It has been a very eventful year and a blessedly peaceful and quiet Christmas. Wonderful dim sum at C-Fu Gourmet Restaurant in Chandler, then snake hunting in Prescott. Thankfully, snakes are hard to find. What did you do?

Oh where oh where can it be?

Gone! It left when the mercury soared to 82 degrees (so says my car, and I know it’s not acurate, but, man that kills!)

Yesterday we were pitiful lumps of Christmas coal and needed some cheering. We headed to the Espanade to see Chronicles of Narnia. It was so good! Awesome even. I loved it. I cried, it was fabulous! You must go see it. But, after the movie, I was just a more emotional mess (never mind the PMS) and had a mini breakdown. So sad that we weren’t in Louisiana with my family, or in Chicago with my boyfriend’s family that I just couldn’t function. My boyfriend was a little bah-hum-buggy too. We resorted to our comforts…

I wanted a cocktail and he wanted to shop. So off to Biltmore Fashion Center we go to accomodate both of our needs. Macy’s first and then we got a call from our friend Mike, a super cool, Superior court judge here in town. Man, he’s a nut, you’d think he was an inmate more than a judge! Anyway, drinks were consumed, joy and the Christmas spirit arrived and we were good to go.

Next stop, the Apple store. Shopping with a buzz. Nothing’s better. Two new iPods and a bunch of accessories later, it was time for food. Stopped into Christopher’s Fermier for subpar service, a cold bowl of soup and that’s all.

We finally headed home about 11:30 and crashed.

Spent all day at our desks, playing with our new toys and not really talking to each other. Ahhh….Christmas at our house. How sad.

Off now for Chinese food (my family’s Christmas Eve tradition) and a get together with friends.

I hope Santa come despite my bad attitude.

Merry Christmas!

Everyone I talk to says that I should go, at least once, to see it. But when asked, they admit that they will never go back. That once was enough for them. Some reminisce about the old days but say it has become way too crowded. I like spectacle, should I go? Is this something you gotta do, if only once? What do you do for New Year’s Eve?

We dined at Phoenicia Grill tonight and it was yummy. Located in the Gilbert Towne Square (and also in Tempe) this is a great restaurant, good food with great prices. I had the kafta kabobs (lamb) and it was terrific. My wife had the chicken and raved about the garlic sauce. Dinner, sodas, and dessert for under 20USD. What more do you want. Friendly staff as well. Gilbert may be too far for most of you to drive, so you might try the one in Tempe.

That’s right, I will be out of Phoenix for a year, starting next month (well, almost a year, maybe a little bit less). I was accepted into an International Development program that will be sending me to Armenia for the next 10 months to help out on a USAID project there. Perhaps the fine folks in charge of Metroblogs will let me start Metroblogging Yerevan?

76 degrees today? Are you kidding me? This is the most fantastically unappealing December I’ve ever had!

This place confuses me. It is the first day of Winter and I am warmer(and happier) than I have been in weeks. Have a happy Christmas everyone.

Also, did you notice, we got bigger. A Joyeux No

This is the last year of the Fiesta Bowl Block Party. And not because the party is coming to an end, but starting next year it will be called the Insight Bowl Block Party (or something like that) as the Fiesta Bowl moves to Glendale. And the party will stay in Tempe.

If you’re unfamiliar with the Block Party, there really are no words to truly describe the madness. I went once - that was enough for me. I now host a party at my house with 30 of my closest friends, rather than spending it with 100,000 really drunk people that like to push, shove and start fights. Don’t get me wrong - I LOVE a good party. But this particular party exceeds even my own limits.

So if you like Blues Traveler (this year’s Block Party performers), or if you just like some seriously entertaining people watching, then head on down to Tempe on New Year’s Eve and have fun (and good luck making it out alive)!

So occasionally when I hit the drycleaners in the plaza on the Northeast corner of Baseline & Rural, I will hit Wendy’s drive-thru on the way out. Never again. I’ve been to that specific Wendy’s maybe 20 times in the past couple years and as far as I can remember they have NEVER taken my order correctly. I am convinced there is some malicious entity that lives in the drive-thru speaker (read “moron on the other end”) that translates “2 quarter pound double-stacks with ONLY mayonaisse, lettuce, ketchup” to “1 classic double with pickles and mustard” or “3 quarter pound double-stacks, 2 with lettuce and mustard and 1 with ketchup and pickle”. On top of that, I’m never given a receipt and their fries always taste like they’re a day old. Either cold, overcooked, or mushy. I think they deliberatly withhold receipts to prevent consumers from calling & complaining because you need the store # that’s on the receipt when you call. About the only thing that comes out right is their Frosty, which is machine made. So if you’re in the neighborhood, STEER CLEAR of that Wendy’s. It’s smack between Church’s Chicken and Schlotzsky’s. Either of those places would be a safer choice.

The Hotel Valley Ho reopens tomorrow, Tuesday, December 20th.

Check it out at Valley Ho http://www.hotelvalleyho.com. The website is cute, I like the music and the little slide show at the beginning.

Chef Charles Wiley formerly of the Golden Swan at the Hyatt Regency at Gainey Ranch, elements at The Sanctuary on Camelback and The Boulders, is the new Executive Chef of Trader Vic’s, which will open next month.

Long live the Ho!