I feel like it has been forever since I last posted, but in reality it has only been a week. My world has turned upside-down in the best way possible, giving birth to our son, Thomas Eliot Morrison. I usually reserve this blog for non-personal stuff, but I feel this is an occasion that warrants a few words and photos (as many of you are surely dying to see).

Well it didn’t happen at the Casbah as predicted (and hoped for) by many, but Thomas Eliot Morrison was born 1pm (exactly) on Wednesday, January 21, 2009 at Sharp Mary Birch Hospital. He was 7 lbs, 1 oz and was 19.5 inches… now growing fast.

Many of you knew that we did not want to share our name choices until our little one arrived. The story behind the name is that my grandfather’s name is Hubert Thomason… we really wanted to name him after important people, and my grandfather is one of the biggest influential people in my life. He raised me as a child, let me escape there as a teen, and as he has grown older, I have taken on the caretaker role at times. He has some of the most amazing stories including one where he travelled to Spain for a day just to show his friend how to use the military free flights… It took him 5 days of traveling and he was 80 at the time. I could not bring myself to name him Hubert, so Thomas it is (plus everyone calls my grandfather Tom anyhow). Eliot is a name that I have always loved… from the boy in E.T., to the dragon in Pete’s Dragon, to the poet/literary critic, T.S. Eliot (whose first name is also Thomas).

Thomas came into the world to the music of Polyphonic Spree’s first album “The Beginning Stages of…” Perfect album for this momentous event (aside from the final track that is a loop of feedback for 10-15 minutes). We are currently working on a mixed CD of songs for him that mark special events as a newborn. I will post the list once we have completed it for inquiring minds.

Be prepared for ultimate cuteness…

Family photo

First headphones

Since I won’t be out an about for awhile until I get this breastfeeding/pumping thing down, I will be missing a few things including Wednesday, January 28 @ The Casbah Blasphemous Guitars, Pleaseeasaur, Goblin Cock (my original due date). If you can make it to this show, you will not be let down.

I now will be looking at all ages shows and events more closely, as I can at least bring Thomas along for those. Oh and good news for me… Toronado is all ages and within walking distance. I last went there on their opening day (aka the day I found out I was pregnant). Need a good beer fix soon. Maybe sometime this weekend.

I always do my Christmas shopping late, decorating always seems like a chore… This year it doesn’t seem to be any different. Since we are moving into the new house the weekend before Christmas, it seems silly to think about decorating at all. But Roger is convinced that if we can get the living room into good shape earlier, that we should decorate a tree in the front living room, even though we are not yet living there. A little crazy in my mind. But we will see if that actually happens.

But seeing as how I was going to put together an events site and have yet to do even that… I thought I might at least post a little holiday spirit on my site since I have the means, and crazy enough, the time to do so. So over the next couple days there will be additions about holiday activities that everyone can enjoy. Maybe I will catch the holiday spirit as I post.

From Betty Crocker’s Cooky Book (copyright 1963)
1 1/2 cups brown sugar (packed)
1/2 cup shortening
2 eggs
1 3/4 cups canned pumpkin (standard can)
2 3/4 cups flour (not packed)
1 Tbsp baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ginger
Optional:
1 cup raisins
1 cup chopped pecans

Heat oven to 400º. Mix sugar, shortening, eggs and pumpkin thoroughly (there may be lumps of shortening still). Blend dry ingredients; add to pumpkin mixture, sitting until well blended. Add raisins and/or pecans. Drop batter by teaspoonfuls on an ungreased baking sheet. Bake 8-12 minutes or until lightly browned. Cookies may be iced when cool with a thin butter icing (see below).
Makes 4 dozen (depending how big your blobs are).

Butter Icing (I am usually to lazy for this)
2 1/2 Tbsp soft butter
1 1/2 cups sifted powdered sugar
1 1/2 Tbsp cream
3/4 tsp vanilla

Blend butter and sugar together. Stir in cream and vanilla until smooth.
Makes icing for about 4 dozen cookies.

Over the next two weeks, I plan to revamp this blog to include listings of special events around San Diego. There will be a ongoing bar on the side for larger, annual events with their dates and links. I will do also do weekly listings for the week(probably posted each Sunday night).

These special events will include festivals (beer, wine, street fairs, holidays, etc.), arts events, special film screenings, cool sporting events (like derby, OTL or other cool/unusual sporting events), good comedy, trivia nights, burlesque and vaudville shows, as well as other unusually cool things to do around town. Submissions of listings can go to karmiclifeevents@gmail.com. These submissions will be screened, I cannot lie. It is still my blog.

When I’m not crazy with work and family there will also be reviews and promotions of events that I particularly want to hype just cause.

I do need help driving people to my site. Not for money or clicking on ads, but I would like to have a purpose and share what I know. This town is full of cool things to do that often go unnoticed. So help me, help the world to know that they can leave the house (and their TV) and find something fun to do that is not just going to see a movie at the mall.