Bizarro Christmas

At this point I'm wondering if I should set the Christmas dinner table on the deck. It's mid afternoon on the Saturday before and I'm opening the windows and doors and sweating. It's hot in the house. At least I won't have to scramble for extra firewood. I'll be damned if I'll build any fires this weekend.
My mother should be arriving in a cab any time now so I need to get myself ready for the talkathon. Mactech-son & girlfriend (she, being an unexpected guest who was shut out from going home to Denver as there is some cataclysmic weather happening there) are out and about in Manhattan. Mac-Tim is shop-working, combining a property visit in SoHo with his usual last-minute creative gift picks. I just got back to the house with an armload of roses - $12 for 2 dozen so I bought 4 dozen and holiday greenery from KeyFood.
I'm making my cooking lists and schedules which are essential when you are cooking for 30. I think the three whole fillets will be enough but Mac-Tim picked up a whole spiral-cut ham this morning at the excellent Polish market on 5th Ave -just in case.
In a pinch, Fairway is open 'til 9:00 on Christmas Eve so I'm not worried.
I got out the creché and dumped it on the mantlepiece and decided to leave it just as it fell - a visual metaphor for my holiday season and my holiday season affect.
It will be chaos but it will be good.