Winter Break Reflection 1/19/2017
Winter break was a welcomed escape from my hectic work schedule to enjoy the holiday season and visit with family and friends. One of the best experiences I had was taking Jackson to a Holloway Christmas tradition: seeing the Trans Siberian Orchestra! They are an incredible instrumental band that remake classic Christmas songs and other traditional music into rock n roll, lasers and pyrotechnics!
My grandmother (the only grandparent I have left) and uncle also came to visit from Delaware for the holidays. It was great to share Christmas morning with them and open presents together. At our house, each person takes turns opening one gift and posing for photos with them (my Uncle is even more crazy than me when it comes to taking pictures!). It's funny how Christmas changes as you get older - it becomes less about the presents (and you get excited for kitchen supplies or slippers) and more about being with loved ones and eating a LOT of fattening, but delicious food. Since Jackson's family never celebrated Christmas, it is a source of cultural difference between us. My family gives each other a lot of gifts (one from each person, so at least 5 or 6, plus stockings) and we speak openly about how we feel about each other. So far, I've always given Jackson more gifts than he does to me, though we feel the same way about each other. At first, it was hard for me to not get upset about it, but we've realized that we show our love in different ways and that's okay.
Jackson and I also saw some of our Raleigh friends at our White Elephant party, which is always entertaining! Many of them are the friends we go to anime conventions with, so many of the gifts were related to video games or anime. Unlike the UPP event, many of us actually got emotional when gifts got stolen, but we had a good time and there weren't any hard feelings in the end.
My grandmother (the only grandparent I have left) and uncle also came to visit from Delaware for the holidays. It was great to share Christmas morning with them and open presents together. At our house, each person takes turns opening one gift and posing for photos with them (my Uncle is even more crazy than me when it comes to taking pictures!). It's funny how Christmas changes as you get older - it becomes less about the presents (and you get excited for kitchen supplies or slippers) and more about being with loved ones and eating a LOT of fattening, but delicious food. Since Jackson's family never celebrated Christmas, it is a source of cultural difference between us. My family gives each other a lot of gifts (one from each person, so at least 5 or 6, plus stockings) and we speak openly about how we feel about each other. So far, I've always given Jackson more gifts than he does to me, though we feel the same way about each other. At first, it was hard for me to not get upset about it, but we've realized that we show our love in different ways and that's okay.
Jackson and I also saw some of our Raleigh friends at our White Elephant party, which is always entertaining! Many of them are the friends we go to anime conventions with, so many of the gifts were related to video games or anime. Unlike the UPP event, many of us actually got emotional when gifts got stolen, but we had a good time and there weren't any hard feelings in the end.
The other major event during the break was our trip to Charlotte to attend Ichibancon and spend New Years Eve with our other friends there. Unfortunately, I was sick too often in November and December to finish my next cosplay, but I plan to finish it before Animazement in May! This convention, Jackson's Cloud Strife cosplay was the most completed it has ever been, and he got so many photos and videos taken! Since I wasn't in cosplay, the most enjoyment I got out of the con was to see my Charlotte friends. We haven't been in town since July, but thankfully it felt like not much time had passed when we saw each other.
New Years Eve was very chill and we just spent time at my friend Heather's and we talked and caught up on everyone's lives. Most of the friends we saw there graduated from UNCC. I'm really starting to feel my age, because one glass of champagne and chatting was much more satisfying than going out and drinking a lot, which is what many college-age Americans do for New Years. Jackson even fell asleep about 9pm, we had to wake him up just before the countdown at midnight!
Overall, winter break reminded me of all the friends and family members that I am thankful for in my life. In 2017, I hope to do a better job of making time to see them all more often, and to be more productive with my visual art, cosplay and other creative projects.
New Years Eve was very chill and we just spent time at my friend Heather's and we talked and caught up on everyone's lives. Most of the friends we saw there graduated from UNCC. I'm really starting to feel my age, because one glass of champagne and chatting was much more satisfying than going out and drinking a lot, which is what many college-age Americans do for New Years. Jackson even fell asleep about 9pm, we had to wake him up just before the countdown at midnight!
Overall, winter break reminded me of all the friends and family members that I am thankful for in my life. In 2017, I hope to do a better job of making time to see them all more often, and to be more productive with my visual art, cosplay and other creative projects.