December in pics
mightyjesse and her fiancée Zig came to visit Copenhagen for a few days! It was really fun to meet them both and hear the awesome story of his proposal in Paris. Aww, very cute couple. And I got to find out that she is actually just as funny in person as she is in writing. So we went out to dinner on the 27th and the 28th was their last evening here. I had the castle's goodbye party to go to - which was depressingly uneventful - so I snuck out for a while to meet up with them for drinks. In my usual manner of organization, I had made it across town before realizing that I had left my cell phone at the party. And since the plan was that I would call them once I got there, this made things slightly more difficult. I ended up making the most expensive phone call ever, at the whopping price of 85,- DKK (15 USD/11 EUR) just to get inside Tivoli Gardens and use the phone in the Service Center. Had to call the restaurant, ask my boss to listen for my phone while I rang it, had her pick it up and hand me to someone "technical" who then spent the better part of 4 minutes trying to work it, even after I told them how to find Zig's sister's number. I felt like an idiot standing in front of these two ladies behind the counter going, "Hello? Hello? Martin? Hello? You still there?" Got the number, finally managed to call them and it turned out that in the meantime, they had convened *right outside* the service center. D'OH! We went to see the fireworks; I realized I had lost my gloves. We went back to the Service Center to pick them up, then went for a drink. Where we took this picture, just to prove it actually happened!!
As an added bonus, on the way there I had the most delightful flirt with a guy on the train. Which is quite a feat, seeing as I was only going one station and it takes less than three minutes. But he was so happy! He was loaded with luggage, one of them being an army bag, so I opened the doors for him and let him in first. That's how we got eye contact. I asked him if he was on his way home, and he stretched out his arms and gave me the biggest smile and started telling me how great everything was going to be. How only good things were coming his way now: He could feel it: His Great Love was just around the corner and his life was going to be fresh and new and great! He was so contagious that I laughed along with him, and then expressed regret that I wasn't going to be around to see it, since this was my stop. He sounded really disappointed, and then took my hand and kissed it. Then he kissed my cheek and we said goodbye. Ah, life is fantastic.
New Year's rolled around and this was my outfit:
I finally got to wear my blue boots, only to be informed that I wasn't allowed to walk on the floors with them. Darn. So taking this picture is the only proof I have that I can actually wear them. A rather spiffy outfit, I feel. I'm just vaguely disappointed that those shoulders and arms almost make it look like I'm getting ready for a round in the Pro-Wrestling league...
It was a relatively quiet evening, occasion considered. We all looked fabulous and had sushi. We spent most of the evening playing Besserwisser, a trivia game, but we had a lot of fun with it, so good times all around.
And while I'm uploading pictures, I have a few more to share. When trying to decide what to wear for Butterflies' goodbye party, I did a total Clueless and decided not to trust my mirror. This was the final ensemble, before hair and makeup (yikes - ignore the face):
Notice my new boots - aptly named Success Boots because I managed to jam my non-standard calves into standard size shafts. A Success Experience, weightloss-wise. I've since managed to take a spill in the middle of the street and scuff them up a little bit. Less of a success experience. Lesson to be learned? Watch where you're going - sometimes they put in new curbs where you least expect them. But for once, I had a very nice man come running and help me up. He went to great lengths to make sure I hadn't lost anything, while his clueless friend kept asking me what happened because he couldn't understand how a high heel could get caught on a ledge preceding an unexpected drop in walking surface. Still, the other man was ever the gentleman and they both had to be assured that I really was fine, just clumsy.
Maria had a birthday on December 8th. She decided on a small gathering, and I brought a camera. Lea took this picture of us three neighbors. Klaus looks depressed because she said it was of him and "his two women." He can't not make a joke or a face when there's a camera pointed at him. Kind of like the time we found out they were taking pictures on the rollercoaster and we pretended to be asleep. We went twice, just to get it right. But here we are - the ominous threesome. :)
Finally, I found this on Facebook. My gorgeous sister, Anneli. And - get this - her *granddaughter*! If I look like that at 40, I will be a very happy lady.
