Feliz Navidad

Santa Claus came early this year, and dropped the price of a Guatemala-to-NY roundtrip ticket by nearly $100. When I saw the price dip below $500 I was on that ticket like snow on a unshoveled sidewalk.

So the good news is that I’ll be ho-ho-home for the holidays from December 11th until January 9th. Yep, a whole hot chocolate and candy cane month in New York. (You might want to send condolences to my mom and Bob.)

How, you must be wondering, did I convinced Quique to give me a month off from work? That’s easy… I haven’t told him yet! (Come to think of it, posting this to my public homepage might not be the best idea, career-wise.)

No, I have no worries. First of all, my spending a month in the USA is like a 30-day mental vacation for Quique. Just yesterday, for example, he asked me if I needed help with anything, “like, say, packing.”

Secondly, the true mark of a civilized culture is how much importance is given to family and holidays. Our office, like most others in Guatemala, will be closed from mid-December through the first week in January. The few days that I’ll “miss” while in New York, I’ll simply do the long-distance telecommute and work from home.

I guess all that remains to be said is:

Matt and Pete.... I have multiple snowballs with your names written all over them.

Sarah, the little princess, cute as a button.... Ditto.

Little Andy, aka: Moopsie.... Ready, set, GO!

Little Marcello.... Scoot over, Sponge Bob is on.