I bought some orange and cinnamon lotion yesterday from Bath and Body Works. I just used it and it smells YUMMY!

I... think I'm pretty much done Christmas shopping. I have a couple little things to pick up, but I know what and where they are, so the "Oh, man, what am I going to get for [insert name of hard to buy for person]," phase of shopping is over. Yay! I'm pretty happy with my selections this year; I think people will be pleased. And I know they'll fake it well if not, so.. yay, again!

Oh. I do still have to go grocery shopping. Well, again, I know where and what I'm getting, so...

It's unseasonably warm and gorgeous out today. Don't even need a coat. I kind of like it this way.

I bought some orange and cinnamon lotion yesterday from Bath and Body Works. I just used it and it smells YUMMY!

Oh, I smelled that the other day, and it was delish! I'm thinking about getting some for my mom, cause she used to drink a lot of orange&spice tea, and everytime I was ill, she owuld make me milky O&S tea.

Huh, I am getting my dad Scottish breakfast tea for Xmas, and decaf Earl Grey for my sis. I think I WILL get the lotion for mom, and I will have a themed Xmas! (The theme is "I went to jail, I'm fucking broke as fuck, I love you, here is tea-stuff.")

I have CLEANED the whole closet o' doom!!! TWo giant bags of crap (including shoes I haven't worn for years) in the trash, and I found my hanging shoe storage thingie on the bottom, hung it up, and installed all of my shoes therein, which has freed about 6 sq. feet of floor pace from the front of my living room, which I laughingly call my "foyer."

Now it looks all...open and shit. It's creeping me out.

Nice work, Erin. Yeah, whenever I have a bunch of new space from cleaning, it weirds me out a little. This is not a problem I've had lately.

I just got back from Xmas shopping. I wasn't sure if my family secret giftee has pierced ears so I got this really pretty pendant with real flowers.

Then Dad calls and tells me that my secret giftee is really my almost 9 yr old second cousin-ish (he's my first cousin's kid) who is a boy, which throws a wrench into things. If this were his twin sister I would be fine. However, Dad said he has to go out and buy something and he thought of a good present my little cousin likes to read so Dad is going to pick up a Hardy Boys book. I think that's in the right age range.

Now I have to make a pile of Xmas gifts to return.

Piltdown Man's left femur...Socrate's diary...and 12 oz. of weapon's-grade plutonium.

I was wondering WHERE I left those!

When I wrap Xmas presents, I always put something in the VCR that I've already seen, because that way I don't have to pay close attention, like I would with something new. Silly me, I put in the 6-hour (maybe 8?) BBC miniseries of The Buccaneers, and it's sucked me right in.

TCG and I have been baking all day. So far we have made peppermint bark, brownies, and chocolate covered oreos. I am so disorganized that at one point I put the wax paper in the refrigerator. Next year I will not leave everything until the last minute. Of course, I say that every year.

Erin, you are brave to tackle that closet. I have moved twice in the past five years and I still have a junk closet filled with who knows what.

I was wondering WHERE I left those!

I think this means that my sanity, my favorite MAC lipstick and my emergency stash of Xanax are in a closet of yours, Tep, cause I can't find 'em anywhere.

(although I'm thinking the sanity and Xanax are a lost cause. I'm not giving up on the lipstick though -- it's discontinued, and the most important of the 3.)

I just got home from the grocery store. Man it's crazy in there. I'd forgotten the saltines for the chili, that's all. I was in there almost an hour, standing in the express lane. The lady two people in front of me dropped a bottle of wine which, of course, exploded. The cashier called for clean-up. A goofy boy with red hair came over with a mop, walked in a confused circle on the broken glass, put the mop down, and tried to escape. He didn't even apply mop to floor. I took the mop, pushed all the glass out of the line of traffic (and my children's fingers) and put a wet floor sign up, fortuitously sitting at a nearby register that did not have a wet floor.

Good luck, Jen.

I have to wrap Christmas presents for my family when I get back to Pasadena tonight. I have to pick up some cards for family but hopefully I can stop on the way to San Diego tomorrow and do that.