UNA OTRA FIESTA DE COCTEL

Once  year I throw a big Cocktail Party (my one contribution to P.V social life).  It is however greatly anticipated as I have been told that my parties are the Best!  This year I gave it later than usual in order to avoid the rain that plagued my last party.  It is also necessary that I try to plan it when most of my "snow bird" friends are in town.

I have several rules about giving a good party.  It always starts with the guest list.  They should be  an assortment of types and ages, but must be compatible.  My main rule is to invite twice as many people as I have chairs, that way you wind up with a standing party.  People are forced to move about and talk to more people.  Since I only have a total 17 seats, that is not a problem as I know over 100 people in town.  I try to limit the guest list to 50 as my apartment is rather small.  My large deck covers the overflow.

Although I make it clear that it is "cocktails, not dinner",  I always have plenty of food.  My local coffee cafe lady makes wonderful small thin crust pizzas.  Then a nearby Mexican restaurant makes a super platter of bite size Mexican food (tacos, burritos, and small quesadillas).  Then I will make up platters of meat and cheese.  My good friend Hector makes the best guacamole in the world and brings me a big bowl of it.  I also have dips, cheese, nuts etc.

This year I wound up inviting almost 60 people, but I knew that from years past about 15% will not show up (especially the new people as they do not know how great my parties really are).  of  course a few guests will enter dragging two or three people behind them that I do not know (and often they are people I do not want to know).  An exception was a very tall very attractive lady who must have arrived while I was upstairs.  I never did find out who brought her, but I liked her and she added to the party.  Maybe she just wandered in off the street, but she did not look the type.

My apartment is always relatively clean, but for a big party I gave it an extra scrubbing.  I want everything to sparkle.  Windows, glass and mirrors, as well as all the black wrought iron and the furniture gets polished.  By the day of my party, I was already exhausted,  then the lever in the toilet broke.  I could have called Saul, but would you want a plumber in your house hours before a party? Besides, you never know for sure when he will show up.  So, I wired it back together with some nylon cord.  It flushed, but you had to hold the handle down.  It also spits at you.  I was a little worried, then thought that having only one toilet with 50 people may be more of a problem than a semi flushing, spitting toilet.

My bartender for the past four years arrived early with a kid named Jesus.  My first party I had Alex help out.  He was great  but broke his leg.  Then I had Francisco, but he moved to Mexico City.  So I asked Filipe and he suggested a part time bartender from Fridas that I had never met. He was terrific and everyone liked him.  He served food, got drinks, filled wine glasses, and picked up discarded glasses and emptied ash trays.  I of course kept running up and down the stairs making sure everyone had what ever they needed and making sure everyone had someone to talk to.  It went very well and again everyone told me what a wonderful party it was.  Before the party started, I took out my camera and checked the batteries. I left it on the bar in front of Filipe.  I never thought of it again, so once again I have almost no photos.  Luckily Hector had taken a picture on the guacamole he brought.

After four hours people started to leave.  I could not wait to lock the doors as I was about to drop. Towards the end of the party one lady asked if she could lie down for a while before going home.  She does not own a car, so she wasn't driving.  What could be so challenging about hailing a cab?  Anyway I showed her to the guest room.  After finally putting out the last guest and surveying the disaster that was my floor, I noticed that the guest bedroom door was still closed.  Sure enough there she was (not just on top of the comforter, but in the bed),  For a moment I thought about letting her sleep but decided against it.  Morning was going to be difficult enough for me without having to cope with Sleeping Beauty with a hangover.  She left.

                                               *************************************