All is good again in the world! i got my ipod back from apple yesterday. for four days i had to ride the subway without music. tragic, i know. it's less about the music and more about drowning out everyone else. i don't know how apple did it, but it makes time go faster.

also good: the health club in my building is now open, and i even go (sometimes). I figure, if i'm going to watch tv, i might as well do it while working out. the cardio machines have flatscreens at each station that let you listen to cds, watch dvds, or watch the tube. but since i had my ipod back, i decided to hop on the new rowing machines. 8 minutes and 2000 meters later, i was about to die. i'm not quite in the shape i was during college crew. so does this mean that you'll be seeing a slimmer josh soon? probably not. i visit aunt sarah too often and love those chocolate chip cookies too much.

i realized last night that i'm leaving town in just a week. wow, christmas is coming fast! i'd better get on top of things.

oh, yeah. this past saturday i attended my church's ministry banquet. it's one giant thank you/christmas party for all the volunteers/people in ministry in the church. and since we really push being involved in ministry, there were a lot of people there. it was held in a ballroom at a big fancy hotel in times square near the church. although there were about a thousand people there, we still had good food. (you know how sometimes these things have lukewarm food that's more fancy than tasty?) it was a three course meal with waiters and everything. The pastors all said a few words, we sang some carols, played some games at teh table, fellowshipped a little (christianese for "hang-out and chit-chat), and then went home; short and sweet. perfect since we had to get up early for church the next morning, and some of these people have quite a commute.

okay, back to work. i love my new job! ooh, i think i get paid this week too.

it's officially holiday shopping season. so i guess i have to buy stuff for OTHER people. while a lot of people have finished their 'to-buy' lists, i've just started today. so far i've only bought presents that can be had online... i wonder if i'll actually do any in-person shopping. we'll have to see. i know i have more internet buying to do, but maybe something 'live' will come up. i would have bought something at the store, but getting it on the internet meant no sales tax (and there was no shipping) and i did't have to lug it to my house, or home for christmas. brilliant.

unfortunately (it took three attempts to type that word correctly) every saturday for the past few weeks we've had lousy shopping weather. and tommorrow (sat.) it's supposed to rain. i think i need a day off work just to shop. well, not really, but it would be nice.

oh yeah, i started a new job this week. everything is different, and it's going really well, thanks. And although i've just started, i'm still getting a generous christmas vacation. and my new location should give me greater access to christmas shopping. i went from middle of no-where to middle of everthing. i'm lovin' it.

it's f-f-f-freezing outside, so maybe we'll see some snow sometime soon. i can't wait, actually.