The Christmas Posts: The Preamble (and a Menu)
While my absence from blogging primarily is due to a heavy work load at the office, knitting under a deadline, and not a few problems with my home computer, I am, for the most part, Doing Quite Well — at least as far as my depression is concerned. I enjoy the dark, cold winter nights. I crawl into my den with my books, cats, yarn, and computer games, and I am Very Content Indeed — happily and cozily cocooned.
There’s a passage in Moby Dick, when Ishmael and Queequeg are under the covers at the boarding house, prior to their sailing on The Pequod, which describes this comforting warmth and well-being perfectly:
We felt very nice and snug, the more so since it was chilly out of doors; indeed out of bedclothes too, seeing that there was no fire in the room. The more so, I say, because truly to enjoy bodily warmth, some small part of you must be cold, for there is no quality in this world that is not what it is merely by contrast….[I]f like Queequeg and me in the bed, the tip of you nose or the crown of your head be slightly chilled, why then, indeed, in general consciousness you feel most delightfully and unmistakably warm….[T]he height of this sort of deliciousness is to have nothing but the blanket between you and your snugness and the cold of the outer air. Then there you lie like the one warm spark in the heart of an arctic crystal.
No Seasonal Affective Disorder here, thankyouverymuch, at least not the “normal” kind.
We have a Christmas tree up for the first time in two years. Two Christmases ago, I lost Gregor and I had new kittens to care for. Last Christmas, a combination of Teh Husband’s work and mine (and a few bouts with head colds) kept us from doing much. This year I finally have the energy for a little celebration and relaxation.
I am officially off work until Monday, December 29th. I know it might not seem like much to some of you, but to me, I have four consecutive days of freedom and pleasure. No traveling. No relatives. No must-attend parties. No Christmas shopping. No craziness. I have four days to call my own and I have no intention of doing anything I don’t feel like doing. I think the most stressful activity will be doing the grocery shopping tomorrow to get the missing odds and ends for our Christmas Day Feast.
Le Menu (so far)
Foolproof Rib Roast. Teh Husband and I are going out in the morning to pick up a 6-pound standing rib roast at Knight’s Market.
Steamed Asparagus with Real Hollandaise Sauce. This involves whisking egg yolks and lemon juice over a double boiler as you incrementally add melted butter, whisking, whisking, whisking all the way. There is no comparison between Real Hollandaise and That Blender Crap.
Delmonico Potato Casserole. If you’re nice to me, I’ll type out the recipe. The recipes I found online for Delmonico Potatoes left a lot to be desired. One even called for — I kid you not — cubed processed cheese food. I’m certain there is a time and a place for cubed processed cheese food,1 but my Christmas Day Feast is not it.
An As-Yet-to-Be-Determined Dessert. Maybe. Teh Husband picked up the Williams-Sonoma Peppermint Bark for me today, and I’m satisfied to call that our dessert. This is assuming I don’t eat it all in the next 36 hours.
More later, cats and kittens.
* * * * *- Heck, I love me some aerosol cheese on a Triscuit. [↩]
