You feel like Mrs. Dalloway on the morning of her party: fresh, excited, ready to relish everything from the flowers at the market to the bright red radishes you will pair with your Toscano cheese for appetizers. 

You get to use your fancy dishes--the elegant salad bowl, a gift from your parents; the cheese tasting slate board, a new-home-splurge; and the rich gold and teal cake stand, the perfect accent for your chocolatey desert. You are even pleased that your pantry is fully stocked, ready for an impromptu dinner party without much fuss.  It takes only moments to sift through the contents of your freezer and refrigerator and put together a menu--braised pork chops with winter vegetables, a salad with pistachios and beets, a platter of artisanal chocolates and citrus. 

Menu complete, you turn your attention to your apartment.  It is clean and tidy, as it always is. You must only tuck away your knitting and blankets, leaving your couches free for guests.  You pick out the records that will best fit the evening: Bill Evans, Dave Brubeck, Gerry Mulligan.  They are the perfect backdrop for a dinner with family, mellow but festive.  They won't overshadow the laughter or the conversation. 

The food preparations complete, your apartment fragrant with the scent of pork chops simmering in apple cider, the only thing left for you to do is don your festive dress and put on some records while you wait for your guests to arrive.