not so grinchy now

I finally decorated for Christmas, you guys! First I vacuumed my apartment, and to do so effectively I had to move the giant box with the Christmas tree my parents sent up with a friend when she came to visit, and suddenly I had a thought: Hey, how about instead of moving the box around, I take out what is inside of it?

So I did. It's a small tree that came equipped with its own lights, pine cones, and cranberries or something, but I added some little purple balls to it. Also, I artfully arranged the bouquet of flowers my family sent me in front of it, so you could see all the Christmas things I have in one picture. (I have lights, too - I'm not sure if I'm willing to put in the effort to put them around my window. You know, getting up on a chair, sticking those clippy things into the wall, plugging them in... ugh.) So here is my new Christmasy apartment, for your viewing pleasure.

how festive everything feels now!

the purple balls add so much, I think

see how large it looks from this angle!

ooh with the lights off

can't you just hear Charlie Brown Christmas in your head as you gaze upon my tree?

these are my flowers!

Also, presently I am baking a cake for my staff Christmas party tonight. As soon as I closed the oven door I had a frightening moment of wondering whether or not you could bake a cake in a glass container, since all the cake-baking containers my mom used were tin or whatever. I had visions of the bowl exploding in my oven, shooting gobs of cake batter all over my new Christmas tree. However, my mother informed me that it will be okay, so now I can enjoy the smell of baking cake in my apartment.

Also, this morning I drove three hours round trip for the best cheese in the world. IN THE WORLD. Spicy cheese! All the stores in Campbell River have two kinds of cheese: cheddar and mozza. Boo. I bought six packages of cheese to hopefully last me a long time, because it was quite a drive. While I was there, this little black kitten literally climbed up my leg and into my arms, and then started purring and swatting at my bangs. My heart swelled and I again considered getting a cat for my apartment, because sometimes it's really nice to be sat on and purred at, you know? I don't know where I'd put the litter box, or if my tiny apartment is big enough for a cat, or what... but I was sorely tempted to abscond with that little black kitten. A lady passed by while I was petting it and said that the lady in the store said it was a barn cat in training, which made me very upset, because this little cat clearly liked snuggling and barn cats don't snuggle. Reluctantly I put it down and bought my cheese, and then spent the whole drive back thinking about getting a cat. What do you think? Is a tiny apartment too tiny for a cat? Will my cat be lonely because I am at school for a long time always? Conundrum.