Merry Christmas to All!

I'm not going to blog about our festivities until I get the pics uploaded, but we want to wish everyone a blessed Christmas. Is it just me or is Consumerism being pushed more than ever!!!?? How nice to know the real meaning of Christmas isn't about if you give someone the perfect present- God gave it to us many years ago and it's still relevant today.

Not to contradict myselft, but I did unearth an amazing find if anyone is still trying to find "just the right gift" for someone. It's called magazine subscriptions. If you go online and buy it as a GIFT, it's much cheaper than buying a subscription for yourself. It's true for most magazines I've looked up today. Glamour for instance: 3 gift subscriptions (12 issues each) for $20. Isn't that awesome??

Happenings at the Bel Air Mall in Mobile

First of all, WHY did I go to the mall 9 days before Christmas at 5:00- the height of mall traffic? I really don't know.

Two bizarre things happened to me last night at the mall, which I will share with you now:

1. As I was trying my hardest to get a parking spot close enough where I could just SEE the mall, I almost ran into a Policeman on HORSEBACK. Yes, he was patrolling the mall parking lot on a horse. In case you steal something at the mall and try to get away with it, the policeman will go after you down the treacherous Airport Blvd. on HORSEBACK.

2. A little preface for bizarre incident #2. I go to the mall a lot during my lunch breaks because I can walk from work. Well you know those little shop-stands in the middle of the mall walkways that sell purses or knick-knacks or Bama/Auburn memorabilia? Well this mall has this horrible shop-stand that sells foreign cosmetics, lotions, etc. It's called "Revolution" and the people that staff the little shop-stand are AWEFUL. I think they are from Slovakia and they smell weird, all have incredibly nappy hair, and just basically freak me out. So every time I walk by the Revolution shop-stand, one of the Slovakian staffers skips toward me and says in a creepy foreign accent, "Excuse me miss, would you tell me your darkest secret." It's a little vampiric. The first time this happened (about two months ago) I was so taken aback that I literally said, "WHAT?" and then darted into the nearest store which happened to be The Limited, so it was ok. Every time I walk by, I am approached by one of them and asked about my "darkest secret." I have trained myself to stare straight ahead and pick up the pace, but I usually end up trying to come up with a good response to the "darkest secret" question that would get them to stop. Like, "I'm really a man" or " I steal cars when I'm bored."

SO, all that to report bizarre incident #2. Whew! Last night, as I'm approaching the Revolution shop-stand, I begin to stare straight ahead and I'm walking at a very fast clip, when I realize that one of the Slovakian Revolution staffers is trying to HUG ME. Mid Hug-attempt, he is saying, "Tell me your darkest secret!" And I just started saying, "No Touchey! No Touchey!"

The Revolution guy tried to hug me in the middle of the mall! Maybe that is my darkest secret- that I hate the Revolution shop-stand workers. UGH!

Ok, and now, as promised, I must give a big Shout-out to our great friend Garett. We miss Garett a ton, but we love how whenever we talk with him or get to visit, it seems like we never missed a beat! Love you Gare-bear! You better be reading this since I did the shout-out!

What do Batman and Jesus have in common?

Christian Bale has played both roles on TV and in movies.

Caleb and I sold out to the man this year and got a basic cable package. We get the four main networks, plus the CW, WGN, USA about three home shopping networks, one channel that monitors the UHF analog signal (I know, what?), and about three more TBN-like religious channels.

At 5 pm yesterday my only viewing options were news (no way, Jose) and an episode of Monk I have already seen on USA. So I was flipping over Judge Hatchett and through the religious channels when I saw Jesus about to be crucified. I paused for a moment and thought how I probably needed to watch it to remind me of the real reason of this Christmas season, to put things in perspective. I put the remote down as Mary weeps at the foot of the cross, it was actually a pretty good tv movie, it wasn't cheesy like everything else is on that channel. And then it goes to Jesus, and I realized that Jesus looked eerily familiar. It was Christian Bale. This morning at work, I imdb'd Christian Bale, and there it is in 1999, item #21 on his list. Is that weird to anyone else?

A few things

1. It is 42 degrees in Mobile, AL. When we moved here, someone (I won't name any names) told me it never dips below 60 and she doesn't even own a coat. She lied. I will most likely never forgive her and remain bitter (unless she shows up at a surprise birthday party in my honor wearing a monkey suit.... only about three people reading this will know what I'm talking about, but ne'er the less will get a small chuckle).

2. At TCBY the other day, Caleb noticed a sign for employees that said in all caps: "DO NOT GIVE TOO MUCH TOPPINGS! LEVEL OFF EACH SPOONFUL!" Caleb said that if giving too much toppings was a problem they were dealing with, then this is the place for him. We love lots of toppings and love TCBY employees that give lots of toppings. I am sad the TCBY in Starkville is closed, BUT I must say that crotchety old lady that worked there is probably partially to blame. She was a Toppings SCROOGE! So much to the point that me and my friend Heather brought a jumbo size container of sprinkles into the store one day and generously sprinkled the yogurt of anyone who desired more. I really feel like we won that showdown.

3. I discovered free online advertising and it has become a sick obsession. Scenario: you're getting married and you google "photography + mobile al" Up pops different websites such as www.wedj.com, www.wedexperts.com , www.eventective.com, www.decidio.com Browse these, and you find Betty Donne Photography listed FOR FREE. Genius. Ok, so the addiction part is that I can log on and see how many times my site has been clicked on. So far, I've gotten 6 hits in 24 hours. Pretty good traffic. Syke, but it is addictive, whether or not any business comes of it.

4. Macaroni Grill has these box mixes you can buy at the grocery store. They are delicious.

Fun with Photos

I had my first official "photo shoot" with a family! My co-worker, Susan, asked me to take some pics and we had so much fun! I loved it and am looking forward to my next "gig" in two weeks with The Grayson Family. Here are a few of my faves with the Brochus:

I put a ton more on my photography blog, so click here if you're bored at work and want to skim through a few more:)

So THAT'S why there are fruit flies in our bathroom!

I just found two month old rotting fruit in our closet.

This discovery was made during a frantic search for my camera's manual so that I could study it and learn more about shutter speed and aperature (NERD ALERT!) So as I am tearing apart every nook and cranny of our apartment, I happened to look inside my backpack in the closet which, sadly, I have not unpacked since the PowerPlant Coordinator's trip back in what, October? (If any NAMBers are reading this, I HAVE unpacked and used the big notebook). But while I was digging through all the distribution materials and collared shirts I came home with, I noticed a nasty smell and puzzling sappy goo. It seems the apple and orange I took from the hotel's breakfast buffet were rotting away, tucked into the back of my closet. Big time gross!

I never found my manual and I am VERY upset about it, but Caleb found a PDF version online that I can look at until the prodigal manual returns to me. I love my Nikon D60 like it is my firstborn child and so losing the manual is yucky.

Meanwhile, Caleb is in the midst of Med School Finals and even a Mini-Board. From what I can tell from g-chat quotes, they feel that the name "Mini-Board" does not accurately reflect the horribleness of this exam, so they're calling it "Vlad- Destroyer of Student's Hopes and Dreams" So say a little prayer for Caleb and our Med friends, that they can overcome Vlad.