Monday Stuff On the Way to Other Stuff: The Earlybird Edition

The tree's up, and decorated. (The Brick did a terrific job.) Cookies are made. (Thanks, Mama.) And I am a toe's-length away from stepping over the finish line, report-wise. 
    I am very tired -- and grateful. Now on to finish up the restoration that the lady will pick up Sunday afternoon. 
    You'll have better things to do on Monday than read this...so here it is for you now. 
     Back to work.

Very funny animal fails.

Cleaning gloves -- with the scrubbers built in! (Well, I was impressed.)

Five creatures found in really strange places. An octopus...on a mountaintop?!?  (From Cracked)

A Christmas miracle -- a story posted every year by Harvest Lane Cottage. And every year, I read it...wonder...and feel a little ashamed that I gripe about such petty things.

Wouldn't Bonnie and Clyde want to be buried together?  Their relatives think so.

The best meatloaf on the planet -- or so One Hundred Dollars A Month thinks. (It does look good.)
     Tell me, Dear Readers, why hamburger is so dingdang expensive right now! Burger prices here in Colorado are close to steak prices. Granted, the steak's on sale right now, but not at that much of a discount.

A tiny house eviction -- in Boulder, CO. Go figure -- I'm not surprised. Boulderites tend to make a big fuss about being green and living simply in the environment, but often don't follow their own 'rules.' (Our community, much more conservative, tends to refer to the town as "the land of fruits and nuts," for good reason.)

One of the best (and most selfless) makeovers she's done all year.  (From Emily Henderson)

Making a gingerbread house -- start to finish.  Including a recipe. (From Olive, Feta and Ouzo)

Tom Petty -- and the perfect cup of coffee. From his biographer, via Rolling Stone.

101 Stocking Stuffers...that don't cost much.  (From Passionate Penny Pincher) Speaking of that:

Homemade Stocking Stuffers.  (From Meet Penny) Including:

A homemade sleep salve.  (From One Good Thing by Jillee)

Ten amazing things found inside diamonds.  (From Listverse) This one's curious, too:

Ten paranormal events linked to mass tragedies. Including the Red Cross nurse serving sandwiches and coffee near Ground Zero after 9/11...only she wasn't really there.

Five photographers...whose final shots survived them. 

This final roll, from another photographer didn't survive the Mt. St. Helens eruption (see above), is enigmatic, too.

Turning a gumball machine into a snow globe. Granted, not everyone gets their hands on a gumball machine.  (From Little House of Four)

Have a great (and hopefully restful) week.