Making Mounts of Molehills

From certain angles, Mount Adams looks tiny... and then you try and drive all up in that piece and you'd be shocked how easy it is for that seemingly little hill to spit you out, defeated. It's almost unattainable at times. It took me several years to get the hang of it and even now, a higher level of concentration is required when navigating its streets.

My sister recently had a surprise 30th birthday party on the main drag and I had a lost aunt and uncle on my phone needing directions. Think about it for a second or two and see if you could give someone directions up to the corner Saint Gregory and Pavilion without Google maps in front of you. But the trick to Mount Adams is to always go up. So long as you're always heading uphill, you'll eventually find what you're looking for.

The holidays have officially snuck up on me again. Procrastination has made this seemingly joyous time a little more stressful. I doubt I'll ever truly be on top of things when it comes to Christmas... no more than I'll ever be able to rearrange the streets of Mount Adams... but this year, I'm going to keep looking up and maybe, just maybe, I'll find what I'm looking for.

But before it gets too crazy, the Envoi crew is headed out tonight for our annual holiday dinner. This year we're celebrating at The Rookwood Restaurant and we'll hopefully get seated in one of the old kilns they used to fire the now famous, Rookwood Pottery. The building is actually sitting right atop that snow-covered hill you see in front of you... with Holy Cross to the left and some apartment building on the right.

So here's to the hope that everyone finds what they're looking for this holiday season.

Shoes and Stalactites

Can any two individuals agree on everything? Maybe some can. I can't. With anything or anybody. Nothing. If a conversation is initiated, I switch to auto-disagreement. At the end of the day, it terrible... and I regret it, but I'm working on it and may just get it right.

That particular aspect of disagreement is something I can help. Something I can't help is my taste in style... or as some might say... lack thereof. My days of purchasing several pair of shoes a year are long gone. I've grown out of my impulsive spending habits so when making a purchase, I think long and hard about it. I came across these shoes a few months ago and wanted them bad. The more they resemble the result of a bowling shoe's affair with a house slipper, the better. I had owned a pair similar to this a long time ago and have been looking for their replacements after they wore out two or three years ago. The problem was they didn't have my size. Seven years ago, I would've bought them anyways, but I was able to, albeit reluctantly, walk away.

There was also something else holding me back. Erica hated them. She hated the shoes prior to this pair as well and fought long and hard to see that they were retired somewhat prematurely.

I'm not fashion-forward by any stretch. Actually, just the opposite. When I find something I like, I latch onto it with a death grip and wear the hell out of it. Sure, I've had my phases. I don't mind slipping on the skinny jeans, but they better have cowboy boots at the end of them. Boot cut jeans were my true savior. Full-length zip turtleneck sweatshirts... I'd be stuck with hoodies if it weren't for you. Athletic fit t-shirts... what took you so long? That red and beige belt I own? Other than when wearing a suit, I've worn it everyday for the last six and a half years.

This is why Erica's disdain of my true taste in shoes is so disheartening. I have nowhere else to turn. I found solace in the trail running shoe/jean combo for a while, but I knew it wouldn't last. So when we were out Christmas shopping last Saturday and swung in to DSW to "look around"... I knew what I was after. And there they were, sitting pretty. Not only that, they were in my size! OMG!

But I knew it would only be half the battle. Luckily, the day's hustle and bustle had worn down my wife's guard. She wasn't on her A game and I quickly stormed the gates and got the answer I was looking for... "Get them if you really want them." Of course, that statement is laced with all sorts of "but you'll never wear them in my presence" innuendos, but that's okay. I own them now. Not only that, I got them for over 60% off because of a couple coupons and an awesome cashier. What a victory.

In the end, they're just shoes. Not that big of a deal.

Recently I read where a scientist believes the aging process is simply the long term effect of millions of tiny accidents your body goes through in a lifetime. Bumps, dings, scrapes that may go unnoticed to us but over time, deteriorate our vessels to the point of failure. Stalactites and stalagmites work just the opposite. Millions upon millions of water drops only build them up... bringing them closer together.

I suppose little battles in a marriage can work either way. I, personally, find it endearing that Erica cares that much about what I look like. Better to care too much, than not at all. I think, too, our differences in style have helped curb any reactionary purchases that, in that past, I was very guilty of. And I'm sure she gets a kick out of rolling her eyes and laughing at me most Saturday nights before we head out... only to have me head back to the dresser in an attempt to make her smile. After all, agreement can't always be such an easy term to come to... how boring would that be?

Ronnie Time

It may be cold outside, but Ronald is keeping it hot with these shades. Who knows where he got them but they're pretty great.