Green

It's the most wonderful time of the year . . . 

The time for having great hang times with friends at Christmas parties!! I know that the Christmas season is all sorts of jam-packed with one event after another, but I can't really complain. I enjoy getting to reconnect with people in the midst of busy weeks. It challenges me to make conversation and fun times count more because, like me, my friends are busy during this season and the time I get to see them is fewer and far between.

Another great thing about these parties is the delicious food I get to enjoy. Since moving to Seattle, I've gotten to experience a whole other style of cuisine. There are so many things that people make here that I never had in the land of Tex-Mex and Barbecue. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE those things as well and I will definitely enjoy them when I get home for the holidays, but it's interesting to try new foods too!

I'll share one funny thing that happened lately involving holiday parties and food. So, my workplace organizes a holiday party every year and we all sign up to bring delicious treats. Last year, I was one of the last ones to sign up because I couldn't figure out what to make. This year, I wanted to get a jump on things and go ahead and get my name on the list before I was stuck trying to make something difficult—those things usually don't end well. There were two people already signed up on the nearly blank sign-up sheet and I figured I would make a salad, because y'know, they're simple and don't require watching 8 hours of a cooking show. So I rushed to the list and made my mark:

(click image to enlarge)

That's me, first on the salad list, and let me tell you, when I figure out what kind of salad I'm making it will DEFINITELY live up to its description on the list!

The best thing though, is that AFTER I wrote that down, my other co-workers joined the fun! I love that the people I work with


1) Tolerate my shenanigans.


2) Know how to have fun.


3) Are just as mysterious as I am.


4) Make me feel awesome!

Party on, Wayne! Party on, Garth!

Better Days

Today was a fun day at work! Every Tuesday, our publications team (4 other people + me) meets to go over details, update everyone on what we're working on, make any necessary announcements, and share artwork that we've done recently. Well, we just got done with a crazy busy publications season producing 2 huge projects in a short amount of time, with another project still needing to be maintained. It was definitely a trying time for us, working together to make sure things got to press successfully.

Well today for our publications meeting, I decided we needed to take some time to relax and celebrate—so I threw us a small fun little party! We had so much fun just reflecting on things and enjoying each others' company. I really am blessed to get to work with the team I get to work with.

One funny thing I will point out, is that on the sign, you'll notice an asterisk and a little lined footnote at the bottom. This is a play on our publication style ;D We have a lot of people that we ship resources to in different countries, and sometimes our English colloquialisms don't translate well. To remedy that, we include footnotes at the bottom of the column that that particular word is in. The majority of the time, we use the phrase, "In this context, _____ means ______." So I figured I would add some fun flair and made a little footnote about our team. :D Also, the RIP stands for Rational Island Publishers, not Rest In Peace. I know, I know, it's a bit confusing. ;) It feels really good to have those big publications done, and it's also relieving knowing that we are back on our steady publications routine.

Mayday

Today is a big day for me! It's my first ever Holiday Party at my new job! I'm really really excited. :D I'm doing a lot of new things today. I made a baked squash casserole thing for everyone and I hope it tastes really good. Also, as part of tradition for the office party, everyone does a "show and tell" thing. I WAS going to sing Winterlove by Parachute, but when I met with the entertainment coordinator, she said that it would be really cool to perform something I wrote myself. So I am. I'm going to be singing one of my favorite songs that I've written. It's called Mayday. It's all about how we get to choose whether we are going to see life and its trials as positive or negative and that we get to choose our response accordingly. Hopefully I will get someone to record it so I can share it with you all, but if I don't, you can at least see the lyrics to it below:

CHORUS:
Mayday. Mayday.
You say Everyone's as comfortable as you
But baby
Someday
You'll see that tomorrow is up to you

Fingers on the smoking gun
Everyone is trying to run
Away
Let the rhythm take control
Take you to a place where you know
There's a star, a ray of hope
and everyone's the same

Mayday. Mayday.
You say Everyone's as comfortable as you
But baby
Someday
You'll see that tomorrow is up to you

Laser lights and telegrams
Try to define who I am
Alright. Alright.
Let the damage take it's toll
Move beyond and then you know
There's a goal, a common thread
and everyone's alive

Bridge>>
The tracks for trains racing away
They call you melancholy
But every day is a brand new way
and your chance to sway and

Mayday. Mayday.
You say Everyone's as comfortable as you
But baby
Someday
You'll see that tomorrow is up to you

Tomorrow's up to you
And you know just what to do.