Home again, home again, jiggity jog

It was lovely visiting the extended Guerrero clan in San Antonio, and now it's lovely being home. We probably had the least tension ever, including packing, driving, shopping, wrapping, preparing the meal, and loading out. Which was very nice. G-Man's flexibility is rubbing off on me in a good way.

We were even enough ahead of the game to make it to a lovely Christmas Eve candlelight service of carols and the Christmas story at a small church just outside of S.A. It was a family affair, with maybe 40 people, including lots of kids and babies; the minister is someone Gil met during a Franciscan modeled retreat he attended this summer. Really beautiful!

Before heading back to Dallas this weekend, we got to visit Seaworld--first time for me and Juj--with the W tribe. Pretty cool, although the Shamu Christmas show was definitely not multicultural. ;-) And I got to find out that my boy has a cool head; the kids were playing in a big open play area, couldn't find us, and one got worried. Juj found an adult with a cell phone and remembered my number to call so we could all be reunited.

We came home last night to a clean house, which we only somewhat trashed by hauling in all the luggage and Santa loot. But I have four days off this week, thanks to the enlightened management at my corporation (hmm...wonder if cost-cutting will get rid of that perk one day?), so Juj and I will be sorting laundry, watching TV, putting things away, playing video games, grocery shopping, shopping with holiday gift cards, cooking, taking care of Tamagotchi, paying bills, etc. Can you guess who will be doing what?

But I think I have to go build a giant Star Wars Lego ship now, as the box of 1,034 Lego pieces that Santa brought J just got cracked open again. (However, we'll need the Blu-ray of Mamma Mia with sing-along option that I received on in the background; G-man checked it out last night--while I was devouring the last of the Twilight series books--and said it looks goooooddd!) If I say this enough times here, will it make up for the fact that our holiday cards won't arrive until after December, if at all?

Hope y'all had great holiday cheer; and Best Wishes for Happy New Year!

Christmas Dinner

Well, it only 16 extended family members (including our little trio) for dinner at the Tias' house yesterday, but it was a lovely meal, if I do say so myself. Most of the recipes were from Martha Stewart holiday magazine, unless noted, and should be on her web site, if one was interested.

• Pre-dinner Nibbles with Cocktails (mostly Gin & Tonic or Jack & 7, depending on how much time the drinker had spent above the Mason-Dixon line): Spicy Pecans, Honey-Roasted Salted Figs, with fresh flame grapes and cheese & crackers
• Roasted Pear & Shallot Salad with Sherry-Dijon Vinaigrette
• Roast Beef Tenderloin with Caramelized Onion & Mushroom Stuffing (from CooksIllustrated.com, and used their tip of "buy tenderloin from Costco and trim it yourself")
• Leek & Gruyere Bread Pudding (but I would make it with a more toothsome bread next time; crustless brioche has NO texture!)
  
• Carrot "Souffle" (Gil said it was better than the one from Luby's that inspired my internet search for the recipe; certainly less sugar and finer texture)
• Tarragon Green Beans (with pre-stemmed haricots verts from Costco)
• Almond Cake (from Amanda Hesser's Cooking for Mr. Latte) with a black cherry sauce, a hot chocolate sauce, and freshly whipped cream
  

The Meme Old Thing

G-man and I each got a different "getting to know you" email chain today. His had a holiday theme, and I'm posting it here, with the original answers from G plus my own editorial comments where warranted.

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? Wrapping paper. Always. Gift bags are for the weak-minded or those who have lost limbs. I give only partial credit for gift bags if it is an unusual shape, like a live aardvark... [Hmmm... is this direct shot at his dear wife? I am NOT known for my wrapping skills (or patience), and generally opt for the bag.]
2. Real tree or Artificial? Artificial Tree. Mostly always. I can add my own pine scent and don't have to worry that my house will incinerate OR pick up the dessicated needles. [A major source of friction the first few years of domicile sharing at holiday time, but I've come 'round on the whole "less mess, less safety stress" thing.]
   
3. When do you put up the tree? Last year I was the goat, and it happened VERY late. Usually we try to have it up around about the first or second week after Thanksgiving. [Ahem; the big tree did not make it up at all last year, but in December, Juj & I traveled to San Francisco and then we all went San Antonio, so the tree was not really needed. And he did put up a little one in the Juj's room.]
   
4. When do you take the tree down? After Epiphany. Gotta give those three knuckleheads time to find the baby. If they were such great astrologers what took them so long? (12 Tribes, 12 Apostles, 12 gates, 12 pearls, etc. aside...)
5. Do you like eggnog? Yes, and I prefer bourbon or a certain infamous Tennessee whiskey over rum. What do they know about eggnog in the Caribbean?
6. Favorite gift received as a child? I've pondered this, and can't recollect that many of the toys - no doubt because of my mundane TV-influenced requests. Probably the most memorable in my mind was a battery powered tin train that would blow smoke, whistle, and back up and turn when it hit the wall. I've since discovered that those are collectible (originally from a Japanese manufacturer called Modern Toys) and I managed to find a duplicate of one of the two I had as a kid, for my shelf here at the house. Simpler times... [Easy! The year my grandfather built me a real puppet theatre. Although my stuffed plush alligator was a close friend for many more years.]
7. Hardest person to buy for? Definitely my father. "I don't want anything!" [Everyone (well, except Juj); I have major gift-giving anxiety!]
   
8. Easiest person to buy for? Generally Mother. A degenerate gadget hound. Or son, a degenerate Star Wars hound.
9. Do you have a nativity scene? Oddly, no. I think we have a cardboard foldout one, like a tiny camper that pops up into a nativity. As I considered rectifying this, I searched the intarweb and shuddered at what a nativity costs in 21st century dollars..... [Um, he didn't ask me; I have at least one miniature one from Grammy, and and maybe a second as well. Guess I'd better dig 'em up.]
   
10. Mail or email Christmas cards? A painful topic. "Christmas Card" are words best left unspoken...
11. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? Don't recollect any memorable stinkers, other than the usual kid crankiness at getting clothes or underwear.
12. Favorite Christmas Movie? No question: A Christmas Story. The moment when they are all sitting on the couch reflecting on the carnage and Ralphie realizes he has not received THE present he dreamed of, and Darren McGavin says "Hey, what's that over there behind the desk?" gets me every time. What a wuss I am!
13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? For a few with particularly exotic tastes, I keep my eye out throughout the year. This year my big score is for a dear friend who loves the film "Joe Versus The Volcano." I managed to find him an actual mint condition crew jacket (in his size no less) from the filming of the thing. [All I can say is - thank God for a husband who not only knows how to shop, but actually seems to enjoy it. And can wrap too!]
    
14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? Well, I'll confess to regifting duplicate books, particularly those directed at my son. The Guerreros have one dark regifting episode buried in our past: an uncle who seldom showed up for the Xmas festivities who finally DID show up one year. A gift was quickly wrapped from a stash of cologne a different uncle (who didn't wear cologne) had high up in his closet. When the gift was unwrapped, it was discovered that the bottle was so old that apparently all the cologne had leaked or dried out some time before. Hilarious!
15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? Roast Beast (bovine), preferably rubbed with K-Pauls rub, served with horseradish, and Yorkshire pudding. [And candy, preferably chocolate from Godiva or See's, and cookies, preferably homemade, and G's cousin's husband's fruitcake, and, and, and...]
    
16. Lights on the tree? Used to be monochromatic, but I have compromised with my hippie wife by allowing use of monochromatic full strings in different colors. I don't know what it is, the multi-color strings look like a Reggae bar to me. [I'll loosen him up yet; my family's trees were always more of a crazy quilt thing than anything Martha Stewart would own up to.]
17. What theme or color are you using? The wife had some kind of Texas paroxysm this year. Chile peppers, tin stars, cowboy stuff. Lots of red/blue/white lights. . . [It's true; don't know what came over me!]
    
18. Favorite Christmas song? Perhaps the old Catholic in me, Adeste Fideles/O Come, All Ye Faithful with Hark the Herald Angels a close second, particularly with my main man Nat King Cole singing. The hairs on my neck prick up when Nat sings "Joyful, all ye nations rise / Join the triumph of the skies / With the angelic host proclaim: / "Christ is born in Bethlehem"" [Not much of an old Catholic myself, but I really go for the non-secular stuff myself this time of year. Oh, and Nat or the Velvet Fog singing "The Christmas Song."]
19. Travel at Christmas or stay at home? Travel. Generally one family or the other. [Yup.]
    
20. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer? I can name them all, though I'm often confused about whether it is Donner or Donder.
21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning? Christmas morning with immediate family and the bigger family group opens later in the day. [Well, with a German immigrant background in my family, we generally did open at least one present from each other on the Eve, and then the ones Santa brought were opened in the morning - first thing!]
    
22. Most annoying thing about this time of the year? Currently it's Bill O'Reilly. I'm not offended by being told Happy Holidays (or Merry Christmas), but it seems only COMMON COURTESY in this great plurality we live in to not assume another person's religious persuasion. What a knucklehead... Jesus: please open Bill's heart or have Santa deliver coal. Bill: Jesus doesn't need your protection.
23. What do you want for Christmas this year? The family got a big screen LCD television in November, so that was pretty swell. On a pensive note, more quiet family time and not so much harried running around. I now understand why my Dad was such a cranky puss, his genetic predisposition to it notwithstanding...
24. Who is most likely to respond to this? It's a mystery. Presumably the ladies on the distribution. [A bit sexist, but probably true, like the next one...]
    
25. Who is least likely to respond to this? Given the frighteningly chain letter-like characteristics, hard to say whether it will get past anyone. I bet the men on the list will pass...

A study in contrasts

It's currently 71° at 8:15 this evening.  By eight o'clock tomorrow morning, it will be 34° and stay in the 30's through Tuesday night! Texas definitely has the craziest weather of anywhere I have lived.

Tonight, the three of us and Ron for dinner:

• Rosemary marinated lamb shoulder steaks
• Leftovers from last night, including spaghetti for Juj (not a big red meat eater) & pie for dessert

Last night, six adults and three kids at dinner:

• Gin & tonic
  
• Three Little Pigs pate au poivre, dry chorizo, blue cheese, chive cheddar, and cranberry Wesleyan with multi-seed crackers
• 3 bottles of wine (well, 3 different ones opened and tasted; we did have leftovers)
• Spaghetti with pork & beef meatballs and a bit of short rib for silky, fatty depth
• Broccoli
  
• Red leaf lettuce with shaved fennel and avocado salad
• Batali's red wine & thyme garlic bread
• Cookies & Creme Cake
• Cranberry Apple Pie

Mr. Weintribe brought the wine and dessert (thanks & yum!), the meatballs were premixed from Whole Foods, and the sauce was 'doctored' from a jar, but the company was very fun, and the evening was quite lively!

Last week: my employer's stock is threatened with de-listing from the NYSE since it's been under a buck for more than 30 days (upside - we have six months to correct it), and generally a high stress level as layoffs and bad news continues.

Next week: last week of work and school before two weeks vacation (well, have to work Friday the 2nd *eyeroll*) -- oh, and I actually closed my first Lean Six Sigma project (nearly 20 months long) with flying colors on Friday!

As I always say, never a dull moment...  ;-)

Minimalist (post & dinner)

Sunday supper, with Ron & Elsa:

• Herb roasted chicken with 4 leg quarters (we love our dark meat at casa G)
• Arugula dressed with olive oil, lemon juice, salt & pepper, under a rainbow of warm roasted sliced winter vegetables: Cauliflower with capers, Fennel bulb, yellow Beets, Carrots with thyme, and red Beets (salad and side in one delicious dish)
• Topped off with Port, and delicious no-sugar egg white dark chocolate-rye & wheat-anise Pizellis (sp?) from Ron
  

Sunday supper...

...was low key: turkey and cornmeal dumplings (made with leftover turkey), leftover cranberry-apple gelatin, leftover salad, and some freshly cooked broccoli.

It was a lovely holiday: I can't really remember Friday, but the tree is up and decorated, and we had a great trip to Ikea Sunday.

Assuming that the next few weeks to pass in a whirlwind, so Merry Christmas and Happy New Year (just in case)!  ;-)