Tonight we're having guests over for dinner, and so the Raven will be busy with the usual Sham of Organization. Being our friends, you'd think they wouldn't mind puddles of stagnant water in the kitchen, bullet casings scattered on the rug, decomposing foodstuffs on windowsills, and grime caked over the bathroom counters. But no, for some reason we'd like them to imagine us as Nick and Nora Charles, and so we put away some of the piled-up newspapers and hope for the best.

As you get older in life, you learn to plan these kinds of shindigs out a bit. After all, you don't want people yawning and looking at their watches while you're rummaging around in a closet yelling over your shoulder, "That damned Scrabble game is laying around here somewhere!" So you visualize the evening in advance and have a game plan, so that by the time they arrive the evening is a runaway freight train of laughs that miraculously stays on the rails.

Here's what we have in store for round one—Prima: The evening starts with antipasti and cocktails. Martinis for the adventurous and a crisp Soave for those who rely on binocular vision. Rossini in the background during light conversation on the deck.

Secondo: As the Soave runs out, a garden salad with oil-cured olives and red onion awaits on the table. A warm baguette may make a surprise appearance at this point. It pays to be flexible.

Terzo: We move to a Valpocella and bring out Braciola alla Calabrese, accompanied by Mashed Potatoes with Prosciutto and Parmesan Cheese, and maybe the baguette enters the picture here. Otherwise something green will balance the colors out. Plenty of robust red wines are on hand and as the Barber of Seville runs out of steam the nice Jazz people from Blue Note will start making noise.

Quarta: We found an amusing dessert idea for a Diplomatico chocolate and rum coffeecake in Marcella Hazan's Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking, and this should match with coffee and liqueurs. Cigars out on the deck and the meaning of life should be somewhat clearer for the ambulatory.

Words to Ponder Deeply

I like what Mark Hoback had to say yesterday:

We are ciphers. Nothing here but the writing.

9:51:21 AM