A Day Like Any Other

NOT.

It started out wonky to begin with. Had to get up at 4:45 a.m. to take the hub to the airport. Ugh. But it really didn't feel too bad. At least I slept better last night than the night before. Kinda felt a tad ok at 4:45. Go figure. That never happens. After returning to bed (You think I'd stay up? HA!), the kid comes in complaining about his cough that he has had for over a month. So yes, above picture is of my sticker for being a good mom and taking the kid to the docs, finally. Dr. Rose was spot on. Allergies. Thank goodness. Nasal spray and some neti pot suggestions and we were outta there likety split. Ew. Hate pediatrician offices. Ugh. So many germs. Blech. (And yes, the kid is old enough to go to a regular doc, just haven't gotten around to it yet. Obviously.) Well, since it was so gorgeous out, I allowed him to play hooky for the rest of the day. (Another reason why I got a being-a-good-mom sticker. He got a being-a-good-patient sticker, of course.)

We were downtown and I had been meaning to get back to Third Man Records to pick up the live Jerry Lee Lewis record that I had already paid for last April when he played on Record Day. The album took an awfully long time to be released and I had completely forgot about it until recently. Today was the day to go and grab it. But, why stop there? I also picked up two 45s, Tom Jones-- yes, the Tom Jones w/Jack White and Jack's new release, Sixteen Saltines.(I kept saying Sixteen Candles! Pffffft!!!! I'm so getting OLD!) I  admire Jack for introducing many great talents from back in the day such as Jerry Lee Lewis, Tom Jones and Wanda Jackson to a whole new generation of listeners. My hat's off to him.

As the kid and I were walking into the shop, one of the main honchos at Third Man, Ben, was walking out --he welcomed us, held the door for us and even commented on our stickers. What a sweet guy. And, he was with Matt Pinfield, of MTV fame. Wonder if he is doing a piece on Jack? How cool is that! Right? Wish I could have placed the face and name when we passed one another tho. Doy. Always the way.

Anyhoo, fun enough. The kid and I got our records, then boom--outta there quick-like the docta's. We came on home; and when I went to open the JLL album, I notice that the hub, the teenager, his girlfriend and I are on the back cover!!! How hilarious is that? Pretty darn hilarious, I say. Too bad those two big 'hades are blocking us. Wait, that's probably a good thing.

What a cool day.

Labels: Hub, Kid, Music, Nashville, Teenager, Teenager's Girlfriend

The Hog Log

In our teenage and early twenty-something years, we used to have Redskins' parties and watch the game. (I much rathered eating and socializing than watching the game. In trouble now!) Sometimes, mom would make a chocolate refrigerator cake, which we lovingly named The Hog Log, in honor of the Redskins' offensive line, the Hogs.

I haven't made this thing in years! And it's so easy and tastes like a big ol' Oreo cake, but not as sweet. I found some chocolate-mint wafers and stacked them as the first two layers before the darker chocolate ones. Yum.

Voila. I've been promising the teenager's GF that I was going to make one. Promises, promises. But finally, one is chilling in the fridge waiting for their arrival tomorrow sometime. Yay. We have a Cherry Blossom Festival to go to.  Another pang in my heart for that, also. Of course, the Cherry Blossom Parade in DC is one of the highlights of the year. (I've never, ever been to one, as it's also the busiest day for the family photography business at the Capitol building--I always had to work!!) I can't wait to see what little ol' Nashvul has in store for us. Hope to get lots of pics tomorrow!

Speaking of tomorrow, the kid (sniffle) is going to his Junior Prom. Sniffle. He has his tux, sniffle, and I'm going to make his boutonniere out of Lily of the Valley from our garden. They remind me of mom and her sister, Mary. Sniffle. Will take pictures of how that turns out! Never made one before, but how difficult can it be? Truly. Sniffle.

A Little Bit O' This . .

. . . and a little bit of that. 

Don't you love my "personal" wine glass? The teenager's girlfriend made it for me! She's a very sweet and kind young lady. Awwwww.

It's been a busy couple of weeks. I am still cleaning the basement out, with many trips to the dump, filling both wagon's up with JUNK! Just about there, folks.

I had a quick trip back home to get some Executor things done in the Arlington Co. courts for Johnny's estate. The hub had business, so I jumped on board of that train! (Wish we had trains--a car train would be perfect!!)

When we arrived, we drove into Old Town (Alexandria) to have a meal at one of our old haunts. 

I was born in Old Town and the hub lived here when he first moved to Washington. In fact, our first dinner together was here. Anyway, it was good going home this time. 

 Gotta love the old pubs.

The second night, I was able to meet up with Mary Jane, my SIL, and my niece Kelly and her two boys, my grandnephews. We ate wonderful American fare at Sweetwater.  Jack, the oldest, drew this while we were waiting for a table. Simply amazing. The kid has had no training whatsoever.

The second night, the hub and I were able to go out with my brother Jim and his family. These were not part of that dinner, we had Italian. Really good Italian, although you would never have guessed it coming from a place called Pasta Plus in a strip mall.  Ha, that's where you always find the best restaurants! I had the most delicious stuffed shrimp (with crab) on risotto. The hub and I had a quick lunch earlier in the day at a place that was near my mom's old house in Potomac Yard (where there are actually trains!), Hops. They have the most divine "rolls." In actuality, they are croissants with a little Krispy Kreme-ish drizzle. Oh my.

Staying in the old neighborhood (in a hotel) was a little bit of a trip. I have walked these streets many-a-time. Our house was less than a mile from here. This is Crystal City. To the right, in between the two buildings, is Pentagon City. In the background is Arlington Ridge, where my elementary school was. Pout.

To put things in perspective,  here's a map. I sure do miss it.

Unfortuantely, this trip, I was unable to meet up with any friends.  I plan on driving up next time so I can see my buds.

Done and Gone

I've been crocheting like a mad woman this winter. Since these long, stringy scarves have come into vogue, I've just been cranking them out. When I first saw one in a store, I thought, "Gee, I could do that." My friend Kell would say, "Add it to the list!" Doubt we're the only ones who says that and does absolutely nothing about it. Well, this fall, when my sick friend was here, I thought it would be a nice way for us to relax. Every time I saw some neat, cheap yarn, I bought it and whipped out a scarf. They are so easy, believe me, and fast (or else it would just be listed on "I can do that!" sheet.

Anyway, this one is for the teenager's girlfriend. He had asked me to make one for her but could never remember to see what color she wanted. When I finally saw her and asked, she said blue/green. I'm not quite sure if that meant blue and green or more teal solid. When I found this scrumptious yarn (on sale to boot), I decided she meant blue AND green. -smile- Wrapped it and left it on the teenager's school bag to give to her today. Hope the girlfriend likes it!

ANOTHER YEAR--UKRAINIAN CHRISTMAS/NYC

Well, I kinda gave up on blogging when NO ONE read my blog. Isn't that the point? But, low and behold, a sole, kind stranger ran against mine and actually read it and left me a note. And it looks like he left a note in every one elses blog too. Too funn; but it did get me interested again. This is how it works, eh? Thanks anyway Juicy Fruit for pulling me back in. I think this 2006 will be a wonderful year! Yea!

The family and I just returned from our annual trip up North. Yes, the same one where we traveled LAST year (unbelievable) on Super Bowl Sunday.

The kids were off school the week after New Year's for the first time in many, so we were actually able to be in New York for Ukrainian Christmas (Jan. 7). Since my oldest son, 16, usually gets to take a friend with us, the hub and I decided the 12 year old may enjoy some company this time. He decided on his next-door neighbor friend who is 11. He's an aspiring actor; so we thought this would be a great adventure for him. We added a short stay in the city--gotta love NYC after Christmas, if you can't make it before.....take advantage of all the sales!!

We left on Tuesday, and since the tickets were free because the hub travels the world so much, we had to connect through Cincinnati. No biggy. We ate a leisurely lunch and headed to our gate about an hour before departure. DELAYED two hours!! Major yuk. I happened to glance over across the hall to see the earlier flight to Newark, destined to leave when we first arrived, was still there and boarding. Leaping across the hall, I ran up to the desk and asked if there were five seats available. Our lucky day. How's that for a New Year's beginning! Although, we all were scrambled across the jet in different seats, we arrived in Newark just at sunset. The hub and teenager decided to stay back to grab the luggage that was coming in a couple of hours, so the kids and I jumped in a taxi and headed East to the Big Apple. What a joy it is to watch a newby in New York arriving for the first time. The city looks kinda small from across the Hudson, but once you ascend from a tunnel (or descend from a bridge) and enter the little world within itself, you can see the real size and power of all the buildings and people. Of course, the Empire State Building being the most beautiful, it is one of the first ones you see. And, it still had the red and green lights at the top lit for Christmas. I knew it was going to be a wonderful trip for all.

We were staying at the Essex House at Central Park South. It has good location and is an absolutely gorgeous old deco hotel. We had stayed there before, but this time we upgraded to a St. Regis suite which gave us more room for three kids. When you enter the hotel, you feel transformed. It's just that lovely. There are bellhops at every turn to help with any need. No real need to hit the concierge. Our room was on the 38th floor. 

We faced the city with a view of Central Park the right. In front of us was the CNN building and the new Time/Warner towers were straight in front of us. Needless to say, the view was great and the kids felt they had been lifted up to the clouds.

The hub called a short time later to say that our "original" flight had been cancelled and they were headed in to the city. Our luggage would be delivered to the hotel when it arrived. Joy. Who needs to freshen up after traveling all day? Oh well. I've learned over the years to let these things go. They are out of your control; and hey, we made it. No worries.

My teenage son's girlfriend and her family were in the city, amazingly enough; so we had made plans to have dinner with them. We had frequented the kid-famous "Jekyll and Hyde Club" several times and thought everyone would get a kick out of it. It's one of those NYC "theme" restaurants. It's in an old building, dressed up in all the hauntings you can take. A lot of fun for the kids and grownups alike. It took forever to get a table, guess since there were 8 of us. Had to wait on little Inez's birthday party to end........c'mon kid, hurry it up! After waiting for an hour, I guess, we finally were seated. Let me just add, you really don't go to J&H Club for the food. So, we all chose our basic burgers and salads. The kids are able to "purchase" one of those really tall (like two feet!) glasses that they can take home with them. So, of course, they did. After sitting and talking for a bit, my 12 year old lets out a shriek and pushes his glass away. "There's a ROACH in my glass." Well, were WERE in a haunted house type deal, sooooo I thought maybe it wasn't real. Unfortunately, it was. Major YUK. "How to put a damper on Dinner in one word--ROACH!" Geesh. The waiter was very non-chalant about it. "You are in NY," he said. Lovely. That's the way to play up your city! haha. The company was nice, and we went on to have a nice time, but I doubt I will ever frequent that place again. Ew.

We walked back to the hotel and said our goodnites to the girlfriend. Since we didn't have any p.j.s to sleep in, I had to run around the corner to get a couple of men's Tshirts at Duane Reeds, the local pharmacy in New York. How fun is it to walk around the city late at night and see everyone up and about? Lots! I love it. And how much MORE fun is it to stop off at the local whiskey joint (Whiskey Park) to have a couple of nightcaps before heading off to bed? Most excellent!! Awww, to be in the city again. Sigh. (P.S. I found a bottle of musk oil straight from the 70s! I hadn't seen this type of musk since early 1980. My mom is a die-hard musk wearer, so I was tickled pink when I came upon that at Duane's. Only in NY!)

It was also a joy to enter the Essex House and be greeted by the doorman, the bellman, the elevator man......and so on. Felt like Greta Garbo in her heyday. (Hey, we can all fantasize, right?!!)

The room windows open in the Essex House (most NYC windows don't), so it was nice to fall asleep to the cool air and sounds of the hustle and bustle of a city alive. We all had no problems falling asleep. Gotta love life.