Advent

Learning to manage life with a chronic illness means I have to let go of the housekeeping guilt. I didn't vacuum, but I did the dishes and unloaded the dishwasher. I didn't get to Wegman's, but I got the presents wrapped and my bag packed to head to Alien Boy's and then my folxen. I didn't get to travel to see my aunt in New York, so I could have a chance of making it to midnight mass (not to mention my mother was making noises about the weather, even in my Subaru). It's a challenge to not feel disappointed at what I didn't do, what I could have done, what I think I should have done. I didn't even muster up the energy to revive the Sarah HB Mostly Annual Christmas Tree Extravaganza for what may well be my last year in Bethlehem.

But it will be Christmas just the same. The candles will be lit in my parents' windows, the hymns will be sung. The snow may or may not fall; it may be slush. We may burn the first waffle again this year--some traditions always hold. But the Christ child will come: whether you believe in the story or not, a reminder of what really matters.

And that I have, in abundance.

Who's the Turkey Now?

It was Thanksgiving in Three Feathers a few days ago, which meant not only the usual hilarity about a misplaced grand piano (apparently my mother, my two sisters, and I are the only people on the planet ever to have read Home Sweet Homicide, because this joke makes precisely zero sense to the rest of the populace), it also meant that my mother had bought several boxes of Advent candles. I am forty-five damn years old, and I have never once bought my own Advent candles. The two years I lived in Spokane, my mother actually mailed them to me from 2600 miles away. Because, you know...moms.

I pointed this out when my dad called the week before Thanksgiving to find out if I had recently acquired any orphans who would be joining us for dinner (don't laugh, it's happened. More often than not, actually. One year the orphan was trapped at work because an NPR party don't stop, so I brought Thanksgiving to him, but that's another story entirely). Before ringing off, he added, "Oh, and Mother has bought you Advent candles."

What? Of course she has. It would only be news if she hadn't. Between this and Home Sweet Homicide, sometimes I wonder how my dad puts up with us. Then I remember that for five years he and I had a standing date Thursday nights to take out the trash and hold hands on the walk back--our driveway is quite long, so it's enough of a walk to catch up on stuff--and that every time I visit them to this day, I still try to arrange it on a Thursday. When I realised somewhat belatedly that Thanksgiving was a Thursday yet again this year (how does that always happen? And how do I always manage to be surprised by it?) I actually said, "Ooo, it's trash night!"

So yeah. Maybe he's in with the right crowd.

That crowd, however, had a bit of a malfunction this year surrounding the Advent candles. When my mom found my set and tucked them into my briefcase, there were four of us in the room, not counting the turkey. Among the four of us there are five master's degrees, one juris doctor, and fully 9/10 of a Ph.D.

I mention this because it wasn't until two days later than anybody noticed that for the past eight years my Advent wreath gets stored at my parents' house. Which meant it was still in the attic when I left Thursday night, laden with candles and three different kinds of leftover pie.

Every year Solstice manages to forget how fire works.
Also, how the dining room table works, which is by not having cats on it.

You're Welcome

As I take a breather between pie crusts I am thinking about the way Thanksgiving is in my family. We take our Robert Frost and our Dorothy Day very seriously in these parts.

I think about my senior year in high school when Betsy's family left for Long Island before we got back from marching band, and as we sat down to eat the doorbell rang and there was Betsy holding out a bouquet of flowers she'd stopped at ShopRite for because she didn't want to show up empty handed. "Hi, I'm Betsy. Sara said it was okay to come over?"

And I'm reminded of the first Thanksgiving I ever hosted (my second Thanksgiving away from home; Daryl and I went to Brodsky's our first year) and suddenly calling Meg's mom and saying "Jane, how do you actually cook a turkey?" And five minutes before dinner, Kary and Georgia showed up with a Mrs Smith's pumpkin pie and some whipped cream and said, "We decided we wanted to have Thanksgiving after all, is it okay?"

And the one and only Thanksgiving I was married, when we had Thanksgiving on a Saturday because that's what you do when you're a chef, and all four of our parents and at least a couple of our siblings and some waitstaff from his restaurant and of course Robin showed up and it was a madhouse but it was our madhouse, and Robin just took over everything that my husband wasn't doing without asking if it was okay because he was Robin.

And I think of the night a few years ago when I loaded up my parents' cooler with leftovers to bring to the station for Alien Boy and the desk guard on duty and as I was leaving I heard my dad tell my mom, "I put in the rest of the apple pie to make sure there was enough, was that ok?" and my mom answering, "Good because I was worried that just the pumpkin wouldn't be enough." It was okay. It was more than okay.

It will always be okay. That's what it means, that phrase. It's not a formality when someone says thanks. It's what this house has always stood for, and will always stand for, no matter who occupies it.

You are welcome.

Got His Goat

A few years back, Alien Boy briefly owned a goat named Oliver Twist. I say "owned" with some looseness, though. First of all, you don't really own an animal if you're Alien Boy. It owns you. Secondly, I recently learned the full story of this hircine acquisition, and....well. How can I say this delicately?

It turns out my boyfriend once stole a goat.

No, it wasn't a fraternity prank, either. He just flat-out yoinked a goat.

Now. Before I make him out to be some sort of professional goat-rustler, poacher, or outright felon, let me explain. This goat was one of a small herd at a local business establishment. Said establishment apparently kept the goats for novelty. They weren't even really a petting-zoo type of establishment. The goats were just....lawn ornaments, corralled in a small pen. To this day neither of us understands it, really, particularly given the specifics of the business. Anyway. Behold, this small array of goats. Behold, Alien Boy partaking of the offerings of this business. Behold, Alien Boy being the most sentimental animal-lover ever to exist in this dimension or any other, sidetracking towards the goats to say hello. And say hello he did, for long enough to notice that one of the goats seemed unwell.

Being a good Alien Boy and aforementioned adorer of Animals, All Sorts, he notified the owners of said business. "One of your goats is ill. He needs attention and possibly a visit to the vet."

The business owners seemed unimpressed with this observation.

Several weeks later, Alien Boy once again visited this establishment, partly for its advertised purpose, but mostly (to be perfectly honest) to visit the goats. His friend was now quite ill. So he approached the business owners again. "Your goat is still very, very sick. I'm really worried about him."

No particular response, and no action. A few nights later, on passing the business, the goat was still there, and still quite obviously not thriving.

So Alien Boy hatched a plan. He borrowed a friend, and her truck, and under cover of darkness, they....shall we say liberated the goat, and brought it back with them. A visit to the vet confirmed that, yes, the goat was in dire straits and not likely to live. Being who he is, my beloved partner brought the goat into his home.

And I mean into his home.

Oliver Twist

Oh, yes. Yes he did. It quickly became clear that he would not be nursing his new-found friend back to health, but rather making his last days comfortable and filled with love.

And friends, filled with love it was. Oliver Twist slept wrapped in towels by the fire, handfed the finest grass and maple leaves the abundant yard could provide. Towards the end, when he was unable to muster much of an appetite, Alien Boy played him classical music on the CD player, which believe it or not actually worked. Only when listening quietly to his favourite composers could Oliver Twist summon the energy to eat.

Sadly, Oliver Twist was not long for this world. He never got to live outside the way most goats do, for it was a chilly spring when he came home to live with Alien Boy. He is buried out in the backyard now, with the bell from his collar to mark his grave under the maple tree that nourished him. And a week after he died, the friend who helped save him brought over a hand-felted replica of Oliver Twist, who now resides atop the mantelpiece clock.

How he would like to be remembered

This story, though, does not have a sad ending. Oliver Twist may no longer be with us (which, frankly, the cats are pretty relieved about, as uncertain as they were about sharing their domicile with something hooved. And let's face it, those diamond pupils are pretty creepy to see staring at you when you get up to pee in the middle of the night.) but the memory of his suffering is much redeemed by the vision of my beloved partner tying on his metaphorical superhero cape in the dark of night and going off into the wilds of suburban New Jersey to abscond with some livestock. And then bringing it home, and not only letting it inside, but letting it on the couch with him while he watched The Rachel Maddow Show.

Truth be told, I'm kind of sad I wasn't able to go along on the rescue mission. Because that would have been an awesome thing to add to my resume.

It Seemed Worth Mentioning

I've been pretty open recently about my struggles with depression and self-harm. This afternoon I had to fill out the NCHA survey--and remind me to tell you how funny it is to fill that form out as a 45-year-old. All of the sexual health questions are geared toward people half my age, and don't take into account that my partner is in his fifties. All of the alcohol-related questions are geared toward assessing binge drinking and hazing-type behaviours--and while I greatly appreciate this at a university that saw four students brought to the ER last semester for alcohol poisoning, I can't adequately convey in my answers the part where mostly when I drink, it's with my parents. At the dinner table. Or occasionally to celebrate someone's retirement. We are dealing with a whole different set of relationship issues, here, fellas.

Anyway, that's not the point. The point is this. I thought some of you might like to know.