Today was a crazy Christmas Eve. In the early part of the day, Joe and I went to Target, searching for the perfect rain jacket for me. Well, we found it and it was a size too small! Off to several different Targets on Friday, it seems. And if that doesn't work, I'll see if I can find a Burlington Coat Factory. I need to stay dry, damn it, and so help me god, I'm not lugging an umbrella every place I go!

Then we stopped at the grocery store to pick up a few things. Joe and I stood in separate lines that were side by side to see which line would go faster. I moved over to Joe's line when it seemed it was moving up much more quickly than mine. Then, everything came to a screeching halt, as the customer in front of us yammered on about a ham. She turned to us and said, "They gave me this ham I'm supposed to have for dinner tonight, and it's frozen!"

I just stared back, thinking, Wow, I do not care at all.

The cashier said it would be a while, and she apologized and Joe said, "Well, we'd be happy to go in front of her, if she needs to wait a while. We can pass our stuff over to you."

"Oh," she said. "I would, but I already started the order."

Um, and... why can't you just void it?

She assured us it would only be a little while longer.

Joe turned to me and said, "How long until we just ditch?"

"I don't know," I said, exasperated and tired. It had been a long day already and the horrendous traffic and crowds everywhere were stressing us (and I'm sure, everyone else) out. Joe and I just wanted to get the hell home and not worry about anything else for a while.

"Five or ten minutes and then we ditch?" Joe asked.

"Yeah, I guess," I said, looking at the groceries we definitely needed, not wanting to abandon them, but also not wanting to stay in the stupid line.

"How long is this going to take?" Joe asked the woman. "Like ten or fifteen minutes?"

"I don't know, sir," she said, paused, then added, angrily squinting, "Did you say something to me??" She looked like she was ready to come across that counter at Joe.

I didn't even know what she was talking about until Joe said, obviously annoyed, "I said DITCH. If this is going to take a while, I don't want to wait here."

"Oh," she said, exasperated. "I'm not sure how long it's going to take. I have to get her her ham."

"I need this ham. I pre-ordered a non-frozen ham," the customer rambled snottily. "I can't eat it if it's frozen!"

"Oh, well then," Joe said, growing increasingly frustrated. He turned to the customer and said, "I'll be sure to stop by around eight to enjoy some of this lovely ham I've been waiting for!!!"

Finally, someone came with a non-frozen turkey and then there was a discussion about which box should go with her; the turkey dinner box or the ham dinner box? And finally, the cashier did something cool by saying with the utmost impatience, "Just take both boxes! You can have both! Just take them." Then she reprimanded the deli people for not marking the prices on the boxed dinners. Finally, it was our turn and she rung us up and bagged our stuff as fast as she could. Before we left, she apologized again and Joe said calmly, "What are you going to do? This season's crazy for everyone."

Damn that lady and her ham! If she'd been in any kind of courteous spirit, she would have let the VERY long line of people waiting go ahead of her while she waited for fucking fifteen minutes for some thawed out meat. We were sort of pissed about the whole thing, but then laughed about it a lot afterwards. Joe and I kept turning to each other throughout the day and saying, "What did you call me??" Heh!

Ah, Christmas. The spirit of merriment abounds!

We tried taking it easy for a while (somewhat challenging what with the financial discussion/worrying that came up, namely regarding my upcoming trip), before Joe crashed out. He'd been up all night and fell sound asleep.

So, tonight I headed out by myself to visit Beth's place for a Christmas Eve dinner she'd invited us to. Sebastien cooked a delicious variety of foods. There was also champagne, wine, and Italian sodas to drink, and a chocolate cake and apple tart for the desserts. It was all very good. It was also nice getting to sit and chat with Beth a bit before I finally made my way home.

I spent the evening calming down after such a long and somewhat emotionally trying day. I lit a vanilla candle in the bedroom, put on some relaxing music and meditated for a good long while. Afterwards, I felt a bit more refreshed, but I definitely need some quiet time over the next few days! Soon, my days will be filled with excitement and activity in London, and I think resting up beforehand is a good idea!