Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney

was the only thing on his list that he didn't get.
    Well, I'm glad SOMEONE got what they wanted today.
    [Image: A cartoon showing a boy reading a book.] The Caption reads: " It's a Christmas miracle!"
    133

    New Year's Eve

    In case you're wondering what I'm doing in my room at 9:00 p.m. on New Year's Eve, let me fill you in.
    Earlier today, me and Manny were horsing around in the basement. I found a tiny black ball of thread on the carpet, and I told Manny it was a spider.
    Then I held it over him pretending like I was going to make him eat it.
    [Image: A cartoon showing a boy holding a spider over the little boy.] The Caption reads: " Yaaaah!
    Scream!!
    Scream!!"
    Right when I was about to let Manny go, he slapped my hand and made me drop the thread. And guess what? That fool swallowed it.
    [Image: A cartoon showing a little boy.] The Caption reads: " Gulp"
    134
    Well, Manny completely lost his mind. He ran upstairs to where Mom was, and I knew I was in big trouble.
    [Image: A cartoon showing a boy, his little brother and Mom.]
    Manny told Mom I made him eat a spider. I told her there was no spider, and that it was just a tiny ball of thread.
    [Image: A cartoon showing a boy, his little brother and Mom.] The Caption reads: " Sniff"
    Mom brought Manny over to the kitchen table. Then she put a seed, a raisin, and a grape on a plate and told Manny to point to the thing that was the closest in size to the piece of thread he swallowed.
    135
    Manny took a while to look over the things on the plate.
    [Image: A cartoon showing the little boy sitting at the table.]
    Then he walked over to the refrigerator and pulled out an orange.
    [Image: A cartoon showing the little boy pulling out an orange from the fridge.]
    So that's why I got sent to bed at 7:00 and I'm not downstairs watching the New Year's Eve special on TV.
    And that's also why my only New Year's resolution is to never play with Manny again.
    136
    JANUARY

    Wednesday

    I found a way to have some fun with the Big Wheel Rowley got me for Christmas. I came up with this game where one guy rides down the hill and the other guy tries to knock him off with a football.
    Rowley was the first one down the hill, and I was the thrower.
    [Image: A cartoon showing a boy riding a cycle.]
    It's a lot harder to hit a moving target than I thought. Plus, I didn't get a lot of practice. It took Rowley like ten minutes to walk the Big Wheel back up the hill after every trip down.
    137
    Rowley kept asking to switch places and have me be the one who rides the Big Wheel, but I'm no fool. That thing was hitting thirty-five miles an hour, and it didn't have any brakes.
    [Image: A cartoon showing a boy with a cycle and another boy holding a ball.] The Caption reads: " Do you want to have a turn now? (Pant, Pant)
    No thanks...
    I'm not as good as you!"
    Anyway, I never did knock Rowley off the Big Wheel today. But I guess I have something to work at over the rest of Christmas vacation.

    Thursday

    I was heading up to Rowley's today to play our Big Wheel game again, but Mom said I had to finish my Christmas thank-yous before I went out anywhere.
    138
    I thought I could just crank out my thank-you cards in a half hour, but when it came to actually writing them, my mind went blank.
    [Image: A cartoon showing a boy thinking.]
    Let me tell you, it's not easy writing thank-you notes for stuff you didn't want in the first place.
    I started with the nonclothes items, because I thought they'd be easiest. But after two or three cards, I realized I was practically writing the same thing every time.
    So I wrote up a general form on the computer with blanks for the things that needed to change. Writing the cards from there was a breeze.
    [Image: A cartoon showing a boy typing.] The Caption reads: " Type Type"
    139
    Dear Aunt Lydia,
    Thank you so much for the awesome encyclopedia! How did you know I wanted that for Christmas?
    I love the way the encyclopedia looks on my shelf!
    All my friends will be so jealous