Going away ... giving away

As part of my plan to get rid of my stuff, combined with my desire to see my loved ones before I head for Morocco, my friend The UberHostess threw me a going away / giving away party. She came over a few hours early to decorate my apartment with streamers and balloons. (Note from two weeks later: I have to say, the balloons have been fun ever since. We still have them, and have used them for countless hours of catch, hackysack, and a series of practical jokes. Most recently, I had trouble getting into my room because a dozen of them were taped to the backside of the door, preventing it from opening more than a foot or so!) The place was festive and fun, plus there were maps of Morocco on the walls, both to set the mood and as part of her plans...

Long story short: A whole passel of friends came over, ate awesome food (brownies, stuffed mushrooms, tuna sandwiches, chips, clementines, and more), drank fabulous drinks (particularly noteworthy: cranberry juice, ginger ale, and orange slices in a lovely punch bowl), and talked a lot. 'Twas much fun. :)

The UberHostess also had a truly lovely idea, the second half of which I'm looking forward to more than I want to admit: she took pictures of everyone in front of one of the maps of Morocco (which, by the way, I'd bought with her, in my favorite local map store) and had them all write notes to me on note cards she'd brought. She'll print out the pix and put them with the notes into a scrapbook, which she'll send to me once I'm in country. I haven't seen any of the notes or pictures yet, and I'm already deeply moved by the thoughtfulness behind this idea. I have a feeling I'll be fairly overwhelmed by my friends' love when I open this book in Morocco.

After the munching and the toast (to me!), we moved into the Giving Away part of the evening, and I was delighted to pass off to my friends all sorts of stuff. Everything from DVDs and books to kitchen equipment and dishes was carted away to good homes. (The furniture will be going later, when I'm no longer using it.) I've talked about this in other posts, but the short version is, I'd rather have my stuff being used than gathering dust while waiting for my return.