The kitchen is clean.
The coffee pot is set to brew at 7am.
The crab butter is hardening in the fridge.

I'm two cocktails to the winds, i've made shopping and prep lists, and i'm off to bed for the night. Here's to Christmas dinner, a few days late. Wish me luck?

The sound that the kitchenaid makes as it crushes the shells of three crabs into a pound of cold butter is good medicine for a harried holiday hostess, indeed.

A Very San Francisco Christmas Eve:

Got up. Had lunch in the Mission, at Last Supper Club.
Picked up some lights & wreath hanging hardware at the crazy hardware store we came to love, living on Hill Street.
(Mom & Dad made me a gorgeous wreath, out of pinecones from their yard. It's hanging on the front of the house now.)

Went to the California Academy of Sciences.
And the Japanese Tea Garden. (Where we did, indeed, have tea.) I climbed the tall round bridge. With my husband, instead of my brother.

Came home. Rested, dressed, and took a drive round Union Square. (Mom not up for a walk in the cold in her fancy clothes, but wanting to see the fancy decorations.)
Exquisite dinner (even for Mom) at Hawthorne Lane.

Home to light luminaries on the front stairs.
Russell conned Dad into playing SSX3 (badly).

(And just discovered that Mom-who-is-cranky-about-food is now surfing HL's recipes for the cauliflower puree that made her just as happy as potatoes! Yay!)

In the twelfth month of 2003, my engineering team brought to me:
The twelfth release of QuickTime of 2003.

Enjoy QT 6.5!
AOL users, "You've got iTunes!"

I wanna go home.
I wanna have something warm and yummy for dinner. With a salad. Caesar. With long shavings of good parmesan.
I wanna turn on the tree lights, and the Peanuts holiday music.
I wanna make a cocktail. In the froofy glasses. With fancy garnish.
I wanna change into my new soft and fuzziest warmy pjs.
I wanna wrap Holiday gifts, and tie them all up with bows, while drinking my cocktail.
I wanna smile across the room at Russell, who is playing SSX3 contentedly.
I wanna pet my kitty.

Instead, i'm at work.

My weekend, in review:

I did not accomplish as much, with as many people, as i would have liked. For instance, I showed up for the last 10 minutes of the Leckman's party on Friday night (urgh, work), but i did get to hug some nice folks, and surprise folks with rides home in the rain. I didn't make Jim's 35th birthday party - for which i am very sad - but given that i was beyond exhausted, i think it was a Wise Decision. Things i did accomplish:

A lovely late-morning and late afternoon with Naomi at the Ferry Plaza Farmers' Market, Zuni Cafe, and then the Mission bookshops. Russell joined us at the bookshops. Chocolate and newly pressed olive oil and truffles, oh my!

The evening culminated in several episodes of season five Buffy. My, oh my - Spike's got it baaaaad.

Sunday was more leisurely. An excercise in "what to do with a truffle that has to be eaten TODAY". We had half of it sliced into eggs scrambled over a double boiler, served with toast & the aforementioned new olive oil for breakfast, and shaved the rest into leek and chickpea soup for supper. Cleaned up the house, did some reading, and i did some work. Just about right for a Sunday, neh?

Peter Jackson is my hero.

I cried & cried, like a little girl.
Oh, Shelob - you break my heart.
Confidential to Aimee: Viggo cleans up nicely....
Confidential to Beca: R counted at least two Wilhelms. He wants to compare notes.
Confidential to jD: I see breadties. I blame you.

Mr. Jackson, you have ensured that another generation of little girls worship horses.

(More specifics once the date has passed which will keep me from crucifixion on account of spoilers.)

Feeling a bit targeted this morning, about midway down this article... ;)

Seriously - great article. Heather passed it to me this morning - go take a gander.

It's truly amazing what a good pair of boots and some sassy clothes that fit can do for your self-image and general outlook on the day. (Thank you, Beca!!)

I have no doubt that work will come crashing in on me later today, but for now? For now i feel fantastic.