Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas to one and all! We had 21 for Christmas dinner this year, and as you can imagine the preparations started several weeks ahead of time. It usually takes me a couple of weeks to decorate the house as I like to do it in stages – see how things look and then add or take away. The people who know me well probably don’t believe that “take away” part. The menu sort of evolves also, although we always have the standard turkey. This year I brined the turkey with a mixture from Williams-Sonoma and it was really delicious. My brother in law Geary smoked a brisket also, and at the end of the day there were only a few slivers left. Today I made turkey soup with vegetables and noodles. I usually make turkey gumbo, but since Jeanne brought gumbo for Christmas I thought the soup would be nice for a change.

I’m finally coming to the end of washing dishes and putting them away. I took all of the extra tables down today and the chairs are stacked and ready to go back into storage. Taking the Christmas decorations down will be another project done in stages. This year I hope to get rid of some things that I seldom use.    

My Christmas cactus was very cooperative this year.  Actually, I have two of them and one bloomed early in December, but this one was beautiful and just in time for Christmas.    I wish everyone a new year filled with peace, love, and prosperity.

Happy Holidays in New Orleans

Happy Holidays in New Orleans

The weather was cold and extremely windy   today as Janet and I boarded the ferry for the ride downtown. We were on our way to meet JoAnn and Angela for our annual Christmas holiday lunch and gift exchange. The water was so turbulent that there were whitecaps on the river which made for a little scary ride on that old ferry. We were headed for the Roosevelt and Domenica’s for lunch. The hotel was really busy and all of the parking lots were full as the Saints were playing in town today, but luckily (and incredibly), I found a spot on the street right across from the hotel. As usual, the lobby was beautifully decorated with thousands of lights, and the Teddy Bear Tea had just let out so all of the little munchkins were in the lobby taking pictures with their mommies and their teddy bears.

 

 

              

When we arrived at the restaurant which is inside the hotel, it was crowded with Saints fans in all of their colorful and sometime bizarre outfits. The famous “pope” was there blessing his fans and as he stepped to the bar for a drink I snapped his picture. Ensconced in our window seat, we watched the fans go by outside with their game day costumes. A car arrived and three women got out in these huge shaggy furry coats, and we recognized one of them as Chris Owens. They came into the restaurant, but were whisked away to we don’t know where.

                                                

The food was great – I had a pasta which was made fresh in the restaurant and a rabbit ragu with porcini mushrooms. Yum! Started off with a spiced apple bellini and finished up with coffee and tiramisu. We had a leisurely lunch, a long chat, and then went out into the lobby to take pictures. I loved this statue of a woman holding what looks like a long staff with a ball on the end. This is actually an antique clock which once belonged to Nicholas Cage, but is actually famous for having been at the World Exposition in France in the 1880s. We also had to take a look at the little gingerbread village which is set up in the coffee shop. It has some unique New Orleans touches such as the Mr. Bingle in the middle of the square, and Santa’s sleigh being drawn by the alligators.

           

If you’re in the city, either living here or visiting, I recommend a visit to the Roosevelt – and bring your children and grandchildren to share in the wonderment of the decorations.