remembering the season

relax.

Sometimes, after a long day, it just feels good to sit on the couch and enjoy some quality television programming. For many a night, Debbie and I would watch the back-to-back broadcasts of "House" on the USA Network, and we were especially happy when they ran a Sunday marathon.
But it eventually got to the point that we had both seen nearly every "House" at least once, so we dug out the first season of "Grey's Anatomy" from a box, and began watching that. I'd never seen it, so it took awhile to figure out who McDreamy was. Or Grey.

I'm not sure why, but a few months ago, we switched our viewing desires to the half-hour sitcom,
and we rented Season One of "Will & Grace". Actually, we borrowed it from the Lapel library.
We've continued through Season Three, and currently have Season Four on reserve at the Anderson Public Library. I think we may have borrowed and watched the first season of
"Two and a Half Men" recently, and while we are awaiting the arrival of W&G4, I remembered that I had borrowed the first season of "How I Met Your Mother" on DVD from an old Starbucks friend last December, just before I got downsized out. Guess I better get Joe's address, and mail this back to him. After we get through Season One.

Last night, we had a productive evening of hanging two key pieces of drywall, and a few rows of insulation, as well as, completing some installing and wiring of outlet boxes in Samuel's renovation-in-progress room. Actually 75% of the house is a renovation in progress, but Sam's room is the focus right now, so he can have his bedroom back for at least some of his Senior year.

After we put our tools down, we popped some popcorn (real kernal-popped on the stove, not microwaved in a bag), cracked open a couple bottles of frosty beverages, and we turned on
"How I Met Your Mother". The last episode we watched for the evening was set on New Year's Eve in New York. The main characters were determined to make it the best, most fun NYE ever, complete with the midnight kiss. It was a funny episode, but what made it memorable for me, was that it made me stop and try and remember where Debbie and I had spent New Year's Eve earlier this year.

It took a moment for me to recall that we hadn't really celebrated New Year's, or any of the holidays, for that matter, because I had lost my job on December 22nd, and then Mom had gone into ICU on the 24th, and she never came home. On New Year's Eve, we were in the process of admitting her into Hospice in Indy, and she had died in her sleep the morning of January 2nd.
I know I spent the night of Christmas Eve, and most of Christmas day in the ICU waiting room, and I may have been with Mom on New Year's Eve in hospice, but I really don't remember.

All this hit me, as I watched the sitcom characters kissing at midnight, and I broke down and had my first good cry on Debbie's shoulder in at least a couple of months. I was reminded how difficult the 2009 holidays may be for the Horn family, but I was comforted knowing that I'll be spending them with Debbie this year. And as much as I'll miss Mom over the coming months, I know how much I'll treasure kissing Debbie at midnight on New Year's Eve 2010.

God willing.