Visitors

Ok. So Craig and I have had another unbelievable weekend in the City, and the above pictured is what we have to show for it. He hates these - these are drink coasters we bought from a vendor in SoHo today. I fell madly in love with how kitschy they are, especially given that we live here - what New Yorker celebrates living in New York while living in New York? (ie., my key chain is the simple I (Heart) NY logo, and once even I asked our New Yorker boss if wearing something that reads "New York" is okay in New York, and he answered quickly, No, it's not okay)...but anyway, I love our new coasters. Who knows - they are heavy pieces of slate or something with silkscreened or etched impressions on them - the Brooklyn Bridge, Times Square, Shea Stadium and the Flatiron Building, starting upper left and moving clockwise, and maybe the first condensation of a drink positioned comfortably on one of these bad boys will blur the ink! But I am happy to have them.*So our weekend has been fantastic, as I said. Friday night we declined an invitation from Jeff and Lauren to a ritzy house party at someone's several million dollar condo here in the City (and when I say several, I mean 15 or 16) where their friend is "house-sitting" and has full permission to throw huge parties (what kind of life is that???) Basically, because of our visitors who are scheduled to arrive this coming Thursday, I informed Craig that we really didn't need to go to a huge party and stay all into the night. He agreed. Instead, we came home and I made my now-famous roasted red pepper chicken and creamy parm orzo, with asparagus, of course, and then we worked on the apartment for a while. We went to bed early for an early Saturday morning rise. Saturday was weird. I felt totally unmotivated yet I got a lot done - doing the math, that doesn't add up. But I seriously went to town on the apartment, as did Craig - we accomplished mass cleaning of all of the floors, the dusting, the scrubbing of the bathroom top to bottom, and so forth. And Saturday night we went on a date to Don Pedro's, a Latin-Cuban-Caribbean restaurant at 96th and 2nd, which Laura and Brian (friends) raved, raved and raved about when they were here last weekend. We were a little hesitant to believe a restaurant in the upper part of the UES, particularly one so unassuming, could be that great, but we were sorely mistaken: Don Pedro's is amazing. We ordered Mojitos (yum) and Craig ordered us some Empanadas to start. Then we ordered our entrees: I selected a pork tenderloin served on black beans and rice, and Craig picked the skirt steak served on greens. The food was perfect, the Mojitos (rounds 1 and 2) were perfect. The atmosphere there is great, too - the place was packed, literally spilling over with patrons, so the air was one of busy.*Following Don Pedro's, we returned home for a little while and then went to Biddy's at 91st and 2nd, our favorite watering hole. Our Scottish bartender was there (or is he Irish?) and a new bartender who is super young but was very conscientious of our presence at the bar. Craig played a hundred songs on the jukebox and we sang together and had some cocktails and really just had an amazing time, just me and Craig. My friends Roger and Mary were in town for some Harry Potter IMAX experience, but we never had a chance to meet up with them. No problem - we're traveling to DC in September to stay with them. Anyway, needless to say, this morning was a whirlwind of Advil and lots of water. We woke up pretty early, though, and I made Craig a quick breakfast of scrambled egg (substitute), peppers, scallions, green salsa and cheese, and fresh fruit (pineapple, honeydew, grapes), and then he showered and went to his hair salon for a cut. After that, he came home and we left for SoHo. We had decided to go shopping this afternoon, and while it took huge bites out of our wallets (I bought too many things to mention without being embarrassed for how much I spent) we had a totally amazing time. The stores in SoHo are completely off the hook, and some of the spaces are even just ridiculous in size, much less in merchandise. We loved wandering in and out of shops today, loved the beauty of the sun, loved the lunch we had at Jerry's (I ate tuna on mixed greens with olives, capers and red onions with a glass of Sauvignon Blanc and Craig ate a grilled chicken sandwich with roasted red peppers and fresh mozz on Focaccia), loved the Lucky Brand Jeans Store (where Craig bought a fab pair of jeans and I heard some great 60's or 70's song that I can't for the life of me recall or figure out - lame), loved the spreads we witnessed at SoHo's Crate and Barrel (giant store, for SoHo), and really just loved New York. There isn't really much not to love here. This is a human Utopia - heaven couldn't produce a better City if it tried.*And now, I'm off to bed to sleep off a perfect weekend and to get ready for our visitors to arrive Thursday. On the bill: Wednesday night: Lauren playing her music at Don't Tell Mama's, Thursday: Paul and Angie arrive, we see Xanadu on Broadway followed by dinner at Becco, Friday: day off work, sight-seeing, Yankees game (thrillingly amazing seats behind home plate), Saturday we leave for Boston (I already have my Bo-Sox shirt) to see the White Sox-Red Sox game, Sunday we drive back to New York from Boston, maybe sight-see a little, Monday is also a vacation day for us, so we will do more New York stuff, Tuesday we go to work but Tuesday night we see the White Stripes at Madison Square Garden (with Paul, Angie, Lauren and Jeff), Wednesday we work again but we go to the Mets game that night, and Thursday Paul and Angie fly back to Arizona. Thursday they fly back to Arizona (I repeat). Friday we fly to Chicago to meet Brady at Craig's parents' place. Sunday we fly back, and that Monday night I host Book Club. Wednesday night we have Yankees-White Sox tickets. Three nights later we host a 40-y.o.'s birthday party in Manhattan. Is our summer seeming busy? Fairly so.*So to bed.