I packed for a weekend and wound up being away an entire week. You can imagine. First of all, I should have packed for at least four days – but I only packed: pjs, a top plus the one I was wearing, a dress for Christmas, a sweater, a pashmina, underwear and socks. I am a pretty low maintenance kind of girl but I could have used more stuff.. . and a bigger suitcase.
Plan a: leaving home on Friday, staying with friends in the ‘burbs. Having the old college room-mate day o’chat and cookies on Saturday, Xmas with the family that is like my 2nd family on Sunday, Xmas eve breakfast (ditto) on Monday, take the train to my brother’s and spend Christmas there. Return home sometime on the 26th. That is still 2 more days than I packed for.
Instead: west coast room mate had her flight cancelled. Other room mate came and got me Saturday. We hung out, watched Bourne Legacy. (Yum.) Discovered that other room mate was able to get a flight Sunday night. Made plans to meet up on the 26th. Then, my grad school housemate texted me when I was on my way to the train to see if we could get together. But she wasn’t sure what was going to happen. I though possibly breakfast on Thursday. So, made plans to stay longer.
Christmas with my brother and his family was lovely. He had to work on Monday. But my sister-in-law picked me up at the train station in Evanston. We hung out, Nick made panko chicken and a veggie curry with rice for dinner. (Delicious.) They had to make sides to bring to Mary’s brother’s place for dinner the next day. Nick was making twice-baked potatoes, Mary was making a zucchini and mushroom dish and some white beans.
I had bought some Dala horse stitch markers for Michele for Christmas on Etsy. On the train(s) from Wheaton to Evanston I knit a to use as a “gift bag.” I had already knit two Jayne hats and given them to Sandy. I finished the mini-sock at Nick’s house and started a 3rd Jayne hat. This was the best of all. I used it as a gift bag for the dragon good luck charm that I bought for Sandy.
Christmas Day – there were presents in the morning at Nick and Mary’s house: I think my niece liked the sparkly arm warmers that I made for her and the dragon earrings. In the afternoon we went to Mary’s brother’s house. He is a chef – although he is no longer cooking for a living and he made delicious duck for Christmas Dinner. There was also ham, greens, mac and cheese, parsnips, brussells sprouts, rolls, the potatoes, zuchini and beans that Nick and Mary brought. Amazing meal. Lots of wonderful munchies prior to dinner. Also, a (sad on my part) game of pool and some Wii dance game and then after the meal: gifts and dessert. (Also a very sad Bulls game on tv.)
So, that went well. Took the train back to Wheaton on Wednesday. Me up with Sandy and Michele at a Thai Restaurant for a late lunch. Then back to Sandy’s house for cookies and gifts. Her sister Sharon joined us. Lovely evening.
Sadly, I was unable to meet up with Tamara (grad school housemate) because they were worried about the weather on Thursday and drove home to Michigan. So I stayed in town for an extra day but then on Friday – the weather was still questionable so I hung out another day. Sandy and I went over to her Dad’s house – watched Haywire on bluray and then back to her house where she made chili and we watched the 190s Bourne Identify mini series with Richard Chamberlain and the Leverage finale. (We watched the Doctor Who Christmas special on the 26th or 27th – can’t recall.)
FYI: Richard Chamberlain is not believable as Bourne. He just doesn’t have the physicality for it. Plus, fight choreography on tv has improved quite a bit since the 80s. So has the music: OMG, that mini had the cheesiest music ever. And there was a very lame love scene: I can say that even without actual loves scenes Bourne Legacy was sexier by far then that cheesey and lame scene from the 90s mini. (It ended with a dissolve on some cherubim carved into the bed’s footer.)