A very exciting Monday night: catching up on all the button-sewing I’ve been putting off.
HOW TO SEW ON A BUTTON (laugh if you like, but not everyone knows how to do this):
1. Thread and knot your needle. Draw the needle through the fabric so that the knot is on the inside (hidden).
2. Anchor the thread by making a couple of stitches in the fabric, right where the button is going to be located.
Last year, my friend Paige and her boyfriend spent New Year’s Eve cooking up some live lobsters, and if Kendrick and I do decide to stay in this year I might explore these as-yet-untested waters. Paige made the dire mistake of playing with her lobsters first, but since I am semi-terrified of the things, I think I can avoid that little problem. However, the idea of slaying a living thing still creates some issues for me. I think I’ll take care of the lobster-purchasing and side-dish making, and let Kendrick be the one with murder on his conscience.
My very intensive research (thanks, Google!) tells me that Lobster Farm is the place to go. I still need a pot, though…because mine is on the smaller side, and the last thing I want is to be unable to replace the lid on the pot and have to watch the unfortunate creatures being sent to their doom.
Our original plan this New Year’s Eve was to head to the Catskills for a couple of days of fireplace-lounging, but everywhere we checked out has a three-night minimum…and besides, we don’t have a car. So. Next plan: Dos Caminos with a bunch of friends. But it turns out that it’s a $90 per person minimum (which, for New Year’s in NYC, isn’t that bad…but the word “minimum” makes me nervous). We went back-and-forth for a bit, and ultimately decided to do something really, really crazy this year:
Stay in.
I can think of nothing more appealing than an entire, uninterrupted evening with just the two of us. This year has brought a lot of changes to both Kendrick and I, and in the spirit of how I’d like to approach the coming decade - with focus and calm - I’d really like to skip the carousing this year. A hangover-free January 1 sounds…spectacular.
Reading back over this post, the party girl inside of me is screaming “BUT IT’S NEW YEAR’S!!! WHOOO!!!” But seriously? I have NEVER had a fun New Year’s. Ever. In theory, it sounds great: spending an evening celebrating the close of another year with those whom you love the most, but in reality the night more often centers around long slogs through the cold in search of the next place we’re supposed to be. Also, each and every year has involved an awkward hug/kiss with someone I don’t really know that well, but whose eye I accidentally caught moments after the clock struck 12.
Virgil is doing great with the house-training so far…but, you know, accidents happen. Unfortunately, yesterday’s accident happened while I was changing the sheets and pillowcases on our bed. But I hate our pillows - they’re totally flattened and uncomfortable - and have been looking for an excuse to buy new ones, so off to Macy’s I went. They’re having a great pillow sale at the moment (buy one, get the second half off of the already reduced price), and I bought two Charter Club Down Surround Damask Dot Medium pillows for about $65 (down from the regular price over over $160).
They’re the nicest (and most expensive) pillows I’ve ever bought…but I’ve always wanted sink-into-them pillows like you find in fancy hotel rooms. I’ve always been reluctant to spend money on unglamorous basics - for example, I’m still wearing a pair of sneakers that I bought in college, just because I can’t think of anything more boring than a sneaker purchase (can you tell how much I work out?)…but it’s probably a good idea to put my money into something I use on a nightly basis, rather than yet another top or pair of jeans that I’ll wear only a handful of times every month.
(Incidentally, last night’s sleep was AWESOME. I credit my new pillows.)
Reader Rain just wrote to tell me about Dogster, which is basically Facebook for…dogs. I IMMEDIATELY signed up both Lucy and Virgil, obviously. Among the site’s many neat features are adoption services, vet advice, and breed info.
