The Best Laid Plans
Posted: December 4, 2023 Filed under: Uncategorized 1 CommentIt is a good thing I used to have a catering business otherwise today could have been a disaster I might not have recovered from.
My plan for my party today was to get up and assemble the lunch I was serving. Since it is the same lunch I am also serving at my party this Thursday I am not going to reveal today what it is, but suffice it to say, it is something that takes lots of work to prepare.
I had set the table four days go, but forgot that I needed to needlepoint two place cards for two new members of our group. So in the midst of checking the table at 9:45 I realized my mistake and ran upstairs to quickly needlepoint the missing place cards.
I finished by 10:15 and went back to the kitchen to finish the lunch prep. The guests were due at 11:00 and I knew I had plenty of time. Well, that was before a three quart container of cilantro lime dressing fell on the floor.
I had spent hours perfecting that dressing and 85% of it was on the floor, the cabinets, the dishwasher, my shoes and my dress. It took 20 minutes of mopping, 10 minutes of recreating more dressing and 15 fast minutes of prepping the food. With one minute to spare I changed my dress and the first guest came in while I was still upstairs, but you could not tell the disaster that had just occurred.
In spite of all that the Needlepoint Christmas party was as fun as ever. Gorgeous ornaments were stitched by all. My friend Jeanne made me a French butter 3-d ornaments that I adore. We had a fun lunch and then a little puzzle activity I had planned.
It was wonderful to be together and share in our love of needlepoint and each other. Some of these women I don’t get to see much as I am off on my Mah Jongg tour so it was nice to catch up and hear what is going on with them.
It made no difference that the dressing spilled all over the kitchen. Thankfully I had plenty of extra ingredients to recreate it. My years of catering gave me the muscle that makes you just push through the disaster and fix it. No crying over spilled cilantro lime.
Less Dana, More Good 
wow, you are a powerhouse. I used to work for a caterer and know that there is almost always some behind the scenes disaster, but as long as the guests/clients are happy, and the show goes on, all good.