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This weekend, Team G and I had to figure out how to fit three holiday parties across the city of Los Angeles into one night. Wildly out of character, we approached the party circuit with a bold ambition that belongs only in sitcoms. But proceed we would…cue cold open.
We piled into the first car of the night and once seated, debated how to traverse the city as only Angelenos can. The stops were Silverlake, Crenshaw and West Hollywood by way of Venice. In addition to routes and traffic, we also took both best food and height of party merriment into consideration. The path was clear, first stop, West Hollywood. It was the closest and since the crowd was older, they’d have better food–couldn’t count on the hipsters of Silverlake for food, but we could count on them for later night antics. As predicted, the West Hollywood party held in an established Art Deco apartment served food fresh out of the oven. Everyone was lovely and visited with one another in front of the fireplace. The second car took us to Silverlake which had a dessert bar and a redneck Santa. After a heated game of Ornament Gift Exchange, we took the last car to Crenshaw. Upon getting out the car we followed the music to the backhouse where the dance floor was in full effect. When we finally stumbled into the last car, Team G and I applauded ourselves and our masterful plan for getting away with shenanigans without the need of a laugh track or audience applause.
Our antics felt oddly, specifically familiar, and I finally remembered the source: Will & Grace, A Moveable Feast, Season 4, Episode 9 (2001). In the episode, Will & Grace join forces with Jack and Karen to face the issue all those attempting to adult must decide–when to spend the holidays with family and when to take a stand to spend it on your own. The four New Yorkers decide to spend Thanksgiving together. However, unbeknownst to them, guilt also had a seat at the table. To rid themselves of the guilt, and still enjoy their own holiday meal, they come up with an plan of epic, sitcom proportions. They decide to drive to each of their families’ homes to visit–with rule of the egg timer. In order to make it back to their own dinner, upon walking into each home, they’d set the egg timer for an hour, once it dinged, they’d promptly, abruptly, and in unison, leave. They piled into Will’s car and made the rounds: prison, where Karen’s husband was spending time, a hotel where Jack’s step-dad was staying, Aunt Honey’s condo in Brooklyn where Grace’s mom was dining (and performing the ‘I Told Ya So’ dance), and the Waspy mansion in Connecticut where Will’s mom lived and dinned with her sisters, ‘the haters.’
This season, whether or not traversing the city with friends is in the holiday cards, definitely check out Will & Grace’s Moveable Feast. Watch it and love it so I can do the ‘I Told Ya So’ dance!