Last night Jean and I went over to Brian and Alice's for our traditional New Years Eve dinner and movie fest. It was my responsibility to get the movies. I'd already planned to pick up The Fifth Element, which isn't exactly a good movie, but still something made me want to share it with everyone (read 'force it down their throats'). I also picked up Mrs. Brown and Brassed Off.
Jean and I have been getting over a cold since Monday, and we weren't sure if a) we were up to a late night out and b) if Brian and Alice wanted two sickies like us over, sharing our germs with both of them and little Madelyn too. But Jean called Alice to explain that we were still feeling rough, and Alice said to come on over.
Alice made some kind of meatloaf, with onions and peppers. There were mashed potatoes and green beans. I couldn't tell you if any of it was good, as I had a frozen pizza for dinner instead. Jean seems to have lost her sense of taste, so even she can't tell me how it was.
We decided to watch at least a little of The Fifth Element, but thirty minutes into the movie, Alice was falling asleep and Jean harumphed and reached for her knitting. I immediately yanked the video (since it was clear I was on the verge of ruining our evening) and inserted Mrs. Brown.
What a great movie. Judi Dench and Billy Connolly were both excellent, and Antony Sher was great as Disraeli. The nice thing about British acting and British screenwriting is that they know the power of silence. So much was said without words in the movie, and that says a lot for the screenwriter's trust in the actors to get the point across.
After the movie we quickly said our goodnights and drove home. The sky was hazy, but the moon and the stars were bright.
Today I'm still suffering from this cold. This has been probably the toughest cold/flu I've had in more than five years. All morning I knocked about the house without purpose. My mind is clear but my body still aches.
This afternoon Jean and I went out to buy some of the missing essentials for the baby. I have a vocabulary problem when it comes to baby clothes. Even after Jean's patient lesson in the store I couldn't tell you the difference between baby underwear and a one-piece. I'm also learning that I've got strong opinions about things, which sometimes forces us to walk away without having made any progress.
For example, neither Jean nor I want much pink for our daughter. Neither of us like the color particularly, and we've both agreed that we didn't want to play pink or light blue gender games. We're looking for earthy tones or primary colors. That said, I still seem to have trouble agreeing to some things that strike me as frilly or too precious. There were several things we looked at today, including one that I originally picked out, that ended up getting put back because I really wasn't sure they were what I wanted.
This kind of behavior will not survive when the baby has arrived. There won't be time.
I told Jean on the way home this afternoon that my goal is to have all baby purchases done by the end of next weekend. That way, if the baby comes early we're good to go. The nightmare vision at present is that the baby arrives and we figure we need stuff (clothes, accessories, whatever), but I have to get the items on my own since Jean is recuperating from delivery.
And so the new year begins. No resolutions for me: if there's something I should be doing I prefer not to wait for the next year to start. I did manage to play my guitar this evening (I haven't played regularly for more than two years, and I've missed it), and while I'm not practicing yoga specifically I am focusing on my standing and sitting postures.
Thank you to all of you who have kept coming by these last two weeks when my posts were sporadic. I should be back to my daily posting routine now, at least until the baby arrives. Even then I hope to keep up daily entries: it was the blackout, the trip and finally illness that interrupted my cycle. I'm looking forward to continuing these daily reflections and welcome your response to anything you find here.
It was cold and clear today. Richmond is in panic mode as the weather people have been predicting another ice storm this weekend. Just tonight they seem to have backed down: instead of ice, we'll start with freezing rain but quickly turn to rain. Sunday should be in the forties, which would melt anything that comes.
reading: 1 Maccabees; The Hobbit (Bumpy's Bedtime Book)
© 1999 Kevin J.T. Creamer