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Sunday, September 10, 2006
For those of you that still check in on this site...thanks! Sorry it's been over two years since I've posted anything. Hopefully you know by now that I've moved to Florida and have been super busy with work and planning my wedding. I've decided to start a new blog detailing all of the pain and agony that comes with planning a wedding. So read on, my friends...read on!
Melissa Sunday, September 10, 2006
Tuesday, June 01, 2004
December 31- New Years Eve
It had finally arrived. Our final holiday celebration of 2003 and we wanted to go out with a bang. We needed this celebration to be extra special because it symbolized a full-year of keeping our 2003 resolution. It also held special meaning because it was the same night we made this resolution one-year ago. In order to have the perfect ending to an unforgettable year, there were three things we wanted to happen:
1. We needed an awesome event to ring in the New Year. We had some incredible celebrations throughout 2003, but we wanted this one to top it off.
2. We needed fabulous outfits. New Year’s is a bit like Halloween in that you needed to dress the part. New Years called for sexy dresses, new shoes and flashy jewelry.
3. The most challenging aspect of our New Years plans was to find the perfect date. We wanted guys that were fun, spontaneous and willing to dress up!
As usual, no matter how far in advance we plan, reality kicks in the week of the holiday. We had no dates (which shouldn’t have been the case if certain guys weren’t idiots), and no plans. We bought dresses the week before, laughing over the fact that we were spending money we didn’t have for a party we weren’t going to...and dateless. We finally admitted that we didn’t NEED dates for New Years (dates just made getting New Year’s kisses easier). We would have more fun without the hassle of dragging around a date. We decided it would be much more fun to make a game of finding guys to kiss at midnight wherever we ended up. And there lay the problem. What were we doing?
First Night Portsmouth had very little interest to us. A few of the bars in Portsmouth boasted New Year’s bashes- but they weren’t the kind of parties we were looking for. None of our friends seemed to be hosting parties, and if they were, we didn’t know anything about them until...
Remember Cherry? She was the one that hosted the wine tasting party we attended for Winter Solstice. She called me three days before New Year’s Eve to invite Heather and I to a New Year’s party that two guys we went to high school with, Aaron and Jeff, were hosting down in Cambridge, Mass. We had had such a good time partying with those guys earlier that month that it seemed like the place we were supposed to be. Besides, Cherry said she was dressing up too, and we could make a night of it by having dinner in Boston before heading to the party. Perfect.
We finally had plans. Heather and I took them further.
Let’s reminisce again. Remember our “Get Lucky” kits from St. Patty’s Day? (I know that was 9 months ago, but you can do it…we had a kit with condoms, candles, aspirin, massage oil, breath mints and bubble bath that we took to Boston.) We decided that it would only make the party more enjoyable if we added our “personal touch” to it. We bought an actual ‘New Year’s Party Kit’ that included noise makers, party hats and crowns, then we added Mardi Gras beads, silly string, a box of truffles and a bottle of wine. We were ready to party.
For the first time in a long time, the weather was mild for New Year’s Eve. Walking around in Boston in dresses and heels was completely bearable. We had dinner in Quincy Market, then noted that we had a few hours before we had to leave for the party, so we thought we’d try to find a place to go dancing. Unfortunately, the bars were packed and unnecessarily large cover charges were being asked. When we tried to get into The Rack the doorman asked if we had tickets. We told him that we didn’t- we were only looking for a place to go dancing for a few hours. He looked at the guy behind him and told us to talk to him. That guy told us that they were sold out, but he knew of some cancellations and he would let us in for the price of tickets: $50 a person. The fact that there was a group ahead of us in line that was turned away made the offer all the sweeter. Unfortunately, $50 would have cleaned us out completely, besides we could only stay for two hours. So we declined his offer and headed to the party thinking that we were pretty damn cool to be at least offered the chance to party with…a-hem…some of the Bruins players that were there.
We got to the party about 11:30 after taking a half-hour to find a parking space. There were a ton of people there, some we knew, most of them we didn’t, so Heather and I took this opportunity to introduce ourselves while handing out party favors from our kits. What a hit that was! Not only that, if we hadn’t brought party favors it wouldn’t have been any different from a keg party. In fact, there weren’t even any noise makers! (Thank goodness we’re very good.)
At the stroke of midnight, according to Dick Clark, it was an all out ‘kiss as many people as you can’ fest. (We now understand why not having dates is not such a bad thing.) We spent the rest of the night dancing, catching up with old friends and making new ones. What better way to ring in the New Year and to say good-bye to a simply fantastic 2003?
As for this year’s resolution (I know you’re dying to ask), Heather and I spent a lot of time thinking about what could possibly top 2003’s resolution. The only answer to that is to do it all again- bigger and better. Bigger celebrations, involving more people, and paying more attention to the smaller holidays.
It’s 2004 and it’s time to celebrate. We’ll be there….will you?
Melissa Tuesday, June 01, 2004
December 26- Boxing Day and Kwanzaa
Obviously the day after Christmas has its own purpose- hitting the ‘after holiday’ sales, spending gift cards and exchanging that ugly sweater your grandmother thought you would love. In other words- a fabulous spending spree. It’s easy to forget that there are also two important holidays associated with they day after Christmas, but Heather and I are so good that we were able to squeeze Boxing Day and Kwanzaa festivities in between our spending spree, and a free lunch (thanks to gift certificates) planning our trip to Europe.
:::pause:::
Okay, so we totally skimped out on these two holidays, but we DID make our friends box in the streets that night. That counts. We swear. AND I can give you some background on Kwanzaa!
Kwanzaa is an African American and Pan-African holiday celebrated from December26th though January 1st. A celebration of family, community and culture, Kwanzaa was created in 1966 by Dr. Maulana Karenga, professor and chair of the Department of Black Studies at California State University. It is not a religious holiday; rather it is a cultural holiday. The seven principles of Kwanzaa are Unity, self-determination, Collective Work and Responsibility, Cooperative Economics, Purpose, Creativity and Faith.
The colors of Kwanzaa are black, red and green.
So there.
Melissa Tuesday, June 01, 2004
December 25- Christmas Day
Christmas Day rotates between my parent’s house and my aunt’s house. This year my family traveled to Maine to spend it with my mother’s sister. Since my father’s side does not celebrate Christmas (because some of them are Jewish and some of them are Jehovah’s Witness) we are a small group. Actually, we’re a small group for all holidays, even though we have a larger family that I let on; mostly because we don’t include both sides of the family for every occasion. Anyway, I digress.
My immediate family wakes up around 8:00, open presents, (while eating homemade cinnamon rolls and drinking hot chocolate) and is ready to leave the house by 10:30. We arrive at my aunt’s house by 11:00, ‘dinner’ is at noon, and we’re back home by 3:30. It’s a short, but sweet visit because we saw each other the night before, and we’ll be seeing each other a week later on New Year’s Day for chicken stew and lasagna. (We have the strangest traditions in our family…).
Melissa Tuesday, June 01, 2004
Friday, January 16, 2004
Wednesday December 24- Christmas Eve
My family’s Christmas Eve tradition hasn’t changed in at least 20 years:
3:00 p.m. Mom, Dad, Jen (and whoever Jen is dating) leave our house (in separate cars) to arrive at my Grandparent’s house by 3:15.
3:20 p.m. Mom, Dad, Jen, the boyfriend, and my Grandmother leave for the 4:00 Children’s Mass at Immaculate Conception Church (which is less than 5 minutes down the road) in one car.
4:45- I leave the house to meet my Grandfather at the Bratskellar (We used to have Christmas Eve at Asia Restaurant, but the wait got too long).
5:00 p.m.- I arrive at the Bratskeller. Grandpa and I try to figure out exactly how many seats we’ll need for dinner. Usually we’re off by one or two because we never know if a.) all three cousin will show up, or if b.) my oldest cousin will be bringing a girlfriend. While we wait for the rest of the family to show up, we have a drink and Grandpa flirts with the waitresses.
5:10 p.m. Church is just getting out. Dad, Mom and Grandma will drive Jen and the boyfriend back to my Grandparent’s house so that they can take their own car to the restaurant.
5:15 p.m. My aunt and her boyfriend show up at the restaurant. (This time her boyfriend has brought his son, but the two younger cousins are with their dad, so we do have enough seats.)
5:17 p.m. My oldest cousin shows up….with his girlfriend….now we need an extra seat.
5:25 p.m. The churchgoers have finally arrived. Time to eat!
7:00 p.m. We dinner is over. We take forever to say good-bye even though we’re going to see each other less than 24-hours. Mom and Dad drive home in their car, me in mine, and Jen and the boyfriend in theirs.
10:00 p.m. We’re exhausted from too much family already, and hit the hay.
This schedule of events rarely changes. My one note for this year is I ran into someone at the restaurant that also has a “Bratskeller” Christmas Eve family tradition: The 12-year old.
How jolly.
Melissa Friday, January 16, 2004
December 21- Winter Solstice
Heather and I were invited to a semi-formal wine tasting party that our friend Cherry was hosting in Cambridge. Since Heather and I can’t pass up a chance to get dressed up (since it makes for good picture taking for scrapbooking) we thought it would be a fun way to celebrate the start of a long New Hampshire winter. We had a great time getting reacquainted with old friends, learning a bit about wine (while drinking a lot of it!) and of course, we took some awesome pictures.
Melissa Friday, January 16, 2004
December 20- First Day of Hanukkah
Jewish holidays traditionally begin at sundown the evening before the actual holiday. Conveniently Heather and I were at Margaritas the sundown of the start of Hanukkah so we decided to drink a toast, preferably with a drink connected to the holiday or to the Jewish faith. Sadly, we didn?t know of any, but thanks to Jen (our favorite bartender) she made Heather a blue drink with 8 kinds of alcohol- one for each night of Hanukkah.
During the week of Hanukkah, I not only learned how to spell Hanukkah, I learned some Yiddish!! Thanks to a woman I work with and her Jewish husband, I was able add a number of Yiddish words to my vocabulary:
Kosher - Jewish dietary laws based on "cleanliness". Also referring to the legitimacy of a situation. "This plan doesn't seem kosher".
Farklempt - Too emotional to talk. Ready to cry.
Farmisht - Befuddled
Chutzpeh - Brazenness, gall.
Shiva - Mourning period of seven days observed by family and friends of deceased
Shlep - Drag, carry or haul, particularly unnecessary things, parcels or baggage; to go somewhere unwillingly or where you may be unwanted
Shpilkes - Pins and needles
Chazzerei - Swill; pig's feed; anything bad, unpalatable, rotten. In other words, "junk food."
Shandeh - Shame or disgrace
Shaineh maidel - pretty girl
Tchotchkes - Little playthings, ornaments or knick-knacks.
Shalom - Peace (a watchword and a greeting)
Melissa Friday, January 16, 2004
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