Holiday Happenings 2022. Subtitle: Spontaneous Jane Strikes Again.

 A few days ago I was busily working on Christmas gifts (you know – the creative kind that require time, attention and focus? The ones that during the middle of the project, you wonder if you shouldn’t have just headed to the mall?)

 

But, anyway, during the midst of those 14-hour days, I got a voicemail from my friend, St. Nick, inviting me to their Christmas party on Friday.

 

I didn’t have time to answer him – until the day before the party.

 

And I hadn’t really decided for sure if I was going since, well, the planner in me hasn’t been spontaneous enough to toss a quick overnight bag together and head off into the great unknown (a.k.a., Wintersville, Ohio) since the early 90s.

 

In the end, I knew that if I stayed home alone all weekend, I’d be kicking myself for not at least making the effort.

 

So I sent Maggie off to play with her doggie friends, gassed up the car, and hit the road.

 

It was full-on dark when I started my journey and I wondered if it was a smart move for a 63-year-old to be driving by herself at night – especially since I wasn’t overly familiar with the route.

 

And when I hit an area that had snow flying at my windshield hard enough that it looked like a meteor shower, I was seriously questioning my decision-making skills.

 

And, yeah, the planner in me realized I should have at least checked the weather report.

 

Nevertheless, I persevered until I arrived safe and sound at their beautifully decorated home with its twinkle lights and massive live Christmas tree flanking the entryway.

 

By then the party was in full swing – and I was able to hug my long-time friends – some of whom I hadn’t seen since before COVID.

 

I had planned to stay with one twin but ended up staying with the other since the first one spent a little too much time in the hot tub imbibing Christmas “spirits” – and was not up, perhaps, for hosting out-of-town guests. I’d say he had a good reason for the overindulgence, but for dignity’s sake, I won’t go into details.

 

(Hey, I try hard to keep my lifelong friends. And this is precisely why I would have never made a good reporter or gossip columnist!)

 

In between his, uh, “bouts of nausea” (let’s say), he had us laughing by admitting that we hadn’t seen him this bad since a certain Halloween party in the mid-80s when he overindulged and was lying in the dark in a pile of leaves. When his mom – “Mrs. B” – arrived at the party and was asking for him, we made some excuse to her, rushed out to the tree, and covered him up with the leaves.

 

Whether he remembers it – or has just heard us tell the story enough times that he thinks he remembers it – he still makes us laugh whenever he retells it.

 

And, by the way, that’s the last of the Steubenville Adventures I’ll share. Because he has ammunition against me, too, and might start talking about my one and only attempt at roof jumping. Which makes me sound crazy when he tells the story, but it makes a lot more sense when I tell it. (Sort of.)

 

Anyway…

 

The rest of us stayed up ‘til nearly 3 a.m. sharing stories and noshing on the sweets and Italian treats they had so thoughtfully provided for their guests.

 

Since I drank way more water than wine during the party, there was no hangover aftermath for me. Woohoo. Score one for the old broad who realizes that she’s no longer in her 20s – even though she’s hanging out with friends she’s known since her teens.

 

And, okay, so I only managed about three hours of fitful sleep and maybe wasn't feeling all perky and wide awake. But still. I felt pretty good.

 

Eventually, we all gathered in the kitchen drinking coffee and talking about plans for the day, which consisted of crossing state lines (well, truthfully, only across the bridge to Weirton, WV), to do a little Christmas shopping and then out to lunch.

 

We ended up in downtown Steubenville at an Antique shop and had lots of fun looking at all the treasures for sale.

In all the years I’ve been to Steubenville – including the three years I lived there working with Nick and Joe – I’d never seen the downtown filled with so many people. The Nutcrackers Display  may have something to do with that and it was a wonderful sight to see. Gotta love small town ingenuity and growth.

 

I have to admit that driving home was a little dicey, too. Again in the dark, but at least I was a little more familiar with the route. Again I saw a meteor shower snow spectacle, but at least the roads didn’t get slick until I was closer to home. So I simply slowed down and drove carefully and made it home safe and sound to my own little abode with its twinkling lights and miniature iridescent Christmas tree.

 

But spending time with friends who are more like family was the absolute best thing about this trip and I’m so very glad that Planner Jane was overruled by Spontaneous Jane.

So the best pieces of advice I can give you?

1. Take the trip. But maybe check the weather report first. And driving in the daylight hours couldn’t hurt.

2. Make the gift (if you can). It will make the recipient(s) feel good. And will make you feel even better.

 

Oh, and one more thing. Hot tubs and booze do not mix.

 

You’re welcome!

Thankful, Grateful and Blessed

On this Thanksgiving Eve when we turn our attention from all the Christmas decorations that are already on display to focus on mounds of turkey and stuffing and green bean casserole…er, I mean, we focus on all the things we have for which we are thankful – I thought I’d share a little story that happened to me just today.

 

I had met some friends for lunch in Powell and we had a great time catching up with each other. Unfortunately, we couldn’t make it a marathon gab session all afternoon as they had places to go and people to see. Which sounds way fancier than saying they had to pick up the grandkids and/or take a nap. Nevertheless, those were still important enough tasks that they had to run.

 

And so did I. Because I had some errands to run myself before the end of the day. Like stop at the bank. And the gas station. And the car wash. 

 

But before I could get to the first stop on my list, I spied with my little eagle eye the Home Goods store. Ohhh - my Happy Place. I love, love, L-O-V-E that store!

 

And Home Goods at Christmastime with all manner of shiny, sparkly things? I can’t even begin to tell you how much dopamine and serotonin flood my little brain.

 

So I parked and headed inside to snag a shopping cart even though I had only an item or two on my list should they happen to have those items in stock. With Home Goods, one can’t make any assumptions.

 

Except that one can always assume I will come out of there with things I had no idea I absolutely needed. Therefore, a shopping cart is mandatory.

 

Once inside, I found a plethora of shiny, sparkly things that called to me with their siren song of shimmer and glitter, but I practiced discretion as I no longer have the need (or desire) to decorate every square inch of surface space in my home. And I truly do have more than enough holiday décor.

 

But that didn’t stop me from winding my way around every single aisle in the store.

 

As I was wandering down the picture frame and candle aisle, a woman stopped me and asked if my name was Jane.

 

Surprised, I said it was. Meanwhile, my dopamine- and serotonin-filled little brain was frantically trying to place her. Did we meet recently at the Twig Bazaar? Was she someone I met at the widow’s group meeting I’d recently attended?

 

Had I – God forbid – run into her car in the parking lot in my haste to enter Home Goods and she had a friend at the BMV who told her who owned the grey Passat with the sparkly license plate?

 

Evidently, she saw the gears turning because she quickly pointed out that I didn’t know her.

 

Then she went on to say that she had been friends on Facebook with Vince. Her husband was in the car business and she inadvertently asked to be Vince’s friend. He asked her if he knew her and she explained who her husband was. And she graciously told him he didn’t have to accept her friend request.

 

But of course, he did.

 

And she said she just loved how idyllic our life seemed to be. That it made her heart happy that Vince loved me (“His Janie”) so much. And that we were always doing something fun and interesting – and that she enjoyed reading about our dinners out or our adventures on the trips we took.

 

Clearly, she knew me by the multitudes of photos Vince took of me on every occasion – whether it was a simple meal or a fancy wedding or a once-in-a-lifetime trip.

 

And then she told me how truly sorry she was that he had passed.

 

I cannot begin to tell you how much it meant that she stopped me. She even said she was not sure she should because she didn’t want to make me sad.

 

I told her I’m already always sad – but that I was so grateful that she did stop and talk to me. It made my heart happy that Vince had such an affect on people that someone who never even met me before recognized me in Home Goods.

 

If there is a list we’re compiling tomorrow on things for which to be grateful, having had my Vince for thirteen years tops mine. And having someone remember him to me is also incredibly special.

 

So however you spend your Thanksgiving holiday – eating lots of candied yams and pumpkin pie – or watching football – or dropping a turkey in a vat full of boiling oil – I wish you (well, besides a lot o’ luck with both your football team and the deep-fried turkey thing), lots of love and happiness.

 

And I hope you spend the day with people you love.

 

Happy Thanksgiving!

 

Oh, and PS. If you ever wonder if you should talk to someone about their loved one who has passed – always, always talk to them. We yearn to hear that others remember them and miss them, too.