tomatoes - great salad bar. Then we shopped at Costco. When we got back to the 'rent's house Mom was out at a meeting. She came back and made cookies. We watched TV.

Today Grant and I bought tennis rackets and went down to the single tennis court down the street from Mom and Dad's. Grant had never played before but he plays raquetball so he was doing fine. Then a couple of high school kids came by and we let them join us. They were terrible. But we had fun.

Tonight I cooked dinner and the recipe called for chopped jalepeno. So I chopped up two and went about cooking. When I started cooking the onions they were getting to my eyes, so I rubbed them. Whoops. I didn't get any in my eyes but it was burning all around them. Grant looked up remedies online and said put gin on it. Mom had some gin (she eats some raisins soaked in gin because it's supposed to help with arthritis (rolls eyes)) and so I dabbed some on and the burning went away. But then later my hands started burning and they haven't stopped, even though I put gin on them.

Bummer.

J: Sorry about the late post. I always forget that when Gina goes to visit her parents around Xmash, it's more work for me to stay home. My days have been packed -- holiday duties with family and friends.

Check this out. Eris, a massive five-trunked poplar that fell over a year ago in our woods, as viewed from orbit (middle of picture).
Eris was one of a class of trees Gina called "hugging trees;" trees with multiple trunks that you can stand between and receive gentle hugs as the wind moves the trunks. I visited Eris a couple times this week with Katy, to validate the satellite photo by checking the layout of the trunks, and also to pick a few oyster mushrooms off of her trunks for dinner.

J: During this holiday season—normally celebrated in this country via an orgy of consumption—it's important to revisit the four R's of waste management: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, and Regift. So dig up all those old unwanted gifts that lie dormant in your closet or attic, rewrap, relabel, and regift! Make a special place to store your unwanted gifts this year, so they can stay nice and fresh for their next gracious receiver. Ramp up the regifting until it's perceived as necessary and normal for the ecology and our culture.  Your planet will thank you.