New Family Member - But Not For Long

Dimetre as a pup back in September

Dimetre - in front - snuggling with his new friend

Niece Megan has adopted a pig to raise as part of her 4H project. Dimetre came into her life the end of August as just a piglet. Within a month, he was following her and responding to her commands.

Amid family jokes about bacon recipes and hog jowls, Megan has bravely continued to raise her buddy Dimetre to make him the best pig he can be, and of course the biggest.  His regular baths, complete with massages and hair conditioner leaves him glossy and refreshed, if not completely pampered.
He 'graduates' in February when he reaches over 200 lbs, no longer a lap pig.
Kudo's to Megs for having the most loved and well behaved pig in the school! 

Stevie - You Look So Young!

The 'girls night out' was a Stevie Nicks concert, complete with cocktails and dinner, then box seats at the McAfferty Theater in St. Pete. Stevie - what a great evening you gave us!  No, you dont look 64 at all, but of course you'd have to be about that age to give us the range of songs that help define our high school through middle-age years. 

Stevie's voice was as strong as ever,  Her show flowed smoothly without skipping a beat and highlighted her very seasoned and talented band. Including Waddy Wachtel who has known Stevie since her early music career.  Rhiannon, Landslide, Love Is -  all had me in deep flashbacks that included friends, good times, a bit of wistfulness.  And how great to enjoy her with a new set of girlfriends, to create new memories.
 

NYC High Line

wall art/ad seen from High Line

Empire State Building seen from High Line

 Decided that on this trip to NYC I would expand my usual activities.  My work peeps and I sauntered down the High Line one evening, enjoying the night view of the city and the beauty of the whole park - yes, NYC considers the transformed elevated railway a park.  We even stopped for some amazing gelato, made and served by a real Italian. 

Work peeps on Roof Bar in MeatPacking District

 Since it was fashion week, we decided to head out to the Meatpacking District, which along with Chelsea is typically the center of activity for new fashion.

A view from the roof bar to another roof bar - warm evening!

Yes, it was crowded. Yes there were many very skinny, buffed, and beautiful people.  Yes, we held our own and had drinks at one of the rooftop bars, dinner in an outdoor garden at a converted home.  The home was once RuPaul's residence.

I enjoyed my view of the Empire State Building, especially at night.  I also finally went to the World Trade Center Memorial one morning.  The footprints of the two towers are now the base of waterfalls.  Seeing this in person made a surprising impact on me.  The park is well done, well visited and well respected.  Rising gallantly from the park is the new World Trade Tower 1.  I found it interesting that the area around the towers is completely built up - more than in 2001.

When I left the memorial park, I wandered over to Trinity Church to see the cemetery - note: I love to walk around cemeteries. I wasn't disappointed by the well kept grounds.  But the deteriorating gravestones were challenging to figure out sometimes.  In the 1700's and 1800's it looks like the stones show the death day and year, then the age in years, months, days.  With the number of stones for children and young adults, I understand why months and days were important to state.  I found only  a few stones showing ages over 60.

Leaving the cemetery, I had to walk through the Occupy Wall Street group who were camped out on the covered sidewalk - afterall, it was raining.  The small group seemed to represent twenty somethings who wanted a cause, homeless who wanted the benefits a sympathetic cause can bring, and some entertainers who enjoyed sharing their talents with onlookers.  The mostly naked scarf dancer (man) comes to mind.                                                                  

I found interesting street art in Chelsea which seemed like a nice bench to sit on until you realized it was covered in moss and other stuff.  I found a popcorn shop - Populence that serves heirloom popcorn and organic flavorings.  Was fun to taste the samples and I munched on garlic popcorn the rest of the afternoon - requiring a toothbrushing before going out for the evening!

street art

 Sunday afternoon seemed perfect for a trip to MOMA.  Peep Pam and I could have easily gotten lost, but stuck to a plan.  We each had 1 floor choice.  Was wonderful to see the Picasso's, impressionists, dadaists, and more.  I picked the architecture and furnishings.  We were both happy

Populence popcorn choices

MOMA mid century furniture

Delicious Anniversary

Dessert sampler-yum!

the Turk and I celebrated our 15th anniversary this weekend.  We took my parents to Bern's Steakhouse in Tampa to join our festivities.

The eclectic decor includes dark rooms, thick red velvet drapery with fringe, unmatched and ornate furnishings, and each room with its own personality.   

The room where we had dinner was lined with alcoves, each with a bust of someone who I didnt know, and each bust glowed with special lighting.  This all brought waves of nostalgia for Disney's haunted mansion.  Throughout dinner, I fully expected the heads to start singing in harmony.  

 

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Me and the Turk...with the haunted heads.

Our guests for the evening

 We selected a nice blend wine called Prisoner to go with our assortment of beef and seafood.  Quite a mix of grapes:  51% Zinfandel, 19% Cabernet Sauvignon, 18% Syrah, 7% Petite Sirah, 3% Charbono, 1% Malbec, 1% Grenache.  Dad and Mark each had a filet and lobster while mom had shrimp and I tried the seafood en papillote.  Along with the accompanying french onion soup, delicious salad from their garden, and their baked potato - we were trying to pace ourselves for the dessert room.

In line for their steaks. They can grill 200 steaks at a time.

To help work off a couple of bites, we took a tour of the kitchen and wine cellar on our way to the dessert room.

Cutting and weighing steaks per the custom orders

The kitchen was busy - to put it mildly.  I've never seen so much dead cow in one spot!  We saw the sprouts they grow in the kitchen for the salads, and the cheese 'cave' to fill their cheese platters.  

Then we ventured down, down to the wine cellar - lined with Tampa Tribune newspaper insulation.  Rows and rows of wine that were 12 feet high.  Our wine guide was able to tell us which section our wine came from - though he could say anything and we wouldnt know any better.  We slowly walked around trying to absorb the essence of what was around us, figuratively and physically.    

Bern's has the largest privately owned wine collection in the world,  close to 7000 different table wines, 1000 different dessert wines, 240 different scotches, 270 cognacs and omgnacs. Wandering down one of the aisles, we came to the gated area where the really expensive wines are stored.They range in price from $200 to $30,000.  Bottles date back to 1790.  Many of the bottles are covered in plastic to protect the labels.

 

We could only hang around the wines for a bit since it was Saturday night and there was ALOT of activity in that area.  Next stop - the dessert room!

Upstairs is a maze of small rooms, each with their own sound system and music choice and a buzzer to call the waiter.

Chocolate peanut butter truffle

 The dessert menu was a book with pages of ice creams, chocolate fantasies, ports, wines, cognacs, coffees, and cheeses.

What to do?!?!  Too much to choose from!  We went with our guts - so to speak. Chocolate macadamia nut sundae with a pitcher of dark chocolate, chocolate peanut butter truffle (monster truffle), dessert sampler and the baked pineapple something that none of us got to taste since dad ate it so quickly!

We had a really nice time with all of these indulgences.  This warranted a 1/2 hour walk at midnight just so we could get to sleep.  Looking forward to my workout in the morning!