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Friday Night Open Thread

By Jeralyn, Section Blog Related
Posted on Fri Nov 27, 2009 at 07:41:37 PM EST
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Who went shopping today? Who shopped online? The more ads I see, the more I want to just hoard my money. I did succomb to a few items, one of which wasn't on sale. I hope I'm done. I think the best deals are at Amazon Black Friday Deals but they sell out fast. For the foodies among you, you can get a year of Food & Wine for $5.00.

The Christmas lights are going up all over Denver tonight, from the City and County Building, to Union Station, LoDo, Larimer Square, the 16th St. Mall and the Denver Pavillions. Our Mayor is on TV now for the ceremony, and he says when the switch gets flicked, everyone is supposed to make a wish. I'm not sure I can think of one thing to wish for on such short notice.

I hope your holiday weekend is going well, please feel free to share your thoughts. This is an open thread, all topics welcome.

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    Friday Night Open Thread | 41 comments (41 topical)

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    I slept late, and spent most of (5.00 / 1) (#1)
    by Anne on Fri Nov 27, 2009 at 08:00:30 PM EST
    the day in front of a crackling fire, just being as lazy as these bones wanted to be.  The best part?  Not even an ounce of guilt.  Just the bliss of being comfortably still a little tired from the festivities and knowing I wasn't obligated to do one single, productive thing.  My daughter, her boyfriend and I watched about 7 episodes of Grey's Anatomy, Season 3, on DVD.  My husband did some research on Ancestry.com, I read some, and I may have dozed off once or twice.  Why not?

    We had a great Thanksgiving.  Everything went off as planned, we laughed, we ate, we drank, ate some more, and were still laughing at the end of the day.  

    Ate my favorite post-Thanksgiving sandwich - white meat and cold stuffing with mayo, and a bunch of green olives on the side.

    We had enough left over for a repeat meal tonight, and it was just as good the second time around.

    It's gotten colder, and blustery, the fire is still going, and if I can stay awake, will watch the latest episode of White Collar, a new USA show that has been quite enjoyable.

    Hope everyone is having a great holiday weekend; the Christmas madness begins soon enough - I am determined to squeeze every bit of enjoyment out of Thanksgiving before giving over to it!

    Christmas..... (none / 0) (#2)
    by Inspector Gadget on Fri Nov 27, 2009 at 08:09:53 PM EST
    the Christmas madness begins soon enough - I am determined to squeeze every bit of enjoyment out of Thanksgiving before giving over to it!

    We were all mentioning yesterday how many houses we've noticed in our neighborhoods that have had their trees up and lit for over a week already this year!! I've not seen that before :)

    Glad you had such a wonderful holiday!!
     

    Parent

    I know a few people who always (none / 0) (#5)
    by Anne on Fri Nov 27, 2009 at 08:22:53 PM EST
    put their tree up on Thankgiving...that's just too soon for me.

    For us, the house decorations will start to go up, and then we usually get the tree about 2 weeks before Christmas.  Around the same time, my husband will put some lights on the house - not that anyone really sees them, as we live in the country and not in a real neighborhood - but I like coming home to lights in the windows and framing the front of the house and the garage.

    How did your dad make out yesterday?  I'm sure just having you there, and doing some new things, made it easier for him.  And how did you do?  Sometimes when we're trying hard to support someone else through a rough patch, we forget that we have feelings, too.

    Parent

    Thanks for asking (none / 0) (#12)
    by Inspector Gadget on Fri Nov 27, 2009 at 10:10:02 PM EST
    Today we can laugh about it, but yesterday was a nightmare. He was a bit better today, but still acting like we are supposed to abandon our own lives for him. The holidays stopped being a big deal when mom decided to quit decorating at least 5 years ago, so I'm not sure why he's being so dramatic.

    My closest brother and I spent all morning Wednesday in the ER with dad as the opening act (nothing is wrong), so we were already bracing for a possible "event" with him. When we arrived yesterday, dad was barefoot and just wearing pants and an undershirt...extremely out of character, which meant our fears were about to be realized. He was supposed to spend the afternoon with the youngest sibling, but he called and cancelled that thinking he could guilt me and my brother into staying. The day went downhill from there.

    But, those pumpkin pancakes were absolutely fantastic!!

    My brother went over today to fix dad brunch, I went there to make him a spaghetti dinner. He was fine, but the pains started up again when he knew I was preparing to leave :) And, the youngest brother still hasn't lifted a finger to do even a fraction of his share...he's the one I'm going to give to Cream.

    Parent

    Oh, Inspector, I'm glad you can (none / 0) (#16)
    by Anne on Fri Nov 27, 2009 at 10:49:18 PM EST
    laugh about it a bit, but it has to make you wonder how much you should be dreading Christmas...poor guy must be terrified to be alone, but not able to just come out with it.

    I feel your pain on the sibling thing.  I just have one - a brother - and while he's not completely useless, what use he is never seems to come without major prompting.  I still remember about five years ago, my mother was in the hospital, and I was percolating a case of shingles.  As it happened, my mother and I had the same internist, and when he popped in to see her, I asked him to take a look - he diagnosed shingles and gave me an anti-viral prescription.  

    The day my mother was to be released from the hospital, the shingles were probably at their peak.  The two very small areas I had felt like they were simultaneously on fire and being stabbed with needles, and I just felt dreadful.  I had to break down in tears to get my brother to go pick her up and take her home - and his reasons for why it would be "difficult" for him were just pathetic.

    In many ways, he and I have been able to come together on a number of family issues, but he just does not do a very good job where my mother is concerned - and then he wonders why she doesn't think he cares.

    Parent

    Very similar on the sibling style (none / 0) (#20)
    by Inspector Gadget on Fri Nov 27, 2009 at 11:11:14 PM EST
    except, mine disappeared when my mom took her first big turn over a year ago. Then, after she died he declared a hatred for the family that made it necessary for him to end his relationship entirely. He crawled back to our brother with a 14 page email explaining how horrible his life had been...so bad that even his 30+ years in therapy hasn't helped. That should be a really big clue right there.

    He has a tendency to respond to a request for assistance (usually some small thing like taking dad for Thanksgiving dinner) and then adding it to his list of how he's been so severely taken advantage of. Although it would be nice to have a third person sharing some of this, we do think everyone is better off if that sibling just stays in his own selfish world.

    Parent

    Inspector (none / 0) (#19)
    by gyrfalcon on Fri Nov 27, 2009 at 11:05:31 PM EST
    It sounds like your dad might have some depression there.  Has he been evaluated for that?  I learned in caring for my mother in her last years that depression in the elderly looks very different than we're used to and it's harder to recognize.  When an old person who's had a life-changing event, like losing a spouse or a major illness/injury, starts doing odd things, as you say, "completely out of character," especially in relation to their appearance, it's definitely something to consider.

    Parent
    No doubt at all that (none / 0) (#21)
    by Inspector Gadget on Fri Nov 27, 2009 at 11:29:26 PM EST
    he has moved into a new phase of grief and had some really sad days leading up to TG, but he was dressed normally today and in a much better mood now that the holiday has passed. Yesterday was only to manipulate his schedule. He didn't want to go to my brother's for turkey because he doesn't think he likes him and he'd be at his mercy for getting back home...and my sister is arriving next week, which always causes him stress.

    Honest, gyrfalcon, we are at dad's every single day for several hours and we pay close attention to his behavior. Mom used to try to tell us about this side of dad...she really sheltered us from his lesser characteristics. His energy was almost normal today when I got there, and the smile was quick and genuine.

    Parent

    God don't you just love (none / 0) (#34)
    by Militarytracy on Sat Nov 28, 2009 at 09:19:56 AM EST
    a Holiday Day of watching the episodes of a series you loved?  I do that with the Sopranos.  Before the Sopranos changed the landscape of episode television I reserved Gone with the Wind for such occasions and all the Blade movies.

    Parent
    And Joshua does this with Seinfeld (none / 0) (#35)
    by Militarytracy on Sat Nov 28, 2009 at 09:21:14 AM EST
    even though Seinfeld happened before he was even born.

    Parent
    That makes me smile (5.00 / 2) (#37)
    by andgarden on Sat Nov 28, 2009 at 09:54:44 AM EST
    The Hamptons was on in this market last night.

    Parent
    That is such a great episode. (5.00 / 2) (#40)
    by Anne on Sat Nov 28, 2009 at 12:53:59 PM EST
    Between the "Yo Yo Ma - Boutros Boutros Gali" topless scene, to the "breathtaking" bay-bee, to the eggs scrambled with lobster, to that "shrinkage" scene (Elaine: "It shrinks? I don't know how you walk around with those things") it's just a gem from beginning to end.

    Parent
    Do you suppose the reason Gotti Jr. (none / 0) (#36)
    by oculus on Sat Nov 28, 2009 at 09:22:34 AM EST
    trials keep being mistrials is because of the Sopranos?

    Parent
    I have no clue (none / 0) (#38)
    by Militarytracy on Sat Nov 28, 2009 at 10:42:25 AM EST
    Jeralyn (being a criminal defense attorney and a Sopranos fan may know better).  I will say this for the series, the discussions that Dr. Melfi had with her collegues and her family and with Carmela Soprano about how her husband was no worse than many fully legal corporations who kill people all the time for a dollar too, stirred many internal talks with myself about ethics, reality, and who is considered the worse sort of criminal and who gets a total pass.  The similarities between a mob "family" and many currently existing corporations can't go unnoticed unless you want to not notice.

    Parent
    I just saw an ad on TV for Nutella (5.00 / 1) (#15)
    by andgarden on Fri Nov 27, 2009 at 10:47:13 PM EST
    A "mom" suggests that it's a great breakfast food.

    I can't even keep that stuff in the house because I will eat it all--until it's gone. I swear it's like hazelnut crack. For breakfast. . .

    I hate that commercial, (5.00 / 1) (#17)
    by Anne on Fri Nov 27, 2009 at 10:52:49 PM EST
    especially the part where the "mom" says she puts it on "healthy" food so her kids will eat it; makes about as much sense as pouring gobs of sugar and cream on that "healthy" oatmeal...

    I've never tried the stuff, mainly because it looks like something I could sit and eat with a spoon - and forget actually putting on anything.

    Parent

    Nutritionally I think it's about (none / 0) (#18)
    by andgarden on Fri Nov 27, 2009 at 11:00:50 PM EST
    as bad as Jif. But it tastes like a candy bar filling.

    And yes, you can eat it with a spoon.I did that once, and after getting through half a jar in a day, I threw it away and never bought it again.

    Parent

    I became acquainted with it while (none / 0) (#28)
    by scribe on Sat Nov 28, 2009 at 02:23:08 AM EST
    attending a course in Munich many years ago.  We had gone out the night before an 8 AM class and put a serious dent in the city's beer stocks.  Somehow, I made it to the dining hall with minutes to spare before they took everything in and all I was able to get was a rye brotchen with nutella, and a cup of excellent black coffee.

    Despite having had more than 5 of those liter-mug beers the previous evening, I made my class on the restorative strength of Nutella.

    I'm sure the company can use my testimonial somewhere in their advertising.

    Parent

    Josh and I noticed (none / 0) (#31)
    by Militarytracy on Sat Nov 28, 2009 at 08:28:21 AM EST
    a few days back after he had an early physical therapy appointment that IHOP is making nutella crepes now too.

    Parent
    I bought one thing (none / 0) (#3)
    by rdandrea on Fri Nov 27, 2009 at 08:10:12 PM EST
    And bought it online.

    The price where I bought it was better than in any brick-and-mortar shop, even those with websites that offered Bing cashback.

    Price is going to be the king this year, I think.

    on the local news they keep talking (5.00 / 1) (#4)
    by Jeralyn on Fri Nov 27, 2009 at 08:22:31 PM EST
    about how the stores are offering layaway. I think that hits the poor the most, since many don't have credit cards and can't shop online. They walk into the brick and mortar and are told, oh, don't worry, just pay a little each week between now and Xmas. I wonder how many won't finish making the payments -- or get the money back they did paid before defaulting.

    Parent
    When I was a kid (none / 0) (#7)
    by addy on Fri Nov 27, 2009 at 08:52:37 PM EST
    that was how my Mom paid for Christmas. It was a good idea I'm glad to see brought back.
    On the other hand, I went shopping today for a small secretary that would fit in a tiny space in our office to hold new mail, bills to pay and the ridiculous amount of paper my son brings home from school. Found a little table at Fred Meyer that was put together in 1/2 an hour and just fits our organizer and my son's papers. And it has a drawer for note cards and envelopes. 50% off brought it to $20. Perfect.

    Parent
    When first I met my wife (none / 0) (#10)
    by rdandrea on Fri Nov 27, 2009 at 09:14:07 PM EST
    She was a single mom with 2 kids, working full time, but still making little enough that she qualified for food stamps.

    Layaway was how her kids had Christmas that year.

    She never defaulted.  It seems that the poorest people are also the most honorable among us where debts are concerned.

    Or maybe that's a 35-year-old delusion.  Times might have changed.

    Parent

    As far as home defaults.... (none / 0) (#14)
    by lambert on Fri Nov 27, 2009 at 10:42:28 PM EST
    ... you're right. The poor are more honorable.

    Parent
    Food and Wine and presents (none / 0) (#6)
    by SueTexas on Fri Nov 27, 2009 at 08:29:35 PM EST
    First of all - I LOVE Food and Wine magazine and I hate to cook!  I only like to cook for entertainment but this is such a fun magazine with very easy recipes even I can make.  Another fun magazine at a good price - $20 for two subscriptions - you and a friend is "More" magazine.  It is targeted to women over 40 and some of the articles are really inspiring about what different women have accomplished "later" in life.  I have given subscriptions to friends (yes, we are all over 40 - actually 50 but we aren't counting) and they all continue to subscribe so I get to add new friends.

    I did not do any shopping today but did go with a friend in the afternoon to The Great Indoors so she could buy a dining room rug at 35% off - a pretty good discount on a 8 by 10 rug.

    Our Christmas will be small this year as regular gift go since we are giving the gift of travel.  We will be taking our grown children (and the one spouse) on a family trip for a week in May.  They all seem to enjoy traveling and it creates great memories.

    I did buy my oldest the best apron (he likes to cook, not sure where he got that, not me).  It has two bears on it with wine glasses, fishing gear and hunting gear.  The caption says "I told you, it is red for hunters and white for fishermen".  Perfect since he works as a hunting and fishing guide.

    I also bought one for me that says "Well Red".

    Here's to you finding just the right gift at the right price for you loved ones or for yourself.

    Of course, the (none / 0) (#8)
    by JamesTX on Fri Nov 27, 2009 at 08:54:16 PM EST
    best the mainstream media can come up with for us is that somebody thinks two creative people may have been able to fake their way into a large scale White House dinner. Obviously, as stated by the Secret Service, there is no comprehensible way in which this represented any kind of security threat whatsoever. After all, there were a few other people there. The Secret Service protects the prez quite well in crowds all the time. Regardless of where he is, nobody packing heat (or packing anything for that matter) is going to get anywhere close to Obama -- period -- invitation or no invitation -- suit or no suit -- period. I am not sure I understand the significance of this story. One time I ate dinner at a large private party I wasn't invited to. I think I even told the people I wasn't invited, and they offered me dessert. I would think if there was a problem, they could have asked them to leave -- or maybe not let them in to begin with?

    My first Black Friday (none / 0) (#9)
    by Cream City on Fri Nov 27, 2009 at 09:07:29 PM EST
    since I don't know when -- decades, anyway.  But in recent weeks, in trying to explain American Thanksgiving to the new daughter-in-law from afar, we had discussed not only that Thursday is about food and football but also that Friday is about . . . shopping until dropping in her new country.  So the wimmin of the family agreed to introduce our newcomer to the crazy custom.  The young ones went out fairly early (not the crack of dawn, though, as we all got home late from events out of town yesterday).  This oldester joined them by noon to take them to lunch -- and then we kept going for many hours more.  By then, by noontime, we were past any mob scenes, although the youngsters said that the crowd control measures taken this year worked well so that it wasn't that crazy in early hours, either.

    The new d-i-l is absolutely delighted to be just about done with all of her Christmas shopping, and that she was able to stretch their budget to get much better gifts than they could have afforded at regular prices.  As for me, I still have that shopping to go, as I didn't buy much more than lunch for all.  But I had the fun of helping our newcomer get outfitted for her first winter -- explaining to her the need for snow boots, not fashion boots (she had not realized that the tread is as significant for feet as it is for tires! -- and I treated my own progeny to a parka here and a warm hat or gloves there as well.

    And at last, I have limped home to put up the weary feet for a few hours . . . until tomorrow, when up go the huge wreath and outdoor decor on our gorgeous old house in our historic neighborhood, because we are determined to not have to be crawling around in the snow to do so, and it is coming soon.  Then inside we will go for hot chocolate and hauling up the tree and boxes full of so many decorations so meaningful to my kids -- many of those from day-after-Christmas sales in the days when I had the energy for that shopping madness.

    And then, next weekend and every weekend, we will continue to take the newcomer around to the many historic small towns here that decorate to the max in lovely style for holiday fairs -- old mill towns and the like, with buildings with stone walls three feet thick, and carolers singing in several languages of previous immigrants here.  She is finding it fascinating to see how much our region revels in continuing old-country traditions -- especially foods of so many lands, but especially our beloved kringles, kuchens, etc.!

    Your friday night news dump (none / 0) (#11)
    by andgarden on Fri Nov 27, 2009 at 09:18:27 PM EST
    Nice picture.

    I already thought the story was hysterical (none / 0) (#13)
    by Inspector Gadget on Fri Nov 27, 2009 at 10:14:20 PM EST
    but, this really is the topper!!!!


    Parent
    Is it really possible (none / 0) (#22)
    by CoralGables on Sat Nov 28, 2009 at 12:01:54 AM EST
    to back out of your driveway at 2am in a Cadillac Escalade, hit a fire hydrant and a tree hard enough to knock yourself out and need someone to free you from the car by breaking out the back window with a golf club?

    Fact or Fishy?

    Possible he hit the gas (none / 0) (#23)
    by nycstray on Sat Nov 28, 2009 at 12:07:35 AM EST
    not brake?

    Didn't he just come back from Asia?

    Parent

    Ah. Shades of Prof. Gates! (none / 0) (#33)
    by oculus on Sat Nov 28, 2009 at 09:15:19 AM EST


    Parent
    And air bags did not deploy (none / 0) (#24)
    by caseyOR on Sat Nov 28, 2009 at 12:15:35 AM EST
    According to the police, Tiger's car was traveling slowly enough that the collision did not trigger the air bags. Which means, according to the news, that the car was going less than 33 MPG.

    Wonder what the story is.

    Parent

    maybe he was (5.00 / 1) (#26)
    by Jeralyn on Sat Nov 28, 2009 at 01:50:54 AM EST
    driving while Ambien'ed, like Patrick Kennedy and this prosecutor.

    Parent
    I just did a google search for (none / 0) (#27)
    by Jeralyn on Sat Nov 28, 2009 at 01:52:54 AM EST
    Tiger Woods and Ambien and it seems a lot of people are speculating about it.

    Parent
    Ambien can do such off the wall (none / 0) (#32)
    by Militarytracy on Sat Nov 28, 2009 at 08:30:37 AM EST
    things to people.  I have a couple of family members who take it and one has displayed that stressors can add to strange Ambien sleepwalking type behaviors.

    Parent
    Fishy (none / 0) (#25)
    by dissenter on Sat Nov 28, 2009 at 12:45:30 AM EST
    And how was it his wife just had a spare golf club on hand at 2 am. Just saying.

    Parent
    I suspect that around his house (5.00 / 1) (#29)
    by scribe on Sat Nov 28, 2009 at 02:26:05 AM EST
    extra golf clubs are as plentiful as are hammers around the house of a carpenter, or books around the house of a writer.

    Parent
    Missed all the shopping (none / 0) (#30)
    by ruffian on Sat Nov 28, 2009 at 08:12:08 AM EST
    preparing for and having a party with some wonderful old friends, some I have not seen for over 5 years. Felt like heaven to be with them all again. We all got a severe case of the "I love you mans".

    Jeralyn I loved what you said about not being able to come up with a wish on short notice. Too much pressure!

    I started Black Friday (none / 0) (#39)
    by ChiTownDenny on Sat Nov 28, 2009 at 12:43:26 PM EST
    at Home Depot, a stop before the health club.  5 poinsettias for $1 each.  Then I worked out, went to Target looking for small kitchen electronics.  Saw nothing I was looking for on sale (Black Friday?).  Drove to Petsmart, picked up toys and treats for the dogs, almost all of which was 1/2 off; spent $52.  I was going to go to Macy's today and look for a deal for the small kitchen electronics, but I've decided to remember I have no income so I don't really need a Cuisinart food processor.  (Maybe I'll start looking for a job on Monday, or maybe Jan. 2.)  What I found interesting was I found semi-convenient parking at all locations, indicating the crowds were not overwhelming.  

    OMG! (none / 0) (#41)
    by ChiTownDenny on Sat Nov 28, 2009 at 12:56:27 PM EST
    Just read Social Security may go bust in 75 years.  Kent wants to fix it now, bless his concerned heart.  I wonder if the fix will be to put funds into the stock market?  Haven't we heard all this before?

    Friday Night Open Thread | 41 comments (41 topical)

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