Mom, Sister & Nieces

It has been "FAMILY" togetherness for me the last couple of days.  Yesterday, I accompanied Mom to her eye doctor appointment.  It has been 6 months since her cataract surgery and she is doing so well.  A peripheral vision she took 3 months ago that showed quite a bit of abnormalities was so much more improved this time around.  After an hour at the doctor's, we went back to her place and had lunch and chatted.

I left to meet Kristina at Michael's where she wanted to take advantage of a 50% employee discount I had for the next few days.  It was fun to show her "my store" and what I do and have her shop.  Luckily all this creative stuff runs in our blood so she loved all the artsy, crafty things in the store as much as I do.

Today I met up with Evelyn and had a leisurely (2 hours!) lunch at Whym on 58th & 9th Ave. We both shared an appetizer of Grilled Flatbread: calmaryna fig compote, carmelized shallots, cambozola cheese.  We ordered the Grilled Chicken and Avocado Sandwich on toasted 7 grain bread, baby arugula, grilled lemon mayonnaise with sweet potato fries & the Portobello and Eggplant Sandwich on toasted country sourdough bread, baby arugula, red onion, sun dried tomato mayonnaise with hand cut fries and shared half of each.  Really yummy.  Then we went to Alvin Ailey to wait for Miranda to come out of class. The girl is breath-taking.  That's all I can say.

One Year @ Michael's

It's a year, folks!  A year ago that I walked into Michael's - a rube.  A novice.  No idea what I was going to be doing or if I could do it!  October 20th is my official anniversary, the date that I did my paper work.  Oct 25th is the day I got thrown into the fire.  And what a fire.  I started at 11:30am and finished the day at 6pm. Not what I imagined.  And I was put on the registers - after a 15 minute training session by the ever patient Chris.  I always say, if it weren't for Chris, I would have walked out the store and never looked back.  But he was so positive and encouraging that it made the craziness bearable. Since everything was so new and I couldn't really take notes on the spot, I had to ask him several times on procedure over and over again and he never made me feel that I was bothering him.  That was huge.  And he is still like that...every single day.

The other plus of that day was being paired with another new employee, Bridy.  We both did our paperwork on the same day and started on the registers at the same time.  After we both got that 15 minutes of training, we tagged-team on one register for about 20 minutes before we both went solo.  The line was just too long not to pitch in.

I didn't stay on the registers long.  After 3 days, I was asked if I would be interested in replenishment -in charge of jewelry.  But the hours were 5am to whenever.  Could I do it?  I said I would try and since I have a car and there is a parking lot, it has not been a problem.  I actually enjoy it.  And Bridy, after spending months on the registers, got bumped to IT/HR and with that, to replenishment and right in the next department, Apparel.  She is a joy to work with.  She is an artist in her own right:  www.bridycrawford.com and surprised me this morning with one of her exquisite coin purses.  I am totally delighted.

I have come a long way from that first day.  There are still things I learn every day but for the most part, I have hundreds of thousands of beads down to a science. And I enjoy the rapport I have with my managers and co-workers.  All in all, it's been a very good thing.

Card I made so co-workers coming into the break-room
knew what was going on

The mini-cupcakes...vanilla and chocolate

Me & Bridy

A sentimental anniversary card and Bridy's hand-painted and
hand-sewn, silk-lined coin purse.  Wow

Remember...it's 5am!  And I look it!
Me & my boss, Marc

Me & Ilma - she has been at the company for over 6 years
and was very intimidating to me on that first week.  She has since
become a favorite co-worker...she knows that store inside and out.

Me, wonderful manager,Chris and Bridy

Walk For Lulu 2012

Sunday was that time again.  The Alzheimer Walk at Riverside Park.  This year because of Marianne's efforts,  she was asked to serve on the board of directors, a real honor.  And I was able to get some of her perks for supporting her. Which was a VIP breakfast and reserved seating and a nifty pedometer.  It was a terrific turnout and once again, great weather.  This is the third year I have done the walk along with Nikki.

We had our breakfast.  Then after introductions, some speeches and the 2 mile walk, we went to Marianne's where she had a luncheon for her friends and family.  Next year, our friendship will be 40 years & I'm so happy I can say that!

I'm wearing my "Walk for Lulu" jacket I got from
Marianne last year

A much coveted vest!

My breakfast: bagel, apple rolled pancake, sausage, bacon
blueberry muffin and coffee

My new pedometer

Me & my favorite girl

Large turnout.  MC was Bill Ritter of Eyewitness News
and David Hyde Pierce always makes an appearance

The International Buffet @Marianne's

Trays of sushi galore

Different sandwiches and wraps

Ziti,eggplant parm, ribs, chicken drumsticks and wings,
spinach pie, roasted veggies, veal scallopini

Dessert Bar

Marshmallow Pops

My plate of sweets

Lindy, Marianne's Baby...star of the show

Mohegan Sun

Way back at the end of May, Winnie & I attended the 500th show of Wendy Williams and one of the spectacular giveaways was a 2 night stay at the Mohegan Sun plus $100 credit to Bobby Flay's Bar Amercain restaurant on the premise.

Taking Winnie as my guest, we spent a most enjoyable Sun-Tues mini vacation.  I picked up Winnie in Chinatown and she got dim sum for the road.  The drive was easy peasy...100 miles on I-95 makes it pretty straight away.

Although check-in was 4:30, we arrived around 2:30 and a room was available right away.  Lovely with a view of the river.  Having Winnie with me, who knows the ins and outs of the hotel and casino was a huge advantage.  She had discovered that they were running a promotion.  Show any other casino's player's card, sign up for theirs and get a $100 slot play credit.  Hello!  Free Money!  After unpacking, I went to register and got my $100 on my spanking new player's card.  And once again, Winnie's knowledge came in handy - she advised me how to play it and it worked.  I walked away with $83!!

Due to a convention which took over the whole restaurant on Monday night, I could only make reservations at Bobby's for Sunday, our first night. No matter. The whole dinner was beyond my expectations. Surprisingly, the servings were rather large. My steak tartare was "melt in your mouth" deliciousness. Duck (which I usually order if it's on the menu) was cooked to perfection, succulent and flavorful. Winnie and I were so full and thought to beg off dessert but Shannon, our waitress (who was attentive and sweet) told us that we had enough credit for one dessert to share and suggested the profiteroles which was a most excellent choice. The bill came to $99.97. Almost too perfect!

Here's my Mohegan Sun experience in picture:

Room 3135

Free WiFi in room and all of hotel

The Views

Winnie's Appetizer:

Grilled Pizza, Double Smoked Bacon,

Caramelized Onions, Toasted Garlic

Mine:
Steak Tartare, Mustard Sauce, Cornichons, Garlic Toast

Winnie's Entree:
Mussels & Fries Americain, Green Chile Broth

Mine:
Duck, Dirty Wild Rice, Pecans, Bourbon

Bourbon Praline Profiteroles

Vanilla Bean Ice Cream

In front of "River Blue" - glass sculpture centerpiece

Indoor pool - and although this looks like a stock photo,
 I took this shot

Our second night's dinner was Bobby's Burger Palace
(yes, another Bobby Flay establishment) 

Winnie's Classic Cheese Burger with onion rings

I went with my beloved Blue Cheese burger...(and sweet potato fries)
sooo good, I wish I was having one now!

My winnings!!  Woo-hoo!!

Me - ENJOY!  :-)

Leslie @ The Whitney

My annual date with Leslie to celebrate her Sept. birthday took place today.  Knowing the temps would dip down to the mid 50's had me looking for an indoor activity.  I wondered if we should catch a Broadway show or a museum and Leslie opted for a museum giving us more of an opportunity to chat.

I love a Sunday outing because parking is wide open.  And even knowing this, it was still a pleasant surprise to find ample parking directly across the street from the museum on Madison Avenue.

I knew the Kusama exhibit was the big draw but didn't really understand how it worked so we bypassed the 'wrapped around the block' line and went straight to their restaurant, "Untitled" for brunch.  Because after all, what is more important than filling our tummies??

Service was extremely slow but we didn't care since our main goal was to catch up on each other's lives.  We usually only get to see other twice a year so there's always much to talk about.

Although most museums have a cafeteria - it's a pleasure to dine at a wait-service establishment.  We found it very much to our liking.  The coffee was aromatic and delicious.  My ham, tomato and goat cheese omelet was cooked perfectly and very tasty.  Leslie was able to get her spinach, mushroom omelet minus the cheese and adding tomato instead.  We shared a side of chicken sausage which was packed with flavor.  The place is run by Danny Meyer.

By the time we finished and went to admissions, we discovered the Kusama exhibit was sold out.  Apparently they allow only 300 people a day and it's first come, first serve.  It was slightly disappointing but not enough to ruin our day.  We went to see the other art work and then walked along Madison Avenue, window shopping, chatting it up until we hit a small cafe to get in from the cold and have a seat.  A simply delightful way to spend a brisk autumn Sunday with a good friend.

Sister's Birthday Club - Meeting in Session

The last time the SBC met was Aug 17th for Winnie.  We were 2 months late but always better late than never.  Today we met up for Connie - almost 3 months late.  But our motto will always apply.

We started the "club" 4 years ago seeing a movie and then lunch but have lately moved to shopping and lunch and today we stayed closer to home.  The girls came out to Rego Park and after having breakfast at Burger King...which worked out nicely since it's low cost and no one bothered us.  Then we went to the Rego Center where there's a slew of stores to visit: Kohl's, Century 21, TJ Maxx, Ulta, Payless, Costco and Aldi's.  There's other stores but these were where we spent 2 hours before heading to our favorite sushi place for lunch.

I did well in my shopping venture.  I purchased a water repellent "car" coat originally $150 for $72 among other things.

As always, it's so much fun getting together, catching up and the best thing of all....laughter and tons of it!

Good Food, Good Times, Good Friends...what more can a girl ask for!

My sushi choice...included salad and ice cream for $6.95.

The girls' choice:  Bento Box A...Chicken Teriyaki, California roll,
Gyoza and Sui Mai along with soup or salad and
ice cream.  $8.95