Thanks, Jesse. That way I can put him up on my site. I had that window open and unattributed.

Rainy and gray, perfect day to stay inside and pack. Yay? But first, shower and out for coffee and food.

Chez Zmayhem has the tree up, and, after an hour of fiddling with little tiny fuses and extra bulbs, JZ has fixed the lights.

Emmett and Matilda have had oatmeal, and been busy giggling and tickling each other with pine sprigs, and getting in trouble shooting nerf darts.

JZ and I have had omelets (hers: lox, cream cheese, red onion) and now we've got some Christmas music playing. The stockings are up. Matilda is playing with the xmas themed Playmobil and the rest of us are on computers.

My most recent foray into environmentally friendly dishwasher detergent seems to have gone okay. Whenever I finally unload the wash I'll find out for sure, but the last time I tried it, the soap was an obvious failure from the git go. I hope this brand works out.

And I think I've found my sister's Christmas present at etsy. A compass pendant for a world traveller. That should work, right? It's pretty.

What brand, ita? I've just gone back to Cascade and I feel bad about it.

A compass pendant for a world traveller. That should work, right? It's pretty.

That sounds perfect. My sister would probably like that, too. She has a thing for compasses. Well, and has travelled the world, but not on a regular basis anymore. Still, compass.

Showered now. Dress and out next. (Yeah, sorry, it's looking like a Twitter day for me in Natter, folks. Keeps me company while I'm working toward and through packing.)

Thank Hermes for the internet. Within about two hours I found out what my family wanted, tracked it down online, ordered it and had it shipped to my sister's place. All I have to do now is fly up and wrap it. Whereupon I expect I'll be offering thanks for gift-bags.

I am impressed and envious, Calli. Though, at first, I wondered why you were thanking a high end designer for the internet.

What brand, ita? I've just gone back to Cascade and I feel bad about it.

Earth Friendly Wave. It says it's organic lavender scented, but luckily I don't smell anything.

Jen, I'm looking at this right now for my sister, but now that I've had the idea I'll google some more examples and see what the competition looks like. She is coming to visit me on her way back from New Zealand, after all. She gets around.

She's asking me what kind of patties I want her to bring. When I left Jamaica they only had beef. Now they have chicken, vegetable, lobster, and shrimp. What a brave new world.

Thank Hermes for the internet.

I second that. I can't even imagine shopping in brick-and-mortar stores for more than the occasional outing anymore. Too many people, too much walking, too hard to find specific things.

I'm thinking I should peruse etsy. And ooh, the little folding-leaf table my sister gave me will be perfect for setting up my little bitty fiber-optic-lights tree. Gotta find it.