"I Like You" and John

A few Christmases ago, when we were living in Las Vegas, there was truly only one thing I wanted for Christmas. It is not unusual for me to have a list of books I want, but that year, for some reason, my list was extraordinarily long. Publishers were on my side that year (or working against me, depending on how you look at it) and there were so many interesting books for foodies that I had to have all of them.

The book that topped my list was "I Like You: Hospitality Under the Influence." I had seen Amy Sedaris on the David Letterman Show not long before the holidays and I realized after that, this was a book I had to have. I didn't understand the book when she talked about it- I thought, "Why is this woman writing a cookbook?!" I still wanted it. The hardcover, coffee-table book was under the tree from John and I couldn't have been happier.

I waited to crack the book open until the night of Christmas while I was in bed. I read every word and examined every picture, sidebar, and drawing. I remember John being next to me and getting super annoyed with me. I had the light on while he was trying to sleep, but even that wasn't the main distraction. I had laughed so hard at almost every sentence. I fell in love with her ideas for hosting parties. Amy's sense of humor is beyond sidesplitting. I can't remember a time where I have laughed for this long.

She would have a 25 cent sale on display with random household items she needed to get rid of- everything was 25 cents. She could take the profit to help pay for the dinner party. She would fill the medicine cabinet with marbles- this way, if there was a nosey guest, they wouldn't go unnoticed when the marbles hit the porcelain sink and made so much noise. She used Pez dispensers to hold senior citizen's pills when hosting a party for a retirement home.

I read every recipe amongst the technicolor pictures of peanuts with googly eyes, pictures of herself in various wigs and costumes, and my favorite picture- one of herself covered in whipped cream. I still have so many ideas from her craft projects and party games that I would like to see come to fruition. I think once I have a house of my own, I can have an Amy Sedaris housewarming party. I could serve Amy's Pork Medallions, Carrot Coins and Tiddlywinks Toadstool Pie with Silver Bullet Martinis and a Heavyset Cheese Ball for an appetizer.

We still talk about how hard I laughed that night, how it was my favorite Christmas gift ever. Recently I learned that our roommate, Pickle, had gotten me the book, but John was so mad that he insisted that he pay her for it so it could be from him. If you have not read this book, please pick up a copy- there is a paperback version now that you could find on the bargain shelves. It is a must-have.