Holiday by the numbers

8 flights in
15 days for a total of
65 travel hours (including 2 x 28 hour trips), carrying
48 lbs of luggage on the way to the states and
58 lbs on the way back.
2 x-rays screens, max, per flight with only
1 missed flight and
1 lost piece of luggage, garnering
~25,000 frequent flier miles.
78 Fahrenheit degree range in temperatures (from 85 to 7, or 30 to -14 Celsius)

A few highlights:

Christmas Day snowshoeing on Mt Hood.
As our family Christmas present this year, my mom took the family snow shoeing, something neither she nor any member of our immediate family had done before. I enjoyed it immensely, especially walking off the trails, through the forest as fluffly flakes drifted all around us coating boughs of trees. Just pristine. Only disturbed by my gales of laughter as my sister kept sinking to her hips into the snow and her howls of "fuck you" back at me.

New Year's Eve in Boston.
This New Year's was marked by last minute plans. When I arrived in Boston, it seemed that no one had it quite figured out. As a result, Jonathan and I found ourselves at an HLS colleague's house for drinks, Oishii Sudbury (the best sushi in the greater Boston area) for dinner, and Simone's house to ring in the new year. All in all a very good (and effective) practice date.

New Year's Day Brunch.
After a very, very cold run along the Boston and Cambridge Esplanade, I caught up with friends for brunch. In addition to our yummy french toast, I got every one to try a Tim Tam slam. Yum.

A very good first date.