I don't like people in my kitchen either, unless they are washing dishes. I have a peninsula in L.A., and I do most of the prep on the side opposite the sink and D/W, and so it is possible for someone to be in the kitchen at the same time. Once I've finished my prep work, I move to the other side of the peninsula, and then there is really not enough room for anyone else to be in the kitchen with me, except very briefly. Because the space is reasonably tight, I can to everything very efficiently by myself.
In Cathedral City, the kitchen is extremely tiny, and I have to do the prep at the table, which is bar height, and I have to sit on a bar stool while doing it. We are replacing that table with a new one that is regular height, and we also have a dining room there, although I use it mainly for sewing. Still, it has a large dining table in it, and I can move the sewing machines out of the way, if we ever have more than a couple of guests at one time. So far, that has not happened.
Our relatives all live at least 1300 miles away, and so we've never hosted our family for holidays, which is fine with me. The worst thing about the holidays is the airports, and I have not been back to Texas for holidays since our parents died. I also have no intention of ever flying during the holidays again. The best Thanksgiving I've had was in Mexico City.
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