Meeting up for dinner in White Plains

 

It seems like a long while since I've been to a dinner meetup - even though I was at one as recently as last week.  But then, my short term memory isn't as good as I'd like it to be these days. 😉

- - - - - -

As usual, I prepared for my meetup by finding a nice dress to wear, and refreshing my makeup.  (Do I ever go anywhere as Mario anymore if I can avoid it?)  Then it was off to La Bocca in White Plains.  Although I've been to meetups with this group before, I had not yet met tonight's organizer.  (I don't have much to say about her, as she is a pleasant person who I'd like to get to know better as a friend.) The conversation at the table flowed like water, as there were enough different topics for us to chat about without becoming awkward.

But I've neglected the most important past of the meetup - the food!

La Bocca is a mildly upscale Italian restaurant.  Being in Downtown White Plains, this restaurant likely has a high rent.  So it has to recoup that expense in slightly higher prices than I'm accustomed to be paying for Italian food.  But the food is worth every cent.  I had the Octopus Salad as a starter, consisting of various greens and thick, tasty tomato slices with several cooked octopus limbs on top.  Yum!  My main course was Chicken Scarapariello.  And it was served without bones.  YUM!  The only drawback to this place is the parking.  If one doesn't know White Plains, there is almost no on-street parking.  Instead, there are quite a few municipal parking lots squeezed in between office buildings which one must use.  This can be confusing for people not familiar with the area.

All too soon, our group finished dinner, and we were on our way home.  I figured that I'd register for some new meetups when I got home, and found out that I was taken off the wait list.  I am now scheduled for several more over the next two weeks, including one in NYC for its restaurant week.  (I won't say much about the NYC restaurant, save that it is known for a steak named after the restaurant.)

As you can guess, I'm looking forward to eating with nice people again....

 

 

 

 

 

Having a weekend off at the wrong time.

 

One of the problems a person can have in a healthy relationship is not having enough alone time at the right points in a person's schedule.  In short, one needs "Me Time" - whatever way that time may be spent.  It certainly doesn't mean that one doesn't care for one's love.  Instead, it means that one has to recharge one's batteries to keep expressing that love.  For some, it means simply being with friends.  For others, it may mean pursuing one's hobbies.  In my case, it involves being able to live life as Marian, and share that life with my partner.

I enjoy being with people, but I'm not an extrovert.  It's the conversational aspect of being with people that I like - either by imparting information, or by receiving information.  My problem is that being a polymath that likes to share, I can overwhelm others with my knowledge. Luckily, I often end up finding intelligent people to be with, some of whom have similar issues to mine.

This coming weekend, RQS will be away in Boston visiting a friend.  That gives me a weekend that I can use to recharge my batteries   However, none of my meetup groups are holding any gatherings of interest to me.  Since the weather will be turning hot again, I don't plan on going into the city to visit any museums or see any plays.  I've already seen most of the friends I see on a regular basis - they are not the types with whom I can drop in at a moment's notice.  So, what will I do?  That's the question I have to answer. Given that my nail polish is still looking good, I will stay in Marian mode for the upcoming weekend. With my ears being newly pierced, swimming is out of the question.  One thing I know is that Air Conditioned comfort will be essential to get through the coming weekend.

Since the weather looks good for the start of the weekend, I'll consider going into NYC to see a play early on, and then drive somewhere late in the weekend.  It's not perfect.  But I realize how import a person RQS has become in my life, and that I will be glad to see her when she returns from her friend's place.

Getting my ears pierced (again) & Dinner with a friend.

 

This is another one of the iPhone pictures that I had problems receiving and moving to my PC.  Seems like Apple found a new way to name image files which make people using non-Apple equipment have problems extracting and saving more than one image file in a single message.

- - - - - -

When I got up and ready to drop RQS off at the train station, I decided to wear the same dress she was wearing (albeit in a larger size).  This made her smile a bit.  And then it was off to the piercing studio to get my ears repierced.  I arrived at the studio around 12:30 pm, and was out the door by 1:30 pm, with studs in each earlobe, and $170 less in my wallet.  So what did I do next?  It was to go home to strip and relax.  Several hours later, I decided to get dressed in something new - the jumpsuit I purchased from Universal Standard.

Now, I won't wear this jumpsuit too often, as it  gets in the way when I need to take a bio break.  I have to plan to be able to remove this jumpsuit gracefully when I go to the ladies' room, and put it back on (along with a top I plan to wear with it) before reappearing in public.  Today, I wanted to look pretty and wear something different in my wardrobe.  So I wore this with a neutral linen shirt over it.

I arrived at the restaurant a few minutes before my friend, and we proceeded to have a nice dinner at the Himalayan restaurant in Yorktown Heights.  It was a yummy meal.  And the conversation was even better, as the two of us were able to talk about things AND assume the other could process things at the same level.  (Did I say that my friend has a doctorate and speaks several languages, including German which has mostly been forgotten?)  I don't mean to sound snobbish.  But when one is a lesser grade polymath, it's nice to be able to talk with another polymath - and this person is a polymath.

All too soon, the restaurant had to close.  My friend asked me to advise her on Alaska shore excursions she could take that would allow her to do some serious wildlife viewing while accommodating her handicap.  Hopefully, I can find some excursions for her, so that she might be able to plan a cruise soon.

A visit to the Norman Rockwell Museum (Going "MAD" for the day.)

 

I didn't know this, but Mad Magazine once offered Norman Rockwell a commission to update the image of Alfred E. Newman.  Sadly, he declined the offer, based on the "Good Advice" from his wife.  However, years after his death, the Norman Rockwell Museum decided to have an exhibition of the Art of Mad Magazine. 

Both RQS and I realized that this would be a rare chance to see Mad's art treated as something more than disposable, especially since the current publishers of the magazine helped with the exhibition.  Our only issue would be the distance to get there.  We skipped going there the day before because of the length of the drive and the time it would take to reach the museum.  Since we didn't know when we'd have the chance to drive there on a weekend day, we bit the bullet and left the house around 10:00 am.

The drive up the Taconic parkway was dull and boring (as expected), but we made it to the museum by 12:30 pm (including stops for breakfast and bio-breaks).  Given the warm weather, it was the perfect day for both of us to be wearing linen dresses.  So we were comfortable on the short walk from the parking lot to the museum, as well as inside where it was properly air conditioned.

 

Some of Mad's "Usual Gang of Idiots"

I've been a fan of Mad Magazine since I was a child, and I have to say that this exhibition does Mad's Usual Gang of Idiots" justice, as it covers art from the EC Comics day, through the Golden Age of Mad, to the Current Day.

Of course, no exhibition of Mad Mad Magazine artifacts would be complete without a reference to my favorite sport 43 Man Squamish.  Although the unplayable sport described in Mad is a joke, it has rules always tend to make me smile when I read them. One could go on and on about this visit.  But it was nice to see the work of Al Jaffee, Dave Berg, Don Martin and Sergio Aragones again, being given the respect it deserves. 

We both spent too much at the museum's gift shop, and left the place around 3:00 pm.  It took us 2 1/2 hours to get home, including a stop in Dover Plains for ice cream.  It was a long day for us, but a day well spent....

. 

Going out to the movies

 

RQS knew that I would be presenting as Marian the entire weekend.  So, we decided to go to the movies, and beat the heat by someone else paying to keep us cool....

- - - - - -

The day started with neither of us wanting to get out of bed.  Yet, we were bored and wanted something to do where we wouldn't break a sweat.  And going out to the movies fit the bill perfectly.  But where should we go?  The only movie that we had even a remote interest in seeing was "Twisters", and we wanted to be comfortable when seeing this film.  That left us with only one good choice: The Alamo Drafthouse in Yonkers.

Unlike most movie theaters, the Drafthouse has had both a liquor license and a real food concession from its beginning.  Its original seats were both plush and sturdy - perfect for a movie viewer to enjoy a movie, some wings, and a beer to go with the film.  In addition to current first-run films, the Drafthouse has also shown classic films such as "The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly"; "Once Upon a Time in America"; and "Once Upon a Time in The West" in single-night special showings. This is my favorite theater, and one I always try to visit for first-run films.

We decided to go for a 3:30 pm showing of "Twisters".  As expected, we had to endure 15 minutes of trailers before the movie. But once the movie started, time passed quickly - and we left the theater around dinner time.  So, what can I say about the film other than it was a good summertime film?  It was a pleasant distraction, a film that stimulated without making one think much to enjoy it.

After the movie, it was time to go home for the evening.  We stopped by the local supermarket to pick up some things we could eat that night (and for the rest of the weekend), then drove home where I cooked some Fettuccine Alfredo (no cream - classic recipe) with shrimp.  Yum! 

A belated birthday dinner

 

This is NOT what I wore out to my belated birthday dinner with RQS.  I was thinking of wearing this outfit until I realized that it's a pain to go for a bio-break when wearing a jumpsuit.  But I figured that I would show you how I looked today when I met with a friend for dinner.  The trouble with that plan is that her phone is an Apple phone, and they do their damnedest to make their products incompatible with Android and Windows equipment, so that Apple can lock people into their ecosystem.  And I had to figure out how to get 3 pictures sent to me in text messages from an Apple phone copied onto my PC, then accessible by Google's web software.

The above is the dress I did wear to my belated birthday dinner.  It is comfortable, and I felt pretty when we arrived at the Hudson House Inn for dinner.  This restaurant is only a few short feet from the river, and is a wonderful place to have a nice romantic meal.  But I digress.

RQS and I have been at this place a couple of times.  First, it was for a Hudson Valley Restaurant Week dinner.  Next, it was for a Thanksgiving dinner a year and a half ago.  I am no stranger to this place, and would cheerfully eat here more often if my finances allowed for it.  Both of us ordered the same main course, crab stuffed salmon - and loved it.  It's hard to believe that one can get filled up with a smaller quantity of high quality food than a larger portion of lower quality food.  (Too bad that I grew up on junk food, and have a lower class palate when eating on my own.)  

Years ago, when I was dating CSN, we had considered this place for a wedding banquet.  (I'm glad that I terminated that relationship, as it would have ended in a costly and messy divorce.)  The Hudson House Inn may have seen its better days.  But I can't complain about what it is now, as it is known for being an excellent restaurant with nice accommodations for people who might want to spend a romantic weekend in Cold Spring.

You might wonder why I broke up with CSN almost 40 years ago.  The first thing was that she was one of those yuppies who wanted to get to the top, and would never have understood who I really was inside.  (And this was way before I realized that I was transgender!)  Next, CSN wasn't a humble person as I remember her, and she was extremely status conscious.  (I, on the other hand, did not care about outward displays of status.  The last thing I wanted to be was a pretentious asshole - even if I didn't recognize it yet.)  In the end, it was a good learning experience for me, as I learned a little bit more about who I was and what I valued in life.  I still was far from the person I am now.  But I had started to find out....

Fast forward about 40 years, and I am still living in the same apartment I bought before I met my late wife.  Her death taught me to appreciate people in the here and now, as they may not be around in the future when I "have time" for them.  So, I try to show RQS how much I care for her whenever possible.  Though it might have been a birthday dinner for me, it was a way of realizing that someone like me has undergone similar experiences and is trying to show how important I am to her. 

The start of a nice weekend

 

As I've mentioned quite often, I don't have the energy that I used to have years ago.  In past years, I'd set myself up to do several things in the same day, and get them all done.  For example, I'd create a checklist for the things that I wanted to accomplish that day such as that below:

1. Call Cruise line about promotion offer.
2. Call Doctor's office regarding being set up to be able to leave messages after hours.
3. Lunch with a friend.
   
4. Shopping at the supermarket.
5. Ear Piercing.
6. Manicure/Pedicure.
7. Dinner Meetup.

When I was working, I had the energy to fit all of this into a weekend day.  (Not all of these things could be done on the weekend.  But I digress.)  These days, if I'm lucky, I get around to 2 or 3 of them. So when RQS came up for the weekend, I knew I had time to do only 3 things before she got here, and only accomplished 1 of them - the Mani/Pedi in that list. Retirement changes a lot about what one can expect from herself.  In my case, I manage what I do, so that I have enough energy to enjoy the time that RQS is here.

- - - - - -

My day started slowly, and I got out just early enough to have time for a Mani-Pedi at the local nail salon.  I'm not a conversationalist when I'm at the salon, as I am not a regular, and I don't want to use my voice that much.  So, my visits become a sort of quiet time that I can enjoy while someone takes care of me.

Once done with the Mani-Pedi, it was off to Dunkin Donuts where I sated my hunger with a egg & chorizo wrap.  It would not fill me up enough to make me skip an early dinner.  But if needed, it would hold me over until we ate a late dinner.  Either way, I'd be able to be in sync with RQS when she arrived at the train station.

As usual, I was in Marian mode when RQS arrived in Croton..(What would you expect after getting a Mani-Pedi?)  She liked the dress from Flax that I was wearing, and this confirmed my desire to continue purging clothes that no longer fit my style and fill more donation bags.  Since we both could enjoy an early dinner, we went to a nearby place for Greek food, then took a drive before getting ice cream for dessert.

Finally, we were in for the evening.  And it was time to strip.  But before I did so, I showed her an exercise dress I got from Macy's (online), and she liked it on me.  Yes, the hemline was a bit short for purposes other than exercise.  But it looked good enough to consider buying another.  (Now, I really have to prune what's in my closet!)

Tomorrow, it'll be off to have a delayed birthday dinner.  (More on that later.)