Page 9 of Christmas Craving
“Yeah, you need a Christmas tree to brighten this place up. No wonder you hate the holidays, it’s so… white in here. No Christmas spirit at all.”
I opened my mouth to argue, but it was hard to think when she was giving me one of those bright smiles. Suddenly having a tree sounded nice. “You’ll have to help me decorate it then.”
“Gladly,” she said immediately. “I love decorating.”
We spent the next hour at the park, taking turns throwing the ball and random sticks while Arthur chased them and broughtthem back again. The dog had a lot of energy, but I had to admit it was fun seeing his excitement for playing fetch. I’d never had a pet growing up but after spending some time with Arthur I could definitely see the appeal.
While we waited for the dog to return with his ball, Lanie and I talked. She was surprisingly easy to talk to, and also very skilled at drawing out information. As a result, I found myself opening up in a way that I rarely did with anyone. The conversation flowed easily, at least until Arthur came over, covered in mud, and shook himself off, sending droplets all over the both of us.
“Arthur!” Lanie chided. “Were you rolling around in a mud puddle? Shame on you.”
The dog looked unrepentant, which made both of us laugh.
“I’m starving now!” Lanie said dramatically. “Let’s go get a breakfast sandwich.”
“It’s almost noon,” I pointed out. “And we’re covered in mud.”
“That’s okay, I know the perfect place. And they have a heated patio so we can bring Arthur with us.”
Like I could tell her no. I just hoped I didn’t run into a client looking like this.
We walked a few blocks up the street to a food cart pod. These places had sprung up during the pandemic, groups of food cartsparked in vacant lots, often set up with an outdoor eating area. I’d seen several news stories about their success.
“We’re eating at a food cart?” I asked.
She sent me an amused look. “Let me guess, you’ve never been here before even though it’s only four blocks from your house.”
“No, I haven’t.”
She laughed. “You’re in for a treat then. And just so you know, these carts have to pass the same inspections by the Health Department as brick and mortar restaurants do, so the food is safe.”
She led us to a cart called “Brekkie” which served various types of breakfast sandwiches as well as quiche. I didn’t normally eat a ton of carbs, or cured meat, but I couldn’t resist ordering the bacon, egg, and cheese biscuit. Lanie ordered an egg, cheese, and avocado sandwich on an English muffin. The sandwiches were enormous, stuffed full of freshly cooked ingredients.
We took the sandwiches and our drip coffees to a table near the heaters and settled in at a picnic table to eat. Arthur settled beneath the table, clearly hoping that we’d drop something.
“This is so good,” I said. “I wasn’t expecting the arugula on my sandwich.”
“That’s what makes it healthy,” she laughed. “Stick with me, I know all the good, cheap places to eat in the city.”
After we ate, she dragged me to a Christmas tree lot where I bought the first Christmas tree I’d had as an adult. It wasn’t too big, maybe about four feet tall, and this close to the holiday, it wasn’t in the best shape, but for some reason I loved it.
“You got aCharlie Browntree,” Lanie said, pointing at a bare space where the tree had lost is branches.
At my blank look she prodded, “Remember, Charlie Brown got that sad little tree but then it came to life with his love and the magic of Christmas.”
“No.”
“You’ve seenCharlie Brownthough, right?”
I thought for a second. “Not that I recall.”
“You didn’t watch it with your parents when you were a kid?” she asked. “We watched it every year. It was a tradition.”
I couldn’t help the bitter laugh that escaped my mouth. Spending time with their daughter would have cut into my parents’ drinking and partying time and would have required them to think about me for once.
“No, we didn’t.”
My voice was cold and flat. Lanie gave me a long, searching look and I could swear she saw the pain of my childhood with that simple question. I braced myself for her to ask me something else, but she just gave me a rueful little laugh.
