Visible Woman - Planning and Reality

Early in the day we received a message on the answering machine. (We were relaxing at Upper Crust with a coffee and a pastry and the newspapers...trying to not be too tense.) It was one of our guests. She didn't say what she wanted. We figured she was canceling.

But she was asking if we could accommodate another guest. She would understand if it just wasn't possible. Well, hmm, we'd ordered extra food. We had accommodated thirteen so it was possible to pull up another chair. We might could get another set of plates from that high-toned emporium, World Market. So, we said yes. I printed a placecard. I found glasses and flatware and a napkin. I'd tied little Mexican charms around the napkins with a certain gold cord. Where did I put that? I found it again. Fortunately I had another of the charms in the table decoration.

FFP and I did go buy another set of plates. At the end of the day, it looked like we'd had a party for fourteen all along.

There is always that tense moment when the help is arriving and you are trying to get everyone situated. We had the two gals who were waiting, the two chefs, a singer and a guitar player all getting their stuff going. It was chaos. But it worked. The girls concentrated on squeezing limes and making margaritas. The chefs manhandled giant pans on my stove. (This is why I can't make dinner for fourteen...I don't have giant pans.) The musicians rehearsed. FFP and I tried to show everyone where things were. The chef wanted the 'biggest bowl you have.' I did have a giant aluminum bowl. I bought it to serve something for a party once.

When the guests arrived, the first few took wine (some red and some white) and we wondered if the mango margaritas would go wanting. But then those started to disappear at a frightening clip. The gals squeezed, I produced a portion of juice I'd squeezed last night and, in the end, they made five quarts with most of one left. They used all the sorbet including two brands that we'd never taste-tested.

FFP organized everyone like a general. He had the guests get quiet and the performers performed. The salads came out after the performance. We scurried around offering water and wine. Then clearing, more drink filling, and the main course got plated and served. In the kitchen we were snarfing the leftover passed apps and sharing some of the duck, beans and rice. When I saw everyone pleasantly tucked into their main course, I relaxed. I finally had one glass of wine.

FFP had marshalled the forces so thoroughly that all our guests were early to the after party, I think. They left with souvenir milagros and Mexican charms worth a few dollars, thrilled with them. (Rule of thumb: everyone likes swag...even millionaires. Not that everyone at the party was a millionaire. But there were some.)

The gals helped us rearrange all the furniture that we'd displaced to have a dinner party. They got most things washed and polished. FFP and I went to the after party ourselves and talked with people a long time. Oddly, we mostly talked to our party's guests. A nice camaraderie had built up, I guess. We talked about doing more things together. And maybe we will.

We were exhausted. But glad that all the big and little things had come together: entertainment, atmosphere, food and service...along with the people who were enjoying each other. There were exchanges of cards and notes. (When you have a dinner party and people ask to borrow pens...that's a good mix.) And...one of our charities is $1400 richer, too.

I still have to put some things away, wash linens and do a few things to get things in their normal spots. But mostly it's forgotten.

Usually after a party we have some breakage and we are left with someone else's property inadvertently left behind. We seem to have had neither this time around. Maybe it was all those milagros that provided the magic.