PBW: And Party Every Day

Getting back to a steady work routine is almost going to be more restful than the last four days. This year I really need to get in the habit of using my vacation days, as I went nearly four months without taking any by the end of last year. Nothing days to collect my thoughts and regroup are important. I had four days of seeing friends and relatives, and eating a lot of food, and now I don’t want to go back to work. I had an awesome four days, but now I need to sleep and I can’t. For this week’s Photo Blog Wednesday, I can share a taste of the fun and flavors faced by this fat fellow.

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On Saturday, my mom’s cousin visited with his girlfriend, and earlier in the week requested pizza like their grandmother used to make. My mom obliged, as well as making four other kinds of pizza, eggplant, salad, sausage and peppers, and more. Afterwards, we adjourned to the living room where his friend showed off her piano skills, and our resident piano player contributed as well. The first five images in this batch are desktop sized.











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On Sunday, one of my dad’s sisters celebrated her 80th birthday. I did not bring my camera to the restaurant where we gathered for brunch, and it’s not always good to unleash me in a buffet setting. One of my Aunts had several plates of food brought to her by my cousins or by waiters, which she subsequently dumped into plastic bags and put into a larger shopping bag stockpiling for home, to my dad’s chagrin. I wasn’t as bad, but I definitely loaded up on my share of sausage, eggs, bagels, french toast, pastries, bacon, bacon bits, and some lettuce and croutons. At the halfway point of a four day feast, I didn’t even want supper when I got home, though my dad kept asking. Eventually, I warmed up two slices of leftover pizza from the day before, to quell his concern.

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On Monday, I returned to work, but not quite my usual routine. After asking about three people, I finally tracked down the right person to add my name to the global distribution list so I’d get all the companywide e-mails I was hearing about secondhand from friends. The most important of missed announcements was about an early closing, which I suspected even before I asked my friend. The office closed at 3 PM, and I was out by 3:20 because urgent folders landed on my desk twenty minutes before I was scheduled to make my escape. Then I was free to take my mom to mass and go out to celebrate New Year’s Eve.

Even a geek gets to party at the end of some years. Thus far, I’ve done so at least twice. One was the year an old high school friend and his college Ska band headlined at a Long Island club we frequented. The other notable year I headed in to Boston a few months after my girlfriend had moved there but one month before she dumped me. The entire city was one big celebration, and we made our way through it as each building offered film festivals, jazz ensembles, and more, all culminating in a phenomenal fireworks display over the water that illuminated all the classic ships. Thus far, I’d say that was my best New Year’s Eve. Though the majority of years I’ve just eaten Chinese food and watched television with my folks, I’m sure I’ve had other great celebrations. Until I can remember any, I’d have to say this year might make the top three or four, even though it was a simple one. I gathered with friends, played a game, ate junk food, watched television, and toasted the arrival of 2008.

As I get older, simple is better. I don’t need crowds of people, let alone drunk ones, and I don’t need to freeze amid such a crowd as a lighted ball drops. One year I tried to make it into Manhattan. The line ran from the train platform down the steps to the parking lot. It never moved, even when a train came in and left, already filled to capacity. We opted to get back in the car, drive to a small romantic restaurant out East, and later toasted in front of a fireplace at my girlfriend’s house. I guess that makes this year my 4th best for sure, but I still had a good time and a lot of fun. Here’s a small taste of that evening:






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Finally, on Tuesday, I began 2008 with my family. We went to my cousin’s house on my mom’s side, where we ate yet another feast, watched football, and exchanged presents. I had just as much fun comparing notes with my cousin about which movies and sitcoms we enjoy as I did racing remote control miniature cars with his six-year-old son. It’s probably sad that I knew more about the Transformers-based vehicles as the kid isn’t quite old enough to see the film, but it’s worse that I’m seriously considering a visit to Radio Shack to get myself one. My cousin admitted he has just as much fun with his kids’ toys as they do, reinforcing the value of offspring to make it respectable for an adult to play.










They too take care of a stray cat named “Isabelle”, who is much tamer than the one my mom feeds. She just sort of walked into their house at one point during the festivities and curled up under the table with some toy mice.

And so, the madness of the holidays may finally be behind us. Part of me is ready to get back to “normal”, while another doesn’t want to think about work and already misses things like stockings hung with care, even though 12 months get shorter and shorter each year.