Sunday, February 04, 2007

Working on SuperBowl Sunday?

My, how things change. Literally, every year since I was born, my family always had a big blowout Superbowl party [er, 'big game' party, since the S-word is trademarked] -- a big buffet table covered with ribs, chicken wings, Korean meat sticks (Insoon Rim's recipe!), deviled eggs, antipasto, pigs in blankets, Mexican dip, shrimp cocktail, fruit platters, garlic bread knots, a football shaped cake...you name it. Sometimes it was just the five of us, sometimes we had a packed house. I remember when the Giants were in the Superbowl and it came down to that last field goal kick....we all got up off the couch, held hands, and were general spazzes until the kick was made. It was the best time you could ever imagine. People crashed our party once...yammering teenage girls who wanted to be near my brother's friends, which drove my parents out of the room to watch the game on a separate TV. It was a staple of my family's traditions.

This year, though, we're all exhausted from cancer world (4 years now!) and with my brother not coming and Dad's back hurting, there's not going to be a party. No Korean meat sticks. It's only for this year, but I'm a little weepy about it. Why in this challenging time for our family would tradition mean LESS? I just don't get it, but I can't fight the tide. Both of my parents just want quiet this year, so that's what we will do. But next year.....next year brings out the big gourmet spread again.

Joe and I are going to his friend's Big Game party, and I had one of those blissfully domestic days baking four batches of my chocolate chip cookies (laughing because the doilies I put on the bottom of the tray are SO not football-party-appropriate). The house smells like chocolate right now. So while it's surreal that both Joe and I are spending most of the day working until the party later, there's a bittersweet flow of how life changes shape and new things emerge. I'm caught between the nostalgia of wanting to hold on to family tradition and the excitement of watching the game at Jim & Joanie's party with my favorite person.

We celebrated our anniversary last night with a great dinner out, and then we hung out by the fireplace to watch a bunch of home flipping shows -- we'll be looking at a house that could be a contender, so my entire house value education comes from HGTV and TLC. I just learned to bring a marble along when you look at a house to see if the floor sags or slopes. Good to know. I'm curbing my looking ahead at the inevitable day when we find our place...but I do know that I'd like a great entryway with a table and mirror, a coat closet with new hangers, and a big, leafy plant. The rest hasn't taken imaginary form in my mind yet, which is all willpower for me. The writer's imagination can create amazing things. Right now, it's all about if the rooms are big enough and if there's mold in the basement. ;)

My procrastination is getting evident, so it's back to the handbags article. Check out the amazing clutches and zigzag bags at www.cleoandpatek.com if you're shopping for your spring bags like I am....