This Christmas gathering with the in-laws wasn’t that bad.  By the numbers…

General conversation I understood:  10 percent, the usual.

Number of three-month old babies with feeble neck control that I held:  1

Number of kids:  N/A  (Too fast to be counted… except for the babies with feeble neck control.  They’re pretty slow.)

Number of people who drank too much:  2

Number of people who usually drink too much at these things:  3

Number of destructive father-daughter comments made:  0 this year, for once (related to above statistic).

Number of people who fell asleep at party:  1 (not me)

Number of younger relatives who will more than likely have early cirrhosis in ten years and suffer horrific complications from it in twenty:  One that is obvious, at least.  Seriously.

Number of embarrassing confrontations or situations enabled due to alcohol that should have been settled with a No Holds Barred match on the mat:  Just one.

Number of hours I was late this year:  One.  Getting better.  (Amy doesn’t bother asking why anymore.  Ooseung asked instead.)

Number of outside relationships that I did not want nor expect to improve, but likely did because of this party:  One. 

Pleasant Christmas surprises:  3.

1) Sun Su handed me some bottlecaps at the party and said, “Look, I’m in Fallout 3.”  (Bottlecaps are money in the game.)  Then I taught him how to flip them like coins, Two-Face style. 

2) Ooseung doing sit-ups with me at night (I didn’t ask her to). 

3) Amy really getting into the Hello Kitty game and organizer I got for her (with the Nintendo DS Lite I gave her).