The Go Big Or Go Home Pizza Party

                                              Not the actual pizza, for illustration purposes only

    It was his birthday and Blaine had invited nine friends over to help him celebrate, with specific instructions that no gifts were to be brought - he was aggressive in his assertion that he had everything he needed or wanted, and just the company of his friends to mark the occasion was all he desired. 

   Of course everyone brought something - mostly bottles of fairly decent wine such as a couple of Caymus 2020 Cabs, A Lail 2016 Cab, and several bottles of his favorite, the 2014 Vaso Cellars Cab. 

   He did not make the slightest pretense of objection to any of those gifts, as he knew true affection was behind everyone of them and he had long ago developed the graciousness to accept gifts that were from the heart despite his prior request for no gifts (a request he made every year on his birthday that was ignored every year on his birthday - it had become somewhat of a tradition).

   He asked everyone gathered around the large round table if they all liked pizza. Everyone answered that yes, pizza was indeed a favored food.

   Then he asked each individual present how many slices they could eat at one sitting.

   Questions were asked about how big the slices would be and with what /how many toppings, but the most common answer given was three slices.

   He then asked the group as a whole if everyone was hungry now, and, as we had all been asked over for dinner, we all naturally answered in the affirmative.

   That's when the doorbell rang. He excused himself to answer it and returned in thirty seconds or so, leading two people who were carrying one large box each. Both boxes appeared to be two inches thick, and two feet by four feet long.

   He introduced the two people as Jay and Dee and added that they were from a food service he had found online that specialized in creating giant portions of specific popular foods. Then he asked four of us to get up from our seats and clear a space in order to allow Jay and Dee to put the boxes down.

   Once on the table the two boxes were opened, revealing one half of a giant pizza in each box.

   The two halves, which were both on large pieces of cardboard that mirrored the pizza dimensions, were placed on the table to form one whole four foot in diameter pizza, and it looked...well, monstrously delicious.

   After a quick, rousing rendition of Happy Birthday, plates were passed around and we all dug into the biggest pizza any of us had every seen.

   And even though we ate three (or four, or five) pieces each, there was quite a bit left over, so we were all sent home with enough slices for lunch the next day...and the next day after that.

   It was epic.

    

Every Good Thing Has To Start Somewhere

   The whole thing with New Years resolutions is to give one a jumping off point to either: A) Get started on something that is primarily for personal benefit such as taking better care of one's health or finances or relationships, or B) Get involved in something that benefits the greater good such as volunteering to assist a charity or even just bringing a trash bag along on your daily constitutional in order to pick up litter as you stroll.

   At least that's the way I see it - of course, I could be wrong, which would not be a surprise to anyone.

   The point is, at least for myself, is the get started/get involved part. New Years Day provides a starting line, with the starting gun going off at midnight of December 31st.

   Unless of course the New Year inexplicably brings with it a wicked head cold and you can't get yourself up to do much of anything. That happens, and it's a pain in the patookas.

   But it's only a temporary delay.