All I Want for Christmas...

As I get older, I become increasingly immune to all holidays, but the December holidays most of all. I no longer get excited at the prospect of my brother Ian's surprisingly delicious chicken-free matzo ball soup (prepared for the first night of Hanukkah) nor the wonderful stockings full of treats and (always) a single Chinese orange that greet me every Christmas morning. I don't want to sound like a Grinch, I enjoy them, but I just don't seem capable of recapturing the magic of the season that I enjoyed as a child.

My parents were always able to create the most incredible Christmases for us. Our father, especially, would ply us with gifts presented by Issac (more on him later) as well as the characters he created to entertain us on our frequent boat trips and visits to the cottage (like the Hay Monster). This particular traight was definitely inherited by me, whose own sense of humor runs to giving friends, "Congratulations on your First Communion" cards on their birthdays.

Now, Issac is a tricky one. He is a beloved member of the family who just happens to be a monkey puppet. He has hosted every childhood Christmas I can recall. As a morning MC he is replete with funny comments and all around good cheer - the only drawback is that, due to shyness, he will only whisper into my father's ear, leaving us to enjoy his bon mots second-hand.

When Drew, Ian and myself were young, my father would employ us to help him wrap our mothers gifts in "disguises" in order to prevent her from guessing what they really were. A particularly memorable wrapping job, for our first Christmas at Spirit Rock, looked exactly like a living Christmas tree, enbalmed in brightly colored paper, (though for the life of me I can't remember what was actually inside).

This year, we are lucky enough to have Ian home from the UK for the holidays although Andrew and his wife will not be making an appearance. Drew, due to travel restrictions imposed on service members prior to shipping out to Afghanistan, will be celebrating Christmas at home in Alberta.

I sometimes wonder if we will ever, again, have a Christmas like the ones of my youth - with the whole family gathered happily under one roof. I guess it goes without saying what I'm wishing for.

Happy Mother's Day

I am always conflicted as to whether or not to use an apostrophe when writing "Mother's Day." I know that it's written like that all the time, but doesn't it then mean a Mother's day as opposed to all Mothers? But I digress. Happy Mother's Day!!!

I was lucky enough to spend the weekend with my Mom (aka. Mumsy) and her sister, my fabulous Aunt Diane. They had flown in to see me run a 5K to raise money for research to combat breast cancer. Unfortunately the weather was awful so we all stayed warm and dry at home, and then went out for breakfast instead.

Thankfully, this morning's weather was crisp and lovely, so Mums, Aunt Di and myself headed downtown to check out some of the famous sites and sounds of Chicago before they flew home this afternoon. Here are a few pics:

Madness with Mouse

After Natalie's fantastic gymnastics standing, we went to collect Charlie at school and then retired to Chateau Margot for an evening of delicious food, cocktails and handstands, Here are a few pictures I snapped:

*click to enlarge*

KRAGE Sports Centre - Breaking News

This is Sporty McCaster reporting live from the District School Board of Niagara regional gymnastic finals. The scene is typical of a middle school sporting event - various teenage "helpers" are flirting with the representative from St Johns Ambulance while young girls in multicolored leotards flit about the gym giggling and, occasionally, performing gymnastics.

Heavily favored in her division, Natalie Bergenstein took a second to sit down with us before her routine. (You'll notice that I was so excited to speak with her that I kept asking questions about her music, despite the fact that she had already told me about it):

Wonderful! And now folks, the moment you've all been waiting for, here's the routine:

Priceless. We'd show you some of the other girls routines, but we've run out of time. This is Sporty McCaster, signing off.

J'Arrive!

The Buffalo Airport was COMPLETELY full when my Mother arrived to collect me when I flew in today. As a result, she had to park at some crazy lot that wasn't anywhere near the actual airport and had to take a shuttle to the terminal which resulted in her being over an hour late in meeting me at baggage claim (and resulted in my being annoyed, then angry, then worried).

I was planning on filming a lot more of my trip, but Mums and I got distracted catching up. Here is a quick videos I shot on my way home to get ready for Natalie's gymnastics finals. Enjoy!



ps. I mention in this video that I am going to film the border. Never happened.

My Brother Lies Over The Ocean

So, as most everyone knows, my brother Ian is living in the UK for 2 years and I miss him terribly. The fact that I have been in Chicago for over three has kind of helped because I wasn't used to seeing him all the time (though I do get home to visit every other month and we would hang out then) . Here's a picture of him, holding Soleil, from our (mine and Joey B's) "Hats & Moustaches" party this past August:













We keep in touch, mostly via trans-Atlantic text messages like these (syntax intact):

Ian UK Mobile: Matthew, is mean. Call and yell at him.

rage-a-holic: seriously?

Ian UK Mobile: No. Just teasin. Matthew is nice.

rage-a-holic: Check out my blog. I just posted my inaugural douche bag of the week post.

THREE HOURS LATER

Ian UK Mobile: Paul, how is your day going? I just got back from the pub.

TWO MINUTES LATER

Ian UK Mobile: Why do boys come over to yours and play with your toys?

rage-a-holic: Isn't it the middle of the afternoon there?

FOUR HOURS LATER

Ian UK Mobile: I just heard there was a big fire toronto. boo.

ONE DAY LATER

rage-a-holic: Did you read my blog?

Ian UK Mobile: Yes. I liked the hillary one best. Who will be your next target?

rage-a-holic: Not sure. Suggestions?

Ian UK Mobile: Nope.

YET ANOTHER DAY LATER

Ian UK Mobile: shopping is like work. So are boys

rage-a-holic: True. But when you find something that fits perfectly its worth all the hassle.

Ian UK Mobile: I don't think matthew is a fit.

rage-a-holic: Good to know. Plenty of fish in the Thames.

It's pretty amazing to think that we are able to update each other on the goings on in our lives. It's a brave new world my friends. That reminds me, I better send him a text and ask if he minds that I've reproduced our texts. Bye for now.