There is a wintry wonderland outside, and I believe it fell today specifically to celebrate Mummy and Yaso's shared birthday. Snow has been falling steadily for about six hours, and it's actually settled this time - there is at least two inches of snow all over our neighbourhood. It's on the grass, bushes and trees, and everything looks so lovely.
Bruce and I both work from home on Fridays, and happily the snow waited until today to get here. That meant we didn't have to contend with the crazy people on the roads who get nervous and think any snow on the road is dangerous, even when temperatures are above freezing and there is thus no ice on the road yet. Tomorrow, however, will probably be another story. Temperatures are now at about freezing point, or slightly below, which means roads will most likely be icy in the morning. It should melt by the time the sun has been up for a few hours, though, since temperatures are expected to be above freezing. And at least we're not in Washington, D.C., where they've had record snowfall and are only now beginning to dig out of the mess. I don't think I ever want to live that far up north.
Happy birthday to the two February 12 gals - we'll have fun in the snow on your behalf!
Friday, February 12, 2010
Monday, February 8, 2010
Touchdown!
Bruce and I had SUCH a fun Sunday!
Yesterday was Super Bowl day here in the land of that other football - the final Americal football game of the season, featuring the two teams that hung on to the very end. The favourites to win were the Indianapolis Colts, but sentimental saps like me were rooting for the underdogs, the New Orleans Saints. The sentimentality was there because of the devastation caused in New Orleans by Hurricane Katrina, from which the state is still struggling to recover. A win for them would have been fabulous for the people of New Orleans. Add to that the interesting fact that the quarterback for the Colts is actually from New Orleans, so he was playing against his hometown. Ooh, the drama!
For that reason, I was actually interested in this year's Super Bowl, even though t it isn't real football. Despite having lived here for eight football seasons now, I hadn't yet watched a Super Bowl. But yesterday, Bruce and I did. And I understand now why it is such an event here. It was such a good game!
But first, a summary of the rest of the day ...
The last time we went out with Bruce's mother, Nell-Ann, and his stepfather, Benson, was a couple of weeks ago when we had lunch at Penang (the restaurant, not the state) with them, the Jacksons (and their daughter Sarah), Jason, Caroline (his wife), Jonathan and Claire (his girlfriend). That was a highly enjoyable occasion, and Bruce's mother expressed a wish to have that sort of a get-together again and also see the house that Jason and Caroline are renting (because they'll be moving in August to a smaller place). Jason and Caroline live in Athens (the one here, not in Greece - that would have been quite a drive), which is a student town that I like a great deal.
Nell-Ann appointed me the social director and assigned me the task of getting everyone together in Athens. Everyone was free for lunch yesterday, so that's when we did the deed (with the exception of Claire, unfortunately, who is away at university). Jonathan rode with Bruce and me, and we stopped at Conyers along the way to pick up Nell-Ann and Benson. The Jacksons (with both their daughters this time - Sarah and Nikki) met us at Jason and Caroline's place. After we had all seen the house and played with their dogs, we left in a convoy for the restaurant (Mama's Boy) , with Jason leading the way. The food was yummy and the conversation was good (and noisy, as you can imagine, with that big a group - 11 of us in total). It was an excellent get-together and that in itself would have made for a lovely day, but there was more.
While we left for Conyers, to drop Nell-Ann and Benson off at their home, the Jacksons and Jason went into Athens to look at some of the shops. Amy and John were then going to come back to our house to spend the evening with us. When we got to Conyers, Benson gave us a little tour of some mansions that had recently been built. Conyers is a lovely town but it's out in the country and not quite where you'd imagine a bunch of mansions being built. As Benson said, it'd make more sense for them to be in Atlanta. However, there they were. Not just mansions but almost mini castles, in some cases. They were huge. A few were so pretty. Starting sale price? $12 million. Yes, million.
After that dream detour, we went to Nell-Ann and Benson's house. We spent a little time there - Bruce and Jonathan had some coffee and we chatted for a while - then the three of us left so that we'd be back in Snellville before the Jacksons reached our house. That was a nice treat. Usually, when we're in Conyers, it's for Christmas and the house is full of people and conversation, but we don't actually get to talk very much with Nell-Ann and Benson, so we enjoyed the extra time we spent with them.
Then we were at home, joined shortly by Amy and John (Sarah and Nikki had other plans), and soon it was Super Bowl time. We had a blast! Amy is exactly like Leela is when she watches football, so Amy and I were making lots of noise cheering (when the Saints did well) and groaning (when the Colts took the lead).
The biggest difference between American football and the real thing is how much longer it takes to play a game of American football. They keep stopping! But that makes watching the Super Bowl on TV fun - the TV commercials become almost as big a deal as the game itself! There is a commercial every few minutes, but because it's the Super Bowl, these specially-made advertisements are usually interesting, funny or unusual. Although it can take several hours before you get to the end of the game, the commercials keep you entertained.
So, the Colts were ahead. But then, woo hoo! The Saints came back with a vengeance! First one touchdown and a nail-biting conversion that they were finally awarded after much deliberation, putting them ahead of the colts, and then an absolutely astounding, eye-opening, scream-causing touchdown that pushed them 14 points ahead of the Colts. The Colts would have needed two touchdowns in less than five minutes to catch up with the Saints, and thank goodness they didn't get there.
It was so exciting! And so much fun to watch the game with Jonathan and the Jacksons! I can understand now why people have Super Bowl parties. Watching sports with other people makes it that much more enjoyable. And the Jacksons are always such good company, anyway. Plus, this was a particularly good game, I think. I don't know if they are all that nail-biting, edge-of-your-seat exciting, but this one definitely was worth spending several hours on.
So, yesterday was a splendiferous day, one that Bruce and I will probably remember for a long time.
Yesterday was Super Bowl day here in the land of that other football - the final Americal football game of the season, featuring the two teams that hung on to the very end. The favourites to win were the Indianapolis Colts, but sentimental saps like me were rooting for the underdogs, the New Orleans Saints. The sentimentality was there because of the devastation caused in New Orleans by Hurricane Katrina, from which the state is still struggling to recover. A win for them would have been fabulous for the people of New Orleans. Add to that the interesting fact that the quarterback for the Colts is actually from New Orleans, so he was playing against his hometown. Ooh, the drama!
For that reason, I was actually interested in this year's Super Bowl, even though t it isn't real football. Despite having lived here for eight football seasons now, I hadn't yet watched a Super Bowl. But yesterday, Bruce and I did. And I understand now why it is such an event here. It was such a good game!
But first, a summary of the rest of the day ...
The last time we went out with Bruce's mother, Nell-Ann, and his stepfather, Benson, was a couple of weeks ago when we had lunch at Penang (the restaurant, not the state) with them, the Jacksons (and their daughter Sarah), Jason, Caroline (his wife), Jonathan and Claire (his girlfriend). That was a highly enjoyable occasion, and Bruce's mother expressed a wish to have that sort of a get-together again and also see the house that Jason and Caroline are renting (because they'll be moving in August to a smaller place). Jason and Caroline live in Athens (the one here, not in Greece - that would have been quite a drive), which is a student town that I like a great deal.
Nell-Ann appointed me the social director and assigned me the task of getting everyone together in Athens. Everyone was free for lunch yesterday, so that's when we did the deed (with the exception of Claire, unfortunately, who is away at university). Jonathan rode with Bruce and me, and we stopped at Conyers along the way to pick up Nell-Ann and Benson. The Jacksons (with both their daughters this time - Sarah and Nikki) met us at Jason and Caroline's place. After we had all seen the house and played with their dogs, we left in a convoy for the restaurant (Mama's Boy) , with Jason leading the way. The food was yummy and the conversation was good (and noisy, as you can imagine, with that big a group - 11 of us in total). It was an excellent get-together and that in itself would have made for a lovely day, but there was more.
While we left for Conyers, to drop Nell-Ann and Benson off at their home, the Jacksons and Jason went into Athens to look at some of the shops. Amy and John were then going to come back to our house to spend the evening with us. When we got to Conyers, Benson gave us a little tour of some mansions that had recently been built. Conyers is a lovely town but it's out in the country and not quite where you'd imagine a bunch of mansions being built. As Benson said, it'd make more sense for them to be in Atlanta. However, there they were. Not just mansions but almost mini castles, in some cases. They were huge. A few were so pretty. Starting sale price? $12 million. Yes, million.
After that dream detour, we went to Nell-Ann and Benson's house. We spent a little time there - Bruce and Jonathan had some coffee and we chatted for a while - then the three of us left so that we'd be back in Snellville before the Jacksons reached our house. That was a nice treat. Usually, when we're in Conyers, it's for Christmas and the house is full of people and conversation, but we don't actually get to talk very much with Nell-Ann and Benson, so we enjoyed the extra time we spent with them.
Then we were at home, joined shortly by Amy and John (Sarah and Nikki had other plans), and soon it was Super Bowl time. We had a blast! Amy is exactly like Leela is when she watches football, so Amy and I were making lots of noise cheering (when the Saints did well) and groaning (when the Colts took the lead).
The biggest difference between American football and the real thing is how much longer it takes to play a game of American football. They keep stopping! But that makes watching the Super Bowl on TV fun - the TV commercials become almost as big a deal as the game itself! There is a commercial every few minutes, but because it's the Super Bowl, these specially-made advertisements are usually interesting, funny or unusual. Although it can take several hours before you get to the end of the game, the commercials keep you entertained.
So, the Colts were ahead. But then, woo hoo! The Saints came back with a vengeance! First one touchdown and a nail-biting conversion that they were finally awarded after much deliberation, putting them ahead of the colts, and then an absolutely astounding, eye-opening, scream-causing touchdown that pushed them 14 points ahead of the Colts. The Colts would have needed two touchdowns in less than five minutes to catch up with the Saints, and thank goodness they didn't get there.
It was so exciting! And so much fun to watch the game with Jonathan and the Jacksons! I can understand now why people have Super Bowl parties. Watching sports with other people makes it that much more enjoyable. And the Jacksons are always such good company, anyway. Plus, this was a particularly good game, I think. I don't know if they are all that nail-biting, edge-of-your-seat exciting, but this one definitely was worth spending several hours on.
So, yesterday was a splendiferous day, one that Bruce and I will probably remember for a long time.
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