Also.  Since that last post,  he has managed to turn the volume up even louder and stronger on his love pouring in which I'd not have thought possible except somehow he has....

Wow.  That's just.... A lot....  And I'm not certain how or why...  But,  ehrm.  It's a lot of wonderful even if it's nothing tangible....

I'm gonna go shower and get dressed and then drink some tea while reading Neil Gaiman's <i>Anansi Boys</i> and eating candy cane kisses (I'm addicted to these in wintertime,  even if there's no actual chocolate in them) and admiring my ridiculous Yule tree.  (Ridiculous because I realized that I had FAR too many ornaments for my bitty 4ft tall light up birch that is out year round and I up til this year I hung my collection of ornaments on. Since acknowledging that the half dozen laser cut wood zoo animals put me over the top,  I've allowed me to indulge in buying more and now I have overcrowded with wood ornaments,  shiny baubles,  bells, sparkly critters,  bears,  dinosaurs,  and random critters my 6ft plastic tree (I hate hearing the slow screaming of the real trees dying. Love the smell of real trees but hate the screaming, I actually can't sleep in a house with a real tree's dying screams.)  This year I also found some cute kitschy things like glass peace signs, a coffee cup,  a beer growler, and Star Wars characters I wanted to add to the mix. Still no topper on it - but I'm thinking I want to get a Weeping Angel tree topper... Also,  if you don't know about Weeping Angels,  go watch the episode of Doctor Who called Blink.  The episode will stand alone without watchimg all the rest.  Great short piece of horror and the weeping angels are a delightful addition to the canon of Whovian villains. My tree is also ridiculous because I didn't have a container big enough for my Halloween seasonal kitsch so in a fit of inspiration put Halloween under my tree.  And I love it,  I've decided it's my new personal tradition to put all the spookies under the tree til late on Christmas Eve in honor of Nightmare Before Christmas. Instead of the presents accumulating there,  it'll be Halloween under the tree until late night when stockings get filled o'clock. Because I am a creature of repetitive seasonality,  but not socially instilled traditions. And this personal tradition as homage to Nightmare Before Christmas pleases me intensely. Maybe you should have to listen to or watch How The Grinch Stole Christmas as you put Halloween away from under the tree.... Hmmmmmm.  Must consider.  I like it in theory though!)

P. S.
Also.  I spent an hour this morning on the phone with Aunt Linda and then half hour (still in my towel fresh out of the shower) with grandma and another half hour of phone tag about her pt til finally Doug just texted me,  lol.  Drinks yet?

Also.  My aunt is so abrasively headstrong sometimes I'm just waiting for the shoe to drop she can't even deal with me.  😂

Saturday will be the real brouhaha and test of the diplomatic patience of me and my mother (she's a Scorpio but a peacemaker and diplomat when she isn't micromanaging,  but especially within the family - I REALLY want to know her rising sign but nobody seems to know her birth hour and they generic stamped a birth time when they finished the paperwork end of day....) My diplomacy method in my family relies on always being honest with people,  which is why I'm more blunt than most Libras,  because lies and secrets make everything exponentially worse when discovered.  So I have a very "cards on the table" (but I may try to spin you as positive as possible before showing the cards you don't want seen) approach to interpersonal communication. It's just how I am, and probably as a result of so many strong personalities who take lies or hiding things from them VERY personally.  But that doesn't mean it's easy with this side of the family when they're not in agreement - even as a Libra sun AND libra Mercury.  (seriously though,  you have to TRY to pick a fight with me,  lol.  I don't let dishonesty or deliberate cruelty go unchecked, and I won't back down over issues of either one,  but beyond the fact I always call out both those things,  you really do have to try to pick a fight with me...) Anyway,  Linda and her three brothers coming to an understanding about where grandma is and who's doing what so things don't slip through the cracks....  It's gonna be a fireworks explosive shitshow,  and we all know it.  No decisions without grandma present,  but wanting everyone on the same page....

Luckily,  that's at 2. And then Cath's annual holiday party at Sandy's place  - with booze constantly being pressed on you by her mom Sandy.

Aunt Linda wanted to hold family meeting about grandma on Christmas Day at Steve & Sondra's til I told her that I think the idea was a happy holiday for Viv and Sabra no outside drama.  Then I filled her in on what had happened and it made her cry at CostCo.  (She didn't tell me we were having this whole call about grandma's medical  while she was holiday shopping at CostCo. Oy....) The thing with Aunt Linda is,  she can be pushy and abrasive and quick to pick a fight and super ego driven,  but she's also has a deep love of family/friends feels everything REALLY deeply. (She's a Taurus,  as is Uncle Steve.  My da is a Capricorn, Uncle Jeff is a Pisces but eldest child.  My grandma is a Scorpio and my grandpa was a Leo.  So yeah,  a lot of strong personalities....)