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April 10, 2006
Dios Mio- My Taxes are Done! Also, a Restaurant Review
Taxes. Are. Done. I literally kissed my money goodbye (a little prayer never hurts) before I dropped it in the mailbox. In addition to my check, I also included a little note, handwritten on my best stationary:
Dear IRS agent,
Just wanted to say thanks for all your hard work and also, thought I'd give you a heads up about my return. There's no need to scrutinize my return too carefully because I already checked everything over myself real good. A brief once-over should be more than enough. I imagine you're pretty tired of looking at returns all day anyhow, so here's one less you have to worry about. Thanks again.
Kindest regards,
Deborah
We are leaving in less than a week. Ay carumba! I'm pretty nervous, but too preoccupied with work, packing, re-learning how to speak the Spanish, etc. to have much of a proper freak-out. Usually before a big trip my anxiety manifests itself into this strange phenomenon where I can't differentiate between various physical needs. Tired, hungry, thirsty, needing to pee- all register as this same growling sensation in the pit of my stomach. Is that weird? Or normal? Am I normal?
I'm trying to squeeze in visits with everyone, too, especially those friends who for a variety of lame reasons (i.e: oral surgery, birth of a baby brother, bird flu) could not attend our party last weekend. Yesterday, I went dress shopping with my soon-to-be Cousin-in-law, and that was...interesting. We came up short (quite literally, as everything was too long on us both) but there's still a few more weeks for her to find The Dress. I've resigned to wearing last year's. I tried to dissuade her from this plain brown number but since they're keeping the whole affair real casual, maybe brown ain't so bad? Casual or not, I still can't believe Cousin Phil is tying the knot...
And now, because the Internet is down at work, rendering me totally useless, I'm going to write a short restaurant review:
On Saturday, we met up with Laura and Nicole, who were coming straight from a gig performing as a ballerina and Cookie Monster at a 3 year old's birthday party. They're quite the performers, those two, but unfortunately for us, they were de-costumed by the time they arrived in Brooklyn. Anyhow, we went to this scrumptious restaurant called Chestnut on Smith Street. It has been around for a few years and I had always assumed it was your standard nouveau American joint, the kind of place that uses seasonal ingredients from the farmer's market and arranges them into precarious yet artful towers on mismatched vintage plates. It was, in fact, that type of place, but I was impressed because they weren't overly reliant on things like escarole or other kinds of crappy wilted veggies. My fried gnocci appetizer was topped with a swirl of crispy pancetta. Very little greenery and just enough pork to make the taste buds salivate with delight. Entrees were solid, too, especially the boy's giant stuffed pork chop and Laura's buttery chicken and potato gratin. Then came dessert, the highlight probably being my delicate apricot rice pudding that really sang of Spring. Yes, it sang. As for the drinks, they were very, very strong and inventively incorporated seldom-used spirits like Rye, so that was appreciated. In sum, we all had a joyous, laughter-filled time stuffing our guts. It was (and still is until tomorrow) Dine in Brooklyn week, so we gorged on three courses for the amazingly low price of $20 a person. You should hop on that if you haven't already done so.
Posted by debbie at 3:20 PM
April 6, 2006
I would title this entry Where's the Beef but that's a bit lame, don't you think?
I think someone is playing Dance Dance Revolution in the editing suite. I can hear the tell-tale techno beats and robotic stomping. Honestly, it's a tad early for this kind of thing. The least they could do is be discreet about it.
Do you know what is not a good idea? Sleeping all night with gum in your mouth. I think the gum numbed my tongue for now I am having difficulty tasting things, but still I am dying for a burger. From Wendy's. I'm really craving a Shake Shack burger but the lines have been atrociously long since they opened up shop a few weeks ago. I will only go so far for a deliciously hot and juicy burger...mmmm....ok, so Wendy's. Shameful, I know. I'm a bad foodie. Coincidentally, Wendy's and the Shake Shack are right next to this horrible vegan/raw food eatery called Bonobos. My friend Chris teaches nearby and when we go out to lunch, we often end up there because he's a vegan (shudder) and loves their "food." When I'm lunching solo though I try my best to avoid the place as it's pretty pricey (for what it is) and not very satisfying. The star of the menu is the "nutmeat patty" (use your imagination) which they somehow manage to incorporate into every dish. Nutmeat is really, really far off from Beef Meat. But when I desire something junky, I always have to walk by there. It's like a test from God. For half a second, I contemplate going in for something healthy, but then, mercifully, I snap out of it.
Posted by debbie at 1:09 PM
April 5, 2006
Weekend Recap
I'm bored. Work is uninspiring, and so I turn to you, blog. So...the party last weekend was a lot of fun. I decided not too worry too much about having fun as worrying about having fun usually does not equate to actually having fun, go figure. I did not feel especially old either (although, as you can tell from the photo, the cake was literally on fire because of all the candles and it took me around eight deep huffs and puffs to blow them all out) and my hair, freshly cut and styled, was looking particularly sassy, which I enjoyed. And, of course, the many delicious cocktails and the company of my official domestic partner and good friends- all good. And, yes, as you can see, there was a lot of food. I wanted to pubically say thank you to the flock of chickens that died for our tangy little wings and to the school of squid that contributed our mound of calamari bits. Thanks. It was a bit overkill but it was pretty tasty and all was consumed.
After becoming friendly (some of us more "friendly" than others, ahem) with the ever-so-slightly-intoxicated bartender, who was more than generous with numerous free rounds of tequila, our drunken friends decided to head to the old Brooklyn Social and we didn't get home until the birds started chirping. I think this is Vince's fault. You just have to utter the word "afterparty" to Vince and regardless of the situation, he perks up and asks where. You could be at a funeral (god forbid) and Vince would be like sooo, um, yeah, where's the afterparty?
So yes, that was that. Sunday was spent with me refusing to get out of bed, then reluctantly doing so, and then ambling over to Alma's rooftop with Rafe's brother and girlfriend. Surprisingly, I was neither nauseous nor crabby. In fact, I was still drunk. Alma's food is a little hit or miss (ok, maybe it was my fault for ordering fish tacos after a night of drinking) but the view of the Manhattan skyline is pretty unbeatable. A fine day of eating and strolling in the sun...
And now, it is Wednesday afternoon. I am at work, and I would really like to take a nap underneath my desk. Unfortunately, this is frowned upon in the Japanese work environment. A real faux pas. I'm trying to make a good impression before I leave because if the girl who is replacing me is actually motivated and excited to work, then I'm in real trouble when I get back. The sky is spookily dark, very apocalyptic, and it is snowing pretty intensely. Snow! No matter- in in exactly a week and half, Rafe and I will be many thousands of miles away, no doubt sitting in a musty but nevertheless charming hostel in San Jose, yuking it up with some crunchy euro backpacker types...I can't wait!
Posted by debbie at 3:55 PM