On Saturday evening my wife and I had the opportunity to slide down to the Winspear for the ESO’s latest performance in the Robbins Pop series. The event featured the orchestra with The Roby Lakatos Ensemble, a six-piece Hungarian folk/roots group. As I’ve written before, my wife and I are currently enjoying the hell out of our season passes to the Classic Landmarks Series. We’ve come to love (and even depend on) symphony nights, so it was a special treat to see an additional performance, especially one that was outside of our current series.

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The ‘ol Buick was in the shop and that gave me a chance to take the bus to work. Felt good to be back on the scows, if only for an hour and a half in the morning. Caught the 106 at 99^th and Whyte, cold breeze shooting in from the east. Waited for a minute until she docked curbside, those old familiar things—the popped-tire door hiss, the diesel city smell, the driver handing a transfer without a word or smile. To the back seat facing starboard, but only for a stop or two before buddy in the hornrims gets off and I slip into my favorite spot – backseat, front-facing, curbside. On Whyte and 109 I catch a glimpse of three sets of hardtoes, blue hardhats giving away their trade, cigs and thermoses up the street, grease-potted duck overalls ready for another layer. A reminder of who built this place.

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It just happened to be a Monday. The sky was a shade of eggshell and the trees were sprinkled with frost. I was in the valley for ten minutes only. To my right, the steel of downtown. Left, was a bank of trees that would not have looked out of place on a postcard. The hum of the vehicle was in my seat and the radio was silent. It was a scene that could have gone unnoticed – one that could have simply slipped from memory like the rest of my thoughts. But this scene was a product of weather and time and awareness, like squelching a caffeine rush, or brushing through a steaming prairie night. My eyes cued to this lack of contrast with little effort. The eyes are comfortable with gray; not as much work to resolve. Further down the river, thin clouds had gathered to hide the tree frost and I cannot confirm or deny that a flock of waxwings whistled somewhere on the edge of my field of view. The maw of morning cars ticked away the minutes, head forward and pedals down. Confident and unswayed, the trees held the gray at bay as I wound out of the valley.

My first post of the new decade details what I got for Christmas in 2009. I realize such a list might be in questionable taste. After all, who cares what I got for Christmas? I guess this post is as much for me than anyone else. My memory is about as good as a colander these days, so I need all the help I can get.

This Christmas was a great one. We held the big meal blowout in our tiny 800 sqft home. It was a tight fit for ten people but it was a ton of fun. Gifts were exchanged and spirits were high everywhere.

Here’s a list of my favorite gifts this year (with pictures!).

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