Midnight Madness

Two ladies who occasionally clean house for us are coming later today (it's 12:19 am now, so yes it is already today and not tomorrow, and yes, i'm still up --- occupational hazard).

It has been a looong time since they were last here. How many of you will confess to doing what I've just done? I was downstairs, frantically putting away the accumulated debris of our day-to-day, where they'd lain in disarray on kitchen counters and on the "formal" dining table (typically we eat in the kitchen).

In other words, cleaning up so the cleaners, when they come, won't cluck their tongues at the poor state of my housekeeping.

In any case, now I can see the top of the formal dining table. And because Thanksgiving is a scant week away, to motivate myself a little more for the looming holidays, I opened the glass cabinet and took out this lovely handcrafted Filipina in Baro at Saya (one of the traditional dresses worn by village girls) that my friend Gladys in Daly City, brought back for me from her recent visit to Manila.

I decided to set her by the bonsai tree I have in the center of the table, and take out my camera.

Doesn't she look radiant against the wine-colored tablecloth? If you don't look too closely you won't even notice I haven't washed it in __ weeks.