We decided to have Ted and Teresa over tonight after all, even though Kevin and Tomoko can’t make it. On the menu: pate and cheeses and olives; braised rosemary chicken for the meatatarians, with roasted garlic Yukon gold mashed potatoes; butternut squash and mushroom lasagna for D (the Professor was granted tenure and will be spared this time — I couldn’t bear to eviscerate him, so I bought some less personable squash to use in his stead); mixed green salad with toasted pecans and pears; and a cardamom-date cake with vanilla ice cream for dessert. Should be a lot of fun — and it gives me an excuse to break out the vintage Salem North Star china and accessories.