the deep moans round with many voices

Things done today:

1. Rental office 9am-7pm. SO MANY PACKAGES. Why are the tenants ordering this many packages? It is the middle of January; what do you even NEED at this time of year??? Also all the packages are inexplicably filthier in the winter than in other seasons, so I kept having to run out back and scrub my hands so I didn't leave a delicate coating of mud on my mouse and keyboard. UGH. Other tasks included showing some people around some apartments, processing some completed leases, and dealing with several instances of lost keys.

2. Remembered to bring broccoli to work so I had a vegetable accompaniment to the mac and cheese I ordered for lunch. Mmm, delicious!

3. Listened to some more episodes of The Magnus Archives.

4. Looked at the bridesmaid dress my friend Susan has decided on for her wedding (she and Patrick set a date! it is in August!) and concluded that I need to acquire a strapless bra before I can even start figuring out my measurements. (I mean, I can't place an order yet anyway because Susan is still deciding on the dress color, but still.) On the one hand, it's a little weird to be told "Go buy this exact thing," but on the other, it's nice to have a bit more direction than "Wear something blue -- what do you mean, some style hints or even advice on what kind of blue might be useful?" which is about what Cat's bridesmaid dress instructions amounted to for her wedding. *wry*

5. Special Board of Trustees planning session at 7pm, to prep for a congregational conversation meeting at noon this Sunday, after the morning service. I feel we got a lot done!

6. Did not write a damn thing and have decided I am going to bed rather than try to write anything at this point, because I did not get enough sleep last night and I am tired, damn it.

Good night!

CAT IS MARRIED!

Details later. Also, I will tell you about my two, um, interesting car trips, and my adventures in amateur floristry, but right now I am very tired and am going to bed.

Mom, Dad, and I had dinner last night at Gregorio's, an Italian/Mediterranean restaurant in Chatham. They seem to specialize in unexpected flavor combinations that are nonetheless delicious. For example, the dipping sauce for their bread had balsamic vinegar, something reddish (probably tomato), and other things I couldn't identify. Odd, but tasty.

I had the calamari appetizer and then the ravioli special of the day, which happened to be lamb with tomato and scallions in a heavy cream sauce.

The calamari was served over some dressed field greens, with slivers of hot red and green peppers, and a spicy orange-colored sauce that might have contained horseraddish, among other things. Even more impressive, the squid itself was properly salted! (I often find that calamari is cooked to an excessively rubbery texture, or not salted enough, or served with too weak and watery a sauce. This was lovely.)

The ravioli was equally wonderful.

Dad had salad and roast lamb shank (cooked to perfection!), and Mom had warm asparagus with a slab of half-melted mozzarella cheese, and then balsamic pork tenderloin, which was also delicious -- we all traded a bite or two of our entrees.

Today Mom and I went to Susan's house for Cat's bridal shower, attended by us, Mrs. G (Susan's mom), Mrs. M (Cat's mom), her honorary Aunt Bev, and her other friend Sara T. We had conversation and a ridiculously lavish array of snacks and desserts, prepared by Susan, Mrs. M, and Mrs. G. Afterward, Cat, Susan and I decided to see Iron Man tonight, since Susan and I haven't seen it and Cat liked it enough to watch a second time.

Then I came home and walked my parents' dog. They're at the mall getting new cell phones -- which is good, since mine, after eight years of faithful service, has a crack in the casing -- so now I'm going to feed the dog as well.