Party centerpiece

Duchamp's "Fountain," 1917

I probably shouldn't be wasting valuable time blogging. In fact I should be in the kitchen filling holes and prepping for a rapid fire paint job. Or perhaps finding ways to cover up wildly mismatched floors, or even wantonly putting the finishing touches on my Tuscan Green shutters so I can rehang them. After all, the christening luncheon of Baby S is here in our house in two weeks and of course every single invitee has accepted, much to our...uh, err delight.

When most people slap their hands to their face and exclaim just before such an event "Oh dear, there's sooo much to do! " they usually mean buying a dress, preparing the food, dusting the furniture and making those little last minute phone calls. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't imagine they have a fully functioning toilet à la Marcel Duchamp in the middle of their calico colored dining room. I bet they don't have to empty their dishwater into said toilet, why did my father-in-law disconnect the sink drain and what did he do with the damn pipes I continually ask to dumbfounded, blank stares..., and above all I bet they don't have to deal with a grumpy Gallic husband who has to hang drywall, install a new toilet, a new sink and drain pipes all in record time on his highly coveted, three day Pentecôte weekend. I'm surely in the minority here, right?

Somehow we'll get it all done. We always manage to make our deadlines, especially when placed in the pressure cooker. I may be frantically fanning freshly painted walls dry minutes before the guests arrive, and they may look quizzically at this place we dare call home, but we'll survive it all as long as we have the essentials: lovely candles burning, good wine, fine music, the aroma of great food and a circle friends and family to share it all with.

Right??