Happy Holidays

Greetings from Pittsfield, Maine. Bryan and I came up here last week and have had a nice holiday. On the 24th we witnessed the insanity of the local Wal*Mart; it was as though God stepped on an anthill full of hillbillies! All sorts of folks were scrambling for last minute gifts, and it was good fun to be a part of it all.

Our Christmas day was mostly spent volunteering for a local group. We helped serve turkey and fixins. The lunch was a great success, and I think our guests enjoyed themselves as much as we did. My sister helped organize the day, and since she's great at managing we just showed up and did as told. The lunch made the local paper, and apparently the wrong photo was slipped into the article. That's actually my mom and I.

On Dec. 26th Bryan and I headed to Quebec City. It's a pretty but usually uneventful drive. This time, however, the trip was livened up when Bryan was treated to his first sighting of a moose! He had been convinced that they really didn't exist, and now he knows better.

Quebec City is a lovely place to visit. It's relaxed, walkable, and beautiful. There is much great food to be eaten, and the horrid winter temperatures make a great excuse to spend time relaxing in the hotel jacuzzi. I find that on trips such as this my brain stops racing; time slows down and my imagination really starts pumping. I'm convinced that I should have a government subsidy to sit around and just think up junk all day long. Here are some of the strokes of genius that occured in Quebec:

1. Swiss Miss needs more imagination and an increased product line. There are so many foods that should be dehydrated and put into packets. Personally I'd like to create a gravy beverage. I wish gravy ice cream would work, but I think that it needs to be in a warm vehicle. It wouldn't be gravy... it would be gravy-flavored beverage.
   
2. Bryan thought my gravy beverage idea to be moronic, and frankly his idea really does trump mine: Swiss Miss Instant Borstch. Just add hot water, then chill.
3. If I were able, I would be a French Barry White tribute act and call myself Beurre Blanc.
4. I've imagined a new (revolting) cocktail. My take-off on a classic White Russian is made with vodka and lots of little packets of coffee creamer. At first we called it a White Canadian, but we're going with Canadian Russian. Catchy, huh?

So there you have it. We ate wonderful food, and then headed back here to Central Maine. The temperature on the drive was quite balmy:

We're in Maine tonight and heading to Boston in the morning. I'm looking forward to blogging regularly over the next few weeks, so please do get back in the habit of stopping by. 2009 has been a hard year for a lot of people. Bryan and I, though, aren't ashamed to admit that it has been one of the strangest and most wonderful years of our lives. 2010 will be great for us all- let's just believe in it. Happy New Year!