Random Bits of No Importance

What is the trend lately with teeny tiny dogs? Perhaps I ought to blame the foolish idle rich for this disturbing trend, but it seems as if New York streets are clogged with canine miniatures. I am a friend to dogs, but my preference runs to the large types; these tiny yapping creatures, mostly aggressively furry, resemble bath mats for Barbies rather than pets. It's a goddamned miracle that I haven't stepped on one yet - one can only imagine the horror that would ensue. Sure I'll feel bad but criminy! It's a wee bit o'pup that I'm dodging with my career woman heels here, and if they wouldn't dart to and fro so frantically they'd be a hell of a lot safer, I say.

With few exceptions, for the past nine years the Fresh Hell household has held a Christmas Eve party. We are five weeks away from the evening yet preparation already begins; even though Mr. FH and I could probably do this party in our sleep, it is our one big blow-out for the year and past experience has shown me that early, thorough preparation is key. I used to dread and loathe the holiday season - nothing craps on Christmas quite like a parent dying on the holiday during one's teen years - it's guaranteed to completely dampen one's mood for innumerable seasons to come. (More on that in an upcoming post.) But I have learned to cope with the commercialization and enforced psuedo-cheer by alternatively mocking and embracing its inherent schmaltz and cheeziness. It's a delicate balance, but someone's got to do it.

I heaved a sigh of relief last week after the mid-term elections; I was poised with passport in hand to begin the arduous task of extricating myself from the American system, and I was gratified to find I have a few more years of grace before that day may indeed become a reality. Will everything that has gone so terribly wrong in this country be fixed? No, but I'm optimistic that some of the more egregious errors that we've lived through politically over the last six years will at least not be repeated ad nauseum. Not everything will be or can be reversed or corrected, but I do hope for better actions in the future.

Not exactly as I hope to refrain from crushing a tiny terrier beneath my feet, but as in all things hope is relative.