He said, she said: Rainy Days

Whenever I need inspiration or blog topics, I ask my friend Jenn Cole who blogs at www.noplacelikehere.biz. You should check her out.

Today, we decided to pick a topic - Rainy Days - and both write about the topic. Hence, the title he said, she said. Here is what she said.

Rainy Days confuse me.

You know what I have never been able to figure out? Why do I feel most productive on days it rains? It doesn't make sense. And back when I worked on-site with Beazer Homes, the rainiest days were some of our busiest days. I don't get it.

Also confusing - that song by Bob Dylan Rainy Day Women #12 & 35 . What? What the hell kind of song title is that? He sings about people being stoned which probably says alot about the choice.

You know what else confuses me about rainy days? Why do we keep telling brides that rain on your wedding day is good luck? Ha! Rain on your wedding day is miserable. Can't you just appreciate the fact you are getting married and enjoy it? Why perpetuate the lie? Do you need justification for being happy on your wedding day regardless of the weather? Good luck.

As I write this, I realize it is coming across a little angry. It is probably because Jenn just bought me coffee and I don't normally drink coffee in the afternoons. I feel a bit like Will Ferrell in Kicking and Screaming.

Okay - it stopped raining. So I will stop writing... it is not going well.

My Columbian New Year

Last week, we got to ring in the new year with some very special friends. We were visiting my hometown of Kingston, NY with 3 kids and 8 adults and stayed in a beautiful old farm house (part of the home was 200 years old).

One of our friends, Andrés, is originally from Columbia, where they have some very symbolic New Years Eve traditions. This is the first year he has not been in Columbia for New Years Eve so we wanted to help him feel a little more at home. Here is my experience:

Tradition 1. Wear yellow underwear. It is said to bring wealth and prosperity in the coming year. Well, I don't actually own any yellow underwear so I left it up to my friends to pick some up at the store while they were out shopping. Everyone had a good laugh when I opened the bag to find yellow Flash Gordon superhero briefs. Ha ha ha, joke's on me. The REAL funny part came when we all realized they bought the wrong size. I haven't fit in a 28 waste in two decades. But I tried...for the cause. And no, there are no pictures.

Tradition 2. JUMP! At the stroke of midnight, we were all standing on a chair (or couch) and we jumped down to the floor. This was to help us take on 2012 with momentum and energy.

Tradition 3. The suitcase run. After we jumped down and kissed our loved ones, we each grabbed a suitcase and ran around the outside of the house. This tradition ensures good travels in the coming year. Not sure if it meant anything significant but my wife and I held hands while we ran, hopefully that means we can go somewhere together.

Unfortunately we could not find any grapes with seeds because there is one more tradition we tried to uphold. But since we couldn't pull that one off, we substituted with a few American traditions...we drank Champagne and watched Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin Eve.

Nappy New Year!