Janelle, Gesualdo, and other tales

I'm wondering if I'm going to get sick. I was with Luke Warm the other day and he was in the throes of a nasty cold. And yesterday, Spira came home from school with one of her own that was pulling and prodding at her. I'm not too worried about catching what they've got, because in my mind I was the carrier and won't suffer through the same misery. Maybe next time one of them will be the carrier and I'll be the sick one, but not this time, suckers!

Feast or famine. Some Friday nights it seems like absolutely nothing (say it again) is going on and then there's a plethora of activity on others. That was last night and it was to be expected, given the time of year. There were four options made available to me: I could go to New Hampshire and attend my friends Karen and Aaron's poker game/Christmas party; I could go to my friend Andy's party in Andover with Luke Warm; I could go out and grab a few drinks with a former co-worker of mine; or I could go nowhere and have Janelle come down from New Hampshire and the three of us ---Janelle, Spira, and I---could have dinner together.

I had tentative plans with my co-worker friend, Mike, earlier in the week to go out and grab a beer sometime. He told me he'd get back to me to cement the plans. He never did. I always feel like I'm being pushy or intrusive if I call someone when they specifically told me that they'd be doing the calling. When Thursday night arrived and I still hadn't heard from him, I put aside my apprehension and called him. I got his voice mail and left a message. I still haven't heard back from him. I'm not angry, though; this is how things have gone between us for a while now, though I can't explain why.

That left me open to explore the other options. All were appealing: I know I'd enjoy going to Aaron and Karen's and seeing folks, like Frank, that I haven't seen in a long while. And going to Andy's party would be great for the same reasons. And seeing Janelle is always a pleasure, though rare. So what to do? Well, Spira helped make my decision for me. As I mentioned earlier, she got sick yesterday. The best thing for her to do was to come home from class in the evening and not have to hurry up and get ready to go out somewhere. Janelle coming to our place turned out to be the best option.

I love seeing Janelle. She's one of the smartest and kindest women I know. And she's a looker, to boot. She came to the house around five and we caught up on things while preparing dinner. Janelle had constructed the menu beforehand and brought all the ingredients with her. We had an amazing salad with---christ, I can't remember the name of the grain. It looked like birdseed before it was boiled. Anyway, it had that and black beans and Goddess dressing. Delicious! Another dish was with blanched carrots and feta cheese. For the main course, we had yummy falafel with ---and I know I'm not spelling this right--- tzadziki. Add a bottle of wine and the music of Gesualdo, and you've got a good time on your hands. Though we don't get to see her too often, it's always a pleasure being with Janelle.

After she left, I watched some of Rashoman (by the way, if anyone can tell me why I'm not able to get the italic function to work, I'm all ears). It's the Kurosawa film that really put him on the map internationally, but one I never liked as much as some of his other's. When I watched it last night, though, I enjoyed it more than I ever have. Part of the reason for this is because I paid more attention to the cinematography and editing, which are both are exceptional.

I have loose plans to go to Harvard Sq with Luke Warm and possibly Spira, to do some late Christmas shopping. Considering the fact that both are sick and that it's raining out, I'm not sure if this adventure will happen.