Flower flask is pink and green and yellow and pretty and wow it’s been a long week and I can’t believe that I have to go to work on Monday and Tuesday it’s not like I’m going to get anything done but let me stop thinking about work because it’s the weekend now and did I tell you how pretty you are and how much I love you?

Pylones, $35

Hooray, a martini glass that still looks tres chic while being less prone to breakage, spillage and drink-becoming-likewarm-by-clammy-handage.

Charles & Marie, $55 for two

Whip up a batch of pomegranate margaritas to greet guests during the holidays.  I guarantee everyone will have more fun, sooner!

POM makes fabulous pomegranate juice that’s pretty widely available.  To delight anyone who doesn’t care for a margarita (or is underage), serve it plain or mixed some freshly-squeezed lime juice over ice.

POM Pomegranate Margaritas for 4

Adapted from Southern Living’s Pomegranate Margaritas

What I Changed (Reflected Here) and Why: Omitted the simple syrup because I hate cocktails that are overly sweet and because making simple syrup seemed like extra work; Maintained liquidity by shaking with ice a bit longer; Rubbed cocktail glass rims with salt.

1. Combine pomegranate juice with next 3 ingredients in a pitcher. (This can be done ahead of time.)

2. Rub the rims of 4 cocktail glasses with a wedge of lime and, one at a time, tip upside down into a plate with a shallow level of salt.  Twist cocktail glass until coated, then stand upright.

3. Just before serving, pour desired amount of pomegranate juice mixture into a cocktail shaker filled with ice cubes. Cover with lid, and shake 45 seconds.

4. Remove lid, and strain into chilled cocktail glasses. Repeat procedure with remaining pomegranate mixture.

Recipe can easily be doubled or tripled.  You know, if you’re expecting a crowd.

Bamboo Party Straws are an eco-conscious gift because they’re made from nature and replace disposable straws.

They are a global-justice-conscious gift because they are Fair Trade.

They’re also a fun gift:

In Laos, the Khamu use bamboo straws during festivals and special occasions. They place a pottery jar full of a local brewed alcohol on the ground and drink it with these straws at a length of 1 meter long.

Gift them so someone who loves to host parties (and invites you to them).

Global Exchange Fair Trade Online Store, $16.95 for 12 straws in a handwoven cotton bag

LocalWineEvents.com is a helpful website for anyone looking to learn more about wine or just throw back some free sips around town.

On the main page you select your location, and then you will be presented with a long list of current wine (and sometimes food) tastings, dinners, tours, lessons, and classes near where you live.

I subscribe to the newsletter version (”The Juice”), which is emailed to me every week or so. I prefer the layout of the newsletter because I find it easier to scroll down looking for events with “free” in the cost column.

Thanks to LocalWineEvents.com I have discovered some good wine shops as well as nice wines. Sometimes if I know I’ll have an hour to kill in Manhattan between, say, an appointment and dinner, I will look up whatever events might be in that area during that time. Nothing passes the time like a few tastes of wine.

There are two types of people: beer lovers and beer non-lovers.

To the exasperation of nearly everyone I know, I am not a beer lover. For many years I thought that I would develop a taste for it, just as I did with coffee, wine, blue cheese, and many liquors. But alas… after years of trying, it’s still not my thing.

In London I discovered that I’m not totally incapable of enjoying a frosty pint with friends on the bank of the Thames after an afternoon spent shopping at Borough Market. Cider. Cider! Refreshing and tasty.  Many pubs offer various types that were fun to sample.

To most beer lovers, cider is overly sweet and… pathetic, maybe? But for me, it works.