Orphans' Christmas
I was sitting here this morning reflecting on Christmas's past .
In 1987 my first wife (d. 1998) and I figured out that a bunch of our friends who worked on the Whistler ski Patrol didn't get a real Christmas Dinner and Orphan's Christmas was born. We would have between 8 and 15 people show up for a full on Christmas dinner in pour tiny little condo and we always tried to have enough food that everyone took home leftovers.
My first wife had a serious stroke on ironically Friday the 13th, 1995 and she died 3 years later and Orphans' Christmas went on hold
My current wife and I resurrected Orphan's Christmas in Vancouver in 2000 and it has occurred 17 of the past 21 Christmases. One of my pals from the Whistler Mountain Ski Patrol has the highest table seniority of the Orphans (he is also EHS in the City) and we have had ambulances parked out in front of our House on more than one occasion . We always forewarn our neighbours so no one is panicking at sight of the ambulance(s).
One year one of my friend's sons who is VPD was working Christmas and he and his partner were in our District so they came for dinner. We told them that there was no way they were eating at Denny's on Christmas. They made it to the Door and were called away for a knife call just as I opened it.. They were back in about an hour, had dinner and were just finishing desert when they were called again.
Of course the rotating group of "orphans" is an eclectic crowd of theatre folks, divorced academics, EHS members, married couples and akey cadre of adopted folks who are the "Official Hang Arounds."
My wife is a brilliant cook. Two weeks ago the annual Christmas Baking Event took place at our house and she and 2 of her pals started baking at 8:00 am and when I got home from work they had made over 1,000 pieces of varios candies, cookies and sweets.
Dinner guests always get a goody box to take home with them.
The turkey has also evolved and we have been serving Turducken since 2002. First from the English Butcher in North Van and for the last 12 years from Armando's on Granville Island .
A couple of years we went and worked the lower east side kitchens and if you ever do that the one thing I can recommend is to take an Heavy duty extension cord and your electric knife and tell them you know how to carve (assuming you do) . My Grandfather was a country butcher and my dad was a doc so the cutting of meat or fowl with speed and finesse was drilled into me from a very young age. Those were special Christmas times, though I got pretty tired of carving after the first 20 or so birds.
As we have got older the "regulars" have been assigned a dish to bring, and after the first year's surprises my wife gives each of them a recipe to use.
Trust me on this one. Do not let anyone stray from what you expect to see arrive that day.
So this year we were geared up to have 10 including us for Orphans Christmas and then had to postpone everything on Wednesday. Everyone is waiting now for Christmas in "whenever."
I went down to pay Armando and have him keep our Turducken in his freezer and it was just going to be my wife and me and her best pal who lost her wife the month before Covid hit to cancer. Of course our friend tested positive for Covid Thursday so now it is my wife alone for Christmas . The candy and baking treats are now in our neighbours hands (and tummies) and best of all we got to play Santa again last night.
Playing Santa
In the seven years we have lived on our little one lane street in the woods we have have a roll to play in Christmas for our neighbours across the street. They go our Christmas eve and when they come home Santa has left gifts for their kids . My wife writes each of the kids cards (the handwriting is not their mom's) and wraps the presents in different and unique wrapping paper . Since they are at their grandparents the mystery of Christmas continues in some fashion.
Merry Christmas to all of you and stay safe .
Portuguese clam,sausage and potato stew. Garlic bread to mop it up !
