Colder Than Cold.....

........ At least for this part of the state. When I walked Gracie this evening after dinner, I could actually see my breath. The weather gods are making sure we're paying attention here.

As I walked around the corner, I saw that there was a party going on-- an outdoor party, complete with a huge white tent in the yard, lots of lights climbing up the tent poles, and a silver disco-ball in the center of the tent. Cars of teenagers were pulling up in front of the house. I'll bet they all thought they were going inside the house. Well, surprise, surprise... the party is outside under the tent and there's a cold mist raining down as the temperature drops. Talk about poor party-planning..... Rule #4--- check the weather before raising a tent for outdoor entertaining.


Our St. Patrick's Day lunch is just about set...... there will be seven of us to enjoy a springtime lunch, with St. Patrick's Day just giving us an excuse to get together. I've already confirmed the date via phone calls, and I wrote out invitations (green, of course) just to remind them of the date and time. In the invitations, I suggested they wear something green. Everyone asked if they could bring something to add to the lunch, and I told them "as long as there's something green in it--- naturally green, not food-dye green."

I have my little table-top white topiary tree decorated with green shamrocks...... I put that together last spring for a St. Patty's tea party that I never got around to hosting. Our friend Frankie passed away at the end of February last year, and I wasn't much in the mood for a tea party in March. But everything is better this year...... we all still miss Frankie, but the hurt isn't so raw and fresh.

Into my clear-glass, over-sized brandy glass (that held all the red hearts for Valentine's Day), I put green "Easter grass" and green beads and green shamrocks. It's filled from top to bottom with all that green and it looks great. I will probably use that brandy glass at Easter-time as well, and fill it will colored eggs. I also have an Easter topiary that I made last year, decorated with tiny eggs, baby chicks and ducks, and curls of pastel ribbons. We didn't really celebrate Easter last year, but we've already invited friends for this coming Easter Sunday.

I'm going to keep the favors simple for the St. Patty's Day lunch.... the green shamrock Mardi Gras beads for all, and the chocolate-covered gourmet pretzels that are sprinkled with tiny green shamrocks. We can all wear the beads at lunch, and I'll have the pretzels wrapped in shamrock-covered cellophane favor-bags. Unless I find something else (gourmet and shamrock-shaped), the pretzels will be just fine. I wonder if the French bakery makes special cookies for St. Patty's Day?

Hopefully, the weather will warm up again before the St. Patty's day lunch. I'm so tired of dressing in layers, and bundling up when I go outside. We didn't even go out today, other than to walk Gracie. My husband asked me if I wanted to go out for lunch or dinner.... I told him "let's just eat in.... it's too cold to go out." Guess it was too cold for him as well, because he didn't try to change my mind.

So here I am, trying to remember the Dalai Lama's words about "be gentle with the earth." For some unknown reason, it is supposed to be this cold on this day in this part of the universe. I shall try to stop complaining, and just rejoice all the more when the sun shines.