Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

eBay

Okay, I don't usually do too much buying on eBay--mostly just browsing--but a little while ago I had to snag a few things and I had trouble doing it on my own, so I resorted to a bid sniping program. You can, of course, bid snipe on your own (wait until the very last seconds of an auction to bid, thereby keeping the bidding price low), but this worked out much better for me. It has a free trial (3 free snipes--and they only count if you win the auction) and then it's pretty cheap after that. Check it out!

Win with this power sniper for eBay

Back Home Between the Holidays

Denise and I flew back out to Illinois last week to spend time with family and friends. The last time we did that, it was really hectic and we had to get a ton of stuff into a week, but this time was a little more laid back.

When we arrived on Friday, we took my mom's car (my parents left it at the airport for us) and drove down to the Harrison Grade School where Denise's mom works and spent some time visiting there. After a while, I got pretty hungry so we went back to her mom's house and had lunch, and I believe I took a nap then because I was still fighting off a cold. Around 6pm we went out to dinner at Monical's (if you've never had it, and get the chance, definitely try it!) with Denise's mom and stepdad, her stepsister and her husband and daughter, and her grandparents.

Saturday I don't really remember until around 4pm, when we went over to my aunt and uncle's house for the first ever Legel Soup Dinner :P. There was a lot of good food and we all talked for quite a while. In the process, I got a chance to give Tom the knife I snagged on eBay for him, as well as the sheath I made.

Sunday morning Denise and her mom went down to southern Illinois so they could go dress shopping with Denise's sister. While they were off doing that, I went and dragged my best friend Tony and my cousin Tom all over creation. In the process, we finally did get a 1942 Russian Mosin-Nagant rifle that was going to be mine put into my cousin's hands. It is technically under my name, because for whatever reason he is allowed to own or buy that rifle, but he can't receive it in a personal transfer, so it will be under my name until he is 21 and can register it to himself. Once we had the rifle, we took an old hard drive out back and shot it a few times, but it was getting dark so our aim was pretty bad :P

Monday is another one of those days I don't remember much of. I THINK that Monday was the day we went out to lunch with Denise's grandparents, but that might have been Tuesday. What I DO remember about Monday is going to the Academy of Okinawan Karate dojo in Morton and teaching their Judo class. I worked them out (although I think I went too easy on them this time) and taught a left-sided makikomi tai-otoshi (wrap-around body drop), and I reffed a few rounds of randori (Judo sparring) at the end of class. It was great to see both the students that I used to teach, as well as some new faces!

Tuesday and Wednesday are also kind of a blur, but I do know that we spent time with my parents a lot more than last time, which was nice, and we spent some time with Denise's mom in the evenings.

Thursday I don't remember until--of course--Judo class :P. I went to the Judo class at the Academy of Okinawan Karate in Peoria and Shihan let me teach there, which was an honor. I worked them out a bit harder than I did with the Morton students (since I had a better feel for the kind of workout to give them) and taught a kuzuri (variation) of a pin called kami shiho gatame (north-south hold, top four-corners hold). At the end of class Shihan reffed a few rounds of newaza randori (groundwork sparring) and we all got a good workout in. I did find out after class, however, that Hanshi Ridgely Abele passed away after a 5 year battle with cancer. I had never met Mr. Abele, but I have heard a lot of good things about him both from Shihan directly and from people online, so it was sad news to hear.

Friday we had to get all packed up and get on a plane back to Arizona, which was definitely no fun. We got up extra early to say goodbye to Denise's mom, and then went back to sleep for a while before heading out. The flight back was okay, but that pilot needs to work on his landings. Once we got back, we stopped by Tranquility Trail and picked up our bunny, Zoey, since they had been bunny-sitting for us. Not too long after we got home we ordered Domino's, and then went and picked up our dog Max from a friend's house. By the end of the day, everybody was home, but I sure was exhausted :P