You can't always get what you want, but...sometimes you get what you need!
My glorious trip to Tampa concluded with me being dropped off at my doorstep around 2PM. (Um, Brat? What ever happened to that second 12-pack of diet Pepsi? It never made it home with me.) Quite a letdown after the luxurious La Quinta!
I'd already assembled my ensemble for the party before I left, so I had time to shower and check my email before I left. Although, since there were 32 emails PLUS spam, I didn't answer any of them til this afternoon. I had a gratifying number of reviews from the Pit of Voles, and mojavedragonfly gave me a heads-up about a rec I'd gotten elsewhere.
Sadly, I don't think anyone captured a picture of my fetching frock et al, but I'll no doubt reprise it and display it when I can. Let me just say, there was A LOT of pink. The only thing missing was a pink or lilac pillbox hat. That would've made it perfect!
I drove by the church at 3:37---there was no one there. I detoured to WalMart and got some lip gloss---pink---and by the time I went back, there were signs of life.
When I first conceived this party, I had an image of a bright, sunlit day, the church festooned with flowers and the rooms bursting with friends and reveling until all hours.
Uh-huh. After having divine weather for my trip, the Universe obviously decided it had deferred to me for long enough. It was sullen and wet. Instead of the 2 dozen-plus people on the guest list, I had *counts on fingers* nine. Okay, 9.95, if you consider that HHappy is 8.5 months pregnant. And one dog, literally. And aside from the future HappyBoy, it was all girls.
In addition to AI and CapeGypsy (who made so much ziti that it fed hospitality today and I brought most of a large aluminum roasting pan home with me) and HHappy and Mailbox Gooddog's mama---all the UU's in attendence---Kat, IslandLefty, Bee, Missybrat and Red were all there. I'm going to be living on Bee's banana pudding and Missybrat's banana nut bread for a week---I will definitely be getting enough potassium!
It turned out to be a really good tableful. Okay, two tables long, but very festive. I was delighted by how well Red hit it off with my UU friends, and everyone else seemed to have a good time...considering how often I've introduced friends and had them scrap at each other, I was *really* glad to see everyone get along. There was a lot of laughter, and that was the best part.
Maybe I shouldn't have invited Kat; she's known IslandLefty for a long time, and I had to introduce them: "This is S's daughter. She used to date your son, Dr Bizarre, back when they worked together at BS World." She was also vague about knowing Red, although that was less surprising; she wasn't as close, and it's been a few years. It was really awkward. However, she had two helpings of ziti, which is good, considering how she mostly picks at food if left to her own.
I got loads of cool gifties! Some sterling and amethyst earrings, peace sign earrings, a black and white scarf, a scented candle, Body Shop bath stuff, a book, an insulated lunch bag (with a jar of squeezable Marmite! Yay!), some Dove dark chocolate and a WalMart gift card.
Also a variety of cool cards---one with a precious Boston Terrier on it (my Aunt ruth and Uncle Tom had a Boston named Butch when I was a kid), a card with sound effects, and from Missybrat, who's heard me rant about GK's offspring, a Dr Seuss card featuring Thing One and Thing Two---I couldn't share the joke!---they're Kat's grandkids and she might inadvertantly repeat it.
It was all quite fabulous. Not what I had in mind when I set out, but very satisfying nonetheless.
It was about 7:30 when I got home, and I was Happy. Exhausted. DONE.
I took two ibuprofen and a muscle relaxer, turned my bedside lamp off at 8PM and slept for 12 solid hours. I woke once to pee. A couple times my eyes opened, I told myself it was still dark, go back to sleep. And I did. It's been a fantastic weekend, and I'm really glad tomorrow is a holiday so I don't HAVE to do anything.
I have wonderful friends, and I count youse guys among them.
I'd already assembled my ensemble for the party before I left, so I had time to shower and check my email before I left. Although, since there were 32 emails PLUS spam, I didn't answer any of them til this afternoon. I had a gratifying number of reviews from the Pit of Voles, and mojavedragonfly gave me a heads-up about a rec I'd gotten elsewhere.
Sadly, I don't think anyone captured a picture of my fetching frock et al, but I'll no doubt reprise it and display it when I can. Let me just say, there was A LOT of pink. The only thing missing was a pink or lilac pillbox hat. That would've made it perfect!
I drove by the church at 3:37---there was no one there. I detoured to WalMart and got some lip gloss---pink---and by the time I went back, there were signs of life.
When I first conceived this party, I had an image of a bright, sunlit day, the church festooned with flowers and the rooms bursting with friends and reveling until all hours.
Uh-huh. After having divine weather for my trip, the Universe obviously decided it had deferred to me for long enough. It was sullen and wet. Instead of the 2 dozen-plus people on the guest list, I had *counts on fingers* nine. Okay, 9.95, if you consider that HHappy is 8.5 months pregnant. And one dog, literally. And aside from the future HappyBoy, it was all girls.
In addition to AI and CapeGypsy (who made so much ziti that it fed hospitality today and I brought most of a large aluminum roasting pan home with me) and HHappy and Mailbox Gooddog's mama---all the UU's in attendence---Kat, IslandLefty, Bee, Missybrat and Red were all there. I'm going to be living on Bee's banana pudding and Missybrat's banana nut bread for a week---I will definitely be getting enough potassium!
It turned out to be a really good tableful. Okay, two tables long, but very festive. I was delighted by how well Red hit it off with my UU friends, and everyone else seemed to have a good time...considering how often I've introduced friends and had them scrap at each other, I was *really* glad to see everyone get along. There was a lot of laughter, and that was the best part.
Maybe I shouldn't have invited Kat; she's known IslandLefty for a long time, and I had to introduce them: "This is S's daughter. She used to date your son, Dr Bizarre, back when they worked together at BS World." She was also vague about knowing Red, although that was less surprising; she wasn't as close, and it's been a few years. It was really awkward. However, she had two helpings of ziti, which is good, considering how she mostly picks at food if left to her own.
I got loads of cool gifties! Some sterling and amethyst earrings, peace sign earrings, a black and white scarf, a scented candle, Body Shop bath stuff, a book, an insulated lunch bag (with a jar of squeezable Marmite! Yay!), some Dove dark chocolate and a WalMart gift card.
Also a variety of cool cards---one with a precious Boston Terrier on it (my Aunt ruth and Uncle Tom had a Boston named Butch when I was a kid), a card with sound effects, and from Missybrat, who's heard me rant about GK's offspring, a Dr Seuss card featuring Thing One and Thing Two---I couldn't share the joke!---they're Kat's grandkids and she might inadvertantly repeat it.
It was all quite fabulous. Not what I had in mind when I set out, but very satisfying nonetheless.
It was about 7:30 when I got home, and I was Happy. Exhausted. DONE.
I took two ibuprofen and a muscle relaxer, turned my bedside lamp off at 8PM and slept for 12 solid hours. I woke once to pee. A couple times my eyes opened, I told myself it was still dark, go back to sleep. And I did. It's been a fantastic weekend, and I'm really glad tomorrow is a holiday so I don't HAVE to do anything.
I have wonderful friends, and I count youse guys among them.