We took down the Christmas tree yesterday, and I do mean "we." I took down the ornaments and lights, Paul looped up the light strands into tidy bundles and secured them with Velcro ties, Ben got the water out of the tree stand and I think both fellows dragged the tree out to the curb for pickup today. I'm glad I missed those last few steps, as I always find it sad to see the once majestic tree de-decorated and dropping needles as it leaves the house.
No white Christmas this year, but no one cared as we needed a break after the 20" of snow we got at Thanksgiving and which seemed to hang around forever in the cold and dark days of early December. And there was plenty of snow up in the mountains, giving us lovely views of the snow covered high peaks.
We had a lot of fun the past few weeks. We ate good meals at home, at friend's houses, and at Boulder's excellent restaurants, and I gained four pounds which I hope to lose in the next couple of weeks. The photo below was taken after a memorable meal at Blackbelly's, a place known for it's fine beef. Martha, in the blue jacket, lives in Wyoming and had spent the past year in Boulder learning to be a Pilates instructor. Before she left she wanted one more taste of Blackbelly's fabulous hamburgers. We'd actually decided to go to an Italian place instead but when we got there found that it had closed, and had a "Goodbye Boulder" sign on the door. We were a bit shocked and sad as it was a good place, until Martha quickly realized that this might be her chance to get that burger and proposed Blackbelly's. We were lucky enough to get a table and had a great meal of burgers all around.
On Christmas Eve Ben and Paul and I drove around to see the pretty light displays and then Ben and I had a late dinner at Frasca's, a special restaurant in town that was featuring a "Seven Fishes" tasting dinner, an Italian tradition. We did, indeed, have seven small courses of creatively prepared dishes, each featuring a different fish. The one shown in the photo below was one of the largest courses; this is the type of "important restaurant" with seriously gourmet food, and you don't go away stuffed.
You do go away relaxed and feeling well-tended, and pleasantly surprised and amazed at what can be done with great ingredients in the hands of talented chefs. Ben and I both enjoyed the evening.
Christmas Day was relaxing and fun with the three of us opening our presents and helping Turbo open his (he got a cool rope toy), followed by a pancake breakfast which we all ate together. (That last detail is important to me since the three of us rarely sit down and eat together. It's one of the best memories from a wonderful holiday season.) Later Ray and Paula and Paula's mother and sister and our friend Dan came over for a Christmas dinner of a prime rib roast. It was from Blackbelly's butcher shop and Ben cooked it perfectly, so it was amazing. Since John and Dawn were visiting her family in Minnesota, I was especially grateful to celebrate the day with such good friends.
On New Year's eve Paul played a gig downtown and Ben and I went up the hill to a party hosted by our friends Bob and Inger. That was a fun time and after we watched the ball fall in New York, we went home to bed and slept till nine in the morning! We'd been on the holiday express, chugging along for a few weeks of work (buying presents, cooking, decorating) and fun (friends, lights, music).
Now January is here and we're ready to crash for a bit.
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