Hog's Head

Good evening to all,

I can't stay awake again tonight, so I'll just post a few pictures and call it a day. Love the little New Zealand cottage Always...unique!

I posted these last year but kept them because they were so cute. I titled the folder.....Find the kitty............













plus some more traditional vintage cards too...........................











Blessings for a cozy night and a bright new day! Hecate3fold!

Yesterday we had two Christmas parades and tree lighting events, at either end of the county - one before noon, the other on the last run. Re-routes! Don't join the parade! Watch out for munchkins. Not bad.

I put up one of two small trees at work, went through my ornaments last night to pull my micros, for the itty bitty tree that will be on my desk (well, one of 'my' desks). It is the little tree that was for my cat to play with, so she would leave the big one alone - it is 8 inches tall? Fun!

We are getting cooler, but not more than a threat of snow so far. I know more of you will get snow than us. We haven't had much in the last few years. Kept hearing about La Nina, but not sure it is really here. Supposed to be warm and mild, so far rather wet.

Love the critter cards, Hecate! The wabbit is coming along fast! Look forward to seeing the final! Glad Lois is feeling better, those long conversations are the best!

Hugs to all - gotta jet.

Good morning. Dobby, bring on the tea, a couple of soft boiled eggs and a couple of sausage links, please,

Hecate... love the Christmas kitties!

Went out for some Christmas-y things yesterday afternoon. Saw the final entrants in the local Gingerbread House contest held at a local gallery. Not a large show, but a couple of the entries were clever... like one that was a barn with a fondant tractor hauling bales of shredded wheat! Then went over to the Festival of Nativities, which is a fascinating display of over 600 nativity sets from around the world, plus live tableaus of various nativity scenes (some quite nice costumes and backdrops), and live entertainment. Since it was chilly and rainy and dark I opted out of staying for the parade (all these things were in the same downtown area), but did see a number of the entries in the lineup area... I actually was "part" of the parade for a tiny bit since traffic was clogged with trucks covered with lights entering into the lineup.

Here's to a healthy, energizing, Christmas-y kind of day for all...

Bummer, barometric pressure put me out of commission for the day. Migraine, and feeling like I was covered in extra weights, like an extra 100 pounds per limb. After 4 hours, went home, as my brain started going sideways. I know it's time to go home when my writing gets miniscule. I also write the wrong numbers or words, not good. Home, nap, food, nap. Hope this stormy bit passes, screwed up my overtime.

Cool Nativity tour! Glad you could enjoy and find a new spot!

Been out of touch since Thursday. ..in bed. No tv. No book. No tablet. Just a nasty fever that came on fast, stayed around and seemed to burn out. Larry's been fighting a cold for a week. .I streamlined it. Not recommended but I'm catching up on the news.

I saw the cool photos from the Festival of Nativities. As I mentioned on Facebook, Always, I'd love to see a book of the entries.

Our Arts Council is having their Polar Express celebration with Gingerbread contest (for kids ) and bake sale. I've been asked to make a pumpkin roll. Not very glamorous but tasty.

Sorry the weather is swirling your brain, Karentia. Met a lady today who's a human barometer,too. Until it snows for real there's always a chance for one of those headaches.

Have to work tomorrow,so I'm crawling off to bed. Probably still warm.

love to all. See you tomorrow.

Good evening to everyone,

Sorry to hear that you are not well Maxecat and Karentia and hoping that it goes away quickly for you both.  Samtibbs, for some reason your post was made as a separate thing and not in the Hog's Head.  I'm so hoping that Santa pays a special visit to your house with a new 'device' so you will be able to post here again.  You know that I miss you when you're not here.  I've made a special request for Santa to bring you everything you wish for this Christmas.  Here's a special Christmas card just for you....................



Always, those are beautiful nativity scenes. Is the one in the lower right corner with the woman/angel in white done with real people??  Looks like they are real to me.

It started snowing around ten this morning, very fine and light, but by one it was coming down in beautiful big flakes and all of a sudden my tv went out.  I waited for it to come back on like it does when we have a storm but nothing happened, so finally around five I called the tech support for Direct TV and asked if it was just my tv or if there were others out like mine.  Of course the  girl didn't know squat but did one of those checks to see if a new download would take affect but nothing happened.  She said it was probably the storm so I just waited it out. After a while I was able to get basic cable but not any of the extras, Those with numbers over one hundred were still out, it wasn't until ten tonight that I was able to get them back.  There's at least three inches of the fluffy white stuff out there, and I must say that it was beautiful to watch coming down, no wind just a nice downfall of big flakes.  I'm sure it's on its way to you Maxecat, wonder if it will be rain or snow for you.  I can officially say that the winter season has started in the Chicago area.  Which reminds me of the  Knock-Knock joke that I post every year, and will again for those of you who have forgotten, or just have never read it.  So...................Knock, knock??  Who's there?? Phitzby.  Phitzby who??  Phitzby ginning to look a lot like Christmas!!!  So now that you are all in awe of that incredibly wonderful piece of literature, I will post some vintage pictures to help bring you back to the everyday spirit of Christmas................................















Tonight Dobby and Winky have made us a 'candy cake' and a snowman cake along with some very tasty eggnog to go with them.............







Blessings that the spirit of the Yule season will envelope us together!  Hecate3fold!

Hi All,
Sorry you are ill maxecat and Karentia. Feel better soon.
Sorry about Lady's dog.

I don't have time to read everything now. I went out of town for a few days. We went to Scottsdale AZ and saw some old friends. We drove. Well, Tony did. It is a long drive, about 7 hours.

It was pleasant. Good time for the desert, not hot. We went to a nice Mexican restaurant. I had shrimp, rice and vegetables, chips and salsa.

We broke up the drive home by stopping at a casino. That was fun. Had some Chinese food for dinner.

Hope the rest of you are all doing well.

Circular Cottage, Blaise Hamlet, UK. Photo by Standout Cabin Designs.

Good morning. Dobby, I'll go with some eggnog oatmeal, and a large mug of tea, please. It's pouring rain outside today so something nice and warm will be ideal. The forecast actually says possible snow today. Yesterday late afternoon it "felt" like it could snow but didn't. Right now it doesn't have the right feel but who knows???

Hecate... yes, the angel and shepherds are real people, as are the three kings.

Maxe... a catalog would be fascinating but an enormous project to actually do anything like that. As it is, it must take hours and hours of volunteer work to set up the displays (one medium sized room and one very large auditorium-style room). They're not just randomly set on bare tables. The displays are on tableclothed tables under rustic wooden frames with thatched roofs (as if in a period marketplace), often with varied levels. There were also a few paintings on easels in between the sections. The live tableaux were spaced around the large room amid the displays. It's a marvelous job of display work (says yours truly who has set up many displays in the past and present) and has a real flow with great atmosphere to it. Plus in the church's chapel, they had live entertainment continuously during the hours of the exhibit. When I first got there, there was a woman with a great voice singing carols and hymns, followed by a trio of musicians who played instrumentals of the same kind of seasonal mix of songs. I think each entertainer/group is on for about half an hour each.

MMD... glad you had a fun trip! Winter is definitely the only time to drive across that desert!

Healing prayers winging their way for both Maxe and Karentia... and anyone else who can use some well wishes!

Here's to a healthy, energizing day for all...

I realize it would be a difficult project but I sure wish some enterprising team could pull it off.
I love seeing people's collections. I wish someone could record one of the popular Festival of Trees.

We went full blast today at the out of town store. The new manager is a nice guy and he seems eager to make it work. I swear, I've never seen such disrespectful shoppers....they think nothing of trashing a newly organized display right in front of me.
Walk by a full aisle of winter shoes? Oh yes, I think it's the perfect spot to drop these items I don't want, including my nasty old tissue.

Really, people? Have some pride in yourself.

I'm glad you had a nice get away, Magical Music Dreamer. We're used to driving 8- 11 hours when we're visiting the kids or going to Florida. Larry used to like driving all day but it's hard on my hips,so I'm glad he's happy to stop earlier.
On long drives do you listen to music or chat?
My ex and I used to sing.
Larry and I have favorite vacation play lists,sometimes we talk, occasionally we enjoy silence.

Was the scenery interesting?

Miss you samtibbs. Hope you're back soon.

Hecate, you mentioned Rebekah is planning on finishing up at Northwestern. What an excellent choice.
Between her studies and life experiences, she should be able to impress any future employer.

We haven't received your snow yet, but it was misty and cold. Ugly for Monday.

Settling in for an early evening.

Wishing you all toasty fires and pleasant nights.

Here is a "find the kitty" pic of my baby from a few years ago.

Hi everyone,

I'm back from seeing John Cleese and Eric Idle in New Orleans! They did a nice little show where they basically reminisced while sitting in nice big, pink comfy chairs. They talked about their time together from first meeting at university, writing for The Frost Report, doing Monty Python, making movies, etc... and showed some old photos and clips on a big screen behind them. They also performed some skits and Idle played the guitar and sang some of his songs. They both were hilarious and made some jokes about N.O. and Trump. They said the least thing they could do at this time was make us laugh.

Since it's hard for my sister to travel now with all her chronic pain issues, we stayed in the same hotel close to the theater that we stayed in when we went and saw Maks and Val. My brother-in-law came too so there was all four of us (the three of us plus my mom) in the middle of one of the center rows. We were in row O so we weren't too far from the stage. My sister and BiL both have been sick so they weren't sure they could go but they pushed through it and were glad they did and all of us enjoyed the show. We were the last stop on their U.S. tour. I think my sister said they did the East Coast last year and did the West Coast this year.

My sister and BiL are still sick and my sister gets real cranky when she's sick and she gets sick very easily now that she has such chronic pain and auto-immune problems. It's hard on me when both of them are sick and cranky. I don't mind taking care of the animals and them but it's the crankiness that stresses me out.

Hecate, I love the card with the candy cane dragon. I've always loved dragons and my Chinese birth year is dragon.

You know, I don't remember if JKR ever said where Grindelwad was originally from. Just that he moved to Godric's Hollow so I don't know what kind of accent of accent he would have. I suppose that makes me feel a little better about Depp's casting. I don't believe he ever speaks in Fantastic Beasts but should have a bigger part in one of the later movies.

My mom said today that she started on her Christmas cards but that she has started decorating yet. She usually gets a smallish tree, decorates it and we come over and put all our wrapped gifts under it. We don't really have space in our apartment for a tree but we do have a Christmas wreath on the door and some penguins and snowflakes sticking to the front window.

Hope everyone feels better soon.

Thank you for the healing thoughts, they worked for me! Had a fine day, took one preventative Excedrin (was working with one of the very loud dispatchers, only 3 of us), and had earplugs for the stressful times. Once she was gone for the day it went much smoother. We had a very calm day! It is threatening to snow here, but no sign of it at sea level.

Maxie, sleep as much as you can. Hugs. Ugh, hate those kinds of customers. Curious, do the stores have security cameras? Can there be signs that are posted, "smile, you are on camera!"? Sometimes a simple thing like that can calm some of the mess down. Even if it is a fake camera! Glad it's not your store.

MMD so glad you had a good trip! I love a scenic drive! And fun to check out a new location, like the casino! Some are really decked out! Glad you had a good time, and some different restaurants to choose from. Enjoy your holidays! Are you playing mass on Christmas Eve? That is a beautiful tradition.

Hecate I love that Mrs. Claus! She is gorgeous! Love the details and the colors. Stay warm! Enjoyed your description of the snow - if we didn't have dunderheads driving in it, I would enjoy it more. We don't get much, often enough for people to remember how to drive in it. That is one thing i miss about living in Leavenworth, the snow. It was like living in a snow globe.

Shrivlefig sounds like an excellent trip! Even with the sick folks. Hope they all feel better soon. What an absolute treat the show was! Fabulous! Enjoy being home! I know what you mean about room for a tree. I've just set up the two little ones at work, don't think I'll do one at home. This apartment is too small, and I need the time to do other projects. For my 6 foot tree it can take me a good week to put it together, then one day to put away. But really, no room for it.

Always, your owl arrived in good order! Love your letter! Hugs!

Happy week to everyone! Hugs to all!

Good evening all,

This has to be a quick fly through. Hope you don't mind Muggleborn, I added Moonshadow to the file with the other 'hidden' kitties. She looks so cute.

I've found some other dragon holiday cards, here are a few.......................







Hope you are back with us soon Samtibbs.

Blessings for a jolly day for everyone! Hecate3fold!

Dragon Cottage, Leamington Spa, Warwickshire, UK. Photo by Lydia.

Good morning. Dobby, I'll have some sausage and eggs, plus a tall mug of tea, please.

Hecate... Love the dragon Christmas cards.

Muggleborn... Cute "find the kitty" pic! Never had a Christmas tree climbing cat, but we did have a puppy who managed to pull all the tinsel garland off the tree when we all went out to dinner and left him alone in the house for the first time. He had a grand time! Oh, we also once had a guinea pig who took nibbles out of every single package or bows under the tree when he got out of his cage (actually my little brother let him out... thought it was funny!... well... it was!).

Here's to a healthy, kind, energizing day for all...

Find the kitty.....love it. Max flew at our first tree but learned his lesson.  For years the lower areas the bottom of the tree was bare because Maddie and Bear loved nosing around.

I have my little bears' Christmas tableau on the mantle and for a few days Maddie will consider jumping up to investigate, but doubt she can hurt much.

I would have loved an evening with Cleese and Idle,shrivelfig . Such clever and vastly different personalities. Was a huge Python fan since first seeing on PBS in the 70s. You've great experiences this year. Maybe next year the health situations will be better and less stressful.

Karentia, I put post its with Smile, you're on film....in my departments. You have to be able to read in order to be scared off.
And there are cameras. ..but all it takes is a armful of clothing to hide an opened purse and then boom....slip a pack of batteries, some socks, aspirin and make up in there. When things are slipped put of their boxes, it's hard to prove theft.
We're starting to use ink tags on high theft items and that's helped..but, thieves are going to steal.

Rain today.
At least no snow.

Working tonight so I better tackle some house work.

Or, I might go back to bed.

Ink packs do help, or the magnetic strips that set off beepers, like at Target. But that gets expensive. I like the post its! Have a calm shift!

I'm wiped out. Two hour massage, ok, it is a bit much. Arms are weak, from heavy work he did on my shoulders. But between naps I got everything wrapped. Just waiting on one more shipment. Now to clean up tomorrow so I can start on that commission Dr Who W! Found out today it is for Christmas! Yikes.

Love the dragons!

Nap attack....

Good evening everyone,

I wanted to get here earlier tonight, before I fell asleep with my hand on the mouse again. I've done some nasty things to my puter when that happens. Delete things or move them to when I don't want them. Good to know that you had a fun time on your get away Magical Music Dreamer,,and that you had a great time at that 'Brit' concert Shrivelfig.

Wow! this last cottage is a busy place for the eyes Always All of that lattice work on the windows keeps jumping out at me and when you add the iron fence posts to the mix it makes for a constant movement for the eyes with no real center focal point. Wonder why they named it Dragon Cottage? Maybe there is one living inside and all of the coverings on the windows keeps it from coming out???

Be careful Karentia, two hours on a message table at one time may be a bit much

I think that was a good idea Karentia had, to post signs on the cameras that say 'smile'. Ok, so which did you decide upon Maxecat? Clean the house or go back to bed? You made me laugh when I read it, it was as if it were an after thought. Here are the pictures of Maxecat's bears that she sent me last year..............................







Here are some nice and cozy fireside pictures.....................................













I found some delicious looking rum balls. Couldn't resist, and the best part is that there are no calories in them here, so enjoy ladies!............





Yum! Winky has made us a gingerbread house with all kinds of assorted cookies!!!!



Blessings for the spirit of "Ho,Ho,Ho' to surround us! Hecate3fold!

"The Ugly House", Wales. Photo by Steve's Wildlife.

Good morning. Aberforth, I'll have a tall vanilla latte, please. Dobby, how about a selection of those Christmas-y goodies that Hecate dropped off. They look very tasty.

Love all the fireplace scenes... very cozy and warm for the season!

Here's to a healthy, pleasant, smooth-flowing day for all...

Hecate, those are probably for privacy, looks like the house is close to the street, and if they don't use curtains... One way to keep prying eyes out. Cozy rooms, lovely pictures! Oh, falling asleep with the mouse in your hand? Yikes! You could end up ordering an ostrich! very dangerous. And yes, it did get a bit much for one shoulder blade. It is cranky this morning, I didn't drink enough water. But there is a lot of traveling involved - that part is lovely. Ross says I take him with me when my higher self travels - sometimes I remember it, many times the ego is too noisy and that is all I remember, or that I was snoring. Right now I'm getting up early, so I can grab breakfast with my ibuprofen. Hurts to stay in bed.

Laundry list of busy today too, have a great day all!

Had to share this for Hecate (and all the other Christmas cat lovers around here).

Found this on twitter tweeted from
Ellen DeGeneres ‏@TheEllenShow

"Ornaments are so lifelike nowadays."

Haha...saw your FB post with this sweet kitty. ..
Doesn't she fit into the decor perfectly

Ugly House isn't so ugly,just very gnome rustic.

Just dropped in for some cocoa and a big bowl of oatmeal.

Will see you all later.

I like the ugly house too - probably cozy and delightful inside! Cute hidden kitty! Thanks for sharing!

Yeah, laundry list is still there, nap attacked.

Harvest Cottage, Pen-y-Cae, Clwyd, Wales. Photo by Historic UK.

Good morning. Dobby, I'll have a bowl of oatmeal with raisins and walnuts and topped with Irish butter, plus a bit mug of coffee, please. That'll make a nice warm breakfast on what's predicted to be a cold, blustery, and snowy day.

Maxe & Karentia... yes, I really like "The Ugly House", too. It looks like it would be a lot of fun to live in... maybe a garden with elves and gnomes, and some hobbit-ish decor?

Here's to a healthy, cozy, energizing day for all...

Good morning! Mmmm, hot oatmeal, cinnamon and sugar, and a mug of cocoa with marshmallows. Nice alternative that I can't have in the real world.

Really cold wind, have to stay out of it. In the laundromat now, wasn't able to make it yesterday. Have to find Hubbard's shoe grease to treat my Sorel's, best winter boots, ever! Still have the same pair I bought our first year in Leavenworth. Good investment! Every few years you need to really soak/slather the leather and stitching with grease, and have it in front of a heat source for overnight. Wipe off last of the residue, good to go for snow or wet! My dad had a pair, used them all the time. I never saw him treat them, but learned that. Mine still look almost new. I've had to buy new liners once. They look like duck boots? Love them!

Hoping my stuff from Hot Topic arrives soon! There are charms in there for the special order Dr Who W. And more gifts for Morgan and me. When I'm done with laundry & grocery store, going home to work on it.

And a nap attack may happen too.

Went and got the mail yesterday. Haven't gotten the mail in about a week and our little box was stuffed full. Guess what I found? A lovely Christmas card from Karentia!

My mom took me grocery shopping yesterday so we would have some food. Also checked the mail and picked up some meds.

I have a lot of my Christmas shopping done. My brother lives in OH so usually I pick something from his Amazon wish list and have them wrap and mail it, Need to look at his list and pick something.

My sister is finally starting to feel better. Hopefully, she'll recover fully soon.

Hoping everyone is well.