HAPPY NEW YEAR ONE AND ALL!!!!

Today is January First, 2011, or as some might see it, 01-1-11 OR 1-1-11.. isn't that weird?

Last night for new years I worked at a new years eve dinner dance one of my parishes holds annually.  I am in the coat check, and i'm in charge of coats, hats, bags, umbrellas, anything u want to give me..for $1 per coat.  It's not a terribly fulfilling job but it keeps me on my toes and gives me something to do new years eve (and helps me make a bit of slip money if u catch my drift).  I've been working this same crowd for the last (ball park it) 5-7 years and i know all the old familiar faces (both sober and inebriated) well.  Some of them tip and some don't, I have running jokes with a few old men that involve the lines "don't lose my hat" to which I always reply " i haven't lost it yet!" which makes them smile.  I've given a coat hanger to countless amounts of women out of sticky dress predicaments...it's always the same ones too... you know, the ones who come to the party in some form of clingy material gown that gets stuck to their pantyhose by the static generated from walking while wearing a floor length silk lined fur coat..talk about snappy and snazzy dressing.. here a fur, there a fur, everywhere a fur fur (oops-  a little too "old MacDonald had a farm-e-i-e-i-o" there...).  So yeah, after the mad rushes flock in from 5:30-7pm  everyone sits down to dinner, I get to close my door and I wait until one of the lovely waitresses (usually my sisters because u know with us every holiday/special occasion is a big family thing..because the family that works together or serves together in this instance Stays together.. *sigh*).  Then I eat my dinner and wait around listening eagerly for the slightest knock on my door for those few smart men who sensibly rationalize that its too cold to smoke outside "senza capotto" (Italian for Without You're Coat).  My night is mine until the late hours of the evening because no one leaves the dance prior to the new years countdown.  Then it's HAPPY NEW YEARS- BUON ANNO NUOVO!  CHAMPAGNE, KISSES AND HUGS ALL ROUND!

For a whole of maybe 7 minutes until I have to run back into my little closet (as my sister referred to it as) and return coats to the angry mob that's been waiting 3 minutes already so they can be the first to leave and "avoid the rush" whilst making a rush of chaotic semi drunken elderly people clump together behind them.  Then I get winks, toothy grins, singing and dancing men come to my window to pick up their coats and to spit out at me those o-too familiar words (in thick drunken slurry Italian accents ) "don't-a forget-a my cappeluccio".  I wish them all a happy new years, in both English and Italian and they walk out the door.  My night usually ends around 1..depending on when people decide to leave.. I can't go until the last coat has left my hands, because heaven forbid some one's coat should go missing or stolen in my absence.  And then I come home and go to sleep and get up for mass.

So that's what i did last night.. and I just returned home a bit ago from 11:30 am mass in English, because for those of you who don't know, New Years day is a mandatory day in the church calendar- the Canadian Catholic Conference of Bishops deemed it so, and therefore all Catholics are expected to attend mass on this day- we celebrate Mary-The Mother Of God on this day..It's very important. So if you haven't gone to mass yet today, you'd better get going! God is Watching You!

Anyway, that's my rant for the day, I hope you all enjoyed reading about my Christmas and such.. I'm extremely sore from the gym, I completed a while week of training sessions and now I'm going to be doing one a week since school starts up again for term 2 on Monday..My new years resolution is to drop some weight, get fit and feel better.. I am also going to be working on becoming a better person inside because I've been lacking in that area for quite some time..another resolution I have is to read every novel for my courses this term (believe me there a lot and some do tend to slip behind the desk..) and to work on improving my creative writing and get closer to completing one of my started novels...  What are you're new years resolutions? comment back and let me know! Remember you can always e-mail me (bilichc@hotmail.com) and please keep reading my posts- To my few but faithful followers (you know who u are!) Thanks so much for ending the year with me and Here's to the new year with more fun, more love, and more blog posts!!!!

Merry Christmas, Happy New Years and a Great Weekend to You All!!

XOXO
C
 PS- TO Dr &Mrs Smarty-Pants- Hope the "Fins" feels better ASAP and FYI, I made the corrections in Christmas post part 1..thanks for making me aware of it!! Love You ALL!!!