12-31-2024 Delightful December

After all the decorating this year, I decided that I didn't need to put up the big Christmas tree

December was different this year.  Often the month is filled with sunny winter days, and it is dry enough that putting up decorations isn't difficult.  Usually, my grandson Matthew only needs to contend with foggy mornings that create ice on the roof.  This year he worked on a wet roof, with no ice, but the rain never gave either of us much of a break.

Outdoor Lights Sparkling in the December Rain

Like others I have spoken with, the time between Thanksgiving and Christmas seemed especially short this year.  It was brief, with Thanksgiving arriving at the very end of the month, and only one day less than a full four weeks between the holidays. I have no idea why that seemed to make such a difference, but it did. The next few years will continue with this theme of almost exactly 4 weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas, with 2027 being the first year that will actually have 4 weeks and 2 days increasing that time each year until 2030.  I will be 85 that year.  I wonder if I will even care if my decorating time is decreased.

We started the day after Thanksgiving this year, with the roof lights going up.  However, instead of completing the job in a long day as we have done in the past, Matthew and I worked a couple of hours every day for 6 days, in between rain events.  Finally, on December 4th Matthew finished the roof.  

 A Photo from a Year When the Sun Came Out in Early December

On December 5th I put up the little outdoor twinkling trees, and by the 6th I was completely worn out with outdoor decor.  Sitting here at my desk this week, enjoying the quiet time between Christmas and New Year's Day, I am so grateful for help with the lights.  Matthew climbs the roof, Mo corrals many of the cords and timers, and installs the large lighted star on her shop, and I figure out the arrangement of everything.  I slip down to Home Depot every few days and each year I add something to the mix.  I think I have to stop now.  There is nothing else we have room to store.  The only thing I plan to change next year is that I will start putting up lights BEFORE Thanksgiving.  I am a traditionalist, so I won't turn them on until after Thanksgiving, but I will absolutely begin earlier with the installation.  Maybe in October?

The Theme for the Party was Hippie Days

Gerald and Maryruth Celebrating Hippie Days

On December 8th, we made a fast overnight trip to California to attend the big family celebration for Maryruth and Gerald's birthday.  Their 35th anniversary was in late November and their 80th birthdays are just 4 days apart.  It was a great reason for her family to put on a big to-do at a lovely hotel in Elk Grove, a city where they lived for many years. I may not have these numbers exactly right but Maryruth has around 11 grandchildren, 19 great-grandchildren, and a couple of great-great-grandchildren.  She also has 3 siblings, and with all that family and their spouses, it was a very large crowd.  The food was good and the decorations and the entertainment were wonderful. Mo and I were honored to be one of the few non-family people invited, but as Maryruth said, with 61 years of friendship, I qualify as family.

A Rare Sunny Afternoon in December 2024

We returned to a busy week filled with more preparations for Christmas, a fun girlfriend trip to Medford with Kristin, and a rare few hours of sunshine to make an attempt to rake wet leaves from the yard and make several compost dump runs.

Deb and Sue at Red Lily

Mo at Red Lily Tasting Room

The following mid-month weekend, Mo, Deborah and I drove south to our favorite winery in the Applegate Valley to pick up our first wine club offering.  Red Lily has our favorite wine, and purchasing just 6 bottles every three months for the three of us at a 30 percent discount is well worth joining the wine club. It is also fun that with our membership we get free tasting flights and the charcuterie board and carrot coconut soup at the winery are superb.

From left:  Robyn Jennifer Sue Connie Kristin

The very next day was our bi-monthly book club meeting, held at the Steam Distillery, a great venue in Grants Pass that everyone loves.  We had a great time, and since Jennifer offered to drive I could enjoy their spectacular cocktails with no worries.  None of us liked the book this time around and the discussion was entertaining.

Mattie Loved the Mid-December Sunshine as Much as We Did

The following week we had another brilliant afternoon of precious sunshine with a few hours once again spent outdoors.  That week we invited our next-door neighbors for "drinks and snacks" as our friends in Arizona always refer to some fairly fancy fixin's. We thoroughly enjoyed their company and the neighborhood stories that they shared with us.

A Magical Solstice Moment

Solstice arrived at 1:21 AM on the early morning of the 21st and I set my alarm so that I wouldn't miss the moment.  I have a tradition of bell ringing, and this was no exception.  I clanged on Mo's antique iron dinner bell for a time and magically, when I stopped, a secret breeze blew through the yard, ringing all the wind chimes.  It only lasted a minute and then all was again quiet.  The moment felt beautiful to me, and maybe some of my spiritual friends long gone were reminding me there is magic in the world.

On the 21st the book club (Kindread Spirits) met once again at Kristin's house for our annual Christmas gathering.  Kristin outdid herself with the book club-themed tablescape and we all enjoyed shared food and conversation.  

Kristin did a lovely job of preparing her home for our Kindread Spirits party

In addition to the social gatherings, on the 22nd Mo, Deborah and I departed for our traditional camping trip to Harris Beach to enjoy the gorgeous Coastal Holiday light show held at the city park in Brookings.  We preceded our attendance at the light show with a yummy fish and chips dinner for Mo and me and some fresh crab that is now in season for Deborah.

Fish and Chips at Catalyst Seafood, a group photo at the Capella Chapel in the park, and Deb with a view from the gazebo at the highest point in the light show park.

The weather was frightful with pouring rain for most of our visit.  For whatever reason, just pure luck I am sure, the rain stopped long enough for the three of us to enjoy walking the park through four million lights without an umbrella. The show was as beautiful as always only this time we got to share it with Deborah which was a real treat for all three of us.

The rain started just as we left the show and we settled into the MoHo for the night accompanied by the sound of heavy rain and loud surf coming from the ocean below the cliffs where Harris Beach State Park Campground is located.

The next day we enjoyed the overcast morning with a bit of a break in the rain.  We drove down to the beach parking lot to watch the waves and perhaps to walk on the beach.  Mo and Deb walked toward the sand with Mattie before a coastal patrol watch officer called to them saying that the waves were extremely dangerous and that they shouldn't go below the walkway barrier.  Within minutes, the biggest and most powerful wave I have ever seen at Harris Beach in all our years of visiting came roaring in, extending all the way to the walkway inundating the entire beach.  It was very dramatic.

We stayed for a time to watch the waves from both vantage points at the parking lot.  The ranger told us we were actually at low tide and this wasn't a "king tide".  Instead, the freight train of Atmospheric Rivers originating in the Bering Sea and pounding the Pacific Coast as far south as Santa Cruz was building power beneath the surface of the water rolling in from the ocean floor. It was a spectacular phenomenon to experience.

Look Close in the Bottom Photo to See Mo and Deb out on Chetco Point

We drove to town, about a mile from the park, and parked at the Chetco Point parking lot where the trail leads to a beautiful vantage point. I waited on a bench, since my legs weren't cooperating much on this day, and watched Deb and Mo and Mattie until I saw them in the distance on Chetco Point.  When I zoomed in the photo I laughed to see that Deborah had her phone pointed in my direction and later we laughed that we had taken zoomed-in photos of each other across the distance.  It was a delightful day.

That afternoon the prediction was for no rain until after 2 PM.  Mo readied a campfire for us to enjoy and within minutes after 2 PM, the rain started.  It wasn't the first time that Mo and I have enjoyed a campfire from beneath an umbrella, and the experience brought up a happy memory of our cross-country trip through rainy Montana in 2010.

A Campfire in the Rain Can Be Fun

Our journey home from the coast on Christmas Eve was uneventful, despite the intense rain that kept us company through most of the 2.5-hour drive.  Home in time for our traditional clam chowder supper shared with Deb who decided to spend Christmas Eve with us so that she could help make the breakfast casserole that we planned to share with our little family and friend gathering for Christmas brunch.

Deb and I took turns taking the brunch photo so we each could be in the picture

Christmas Day was simple and lovely, with Deborah and Matthew, with his sweetie Katty joining us once again.  Maryruth and Gerald came for brunch as well and the day was lovely with shared stories and laughter.  Deb bought a wonderful birdhouse for Mo and me with a live camera that was great fun after we finally figured out the software.

Melody and Robert had a very good reason for not joining us on this Christmas Day:  they were already in Paris for a three-week vacation in what Melody insists is the most beautiful city in the world.  The two of them have filled this vacation with so many amazing sights and experiences.  They spent two years planning and saving for this trip and have seen the Louvre, Musee d Orsay, Notre Dame, St Chapelle, concerts, French cooking classes, a day trip to Mont St Michel, and so much more.  

Robert and Melody learning to make French Pastries in Paris

Melody decided that she needed a little bit more adventure and fell on the famous Paris cobblestones and broke bones in her finger, but the surgery recommended was later determined to be unnecessary.  Her New Year's Eve wasn't marred by surgery and instead, they spent it on the streets of Paris trying to see the Arc De Triomphe for the light show with literally a million other people.  I am looking forward to hearing all her stories when they return next week.

I am now in that crazy space that I have seen mentioned here and there, between Christmas Day and New Year's, when I am not sure what day it is and what I am supposed to be doing.  Except, I was pretty sure that I needed to process photos and write a blog for December.  Today I am still in that limbo world, but tomorrow I will begin a new year, one possibly full of unknowns, but then aren't they all?

See You Next Year