Pocket Stages, Spicy Eats and Other Nashville Notes

Standing at the microphone in the Ryman.

The Ryman Auditorium, "the mother church of country music."

Fellow writer Shea spotted this photo op, in front of one of the Ryman windows.

I was in Music City on a press trip with 10 other writers last week. We hit the Grand Ole Opry. We got all riled up with Trisha Yearwood, our hearts buoyant as she smiled and thigh-slapped in a festive pantsuit to a rollicking rendition of "She's in Love with the Boy," with the Nashville Symphony. We toured the old Ryman Auditorium (site of the original Grand Ole Opry), with church pew seating and historic windows and took a super spicy risk with Nashville Hot Chicken near the Brave Idiot. 

Nine Nashville notes, and this is just for starters:

Number 6. I could see the pretty lights from my room.

1. Ernest Tubb Record Shop downtown. Near 10 p.m. Tuesday, a band of four played on the front stage, by the window. On a pocket stage hidden in the back, two pretty, honey-voiced women strummed guitar and sang. You can hear live country music for much of the night, even into the overnight. And find the bar for a nice spicy margarita. (Stylish blonde writer Erica, from Philly, said it was good. It had sliced jalapeño and a salty rim. But it was late, and our third bar stop that night, so I resisted.)
2. Born Bathing. That's the magical/mystical beauty brand of hand, hair and body wash products in the rooms at the Fairlane, a luxury boutique hotel (pet-friendly!) that was just refurbished and reopened. My skin felt soft and pampered and smelled good, too. Even with puffy eyes and urge to stay asleep after a night out, I felt refreshed and renewed with the body wash. I just ordered two (aluminum, not plastic) bottles online.
3. National Museum of African American Music. Interactive displays. So much to see and celebrate. So much history. Shoes, dresses, jackets that belonged to music icons. Two women from our group donned (new, not vintage) gospel robes and sang along with a video in a breakout room.
4. Hot Chicken, hellfire hot. The heat scale at pinball dive lounge No Quarter starts at 1 and goes to 10. My new friend and fellow writer, Geri, and I chose 7. Brave idiots, like the name on the food truck outside. Writer Shea said my face and mouth were getting red and I better get a shot of cream, but the bartender didn't have any. Geri said salt is supposed to help, so I got a spicy margarita with salt on the rim. Ample servings of chicken, tender and juicy under the fire, served on a slice of white sandwich bread, a welcome bland foil.
5. Voodoo Doughnut in the Nashville Airport. The chain started in 2003 in Portland, OR. I had never seen it, but the pink packaging caught my eye. Bedeviling varieties include Maple Bacon Bar and Churro Cheesecake.
6. Gaylord Opryland Resort, with room terraces that look out over lush indoor gardens. A concierge suite our group could use with The Wall Street Journal, big pots of orchids, Goo Goo Clusters, coffee and chilled water. Beautiful Christmas lights and fireplaces to sit by. A family favorite. 
7. Ice, ice baby. The annual ice show at Opryland, this year with a Peanuts theme. Very cute, characters and doghouse all carved from ice. Loved it. It's one to three degrees in there, so everyone (kids and adults) has to don a blue jacket with hood. Also: Ice slides for adventure.
   
   
   
8. Housemade coffee liqueur in the espresso martini for Friday brunch at Cafe Roze. Check the top-shelf cocktail list, including Root of All Evil, with vodka, carrot and beet juice. The house-baked chocolate croissants were big enough to feed 3 or more people. (Sold out by the time we arrived.) The bacon was excellent, as was the Country Ham Toast, with a snowfall of more than an inch of finely grated Parmesan on top. 
   
   Espresso martini.
   
   
   
   See what I mean about a snowfall of grated cheese? Amazing.
   
   
9. "There will be a surprise in your room." That's what the Modern Love chef at the Fairlane said when we left breakfast. Later, by our nightstands, we each found a large, rich, architecturally crafted candy bar. White and dark chocolate with praline, caramel and pepitas. 

And that doesn't even touch on my fellow travelers. A colorful group, including food writer Rai, a beautiful young Black woman with curly hair, lovely long dresses, great accessories and shoes and a rich knowledge of food and cooking, from biscuits to bone broth. Chris, a chivalrous car aficionado who drove to meet us in Nashville. He calls himself "Christhewheeltor" on Instagram. Erica, that blonde mom and actor/writer/editor from Philly (see spicy margarita, above). And many other spirited, smart observers. 

______________________________

Below, my NY Times piece about the Loveless Cafe in Nashville in 1989, when I was a young writer in the promotion/marketing department at Seventeen Magazine and joined Dan on a short work trip to Nashville. We ate at the Loveless and then I interviewed the owner by phone from my apartment on the Jersey Shore. (I've been pitching other food stories to the Times again. It's more involved than making a call at my desk on lunch hour to Eric Asimov, who edited "At the Nation's Table." But I will keep at it.)

https://www.nytimes.com/1989/11/15/style/at-the-nations-table-nashville.html

High-Low Carbs: Heavenly Biscuits, Quick Crescents & Apple Pie Secrets 🍎🍏

 

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High

Dan was away in Boston and Maine last weekend for work and a short family visit. Punchy was out. I had a yen for the Lo's Fried Chicken carryout dinner for two from Turtle + The Wolf, a beloved Montclair restaurant. I wanted the chicken, but what I really wanted was the featherlight buttermilk biscuits. I ordered this dinner package once during that lonely, dark pandemic to share with Punchy. It is not cheap but honestly, the salad was enough for two nights and the 10 pieces of cult-favorite chicken took me through a few lunches/dinners. (You have to order ahead.) The creamy mashed potatoes, yum. (I resisted the Chocolate Peanut-Butter Tart with toasted fluff but had it once with Dan at the real restaurant table.) The hot biscuits were perfection, four small, light, leavened-in-heaven beauties lined up and presented with a little cup of honey. Golden tops and tender, fluffy insides. Omigosh, butter from my fridge, and honey from the cup. Excellent. 

Low 

The Pillsbury rolls contain flour, shortening, water, baking powder--and possibly palm oil.

By contrast, I went to ShopRite with Punch last week when she was hungry. She wanted to make a Seafood Boil, and that was nice, with snow crab, fresh mussels, baby potatoes, corn on the cob, shrimp and plenty of Slap Ya Mama and Old Bay Seasoning. I also allowed her to chose some kid things like chocolate milk, fruit punch (one of each), waffles and Pillsbury Original Crescents rolls. She made them after school today. "I love snacks," I heard her say on the phone to a friend. I was surprised at how good the crescents were, again with butter and honey (her idea). Also, food science at work. Processed, I know, but took me back to my girlhood, round biscuits in a tube, arranging them in a metal pie pan in our 1950s green Dumont kitchen, setting the table for my mother. Today's crescent dough triangles are rolled up so neatly, the directions so clear ($3.49 for an 8-ounce tube).

Apple Pie Secrets

I just wrote a story about Apple Secrets for Food52. I'm proud, and have been sending along more ideas. I've wanted to work for/write for that site ever since one of my idols, NY Times food columnist Amanda Hesser (Cooking for Mr. Latte book), co-founded it. Here is the link:

https://food52.com/story/apple-secrets-baking-cooking-fall

Still chasing my dreams at age 64, and why not? (Bobbi Brown and Katie Couric shared at the 92nd Street Y talk Wednesday night that they are both 68, and nothing's stopping them.)

My apple story intro mentions a tube of biscuit dough. That came first, before we bought the crescents.

Have a good night. 🍎🍏🍎🍏

New York Is Our Playground for Movies & Meals

Photo from NY Times review of the Irish documentary"Housewife of the Year," playing in the Village.

Illustration by Conor Merriman/Juno Films, Inc. 2025.

That glittery city, that gritty city. Its frissons of energy give our batteries a jolt. Its hard-boiled love runs deep. New Yorkers may seem to keep to themselves, but lose your pearl necklace walking around at lunch as a young woman or have your handbag stolen as the subway doors close, and watch people step up and step in.

Dan and I were young writers on those sidewalks, winding up and down streets and across avenues, chasing our dreams, wearing down the heels of our shoes. We were young believers, newlyweds, parents. We looked up to people--our editors, our writing and reporting peers and our idols (Tom Wolfe, Mary Cantwell, Helen Thomas), our parents, our friends, our siblings. (We still do.) We marveled at the city's gifts, free for the taking. The skyline. The Empire State Building. The Flatiron Building. The Village. The arch at Washington Square Park. Hot bagels, F train rides, Central Park, the day the circus came to town.

We are not young now, but if we somehow live until 95, then we are only about 2/3 through life. Time enough to chase more dreams. 

Lately, we did a couple of NYC firsts.

Saturday-night movie and late supper in the Village. Nothing on our many local NJ movie screens interested me this weekend. Dan, my entertainment concierge, discovered "Housewife of the Year" playing at Quad Cinema on West 13th Street. It's a documentary about a televised competition that aired in Ireland from 1969 to 1995. Check this NY Times review Dan found. I loved the film. The hairdos, dresses, skirts, shoes, stockings and jewelry the contestants wore; the glimpse at the husbands, how each couple met; the roles women were expected to play; the back stories; the talents; the toothy grins; the charming, wry TV host, Gay Byrne; the number of children each lady had (one with 13!!!!); and the dinners they made to woo the judges (roast lamb, fancy potatoes, custards, etc.). The way women's roles slowly changed with reproductive rights. The Catholic Church's strong clench, and slow release, on family choices. 

Surprise, the young, award-winning Irish director, Ciaran Cassidy, was there afterward, to field questions. So cool. I felt like a student again--and we were right near The New School, where we had gotten reacquainted in an evening writing class and started dating. 

Then we walked across the street to Da Andrea, a bustling Italian restaurant, for 9:30 dinner. We sat at the curved end of the small bar and Nelson took us in, between manning the cocktail shaker and pouring the wines. Warm, tender bread with olive oil, spinach ravioli stuffed with truffle mushroom and fluffy ricotta, then the perfect period at the end of the sentence, my latte and Dan's baby-size espresso with two tiny biscotti, a parting gift we ate with relish. Nelson poured us a glass of the restaurant's homemade limoncello, delicious, before we slipped out into the night. We plan to return to Andrea.

Dinner at The Waverly Inn! I'd been curious for years about this exclusive West Village hideaway co-owned by Graydon Carter of Vanity Fair editor fame. We wanted a nice place for Monday dinner on President's Day Weekend, to celebrate our February 17 wedding anniversary (34 years). The Waverly had a table at 5 or 9 p.m., so we went early. The truffled macaroni and cheese was well over $100, but other entrees were in reach. 

Looming larger than life: Legendary magazine editor Graydon Carter. 

Photo by Sasha Maslov for The New York Times.

The dinner opener delivered without question to your table, simple circle biscuits served warm with a ramekin of butter. Perfection. Recipe wanted. The Iceberg Wedge Salad was very nice with the crispy bacon on the side, since Dan is a vegetarian. I wouldn't rave about the rest of the food we had, but the ambiance--that provided the golden nourishment. This menu item caught my eye, for perspective: Aged Beef Tomahawk Rib Chop for Two, Black Truffle Butter, Choice of Two Sides 265. Yes, $265.

Roaring fireplaces, prominent mantels, a famous mural, cocktails, good people-watching. We were in close quarters with the in crowd. We had all ducked in from the cold, descending the stairs to an historic space. I won't lie, I did feel a little "less than," and that's not a great feeling. Even at the Plaza, Gramercy Tavern, the Four Seasons (only there once for Saturday night coffee and dessert, wandered in with Dan), Le Cirque, I didn't feel that way. Was that a gift of youth, that blending in and looking good? Does smooth skin and a svelte shape mean acceptance?

Anyway, next time, I will wear better shoes to a place run by the king of vanity publishing and Oscar fêtes. But one of my black suede Italian pumps went missing in my closet. (As a new college grad, I heard that Condé Nast interviewers look right at your footwear to evaluate style and substance. And the pretty raven-haired HR person did just that.) Mr. Carter lives a stone's throw away, so walking that neighborhood felt important. Two of his beloved vintage cars were (carefully) parked along Bank Street.

It was fun to get out of the suburbs. Holding a key to the city means we can always get a welcome jolt. 

Good night.

"Toyota Universe" and #Onceinabluemoon

Image from and info at https://starwalk.space/fr/news/full-blue-moon*.

Hi from the Toyota service center on Route 46 East in Little Falls, New Jersey.

I'm happy to be here for a noon appointment on a summer Wednesday because

A. It's our first free maintenance check and oil change (under warranty) on the preowned (formerly leased only) RAV4 we bought this spring. It feels good to take care of yourself and of your car. This is fun, especially when the service, with 21-point check, is already paid for, though of course you get ripped off with inflated interest rates and bloated warranty protection charges, etc. when you sign the contract. Next time, if and when there is a next time, I will be far more present and careful. Dan and I did our best. I am grateful for our car.

B. I'm in a workspace away from home, hooray, sitting at a cubicle with a big desktop computer. Not seeing dustballs on carpet, dishes to wash, faded orange echinacea to deadhead in the garden, never mind my laptop and notepads of interview notes, stories I want to pitch. It's just the service area holding room, but it takes me back to all the offices I worked in--at clean desks with other people committed to a common, branded purpose. In this case, it's Toyota technicians and service advisors (shoutout to my man Luis) and of course, the cashier, but I might as well be back at the Twin-Boro News, The Daily Targum at Rutgers, The Nation summer internship. Woman's Day, Seventeen, Good Housekeeping, Cigar Aficionado or Strategic Communications, my last NYC staff job. Or the Hot Chocolate Sparrow on Cape Cod or Joyist, the fabulous smoothie place that thrived in Montclair before the pandemic shuttered it. I loved working on my Rose Gold laptop there, while the Joyist pros buzzed up healthy "Natalie" pink drinks and peanut-butter fueled "Lukes," salads and bowls in that sleek, modern space. All of us--we were industrious and working for a greater cause, witnesses to one another's efficiency and effort. That's what you lose when you work alone at home.

Nissan has free Danishes, a fellow Toyota owner said to several of us near the free coffee machine. (No pastries or bagels there at noon, just vending machines.) We all like to convene and kibitz with other people.

I've been organizing my sunroom office for over a month now. I've filled seven grocery totes or more with books I needed, wanted, loved and in many cases never even cracked open. Pricey cookbooks, including one all about making jam, a double I bought of a Giada fresh Italian bible, an extra Michael Pollan copy. I removed a small bookcase from my sunroom office to make space. That's how many books I have released. I've been unearthing beautiful wood shelves and polishing them with my little bottle of luxury Diptyque leather and wood lotion, featured in my assignment for Good Housekeeping, 10 Best Furniture Polishes of 2024, Tested by Cleaning Experts. Anything French and chic is a win in my book.

SURPRISE NEW ENGLAND LOBSTER ROLL AND SUMMER BLUE MOON!!!!!

Sis told me Sunday about the blue moon coming Monday. It doesn't look blue, just perfectly full, bright, textured and seen. Memorable. Craters, storybook dimensions. So clear and close, you wish to pluck it from the sky.

So Monday at 5 p.m., I drove to Connecticut (usually one-hour drive but took 1 hr. 20 minutes due to rush hour and downpours) to see the #onceinabluemoon Supermoon with her. It was stupendous. 

I can see little blue men up there, Sis joked, pausing to look through her binoculars while we walked her dog, Galena. 

Add to that a lobster roll that rivals the best I ever had, maybe 30 years ago in Kennebunkport, Maine with Dan pre-kids or the one we loved at McLoon's Lobster Shack with Spice/Spike more recently. This roll was a special at Tomato Tomato, a pizza/Italian restaurant right down the street from Sis in Stamford. Big, succulent "local" lobster pieces. Melted butter for dipping. Toasted, charred, buttered bun with perfect grill marks. It was an appetizer, and cost $25, but it was ample. Sis treated. I only paid a little. 

And the dazzling Democratic National Convention in Chicago!!!!!!! Michelle and Barack Obama. JFK's grandson, Jack Schlossberg (newly minted contributer to Vogue). Oprah. Nancy Pelosi. President Bill Clinton. Young poet Amanda Gorman. So much. So much hope.

Good night.

*

*In French from that site: 

Qu'est-ce qu'une Lune bleue ?

L'origine du nom est encore incertaine. Il est utilisé depuis longtemps ; certains le font remonter à 400 ans, lorsque cela signifiait quelque chose qui ne pouvait jamais se produire (d'où l'expression anglaise "once in a Blue Moon").

Une Lune bleue peut être saisonnière et calendaire. Examinons de plus près chaque définition.

translated from French: 

What is a Blue Moon?

The origin of the name is still uncertain. It has been used for a long time; some date it back 400 years, when it meant something that could never happen (hence the English expression "once in a Blue Moon").

A Blue Moon can be seasonal and calendar. Let's take a closer look at each definition.

Stuffed Mushrooms and Spaghettini: Sarah Palin Ate Here

Above: Romantic "Barbra Streisand" rose from 

https://cityfloralgreenhouse.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/rose-barbra-streisand.jpg.

Dan and I clinked glasses for our 31st wedding anniversary (February 17) on Saturday--two nights late--at a table for two in Elio’s Italian restaurant on the Upper East Side. We had an 8:30 reservation.

We booked our sitter and friend, Elaine--who kept an eye on the washer, dryer, laundry baskets, dishwasher, kitten and, most important of all, young teen back home while we drove across the GWB. I don’t feel comfortable, certainly not in the city, at this fragile juncture without Elaine in place.

We could go out in Montclair or in the city, I had said. Dan loves to pick fun places for me or our family.

I’m booking a table at the place Sarah Palin ate after testing positive for COVID. It’s supposed to be really good Italian food, he said the next day.

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Those 31 years ago, on that February Sunday, I was a newly minted 30. Dan was 33. He wore black (tux) and I wore white (gown). 

Saturday night, I noticed our age. We are a bit worse for the wear. We have weathered storms. We have seen the sun. We are still together.

So many things in our house are upstairs--our only bathroom, the two bedrooms, Dan’s office. It gets tiring. We didn’t notice that when we bought the house in 1994. We were young.

Saturday night, I forgot my hairspray upstairs. Kids do come in handy.

Skippy, can you please run up and get my hairspray?

She came down with two tall cans and started spraying.

You said you need a shower, right?

No, I don’t. I took a shower.

Too late. She was blasting dry shampoo in my hair and fussing with it, aiming for Jersey-girl height. I had that at my wedding, thanks to Dumont hairstylist Donna.

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It was blustery cold. I had pulled on tights, stepped into black suede shoes with straps and kitten heels. A black dress, a pearl necklace. I hadn’t dressed up like that for years. 

We hadn’t gone out to many fancy places (except Joe Allen in September), not with the pandemic taking hold March 2020 in NYC. Before that, our dinner dance card on memorable nights had included Tavern on the Green. Windows on the World, until a kitchen fire set off the smoke alarm that weeknight evening. The Four Seasons, for after-dinner drinks on a certain Saturday night. Balthazar (Tom Brokaw and his stunning wife, Meredith, sat nearby.) The Water Club. Spaghetto. Minetta Tavern. Once, even Gramercy Tavern. 

I put on eye shadow, brow pencil, mascara. How old was I when my brows became invisible without pencil or a salon tint?

I wore my gold charm bracelet. It, too, is 31 years old, and jingles with memories, from a Hawaiian honeymoon pineapple to a miniature baby carriage and a typewriter. A little-girl charm embedded with Figgy’s peridot birthstone--a gift from Sis. A high-heeled shoe I got at Lord & Taylor with a gift card from Dad. 

It took three people to fasten the tiny clasp Saturday night--Dan couldn’t see it and was getting the driving directions on his phone, then Elaine couldn’t, not without her eyeglasses. Skip came through in the clutch. I was too tired to try, and anyway, I figured I had three helpers to ask.

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After Sarah Palin flap, guests are greeted by a fellow who carefully vets vaccination records against photo IDs.

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I checked the menu online. Prosciutto di parma and melon--$25. I know prosciutto is pricy. We haven’t splurged on an expensive meal like this in a while. We enjoyed it, grateful we could go. We didn’t get back to a second honeymoon in Hawaii. We were changed; life had changed us, for better and for worse. But we could have this luxurious dinner.

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I know a lot about Dan by now. I knew that since we were in an Italian restaurant, he would get a tiny cup of espresso after dinner, with a single piece of lemon peel to rub on the rim and Sambuca on the side. I knew the sweet licorice liqueur would arrive in a cordial glass with a few coffee beans afloat.

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We took close note of the scene, the food and, especially, the bustling service, like a well-practiced game of musical chairs--diners sit, waiters step over with water, bread, butter, silverware. Cocktail order in. Don’t skip a beat. After jotting appetizer and entree orders on pad, place steak knife (if necessary) and cheese grater on table. When plates arrive, approach, inquire "Fresh pepper? Cheese?" After clearing entrees, recite names of delectable sweets, using Italian words like tiramisù and zabaglione and take dessert and coffee requests. Glide to table with hot coffees, silver spoons, sugar packets. Know all the while that all food served will be delicious.

But we were not rushed. We were there until 10, drinking in the glamorous city we love.

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It was, largely, a beautiful crowd. An Indian or Pakistani woman, expecting a baby, wore her long, dark hair loose against a pale cappuccino-colored sweater with fur-trimmed, elbow-length sleeves. Men had stylish eyeglass frames, collared shirts under crewneck sweaters, expensive shoes. I loved the faux white flowers pinned in a blonde woman’s hair. I had to keep sneaking looks. It was so stylish.

We ate stuffed mushrooms (me), burrata (Dan)....I had chicken parmigiana the likes of which I have never seen, pounded flat, thin and big as a saucer. No blanket of rubbery cheese. Dan had spaghettini broccoli di rape that he raved about.

We shared fresh berries and fluffy whipped cream.

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It was a treat to dine in a great place sans Skip for the first time in a while. (She was with us at Joe Allen in September.) Jerry (sp), the maitre’d, slipped my lavender wool coat over my shoulders at the end of the evening and bowed, saying he hopes we return.

And now I read in this NY Times link that Joan Didion (one of my favorite authors) and Tom Hanks have eaten there.

We were among the glitterati for dinner theatre, that’s how it felt. 

We love New York.

 

New York City Style Holds up in Thursday Downpour

Above: LoveShackFancy store on Madison Avenue--a street that is a living museum of style shops.

Sis is my museum mentor. (Dan is another.) She is a fan of The Frick Collection of art, temporarily relocated to the building that housed the Whitney Museum--at Madison Avenue and 75th Street. 

She got us two tickets to the Frick Madison. Enlightening. History, beauty, masterful skill. Ornate gold frames, blue and white urns, sculptures, marble-topped tables. Paintings of impressive height and width. You would need a mansion with big rooms to display them.

Above: We saw this painting....Rembrandt, Self-Portrait, 1658.

The Montclair-based Decamp bus line to NYC suspended its by-then-phantom buses in August. The #66 careen up and down Valley Road for months, empty--people were working from home, not commuting on buses that were previously packed at rush hour. And in the summer, they took (safe) vacations. The New Jersey Transit train line has been up and running, but since the pandemic hit, I have only gone into NYC by car:

• In the fall, when Dan and I drove in to meet our friends Celia and Greg for Saturday sushi dinner near Stuyvesant Town.
• In December 2020, when I drove Skippy in with two friends one evening to window shop and see holiday decor as only NYC can do it. (Skip’s two young friends are Jewish, and we even saw a donut menorah and, on the Upper East Side, the moving, mobile Mitzvah Tank.)
• In February, when Sis and I went to the Metropolitan Museum of Art and got corned beef sandwiches and best pickles to go at Katz’s Deli.
• Today.

Sis and I sat outside in the street at Serafina--plastic tent, heat lamp above each table, plexiglass barriers, masked wait staff--and talked about our beloved city over ravioli with porcini mushroom sauce (me) and salad with steak (she). We talked and ate as the rain poured outside.

Our city isn’t the same, and that’s no surprise. We miss the passion, the pulse, the crowds, the hustle and bustle. I miss seeing people of all ages chasing the best of the best--writers, models, actors, hotdog vendors, artists, comedians, dancers, singers, editors, reporters, ballerinas, chefs, makeup artists, doctors, scientists, bookstore owners, tailors, designers, salespeople, baristas, fashionistas, coffee roasters, sandwich makers, cookie bakers--with a fire in their bellies and their hearts. 

I hope our beloved city comes back full swing.

Fun sightings today:

1. LOVESHACKFANCY store on Madison Avenue. I’ve seen the brand in collaborations on Aerin.com but was exited to see the shop. Wow. We walked in and a young man was styling the final details for a bridal shower in the store this evening. The tables looked so beautiful--with LoveShack pink floral linen tablecloths, pink china, exquisite flower bouquets and pink iced cookies. Glass jars filled with pretty pink candies and pink-foil-wrapped Hershey's Kisses. The other store locations are in Newport Beach, CA; Palm Beach, FL; Sag Harbor, NY, etc. So glad I went in here, and got less frivolous Sis to enter, too! The hand towels and the candle in a teacup--so lovely.
2. MEPHISTO. Stylish, comfortable shoes--flat or not, sneakers, Mary Jane styles, sandals--made in France. So pretty. Cork inside. Going back! Really nice. I'm behind the curve, not walking on Madison Avenue to window-shop and wish, as I used to. I am behind on knowing my fashion labels.
3. JOE COFFEE. Served in the Frick Madison cafe. But my parking meter was going to run out and I didn’t want to risk a ticket (I paid $10.75 twice, for two maximum two-hour blocks of time). It smelled very good; the large lattes/capps in cups and saucers looked great. I like the blue packaging/logo.
   
   
   
4. DIPTYQUE (pronounced DIP-TEEK). Luxury French fragrance and sensibility via Madison Avenue outposts, and several other NYC locations. Sis had been eyeing a scent for her bday--I paid for about a third of it. They gift-wrap beautifully. And we attended a virtual Sniffapalooza Diptyque event from our homes that entitled us to a solid perfume in pretty case with any purchase.

Eyes closing. I drove us back to Sis’s in Connecticut and I’m sleeping over tonight. Good night.

Close Call with Grubhub

I went online to order from Tinga, the Mexican restaurant in town, via Grubhub. But my cart included an automatic tip of $13 and then came a question: Did I want to add a tip for the driver, and of course I would. So Grubhub is taking that giant cut first, and it's not even for the driver? That was getting to be way too much. It was $78 for dinner for four without the driver tip.

Instead, I called directly, and the food came to $65 and I added a $12 tip for contact-free delivery. I got chicken quesadillas for me and Punch; beans and rice platter for Figgy; cheese enchilada platter for Dan, with fixings, lettuce etc.; guacamole with small bag chips; and pico de gallo with small bag chips.

TCOY

1. I cried a lot in my kitchen today. I got the call from my cousin Loretta that my Uncle Jackie [formally John] Mahon died Wednesday nite at age 90. Crying can be TCOY, letting feelings out. There goes another one of the Old Guard. I cherished him, the middle of my mother's three younger brothers--the second of my grandmother Alice's three sons. I love/loved them all, but Jackie was gregarious, like my mother. He and Aunt Mary had five children. Jackie went to law school at night after age 40 and became a government attorney, working at 26 Federal Plaza in New York City and commuting from Long Island. He handled trademark cases. [I think my friend Liz does that, too!] He also lost two children--my peer, Stevie, who died in a bike accident when I was in sixth grade, and more recently, my older cousin, John, who was physically disabled for years.] How do parents ride through that? Today, in the kitchen, as unrealistic as it might be to visualizer reunions in the heavens, up in the clouds, I pictured my father, mother, her parents and Uncle Jim greeting Jackie on his arrival--maybe because he was so lovable. I hope Stevie and John met him with wide grins and loud voices, too. Sis and I FaceTimed with Jackie last week in Connecticut. Loretta showed him the Facebook pictures of us fishing, with a big striper.
2. Writing an essay to pitch.
3. Walked Sug around the block.
4. Went over to my friend Jean's, chatted and caught up.
5. Talked on phone to my friend Jane, plus Moey and Sis.
6. Michael joined Dan and me for dinner in the backyard.

$ MONEY SPENT OUT OF POCKET

• Rented "The Gospel According to André" documentary about fashion editor André Leon Talley, about $13.
• The Mexican food, $77 counting tip for contact-free delivery, weekend family treat, dinner for four [and Michael joined us, too].

total daily spend: $90.

ongoing monthly spend as of June 12:  $1,463.59.

avg daily spend: $121.97. As of now, this is almost twice as much as my avg. daily spend in March, when coronavirus took hold. I hope I can rein it in. I have been doing a lot of grocery and other shopping.

Keep an eye on/compare to previous months:

April 2020: Total monthly spend: $2,143.19.
Avg daily spend: $71.44.

March 2020--the effect of coronavirus quarantine and not working in NYC for now

Total monthly spend as of March 31: $1,916.15.

Avg daily spend: $61.81.

February 2020

Total monthly spend as of Feb. 29: $2,480.34.
Avg daily spend: $85.53.

TOTAL SPEND FOR MAY 2019: $2,348.24.

MAY AVERAGE DAILY SPEND: $75.75. 

TOTAL SPEND FOR APRIL 2019: $3,634.28.

APRIL AVERAGE DAILY SPEND: $121.14.

Let me try to get back to the essay now, before the food arrives. Good night.

Updating $ for High-Spend Wednesday

$ MONEY SPENT OUT OF POCKET

This doesn't count $25 donation to WNYC Public Radio pledge drive; $140 to sign Punch up for next session of 7 ice skating lessons; and $150 deposit for a week of summer camp for her at Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary on Cape Cod.

• This happened Tuesday night after I already posted numbers. Two books by beloved Southern writer Julia Reed, of Vogue and New York Times Magazine fame. I bought one of the books used but in very good condition, total for both to be delivered to my door, $29.48.
• Yoga Mechanics, after class I bought a new journal. On the cover: HELLO TO HERE A journal for now, $10.
• Le Salbuen, I went to indulge in my favorite cup of cappuccino in town. I left having spent $24 after breakfast including tip. I see that is way too much.
• Whole Foods, pink tulips and a cannoli to drop off to Rach and her good son; half-gallon whole milk; 2 spring bulb plants [$2 each]; box of Grape-nuts; and organic blueberries, $27.27.
• Punch asked if we could go to her top restaurant, SLA Thai, right near her weekly Wednesday afternoon therapy appointment. This is a big treat. Very good food, and expensive. She loves it all, from appetizer to mango ice cream. I told her we can't go back for a while. She was happy, and we took enough leftovers home for a full meal for one to two people tonight (shrimp fried rice), plus Punch's unfinished mango ice cream with plum seeds and one appetizer order for her to bring for lunch today. With 5 percent discount for paying cash, plus tip, $101. [I told her this made up for the night before, when I served the whole-wheat vegetable ravioli I bought at the shore on Monday. Everyone hated them except me. P did not eat even a bite. And since box said non-dairy, I thought vegan, but they continued an egg, so could not offer to Figgy.]
• Montclair parking meters, about $3.

Total spend: $194.75.

Ongoing monthly spend as of Feb. 26: $2,279.44.

Avg daily spend: $87.67.
3 days left in February, will watch it

compare to January 2020:
Total monthly spend as of Jan 31: $3,063.60.
Avg daily spend: $98.83.

december 2019 [Christmas and all that entails]

total monthly spend as of Dec. 31: $3,998.16. 

avg daily spend: $128.97. 
__________________________________________________________________

Total spend for November (30 days): $2,979.03. 

Average daily spend: $99.30. 

__________________________________________________________________

TOTAL SPEND FOR OCTOBER (31 DAYS): $2,495.36.

AVERAGE DAILY SPEND: $80.49.

_____________________________________________________________________

TOTAL SPEND FOR SEPTEMBER (30 DAYS): $2,214.43.

AVERAGE DAILY SPEND: $73.81.

___________________________________________________________________________

TOTAL SPEND FOR AUGUST (31 DAYS/PLUS VACAY IN HERE): $2,895.06. ⬆️

AUGUST AVERAGE DAILY SPEND: $93.39.  ⬆️

With Age, Laugh Crinkles--and Wisdom

The older I get, the more I appreciate the BIG little things on my birthday.

I once received--and sent--a lot of birthday cards. I lined them up on my kitchen counter in Ocean Grove.

Now I get only a handful.

I have some laugh crinkles around my eyes and two deep furrows, worry lines, between my knitted brows, from years of serious pondering and concentrating. But gifts--I have such gifts.

I am so grateful for Moey's texts and for talking to her today. For Sis, her card, seeing her yesterday and taking a short, brisk walk at Greenwich Point with our little dogs and Punch AND for the lunch she and her friend treated me to in NYC today. For the sweet card from co-workers. For what Dan just carried in...I haven't peeked yet, but it looks like pretty things with green stems. For Elaine bringing a tray of homemade manicotti and a fresh loaf of Italian bread to the door.

For the striking sunset I saw from the 5 pm #66 bus heading home, black and white reruns of "The Andy Griffith Show" and a family coming together as best it can to sing "Happy Birthday" to me over berries and whipped cream. For the single pink taper in an angel candle holder...

I may need a dab more eye cream.....and a lot more hair color....but I still feel young.

Good night to you.

TCOY

1. Salon blowout at 9 am.
2. Important work interview today. I visualized walking in with so many people behind me to cheer me on--Dad, my grandmothers, Sis, Punch, Fig, Dan, Moey, Patsy, my friend Sarah. I also had the tiny silver rosary beads in my handbag--the ones my grandma Rosie brought back from Rome, and a crystal from the CALM collection Patsy sent.
3. Nice hot shower.
4. Good coffee, brewed by Dan.

$ MONEY SPENT OUT OF POCKET MONDAY & TUESDAY

• MetroCard refill, $6.
• Cookbook at Felidia, the restaurant where we lunched on E. 58th Street. It's the beloved flagship restaurant opened decades ago by Chef Lidia Bastianich. The 2019 cookbook, called Felidia, was at the front. I arrived first and well, the rest is history. I plan to make recipes from it. With tax, $38.11.
• Duane Reade, peppermint Tic Tacs, $2.17.
• Staples, made fresh copies of updated resume and crisp, colorful ones of some magazine clips, $17.28.
• Staples, white squishy clay for Punch, $3.72.
• Sunny Daes, Stamford, ice cream in waffle cone for Punch plus $1 tip, $7.25. Wow, that's $$.
• Milk, $5.
• Salon blowout for interview, plus tip, $45.
• Salon, purse-size tube of hand cream, $2.40.

total spend for Monday and Tuesday: $126.93.

ongoing monthly spend as of Jan. 21: $2,525.69.

avg daily spend: $120.27.

The Coffee in the Brooks Brothers Suit

Sadly, I think I missed these festive cups. But will be on the lookout.
Image from Brooks Brothers Red Fleece Cafe.

I've walked by the Red Fleece Cafe at Brooks Brothers on Madison Avenue with interest and curiosity this winter as I've trudged back to the Port Authority after workdays.

I've dangled it as an idea for Sis.

Today I wrangled my friend Celia into going.

It was nice. Celia got some fancy maple latte in the signature red cup and saucer; it was dusted with nutmeg so fragrant and sit-by-the-fireplace cozy, I could smell it. [Red Fleece does not have a fireplace.]

They brew Stumptown Coffee. I got a large golden latte [with turmeric] and it was excellent, with a thick, creamy cap that I spooned up with a little silver spoon. My sandwich was, well--a sandwich. Nothing too tailored or upscale about it, but it was fine. Not buttoned up, no crisp lettuce collar. It was chicken on white. No extra starch.

I would def go back, not just for those lattes but for a fat vegan PB cookie to bring Figgy, a high-end dark chocolate bar or a plated meal. The kitchen was closed when we arrived. Also: Looked like a nice space to work on one’s laptop.

I always love to see our dear, smart friend Celia, especially in a stylish New York City setting.

Good night.

Info from HERE: "The Man in the Brooks Brothers Shirt" was the title of a 1942 short story by Mary McCarthy. The title is famous, but the story itself is less so. The Brooks Brothers company used the theme in ads, changing it to "The Man in the Brooks Brothers Suit."

I love Mary McCarthy's Memories of a Catholic Girlhood. I read her Brooks Brothers Shirt story once, about a man on a train, but want to read it again.

TCOY

1. Walked over 1 hour in NYC.
2. Accessorized, applied makeup. Wore trendy ribbed sweater I got on sale Friday at Le Willow.

$ MONEY SPENT OUT OF POCKET

• 4 bus tickets, $30.60
• Starbucks, $3.
• Red Fleece Cafe, with tip, about $22.
• Grand Central Food Market, groceries--large container good, crunchy pickles; guacamole; hummus; handmade rosemary crackers; spaghetti squash with tomato sauce; 4 plump wrapped rolls for family dinner [2 lobster, 1 Thai shrimp, 1 curried shrimp]; good deli liverwurst; pint Hudson Valley half and half, $77.79. Spent too much. 
• Neuhaus Chocolate, shipped in weekly from Belgium, said Lemon, the nice young salesperson. 4 small jewel-shaped dark chocolates, 2 dark truffles, 1 extra filled chocolate that Lemon threw in for Punchy--and she loved it, $10.97.

total daily spend: $144.36.

ongoing monthly spend as of Jan. 14: $1,823.49.

avg daily spend: $130.25.

COMPARE TO LAST 5 MONTHS:

december 2019 [Christmas and all that entails]

total monthly spend as of Dec. 31: $3,998.16. 

avg daily spend: $128.97. 

Total spend for November (30 days): $2,979.03. 

Average daily spend: $99.30. 

__________________________________________________________________

TOTAL SPEND FOR OCTOBER (31 DAYS): $2,495.36.

AVERAGE DAILY SPEND: $80.49.

_____________________________________________________________________

TOTAL SPEND FOR SEPTEMBER (30 DAYS): $2,214.43.

AVERAGE DAILY SPEND: $73.81.

___________________________________________________________________________

TOTAL SPEND FOR AUGUST (31 DAYS/PLUS VACAY IN HERE): $2,895.06. ⬆️

AUGUST AVERAGE DAILY SPEND: $93.39.  ⬆️