Five Friday Happy Bringers 12/31/21

Seriously? 2021 is on its last breath?! Quickly then, here are Five Final Friday 2021 Happies.

1. Robert taking FOREVER to “set the stage” before taking pics of my second (what was I thinking?) fruitcake of the season.

2. Daughter Amy winning South Magazine’s Greatest Nurse Award 2021.

3. The sky.

4. The lunch I “created” yesterday (from use-‘em-before-they-spoil leftovers) for Robert and me.

My vision had us sitting across from each other, looking lovingly into each other’s eyes, then casting our gaze downward to the edible art inhabiting the space between us.

Smiling, we would have no need for dishes, for cutlery. And why would we?! We had our hands, our fingers, our hearts, our culinary freedom. As if we were dining in an authentic Indian restaurant, we would both be silently agreeing with award winning chef Srijith Gopinathan of San Francisco’s Campton Place: “There’s a reason people use their hands to eat. It’s because food is very, very personal.” I could see and hear Robert whispering (no longer in an Indian restaurant), “Bon appétit, mon amour,” as he fed me a finger of (two-day old, slightly brown but still delicious) genuine Mexican guacamole … from Whole Foods.

Doesn’t this look, not just pretty, but personal to you? And yes, I know the ham salad from Monday looks a little runny, but still.

Well, here’s basically the pre-lunch convo between Robert and me when he saw the table.

Him: “Wow.”

Me: (Not responding, except in silent joy, awaiting his next compliment.)

Him: “Uh, aren’t you going to put that ham salad in plates?”

Me: Sounding upbeat, perky, as if I were offering him an invitation to the Waldorf Astoria for their Waldorf Salad: “Ha, ha. No, silly! It’s a communal lunch, but just you and me, reaching and using our fingers.”

Him: “Oh, okay,” staring at a couple of mayonnaise-y green peas sliding off the “sorta charcuterie board.”

But believe it or not, after that slippery start, we had a great and fun, if not 100% fresh, lunch. And I relented with two (small) salad plates.

5. Getting through (sometimes sailing along beautifully, sometimes barely moving) yet another perfectly imperfect year.

Have a meaningful final day of 2021.

See you next year!