Today was a pretty productive day. I'm preparing for a very busy and somewhat stressful week ahead.
My friend R.'s funeral is Tuesday. I hope I didn't make a mistake by telling my boss I'd be into work right afterwards, but this is their busy time and he just asked me to work full time for the rest of December and early January. I couldn't really say no since I just got a raise.
I'm sure the funeral is going to be very upsetting. I knew all of R.'s close friends and family, and just seeing them all as upset as I am, is going to be too much. His best friend asked me to say a few words in the eulogy, but I chose to decline.
The next day after the funeral, my cousin J. is traveling from PA to visit for 4 days. I didn't want to defer his visit because the weather will soon be getting dicey and it could be hard to find a relatively benign weather pattern soon. Christmas traffic should also be better now than later, and I think it might be good to be distracted from thinking about R. for at least a little while.
So today I put some green garland around both the columns outside at the front entry, and it looks pretty good. I always wanted to do this but never got around to it.
I also vacuumed and cleaned the downstairs, did some laundry, dusted, and went grocery shopping for everything I need except a few things I'll buy Wednesday, and decided on a menu for one of the days he'll be visiting. We'll also be taking him out to eat at a new restaurant my father and I discovered, and I reserved the private room with fireplace.
This was a butternut squash and feta cheese flatbread I had there that was very good.
I wanted to make something easy so I decided to use both my slow cookers: a chili in the big one (it's one of J.'s favorite meals) and an apple pumpkin crumble in the small one. Also will make some cornbread and a salad. I'll have to get the chili going by 8 am at the latest, and then the dessert, but after that I can "relax."
I have all my Christmas shopping done. I really just had 4 people to shop for, and J.'s gifts are wrapped so he can take them home with him. He's also getting a calendar.
He'll be leaving Sunday, but I'll be saying goodbye to him Saturday as I have a Christmas party to go to at my neighbor's and walking partner's home. And she's also having a Christmas lunch on Christmas day that I'll be attending.
A casual friend of mine wanted to stop by Saturday night as they were going to a party in my town, but I was busy prepping for my other visitor, so I told her I'd have her and her husband over another time during the holiday. Now that the house is decorated, I'd like to entertain, and she is Filipino so the whole American Christmas experience is no doubt fascinating to her.
I also recently heard from R., a different old boyfriend, with whom I share an unusual similarity: we both had a parent who was a professional artist. While my mother achieved success, R.'s father was on a whole different level, and was actually one of the most prolific equestrian artists in the country. He's in the process of selling and gifting an even larger inventory of work than my mother had, and he offered me a choice of several signed prints, so although I have absolutely no wall space left, I am happy to get one of his father's works, as it kind of reminds me of my boyfriend as well. I'm not sure when he'll be coming up to drop it off, but hopefully around the holidays.
So I actually have quite a full plate of visitors and places to go in the upcoming weeks.
I went against my dad's wishes and bought him something for Christmas, but it's not a "thing," it's an experience, so that's my excuse. It's an hour-long massage. He had one a while ago and he really liked it, so that's what gave me the idea.
After dinner, I think I'll spend some time reading, which is something I rarely do at home and feels like a real luxury. I always have other, more pressing things to do.
My boss gave me a rather expensive bottle of wine for the holidays, so I'm looking forward to cracking that open with my cousin and father. I also bought a very cheap but great-tasting bottle of wine my friend shared with me, so we'll play a little game and see if my guests can figure out which is the expensive wine and which is the cheap wine.
Farewell to a friend, and a special visitor next week
December 9th, 2018 at 10:03 pm
December 10th, 2018 at 02:15 am 1544408110
December 10th, 2018 at 12:05 pm 1544443523
Here's the recipe (which I haven't tried yet): https://kristineskitchenblog.com/slow-cooker-pumpkin-apple-crisp/
December 11th, 2018 at 12:57 am 1544489860
December 14th, 2018 at 12:58 am 1544749090