my eyes are about to burn out of my head. i'm writing this at work, posting it in here at home. it's a very typical nearly-christmas sort of day: very slow, low on staff, hardly any phone calls. i'm bored out of my gourd. here are some things that have happened since my last post:
saturday night was a long-anticipated date night with B. i'd called a teensy italian restaurant last tuesday for reservations. they told me they were having a private party but could accomodate us at 7:30. no problem. it had been a while since just me and B went out for dinner-- we've done a lot with friends and family but not by ourselves. plus, he does all the cooking, so we were both looking forward to going out.
we'd just dug into our antipasti plate when zoooomph, the power went out. at first we couldn't tell because it was relatively dark in the restaurant while the power was on. but the christmas tree lights were out, as were the streetlights outside. the restaurant got quiet for a few seconds but then carried on as usual: diners kept dining, waiters scurried around wondering if any food would be available. unfortunately, not. even though the kitchen most likely used gas stoves and ovens, without electricity there was no ventilation (or lights to see any prep, etc.). the teeny room began to get quite stuffy. that large private party had just sat down when the power went out. they seemed a bit boring but did have some christmas crackers and took everything in stride. a table down the way was like an incarnation of the ya-ya sisterhood. the women dominated the room with their shrill, drunk laughter. B and i struck up a conversation with an old couple next to us and almost finished our dolcetto.
finally, a maitre d' came over and explained that all hot food had been called off. no black cod for me or wild boar for B. however, the chef was going to boil up a giant vat of pasta and we were welcome to a share. no, thanks. we bundled up and dashed to whole foods a few blocks away. the moment we rounded the corner however, the power came back on. but we stayed on course and bought an already-cooked chicken and B made a lovely chicken/green salad at home. we got to take our half-drunk wine, too. thank god.
going back one more day, on friday my department went to our christmas party. a wind storm had just been through. many interstate signs had been blown over entirely and were laying face down on the side of the road.
sunday came and went with much newspaper reading and last minute shopping. so far the week has been dragging on. i know it's because i'm looking forward to some holiday time off. i can't wait to sleep in and wear jeans for THREE DAYS IN A ROW and spend time with my family and drink tea every hour on the hour. happy holidays to everyone.