We have been busy here on Calle Canta.
We were in New York for five days earlier this month, visiting our daughter Emily. We had a great time with her and Abigail. They met us at our hotel the evening we arrived, and after some champagne and tasty canapes in the hotel sky bar, we went to a lovely dinner at Rue 57. Lots of good things to eat and drink, lots of laughs and clever reparte from the girls.
The next day Emily met us for a visit to the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens, which were in full spring bloom, with the cherry blossoms in the starring role. The gardens were beautiful, the sky was blue, and a nice breeze kept it all cool.
Other highlights of the New York visit were two Broadway shows, Waiting for Godot and Blithe Spirit (we enjoyed both); the Museum of Modern Art; a movie (Shall We Kiss?); dinner in Little Italy at our favorite place there (Positano); a wonderful dinner prepared by Em and Abby at their apartment in Brooklyn; and lunch in Greenwich Village with Laryssa and Natalia. I also had a quick drink with my friend Stephanie Gaines, who told me that she had bought a house in the Hamptons! All in all it was a fine getaway. I hope we can go back again soon.
We returned to California two weeks ago today. Since then we have been down to Orange County a couple of times for family affairs - Bernie's birthday party, a wedding shower for our niece Nichole (I spent the day with Martin while L went to the shower). We had a small dinner party here this past Saturday, with Charlie and Nancy Walker, and Richard Del Belso and Mark Winkler. Claire came by later in the evening to say hello to everyone. Lynette made a terrific dinner (Talapia was the main event), and we all had a great time.
Joe and Marsha Grieco are coming by tonight for a little supper and a visit. We haven't seen them for a few weeks, so it will be good to catch up.
Monday, May 18, 2009
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Post-Easter update
My sister Jackie and her husband Martin had the family to their house for Easter, and it was a lovely day. My brothers Mike and Alan and their families, and our sister Jayne and her husband Bernie, plus Tiffany and Caroline and their boy Elijah, and Nicole and Luke, who will be married in June, and a host of other loved ones were there. There was much good food, and champagne, and lots of laughs and warm feelings. We missed Lynette, who was in Kentucky with her sister, dealing with things that their mother left behind when she passed away in December. It wasn't the same without her.
Part of the fun on Easter was watching the final round of the Masters, with Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods fighting their own contest, playing in a twosome together, four or five strokes behind the leaders. Both of them made a strong fight to overtake the top spot, but they both ran into trouble and fell short of the lead. It was still very exciting to watch. Kris, Al, Mike, Martin and I had a good time, going from the tv in the living room to the food and good company in the kitchen and on the patio.
The next day, Al and I went to spend some time with Mike at the timeshare resort in Aneheim where he, Kim and Aaron were staying over the Easter weenend. (Their older son, David, stayed home because of work commitments. We missed him, too.) Mike made lunch for Al and me, and we all had fun playing ping pong and catching up with each other. Al and I had stopped for a few minutes in Laguna Beach on our way to Aneheim from Jackie and Martin's where we had spent the night, just to have a quick look at the ocean. The day was gorgeous, and our short visit was more than worth the detour.
That evening I drove Elijah home to Los Feliz, and he and I got to know each other a little better. We are good pals now. I watched him for a little bit the next morning, waiting for Jackie to drive up from the O.C., and we got even better acquainted. He now knows my name and calls me Dan. When it was time for me to go, Jackie said "bye-bye, Dan" and Elijah said "No bye-bye Dan." He didn't want me to leave, which was very touching. He is a great kid and I had a great time with him. I look forward to more time with him, now that we are such good buds.
That was a week ago now. Lynette came home on Wednesday, and we have had a quiet few days together. On Saturday we went to the new farmers' market at the Americana in Glendale, which was very nice. We bought a loaf of nice bread and a few other things, including a very tasty pear and peach tart. Mmmm!
Saturday night was the 70th birthday party for Kris's mother-in-law Sally, at a nice place in Whittier. We had a great time. Again, lots of our family as well as lots and lots of Sally's - brothers and sisters and all their kids and grandkids. It was put on by Diana and Henry, Sally's children, and was very nice. A few tears were shed during the slide show, which included photos of Sally's late husband Henry, who was beloved by all of us. But soon there was music and dancing, and the mood got happier. It was especially nice to see our friend Triana, whom we hadn't spent any time with for several years. She is doing well, has a young son and a handsome husband, and looks fabulous!
Yesterday Lynette and I decided that we would go to New York for our anniversary, which is April 29th. It's our 31st. We booked the flight and the hotel, and are excited about it. We leave on the 29th and come home on May 4th. It will be fun, and we will get to spend time with Emily. We called her and she is excited that we are coming. She and Abigail are busy, as usual. They are planning on seeing a "This American Life" show on Thursday, which will be fun. We have lots of things we want to see and do...theater, museums, gardens, and just walking in the Big Apple.
That's it for now. I did a little minor plumbing this morning (a leaky faucet in the back yard) and now I'm off to the gym. More soon!
Part of the fun on Easter was watching the final round of the Masters, with Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods fighting their own contest, playing in a twosome together, four or five strokes behind the leaders. Both of them made a strong fight to overtake the top spot, but they both ran into trouble and fell short of the lead. It was still very exciting to watch. Kris, Al, Mike, Martin and I had a good time, going from the tv in the living room to the food and good company in the kitchen and on the patio.
The next day, Al and I went to spend some time with Mike at the timeshare resort in Aneheim where he, Kim and Aaron were staying over the Easter weenend. (Their older son, David, stayed home because of work commitments. We missed him, too.) Mike made lunch for Al and me, and we all had fun playing ping pong and catching up with each other. Al and I had stopped for a few minutes in Laguna Beach on our way to Aneheim from Jackie and Martin's where we had spent the night, just to have a quick look at the ocean. The day was gorgeous, and our short visit was more than worth the detour.
That evening I drove Elijah home to Los Feliz, and he and I got to know each other a little better. We are good pals now. I watched him for a little bit the next morning, waiting for Jackie to drive up from the O.C., and we got even better acquainted. He now knows my name and calls me Dan. When it was time for me to go, Jackie said "bye-bye, Dan" and Elijah said "No bye-bye Dan." He didn't want me to leave, which was very touching. He is a great kid and I had a great time with him. I look forward to more time with him, now that we are such good buds.
That was a week ago now. Lynette came home on Wednesday, and we have had a quiet few days together. On Saturday we went to the new farmers' market at the Americana in Glendale, which was very nice. We bought a loaf of nice bread and a few other things, including a very tasty pear and peach tart. Mmmm!
Saturday night was the 70th birthday party for Kris's mother-in-law Sally, at a nice place in Whittier. We had a great time. Again, lots of our family as well as lots and lots of Sally's - brothers and sisters and all their kids and grandkids. It was put on by Diana and Henry, Sally's children, and was very nice. A few tears were shed during the slide show, which included photos of Sally's late husband Henry, who was beloved by all of us. But soon there was music and dancing, and the mood got happier. It was especially nice to see our friend Triana, whom we hadn't spent any time with for several years. She is doing well, has a young son and a handsome husband, and looks fabulous!
Yesterday Lynette and I decided that we would go to New York for our anniversary, which is April 29th. It's our 31st. We booked the flight and the hotel, and are excited about it. We leave on the 29th and come home on May 4th. It will be fun, and we will get to spend time with Emily. We called her and she is excited that we are coming. She and Abigail are busy, as usual. They are planning on seeing a "This American Life" show on Thursday, which will be fun. We have lots of things we want to see and do...theater, museums, gardens, and just walking in the Big Apple.
That's it for now. I did a little minor plumbing this morning (a leaky faucet in the back yard) and now I'm off to the gym. More soon!
Sunday, January 4, 2009
We sprinted from Phoenix to Glendale today. There was rain in Phoenix but it cleared quickly and we had a scenic, smooth ride most of the way. We stopped for lunch in La Quinta - nice place - and then barrelled on home. Got in at around three-thirty and unloaded the car. Lynette had a long chat with her friend Yvonne shortly after we walked in the door. We are glad to be home. Claire won't be coming tonight as she has a cold. We're settling in and trying to get the cat to recognize us.
Saturday, January 3, 2009
The Final Turn
We left Albuquerque this morning, planning to head straight through Flagstaff and on to Kingman, Arizona. But the weather report called for snow in that neck of the woods, so we took a left and dropped down along the Rio Grande almost all the way to Las Cruces, close to the Mexican border. We took a short cut to I-10 via a little road that led to Dening, New Mexico, where we had lunch at the local hot spot, and then headed west. We made it through Tuscon and all the way to Phoenix, where we are now, settled for the night at the Hampton Inn. We just finished some Chinese food in our room and watched the end of "Monster In Law" with Jane Fonda and Jennifer Lopez. The fun never stops!
The landscape down the Rio Grande and along the I-10 was spectacular - mesas and rock formations that poke out of the ground and reach hights in the hundreds of feet, and we're already at nearly 5000 feet above sea level; beautiful expanses of wide open prairie and rocky terrain; mountains in the distance that look like strange sculptures. All in all a feast for the eyes. New Mexico seems like a very nice place. Albuquerque is compact and nice looking - I'd like to go back some time and spend a couple of days. We hoped to get back to Santa Fe, but it wasn't in the cards. Next time.
We're excited about getting home. We spoke to Claire today - she had a bad cold, but she's going to come up to Glendale in the early evening. Can't wait to see her.
This drive had been interesting and mostly fun (apart from the two days when we were both under the weather). Now it's time to get back to real life, such as it is, and figure out what 2009 will be about for us.
The landscape down the Rio Grande and along the I-10 was spectacular - mesas and rock formations that poke out of the ground and reach hights in the hundreds of feet, and we're already at nearly 5000 feet above sea level; beautiful expanses of wide open prairie and rocky terrain; mountains in the distance that look like strange sculptures. All in all a feast for the eyes. New Mexico seems like a very nice place. Albuquerque is compact and nice looking - I'd like to go back some time and spend a couple of days. We hoped to get back to Santa Fe, but it wasn't in the cards. Next time.
We're excited about getting home. We spoke to Claire today - she had a bad cold, but she's going to come up to Glendale in the early evening. Can't wait to see her.
This drive had been interesting and mostly fun (apart from the two days when we were both under the weather). Now it's time to get back to real life, such as it is, and figure out what 2009 will be about for us.
Friday, January 2, 2009
Happy New Year from Albuquerque, NM
We're still on our way home, spending tonight here in Albuquerque. We left Oklahoma City this morning and drove most of the day through very nice weather. Not much news from the road...just drive and watch the scenery go by. It was pretty but mostly flat - a winterscape, with bare trees and brown fields. Cows in pastures.
Our route - Interstate 40 - parallels the old route 66 for much of the way. The old route is in bad shape in most places - drivable at many points, but nearly gone in others. The most interesting thing to me was to see the abandoned buildings - gas stations, cafes, motels, et al - that were the charm and the appeal of the route in its heyday (or so I've been led to believe from movies and books). Now they look like scenes from the Depression.
The good news is that Lynette and I both feel a lot better today than we did yesterday - the bug seems to have passed. Now we are pushing to get home, which we hope will be on Sunday. We will try to make it to Kingman, AZ, tomorrow, and from there straight to Glendale. Can't wait to see our dear family and friends.
I finished "The Yiddish Policemen's Union" and have begun a novel from last year titled "The Arsonist's Guide to Writers' Homes in New England," a satire. So far it's good enough. I'll let you know what I think when I'm finished with it. The "Yiddish Policemen" book was good. I'll try to post a critique when I have some time.
That's it for now...
Dan
Our route - Interstate 40 - parallels the old route 66 for much of the way. The old route is in bad shape in most places - drivable at many points, but nearly gone in others. The most interesting thing to me was to see the abandoned buildings - gas stations, cafes, motels, et al - that were the charm and the appeal of the route in its heyday (or so I've been led to believe from movies and books). Now they look like scenes from the Depression.
The good news is that Lynette and I both feel a lot better today than we did yesterday - the bug seems to have passed. Now we are pushing to get home, which we hope will be on Sunday. We will try to make it to Kingman, AZ, tomorrow, and from there straight to Glendale. Can't wait to see our dear family and friends.
I finished "The Yiddish Policemen's Union" and have begun a novel from last year titled "The Arsonist's Guide to Writers' Homes in New England," a satire. So far it's good enough. I'll let you know what I think when I'm finished with it. The "Yiddish Policemen" book was good. I'll try to post a critique when I have some time.
That's it for now...
Dan
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