Christmas Eve

I just finished my little Christmas celebration with my family. It was a virtual Christmas this year, since I don't have any time off from work and can't travel back east. Andy and I set up webcams over Skype and it actually worked pretty well, although we couldn't get the sound to work so the video was over Skype and the sound was through the cell phones (thank goodness for free long-distance!). We opened gifts together and did all the usual things (homage to Grandma by someone putting a bow on their head; Mom needing to go get camera batteries or something else silly to postpone the gift opening, etc.). It was a fun experience, but somehow not quite the same. I guess it is better than not getting to see or talk to them at all, but I definitely am feeling homesick for the first time since I moved here. Now it's after 7pm on Christmas Eve, and I'm trying to decide what to do for dinner. Hot pocket? Sandwich? Canned soup? I could go out for Chinese like in "A Christmas Story"... except I hate Chinese food. Usually I enjoy the freedom of living alone, but at the moment it feels, well, lonely. Sigh. Enough of a pity party. Maybe I'll go watch a Christmas movie with Smokey.

The Meneelys, Christmas 2007