Opposites weekend

Friday night and all day Saturday-bad.
Sunday-amazing.

Friday and Saturday-worked the friday night shift, went home and spent the night getting the crap kicked out of me by my doggie nephews who don't know they're too big to share a bed, then worked a double filled with pissy coworkers and hordes of holiday shoppers on top of the usual Saturday craziness. Bad points also include finding out that I couldn't use christmas lights and ornaments when I decorate at work this week, buying snacks and being too tired to eat them by the time I got home, realizing the whole dry-winter-hands thing has started, and spending another night getting kicked, shoved and woken up by my aforesaid doggie nephews. Side note: I love these dogs more than you would believe. I just can't stand sleeping with them.

Sunday: got to church only 3 minutes late (which is 2 minutes early in Glenn time) got to see some of my besties and had one bestie come home with us and hang out this afternoon. Listened to my new cd that Ben made for me- awesome. Both the cd and Ben, I mean. Spent time with Uncle Timmy and Aunt Mel. Had some cheap strawberry wine, eggnog and coffee (not at the same time) and Tate's amazing chocolate cake. Sugar overload, what? Browsed the newspaper and found that a cd I've wanted to find is at target AND on sale. Remembered a favorite version of a Christmas carol, which has now been added to my playlist. By far the best thing about today though, was hanging Christmas lights with my dad. We haven't always hung Christmas lights at this house. I remember at our old house, being little and looking out on this big, primary-colored bulbs. You know those ones that are considered to be a little bit retro now? Those ones. But this house isn't conducive to Christmas lights hanging. This house does not have a straight roof line reachable by stepladder. Nope, to hang lights at this house, you have to use a very tall ladder on very uneven ground, getting poked and scratched by multiple vindicative bushes perhaps getting back at you for the pruning you did this summer. But that's what we did a few years ago, and it's been a tradition ever since. Untangling the white icicle lights and lining them up in neat lines on the driveway, setting up the ladder and getting to work. We make a pretty kickass lights-hanging team, if I do say so myself. Like, if hanging Christmas lights was an art, my dad and I would be the masters. Dad hangs the lights on the really high parts, I hang the lights behind the bushes, and we do the rest together. Slipping the wires around each hook and carefully stretching out each white strand. Making the inevitable run to the store for more Christmas lights. Hanging a giant wreath on the huge oak tree by the windows. Finally stepping back and admiring our work-a bright white glow envelopes the house in perfectly slightly-looped strands, and peeking out from the wreath are those big, bright, colorful bulbs, almost exactly the same as the ones I remember. You know that saying "Some things never change?" I'm glad that Christmas lights are one of those things.
It's not really the lights that makes "lights hanging day" one of my favorite days of the year, though. I do love my Christmas lights, don't get me wrong. I love driving in after work and seeing them light up the yard, and I love looking out at them with a cup of hot tea in my hand and being surrounded by my family and feeling like there's nowhere in the world that I'd rather be. Why I really love lights hanging day is the fact that I get to do them with my dad. With his insanely busy schedule and my mildly crazy one, we don't get to spend a whole lot of time together. When we hang the lights, we get to talk and laugh and listen to Christmas carols. We watch our fingers turn cold-purple together. (Did I mention that ladder is metal? Holding onto it in the interest of self or dad-preservation ensures self and dad-preservation, but it's mighty cold.) We get to catch up on stuff we haven't gotten to say, and we get to spend time together with just him and I. And I wouldn't trade that for anything.