Jaded Photograph: January 2013 Edition

"And He Brought Myrrh"

*smooches...hoping you find your way this year*
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also, it's the feast of the epiphany, so behave yourself today, you know, in case there really is a god

Until The Referee Rings The Bell

I know a lot of you secretly made some resolutions for the New Year, but are publicly stating that resolutions are for losers. It's OK; we all do it. Luckily you have a Jaded NYer in your corner, and I promise that if you come back here every Friday I'll have some encouraging words and music to help keep you on track toward the best you.

Right now you're probably kicking yourself because the promises you made for 2013 have already been broken--you ate junk food, drank coffee, overslept, punched your neighbor in the face (or was that just in my dreams?). But remember my wise words from just a few days ago:

"EVERY SECOND we're alive and breathing and capable brings hope and promise. Every minute is a new blessing. Every hour brings an opportunity to do better; you don't have to wait until the next day or week or month."

And I know you; you possess an inner strength that can move a thousand Rick Rosses. You stumbled a bit, because this new life is, well, NEW, and you're not used to it yet. But you can't expect to change a zillion years of bad habits overnight just because the year on your calendar changed. You're going to stumble. "To err is human."

It's what you do after that matters most.



*smooches...helping you back up*
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and I brought Band-aids for your boo-boos!

She's Getting So Big!

Or maybe not, seeing as all Mari wanted for her birthday was a pair of Minnie Mouse ears like she had when she was a little girl. And of course, because I'm one of those people that likes to spoil kids and then complain about how spoiled they are, I bought them for her.

They shoulda never gave her an iPhone!

Happy birthday to the first spoiled, bratty poop-face I ever helped raise!

*smooches...just for Mari today*
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can't wait to celebrate when I visit in a few weeks. Patty Boom-Boom's, here we come!

Twelve Books

I came across a reading challenge on Goodreads (feel free to look me up; my username is RPenzo), asking folks to set up a goal for the year of how much books we plan on devouring in 2013. When I went on the site I saw some people were aiming for as many as 200 books and I was all DON'T YOU HAVE A LIFE?!?! I love books as much as the next guy but come on- 200 books? That sounds to me like someone who needs a job and a variety of diverse hobbies.

I am more realistic about my time and attention span; I only aim to finish 12 books this year. Simply one book a month. I would like at least three of those to be in Spanish, so I can practice the language some more. But that's it.

Now, of course I have a trillion books borrowed from the library PLUS all the books I've bought in the last six months to choose from, but if you have any suggestions, feel free to leave them in the comments. Right now I'm leaning towards Chango's Fire by Ernesto Quiñones (about an arsonist-for-hire in Spanish Harlem) or Fighting Castro: A Love Story by Kay Abella (Cuban doctor imprisoned by Castro as a resistance leader and the doctor's wife has to decide the fate of the rest of the family), but most likely I'll just start with Francisco Sanchez Jimenez's Estación Stockton (child I can't tell you what it's about because the back cover is so freakin' VAGUE!).

And don't look at me like that just because all the books on my list are by Latino authors. Shoooo, if I don't support my people, who will?

*smooches...hunkering down for the winter*
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It's so cold today; I hope I survive the season!

Happy New Year!!

From your favorite blogger and her two (amazing, adorable, intelligent, bad-ass) crazy daughters.

funky hats are their thing lol

We hope 2013 is good to you and yours!

*smooches...grateful for you and everyone in my life*
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no hangover for me this year. WOO HOO!