Tuesday found Country mouse not having to to go work with a snow day. This meant City mouse would be here earlier and we could roll to the "O" even earlier. Sweet. Traffic was light with the advantage.
Got into NYC early walked around and checked a couple places to eat that Vince had gift certificates for. We decided on the Turkish place. ODD no on here,Oh well menu looks interesting. So in we went. After a normal lobby,they took you through a curtain into the "tent". The decorator basically bought bolts of fabric and made a fort like you did as a kid,ceiling walls, fabric every where. I had a lamb dish with "Palace spices" what ever they were. In the end it was OK. We went back to the O and watched "The Big Eden" a great flick anyone could watch.
Wednesday found us heading out to the Metro diner for breakfast fuel up for a big day of walking. Our goal was Signature Cycles. A Ultra high end bike shop. En route we came across the Toga bike shop. A NYC standard that's been around forever. A cool place. They still rock the black jerseys of death. I think George Hincapie got his start with them. Signature was right around the corner. But no one knew how to get in on the second floor. People kept directing us to back to TOGA. We called and go in. Well lets set the record straight. I will never be buying a bike here. Super high end builds. Parlees, Seven, Serotta. But I guess they're best known for their fittings. They had Rapha clothes too. Those things are like a Hickey Freeman suit of the cycling world. I lucked out they didn't have the color I wanted. Anthony took the time to talk to us. Turns out he's a first year Krosser and had done the Ommegang race. So we talked all things Kross. Then it turned into beer. We asked him where the good beer places were. He said he drank at the Blind Tiger. Bingo! We did too and were headed there saturday. He said "I'll see you there". This story will pick up later.
Then we headed to see the opening of MILK. What a great movie. Sean Penn was amazing in it.
Simply put go see it.
Toady's dinner found us at the Heights one of Meg and Kevin's old stomping grounds. Turns out we sat next to the owner. He had food recommendations for us. It was decided that we'd have calamari and try the wings. We split a large. Vince went with mild I headed for the "Inhuman". They came out dressed in more of a salsa. Very hot and tasty. Good stuff. Home and we watched Zodiac. It was OK. Too long,they could have taken out a half hour and no one would have noticed.
Thursday was Thanksgiving. So we watched the Macy's parade on tv till we saw Meg on the float. Then we headed off to Joisey for dinner. Little Grampa Karl was drafted to teach the kids how to ride bikes. So LGV, Kevin, the kids and I headed to the ride zone. After the ride we were off to The Garden Eden to pick up dinner. Some winter ales were poured and we settled in for dinner. After dinner we played card games with the kids. Then back to the O.
Friday it was up early and make a nice breakfast. Fresh fruit,eggs, multi grain bread and some good coffee. Then it was down to P0rt Authority to pick up Mike and Sarah. Do tell what tales of terror their bus ride has wrought? Sure enough. Mike calls and they be 20 minutes late. Some wacko went nuts at the bus station and wouldn't get off the bus. Ahhh, the bus. More innocents injured mentally. Cliff will never ride again. So we whisked them back to the O and headed for Canal St in search of knock offs. Watches, Pashimas, handbags and bad cologne abounded. Where were the carbon fiber wheels? I wondered? Turned out the Indians and West Africans would deal. Mike wanted a watch, Sarah sunglasses. In the end Sarah got a watch. I got another Swatch too. Love Canal St. We then decided a little snack was in order and went to the Garage in the Village. More calamari and spring rolls. Topped off with a couple beers. Back to the O to get ready for the show. Kevin got us great seats for Wicked. The "Grampas" made a nice dinner. Salad, crab cakes and fresh veggies. Some nice cheeses with stuffed peppadews to start us off. A couple Harpoon winter warmers. Then a Sauvignon Blanc. Time to go.
We leave an hour early to get to the show. Then the problems start. First the inspector is holding the train. Three times later and that train is out of service. Yikes. We hop on another after hearing a Charlie Brown adult voice tell us what to do. This one rolls out then stops and crawls at a snails pace. I see Vince eye the watch. More directions from the conductor. What to do? Ride it out. Then it stops again. More options. It's decided we'll walk. WALK FAST. We did and made it with three minutes to spare. This time even Vince was worried. Settled into our seats and the show began with a bang. Very impressive set. Lots of movement. FUN. After the show Kevin's dresser met us and took us back stage to meet him. He took us on stage. Very cool. Then Kev had to go. We headed to Times Square to Heartland Brewing for a couple beers. I tried the winter ale. Tasty. At last call we headed back to the O. 1:30 what was I doing up that late?
Saturday was another homemade breakfast and then head off to see the sites. Rock Center, The Twin Towers site, Macys, Bloomies, Lord and Taylor. Sarah had a Longchamp bag to return.
This was like the price is right for Mike and I as she and Vince decided colors. Key chain 63 dollars. Handbag 2500 dollars? What? We weren't their target market. She did get a nice new green bag. All the big three had great window displays. You wouldn't have know there was a recession. One of the stores had the had Vince wanted for Christmas so he became a hipster in his Kangol hat Sooo Samuel Jackson. We walked through the garment district. More color decisions by Vince and Sarah. Mike and I hit the "Husband seating area" all it lacked was a cooler with beer. We got a call from Bill and Janet. They had the last two seats at the Blind Tiger. We were on our way. When we got there they had a table for two. We grabbed as many empty seats as we could. Then a couple got up and we grabbed their table before they even had their coats on. Now we were set. I was again in a winter mode. Had Elysian Winterfest, a couple Criminally Bad Elf ales that were cask conditioned and a winter stout that was truly the bottom of the cask. Food was ordered. again the quesadillas rocked. The cheese platter a joke. Wings tasty. Pommenade salty. The cheese dip tasty and the deviled eggs were excellent. Ran into Anthony and his girlfriend along with a couple friends of his. So we talked Kross and motorcycles. Vince chatted him up too. It was great to see Joe and Clare. Good to talk to them they brought a friend too. Sorry forgot her name. After dinner we parted ways and Cliff took us to Brooklyn Heights for a view of the city. Then we dessert in a little bistro and headed home.
Sunday was breakfast at the Broadway diner. Turns out they shot Joe Black there. OK. A big breakfast and were on the road to Bingo.
Enjoy life. I sure have been. OGQ
