1: Flew to London to attend an inductionary training day at the British Library for social science post-graduates. Had a crazy conversation that reminded me I am exactly where I need to be in this world at this moment and then got to have Chipotle with a fellow Baylor Bear who works in London. Winning all around.
2: Nerd camp day #2 was not as delightful as day #1, but it was still helpful and affirming.
3: Flew back eeeeaaarly from London and then headed out to Waringstown to spend some time with the Love for Life family at Santa’s Grotto. Amazing to walk back into six-year-old relationships like no time as passed.
4: Went to Mama Cheesehead’s for the weekly football watching and got treated to snow as well!
5: Three month review with my two supervisors went surprisingly well. I am exactly where I belong.
6: Ran errands in City Centre, tracked events at Truett which you cannot talk about and spent time with favorites.
7: Dinner at a nice Indian restaurat and then drinks at a typical Belfast haunt were the activities included in date number two. Pretty perfect.
8: Couch, nice boy and Shaun of the Dead meant I was a pretty happy camper.
9: Ulster Rugby! My first match and I managed to not freeze to death. Upon returning to Mount Charles, the night got random. But a really good random.
10: Great evening at Mama Cheesehead’s with the favorites, take-away and cheesy TV. Spent most of the latter part of the evening on twitter waiting for the announcement and then screamed when it come: RG3 WON THE HEISMAN!
11: Some favorites and I gathered at the Eggletine Inn to watch the X-Factor finale which was not even a little bit surprising. But there was also some pretty amazing ham.
12: MC43 Christmas Extravanganza! “i don’t like being partitioned!” third place. fenton. fantastic dinner. perfect secret santa gifts. laughing until we cried. why yes – I do declare the mc43 christmas extravaganza to be a whopping success.
13: Exhausted for most of the day, but hit up the delightful Lisa Hannigan concert with some favorites that evening. Also got to squeeze some time in with a cute boy. Winning.
14: Amazing lunch with a cohort favorite, then the department Christmas party, then the final module of the term (where Professor Sprocket drew elephants on the board) and then some see-you-later drinks with graduating favorites. Cap of the evening in MC42 kitchen, sipping tea and chatting with my girls; great way to bid Belfast temporary adieu.
15: Belfast -> Newark -> Yardley. Traded one home for another.
16: My first morning home included Wawa coffee and time with the puppy. Perfection.
17: Drove the car and got in on the correct side. Small victories are important.
18: Annual family viewing of The Grinch Who Stole Christmas. Yes, Brother still does a mean Grinch impression.
19: Got to break bread with the family at St. Andrews. Such a special reality.
20: Spent the day hating time zones and reading ethnographic research books.
21: Annual family viewing of White Christmas. Yes, we fast-forward through the awkward “Choreography” dance for the men of the family. We can only ask them to do so much.
22: Ran errands with Mama and tried to be productive. But who wants to read about ethnographies when they can hang out with their mom? Especially my mom who is fabulous!
23: My sister and I have become slightly obsessed with Downton Abbey – she’s newer to the addiction but no less fervent – so we watched several episodes. As always, we declared love for Dame Maggie Smith and hatred for O’Brien and Thomas.
24: Got to finally see a favorite and catch up on her wedding plans. She asked me to be a part of it and I nearly cried. Then, family dinner included duck a’lorange for me (so happy) and then Christmas Eve service included live animals. As you do. We also exchanged sibling gifts and mine spoiled me rotten. Crying too hard to say “thank you”.
25: Happy Incarnation Day!
26: The siblings and I went to see The Muppets and nearly danced with joy on the way out. Some of the best money I’ve spent in a long time. That night, Mom won the nut and my loosing streak continues.
27: Scandanavian Family Christmas! Tree lighting, carols and catch-up time with cousins I only see once a year.
28: Read some Foucault, drank some (okay, a lot) tea and snuggled with the puppy.
29: Delightful day of errand running with my mom and then settled in for the evening with the whole family to watch Baylor win the Alamo Bowl. SIC ‘EM BEARS!
30: Woke early for a few appointments and then raced to the Trenton train station to collect my precious Ndeko! So glad to have her within hugging distance, even if only for a few days.
31: Ringing in the New Year with the Yardley family, plus Ndeko and one of Brother’s best friends. Cannot wait to embrace the promise of 2012.









