Holiday party planning...James Doyle...A List: Dallas

Hello everyone!

I'm going to keep this brief today because on top of everything else I've got going on, I'm getting things together for my holiday party this evening. I host a holiday party every year and every year I stress out about it--will I have enough food? Will my guests like my food? Will I have enough drink to go around? Blah blah blah. This year I'm keeping it fairly simple: finger foods, grilled shrimp skewers--which look kind of weird but I think they taste good--and assorted desserts. My Christmas playlist is set--kind of heavy on the Michael Buble this year with a smattering of the Pogues ("Fairytale for New York" I think is the greatest Christmas song ever written!) Jack Johnson, Bing Crosby, and a little Eartha Kitt. My parents are coming for the first time which I'm really happy about but nervous at the same time. My guest list is a rather random assortment of people from all aspects of my life, all of whom I'm friends with or have worked with but who don't all know each other. It makes for an interesting mix.

I just got off the phone with my newest client--James Doyle from Logo TV's top-rated show "A-List: Dallas." He's writing a memoir about what it was like growing up gay in a small town. He and the show have a huge fan following. He was on the Wendy Williams show this morning and has recently made appearances on Chelsea Handler and The Soup. He's a great guy and I'm excited to be working with him on his first book. We're just at the proposal stage now but I think it's going to turn out to be a terrific project. I'll keep you all posted as things progress.

That's it from me for today. I've got truffles to arrange, gumdrops to stack, and cheese to slice. Wish me luck!

Ciao.

QUESTION OF THE DAY: "What's your best holiday party memory?"