The Social Season
The social season got off to a great start rather close to home yesterday: it was Mom's birthday and though it was only her and I at Mommyland, we had a bite of birthday cake and she blew out the two candles I had atop of it. Before that, I prepared one of her favorite dishes, salmon cakes. They were pretty good, if I do say so.
We got a call from Cousin Reva and once again I was enthralled by the transformation Mom goes through whenever someone from "down home" gets on the phone. She goes from a frail, elderly woman who can barely hear a word you are saying to suddenly someone approaching her old self. She and Reva conversed avidly for about five minutes with no difficulty.
What made the conversation even more remarkable was that the phone at Mommyland has been on the fritz for weeks and there has been a crackling noise in the bckground that makes it difficult even for the best of us to hear clearly. But, Mom had no problem.
The phone call must have given her an appetite because no sooner did she hang-up, than she was asking about the lunch Big Brother usually makes for her before he leaves for work. So, she ate again.
Later that evening I hauled a shopping bag full of plastic plates, cups and utensils over to St. Mike's for the annual LGBT cocktail party. This year we decided to hold it outdoors in the children's playground out back. No one anticipated, when we first made plans, that it would be dark within a half hour of the party's start, and there were suggestions that we move it back into The Rectory.
That was certainly a tempting alternative: The Rectory is about as elegant a venue as you could ask for a cocktail party. But, with some improvising with tiki torches, we managed to turn the backyard into a cool and classy space for adults, too. The Rector loved it. I think everyone had a good time.
We got a call from Cousin Reva and once again I was enthralled by the transformation Mom goes through whenever someone from "down home" gets on the phone. She goes from a frail, elderly woman who can barely hear a word you are saying to suddenly someone approaching her old self. She and Reva conversed avidly for about five minutes with no difficulty.
What made the conversation even more remarkable was that the phone at Mommyland has been on the fritz for weeks and there has been a crackling noise in the bckground that makes it difficult even for the best of us to hear clearly. But, Mom had no problem.
The phone call must have given her an appetite because no sooner did she hang-up, than she was asking about the lunch Big Brother usually makes for her before he leaves for work. So, she ate again.
Later that evening I hauled a shopping bag full of plastic plates, cups and utensils over to St. Mike's for the annual LGBT cocktail party. This year we decided to hold it outdoors in the children's playground out back. No one anticipated, when we first made plans, that it would be dark within a half hour of the party's start, and there were suggestions that we move it back into The Rectory.
That was certainly a tempting alternative: The Rectory is about as elegant a venue as you could ask for a cocktail party. But, with some improvising with tiki torches, we managed to turn the backyard into a cool and classy space for adults, too. The Rector loved it. I think everyone had a good time.