See, here’s the thing. It never tastes like chocolate. Not like real chocolate, or not like milk chocolate. At best, it tastes like artificial dark or semisweet chocolate, and I like my chocolate au lait.
Commercially produced, frozen cakes are the worst perpetrators for using crap artificial chocolate, and this was very much a commercially produced cake.
Aaaaaah! My eyes! My eyes! I can’t believe the heresy. And on Christmas, too! Semisweet Chocolate RULES!!!
{{{Wallflower}}} I’m so sorry.
Having slept much earlier, now I’m up…even though I will have to get up @4:30 to get ready for work.
Welcome back Wallflower; so sorry to hear about your husband’s passing. Many hugs and prayers for you, especially at the holiday time.
I’ve been contemplating what to say about the gifts my children gave me … I mean, other than their love and my son’s presence here (he’d been away at college in AR since early August). After all, it was one of the items I told them that I needed! They both got me socks. Yes, that’s right, packages of socks! As my mother would have said, “Merry Christmas, Ho ho ho!”*:rolleyes: Ah well, at least my feet will be warm and I won’t have to be searching for missing socks, right? :dubious:
DB, love the picture of your cat! Hey, is that the SDMB on your computer screen in the shot of your beer glasses, btw? 
Roast beef turned out excellent, btw, as did the Yorkshire pudding (although it could have been puffier, I think); forgot all about the jello molded salad though, and we’ve still got plenty of appetizers–we may make dinner of them later this week, I think.
Hope everyone enjoyed their Christmas (or whatever celebrated!) holiday.
*One year, my Mom had all the presents wrapped and hidden away, except my youngest brother found them, unwrapped them to find out what everyone had gotten, then attempted to re-wrap them and put them back in the hiding place. When Mom discovered this, she was really upset, and told us all, “merry Christmas, ho ho HO!” It was not a happy Christmas that year, although the story became legend in the family and she was able to laugh about it in later years. God bless you, Mom!
dogbutler, that kitty pic is hilarious!
Wallflower, I’m so sorry to hear about your loss - holidays are always difficult when people who were once there are gone. I hope the new year brings better things for you.
I just saw I Am Legend with my brother. It was pretty good, abysmal CGI quality notwithstanding. I read the novella a few days ago, and I don’t think either is better than the other, but they do have very different themes. I’d recommend both, if post-apocalyptic stuff is your thing. My brother said he liked it better than 28 Days Later, but he’s a 21 year old boy, so his taste is … questionable.
Off to bed for me. All in all a decent Christmas.
Merry Christmas all, albeit slightly belated! We had a great day yesterday, with lots of friends around and HRH going crazy with her new toys! I have uploaded a few photos here for your enjoyment!
{{{meli}}} I hope 2008 is better sweetie!
{{{Wallflower}}} That is really rough. I hope you also have a healing, happier 2008.
Okay, I gotta run take care of the princess! Hugs and Christmassy sentiment doled out to all … ::MWAH::
{{{Wallflower}}}
Here’s to a happier 2008 for all of us.
I’m a bit peeved currently because it’s almost 4 a.m. and I haven’t been to sleep yet. There are several nominations that I’d like to hand out for the keeping me from sleeping award.
To my old friend bipolar 2: Thank you so much for giving me a high which will not go away.
To diet coke with caffeine: Thank you also for your new found role aiding and abetting BP2.
To lithium: Apparently this go around you’ve brought me the joy of almost constant hunger and sensitivity to caffeine. So it’s 4 a.m. and I’m fixing pillsbury cinnamon rolls because I’m too starved to sleep.
To PieMom: Since I sleep in your bed when TVMan and I are here in town, is it really necessary to wear your CPAP mask in such a way that it sounds like you’ve got a constant leak? Apparently it seems to be working ok for you since you’re still sleeping and I’ve gotten back out of bed, disgruntled.
Up and caffeinated. Back to the grindstone. Happy Boxing Day!
Off to work in a moment.
Wallflower-so sorry to hear your sad news. I hope 2008 brings peace and brighter days for you.
Cute pics, Dotty! I’m off to work, too…
Hope you were able to fall asleep again, CutiePie!
Wallflower - I’m sorry to hear you’ve had such a bad year, but you made it through and you know next year will be easier.
meli - I’m sorry for your loss and I hope you’re coping ok.
Drae - even more belated happies!
I haven’t been around the Dope much the last couple of days 'cos I’ve been busy. Friday I was visiting my doting parent for the day then afterwards I came home and then drove 'im indoors and a friend over to the race track for the evening. We had VIP passes for the racing which was fun, and I won the equivalent of $110 on a couple of very lucky bets.
Saturday we did a pub treasure trail in the afternoon and then met up with friends for drinks afterwards. Sunday was a busy day of delivering present to friends and doing the grocery shopping.
Hexmas eve was another busy day - I decided to do all the cleaning that we’d neglected recently so that was good to get finished. We rewarded ourselves with a curry and some wine.
Hexmas day was fun. I went to the local homeless shelter and helped out there most of the day. Although our sainted local council tells us we have almost no rough-sleepers in town, they’re obviously lying if the numbers we saw yesterday was anything to go by. Before I left, I’d prepared pretty much all of our own hexmas lunch and given 'im indoors instructions about what to do and when to do it. So when I got home late in the afternoon, dinner was cooking nicely and I just had to do the final bits to make sure it was all finished on time.
Today we’re packing up the fuzzbutts and all their stuff to take them over to a friend. She’s going to look after them while we’re up in Scotland visiting ‘im indoors’ family - we plan to drive up there on Thursday and come home on Sunday, just in time for one night in our own bed and then back to fuzzbutt-sitter on Monday for a new year’s eve party and then home the following day with the thoroughly spoilt fuzzbutts. Assuming they can bear to leave Hazel’s place after she’s stuffed them full of all manner of treats!
Back to work for me. Five days of sloth around the house is more than enough; I gotta be doing something.
I took 3 ambulance calls in the 24 hours of Christmas Day, and by a small miracle, all were No Transports. The other crew(s) weren’t as lucky.
Happy Boxing Day to those in The Great White North, Down Under, and across the pond.
What the hell is Boxing Day, anyway?
I’m sorry for your loss, meli.
We went and saw that movie, It’s A Wonderful Life, Monday afternoon on the big screen. It was just going to be me, the wife and mt red-headed stepchild, but RHSC invited her boyfriend too. Kind of torqued me off, because they have been hanging around us since Friday, not giving us any kind of break.
Thanks for the hugs everyone.
GT, everyone wanted to call me Wally, but I wouldn’t let y’all do that, for a couple reasons 1} I remember all the stuff back in the day with WallyM7, & b) I’m female, and at the time I still had a slightly closed mind when it came to gender roles. I think some called me** flowers**.
I had an icky night of coughing and insomnia, so, no worky today, but I am feeling a bit better now.
One more hug for (((Wallflower))). Glad you’re feeling a little better.
doggio, the photos are hilarious.
Happy Boxing Day to everyone! Boxing Day is the day after Christmas, when something or other was supposed to happen. Relating to boxing up up food and clothes for the impoverished? Or something? In Canada, it’s our equivalent to Black Thursday. Anyone at work right now has been there since very early, and is currently being stampeded. This is the first year in six years I haven’t worked it.
I did not have the baby yesterday. I’m proud of me and the baby both. Waiting for next week. We had a good, relaxing Christmas, with lots of food and my parents spoiling the heck out of us. Mr. Lissar lucked out, marrying an only child with extremely indulgent parents. He got new winter hiking boots and gloves and a lot of chocolate. I got slippers, aprons, baking racks, and chocolate. We also got a huge amount of cash, which makes both of us feel wretchedly guilty, because of how much they’ve spent on us and the grandchild in the last few months. The scary thing is this is their idea of a scaled-down gift exchange. Gahh.
Yawn. Time for tea, getting Mr. Lissar up, and preparing for a party at Mr. Lissar’s godparents.
Hugs for {{{wf}}}, {{{meli}}}, and {{{pie}}} - plus anyone else I might have missed or who just plain needs one.
I’m back at work today. It feels good to rest!
I’m having to work on my self-assessment, which is due by Jan 4th. Arggh! I hate these things! This year we have the extra added bonus of being owned by a huge new company with pages and pages of electronic forms to fill out. It sucks mightily, it does.
So I guess I’ll go back to surfing the Dope…
Yeah. Where’s mine? :dubious:
I never get a hug around here…
That’s what I live for, you know.
It’s supposed to go above 40F today. Practically springtime!
(((((Bob)))))
Hey! No groping!
Yuengling in a can tastes like Iron City beer. That’s your problem.