Holiday hanging out with Samantha and Sean

I don't know a whole lot of kids out here in the Pacific Northwest - not like in Michigan. So when Samantha and Sean asked me if I wanted to go holiday shopping with them, and then ride on a carousel, I was happy as a sock monkey could be! They were so fun when we went to to see the Seattle Storm basketball game, and together we could be more fun than a barrel of you-know-whats!


We did a little shopping and then headed straight for the carousel. There were some really nice people there, and they gave us free tickets to ride (I kept humming the Beatles song, but I think Samantha and Sean were too young to recognize it - or maybe I'm not a great hummer...). This is an annual event they have right next to the shopping - Kent Station. It's a beautiful carousel, with lovely horses. It was really fun. I had a great ride with Sean. He made sure that I did not fall off the horse.

After the ride, Samantha, Sean and I saw three other cool kids - Theodore, Simon, and Alvin. We posed for some pictures together. They didn't seem to want to do too much of anything, so we walked over to the other people there. Then I met this amazing pooch - his name was Moxie, and he was a one year old Chi-Pom. I don't what he thought of me, but I sure thought he was just plain awesome! He didn't have a lot to say either, and he seemed very toasty warm where he was!

It was getting a little cold, and I saw that people were getting cups of cider, hot cocoa or coffee. I went to the table, and these two very nice ladies were there from Umpqua Bank. They were sponsors of this tent where the carousel was, and they were in charge of helping folks get their hot beverages. Shawna and Rhonda were so nice because they helped me get my own cup of cocoa! They smiled a LOT and made me really happy.


Before we went back outside, Samantha and Sean gave Wendy her birthday present - a pair of sock monkey earmuffs! How cool was that? Actually, Wendy said they were pretty darn warm! She was giving me a ride so I could pretend I had two sock monkey friends with me. One of the bank ladies looked like I was giving HER a ride... but I wasn't!


Then I spied a Christmas tree, and I scampered up to see if I could get to one of the birdies out on a limb. The first few branches were a little hard, but it got easier. When I got to the branch with the bird and yelled, "Hey, Wendy! Lookee here!" Wendy was not happy with that, and she said, "It's time go, Ernie." 

When we got outside the tent, I saw some more trees, decorated with lights! They were so pretty! I zipped ahead and pretended I was an ornament in one tree. I don't think they saw me! Then I saw one more tree with all these lights on it, and with really really good branches that were screaming: "C'mon, Ernie! You can do it!" So I jumped up into it. That didn't turn out well, and Wendy caught me just before I hit the ground.

I was ready to go home after that. And so we did! It was nice to hang out with Samantha and Sean - and I cannot wait until the next adventure with them!

Thanksgiving Weekend with My Peeps

The nicest thing about the holidays is having the time to visit with friends, chill out, and have fun. Okay, I'm a sock monkey, so my entire existence is about having fun, when you get right down to it. This year, I decided to kick off the "official" season by spending quality time with folks who I enjoy.


On Thanksgiving Day, I asked Wendy & Ken if I could have a bunch of my sock monkey friends over. They were happy to see me have some pals over, and they said they were looking forward to meeting them. 


Ahda, the lovely lady with the bow on her head and apron on her body, is my best friend. She joined the family when in 2004, she was brought to cheer Wendy on in her Breast Cancer 3Day Walk, all the way from New York. Wendy's best friend is also named Ahda. How odd! My other friends who were visiting that day have just kind of arrived in my life, some old, some newer. But all really nice, fun, intelligent sock monkeys. And they like to be cozy! 

We watched the Thanksgiving parades on the television for a while. I don't understand why they don't have giant sock monkey balloons in these parades... We're so CUTE! The parades were fun, and when they were over, we just sat and chilled out in front of the fire for a while. It became obvious that Wendy and Ken were not going to cook a turkey, and pretty soon we all started getting a little hungry. 



After everyone left for their respective Thanksgiving plans, we were surprised by a visit by Santa Sock Monkey! Baby and Puppy were giddy with delight! We all posed for a picture before Santa went on his way to HIS Thanksgiving plans (I hope he was going to eat something, as he is pretty skinny!). This sure was a lot easier trip to see Santa than if we had to talk Wendy and Ken into driving us to the mall!

As afternoon started to turn to evening, I asked Puppy and Baby to join me in some quiet pre-holiday moments just looking at the fire. I am a really lucky and happy sock monkey, and I am really grateful for all of the fun this year - it's nice to be out of the basement box and into the real world with friends and family!


I'm looking forward to more holiday adventures... with some human friends, too!

I know it's only Rock and Roll... but I LIKE it!

This fall I got a chance to hang out with my favorite rock and roll band - The Satin Peaches! One of the reasons they are my favorite band is that my favorite boy is in it - Jesse! Jesse and me go way back. He's Frannie's brother, and I have known him since he was born. He was a very good player when he was a kid, and I like Jesse a lot. Recently I was looking at old home movies, and it warmed my heart to see me in his crib... somewhat squashed by the antics of his sister, but there I was!

When Wendy and I were in Detroit in October, she took me to the Magic Stick to see Jesse play. Imagine my surprise when he said I could sit in on the set! I was so excited! I could do a solo! Maybe join in on the drums! Maybe sing along with Jesse, standing there sharing a mic! I could barely contain myself!

I did not realize he meant I would be literally sitting in on the the set. Jesse found a good place for me right behind him, up on an amp. Wow, it was fun to watch people as they listened to the band, bobbing their heads, dancing, clapping, woot-woot-wooting! Afterward, I had to keep saying, "What?" a lot. Those boys are L-O-U-D! Thanks, TSP, for letting me join you on my first rock and roll adventure!

Just a few weeks later, The Satin Peaches were on a national tour and came to Seattle. I was so happy to find out that Ken invited the boys to stay at our place! Wendy was back in Detroit, so it was just 3/4 of TSP, Ken and me hanging out. A bunch of hip and cool primates, hanging on a Monday. My kind of scene, man. When the final 1/4 of TSP showed up, the boys posed for a picture with me. I would like to be a roadie for them, but I have a hard time carrying things that are bigger than me.

As Chuck Berry and the Beatles sang profoundly:

Just let me hear some of that rock and roll music, any old way you choose it. It's got a back beat, you can't blues it, any old time you use it. It's gotta be rock and roll music, if you wanna dance with me. If you wanna dance with me. 

(Hey - check out Jesse's new project - Jesse and the Gnome!)