Making Room

Some years ago I had the bright idea to stage the Christmas tree in the dining room. Prior to that ephipany the Christmas tree held court front and center in the living room. Lights ablaze, blinds cranked open, a dazzling array for the world to see.

Well, at least the part of the world who happened down our street and then happened to look up a bit.

The first year The Middle Girl's Family Christmas Tree and related holiday regalia called the dining room home there was no nearly five foot tall cat condo, pet crate, yard sale dishes (for when daughter moves out) bookcase, desk, or other overflow from the living room (where returning son has most of his belongings).

The living (or front) room seemed the logical location in the very beginning of our residence in this small condo because it was the most comfortable room at the time and was (or seemed) the easier to de-clutter adjust furnishings and the like to make room for the tree and related holiday regalia. 

Plus there was the showing the tree (and lights) to the world (that fraction who happened down our street . . . ) and I always enjoyed seeing the lights from the street when I came home from work in the evenings (I knew to look up.)

The bright idea from some years ago seems positively brillant today. Despite the groaning at the seams fullness of the dining room space, the tree must go there, cannot go anywhere else. No other room is suitable, no other space even remotely ready for its presence.

Moreover, I discovered that I like having dinner by the twinkling lights along with a couple of bottles glasses of wine, mom, son, daughter, and a condo full of fur babies (though the cats must be housed in my bedroom).

Sometime over the next 3, 4, or . .  today the tree and related holiday regalia will be installed, lights ablaze, a dazzling array for all of us to see and enjoy.






  

By The Light of the Wine

This space, middle girl dot blogspot dot com began March 29, 2006 after several months of my finding, lurking, and then commenting on other personal blogs. 

My search for a community led me to a cadre of some amazing women (mostly). That is to say there were mostly women, all totally amazing.  Many of those visited then are long gone now. Some others lie dormant but available for the random trips down bloggy lane.

One of the first regularly visited blogs belonged to The Lovely Elizabeth. The space she maintained then is long gone as are others she started in the years since. But, she still blogs and is still one of my favorite blog destinations.

Elizabeth, commented on one of my earliest posts:

Well, well...you have a blog. I get to put you on my blogroll. The pressure is on.

Congratulations to your son and to you for helping him get to this point.

Maxine (Elizabeth's wife) also maintained a blog or two over the years now dormant but replaced by two others.

Shortly after meeting on the nets arrangements were being made to meet face-to-face and that meeting cemented in real life that which began in the virtual world. I have recently returned from my second trip to Houston visiting with the lovely lady bloggers, knitters (well, one knits) painters (of pictures and houses) all and things fabulous.

Epic Party!

Elizabeth was my conduit to fantastic beer, kick-ass wine, insight and laughs galore.

Maxine is . . . in a word, AWESOME!

The brief respite from my day-to-day was precisely what the doctor would have ordered had she been consulted. It was most amazing plus I came home with a finely crafted knit blanket. (Repeat: Maxine is awesome.)  Win. Win. Win.

I can't thank you ladies enough for being the marvelous ladies you are and helping me take those very important early steps in my journey. I can hardly wait for the next event that has us in the same place at the same time.

Thank you for a memorable weekend.

 

Games. People.

 

A part of me feels the need to write about my father but a much larger part is sick and tired of the entire rather road weary affair.  It must be addressed and it will be, just not here or now. I will say that the let's get his family together experiment is, in the words of SJP's Carrie Bradshaw, "so over we need a new word for over."

Let us then move on to a new game, Holiday (psst, Christmas) gifting One Oh None.  

 The Granny Sling Shot.  None. For one, I loved my granny. Well, both of them actually, though I didn't know the paternal one very long or very well (she died when I was young a due to fractured family ties we didn't visit often.) But she seemed nice enough. She made great pancakes. Or at least she did that one time I remember staying over. While the pictured granny doesn't put me in the mind of either of my grandmothers as neither was Caucasian, I would still feel quite uncomfortable flinging a granny off the edge of my fingers, sending her soaring through the air only to crash . . . somewhere. Ouch. No.

Now, a book. . . One! Books are almost always a good idea. You know, as much as I read, as much as I love reading, my loved ones rarely gift me with books. Weird, that. Anyways . . I have already turned fifty, in fact am a year over that mark and well on the way to fifty-two. Still, I presume much of the advice and insights from the fifty notables is applicable to fiftysomethings as well as to the 50 year old.  For example, something like, "wear comfortable clothes" means as much to me at 51 as it would have at 50. Heck, I've been following that sage advice since my thirties, at least.    

A thoughtful gift-giver musing over the 50 Things might wander over to what I'm considering the companion piece, "60 Things To Do . . . " Gifting this tome to a 50something provides said fiftysomething a bit of a head-start in absorbing the words of wisdom from the sixty experts featured. A head-start is an extremely thoughtful pose. For a fiftysomething might need the rest of her fifties, for instance, to prepare for such sixties advice like, "take your clothes off."

Okay, maybe not.

Still, I bet there is a treasure trove of useful, relevant, and uplifting thoughts within the 678 pages (combined) offered up by the one hundred and ten (again, combined) experts who have "been there."

Okay, forget the books. How about just a treasure?

Or, given how I feel today, one whiskey, neat.