A Day with Dali

After spending the past 7 weeks recuperating from knee replacement surgery, I was feeling good enough to get out.  And we just happened to have a free Marriott night that was expiring. So, to St. Pete we went for a local vacation weekend.

We started the adventure at Mazzaro's which is always a fun food shop where you can't leave without interesting and delicious thing to eat and drink. We escaped with wine, olives, bread, cheese and chocolate. Really, what else is there worth eating! And on to our next adventure - the new Dali Museum.

Behind the museum, in the park...complete with a maze!

I was excited to see the new building and its somewhat famous helical staircase.  Dali was fascinated with spirals and the double helical shape of the DNA molecule.  This theme shows up in his word, and in the gardens behind the museum.

staircase from ground floor

3rd floor view of the top of the staircase

The building walls were built to withstand cat 5 storms while the 18 inch thick storm glass holds up to cat 3. So what happens if the glass breaks?  All of the art is on the 3rd floor of the museum and behind walls with vault doors that can shut to completely seal the artwork.  In the original museum structure, when a storm was coming, all of the art work had to be physically removed from the museum and stored in a safe location.

With the larger museum, there are so many more Dali's to see!  Of course you can still view the large paintings, but I was surprised to see many very small works.  His early style was impressionistic, then he moved to realism.  Some of those works are amazingly detailed and you'd never think of Dali. He moved into his 'non art' phase, following Joan Miro (who's large art greeted me each morning in the World Trade Center building 2 lobby).  Eventually, Dali explored mathematics and that's when he became 'Dali'. It was fun to see his latest commercial works, like an ad for Datsun (now Nissan). Remember, he died in 1989. 

the car wasnt full of water this time

We gave Dali most of our afternoon, but there was more to see and do.  So we wandered around downtown St. Petersburg, checking out the restaurants and shops.  It seems the Chamber of Commerce has influence in this town.  We were greeted with 'hello' and 'how are you' at every turn.  From a local guy passing us on the crosswalk to a guy waiting for the bus. The town was happy to see me and the Turk!  We had a private patio for our Thai dinner at Sab Cafe and a wonderful dinner during the evening rain, which ended as we finished.

A scary St Pete resident sharing bench with the Turk

After Breakfast on Sunday, where we were enveloped by a crowd of spandexed bicylists, we sauntered over to the Vinoy to sit a spell on the front porch.  After all, Mark IS the President!

The Turk Has a Cook Bar

I love the Turk's love of grilling because I receive most of the benefits.  Nothing deters the Turk from grilling - not rain, not wind, not dark of night.  Feeling a bit guilty of my enjoyment despite his challenges, I announced a new project:  an outdoor kitchen and bar.  Of course, the Turk would have to build it, but I would design it for him.  How lucky is THAT!

It took us about 4 months, and there are still some yard things to do, but we are now enjoying the results before the heat of the summer.  What did we do?
Out came the deck from around our screened patio, except on the side near my office where I need a spot to place pots and my outdoor shower.  Mark flipped the deck wood so we had the 'new' side out and he painted it with textured paint to reduce the slipperiness when it is wet. Mark gave the rest of the deck wood to one of his fishing buddies who used it to build his own deck. Love to recycle! 

We hired a contractor to lay pavers and set up the concrete cabinets.  Mark's helper - Erik - helped with electrical and roof.  We decided on galvanized steel framed with wood beams. Picked granite that was neutral dark and priced right. Mark had a circle cut in the cooking counter top to hold his weber grill.  We weren't sure though how granite would handle the heat since the grill is not insulated. The Turk found out that granite will crack with high heat. So we are working through that issue, starting with silicon hot pads placed between the grill and the granite.  His smoker stands alone with plenty of room for heat to escape.  Wood and supplies are stored beneath the cabinets.

We picked a rich gold color to tie in the pavers and the existing patio furniture and it really works well, especially with the dark stained wood.

NEW

Original deck cooking area

Looking from the back of the yard

The grills

Concrete perimeter poured for pavers

Here come the granite cabinets

Galvanized roof gets started

working on the electrical

 

NEW  Grills have a home

NEW  Lots of seating and shade


A Trip To Italy Via St. Pete

Saturday,  before Christmas is a perfect time for me and the Turk to head to St Pete for a quick trip to Italy, that is Mazzaro's Market.

mode of transportation?

It's a kitchy, funny, fun spot with delicious food and drink from Italy, their own bakery, and Europe in general.

Art, over the fish counter. I guess they sell the droppings

Dessert

balsamic vinegars

Cheeses-including their daily-made mozzarella, wines from Italy and all over, unique beers and wines, teas and coffees, vinegars and olive oils, meats and homemade pastas.


Then there is the bakery..... fresh breads and desserts!

Sweets!

There is entertainment too.  For Xmas, the Grinch was wandering around.

Yup - the Grinch

 And the roving guitarist is always there with an Italian  serenade.

singer serenading us all

Needless to say, the Turk and I have great fun there.

Random door to nowhere

Note the assorted Italian statues

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.  

 

 .

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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!