putting the j in jjosh

There is nothing like the satisfaction of setting a goal and then achieving it.

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for those keeping score, so far in 2009 it’s

internet = 1, traditional media = 0

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This month’s banner is from the Christmas card that Maxine gave me…there’s something I love about the surreal look to those characters, like they’re right out of a dream…

by Lucy Knisley, in a roundabout way via

Stöllen. better late than never.

This is the first year I made the traditional Granger/Sommer recipe without my mother being there to offer direction (i.e., "without adult supervision"), and I think they turned out pretty delicious. I didn’t really mess with the recipe — I added extra rum (just because) and the only candied cherries I could find were green, but other than that, it’s the classic 1 pound of butter, half a box of powdered sugar, candied fruit-style recipe. I’m going to give one to my mom and one to my aunt and get some official reviews later. One thing I need to remember for next year is that it really does take ALL DAY to make them.

I like meteor showers…I’ve had some great viewing experiences with the Perseids and the Pleides…once at my great Aunt and Uncle’s cabin on a mountain up in CT where there is no electricity, we saw tons and tons of shooting stars…

and once with MT, MA and EB we drove out to Sky Meadows and snuck under the barrier to have a midnight picnic and saw lots of shooting stars…I think it was MA’s first shooting star? Highlight was when we suddenly heard the sound of a pack of coyotes howling at the moon, loud, and not that far away…

Until today I’d never heard of the Quadrantids, but spaceweather.com has this to say about it:

"Although the Quadrantids are a major shower, they are seldom observed. One reason is weather. The shower peaks in early January when northern winter is in full swing. Storms and cold tend to keep observers inside."

Well yes. Even though it is awesome to imagine Earth intersecting the remains of an asteroid/comet that blew up 500 years ago, I think the cold will be keeping me inside tonight. That and because it’s NYC, I’m imagining I’d have to go wayyyyyyyy out to get away from the light pollution. There’s apparently a shower-viewing event going on in Pelham Park(?) in the Bronx, but yeah, I’ll be home.

And before you say it, I know, I know, "the old Josh would have gone."

Even though I’m trying to take it a bit gently on this New Year’s Day, this hit me the right way…

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