Very routine, but very nice indeed!

Hey all! Nobody's posted in nearly 2 weeks, and I haven't posted in nearly 2 months, so I figure its about time. Things here are going well- nothing too exciting to post about, but nevertheless I'll give you a little update.

December:
- My office holiday party was awesome! It was nearly all of my co-workers at a hotel: buffet, fully stocked open bar, DJ w/ dance floor... my company is just awesome! Work is going great so far and I've gotten a ridiculous amount of responsibility for only being there 2 months! YAY!
- I was a little drunk one night when I was dragged to my first gay bar... it wasn't so bad. Then I got more drunk there and was dragged to a gay club. I danced and had a good time, but some people there were WAY sketchy. It was kinda rank. I don't plan on going back anytime too soon.
- I threw a little Hanukkah party for some friends: I made latkas and Hanukkah cookies and we all played the Manischewitz dreidel game. The Jewish holidays are a great time to get fer shnickered (Yiddish for drunk off your ass).
- Christmas consisted of Chinese food in Chinatown with some friends- I'm glad I can keep my Christmas traditions going strong here.
- New Year's was great! I went to a friend's dinner party and then Della and her roommate came up and met me and a friend and we all walked down to the Space Needle for fireworks at midnight. The fireworks were actually shot off the top of and out of the sides of the Space Needle- I've never seen anything like it- it was AWESOME!

In other news:
- Today is the 27th straight day of rain here in Seattle. The record is 33 set back in 1953. The 10 day forecast shows no sign of dry skies, so we'll be breaking that record next weekend. I don't mind too much- I'm inside most of the day and when it is raining its not very hard at all.
- So this is probably more information about my Saturdays than any of you really care about but I think its cute so I'll tell you anyways: I have this nice little Saturday routine that I do every week. I walk down to the market for lunch- buy a piroshky or falafel and get a latte from the original Starbucks- where, by the way, this VERY attractive gay guy works and I'm dying to get into his line and attempt to flirt- not my best skill but it'd be worth a shot- but its been like 2 months and he isn't on register half the time and the other half I just can't seem to be in the right spot in line to get to go to him but at least it's nice to go in there and look at him. Then I take my lunch and latte over to the little park that overlooks the water (or when its raining this little indoor viewpoint with public seating in the market) and watch the boats and ferries and stuff while I eat. Then I buy some apples at the market and if I'm feeling a little touristy, watch the hot guys who work that the famous place in the market throw their fish around for a few minutes. They have this stuffed animal fish that they occasionally throw at someone in the crowd just to freak them out. Then I usually stop by the big downtown Old Navy on the way home to check for sales. It's nice and relaxing and a good start to my weekend each week :)
- Every week a group of us goes to Sunday Night Pizza... we're up to like week 15 or 16 so far. We try a new place each week in search of the best pizza in Seattle. We've found some good stuff, but nothing really outstanding. The bagels here are also disappointing. To make up for all of this, brunch is very popular here. And there are a bunch of places with really great brunches. I'll be brunching more often on Sundays :) Between market Saturdays and brunch and pizza Sundays, things here are very routine- but I love it!
- To add to the routine- American Idol starts this week and I'm VERY excited!
- And speaking of Idol, I've also discovered that the road to heaven is paved with Kelly Clarkson singles. I love her. Really... my plan is to marry her and she can sing me to sleep and we'll have pool boys. Lots.

So yeah, that's my update. Nothing too exciting going on around here, but life is very good! I hope you're all doing well- and more people should post soon with updates! Even if they have nothing too outstanding to post about!

-Phill