To a certain extent, anxiety pushes me to be super organized when it comes to planning for anything I find particularly stressful. I guess it gives me some sense of control and I feel great relief ticking things off my to-do list.
Like weddings though, there is only so much you can do in the days leading up to the event. Today’s check list included a couple of important tasks: 1 Pick up food from caterer. 2. Clean-up house. Item one was pretty straightforward. The caterer we use isn’t too far away and is uber organized herself. The only moment of panic was when we realized we couldn’t fit all the food in our retro 1988 fridge (still not dead). After chucking some expired condiments and moving all the cold drinks to a cooler, we managed to shove everything in. In a brief moment of madness, I half-wished we had a second fridge, but then I thought of my parents and the two refrigerators (at one point they had three) and humongous freezer we had to empty after my dad died three years ago and I came to my senses.
Soon after the food was sorted out, the table centrepiece I ordered from the local florist arrived, all bird-friendly foliage. It is lovely with a scent of pine and cedar.
Because we have three elderly dogs, one of whom sheds, and four birds that we allow to fly freely for periods in the day, clean-up must be thorough and meticulous, up to the standards of people who do not have animals, if possible. The birds all got minimal flight time today but we will be back on schedule on the 26th.
As my son is spending Christmas Eve and Christmas morning with his girlfriend’s family, we took an hour out of our housekeeping chores to open presents with them.
My son, studying journalism with a minor in political science, asked only for books this year.
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Surprisingly, I even had time to chill this afternoon. Here I am enjoying a latte in my new mug, a gift from my son, featuring the only kind of cat allowed in a house with birds.
What goes best with a latte in a coffee mug featuring cats and books? A Christmas murder, of course.
Whatever you may be doing this evening, festive or quiet, I’m rooting for you and hoping you make it through intact.
In less than 24 hours my Christmas lunch will be over and I will breathe a huge sigh of relief. That is when my holiday truly begins.
bogeyandruby 