MIRRORED TROPHY GOES HOME

Are you not glad that JENNIFER GREY won DWTS? Yea! She worked hard for it, she earned it and without Bristol Palin hogging all the votes, BRANDY would have been the runner-up. Brandy will be over-coming this setback for the rest of her life; Kyle will be starring in multiple hits, the guy is pure talent; and Bristol will go back to be a teen activist - until she hits twenty when that career is over. Unless....I do not even want to think about what might happen if she ever gets too close to DC. 

It is the day before Thanksgiving day and I am thawing out two Poussin Rouge Fermier, or tiny French hens that come from a speciality poultry farm in the Piedmont. They are supposed to be tastier and healthier than engineered turkey. Made my speciality, a raw-cranberry-apple-orange relish last night, adding chopped pecans and Grand Marnier; soaking until tomorrow afternoon, it should be just about ripe. Hot baked sweet potatoes will round out the meal for four of us, Jan and Rich included. Began par-cooking the wild rice-mushroom-cranberry stuffing for the birds - will let cool and finish the effort tomorrow.

Sister Jan is bringing dessert.  DH is demanding his Thanksgiving pie - this after we had planned a multi-berry cobbler. She is also bringing Mom's forever applesauce cake so that I can serve it on Sunday when DH's brother and SIL come for a visit. But Jan changed her mind about the cobbler and is bringing her very best dessert; we are not telling DH. Serves him right - he's been moaning and complaining to the limit for several days. He can protest all he wants and then be surprised when she arrives with something he loves.

Part of this crankiness is our commitment to the CCRC. Upon receipt of the floor plans, list of specifications with options we can upgrade he has been crazed ever since. Our first meeting with the interior specifier is next Thursday - when the columns of prices begins to add up. That's when he will really be in shock.

Before that, on Wednesday we have a reception at the Meadows where we will meet some of the neighbors-to-be in the developing section of their campus. And after that I head downtown to the new OCArts Commission's offices [now sharing with the Chapel Hill/Orange County Visitor's Bureau] for that holiday open house. We could do several more 'holiday open houses' if we wanted but I'm at the point of cutting back on out-bound trips.

Have been searching the Triangle for help in getting a vintage set of table silver service buffed and polished to a high shine. I could do this IF I had a bench polisher and rouge wheel but DH is adamant about NOT getting any more 'gadget toys,' to clutter up the garage. Jan helped me price out the polishing service at Replacements. A jeweler might do it for less IF they had a slow business period.

But who? 

My purpose is to brighten the old service ware as we use them daily and after 24 years it shows. There are about 60-70 silver pieces to be polished, each would take about 12-15 minutes [about 20 hours] and for the same money I could buy a double-headed bench buffer but where would I work? Time was when I worked for a jeweler who could weld or polish anything for me [the shop bead stringer], but I never appreciated the access to equipment that I could have used.  Bummer.  

Thanksgiving Day is the traditional time when we write the annual holiday letter for our friends and family. At this point I have a 3x5 index card with scribbles - best get to work transcribing some literate sentences and producing the first draft. More notes to follow, stay tuned. bb