December has been pure magic--perfect snowfalls. I had various plans get canceled but I ventured out to the Bay School Winter Faire and bought a fabulous maple cribbage board for the inn. I also got a gallon of their famous apple cider--so delicious. I bought a handful of Stephanie Eletheriou's cards, wonderful collages including a birthday card with a Scrabble board and letters spelling out Happy and Day glued on the front. 
Although the musical line up was stupendous, I couldn't tarry as the Holiday House Tour, sponsored by the Brooklin Garden Club, only ran until 4 p.m. I started at Bill Petrie's home. Bill is an antique dealer, with Sedgwick Antiques, and a big help to a girl trying to decorate an inn. This Victorian side chair is now in room 6. I toured other homes with Jill Knowlton, whose husband Paul Sullivan is preparing for Paul Winter's Winter Solstice Concert at New York's Cathedral of St. John the Divine. The Bagaduce Chorale's winter concert was standing room only. I attended Saturday afternoon and then went directly to the Holt House for a wine tasting fundraiser. One advantage of wine tastings where Maxx from the Blue Hill Wine Shop is holding court--he remembers what he serves so you can just pop into his shop and be reminded the name, in particular, of the lovely muscat he poured last. I highly recommend this event. The setting is gorgeous, the food scrumptious, and the wines tasty. I couldn't linger, though, as I wanted to wish the folks at MERI a merry one so I walked down the street to the MERI office for a lovely holiday party. As you know, Blue Hill is a small town and in the winter months the population is about as small as it gets. It felt a bit as though we were all there, enjoying delightful nibbles, lovely jazz with John Gallagher, and holding starfish on our hands (OK, so I was one of the few people at the touch tank).
Last minute gift idea? Lobsters! You can have Capt. Brendan, a lobsterman out of Cape Elizabeth, provide you with some delicious lobster. Catch a Piece of Maine has all sorts of options, including becoming a partner with a lobsterman and owning the trap! Although I favor a simple steamed lobster--in ocean water--here are some recipes for other tasty preparations. And lobsters--being red--are perfect for Christmas or Valentine's Day...
And with the winter solstice upon us, the days will get longer. It may still be winter but it will be brighter. I promise.
