The Holiday Roundup

As another year starts, I have to put in my 2¢ about how the last one ended. "Nutcracker" is over and D is still wearing the wounds from her last performance. The mother of the girl playing "Clara" on the 24th decided she just HAD to take pictures on stage. So she made all the other kids who were warming up get off and go behind the scrims to the other side. Well, it is freakin' dark back there (as a backstage volunteer, I KNOW it is) and no one helped the kids with a light. D tripped over a lighting cable and fell right into the castle drawbridge set piece and hit the right side of her face. One of the moms who was waiting on that side slapped some extra blush on her face and she did her thing after a quick cry. When I got backstage at intermission, she cried all over again. The thing is, I know shit happens, but neither JK or VS-K said "jack" to her or to me. D complained that her really swollen jaw hurt for the rest of the day, but luckily no teeth were broken or anything.

A week later, it is yellow and green and the top part is almost faded. The bottom part is still rough.

Other than that....

We got through Christmas OK. Went out to eat at Sam's Town as usual. D got a lot of stuff and still found a way to fuss about not getting everything she wanted. Geez!!!

We spent this last weekend being touristy. Sunday night, we enjoyed MY Christmas present--VAN HALEN tickets!!!! All I can say is--"DAMN!!!!" I got some pictures, but I had a too-small SD card in the sucky (just in case they were taking them away) camera and didn't get nearly enough. Here is a taste, though.... It's only the opening, but you will get the point.

I just hope that they stay together much longer and don't piss each other off again. It was like they never broke up (even though Wolfgang is now playing bass instead of Michael Anthony). D and I both rocked out and sang along to everything. Hey, I raised my kid on Rock and Roll and she knows a good thing when she hears it.

I had to work yesterday, but last night we went to see Danny Gans just to do a Strip NYE thing. Before the show, we went to one of the ice cream shop outside the theater and had something. At the next table, Elvis was having a light snack. It was definitely Vegas! It was a good show and we got out of the area before it got really insane. The plan was to watch the fireworks but D conked out in the car and we watched it on TV.

Today was supposed to be a "tidy up the house" day (you can actually see the floor in D's room again). D had a friend over this afternoon who is home from Germany for the holidays and they played video and computer games before whipping out the old Uno game and then doing their nails. So even though B is coming tomorrow, the house is not as clean as it needs to be. But then--what else is new? For a house where people only seem to use as a way station, the place always looks like a cyclone hit it.

Back to work tomorrow... *Sigh*