4 posts tagged “dickens”
Today was a culmination of months of anticipation and excitement -- the Dickens Christmas Fair! And let's just say I am definitely thinking I'd like to go again next year, and if I can somehow manage it, I'd like to go in full Victorian attire. Anyway, that's next year. Today was a ton of fun. We didn't do as much dancing as I had expected, but that didn't make it any less enjoyable. And frankly, after the waltz I danced with Joe's friend Eric, I don't know how much I could've handled without taking looooong breaks between songs. See, in this waltz dance, Eric spun me around the room and I felt like I was on the teacup ride at Disneyland...only instead of bright pastel colors whirring all around me, it was dark, festive, Christmasy colors...which is not any more or less dizzying, per se; I'm just trying to give you a visual here. So, as I struggled to decide whether it was easier to focus on Eric's forehead or on something else that WASN'T moving in the same direction as me, the only thing that kept me from totally freaking out was Eric's promise that if I leaned back against his hand while we spun, he would definitely not let me fall on my face (or worse). And he didn't! And it was fun. And if I had had on a great big Victorian hoop skirt thingy, I would've felt sooooo cool. Instead, I felt dizzy, slightly silly, and yet completely satisfied by the experience.
There are a million and one things I could write about the fair today. I mean, there was tons to see, to do, and to eat, and Joe and I probably only scratched the surface in getting the complete fair package. We got to sit down to tea (which necessitated a reservation first, of course), at which time I also had rum cake...yummy! We saw an abridged version of Pirates of Penzance, which was delightfully absurd. We spotted Scrooge throughout the day as he journeyed through the whole story of A Christmas Carol. We did lots of exploring in shops where people were selling everything from puzzle rings and boxes to corsets and hats and other attire. I mean, talk about trinkets galore! And we saw a rather risqué show called the French Portraits, which was part comedy, part literary allusions, and part...erm...parts, if you will. (Oh heck, there was nudity. There, I said it.) We heard Christmas carolers from time to time. And we checked out the closing ceremony-type thing, Mad Sal's Blowout, where most of the cast performed a set of hilarious songs, concluding with an even MORE hilarious version of the 12 Days of Christmas, complete with motions and props -- and PG-rated versions of the French Portraits. And yet, in spite of all that we DID do at Dickens, as I said, there was tons more we could've seen or done. Which is exactly why I want to go again next year.
Oh, and I also wanted to recount yesterday's adventures, too. Joe and I started up from Santa Barbara around 8:00 yesterday morning, and made it to San Francisco by about 2:00, even after stopping briefly at the Madonna Inn to check out their "famous men's restroom." Seriously, the concierge TOLD Joe to show it to me. (I'll be putting pictures up from the whole weekend on Facebook in the next few days...) So anyway, the plan was to hang out at Pier 39 (Fisherman's Wharf) for a bit, then maybe check out Buena Vista and Ghirardelli Square before we met up with Eric and Lisa, our hosts for the weekend. But alas...we were slightly lacking in the direction/familarity-with-the-area department, and thus mistakenly parked in a big (REALLY confusing and scary) parking structure close to Pier 40, assuming that 39 was right next to it. However, we shortly discovered, from the help of a weirdly-dressed (are we surprised?) guy, that the piers were split up by odd and even numbers, and therefore, Pier 39 was two miles away. We started walking to see just how far it really was, and when we finally reached, like, Pier 14 or something, we hailed a taxi to take us the rest of the way. I was thankful, not only because my feet were already crying, but also because I had never been in a taxi in America until yesterday. So I finally got to get in one and hear the driver speak English!
Anyway, we mosied around Pier 39, checked out some shops and ate yummy crepes, and then started walking back toward Pier 40, hoping to again catch a cab to take us most of the way there. I'm actually really glad we walked the ENTIRE way back, because it warmed me up, and it was nice to just be hand-in-hand with Joe in a different place, where we could observe people, buildings, and awesomely-colored trees! You laugh, but I'm used to seeing mostly green or brown...all year long. So these mysterious trees with bright yellow leaves were stunning to me, as we the BASKETBALL-SIZED leaves that were all over the place. Seriously, I picked one up that was the size of my head.
Not that my head is as big as a basketball...at least I hope it isn't.
So, we made it back to Joe's car, and headed straight to Eric and Lisa's, since we had run out of time to go to Ghirardelli's. We had a nice, relaxing night chatting with E & L, eating Eric's delicious marinated steak and cheesy, bread-crumby asparagus, and went to bed to dream about the next day's merriment at the Fair.
(Sorry for the backwards order of my stories.)
All in all, this has been (thus far) a wonderful weekend! Tomorrow it looks like Joe and I may head out somewhat early to spend some time in Monterey before we trek back down to Santa Barbara.
As much as I complain about cold weather, I really do love getting into a different environment, exploring new things, and especially just having fun with Joe wherever we are. And I love that it's so easy to have fun with him just about anywhere, and even when we get lost or our plans change anywhere from slightly to drastically.
Oh, and I did manage to finish reading A Christmas Carol on the way up yesterday, but Joe wouldn't let me start Oliver Twist. I read a few pages of it this morning when I was waiting for the shower, and I think I can probably finish it this month. So there's the update on that.
Alas, I think I will finish this up with a line from Dickens that I really enjoyed yesterday:
"It is a fair, even-handed, noble adjustment of things, that while there is infection in disease and sorrow, there is nothing in the world so irresistibly contagious as laughter and good-humour."
Nice, isn't it?
Until tomorrow!
Ack, Ben! You're 15 today. Hooooooolllllly cow. I can't believe it. Pretty soon you'll be 25, and I'll be an old fart like Mom and Dad. Hehe! I'm so funny.
Charles Dickens! Joe and I are about to head up north to the Dickens Fair, and during the 5 hour drive I plan to finish reading A Christmas Carol, AND make a significant dent in Oliver Twist. Think I can do it?
Anyway, just wanted to make a quick morning post in case the day is too busy to do one later. Gotta stick to a post-a-day, right? Woot! Thanks for sticking with me, Wilbur. Hope everyone has a fantastic weekend.
So I've been reading Charles Dickens lately. And by 'lately' I mean, I read one of his books about two or three months ago (Hard Times), then about a month ago I started Nicholas Nickelby but haven't even come close to finishing, and last week I started A Christmas Carol and will definitely finish it this week. Possibly today. And I also have in the line-up: A Tale of Two Cities, Great Expectations, and I think one or two others. Plus finishing N.N., of course.
Anyway, the whole reason I decided to pick up some Dickens reading is because I'm going to the Dickens' Christmas Faire up in San Francisco THIS WEEKEND! I'm...SOOO...excited. I don't really even know what it's going to be like, what it will entail, or why I get all giddy with butterflies about it. Maybe I'm just excited to spend a fun, unique weekend with Joe doing something that he initated and which also sounds like a great time for a nerdy English-major girl like myself. So, we'll see what happens. I also get to meet a couple more of Joe's good friends, which is always a great experience. (No, seriously...I don't think I've ever met a friend of Joe's that I didn't like. He knows how to pick 'em.) :-)
In other news: I'm just starting week two of December's NaBloPoMo challenge, and it's already been pretty tough. I think it'll be easier once I have internet at my house again (tomorrow? *crosses fingers*), but it's definitely also hard because of this time of year. It's inevitably really busy, whether with holiday parties, Christmas shopping, visiting family and friends, being sick (sadly something that seems to happen this time of year EVERY year for me), or whatever. And I'm also trying to keep up with going to the gym at least 2-3 times a week, and running once or twice a week too. So throw a daily blog requirement in there on top of all that AND working 40 hours a week...and I basically don't know how I still manage to sleep every night. But alas...I love this time of year. It makes me happy. Christmas music. Yummy goodies. Time with special friends and family. Celebrating Jesus. (Okay, that one shoulda been first in the list...my bad.) It's alllllll great. All except getting sick. And I'm glad I got that overwith a few weeks ago during Thanksgiving time. (Crap, now I've probably jinxed myself and am gonna get sick twice this season...oops!)
The end, for now.
So last night I got the results from a blood test I had a couple weeks ago when I had a really fun (note sarcasm) allergy test. My doctor, Zeb (we're on a first-name basis...mostly cuz I can't remember his last name), did a skin test, poking my back with 42 different allergens, the results of which were almost comical. Joe says it takes longer to list what I AM allergic to than what I'm NOT allergic to. So anyway, a few of my skin test results were bad enough that Zeb wanted to follow up with blood tests on them. Peanut, sesame seed, and mustard. Now the odd thing is, I don't think he actually DID a skin test for mustard, and I thought the third blood test ingredient was going to be walnut (which did have a reaction on the skin test). But I guess I was mistaken, and he chose mustard because of my verbal explanation of reactions I've had when eating things that have mustard on them. Anyway, the results of the blood test are: yes, I'm allergic to mustard. No, I'm "probably not" allergic to peanut. Yes, I'm allergic to sesame. He recommends that if I want to eat sesame seed or anything containing sesame seed oil, etc., I should do it first under his supervision in the office. This was all written in his ever-so-legible doctor's scrawl on the results I got in the mail last night. He says, "Avoid mustard." And to that, I say, crap. I like mustard.
Anyway, I did a little research on what kinds of foods contain mustard (because it's not just yellow table mustard, but mustard seed, powder and flour? Did anyone else know that they make mustard flour?)...and basically, if I really am going to try to figure out this whole stupid allergy thing in my body, I think my life is going to become considerably (read: exponentially) more complicated in the coming days, months, years. I may have to start some kind of rotation or elimination diet to filter out all the possible allergy foods and reintroduce them one at a time... But even aside from that, I think I'm gonna have to start reading the ingredient lists on EVERYTHING. Bah. Darn you, Zeb. Couldn't you have just said, "Yes, you have some food allergies, and we have a miracle shot that we can inject into your body and fix everything!" That would've been nice. Heck, I'd even take a freaking weekly injection if it meant I could just eat in peace, without stressing over what I can and can't have because of this or that ridiculous allergy.
I think what is most unpleasant to think about right now, is that if I want to see a nutritionist or dietician who could help me plan a proper food-allergy rotation/elimination diet routine, I have to pay my regular doctor the stupid copay that they make me pay every time I'm in there, JUST to get his friggin' signature on a referral to ANOTHER doctor, who will ALSO charge me a copay. Bah. Humbug.
I'm also reading Dickens' Christmas Carol right now. Can you tell? :-D It's actually pretty short. I can't believe I haven't read it before now. I think I might finish it this week...and I started it on Monday. Go me!
P.S. Next weekend, I'm going to the Dickens Christmas Fair in San Francisco. Sooooo excited! I hope they have sans-mustard-and-sesame food items for me to devour. *furrows brow* Here we go.
