Yesterday was the famed Holiday Walk in Williamstown. For those who haven't heard of it, I'm not surprised. I hadn't really heard of it either, but apparently it's an attempt to attract people to stores which stay open late for this jubilant event. I heard there were free samples, so I went with two friends.

    We entered about 4 stores, and in each one people eyed us as we eyed them, they slowly realizing that we weren't going to buy anything, and us slowly realizing that they weren't giving anything away for free. I began to despair in my fellow man. "What kind of a world is this," I complained, "Where we can't even get stuff for free?"

    Thankfully, salvation arrived in the form of llama. (And thankfully, salivation did not arrive in the form of llama-- I'd heard stories about their expectoratory prowess). At the top of the street, a man named Lars was leading two llamas down the middle of the road. At the risk of sounding like a bedazzled five year old at a petting zoo, the llamas had very furry fur (which I took off my gloves to touch) and very big eyes.

    Yes, these lovable creatures alone would have made up for my trek to the street of commerce which refused to part with its tasty treats for free. But then we found that one of the restaurants was offering free samples, and we got a little cider and a cookie, and all was well in the world.

    Craving more cookies and warmth, we returned to a friend's house where she was making a giant batch of gingerbread men. We helped decorate some, and I decided to make one of them a cyclops, using only one central eye and adding a club. This, in turn, inspired a series of mythological gingerbread creations which were truly magnificent to behold.

    By the time we were finished we had a goodly array, ranging from Achilles (complete with wounded heel, apricot-shield, armor, and sword) to Cerberus (my personal favorite, a coyote mold with liberally used heads to create a beautiful hellhound). It was almost too beautiful to eat.

    Almost.

    Finally, after a good deal of self-congratulation and general schmoozing, we returned home to find people who didn't live in our house watching a movie. This was surprising, as I did not expect them. Apparently I should have, however, as they informed me that we had previously made plans to host a movie that night, and so they had arrived hours ago. Not finding me present, they waited a half an hour, and eventually decided to start the movie. We arrived just as it was wrapping up, and then they were off home to bed.

    Of course, one of them was the same fellow whom I invited to dinner earlier in the week and then failed to show up for. So that makes twice in four days that I've invited him over and had him arrive only to find that I was entirely non-present. Eventually, he's going to catch on and stop showing up.

    Meanwhile, though, gingerbread and llamas made for a fine evening. And next time I invite this guy over, I'm going to make a concerted effort to be in the vicinity of my house.