Christmas Is Coming

I was in bed reading Shadows of the Empire when the phone rang. It was the Acme. One of the managers had found some extra hours for me. Did I want to work on Friday evening? Sure, why not? My only plan for that day was going grocery shopping anyway.

Had breakfast when I finally made it out of bed. Tried Pumpkin Spice Chip Pancakes sprinkled with powdered sugar. Not bad. Next time I try something like this, I think I'll add a little sugar to the batter.

Spent the rest of the morning listening to Donna Summer and the Bee Gees while taking down the Thanksgiving and general fall decorations. I meant to do this on Friday when I got home, but I was just so wiped out! I really wasn't up to doing much of anything besides writing. The Christmas decorations will probably start to go up next week, after I give the apartment a thorough cleaning.

Went on the computer for the next few hours to catch up on writing. Kylo Ren comes into Han's cell to interrogate his father. Rey can hear them through the walls. Han tries to convince his wayward son to admit he's not what he claims he is. Ren insists he's too powerful to be a simple fairy. Hux, the head of the Mouse Army, suggests cutting off Han's wings in a public demonstration of the Kingdom of the First Order's power. Ren is hoping to lure Leia and force her to agree to become King Snoke's queen. They lead him away to Gingerbread Town, intending to execute him in the town square.

He goes to Rey's cell next to question her. She tells him she's not talking to a mask. When he takes it off...he reveals that he resembles her brother, Benjamin. He tries to get her to talk. Not only is she not revealing the Candy Army's location, but she gets into his head, telling him he'll never be as great as his idol. the wicked Lord Vader.

She continues to use her powers on his guards. She manages to convince one to not only give her a full four-course cheese meal, but to let her go. The girl sneaks out, hoping to find Leia and the others and tell them about Hux's plans.

Went for a walk around 4:30. I was tired of sitting. It was too nice of a day to be inside the whole time. Though the clouds were off and on, the sky I could see was sunny, and it was breezy but not that windy. It was chilly, but nothing abnormal for late November.

I ended up at Dad and Jodie's house. I wanted to give them the list for my Secret Santa and say "hi." The Eagles play tomorrow, but there were a lot of other interesting games. Dad's Dolphins had beat the 49ers earlier, which meant he was in a decent mood. We got to see the Buccaneers pull off a surprising win over the Seahawks and the Jets give the Patriots a run for their money. (They lost, but it wasn't for a lack of trying. Considering the Patriots are top contenders, they played really well.)

Chatted with Jodie, Jesse, and Sandy for a while. I seem to be the only person on this side of the family who really enjoys shopping. I love it. I don't even need to buy anything. I just like looking at the merchandise. I like it online and offline. It's hard to explain it to everyone else around here, who considers shopping to be more of a chore than a pleasure. As long as I get it done well before Christmas Eve, it's one of my favorite parts of the season.

Had a strange kind of pizza they got at a gourmet pizza place in Cherry Hill. It was a plain tomato pie with blobs of fresh mozzerella and a very soft crust. Ok, not bad, other than it was a tad bland and I wish the crust wasn't burnt. I got to try the lemon cake Vanessa brought for Thanksgiving (and bring home a slice, too).

I saw a lot of people putting up their Christmas lights on my way to Dad's. By the time I was walking home, the neighborhood was aglow with bright-colored displays. I guess people decided to take advantage of the decent weather and the Eagles playing tomorrow. Dad put his up, too. Jesse set up one of those projection displays - his is red and green waves.

Finished out a quiet day with Lego Star Wars. Got through the Super Stories for Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith. Got Clones in well under an hour, but I had problems with "Chancellor In Peril" and "Ruin of the Jedi" and couldn't get the hour on Sith. Tried the blue pieces challenge on "General Grevious," one of the shortest rounds. I did manage to get all of them, but just barely in time.