Good Company as the Year's Reborn

After Jack and I packed up, my mom came and picked us up and took us home. I worked from 5-9:30 on the Monday before Christmas and saw my Uncle Todd, Aunt Laura, and cousins Abby and Eric, who drove in from Fort Collins, Colorado on that Friday and we ordered pizza to celebrate Abby's birthday at my Grandparent's house. I also worked 2-6 on Christmas Eve.

I got several great things on Christmas day. At Mom's my stocking included a bell for my bike, a thing to hold tea bags when I'm making tea at school, a thing to wrap my headphones around, a magnet to clip to my shirt and wrap my headphones around when I'm running on the treadmill, a bookmark in the shape of a man running the lower half of him flat, and a journal Mom and Dave got in their recent trip to Spain. Mom and Dave got two books-The History of the World in 100 Objects and a self-published book my neighbor from across the street wrote called Nude Nuns and Other Peculiar People: Stories from the Heartland-a Lego architecture set called the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum and a pouch for my bike. They also got me a map to hang in my room which shows the world without emphasizing the northern hemisphere. My aunt had gotten me a $25 Barnes and Noble gift card.

My dad came around noon and took my brothers and I to our grandparents. My Uncle Todd and Aunt Laura had gotten me two books-This is a Book by comedian Demetri Martin which was full of his comedy and drawings and Poisonwood Bible, a novel about a missionary family who goes to the Congo and finds their faith seriously challenged by the suffering they see around them. Dad got me Buddha Volume 7 and Volume 8 of the Manga comic series (I already had 1-6), Best Buddhist Writings 2011, a moleskin journal, some huge prayer flags to hang in my room, and a poster with several Buddhas on it. My grandparents had gotten me a book called Unlikely Friendships: 47 Stories from the Animal Kingdom. After we were done opening presents, we watched a family video and then we went on a walk throughout the neighborhood to the park in my grandparent's town of Lee Summit. That night we had steak and I enjoyed my grandmom's Yorkshire pudding. 

Left to right: My Granddad, myself, my brother Jamie, and my brother Cam

Left: myself.  Right: my cousin Abby

On the Wednesday before I went back to UCM I went to the Pathless Land with my Granddad for the last time for the next few months. I enjoyed the discussion group and had a good time being with everyone there. The next day I went to my art class one last time for a long time and said my goodbyes to everyone there. 

The next day I saw my longtime friend Elizabeth Boresow, a fellow autistic and advocate. She came over and we worked on a puzzle from the Harry Potter series together. I told her about how my life has been going at school so far and about the blog, which she thought sounded really great. I also heard she was working for the Autistic Self-Advocacy Network at KU where she goes to school. On Saturday I ate with my Dad, his girlfriend, my grandmom and granddad, my brother Jamie, my brother Cam and his girlfriend Nora.