Big Shiny Christmas Balls

He sees you when you're sleeping....

I have not been really feeling the Christmas spirit this year. With my recent travels, the changes at work, and my recent back issues, I have been more self absorbed than usual.  Perhaps self-absorption is my new normal - I seem to be writing that quite a bit lately. 


With that said, my BFF from Ft. Lauderdale stopped by Wednesday to kick off his holiday family tour of Eastern NC. Luckily he arrived early and we were able to spend the entire evening catching up, talking about our holiday plans, our families, and planning our next trip in February (Caribbean Cruise). Although I could not tempt him with a few shots of tequila to get the evening started, we had a great time nonetheless. He can always make me laugh and I am so excited that his career choice is really paying off for him lately.

Around 7:30 we headed over to 18 Seaboard for an early birthday celebration dinner. This restaurant is a hidden jewel in downtown Raleigh. All menu items are sourced locally, the food is always amazingly tasty, and the service is spot on. We started with Fried Green Tomatoes and She-Crab Soup, followed by Crackling Pork Hamhock over spinach and bleu cheese grits / Fried Catfish over a smoked hominy cake with bacon braised collards - all topped off with a dessert of Carmelized Apple Toffee Pudding. Yum. I was beginning to feel a little more of the holiday spirit.

No tree this year - just a theme of hanging balls....

We followed this up with a quick stop at Flex where we downed a couple of beers and played our favorite video game - we registered the top three scores! We were home by 10:00. While watching Top Chef I had an epiphany - when I win the lottery, I think I would really like to go to chef school. I do love to eat food and I quite enjoy cooking it as well. Mind you, I am not interested in working in a restaurant (again) or opening my own place, just learning more about the science of good cooking. Then perhaps a bit of traveling to learn more about food from various regions. It's a dream, but where would we be without our dreams? 

Just before bedtime, there was a sound as if something had fallen. A quick scan downstairs did not immediately reveal anything amiss, so I did not think anything more of it. We settled into our respective beds, with our favorite bedtime television shows lulling us to sleep.  Cocktails + Delicious Meal + Beers = Sweet Dreams!

Low Hanging Holiday Balls - Don't be Jealous

John had an early appointment in Wilmington Thursday morning so we were up early for coffee and the shower tag team. As he was heading out with his luggage, he nearly tripped on one of the shiny holiday balls that adorn my door.  We were now sure that the sound we heard the night before was due to the ball falling and bouncing into the hallway; however, we were not sure what caused the ball's detachment. John suggested that perhaps a neighbor was jealous of my huge, shiny, holiday balls and exacted their revenge. It is more likely that after a few years of being admired and rubbed by all the neighbors, that one of the ties simply came loose. No matter the reason, I spent my lunch hour performing a ball reattachment procedure. After a good polishing, my door once again sports the biggest holiday balls in the building.



I wish you all a happy continuation of Hanukkah.
Happy Festivus (feats of strength and the airing of grievances will soon follow)
Happy Holidays!