Wish List Part 1

I'm trying to get into the Christmas spirit.

I only do one holiday at a time and while I'm totally focused on Thanksgiving this week (I love to cook!) I'm thumbing through my December magazines this morning.

I came across this jigsaw puzzle in Real Simple magazine.  LOVE!  Somebody get this for me for Christmas!

My only other wish for this puzzle would be if you could choose the titles you want in it.

Oh well.  It's way cool as it is.

Christmas Wish List: Utopias

Oh well why not!? Who on EARTH would spend $150 for a bottle of beer? And, I mean, I do love my Sam Adams Octoberfest!

Here's the scoop on Sam Adams Utopias:

Truly the epitome of brewing's two thousand year evolution, Samuel Adams Utopias® offers a flavor not just unlike any other beer but unlike any other beverage in the world. Its warm, sweet flavor is richly highlighted with hints of vanilla, oak and caramel. With an alcohol content of 27% by volume, its complexity and sweet, malty flavor is reminiscent of a deep, rich vintage Port, fine Cognac or aged sherry while being surprisingly light on the palate. And like the world’s finest after-dinner drinks, Samuel Adams Utopias is not carbonated and should be served at room temperature.

Yeah, and it's not available in Alabama, Georgia, Idaho, Iowa, Missouri, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, South Carolina, Washington, or West Virginia, due to "legal restrictions." But it's available in Louisiana...if you can find it.

Hmm. Maybe I'll send some to Stacy McCain.

Christmas Wish List: Oktoberfest!

Ok, I know putting beer on your Christmas list is sort of....well, strange? Steve and I ate at Ruby Tuesday's the other day and they had Samuel Adams "seasonal" beer on tap and it just happened to be Oktoberfest, (and you know I love Oktoberfest) which is my all-time favorite style of beer. And darn if Sam Adams doesn't do a great one. The only problem is that after trolling all my favorite liquor stores, we can't find it anywhere. We couldn't find it in October either. I'm not a fan of all the Samuel Adams beers, and the Christmas one sounds god-awful. But if Santa can find some Oktoberfest, I'm a believer!

My Christmas Wish List: Books!

I'd like to acquire the 2007 edition of this series, the one edited by Stephen King. Reportedly, the stories in this one were pretty good.

I'm an on and off fan of short stories; I subscribe to The New Yorker and sometimes I hate the stories in there and sometimes not. As far as periodicals go, Tin House has my vote as far as getting great stories. I discovered Anthony Doerr in Tin House. Doerr wrote a fabulous short story entitled "Village 113" which might be been the best story I ever read. Oh, I know, that's superlative, but it was a great story. In it, Doerr reimagines China's Three Gorges Dam project, in which villages were flooded and millions of residents displaced, through the eyes of his narrator, known simply as "the seed keeper." Doerr writes beautifully about the natural world and the imagery in this story blew me away. I went out and bought his collection of stories called The Shell Collector and loved it. Then I got his novel About Grace which is on my reading table. I haven't gotten to it yet. He has another book out: Four Seasons in Rome, which I'm dying to pick up.

So, on my Christmas wish list, BOOKS! And gift cards for books! My greatest luxury is to take my annual stack of Barnes and Noble gift cards, after the stress of Christmas, and go browse the store for hours. After Christmas I have some time before the next semester starts and I hunker down and read. I love having a stack of crisp, unread books at hand!

Christmas Wish List: Hot Tamales!

I love Hot Tamales! I've been eating this candy since I was a little kid and I still love it. I can't explain it. I'd rather have a box of Hot Tamales than chocolate or any other kind of candy! In fact, this is what I eat for breakfast everyday. No lie. A handful of Hot Tamales and a Diet Coke. MMMM. If it is a workday I'll probably also have a bowl of apple cinnamon Cheerios.

Hot Tamales! The Breakfast of Champions!

Christmas Wish List: Cashmere!

I love these cashmere turtlenecks from Target! Who doesn't love cashmere?! I love the ebony, the charcoal, allspice and pink carats. (Whatever happened to black, gray, dark red, and pink?)

Christmas Wish List: iPhone

I could get used to the keyboard, I swear. And I love the Shazam thing - HOW does it DO that!

Christmas Wish List: Clapton Tickets at Royal Albert Hall

Royal Albert Hall! Come on!
Uhm, and a couple of plane tickets, too, please. Thanks.

My Christmas Wish List

I'm taking a cue from Nikki and posting my Christmas wish list, just in case Santa reads my blog. He has time for that, right? And like Nikki said, some of it is pure fantasy and some is sort of reasonable. Mostly what I want for Christmas though, is a great family get-together on the 20th! FUN!

But on the materialistic side, as something occurs to me, UP on the blog it goes and maybe DOWN the chimney it will come! Right now I'm adding the Charlie Brown Holidays DVD because I can never time it right to catch them when they come on TV!