Friday, December 29, 2006
This week has certainly gone by fast! The week between CHristmas and New Year's Day is the end-of-year plant shutdown, a kind of mandatory vacation. Last Friday I went over to Keith and Carrie's for an informal Yule dinner, with curry as the main dish and a persimmon pie that I made. Saturday I spent trying to get the house in order before picking up Mom and Cliff from the airport in the evening. Sunday we stopped at the Golden Buddha for a quick dim sum on our way to seeing the fabulous new Nutcracker production at Symphony Hall. It was Mom's first experience with dim sum, and also the first time she'd seen the Nutcracker live.
On Monday we went to the Phoenician for our traditional Christmas brunch. The spread was quite impressive; IIRC more variety than the last Christmas we went there, two years ago. The dessert room was definitely more extensive. The weather was wonderful so they opened the door out onto the patio, where we were seated, and the music from the little jazz ensemble inside floated out. This occasionally mingled with the strolling guitar/violin trio we had outside, lending an Ivesian (Charles Ives, not Currier &) atmosphere. The grackles provided additional entertainment, stealing sugar packets from the bowls on vacant tables. The three of us left suitably stuffed; it's also traditional that this is our only meal for the day. That evening we took a walk around the nieghborhood to look at the lights. The lighted reindeer are popular this year; some people had whole herds in their yards. Tuesday we took a walk over to Park of the Canals, which I haven't been to in eons despite its closeness. Then we pretty much hung out in the back yard like lizards in the sun until it was time to run them out to the airport.
Of course, when the rellies come to visit there's always some friction over how you've decided to raise the kids. Mom and Cliff considered Savannah nosy and spoiled where I find her clever and charming - well, up until she jumped up on Mom's shoulders and I had to get out the first aid kit to deal with a scratch. Someone got a timeout on the back porch.
Wednesday I braved the mall to do my shopping for the Holt end-of-year party. The crowds weren't bad at all, but if it looks like I bought all my gifts in one store, well, there's a reason for that. And yesterday I thought it would be fun to take a 12.6-mile hike in the Superstitions. I don't know what it was like in town, but it was foggy all day in Peralta and East Boulder Canyons - Weaver's Needle wasn't even visible until about 2 or 3 in the afternoon.
Winding down towards the end of the year - what happened to all those chores I was going to get done?
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On Monday we went to the Phoenician for our traditional Christmas brunch. The spread was quite impressive; IIRC more variety than the last Christmas we went there, two years ago. The dessert room was definitely more extensive. The weather was wonderful so they opened the door out onto the patio, where we were seated, and the music from the little jazz ensemble inside floated out. This occasionally mingled with the strolling guitar/violin trio we had outside, lending an Ivesian (Charles Ives, not Currier &) atmosphere. The grackles provided additional entertainment, stealing sugar packets from the bowls on vacant tables. The three of us left suitably stuffed; it's also traditional that this is our only meal for the day. That evening we took a walk around the nieghborhood to look at the lights. The lighted reindeer are popular this year; some people had whole herds in their yards. Tuesday we took a walk over to Park of the Canals, which I haven't been to in eons despite its closeness. Then we pretty much hung out in the back yard like lizards in the sun until it was time to run them out to the airport.
Of course, when the rellies come to visit there's always some friction over how you've decided to raise the kids. Mom and Cliff considered Savannah nosy and spoiled where I find her clever and charming - well, up until she jumped up on Mom's shoulders and I had to get out the first aid kit to deal with a scratch. Someone got a timeout on the back porch.
Wednesday I braved the mall to do my shopping for the Holt end-of-year party. The crowds weren't bad at all, but if it looks like I bought all my gifts in one store, well, there's a reason for that. And yesterday I thought it would be fun to take a 12.6-mile hike in the Superstitions. I don't know what it was like in town, but it was foggy all day in Peralta and East Boulder Canyons - Weaver's Needle wasn't even visible until about 2 or 3 in the afternoon.
Winding down towards the end of the year - what happened to all those chores I was going to get done?
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