zippers and mirrors

Yesterday, I finally tried on the black dress I got for my neice's wedding in February. I had not tried it on yet because I was waiting to have a mirror up to try it on in front of but now I am running out of time to make any returns or exchanges and it is obvious I am not getting a mirror here. Other than having a sticky zipper in back, the dress fits perfectly. As long as that zipper works, I have something nice to wear under a long coat. Now, to decide on what shoes I can wear with it. It is a midlength dress, so it will not be too warm and, with a classic shape, it will not look good with high boots that might keep my legs warmer. Dressing fancy is always a challenge.

Yesterday was the winter solstice. MonsterMustDie spent most of it working in the back yard, planting ferns from his mother's house and spreading mulch and breaking down a few more boxes to haul off to a dumpster. He sanded the ceiling of the living room in the afternoon and found more cracks and dents to plaster and leave to dry. I was expecting to finish painting the living room but ended up doing nothing. Spent most of the day pacing around the house or listening to BBC in the office while web-surfing. I could not find anything to be motivated about. No need to cook because there are plenty of leftovers from Saturday that need to be eaten now. There are cookies from a neighbor and sent by mail from a friend in Atlanta, so no need to bake anything.

A neighbor came by and brought a plate of home-made Christmas cookies that accompanied an invitation to a neighborhood get-together on New Year's Day. I RSVP'd yes immediately and was looking forward to having an opportunity to meet someone - anyone - in this place. I don't know any of our neighbors and this gave me something to look forward to here. Last night, knowing about my plans to meet the neighbors, MonsterMustDie phoned friends in Alabama who have recently purchased an apartment in Asheville, and made New Year's Eve plans with them in Asheville. He is not saying if this includes spending New Year's Day and night in Asheville (probably, but he's not saying) so I will have to cancel my RSVP to meet the neighbors.