Christmas Day

So, this morning we all got up a little later than I wanted us to because we had signed up to do a mitzvah project at the synagogue. What was cool was that Drew and I independently decided that this would be a good thing for our family to do while other people were celebrating Christmas, and so we both ended up choosing different things. We signed Rachel up to decorate gift bags and make potholders as gifts for homeless families, and Drew and I signed up to sort clothes. The event started at 9 a.m. and ran until 2 p.m., but they told us we didn't have to arrive exactly at 9.

When we got there at 10:45, the stuff Drew and I had signed up for was done, and so we wandered into the kitchen and were immediately put to work preparing and packaging food for homeless shelters and people living in apartments. Drew ended up washing out thousands and thousands (slight exaggeration, but not really) cans of yams for recycling, and I volunteered to use an electric carving knife to slice five turkey breasts into individual portions. By the end of it, my hands were tingling and I burned part of my palm because the motor of the knife carver got so hot. I attracted a lot of attention from women and men who walked by and complimented my prowess with the carving knife (??) and Ben, the caterer in charge, said I should be given a free membership for my efforts. He and I got into a conversation about catering, and he wound up telling the food organizer that "you, me and Lisa are going to run the kitchen next year" after he and I had discussed the inefficiencies we'd found and what we would have done differently. The idea of helping to run the food mitzvah is really intriguing, and I have almost a year to think about it -- they start ramping up in September. So, if I can get all my freelance work for the year wrapped up by next November, it might actually be possible.

Then we went back home, I picked up my cake and my work stuff and drove into the District. Rachel was going to try to have a playdate with Ivy, and then she and Drew were going to see a movie of her choosing at an actual movie theater. Mitzvah and a movie -- I believe we have the start of a Christmas Day tradition.