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the kleertemp thermometer read 60 degrees this morning, which i knew to be impossible. the problem was i stuck it on a southern facing window exposed to the sun all day. however, it still was the most visible location in the house so i was reluctant to move it someplace else. i stuck it higher on the french door, so it'd be in the shadows. a few minutes later the temperature dropped but only to 50 degrees, which was still off. finally i gave up and moved it to a northern window facing the street. though not as readily visible as the window on my back door, i could see it well enough during the daytime when i open the blinds (it's hidden completely at night though). i stuck it high enough so somebody on the street couldn't just pull it off but trapped between a screen window so if it ever became loose, it wouldn't drop to the sidewalk. minutes later it read 40 degrees, the actual outdoor temperature.

besides tweaking my new outdoor thermometer, i did two loads of laundry: 1) bed sheets and computer desk table cloth, and 2) cold water darks (mostly jeans and a few outerwear items). i have some coding for client N to finish but with the new year just around the corner, i wasn't motivated to do any work. instead i watched a screener of let the right one in, a swedish vampire tale involving a little boy who falls in love with a vampire girl who moves in next door. who knew the swedes could make such a good vamp flick? knowing how the hollywood film industry operates, i wouldn't be surprised if there's an americanized remake in the near future.

i asked my roommate to come home a bit early so i can take him out to see some local holiday light displays, figuring images of santa claus and the nativity scene would seem extraordinary coming from a part of the world predominantly chinese and muslim influenced. we walked to concord avenue in somerville (near inman square), where i remember from years past there's a heavy concentration of holiday lights. when we got there we saw a trio of people taking photos. with most of the snow having melted already, the lights didn't seem quite as festive. coming back, we took a detour via washington street to visit another street that had a lot of lights (magnus avenue). when we got there the place was dark. did we get there too late? christmas was just 5 days ago, but do people start taking down the lights before the new year? my personal theory is that with this looming recession, some folks decided to forgo the lights this season in order to save on the electricity bill.

this west coast trip has been terrible for the celtics, losing tonight for the third time in 4 games. the 4th quarter seems to be their achilles heel, as the other team suddenly surges ahead and never looks back. i get the feeling they need another player to complete the puzzle. that player used to be james posey (enough already! when am i going to realize he's gone?), hopefully the team can find that special somebody.