Sunday, June 13, 2004
Charlie's Angels couldn't have had more perfect weather or a more stunning setting for their afternoon graduation party yesterday. Held at Charlie's Angels 1 grandmother's house, the three halos of angelic blonde stood together in the garden holding three dozen festoon-ready green and pink balloons. Once the angels finished tying balloons to the upper deck, they made their way down to the pool area to wrap the tables in linens, gather ornate rocks from the garden to weight down the pink and green paper napkins, and fill cups with pink plastic forks, knives, and spoons.
Meanwhile Charlie's Angels 2's mother and I (which I guess makes me Charlie's Angels 3's mother) hauled ass to actually pull a party together that didn't appear to be on the grandmother's or Charlie's Angels 1 mother's calendar even so in thirty minutes one-hundred and fifty guests were due to arrive. You see the grandmother, an obviously former hippie, sat knitting in her chair when we arrived and her daughter (that would be Charlie's Angels 1's mother), was outside drinking a glass of wine and in deep conversation with her god child.
Well I guess when you are providing the perfect setting for a party, your work ends there. When you ARE the perfect setting i.e. three angels whose beautiful youthfulness can trump the harbor view into no-win humbleness, then your work is likewise done. That's not entirely fair. The angels were very good about accessorizing the area with feather-light ornamentation. They also made the fruit salad and filled bowls with candy. That left Anne (single working mom) and me (whose hubby was still recovering from jet lag yesterday) to haul in cases of drinks, boxes of burgers, bags of ice, folding tables, and umpteen bowls of salads. That left us to arrange the food, the outdoor chairs and tables, and start the grill.
However the moment the clock struck one and guests began to arrive, I positioned a pool chair facing the sun and pretty much didn't get up again until the end of the party when Anne and I were called upon for clean-up duty. I'm not complaining. The four hours of sun in such a pristine setting were enough to melt away entirely the long New England winter from my bones and to refresh my aesthetic sensibilities.
My own angel was quite helpful for a while with the clean-up but then joined the others to sort out their mountain of gifts. Charlie's Angel 1's mother sat by the pool polishing off another Corona ("She has a drinking problem," said the daughter angel later). "Look at you two! I haven't done a thing to help!!" But good for her. She had told me earlier that her father passed away recently and how emotional this party was for her. She had been crying all morning in fact. Did I think her eyes looked puffy?
Anne cried too that afternoon as we sat by the pool catching up. I had inquired about her ex-husband who used to help coach the son in soccer. The ex-husband can't beat his alcohol and drug addiction and is homeless and very sick. Death would be a blessing in a way because every time he comes into their lives for money or shelter, it tears their hearts out. They have finally realized that they have to 'let him go.' Anne is a fighter though and when gorgeous Charlie's Angel 2 came by to ask her mother whether they should bring out more fruit salad, Anne flashed a smile breathtaking enough to bedazzle the harbor, the sailboats, the crystal blue sky, and all three angels combined. I doubt Charlie's Angel 2 ever noticed the streak of tears around her mother's beautiful sad green eyes. If she did, Anne's daughter pretended not to notice as she flashed her own pearly white smile towards a group of smiling college-bound friends who had just arrived.
Meanwhile Charlie's Angels 2's mother and I (which I guess makes me Charlie's Angels 3's mother) hauled ass to actually pull a party together that didn't appear to be on the grandmother's or Charlie's Angels 1 mother's calendar even so in thirty minutes one-hundred and fifty guests were due to arrive. You see the grandmother, an obviously former hippie, sat knitting in her chair when we arrived and her daughter (that would be Charlie's Angels 1's mother), was outside drinking a glass of wine and in deep conversation with her god child.
Well I guess when you are providing the perfect setting for a party, your work ends there. When you ARE the perfect setting i.e. three angels whose beautiful youthfulness can trump the harbor view into no-win humbleness, then your work is likewise done. That's not entirely fair. The angels were very good about accessorizing the area with feather-light ornamentation. They also made the fruit salad and filled bowls with candy. That left Anne (single working mom) and me (whose hubby was still recovering from jet lag yesterday) to haul in cases of drinks, boxes of burgers, bags of ice, folding tables, and umpteen bowls of salads. That left us to arrange the food, the outdoor chairs and tables, and start the grill.
However the moment the clock struck one and guests began to arrive, I positioned a pool chair facing the sun and pretty much didn't get up again until the end of the party when Anne and I were called upon for clean-up duty. I'm not complaining. The four hours of sun in such a pristine setting were enough to melt away entirely the long New England winter from my bones and to refresh my aesthetic sensibilities.
My own angel was quite helpful for a while with the clean-up but then joined the others to sort out their mountain of gifts. Charlie's Angel 1's mother sat by the pool polishing off another Corona ("She has a drinking problem," said the daughter angel later). "Look at you two! I haven't done a thing to help!!" But good for her. She had told me earlier that her father passed away recently and how emotional this party was for her. She had been crying all morning in fact. Did I think her eyes looked puffy?
Anne cried too that afternoon as we sat by the pool catching up. I had inquired about her ex-husband who used to help coach the son in soccer. The ex-husband can't beat his alcohol and drug addiction and is homeless and very sick. Death would be a blessing in a way because every time he comes into their lives for money or shelter, it tears their hearts out. They have finally realized that they have to 'let him go.' Anne is a fighter though and when gorgeous Charlie's Angel 2 came by to ask her mother whether they should bring out more fruit salad, Anne flashed a smile breathtaking enough to bedazzle the harbor, the sailboats, the crystal blue sky, and all three angels combined. I doubt Charlie's Angel 2 ever noticed the streak of tears around her mother's beautiful sad green eyes. If she did, Anne's daughter pretended not to notice as she flashed her own pearly white smile towards a group of smiling college-bound friends who had just arrived.
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