OldSouthernBelle

Rave: I think I have everything under control for our Christmas celebration!

Rave: DS #1's internet Christmas order arrived yesterday! He had been late in getting me the list, and I was too cheap to pay for overnight delivery! I gambled and won!

Rave: Internet shopping...most of my gifts this year! I even ordered some things for myself at 50% off at Coldwater Creek last night! (good through the 29th, FYI).

Rave: I've slowed down the weight gain...hope it will not go up significantly the next couple days, but I do intend to enjoy myself!!

Rant: We had DS #2's car worked on this week, at the tune of about $2,000 we hadn't planned on spending! But I'd much rather have him safe, than worry about the money!

Rant: Why is it that I still have problems (every week) finding this thread?? When I do a search the old FF threads come up, not the new one!

Rave: I tried the Hot Buttered Rum recipe that was posted and it is now my new favorite winter drink!!

Merry Christmas to all!

Belle

dwooddon

Rave: Life is good! I'll be spending Christmas with my daughter, grandson and granddaughter and was able to spend several days last week with my son, his wife, and my 3 other grandsons.

Rant: Their father is still in Iraq. This is not a political rant. He strongly believes in his mission over there and the entire family supports him. He is just a great guy and we will miss him for Christmas - actually every day.

My best wishes to all Fodorites for a very Merry Christmas (or a peaceful holiday season if you don't celebrate Christmas) and a happy and prosperous New Year.

Don

viamar

Rave: I'm all done with my shopping and can enjoy plenty of time with my family. We're going to go Downtown and enjoy the sights of the season without worrying about rushing around for gifts.

Rants: No rants for now.

Rave: The wonderful movie Millions. Watch it with your family over the holidays. It is one of the sweetest, well done movies I've seen in years and perfect for the holidays.

Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah!

AuntAnnie

viamar: I agree...."Millions" is a wonderful movie!! I sat on my college daughter's vacant bed last weekend wrapping gifts and watched the movie. It is one I will probably buy for myself. I loved the Catholic saints showing up!
Happy Holidays!

jorr

The mail man came. I couldn't get my dog to come in the house before he was due to show up. He drove even Faster this time and nearly hit my dog. I'm talking about double the speed that other people drive. I have left a message for the post master. My dog will never be left outside when this idiot gets scheduled for a click and ship pick up.

How interesting that FedEX and UPS respect my concerns and drive slowly and are friendly but the postal service mail man does neither. I just wish that FedEX or UPS could match the USPS rates so I wouldn't have to deal with this idot mail man and his route supervisor ever again.

Merry Christmas to everyone except my mass murderer idiot mail man!

AuntAnnie

jorr: I guess that's why "going postal" has become a cliche! The civil service exam must favor a certain type. Keep your dear doggie safe. Happy Holidays!

cd

JJ5
Thanks, they sound wonderful!

LoveItaly

Merry Christmas Jorr!!

I hope one of your your Christmas presents will be a different postal carrier for 2006. Someone with some good common sense and a pleasant personality.

Wishing all of you and your loved ones a beautiful holiday season.

seetheworld

Rave: I had the opportunity to do some consulting work this week. Although the timing could have been better, I never look a "gift horse in the mouth", lol. Nice to receive some compensation.

Rave: Both sons are home. My dear husband braved the supermarket for me (list in hand) and did the shopping.

Rave: I'm really looking forward to Christmas this year. It will be the first time, in a long time, that our house will be filled. Our twin nephews from Cambridge and my husband's sister will be with us. We will also share our traditions with our son's GF.

Wishing each and every Fodorite a wonderful holiday season. All the best for a peaceful 2006 with lots of travel to fabulous places. Cheers!

STW

wtm003

Rave: Thanks to dwoddon's son-in-law for his selfless service and for his family that supports and waits for him at home. May you have a Merry Christmas!

Rant: None. There is too much to be thankful for.

ncgrrl

I'm not an animal person, but they are living creatures and should be treated with respect. I have to agree with everyone here who is saying what a horrible thing to do to that cat. Thankfully, there are people here who can help out in this situation.

Have a wonderful Christmas and if you are traveling, stay safe.

Scarlett

As an animal lover, this might be my rant of the day:

Saw a poster about this today at the pet shop we go to here in Portland.
You can go online and read for yourself.
iamscruelty.com

Thank Goodness, Pup doesn't eat Iams.

girlonthego

I think it is awful about the person who wanted to put the cat down. How awful. Our cat is part of our family.

One more rave: getting a Christmas card with a picture of teenage girl that look so much like her mom did that I think I am looking at my friend when she was young. Rant: I am also feeling older because of this!!LOL

P_M

Rant: Jorr's mailman and the woman who got rid of her cat. Anyone who treats animals badly is no friend of mine!!

Rant: As mentioned above, people sometimes give pets as gifts without thinking about the consequences for both the pet and the recipient. About 3 years ago we read an ad in the paper from a woman who was getting rid of her 9 month old puppy. Her grandchildren had given her the puppy, thinking that Grandma needs a companion. What they didn't realize was that Grandma was not capable of taking care of a puppy. We discovered that the puppy was always confined to a small room, about 6' X 6'. She never played with the puppy, never let her outside, never took her for walks, and hardly gave her any attention.

Rave: We were all too happy to relieve her of that puppy. We brought the puppy home, and she is now a healthy, happy dog who loves going on walks and playing fetch in the yard. This all happened right after we had to put down our 14-year-old dog, and our new puppy brought the joy back into our home just in time for Christmas. We've had this dog for 3 years now and she's still such a joy. We wouldn't get rid of our dog for any reason.

Rave: In defense of the lady who had first owned our dog, I must say that she did all of us a big favor by putting that ad in the paper. That was a much kinder thing to do than to keep the dog indefinitely without being able to take care of her.

Rant: I still can't imagine how anyone could rid themselves of a pet they've had for 12 years.

Rave: We're off to Mom's house tomorrow and will return on Monday. I hope Mom makes her chocolate cake. YUM!!

Wishing safe and happy holidays to all Fodorites. ><

jorr

Unstable mail man update: The Post Master returned my call to dicuss this mail man. He said he would talk to him and get his side of the story. About two hours later the mail man showed up in a different car. He sat in his car for ten minutes and kept looking at my front window and garage doors. My dog was in the house. He left and stopped on the road in front of my house for another few minutes.

I called the US Postal Services 800 number and told them all about the situation and they told me they would contact the local post master (who seems to not give a damn). I thought about calling the sheriff but doing that really blows things up.

This jerk is someone who likes to intimidate people and I think he also has his boss in his hands.

LoveItaly

That is scary Jorr! I wish you had taken a photo of this mailman. If it happens again do and include the license number of the car in your photo..or second photo. And I hope your dog has been trained to not eat food he sees laying around. I have read there is a way to train a dog to not do this. Not trying to overreact but with all the "nuts" out there I would listen to every concern you have in your mind. So many times we don't, much to our later regret.

girlonthego

Jorr: I don't like the sound of this man now staking out your house. I would be very careful because he sounds like a real headcase. Keep the phone handy and if he shows up again I would take the picture like loveitaly said and I would report this to the police. There are way to many crazies out there to take this lightly. Be safe.

iceeu2

Jorr, we have a soon to be EX sil who works for the postal service. Honest, to goodness, they all have to pass a test to be certain they can "go postal"! They are ALL nuts.

P_M

Jorr, I don't like this. If that man returns I think you should call the police. He might not be breaking any laws, but if the situation escalates at least there will be a record of this behavior. Please keep us posted.

LoveItaly

Thanks to everyone that posted after I did. After I posted I thought "oh gads" everyone will think I am paranoid. To see all of you posting your concerns concerns me even more...as I really felt when I read Jorr's last post that this postal employee is a BIG problem. In fact the more I thought about it the more I thought I would talk to the sherrif's department.

Jorr, please be careful and don't let your dog outside unless you are with him. I am so sorry you are having this problem.