Ciao! Ciao!
Well, the party is over, and everyone is home safe again...well, I don't know that, actualy, so how about "and no everyone has left here, and I didn't receve any 911 calls asking for orgian donations or if I have the number for a next of kin." I must say, though, I think it went really, really well. Everyone seemed to get along great, or at least they bit their tongues well enough I didn't see any bloodshed, and in the end, isn't that what Christmas is all about? ::G::
In the end, eleven twelve of the final 14 "yes" RSVPs made it, and those last three two were dearly missed (ETA: counting is much easer after ten hours of sleep...). Though really, all the people who could't make it were missed, even those whom we knew in advance would not be able to attend. This is the first party I've thrown since my...22nd birthday? Nearly four years ago, now, and I can't even remember the last party I held before that, so to have it go as well as tonights did really meens a lot to me. One of the nice things about having friends as random and mixed as I do, is that our conversations never get boreing (something which was remarked upon to me by at least two people). Our topics are as far reached and random as we are, which is great as if you don't have much to chime in at one moment, the next topic is just a quick joke away. ::LOL:: Also nice is that everyone there knew at least one other person from another circle of my friends, so no one was compleatly alone in a corner, which was a worry of mine when I first started thinking about doing this. LORE people don't know Journey Circle people who don't know Clayers who don't know...but with that cross over of at least one other person, it ment that enough intrests crossed, which, and I hate to say it because I love her but it's true, is exactly where Krista's parties usualy fall flat. All the people she and Sean invite are great, and I enjoy talking to all of them in turn (except Crazy Ferret Lady, which should go without saying), but the problem is that most of them only know her and Sean, or even just her or Sean, so there's no common topics. Everytime you get up to get a drink, you have to start the whole round of polight, getting to know you chit-chat again. And those of us who do know someone else, tend to latch on to them and not let go, lest we fall into the range of Crazy Ferret Lady and never be heard from again. Danika and I do that, for instance, we find eachother as soon as we get there, and try to be nice to everyone else, but always go back to eachother as our salvation. Back when they first threw a party (before their anual christmas parties), there was Deb and Linda and Don and even Kim for me to play with, and any one of us could go to the others and know we had someone we could hang with and use as cover from C.F.L.
But...I can't remember the last time Linda or Don came to a party (I still have the gifts I made them for Haunnikka three, four?, years ago, and no one has heard from Deb in months (we were SHOCKED when she came to Krista's wedding, which was the first I'd seen of her in maybe three years), and Kim went MIA about three years ago now, compeatly removed herself form everything. Guild members still have stuff of hers she left at Clay Camp that year, including me! I have her entire box of about fifty or sixty texture sheets. ::sighs::
I like a lot of Krista and Sean's friends in small doses, but when they're all together (those who do show) at their parties, there's no connection, and everyone ends up bored while Sean drinks too much and gets giggly, and Krista has one Butter Nipple too many and gets just spacey and then we all go home. ::sighs:: I was really kinda worried that my party would be the same thing.
Thankfuly, I'd like to think that I've learned from their Mistakes. God knows I've thrown their party for them enough times (last year, I came an hour late to theirs and they still wern't done prepairing!). The only thing I think I'd do difrently is not let Danika talk me into buying hot food. She kept saying over and over how if I was serving drinks (open bar) that I should have some food-food items, which yah, I agree with, but she kept mentioning the little appitizers you get in the frozen section that you bake in yer oven? Krista and Sean always serve a ton of them. So I finaly gave in and got some pot stickers and spring rolls...
I didn't even make them. They're still in my freezer. But you know what? Everything else got eatten, but none of it was totaly gone, so it wasn't like I had too little food. No one got drunk , no one was even tipsey (well, Kev was a little flushed, but he wasn't driving), and no one went hungry either. We had sevral kinds of cheese, crackers, sausage, two kinds of hummus, a whole plate of fruit, veggies... Not to mention cookies, cookies, and more cookies, and then rice crispy treats on top of that.
We neither ran out of food, nor had so much left over that I felt guilty for buying or makeing it. It came out to the exact amount of left overs you'd want for a well planned party! I think it worked out perfectly. Same goes for the booze, everyone drank what they liked, knew their limits, and ate as well.
I meen, those of you who were there, correct me if I'm wrong! If I am wrong, I'd really, really like to know so that I can fix it next time! Because from how I'm seeing things, I'd really love to do this again next year. I'm never someone who's gunna throw a party every month, or even every major holiday, but maybe just one a year? A chance for my friends from difrent circles to meet up and say "hay". I think that'd be really great, if they all go as well as I think tonight's did.
I really want to say thank you to everyone who made it, expeialy those of you who drove from so far out of town. I make those drives so offten for varous things, I can not describe how wonderful it is to not be the one who has to drive an hour home after something. ::LOL:: God, that's so nice. And to be able to have that second glass of mead, or butter nipple, and not even have a second thought about it. Sooooo nice. So thank you, guys! I really do consider that to be a gift, since it's such a rare change of pace for me.
And thank you for just such a wonderful evening, too. I really had a lot of fun tonight, and it just wouldn't have been the same without any one of you guys. This was by far the most enjoyable christmas party I've been to in years! So to everyone in state, plan ahead! Let's shoot for roughly two weeks before Christmas again? So maybe Saturday the 13th of 2008? Does that sound good to everybody? Anybody? Bueller? Bueller?
PS: Oh, and I forgot to take pictures, so sorry to everyone on-line who said they wanted pics of how the house looked decked out in dozens of candles. ::LOL:: It was actualy really nice, speeking as someone with CDH and Migraines, we only had one electric light on, and that was the one right over the bar, everything else was candles, even out into the driveway (though I had the porchlight on out there, too, for safty reasons if nothing else). It was so nice to have my level of lighting for nearly the whole thing! We did turn a light on so people could more easly read durring the board game (Thanks, Joan, I really liked that one!...mostly because I kicked ass at it... ::grin:: ::winks::), and it was even a chocolate free christmas! Woot! I could actualy eat everything at my own party! ::LOL:: I didn't even put out the Gadiva Liqueur. Joan and Ju Lee each brought something with a bit of chocoalte in it, but both were clearly marked and not mixed in with anything else I wouldn't be able to avoid, so it still counts. ::laughs::
Really, honestly, the best holiday party I've been to in years! Thank you everyone! And if anyone (weather or not you actualy attended) wants one of the blessed candles we had up in the window, let me know. I have seven regular sized candles with probably another hour or two left on them, and one little one with maybe another 20 minutes (that one actualy lasted a lot longer then I expected!). Only one is claimed so far. If no one else claims the others, I'll incorprate them into sheilding around my home and send the energy back to the group for extra love.
{{{{{HUGS}}}}}
Happy (Insert Holiday Of Choice Here), Everybody!
In the end, eleven twelve of the final 14 "yes" RSVPs made it, and those last three two were dearly missed (ETA: counting is much easer after ten hours of sleep...). Though really, all the people who could't make it were missed, even those whom we knew in advance would not be able to attend. This is the first party I've thrown since my...22nd birthday? Nearly four years ago, now, and I can't even remember the last party I held before that, so to have it go as well as tonights did really meens a lot to me. One of the nice things about having friends as random and mixed as I do, is that our conversations never get boreing (something which was remarked upon to me by at least two people). Our topics are as far reached and random as we are, which is great as if you don't have much to chime in at one moment, the next topic is just a quick joke away. ::LOL:: Also nice is that everyone there knew at least one other person from another circle of my friends, so no one was compleatly alone in a corner, which was a worry of mine when I first started thinking about doing this. LORE people don't know Journey Circle people who don't know Clayers who don't know...but with that cross over of at least one other person, it ment that enough intrests crossed, which, and I hate to say it because I love her but it's true, is exactly where Krista's parties usualy fall flat. All the people she and Sean invite are great, and I enjoy talking to all of them in turn (except Crazy Ferret Lady, which should go without saying), but the problem is that most of them only know her and Sean, or even just her or Sean, so there's no common topics. Everytime you get up to get a drink, you have to start the whole round of polight, getting to know you chit-chat again. And those of us who do know someone else, tend to latch on to them and not let go, lest we fall into the range of Crazy Ferret Lady and never be heard from again. Danika and I do that, for instance, we find eachother as soon as we get there, and try to be nice to everyone else, but always go back to eachother as our salvation. Back when they first threw a party (before their anual christmas parties), there was Deb and Linda and Don and even Kim for me to play with, and any one of us could go to the others and know we had someone we could hang with and use as cover from C.F.L.
But...I can't remember the last time Linda or Don came to a party (I still have the gifts I made them for Haunnikka three, four?, years ago, and no one has heard from Deb in months (we were SHOCKED when she came to Krista's wedding, which was the first I'd seen of her in maybe three years), and Kim went MIA about three years ago now, compeatly removed herself form everything. Guild members still have stuff of hers she left at Clay Camp that year, including me! I have her entire box of about fifty or sixty texture sheets. ::sighs::
I like a lot of Krista and Sean's friends in small doses, but when they're all together (those who do show) at their parties, there's no connection, and everyone ends up bored while Sean drinks too much and gets giggly, and Krista has one Butter Nipple too many and gets just spacey and then we all go home. ::sighs:: I was really kinda worried that my party would be the same thing.
Thankfuly, I'd like to think that I've learned from their Mistakes. God knows I've thrown their party for them enough times (last year, I came an hour late to theirs and they still wern't done prepairing!). The only thing I think I'd do difrently is not let Danika talk me into buying hot food. She kept saying over and over how if I was serving drinks (open bar) that I should have some food-food items, which yah, I agree with, but she kept mentioning the little appitizers you get in the frozen section that you bake in yer oven? Krista and Sean always serve a ton of them. So I finaly gave in and got some pot stickers and spring rolls...
I didn't even make them. They're still in my freezer. But you know what? Everything else got eatten, but none of it was totaly gone, so it wasn't like I had too little food. No one got drunk , no one was even tipsey (well, Kev was a little flushed, but he wasn't driving), and no one went hungry either. We had sevral kinds of cheese, crackers, sausage, two kinds of hummus, a whole plate of fruit, veggies... Not to mention cookies, cookies, and more cookies, and then rice crispy treats on top of that.
We neither ran out of food, nor had so much left over that I felt guilty for buying or makeing it. It came out to the exact amount of left overs you'd want for a well planned party! I think it worked out perfectly. Same goes for the booze, everyone drank what they liked, knew their limits, and ate as well.
I meen, those of you who were there, correct me if I'm wrong! If I am wrong, I'd really, really like to know so that I can fix it next time! Because from how I'm seeing things, I'd really love to do this again next year. I'm never someone who's gunna throw a party every month, or even every major holiday, but maybe just one a year? A chance for my friends from difrent circles to meet up and say "hay". I think that'd be really great, if they all go as well as I think tonight's did.
I really want to say thank you to everyone who made it, expeialy those of you who drove from so far out of town. I make those drives so offten for varous things, I can not describe how wonderful it is to not be the one who has to drive an hour home after something. ::LOL:: God, that's so nice. And to be able to have that second glass of mead, or butter nipple, and not even have a second thought about it. Sooooo nice. So thank you, guys! I really do consider that to be a gift, since it's such a rare change of pace for me.
And thank you for just such a wonderful evening, too. I really had a lot of fun tonight, and it just wouldn't have been the same without any one of you guys. This was by far the most enjoyable christmas party I've been to in years! So to everyone in state, plan ahead! Let's shoot for roughly two weeks before Christmas again? So maybe Saturday the 13th of 2008? Does that sound good to everybody? Anybody? Bueller? Bueller?
PS: Oh, and I forgot to take pictures, so sorry to everyone on-line who said they wanted pics of how the house looked decked out in dozens of candles. ::LOL:: It was actualy really nice, speeking as someone with CDH and Migraines, we only had one electric light on, and that was the one right over the bar, everything else was candles, even out into the driveway (though I had the porchlight on out there, too, for safty reasons if nothing else). It was so nice to have my level of lighting for nearly the whole thing! We did turn a light on so people could more easly read durring the board game (Thanks, Joan, I really liked that one!...mostly because I kicked ass at it... ::grin:: ::winks::), and it was even a chocolate free christmas! Woot! I could actualy eat everything at my own party! ::LOL:: I didn't even put out the Gadiva Liqueur. Joan and Ju Lee each brought something with a bit of chocoalte in it, but both were clearly marked and not mixed in with anything else I wouldn't be able to avoid, so it still counts. ::laughs::
Really, honestly, the best holiday party I've been to in years! Thank you everyone! And if anyone (weather or not you actualy attended) wants one of the blessed candles we had up in the window, let me know. I have seven regular sized candles with probably another hour or two left on them, and one little one with maybe another 20 minutes (that one actualy lasted a lot longer then I expected!). Only one is claimed so far. If no one else claims the others, I'll incorprate them into sheilding around my home and send the energy back to the group for extra love.
{{{{{HUGS}}}}}
Happy (Insert Holiday Of Choice Here), Everybody!