sitting on Santa's knee

Last minute holiday shopping is, of course, miserable. Crowded stores, long lines, cranky cashiers, and that one person holding up everyone else while they argue about the price. But, the absolute worst thing about shopping the week before Christmas is that school is out. The crowd becomes laced with shrill, over-excited middle school girls who squeal and shriek at the sight of every other item in the store and yell for their eight friends to come and shriek at it as well. I circled the parking lot for 10 minutes to put myself through this? Christmas madness.

Ok, it wasn't really that bad. I managed to never been in a rush, so I didn't get aggitated when people who arrived after me snagged parking spaces sooner than I did. If a store in the mall got too crowded I just left and checked back later. I didn't mind waiting while the incompetant soccer mom did a 23-point turn to maneuver her minivan without ever coming within 5 feet of another car. I'm determined to stay relaxed this Christmas. Normally, the holidays are a stressful, frenzied gathering of every relative I haven't seen since last Christmas. This year, however, I'll be with Dianna and her family. I miss seeing my cool cousins and my hilarious uncle, but it's nice to have a break from the chaos. Thus, all my shopping was completed in a peaceful zen with a smile on my face in anticipation of spending Christmas with my wonderful girlfriend.

On Sunday Dianna and I went to the mall and had our picture taken with Santa. He had a real beard too. The little boy ahead of us in line was adorable. He sported a huge smile, wide-open eyes, and a letter to Santa in all caps. It read something like, "Dear Santa, my name is Scotty. I am 4½. I have been good this year. I want two remote control cars so I can play with my Daddy." Daddy was nearby with a smile even larger than Scotty's. Damn, kids can be cute. We saw Return of the King on Saturday. Having seen the whole series now I think I'd rate them as follows:
Production: 10/10
Acting: 10/10
Casting: 9/10
Costumes: 10/10
Art direction/set design: 10/10
CG Effects: 8/10 in FotR, 10/10 in TT and RotK
Cinematography: 4/10
Script adaptation: 3/10
Directing: 2/10

I'll probably explain more later. In short, Peter Jackson is a good producer and had a good team working with him. But, he is still a talentless hack who can't direct. And his wife can't write.

Anyway, Merry Christmas to everyone! And a good new year too in case I don't blog before then.