What are You Doing for the Holidays?

Going out, staying in? Doing something different than normal this year? Giving or expecting any special gifts? Doing anything special for your reptiles?

Only the second time I haven't gone back to see my family for the holidays. Probably have dinner and drinks with a colleague xmas night. We teach in the same buildings, share a studio space, are both being as careful as we can, and have made a sort of quarantine companion pact to have drinks once a week or so so we don't both lose our minds from lack of social interaction this year. Aside from that, writing course schedules for all of my classes, prepping materials and online learning modules, rearranging my teaching space to ensure the greatest physical distancing possible in the studio, try to get in to my own studio and work on some projects. Probably do a deep cleaning of all the critter enclosures soon as everyone is on their winter fasting period and not making many messes.

Laying low -and enjoying all my pets, for sure. Cautious interactions from safe distances only, & I'm very thankful for what I have. I'm practically a hermit anyways, lol, & it's a chance to pursue some of my creative outlets too. :snake:

Staying home. My MIL would normally host Christmas at her house but she is in her 80's and self-isolating. BIL is scheduled for surgery in early January so he is also staying isolated.

So, it's me, hubby, and kid staying here for a quiet day. I think we'll bake sweet treats all weekend and then ship them out for New Year's gift boxes.

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Originally Posted by mlededee

Going out, staying in? Doing something different than normal this year? Giving or expecting any special gifts? Doing anything special for your reptiles?

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How about you, mlededee- Do tell...?

Staying in. Cooking a big dinner on Christmas Eve. Keeping it low key, just me and my husband. We will go out one night to look at Christmas lights. It's going to be very quiet, but I'm okay with that.

Pretty much doing what we always do. I have 4 offspring so we get up at the crack of dawn (they wake my wife and I up) to open presents and hang out all day. We usually go visit a few family members on Christmas but this past year everyone has moved away and one has passed so it's just us now. After the kids play with all their new stuff we'll just hang out and watch Christmas movies all day. I got my wife and ancestry DNA kit so I'm pretty excited to see the results on that.

Staying in this year, no question!

Will probably be spending most of the formal holidays cooking, baking, and drinking. I spent Thanksgiving doing just that -- marathoning Iron Chef America, trying new recipes, virtual happy hour-ing with family, eventually joining the boas in working off a food coma -- and it was very enjoyable! The only real question now is what I'll be watching and what I'll be making.

I've got a little present on it's way for Kuzco right now, who'll also be getting his seasonal cage cleaning soon. Hopefully his present won't get lost in the mail! I've been looking around for some silk ferns for Adelita as well, but I haven't quite found the right one(s) yet.

Three cheers for "food comas"! :D

I really wanted to see my family, I haven’t send them all year but the way things are going, I’m going to be in my home FaceTiming everyone.


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Originally Posted by Kam

I really wanted to see my family, I haven’t send them all year but the way things are going, I’m going to be in my home FaceTiming everyone.


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Just gotta make the best of it...it won't be forever, but right now it's just not worth risking each other's health.

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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

Just gotta make the best of it...it won't be forever, but right now it's just not worth risking each other's health.

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I’m not trying to chance it especially with my mom having Lupus.


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Staying in at our house as well. My daughter turned 1 in October so this will be her second Christmas, but the first one where she kinda sorta might understand that it's a special day. As far as the animals go, we always take the conure out and let her take part in the activities, and the reptiles are getting new herpstats to replace their old on/off thermostats.

I am hoping to go bodyboarding/surfing with one of my friends maybe get a hike or two in. Overall not to much going on.

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Originally Posted by Reptile$ 4 Life

I am hoping to go bodyboarding/surfing with one of my friends maybe get a hike or two in. Overall not to much going on.

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That sounds pretty safe, at least in terms of the pandemic. Helps to live in places with milder winters so you can be outside & active. My area is "in-between"...we get some of each.

Yeah the mild winters help to do outdoor active stuff. The waves are getting pretty big so it's a lot of fun to ride them. The water is FREEZING! I've got to get a new wetsuit that way I stop turning purple.

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Originally Posted by Reptile$ 4 Life

Yeah the mild winters help to do outdoor active stuff. The waves are getting pretty big so it's a lot of fun to ride them. The water is FREEZING! I've got to get a new wetsuit that way I stop turning purple.

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:rofl: Yeah, even if the air isn't freezing, you can't say the same thing about the water! :rofl: Do they make heated wet-suits? :D

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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

:rofl: Yeah, even if the air isn't freezing, you can't say the same thing about the water! :rofl: Do they make heated wet-suits? :D

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Unfortunately they don't, so I am just going to have to get a thicker one with a hood and wetsuit boots.

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Originally Posted by Reptile$ 4 Life

Unfortunately they don't, so I am just going to have to get a thicker one with a hood and wetsuit boots.

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How is it living on the coast though? I'm in the middle of nowhere Georgia so if I want to go get in some water in my area I have to wait til it rains :rofl:

Um... the water doesn't taste that good, and it makes you even thirstier. But at least I get to play in the world's largest swimming pool. :rofl:

Well .. here in the UK we are mostly all in total lockdown apart from Christmas Day !!

All due to a new variant strain of Covid !!

70% more virulent they’ve known about it since mid September but told us all about it today because if suddenly went crazy in London last week ..




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Originally Posted by Zincubus

Well .. here in the UK we are mostly all in total lockdown apart from Christmas Day !!

All due to a new variant strain of Covid !!

70% more virulent they’ve known about it since mid September but told us all about it today because if suddenly went crazy in London last week ..




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Nothing like surprises for the holidays...:rolleyes:...:( Stay safe, please!

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Originally Posted by Zincubus

Well .. here in the UK we are mostly all in total lockdown apart from Christmas Day !!

All due to a new variant strain of Covid !!

70% more virulent they’ve known about it since mid September but told us all about it today because if suddenly went crazy in London last week ..

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I read about that earlier. Stay safe!

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Originally Posted by Zincubus

Well .. here in the UK we are mostly all in total lockdown apart from Christmas Day !!

All due to a new variant strain of Covid !!

70% more virulent they’ve known about it since mid September but told us all about it today because if suddenly went crazy in London last week ..




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Stay safe!!!!


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It’s certainly a very worrying time for a soon to be 63yr old male ...

I’ve even given some thought to how would the wife cope with offloading my snakes and vivs IF anything serious should happen to me ...

Now bizarrely only the last week or so we learnt that my son’s best friend is moving in just two doors away next month AND he keeps snakes AND is converting their garage into a reptile room !!

Kinda bizarre isn’t it .. . very reassuring though that he could just take everything away and the wife wouldn’t have to worry about anything..




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Originally Posted by Zincubus

It’s certainly a very worrying time for a soon to be 63yr old male ...

I’ve even given some thought to how would the wife cope with offloading my snakes and vivs IF anything serious should happen to me ...

Now bizarrely only the last week or so we learnt that my son’s best friend is moving in just two doors away next month AND he keeps snakes AND is converting their garage into a reptile room !!

Kinda bizarre isn’t it .. . very reassuring though that he could just take everything away and the wife wouldn’t have to worry about anything..




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But we don’t have to worry about that. Why? We are going to think positive.


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Sooo to the new Covid variant which is 70% more virulent.. causing a massive rise in infections in London this week .. yesterday London was put in total lockdown with zero travelling ...
Almost immediately tens of thousands of people fled the city spreading the new strain all over the country :(

All aware that 60% of all current cases
1200 miles of traffic jams - going out of London last night .. knowing that 60% of all the new cases in London are the NEW virulent strain !!


https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...eaf8d9dd2a.jpg



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Originally Posted by Zincubus

Sooo to the new Covid variant which is 70% more virulent.. causing a massive rise in infections in London this week .. yesterday London was put in total lockdown with zero travelling ...
Almost immediately tens of thousands of people fled the city spreading the new strain all over the country :(

All aware that 60% of all current cases
1200 miles of traffic jams - going out of London last night .. knowing that 60% of all the new cases in London are the NEW virulent strain !!


https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...eaf8d9dd2a.jpg



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Wow that’s scary and worrisome as well.


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Originally Posted by Kam

Wow that’s scary and worrisome as well.


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Yeah ... it’s hard for a confirmed pessimist ( me) to try and not worry too much ..


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Just what I would have done this year in any case. I may make cookies because I am losing my mind with boredom, but otherwise it's the same-old same-old.

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Originally Posted by Zincubus

Sooo to the new Covid variant which is 70% more virulent.. causing a massive rise in infections in London this week .. yesterday London was put in total lockdown with zero travelling ...
Almost immediately tens of thousands of people fled the city spreading the new strain all over the country :(

All aware that 60% of all current cases
1200 miles of traffic jams - going out of London last night .. knowing that 60% of all the new cases in London are the NEW virulent strain !!


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It's an island, close the borders. Not hard to contain. Besides, what exactly does "more virulent" mean? It's easier to catch? Maybe a 2% death rate? I have a feeling that this new thing is not Covid at all; it's the super-flu that has been brewing ever since people started over-using hand sanitizer instead of soap and water. THAT is scary.

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Originally Posted by Spicey

Just what I would have done this year in any case. I may make cookies because I am losing my mind with boredom, but otherwise it's the same-old same-old.

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Perhaps you should change it up a bit this year and try a different recipe, or even try baking something other than cookies. My go-to has been artisan breads with different nut or spice blends added.

Just don't make fruit cake, there are already too many in the world. I swear they don't get eaten, just regifted each year.

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Originally Posted by Spicey

It's an island, close the borders. Not hard to contain. Besides, what exactly does "more virulent" mean? It's easier to catch? Maybe a 2% death rate? I have a feeling that this new thing is not Covid at all; it's the super-flu that has been brewing ever since people started over-using hand sanitizer instead of soap and water. THAT is scary.

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They’re using virulent to explain that it’s a strain that spreads 70% FASTER than the old original strain. ..


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Quote:

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Originally Posted by Spicey

It's an island, close the borders. Not hard to contain. Besides, what exactly does "more virulent" mean? It's easier to catch? Maybe a 2% death rate? I have a feeling that this new thing is not Covid at all; it's the super-flu that has been brewing ever since people started over-using hand sanitizer instead of soap and water. THAT is scary.

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Remember when this virus first came to light in Wuhan ... our government was adamant that we the world should contain it in China ... then within a couple of weeks we were shipping and flying in thousands of British citizens from China !!!


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Originally Posted by bcr229

Perhaps you should change it up a bit this year and try a different recipe, or even try baking something other than cookies. My go-to has been artisan breads with different nut or spice blends added.

Just don't make fruit cake, there are already too many in the world. I swear they don't get eaten, just regifted each year.

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So two things, I'd love to hear more about this artisan bread, and secondly, thank you for doing the right thing and advocating against fruit cake :rofl:

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Originally Posted by Hugsplox

So two things, I'd love to hear more about this artisan bread, and secondly, thank you for doing the right thing and advocating against fruit cake :rofl:

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If you happen to have a cast-iron skillet hanging around, I'd suggest looking into skillet cakes as well. There's a ton of fun recipes out there! I made a cranberry-walnut skillet cake on Thanksgiving that was absolutely delicious, though I'd probably cut back on the amount of sugar I'd add to it next time. My sweet tooth isn't as strong as it used to be and a cup of sugar to a cup of flour is waaaay too much! :P

I'm planning on making a Tunisian-style orange olive oil cake this week. I may or may not make a citrus-ricotta pound cake and/or cranberry-orange-walnut skillet cake as well. One can only eat so many baked goods!

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Originally Posted by Zincubus

They’re using virulent to explain that it’s a strain that spreads 70% FASTER than the old original strain. ..


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"At least" it's not more deadly (it's apparently the same) but just spreads so much faster/easier. I have a feeling that may be what's going on in some other places where the cases are rising so abruptly & out of control- it's just that we haven't identified it yet.

Anyway, what IS DEADLY is having our hospitals overwhelmed with cases to the point they run out of ICU space, & what ELSE is deadly is losing doctors & nurses from all their cumulative exposures while caring for others. What else is deadly is if too many of our "essential workers" are home sick & unable to work. Think supply chain for food & utilities, for example.

Everyone: please don't forget that other diseases & accidents & medical/surgical needs don't stop just because we're having a pandemic- if our health care system is overwhelmed, we can die from most anything if we can't get help- it's not only "the virus" that's lethal now. Please let's all do our part to mask & distance...please don't underestimate this, take it very seriously.

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Originally Posted by WrongPython

I'm planning on making a Tunisian-style orange olive oil cake this week. I may or may not make a citrus-ricotta pound cake and/or cranberry-orange-walnut skillet cake as well. One can only eat so many baked goods!

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I need you to stop talking to me while I wipe the drool off my face thanks :P

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Originally Posted by Hugsplox

So two things, I'd love to hear more about this artisan bread, and secondly, thank you for doing the right thing and advocating against fruit cake :rofl:

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Just do a Google search on no-knead artisan bread. The recipe is very basic: Flour, Water, Yeast, Salt. Long rise, dump the dough into a preheated crock, and bake.

After you make a loaf or three using the instructions as written, start making substitutions or small additions. As an example, I substituted half the white flour for whole wheat or rye flour and added honey, or I added garlic powder and Italian spices, pine nuts, sesame seeds, pumpkin seeds, etc.

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Originally Posted by Zincubus

Well .. here in the UK we are mostly all in total lockdown apart from Christmas Day !!

All due to a new variant strain of Covid !!

70% more virulent they’ve known about it since mid September but told us all about it today because if suddenly went crazy in London last week ..




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To be honest I saw this coming. COVID is a virus and like the flu it is going to mutate. The government should have told he people and gotten on top of things more quickly. Instead they keep saying wash your hands and use hand sanitizer, which might get some of it off but it won't actually "kill" it as it is not alive and most soaps and hand sanitizers are antibacterial and do nothing against viruses.