Party Till the Chocolate Chips

The party last Friday night was a success. My outfit was suitable once I tied the waist as tightly as I could with a black scarf AND put on the highest heels I owned so as not to drag the pants on the ground. Here's a pic. Be sure to notice how Rich looks as if he's off to have the time of his life. It's because I and my sister-in-law had just been talking about dancing.



As it turned out, there was no dancing that evening, but we did have a wonderful time. The restaurant showed me why sometimes beef is actually worth $40 (but only if I'm not buying...) and that really good red wines even pair well with lobster. Basically, it was a killer restaurant. Yummy, even. The best mushrooms, spinach, and white au gratin potatoes in the world. Or at least in my relatively small realm of experience.

After dinner our group, which consisted of six couples and one single guy, walked across Glenwood to visit a private club called Havana's. It turned out to be a cigar bar (who'da guessed, right?) but it was cozy and comfy and had a dart board we monopolized for a couple hours. Damon beat the boss and the boss's wife was from Sweden so she kept saying "Hit the wall!" in a very dry wit which cracked me up. On the way home, Damon burst into a rendition of "The Greatest Love of All" by Ms. Whitney Houston. I did not know why he started it, but I joined in for all I was worth.

Basically, a very nice evening of luxury and good company that was fully funded by the company, liquor and all, or should I say "all the liquor?" Which was fine because Rich was the DD for me, Damon, and Angela. So it was a good night....

Followed by my Sunday morning plans to bake cookies. I've always baked chocolate chip cookies for Christmas season, often passing them out to neighbors and friends as I tend to bake way, way too many. I use the same recipe every year. The same recipe my own mother has used for years and years. (This year I even had a good oven instead of the horrible gas oven that came with the house. The door wouldn't even close on that monster. We pitched it last summer.) But the cookies. Oh, the cookies turned out badly and I cannot figure out why. I have a reputation for burning things and this batch of cookies isn't going to help. But because they turned out so ugly they are funny, I'm offering myself up for entertainment value. Observe, the scene of the crime.



How the poor things came out so FLAT, I cannot figure.



And how these came out both flat and BURNED is, again, a mystery.



Those of you who are married to people who can cook? Love them. Appreciate them. Eat THEIR cookies. And send me some, would you? I have none for my holidays now!