Christmas in July

       Normally around this time the weather has gone from fall to approaching winter. People are bustling around getting turkeys and complaining about the outrage of Christmas songs already being played on the radio as they shop for their fixings. Hats and scarves are donned and people complain about that too "it's too cold" "I hate this song" "IT'S NOT EVEN THANKSGIVING YET WHY IS THIS SONG ON?!?" You know .. the normal complaints. I am not sure if people on the east coast just like to whine or if people in the desert are just so confused this time of year they don't know what to complain about. So far not one complaint of the music (which has turned to Christmas in grocery stores at least) or weather. I will say it is strange to see people in full hats coats and scarves in 65 degree weather. But I have seen stranger.

        So what is one to do when trapped in a hostile desert situation during the holidays? I would say adapt, but it seems like even the people who have been here for a while still seem confused. I have devised a game to pass a few minutes each day to start with. I take a phone picture of myself outside so you can see what I am wearing and ask... What temperature is it? It is sadly actually funnier than it sounds. Yesterday 52 degrees was still short sleeves as it felt like 70 degrees back in PA. Since I seemed to be getting more and more confused at the fact that it was still about 70 here on most days and Christmas should be right around the corner I decided to take a preemptive strike and just throw up a Christmas tree. Normally this would not happen until everyone was tucked away with turkey coma on thanksgiving and I was fighting insomnia through the night. But when you are stuck in a place where your front yard is rocks and plants that just look like sticks sometimes you become desperate. Hanging next to the tree is (dead bat in a cup) which is now dead bat in a shadow box FINALLY. I decided since he seemed to have a hard life he needed to get in on the strange Christmas cheer that was happening. He got some fancy editions to his glass casing. It seems the way I cope is closing the curtains so I don't notice if it is sunny and just stare at the tree which sadly makes me feel better.

Here he is in all of his Christmas glory!  Tiny hat candy cane and some tiny little Christmas lights. The  desert did not treat him so well either so I thought I would help him out with some cheery accommodations.

It is not done yet but here is the tree just fitting in a corner and the bat off to the right.

I then realized that me and my best friend looked a bit plain so I gave us hats to match... I would say maybe one day I wont be so strange.. but honestly it would be a flat out lie.

        To me it is strange that it is Christmas but resembles July but luckily there is now a green oasis in this desert hell. Sadly I don't think it can stay year long un decorated  just so I can see some green. Though I am sure I could make it some entertaining seasonal decorations. In other news for the first time in about 3 months it started to rain yesterday which made the temperature drop like my hopes that this place would be entertaining. Today we woke up to a 60 degree house after months of almost 80 degrees inside. Abandoning my summer blanketed bed I practically crawled into my closet dug out my down blanket and fell back to sleep next to my half decorated tree. While to most people that probably sounds like a hellish morning it was more of a beautiful surprise. If you know me you know I am strangely addicted to blankets and hoodies I have a million and coming here felt like I had sentenced them all to death by closet today in my tired haze I stumbled to my closet (in another room) and once I had my favorite heavy blanket in hand I decided I wanted to be wrapped in it so bad I dropped where I was turned into a blanket wrapped burrito and stared at the tree happily until I was unconscious again. To prove how excited I am when the temperature is even vaguely cool enough for hoodies I will add a picture I took the first time it was cool enough..

This is what a pocket of happiness looks like in the desert... a weirdly desperate glee that no one can stifle. (also sorry I look like a ghost my phone just hates people it seems...)

So strangely enough this morning was rather nice. Anytime it is cold and rainy enough for a down blanket is fine with me especially if I don't have to go outside... 

EDIT: So since I finished the tree and decorating so fast I thought I would just add some pictures here at the bottom Enjoy the twinkly goodness!

 

And yes there is a chestburster sticking out of my tree.. Why you might ask? Because it is awesome and I felt like it. I might even make  him a small hat so he just looks like he is singing.