1. Our beautiful bride/neighbor Lexi kissing her groom outside the cookie store last week.
I imagine most folks don’t dress—or drive—that way going to pick up their chocolate chips.
2. The ability to laugh. And continuous reasons for that joyful ability.
What do you have to laugh about today? 
3. Grandson Matthew and his Plant Cell School Project made out of household trash.
4. Going out into Washington Square near our place here in Historic District Savannah last evening to read, about 7 PM, and realizing, with the darkness, that it’s definitely getting later in the year.
Here’s my first attempt at the above photo. Photographer Hubby Robert could explain. But I can’t. But I still kinda like the result.
5. Art!
Colorful beauty at the Columbus (Georgia) Museum of Art last weekend. 
So a while back, grandson Daniel (young Savannah actor/singer—and now high school senior) played one of his most serious and evil roles so far. (And he’s been in over three dozen plays, since he started acting as a little kid.)
For this play, Daniel did not get a leading role. He was a supporting actor, the dastardly Mayor Josiah Dobbs, in Steve Martin’s very serious musical Bright Star.
Here he is (far left) in a light moment during rehearsals with his three best buddies, all in the play.
But Daniel’s character was anything but light. When the mayor’s son got a girl pregnant, Mayor Dobbs intervened and stole the baby from the mother’s arms. (More about THAT hideous heist in a minute.)
Robert and I went to opening night, and the play was VERY well done, especially for a high school performance.
Here’s D with Mom and Nana, after the play.
The second night, too, went swimmingly.
But the closing matinee, well, was quite a different story.
Let me have Daniel explain. The short video below is actually part of D’s prescreens/prep for musical theatre college applications. For a portion called “the wildcard,” Daniel took a risk and decided to explain about what went wrong with the closing performance of Bright Star.
Yes, at least Daniel got to keep the head as a bizarre “souvenir”!
“A Man’s Gotta Do’ was the solo Daniel/Mayor Dobbs sang as he ripped the poor baby from mama.
Next up, Daniel is Shakespeare in Shakespeare in Love here in Savannah.
P.S. Here’s the feedback Daniel got about his “wildcard” from the folks he’s working with in New York:
(Okay, maybe HR and I are just standing lazily in a pool )
But look! Here I am doing a handstand … at %!^&*$ years of age …
3. Joyful birthday celebration with grandtwins Matthew and Madison.
And princess tenting with their little sister, Isabelle.
(It took me twenty minutes to get outta there.)
4. Making a Collard Casserole. (Yes, you heard that right.)
No collard leaf is an ugly colored leaf!
He’s just a little worn and brown at the edges. (Like me.)
YUM!
5. Grandson Daniel at his “Last First Day of School.” He’s a senior at Savannah Country Day.
They have this tradition with the seniors driving onto campus while parents, grandparents, siblings, strangers, etc. yell and act foolish, waving posters and big head pictures.
Here comes D …
And here is D’s adoring crew:
(Our pic made it onto the school’s website)
Daniel is in the white t-shirt, leaning toward his mom and girlfriend.
Huh? What do you mean you can’t see Robert and me?
We’re sorta under the poster that screams “Daniel” (which I made, Thank You.)
But wait, here we are in clearer view …
See us? To the left of the Daniel sign.
Wait again, this is supposed to be about Daniel.
Did I just hear someone ask to see my award-winning poster in a close-up? Okay, here you go …
From some of these photos, you may see that D is a local actor.
I love this photo from this afternoon. Grandson Daniel, young Savannah actor/singer, hugging my ex-wife Donna, his Nana, after performing as the (really, REALLY) bad guy in the musical “Bright Star.”
This year my Countdown to Christmas is a nontraditional Advent Calendar centering (pun intended) on mindfulness.
On the front of each card is neat little picture, and on the back are the instructions for the short meditation.
Today, the 24th and last Day of Advent … SING A CHRISTMAS SONG.
Here are today’s instructions:
Activating your body, mind, breath and voice, there are few activities that involve you more comprehensively in the present than singing. Your task today is to sing a Christmas song.
Don’t worry, this need not be some grand solo performance to an audience – it could be singing carols as part of a group, an a cappella version in the safety of the shower, or simply singing along to a song on the radio – wherever you choose to sing, all that matters is that you give it your full attention and really go for it.
Feel the breath in your chest and the vocal vibrations in your throat; hear the sound of your voice; follow the patter of the melody, consider the meaning of the lyrics. Feel the various emotions involved, both in the tone and message of the song and in the personal feelings you get from the activity of singing. And most of all, enjoy singing for singing’s sake, for the fun and expressive act that it is.
Singing engages you completely in the moment and can be as relaxing as it is exhilarating.
Here’s a short video of grandson Daniel and his girlfriend Amalie singing “Walking in a Winter Wonderland” at a Savannah Ghost Pirates ice hockey game last night …
NealEnJoy 