The holidays are well and truly over now. There are only one or two holdouts in the neighborhood as far as Christmas trees and lights, and what's left just looks...tired. It's back-to-work day for me, although I won't go in until noon because of conflict between the car situation and Gregg's appointment. I was able to sleep in a bit this morning and I still have some time to sip coffee and blog before heading out. A nice gentle way to return after more than two weeks off!
Yesterday afternoon I had my first and only visitor of the holiday season, my friend Martina. We've started a tradition over the past two or three years of exchanging books at Christmas. Normally we get together as close to Christmas Eve as possible (if not on Christmas Eve) but this year we both had a lot going on and couldn't manage it any sooner.
It was nice to have something to look forward to on my last day off, though. Since any holiday treats were long gone, I went to the store and bought an assortment of cookies and a chocolate babka to serve, along with hot chai tea and iced tea. It was good see my friend and spend some time together, and the dogs were beside themselves with joy. They love Martina and all the attention she gives them. Marco likes her just fine, but since she occasionally helps me trim his nails (which he loathes) he always keeps a slightly wary eye on her!
I'm really excited about the books I got! We both try to make sure our "want to read" lists on Goodreads are updated about a month prior to Christmas, and I like the two she picked for me this time.
The first has gorgeous cover art.