for christmas eve, my family decided it would be a good idea to go to this candlelight barn service at this farm at 10pm. we all bundled warmly and i snuck an earbud under all of my clothing so that i could listen to sigur ros.

we arrived at the barn and headed inside. people were sitting on hay bales that were assembled in rows that were just barely wide enough for my size 11 foot to sit perpendicular. on top of the hay bales were wooden boards covered in green astro turf. what was neat about that, was that it was one of the most incredibly uncomfortable places i have ever had to sit. i spent most of the service practicing yoga breathing techniques and slightly altering my posture to keep my back from aching.

when we walked in we chose a plastic, light-up, candle from a box. i wondered if the fact that i had the only one with dead batteries was cosmically ironic. or maybe god was trying to symbolize my lost faith as some sort of message in my hand.

the music was pretty bad, the guitarist/singer was struggling for the most part, and all the back up instruments were off beat or inaudible. the message was from this pastor who was in poor period dress and was pretending to be the inn keeper that provided mary and joseph with the barn. it was very theatre-y and shitty. then they had communion, so everyone was trying to file out of their constrictive seats and stumbling all over. it was awkward, and i opted to not partake.

this has been the coldest winter in kansas that i can remember. then, the day after christmas it hit 65.

oh yes, and at work, our christmas party included:
guitar hero world tour on a PA and projected huge on a wall
beer, 2 spiked punches, and champagne jello parfaits
a very odd white elephant gift exchange, including a hand painted "chimpanzee riding on a segway"
and 8mm projector with old collected movies including home videos, weddings, and porn, courtesy of my boss.