Home From the Holidays

Christmas was a blast, although it was a little too short, and a little too fast. I didn’t have a chance to see any movies, and isn’t that Xmas is all about? Movies with family? I haven’t seen Narnia, or Walk the Line, or Brokeback Mountain, or a bunch of others on my list. I’m going to make that a priority this coming weekend, although that might be tough since the Whoreshoes are playing Smiley’s in Bolinas for New Year’s Eve! Dude. Come on up for it. You won’t be disappointed. I can’t believe I actually have a New Year’s Eve party that I want to go to. I usually hate being out and about that night, preferring to work, usually. But this year, we won’t have to drive, we’re staying in Bolinas, and I’m just too excited about it.

But back to Christmas: Lala and I packed up the dogs (leaving the poor kits to celebrate Christmas all by their little selves, warming their paws around mugs of strong eggnog that they had to prepare themselves…..), got in a rental car (my car’s getting too old to reliably fly down the coast), and headed down south.

We were the first “kids” there, so Mom and Dad took us out to the Quarterdeck, which is their favorite in town. It’s probably your parents’ favorite restaurant, too, or at least it’s just like it. Big room, big early-bird specials, chipper-looking waitresses, paper menus (which, combined with candlelight, is a bad idea. Ask me how I know). I had CRAB, lovely, juicy, meaty Alaskan King crab. I hear there were vegetables on my plate, but I never saw them. I don’t think I even picked up my fork, just went at the ripping with my hands. There is little I love as much as crab. I should prolly learn to cook it – cheaper, right? Oh the butter vehicle that crab is…..

I rhapsodize.

The next day, Christmas Eve, was GERJESS. It was a warm seventy-five degrees, and we took the dogs (all of them, including Bethany’s Boonie) for a romp on the beach. We were all barefoot. Just like a warm Christmas should be. (It is physically impossible for me to type Christmas without typing Christy first.)

Wonderful dinner, honeybaked ham, cheeses, trifle and lebkuchen and fudge. Twelve people in the living room, all having fun. It’s nice to grow up, I think. Few of us, if any, wanted to be off in their bedroom wearing headphones, sullenly writing in their journals.

Chirstmas morning: We were staying with the dawgs in a Motel 6 down the street, so we were spared the traditional Rachael-Bounce usually perpetuated by sisters onto my sleeping head. We drove over, opened prezzies (lovely, lovely haul this year – I have things to show you, but I’ll take pictures later), then got in the car at about 10:30 and drove back north in the rain so I could just make it work for Christmas night, where it was nice and quiet and where we ate more ham. Lots and lots of ham.

Holidays are good. So is getting back to normal life. Hope you are enjoying both.