Before
Yesterday was one of those Party! Party! Party! and Eat! Eat! Eat! days. And, when the combination is peninsula people and food, it goes without saying, that it was a day of Fun! Fun! Fun!
In the early afternoon was Mike Williams’ 70th birthday surprise party. And judging by the look on his face when he came into his daughter Hillary’s house, the surprise was total – hard to believe for any big gathering planned for weeks ahead on the peninsula. And, even harder to believe when the majority of those awaiting Mike’s arrival were Williamses – not known for their soft voices and shy behavior! You could have heard us in Astoria!
It was like one of the infamous Williams Annual Reunions – Plus! The food was plentiful, beautiful and irresistible. Even though we had eaten lunch just an hour beforehand, we dove right in! (I felt a tad guilty about that until I heard the same ‘lament’ from everyone around me.)
And of course, there were the stories… The Williams family and their friends are great story-tellers and Mike is the perfect subject. From the time he was born, almost twenty years after his brothers, Mike has been a story-in-the-making! The afternoon was filled with love and laughter and memories. We were so glad that even we Oysterville shirt-tail relatives were included.
After
We headed homeward in anticipation of our second party of the day – a build-your-own-pizza-party hosted by our new friend Maggie. The evening was off to an inauspicious beginning when we realized we really truly weren’t sure exactly where Maggie lived and didn’t have a phone number. So we just drove around in the approximate vicinity until we found a likely looking place to stop and ask… and out walked our hostess! Whew!
There were six guests and Maggie immediately put us to work chopping and slicing and otherwise preparing the toppings – peppers of all colors and sizes, mushrooms, spinach, cheeses, you name it. Meanwhile, she was busy being the Princess of Pizza Dough, mixing and kneading and whirling (sort of) a batch for each of us.
I got the first rather sticky lump with instructions to “make it round.” For whatever reason the more I tried, the more unround it got. Jim said it looked just like a dogbone. Carolyn said it looked like a Japanese kimono. Everyone gave me a hard time…
I finally gave up and piled on the toppings. And, if I do say so myself, it was the best one of all. Easy to divide up (we all had some of each concoction) and absolutely delicious. After all, round, isn’t everything in a pizza!
It looks delicious to me and just like a big bow tie. I am always a taste ove appearance person myself. It sound like an enjoyable day.