Par-tay Time.

I've spent so much time out of the house over the past couple days that I'm hiding inside today, lurking in front of the computer and taking occasional breaks to do chores. In the past two days I've been to a Passover Seder dinner party, a baby shower, and a Pig Roast Planning Party. Seriously.

Friday Rob and I went to the City to bring back Fumi's cat Clio, who we've been cat-sitting for the past four months or so while Fumi was out of the country. I believe we fattened her (the cat) up by at least two pounds, but she's still no match for our big burly cat (above). While in SF with Fumi, we had sushi and ramen for lunch at Hotei, then went to the DeYoung Museum for a while before heading to Fumi's boyfriend Rohan's house in Berkeley for the Passover Seder dinner party. His housemates hold twice-monthly potlucks and other random events celebrating all manner of holidays and what-not. There were about 25 or 30 people there, and the organizers had made photocopied packets of information about various Passover traditions, foods, songs, prayers, etc. and were reading it aloud as a group when we arrived.

Needless to say, it was very educational for us, as non-Jewish persons (though I should add the probably most of the group was not Jewish). I wasn't entirely comfortable because I knew a total of about two people there, besides Rob. But most people were pretty friendly, and the wine was freely flowing.

Saturday I went to a baby shower for my sister-in-law, who's expecting her second boy-child toward the end of next month. I really hate baby showers, or any showers, really. Girly parties are not my thing. I was also dreading it because at her last baby shower I got asked obnoxious questions about when I was going to have children. However, this was a much smaller affair and lacking in the nosy relatives department, which was fine with me. Nobody asked me the question, which was a little disappointing as my planned answer was to say "before I'm 67."

Then, in the evening, we went to a Pig Roast Planning Party. Last summer, a co-worker of Rob's who teaches computer graphics hosted a pig roast at his house, which is on the outskirts of town surrounded by orchards and stuff. It was pretty awesome. They roasted a very large pig on a spit, had other food and drink, and 50-plus people came and partied on into the evening. The logo on the invitations was a graphic of a pig nose engulfed in flames.

So Rob, who is a friend of the host, Brian, got in on the planning process this year. Apparently this involves one or more "planning parties" that include large amounts of booze, some barbecue, and maybe 20 minutes of deciding who's going to be responsible for what (e.g., who's going to obtain the pig, when the roast will be held, who's going to help set up the roasting apparatus, etc.). This year there may also be a roasted goat, as well as toasted marshmallow peeps-on-a-stick, though everyone had had at least a few drinks when that last idea was floated. Ah, good times...