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Snow in the city and when I left the subway station there was ice all over the sidewalk. You would think they would do a better job of clearing the sidewalk considering how many people walk down it. What am I saying? This is Queens.
>My old boss Gary (not his real name) sent me an e-mail. Actually, he had mentioned getting together again the last time we had lunch, so the e-mail was to tell me he couldn’t make it the day he suggested. He wanted to go the next Friday since it was Restaurant Week in NYC.
That didn’t work out either, however I noticed the website said some restaurants were extending the week to the end of the month. The restaurant I wanted to go to was Angelo & Maxie’s Steakhouse on Park Ave South at 19th Street which I had never been to, but I have been to Maxie’s Grill around the corner. I called them and I was told, “Yes the Restaurant week prices are in effect for the whole month.” So I made a reservation for last Friday, the 12th, for Gary and me. In case you don’t know what Restaurant Week is, twice a year restaurants offer three-course, prix-fixe meals for $24.07 for lunch, $35 for dinner. The first week in February is one of the times it is offered.
The first course was a choice of House or Caesar Salad or Soup of the Day. Gary had the House Salad and I had Split Pea Soup. The salad was huge, and I got a full bowl of soup. I hadn’t finished it by the time the second course got there. Second course was choice of Grilled Filet Mignon (au poivre or béarnaise available)
Charbroiled New York Sirloin Steak
1 ½ pound Herb-Roasted Chicken
Broiled Salmon over Fresh Sautéed Vegetables
Gary got the NY Strip and I got the Filet Mignon with nothing on it. It was cooked to perfection and oh so tender. I ate every bite. Dessert was a choice of Cheesecake, Ice cream or Fresh Fruit. I got the Cheesecake, Gary got the Fresh Fruit, I think, to tell the truth, I was at the end of my very large Makers Mark Manhattan and he could have gotten just about anything and I wouldn’t have noticed. Anyway, the cheesecake was a chocolate marbled cheesecake and drizzled with raspberry sauce. It was also very delicious. And the service was impeccable, our server was pleasant, we were not ignored at any time during the meal. We got a basket of bread at almost the instant we sat down, someone came by to take our drink order even before the server got to us, dishes were picked up when done, crumbs were swept off the table when they took the dishes.
When we left Gary wanted to walk up Madison because, that’s where all the bars are. We found two right away, the first one I don’t remember the name, I do remember it is over a hundred years old and the barmaid was Irish. They also had Rugby jerseys up on the wall and Arkansas Razerback stuff. Quite interesting. The other bar is pictured here, I have more pictures in my slideshow in my sidebar, including the ‘country’ decor and an old railroad train car(I think that is what it was). We ended our trip at the Mexican place in GCT where Gary had his usual margarita and I had my Kahlúa and cream.
>today was my regular Wednesday off, where my favorite thing to do is stay in bed as long as I possibly can. So that is what I was doing, until there was a knock on my door. Tigger has sold something else and wanted me to take him to the guy who bought it to get the money. Now it wasn’t super early but it was before I wanted to get up.
So I got up, got dressed, put on my face (well sort of) and went out to the car, I started to brush snow off the door and he and Fred came running up, Tigger said, “Don’t bother because the roads are bad and just getting worse so we are going to wait.” Until when? Until the roads are worse? No until Saturday, so I went back in the house, but I was up and now I was in a bad mood. As I looked at my bed and decided that I really couldn’t go back to bed, face on and contacts in, so I decided to go get an egg sandwich for breakfast. I left through the basement so no one would see me but . . .
“Where are you going? Can we come with you?” So I ended up with company for breakfast and was buying two egg sandwiches and a bagel, one latte and one coffee (for Fred, with hazelnut syrup and milk and vanilla powder) instead of breakfast for one. The roads were clear, the road crews were keeping up with the snow after all. So instead of going home we went to Target, I still hadn’t gotten WD-40 and the boys didn’t really want to go home.
At Target they wanted to look at computer games, on the way to the games they saw the long underwear and wanted some, they were on sale so I said O.K. I said no to the game. Then I picked up a flash drive, when Tigger saw it, he said there were 4 gig at BestBuy for less, so I sent him and Fred there while I paid for the stuff at Target and put it in the car. The flash drive was actually more, but it is cuter and purple! Then we came home and as we walked in the door I realized I still hadn’t bought WD-40. **Heavy sigh**
I keep forgetting to post things. After all this is supposed to be all about me right?
First off, I have made it to 2,000 visits. I would like to thank all my readers for making this moment possible. I even have a little tear in my eye, no wait, that’s an allergic reaction, sorry.
Second my little teapot came and I am so excited! I like it because it is cute and the strainer is a fine mesh so the tea doesn’t end up in the pot like my last teapot with a strainer included. The person who first blogged about it said it didn’t leak when you poured, which I didn’t really believe, I’ve never had a teapot that didn’t leak. Well she was right, it doesn’t leak! I posted a picture of it on Facebook and guess what? Now Em wants one! So I am not sure if I should get her one, or just send her the link. Decisions Decisions.
>Tomorrow I see a new doctor about my allergies and asthma. I am kind of nervous. I wrote everything down, well not what I’m allergic too, I only had a week and a 50 page notebook. I asked Em if she thinks the doctor will be impressed or scared. She said scared, I agree.
I also printed out the approved drugs and looked them up online. What’s in them and the side effects etc. So I am prepared. I don’t know why I am so nervous.
>This morning started good, well sort of good. Had to wear my jacket because all my clean tops are too thin and small. Caught my train, was sitting nice and comfy, and what happened? I’m sure you can guess, equipment change in Croton. So I got to stand from Croton to Grand Central Terminal. Joy. I hope tomorrow the same thing doesn’t happen, from things I heard, it might.
Oh and my teapot came. I didn’t open it, I am taking it to work.
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Irrigation of the land with seawater desalinated by fusion power is ancient. It’s called ‘rain’. – Michael McClary
>My old boss Gary (not his real name) sent me an e-mail. Not an unusual happening, we still work for the same Department, just he’s in a different region. He wants to get together for lunch or a drink. So we decided on yesterday.
Then came the deciding where to go and e-mails back and forth, we decided on a place. He tells me what train station he’ll pick me up at. The region he works in is next to the region I work in and I actually live in the region he works in, kind of funny, no? Oh well, back to lunch. So in the morning he sends me an e-mail, there was a sewage spill, and the parking lot at the train station he is picking me up at was flooded. He quips, “Good thing you are wearing your boots.” Below freezing? Bet your ass I’m wearing boots. Anyway, I get off the train and look at the parking lot, didn’t see any spill, he picks me up, drives through the parking lot and doesn’t see anything. We head on to lunch, and he calls the Regional Director to report on the parking lot.
Gary was underimpressed with the restaurant. I thought it was O.K. We decided to get drinks and a salad and head someplace else. I was kind of craving Mexican, hadn’t had any in a while. He checked out the tattoo on my shoulder and asked if he could see all my tattoos. “You just did Gary.” I had Kahlúa and club soda and he had a Bombay Sapphire Martini.
On the way to the restuarant, since he had gotten a call from the Regional Director we went back to the train station, drove further into the parking lot and found the spill, then Gary says, “There’s the Regional Director.” So we all got out and looked at the spill. It was a mess, there was water flowing everywhere and a grate had been removed leaving a 2×3 foot opening in the parking lot. Quite a safety hazard. Gary got on the phone with Westchester County to report it and tell them, they needed to send somebody to take care of it. Then we (Gary and I, the RD had to leave) drove down this road to see if we could find the actual break and found two (2) Westchester County trucks (well one truck and one car). That being done we resumed our quest for Mexican food. We headed for Dobbs Ferry.
“Dobbs Ferry,” Gary says, “Is loaded with restaurants.” We stopped at this little place (probably no bigger then my living room) with bad insulation, a surly waiter/bartender/cook, no wait, I think the busboy was the cook. Anyway, the food was good, I had beans and cheese enchilada in molé sauce with rice and black beans. Gary had a burrito. He asked the waiter if it came with anything. He looked confused and said, “No sir, everything’s inside.” We ordered our drinks, Gary got a margarita I got a Negra Modelo. The food came out right away, Gary looked at the burrito and said, “I’m glad I didn’t order anything else (as in additional food).” It was HUGE!
Having a little while to kill before I had to catch the train we started looking for another place. The restaurant was too COLD to wait there. The first place wasn’t open yet, the second place I wasn’t too crazy about going to, it was the place Gary had taken me a Christmas before and I got sick. Oh, you didn’t hear about that? Well if you didn’t, you’re not going to hear about it here.
We ended up at the second place, sitting in the bar, waiting for the train. I had a sort of martini with Pomegranate liqueur and vodka, kind of so-so. Gary had bourban. Then I had a Sombrero with a splash of Baileys added. It was very good. I will have to remember that. I took this picture from the parking lot, can’t you see how cold it was? Does anyone else think the river looks angry? I think in wintertime the river gets an angry look. Maybe I had too much to drink. Nah …..
>Tigger thinks it was the colored popcorn. I tend to agree with him. Of course I also had salt and vinegar chips, so who knows? All I know is my tummy hurts!
Today is Christmas, so I am home with nothing to do. A while ago we were watching “How It’s Made” and they were showing how Oreo™’s are made. That of course made Em want some. So D and Fred went out looking for someplace that (a) would be open and (b) would have Oreo™ cookies. They found some and I was able to get some. Thank goodness for gas stations/convenience stores run by pagans.
I went out for a walk earlier, the only places open were the two gas stations. The Citgo station was where I got the popcorn and the Mobil station was where I got the chips. Even Dunkin Donuts™ was closed. When I was there a CO pulled in the parking lot, I had to tell him, “They’re closed.” I did tell him that Starbucks was open, but I wasn’t sure how late, I though maybe 3. I hope if he went there that they were still open.
You know Christmas is over when Santa has too much eggnog. Poor Santa, he needs to go to rehab.
>The concert was great. So why did it take me two days to get back here to blog about it? Umm …. I was recovering? No, we had our Circuit Assembly and I had to go. It was a promise I made to go to the concert.
An authentic and lively 3,000 square-foot Irish Pub, The Dubliner features traditional pub fare, including Guinness Stew, Bangers and Champ, Corned Beef and Cabbage and much more. Choose from an assortment of beers on tap, enjoy a cocktail with friends at the bar or relax by the fireplace. At The Dubliner, you’ll feel like you’ve been whisked away to the heart of Ireland.
Going to the restroom I encountered this sign:
And then this sign:
So glad they had the English up there, could have been embarrassing. And inside the ladies room was this sign:
No idea what this means, maybe somebody could help me? Anybody?
Dinner for me was ‘Bangers and Mash’ (sausage and mashed potatoes). Em had a Caesar salad with chicken. I had this specialty Vodka and caramel drink for dessert, kind of yummy, I think, I don’t really remember. Then we walked around and looked at the shops until we could go in the arena.
I was going to get a Rob Thomas hat like Em got in NY when she went to see Rob at the Beacon, but they didn’t have any. I got a wristband that has the concert in a USB thingy and in a day or two I can download the encore. The opening act at Mohegan Sun was Ryan Star. Em bought his CD, which he was going to be signing during the intermission so Em sent me down to do that. The picture is kind of blurry I know. Also, before he was done with his act, I dropped the CD, it fell down into the row below, so I just climbed down and got it. Someone should tell me I am not a teenager anymore, I now have a huge bruise on my left knee.
Getting the CD signed I didn’t get back until Rob had already started Fire on the Mountain. Then there he was! Rob Thomas! Ok, this is really what I saw:
We were glad we went to Mohegan Sun, his concert at the Borgata was cancelled and rescheduled for January 9, 2010.
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I have some blogs that show up on my iGoogle home page, ‘Brit Gal in the USA’ is one of them. Today I saw the title of her post was Cute and Practical. So I clicked on it and up came this picture of this absolutely adorable tea pot! I want one, just in purple not pink. I know this one is not pink, but the one Brit Gal got is pink, that is why I said purple not pink. Anyway, I am definitely getting one. At least one, I might decide I need two, one for home and one for work.
If you would like a closer look at it you can click on the link to Brit Gal’s post or click here.
Thursday, 18 July 2013
May 21, 2008
NYT > THE CITY
Belleza
just a (transplanted) city girl 