Lori asked me to bring my camera with me when I came to her Christmas Party. Since it was my job to take everybody's picture I did. It was a nice party, friends of hers from an assortment of backgrounds. Some vegetarians, some transition movement types, and a couple of old friends that were along for the company.

        

  

Everybody brought something to add to the spread. Before she put anything out she made the bringer make a list of the ingredients to put on the table next to the dish. Anybody with an allergy would have had no trouble figuring out what not to eat. After my party Lori plundered my left overs for the best party ingredients that would last a week. The oranges were the only things that made it into this picture, the rest was on other tables. On the sign, instead of listing ingredients I just put "GROWN IN MOUNTAIN VIEW".

  

Before we hit the food we had a go around. Everybody just said their name. Then we shared a moment of spiritual silence looking forward to eating.

  

After the major eating was done Lori's neighbor from across the street dropped by for a while. She was an ex New Yorker, so we talked about what that State means in different way. I told her that usually when somebody tells me they are from New York I tell them "I've heard of New York." So many times I've introduced a couple of New Yorkers to each other, and they would get into a "New York trance", sharing stories of restaurants where they have both eaten. I think I referenced a pizza story, because the woman told me "best pizza anywhere." Yup. New Yorkers always think that. I still don't want to go there just to eat some of it.

  

     

  

After a while we saw this animated movie from Pixar about this group of wild animals from Madagascar that saved Christmas after Santa crash landed there late one Christmas eve.

Everyone liked it.

     

Then the kid decided she needed to take a picture of everyone wearing her white hat. What you see below is what we got.