Christmas 2008

The original plan for Christmas vacation was to leave SFO on a red-eye the evening of Friday, December 19, spend the weekend in Boston seeing friends, go to work meetings on Monday the 22nd, and then head up to Maine. The best laid plans... Due to the major snowstorm that hit New England on the 19th, my flight was not just delayed but completely canceled. The soonest American Airlines claimed they could get me a new flight was Monday. Meaning no weekend in Boston. I was so disappointed but tried to make the most of my unexpected weekend in the Bay, including lots of rest, seeing the Christmas pageant at church, and having lunch with friends.

Fortunately my flights on Monday were both on time: the first from San Jose to Chicago, with Steve Young on board in first class (!); the second from Chicago to Boston, where my dad picked me up. On Tuesday I caught up on some work, wrapped the gifts I had mailed to Maine in early December, and then headed back down to Boston with my mom to pick up my sister from the airport. On Wednesday, Christmas Eve, we three ladies went to Freeport for lunch and shopping at LL Bean, stopped to see my grandfather, and baked some cookies. A very relaxing Christmas Eve!

Christmas itself was a bit different than normal since my dad had to work at the hospital. We went to my grandfather's house fairly early in the day to celebrate with him, both my aunts, my uncle, and a family friend. We had a wonderful dinner and headed home around 5:30. Once my dad arrived home later that evening we opened gifts among the four of us. In short, a very family-centered, calm day in Maine, with cooperative weather.

(Ron, Barbara, Rachel, Sarah, Mom, me, and Grandpa - who turns 90 in February!!)

I had started to feel a bit under the weather yesterday - sore throat, fever - and today I'm completely out of it. I have barely moved from the couch, taken lots of naps, and still don't feel much better. The sinuses are pounding, my lymph nodes are swollen, the throat is on fire, etc. Maybe my pace in December caught up with me, maybe I'm just finally relaxing in my first visit home since April, maybe my immune system can't keep pace with the east coast now. At any rate, I'm hoping that by completely giving into this virus that I'll get over it soon so that I can enjoy my remaining week in New England!