Friday night we had Gigi and Ralph and John and Bruce over.  I made what is called a spicy New England pot roast –  cranberry and horseradish in addition to all the usual pot roast vegetables – small potatoes, carrots, onions, garlic, parsnips, Eastham turnip.  Bruce baked an apple pie.  Gigi brought a smoked fish appetizer and I put out guacamole. 

Sunday we take the tree down.  Schwartzie will glance at it and think, what happened? Willow will mourn for a day or two as she loves to get under it.  But Shaman will be upset, as he plays with the unbreakables on the lower branches every night and sometimes during the day and also uses the tree as a good spot from which to ambush the other cats.

We went to Tony’s house in town for a traditional Italian Christmas Eve Feast of Seven fishes, although Tony and his mother Karen cook eleven.  The party stars in Tony’s half of the duplex and spreads quickly to the other duplex.  People go back and forth all evening, but several women including me, took over the livingroom of Tony’s and stayed there from 3 pm to 9:30 pm.  It’s near the kitchen where the food and wine were available.

We had dinner on the 25th at the Grotz’s with Stephanie and Tasha and also Dale and Stephen. We all exchanged gifts. Tasha made a standing rib roast.  Dale made scalloped potatoes.  Woody made a Caesar salad; I made a big bowl of my creamed spinach [it has parmesan cheese in it].  Tash made gingerbread with caramel sauce for dessert.  Again, we stayed late and the cats were pissed when we finally got home.  At least this time they were fed before we left @ 5:10. When we left home at 3 pm, we thought we’d be home by 6 at the latest.  However, it was a great party and nobody wanted to leave until we all did.

We don’t do anything New Year’s Eve.  That’s why we had friends over the night before. We’ll stay home tonight, safe from amateur drunks at the wheel.  We’ll relish the last evening of the tree that I particularly enjoyed this year, as did the cats. We’ve had bigger trees, but never quite as asymmetrical and shapely as this one.  Its branches came very low as well as being bushy which made it perfect for the cats.

I’m still reading manuscripts for my June workshop.  During the holidays, I got a bit behind and they kept pouring in. I must finish up the first week in January.  As soon as I have 12 poets and 2 alternates, I can start working with them.  I send out a letter giving them information on the workshop and what and when poems are expected from them in May.  I have 10 so far. 

Seed catalogs have been coming and right after New Years, we’ll start our annual seed ordering.  So far Fedco, Seeds ‘n Such, Pinetree, Johnny’s, Territorial, and Burpee have come.  Harris always comes way late if at all, so after we do our regular ordering, I go on line to check them out. 

In spite of the holidays, I have continued working.  I’ve written 85 pages so far.  This if all rough draft except for the first 10 pages.  I will, of course, revise all of it several times. That should cut it down a considerable amount.