This year we were facing a really, really quiet Christmas with our son in Germany and our daughter in LA, so some long-time friends (of 44 years) offered to come from Virginia to share the holiday with us. We had met them when we’d rented the bottom half of their duplex in Newport Beach, CA, the first year we lived there (see my recent Moving Stories post). We had so many adventures with them including a camping trip to Big Sur, when we were nearly washed away in a flash flood, but that’s a story for another time.
This year they offered to accompany us to Mass on Christmas Eve. Our church is always crowded for the holiday Masses, but we got there very early with the assumption we’d get a seat. No luck! The church was crowded and people were standing five deep. The seats in the narthex were also full. What to do? Of course! Grab a seat in an overflow room the size of a gymnasium with a closed circuit TV screen at the front. Just the thing, and so uplifting! With the 80 degrees temps outside, hardly felt like Christmas … but I did enjoy meeting two young boys who were sitting next to me, and together we counted the ceiling tiles while waiting for the people in the long lines for Communion to return to their seats.
On the way out, I ran into a plate glass floor to ceiling window, thinking it was a door. No damage to it or me, except bruised pride from the spectacle!
Christmas day, two colleagues from my former life as an academic at the University of North Carolina joined the four of us for dinner. As we were about to serve, I asked my husband, “Have you seen Elijah Moon recently?” Elijah is our much loved and very spoiled 18 pound orange striped cat. It was getting late in the afternoon, which we call “Coyote Time” since this is when these local predators emerge to hunt any smaller, four-legged prey. Naturally, we thought if Elijah was outside, he could become a meal. So we dropped everything, made two tours of the house to see where he might be lounging. Not finding him, headed outside, calling and whistling. Elijah may be lazy but he always comes when we call him, but not this time.
By now, our guests were sensing our distress and volunteered to join the hunt. Turns out it didn’t last long, since this is where he was, the whole time!
Hope you had a peaceful, love-filled, and memorable holiday!
On a sad note, I want to extend my prayers and sympathy to sister blogger Jo Robinson, who lost her husband yesterday (https://africolonialstories.wordpress.com/2015/12/26/on-hold/). I hope she will be back amongst us soon, and that support from our community will buoy her during in this hard time.
My cats always did that kind of thing to me, Noelle. I swear they were laughing at me! 😀 As for the window… yep that would have been me.
Happy end of 2015! (And thank you for letting us know about Jo 🙁 )
Yup, he was sitting right there the whole time thinking, “What? I’m right here!”
I saw Jo’s news. There is so little one can say, but I hope she knows there are people out there thinking of her right now.
I hope so..l.
OUCH on the glass door episode! I had one friend do that once but she actually broke the window and needed stitches! Glad you came out for the better. And what a silly cat. I am sorry to hear about your friend Jo.
I’m glad I didn’t break the glass – that would have been way more embarrassing!
I have walked into many a glass door – which is a very good reason why one should never clean ones windows! I had forgotten about the coyotes and the cat – it brought back wonderful memories when I lived in the countryside outside of Asheville – and in the evenings (watching the spectacular fireflies – Nature’s Christmas lights!) you could hear the calls of the coyotes in the mountain.
I think they cleaned them for Christmas!
I was afraid that you were going to say that Elijah was no longer with us. I just petted that cat last week so we are buddies now.
Oh, he’s definitely with us – annoying and self-centered, and running our lives!
Ha! Sounds like you had some adventures. That’s one clever cat! 🙂
Yes, and he’s lazy, too!
Ah, cats. He was probably trying to figure out how he could get his fur all over that nice plaid shirt, even though it was still wrapped in plastic. Advanced kitty skills. And laughing to himself the whole time you were looking for him.
I have no doubt. There are times when I swear his goal in life is to frustrate us!
That’s too funny about the cat! They do have a knack for hiding at the best/worst times. Sounds like you had a lovely Christmas! How nice that you were able to spend it with such good friends.
Yupl it was far nicer than we had imagined it would be, adventures and all.
Reblogged this on Barrow Blogs: .
I was smiling along with this post, Noelle, ready to laugh about those dang sneaky cats, and then read your note about Jo. I didn’t know. Thanks so much for the note 🙁
I hated to end with the sad news about Jo, but I know a lot of us read her blog and with the hit or miss nature of the holiday season, I thought i would pass the news along.
Thank you for the thoughtfulness. I do follow her, but missed it. Such heartbreaking.news.
Happy New Year, Noelle. I like the sound of your Christmas (I prefer a quiet one). I saw Jo’s post on the day she posted it. Terrible news.
It wouldn’t be a real visit with the Grangers unless there was a cat-related incident!
It was indeed quiet – next year will be more raucous with kids and in-laws here. There will be more cat adventures!
What kind friends, and I’m glad you had such a nice time (apart from the plate glass incident- yup, I do that stuff all the time 🙁 ). Sorry about Jo. I don’t know her but what a rotten time of year for it to happen. No good time, I know!
Health and happiness to you and family in 2016, Noelle, and thanks for your company. 🙂
Thanks for your company, too, Jo. I’m blessed to have creative and benevolent followers! Hate all the talk lately about stalkers and haters,,,