phanaerozoic

Day 23 – California Sauvignon Blanc and Red Leicester Cheese

Here, on the penultimate day of the Advent Calendar, we find to our utter amazement, that one of Santa’s prescient ALDI Elves, tongue in cheek or simply prognosticator par excellance, decides to repeat Day 13, which just happens to be the day of this series’ most pleasing and fulfilling pairing of the products of grapes and cows milk: California Sauvignon Blanc and Red Leicester Cheese! Just as fine as ten days ago, and a suitable Christmas gift. Danke schön!

As the Omicron variant of COVID 19 has surged and spread these past days and weeks, our confidence in the safety of spending Christmas Eve in the company of our daughter’s family and Pat’s sister and her husband Lori’s home (as has been our tradition now for many years, after missing the experience in 2020) has waned and we have once more postponed the pleasure of that treasured tradition. Jay and Shelley will be staying in Illinois, and we will relegate our Christmas Eve this year to a masked, safe-distanced, open-air porch visit sans hugs, sans kisses. As 80 year-olds with chronic illnesses, we opt for waiting once more (please, God, only once more) putting off tradition for safety. We will still bask in the sight of loved ones and the knowledge that we do indeed love one another: enough to forgo momentary satisfaction for future reward. Here is another Christmas card watercolor rendering for Christmas Eve, 2021:

~Roy Beckemeyer, December 23, 2021