I'm not at work! And this is why:
Snow, in the daytime.
Actually, that's kind of a bad photo. The truth is, the schools are closed, and since my office is one of those offices, we closed too. It's really nice, but I had already lugged on my mukluks and was halfway across the Williamsburg bridge before I got the email. But now I'm home, and I'm ready to blog.
Well, not blog-write, so much, but blog-upload-photos. I had some buddies in town last weekend, and I took many stills to document the event.
Tamales!
Friday, I ended up taking the day off to clean the house (yes, I have officially turned into my mother) and make a potful of tamales to feed everyone (yes, I am my grandmother now as well). I always forget how long it takes to make them until I embark on the endeavor once again, but in the end the results are always worth it.
Meeker and I, and this was early!
After din-din we headed over to Maracuja for some refreshing beverages. It was surprisingly crowded, as it has been of late. Kind of worries me, since that was the beginning of the end for my old neighborhood on the LES, but with this recession business, I'm optimistic.
Hammy, Jordan, and Shi-shi - hydrated!
Tiffa and Ginny, in motion.
Hammy, helping me keep my sweet Quasi-modo tatt properly moisturized.
As usual, we all ended up in bed together.
The next morning we trudged down to Chinatown for some dim sum. I haven't had dim sum in over two years! Basically since I developed acid reflux disease. Before that, Tiff and I used to frequent the Nice Restaurant for dim sum pretty regularly. But then I had a bad experience brought on by many fried taro treasure boxes and bacon-wrapped shrimps...sigh. And the rest is history.
Needless to say, I was not enthusiastic about dim sum. But I had never been to this place and I vowed to only eat steamed things and avoid all fried. I have to say, I was pleasantly delighted! The veggie dumplings and sticky rice were the best I've had, and even the pork dumplings were amazing. And no acid reflux! I even forgot to take a pepcid ac!!!
Yen and AM, dim summing.
Takako and Ken, with the spareribs I avoided in the foreground.
We spent the rest of the day meandering around Soho and Nolita, hit the Barney's Warehouse Sale (be still my heart!) and then it was off to a quick dinner at Fiore. Anne-Marie decided to treat us all to the most AMAZING dinner. It really was epic.
Happily digesting our fettucine with meat ragout
Then it was off to Nubb's and Denise's for Nubbs' 46th birthday party on the UES. And, you know, I don't really drink in excess for the most part. But the last few times I have gotten sick a result of alcohol consumption, have been because I have been out with Nubbs and Denise. And in that respect, Saturday night did not disappoint!
The obligatory candle-blowing-out photo.
And...this is where things start to get hazy...
Yup. The look on my face pretty much says it all.
So, in the end it was a rough night. However, after emptying the contents of my stomach (SEVERAL times) I proceeded to sleep like a baby. In the morning, when brunch time rolled around, I was still a little iffy - but I'm happy to report that I ate my cheesy eggs and grits like a champ!
Taki and AM, brunching.
Me, being still a little iffy.
Mayor Meeks, receiving important news from the front.
Takako likes her coffee like she likes her men - strong and black!
So that pretty much wraps up the weekend. Later on in the week I went meandering around Chelsea with Mike and ended up at Joe, where he happens to have several paintings hanging. Personally, if I as Joe I would totally buy them ALL, because they happen to look FABULOUS hanging there. But then, who am I to tell Joe what to do. You can be the judge.
The funny thing is that Mike has already had several friends contact him and tell him they saw his paintings there, which is really neat. I almost feel like he's getting more exposure there than he would at a gallery, since the art market has been hit pretty hard with the economic downturn, but lattes still seem to be going strong. Plus, Joe is notorious for having exceptional coffee and tends to have a celebrity following.So, that's the news for now!
