Doing the family dinner, with my mother, her husband, her siblings, and their various descendants, I'd drive clear to Mendocino and probably stay there for days, eating relentlessly rich food and drinking more than I meant to.

As it is, I can devote the holiday to redecorating and planning upcoming entertaining.

The redecorating I'd wanted to do, anyway. It has nothing to do with having people over. It's a matter of moving the bed into what is now the dining-room, and hauling my dining-room table and chairs into this room that currently serves as the bedroom and office. The computer and equippage will stay just where they are. So I'll have a dining-room office now.

I've kept my dining-room where it is, because that little room is so very close to the street, I haven't wanted to sleep in there. Before I move my bed in there, I'll need to sound-proof, screwing sheets of plexiglass to the window-panes. I'll need to buy the plexiglass and have it custom-cut, then find people to help me move the bed and box springs. Finally, I'll have a logical floor-plan. To get to the dining-room from the kitchen, you won't have to pass through my bedroom. It'll be much more attractive and inviting.

The entertaining I want to do centers on a theme I have had simmering in my mind ever since last New Year's Day. That was the day I looked at a tray of chocolates at the home of a friend who was throwing a party, and was almost sick. Or was it a pitcher of egg-nog, or perhaps a veined bleu cheese that nearly cost me my composure? Anyway, it was clear in that moment I had eaten way too extravagantly since Thanksgiving. The indulgence wasn't even fun anymore. My system needed a break.

During the holidays we in the affluent countries weather insane pressure to consume.

Well, this year, I am saying enough--for one social event. I'll be hosting a convivial sugar-free, alcohol-free holiday gathering next month, where I serve food that is filling and healthful, but intentionally on the drab side. This is food people in poorer parts of the world would be mighty glad for. I'm thinking lentils in a pot, brown rice, and steamed greens, maybe with a bit of fruit for desert. That's it.

I still plan to decorate my place. I've imposed a $15 cap on spending for holiday ornamentation, beyond the miscellany already at the back of the closet. So the whole function will cost me very little, when you get right down to it.

I have a few holiday linens, twinkly lights galore, a good number of those bright orbs with the wire hooks, and a funky carved-stone African nativity set. Today I bought synthetic green bows (with red velvet roses) from a Vietnamese shop. The colors are stunning, and for the same reason, I picked up a box of sunset-hued candy canes. Not to eat--they're for decoration.
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