[On location in Cumberland, Wisconsin]
Apparently all I needed to do to see some appreciable accumulations of new snow was a change of scenery. After getting piddly amounts of mostly sleet in PA the couple weeks leading up to Christmas break, I come back to the Upper Midwest and suddenly we’ve gotten snow almost every day I’ve been home! We’ve gotten over a foot of snow since I’ve been back, it’s fantastic!
The blitz of visiting with friends and family over break has continued. Back on Friday night I went into Cumberland with my younger brother Jake to hang out at the Corner Bar and Club Cumberland, because we figured there’d be quite a few of our friends from high school out, just like the last couple years, what with it being the weekend before Christmas and all. There were a few people out, but not nearly as many as I was anticipating. I did get to talk for a little bit with some people though, including Profe (my Spanish teacher), Pete, Lindsay, Troy, Mike & Shaun, mostly hanging out with Mike & Shaun.
On Saturday afternoon I drove down to the Twin Cities to have dinner with a bunch of my friends from GAC Physics. Along the way I stopped in Taylors Falls, MN to take some pictures of the Saint Croix River and Interstate State Park, including the snowy panoramic above! 
Unfortunately not everyone from our physics class of ’05 was able to make it, but we still had a pretty good turnout. After dinner most of us went over to Jolene, Zach & Ben’s apartment 
near Lake Calhoun to hang out for a good long while. John, Carl & I wound up staying overnight there, and then early on Sunday morning Carl & I went with Zach & Jolene to their church in downtown Minneapolis.
The drive back up to Cumberland was a snowy, windy one, with quite a bit of blowing and drifting snow making the drive interesting. We got about 8 inches or so up here in Cumberland, so it was a nice little storm. A few hours after I got back, then Aaron & Eve arrived with their two kids. 
Mike & Shaun also came over in the evening to watch the Redskins-Vikings game in sparkling HD. HD certainly didn’t make Vikings QB Tarvaris Jackson see the field any better. That guy sucks. I really hope the Vikings draft somebody like Colt Brennan to be their QB. But it was still so frustrating to see the Vikings to play so badly in a game they had to have, where all they had to do was win to clinch a playoff berth. Now they need both to win this week and have Washington lose, else they’ll be sitting at home for the playoffs. Given how they’ve played though, I don’t really think they deserve to get into the playoffs.
Christmas Eve was a gorgeous day around here, and Ella and Mathias really enjoyed sledding on the fresh-fallen snow quite a bit. Anyway, we had our family Christmas celebration on the evening of Christmas Eve, so Nathan & Laura and their kids arrived in the afternoon, and Jake came over a bit before dinner too. 
And man oh man, Eve made quite a spread for Christmas dinner, we would’ve been hard-pressed to have a better meal at a restaurant. Aaron & I basically made the dessert (“stuff in a cup,” as we called it, haha), 
but that was just a minor contribution to the whole thing. And then of course there was the gift opening and all that; I gave my dad a long-sleeve blue Penn State fleece, and from Aaron I got a Minnesota Wild t-shirt and winter cap (in a pink Victoria’s Secret box, hahaha). Now I can be properly attired at the Wild game that Aaron & I are planning to go to this Saturday night. 🙂 And then who knew that “300” would be a fine Christmas Eve movie, too?On Christmas morning Aaron took Ella & Mathias out sledding again, and this time I joined them. It was great snow for sledding (not very good for “snowball exchanges” (apparently the PC term for “snowball fights” — argh!!) though), Aaron & I were making it all the way from the top of the hill by the garage just about down to the creek, which is a good long way. Aaron & Eve left after lunch, then Nathan & Laura and the kids came over for some sledding, games and dinner. Full days with family, just as Christmas should be. 🙂
Today was a pretty lazy day overall, though overnight and into the morning we got another 4 inches of snow, meaning I had to shovel again. I really don’t mind shoveling too much, especially since I really only have to do it a couple times per year when I come home for Christmas. Maybe my attitude would change if I had to do it every other day the whole 6-month Wisconsin winter again!Maybe tomorrow I’ll get around to some candidacy studying…