If it weren't for the Jewish Holidays, I might have gotten free tickets.

 

Does anyone recognize who this performer is?  I'll give you a clue - he could have been on the plane with Buddy Holley, but (as I understand it) he didn't have the money to afford to fly to the tour's next stop.  For this, I think the world is very lucky, as this man, in his 80's, is still making great music.  No, he's not making hits anymore.  But he is performing with some of the best musicians in the business.

Dion DiMucci is best known for his work in the 50's, 60's and 70's.  Yet, I think some of his later work is even better than the music he is best known for.  I love one of the songs he did with Paul Simon (Written on the Subway Wall / Little Star), where Simon sings Twinkle Twinkle Little Star in the middle of Dion's song.  It's a wonderful piece, and his later tunes such as Dancing Girl (w. Mark Knopfler) are as good or better than much of his early work.

I told my friend about Dion's scheduled performance in September, and it fell on the Jewish Holiday of Rosh Hashanah.  As a result, RQS and will not be able to scarf up a pair of free tickets.  Instead, we will likely buy a pair of tickets to a performance closer to home.  This is just as well, as I have the excuse to ask RQS to come here a day earlier than usual.

This might be one of the last chances to see Dion perform live.  So I'm going, whether or not RQS decided to come with me.  Now, if only John Fogerty would be performing at a venue and on a date convenient to us.  I'm still hoping for one last chance to see Chubby Checker perform, but given his age, we can only have pleasant memories of doing the twist like we did last summer....

We're booking another cruise.

 

I'll give my readers one clue to where we'll be cruising next year: It's a land with virtually no military at all, but it is a valuable member of NATO.

- - - - - -

Recently, I saw a good price on a Northern European cruise which would maximize our time in Iceland. Although we'd only have one day in Reykjavik, at least we'd have more than one port stop in the Land of Fire and Ice. It is on a cruise line that I haven't taken for almost three decades, Holland America. The deal we're getting isn't as good as we'd normally get on Princess. But it goes where we want it to go. And that's the important thing.

There are details that still have to be worked out. One of those things is airplane reservations. We can't do that for several months. That gives us time to pay down our balance on this cruise. As long as we have everything paid off before the final payment date, we should be OK. Unlike our previous pre-cruise trip to London, we have no relatives or friends who live on the European mainland. So, we'll be on our own in Europe (outside of the cruise itself) for the first time.

I never realized how quickly RQS would warm up to the idea of taking this trip. Maybe she's also looking at doing at least one "Bucket List" trip per year. Hopefully, we'll be able to do a Hawaii, a Panama Canal, and another Alaska cruise before our health starts to fail due to old age.

Yet, I'm rambling on. We still have one cruise left to take this year, and I might find a way to take another trip if I have the money to pay for it. For now, it's time for me to live in the present, and not in the future or past.

We're having a heat wave....

 

The thermometer broke 90° today, and I was lucky enough to have been able to stay inside.  I feel sorry for the people who had to sweat it out on the NYC Subway today, as I was once one of those commuters.

- - - - - -

There wasn't much on the docket for today.  Yet, I got things done from inside the house.  First on the docket was a phone call with Vicki's financial advisor - and we got along well.  (I'm glad that this wasn't a zoom meeting, as I didn't want any trace of Marian to show up in the video feed.)  He will work up a first draft of a financial plan for me, and then I can review it.

Next was a phone call with the co-op president.  We discussed changes needed for the recent meeting minutes and for the quarterly newsletter.  I would have liked more time.  But my next appointment was at 8:00, and I didn't want to be late for my zoom meeting with our Texas friends.  I opened up the zoom, and it was a shorter meeting than usual - none of us that had much to say.

Following the Zoom, I chatted with TCL for a while, and then called RQS to discuss our events of the day.  There was a 2027 Icelandic cruise that I was interested in, so I forwarded a request to our travel agent for pricing information.  If the numbers are right, I will put a down payment on the cruise.  

Finally, I got back to the editing of our meeting minutes and our newsletter.  By midnight, I was done and ready to sleep.  Tomorrow, it will be both wet (rain) and hot - AARGH!  There is no chance that I will go down to NYC to see a pay as I planned for this week. I will be staying cool and comfortable on Wednesday, and RQS will be coming up on Thursday.

90° and getting even warmer!

 

It's several days before Memorial Day as I write this entry, and the thermometer already has broken the 90° mark.  Ouch!  What made things worse is that RQS had to go home and suffer with the heat on the NYC Subway.  AARGH!!

Neither of us wanted to get up this morning, but RQS had to make a 11:42 train.  So we both got dressed in loose fitting garments, and I drove her to the station.  Once I dropped her off, it was time for me to pick up some breakfast before going home.  And then I took a nap, as I woke up at "god awful o'clock" and couldn't get back to sleep.

Around 5:00, I awoke from my nap and started to sort out laundry to go in the wash.  This wasn't much to do, but I wanted to balance out the loads so that I wouldn't have missing socks or undies between washes.  As it is, I have a bag filled with single socks that needs to be inspected for matches found from singlets I've deposited in the bag over several months.

Now that the sorting was done, I decided NOT to do the laundry due to the heat outside.  Instead, I decided to stay in for the night and stripped off my makeup.  And then, I paid my bills. For the most part, it was a boring day - which most life experiences should be for trans folk.  If we can go about our business without people hassling us, I consider that day to be a win.

- - - - - -

You might ask, why do I often focus on the mundane parts of my life?  Well, I consider it a responsibility for trans folk to look at how normal life can (and should) be for us and document our normalcy for others.  Only then can we have a benchmark for when things go sour.... 

 

 

A visit to the Danbury Railway Museum

 

The weather forecast for the day was for a bit of humidity and for 90° (or more) thermometer readings.  Ouch!  And yet, RQS and I figured that we'd venture out to the museum and see what they had to offer.

But first....

We woke up to an alarm  that didn't want to stop.  Both of us were shouting at our "Smart" (?) device to stop, and it took 5 minutes to do so. After this, neither of us were in the mood to go to church as we had originally planned. So we chilled until 11 am, and then prepared to go out.

Both of us decided to get dressed in blue dresses today, and drive over to the museum.  We left my apartment around 12:30, and reached the museum shortly before 2:00.  Neither of us were really prepared  for the heat outside.  We had to air out the car a little before getting inside the car.  Thankfully, the AC worked at full speed, and we had a comfortable ride.

There were many artifacts in the museum building, including a couple of miniature railroad exhibits.  Yet, if it were only the model railroad stuff, it would not have been worth the visit.  Instead, there were other artifacts from the golden age of railroading that were worth looking at.    

But the real value of this museum came from the short ride through the rail yard, followed by a tour of the museum's rolling stock.

Our tour guide told us about the history of each of their pieces of rolling stock, as well as the history of the yard in which the museum's rolling stock is stored.  We also got a chance to take a ride on the yard's turntable.  (You'll note that there is a woman in a blue dress in 2 of these pictures.  That's as much of RQS as I want to show my readers for privacy's sake.)  The last stop of the day was the rail car in the last photo.  This was a treat, as it was an early example of a rail car used on the 20th Century Limited, the New York Central railroad's flagship train which ran from NYC to Chicago and back.

A little bit before 4:00, we left for home.  On our way back, we stopped at a local Chinese restaurant for dinner.  Neither of us realized how drained we were from the heat outside, so when we got home, we passed out for a couple of hours before regaining consciousness.

Almost Matching Dresses

 

Both RQS and I set alarms for us to get out of bed, get dressed, and go to the Danbury Railway Museum. However, one thing got in the way - the 10:30 alarm I thought I had set didn't go off, and RQS didn't get out of bed until 11:30.  By the time got moving, it was too late to go to Danbury, as the museum closes at 4:00.  So we watched some videos, and relaxed most of the day.

Once we decided to get moving, RQS decided to wear a red floral dress.  I figured that I'd join in on the same theme and wear the red floral dress I bought from Amazon last week.  Given the 80 degree weather outside, this would be a perfect choice for me - and it was.  To be safe, I brought my denim jacket (which I didn't need), but who knew how quickly it might get cool after dark.

Our first stop was at Pepe's Pizza in Yonkers.  Both of us were hungry, and we hadn't had their pizza in a while.  It was nice to be addressed as a female by the staff, and no one took notice of my less than feminine features.  (Having worked on my voice and my presentation over the past decade and a half helps me blend in as female when I need to do so - especially when I have to go to the loo.)  After we finished our meal, it was off to Lidl for some shopping.  And today, I got off almost as well as I would have done at Trader Joe's.  But then, I wasn't planning on buying much.

Going home as the sun was getting ready to set, I took an alternate route back to my house in order to avoid the harsh setting sun burning my eyes.  Taking the "scenic route" back home, I was able to take a path where my eyes were protected from direct sunlight. 

- - - - - -

Tomorrow, we're planning on going to church and then to the railway museum.  I hope we get to both.

Sometimes I get bored, and can't find anything interesting to do, read, or watch. (a short post)

 

Lately, I find myself needing noise on in the background so that I can relax.  If I leave the TV on, I have to avoid newscasts, lest I get distracted and pay too much attention to the news - a scary thing, these days with the Orange Monster in charge.  But if I have quiet, I crave some form of sound coming in from almost any source.

- - - - - -

There is a part of me that enjoys relative solace.  I'm not sure if RQS understands this, as I can't wear a sign that says: "I don't have the energy to hold a conversation right now."  So, I participate in chat when we're together, when she wants to make it - she does the same with me, so it's a fair trade.  But when I'm alone, something different kicks in.  I leave the TV on to make some kind of noise, whether it be people speaking or music playing, it's a form of white noise that breaks the silence.

It's not easy for me to stay attentive to a TV show for long, nor do I listen to music in the way I used to do.  Reading books can be hard for me, as I need to retain my focus to read several chapters at once, and then get back to the book later on.  As a result, I have many books on my bookshelf that I want to read, but haven't forced myself to read.  Old age has given me a form of ADHD that I have to deal with.  AARGH!

At least, I still enjoy shopping for new dresses, even though I can no longer justify adding new dresses to my wardrobe without donating old dresses to charity that I am no longer interested in wearing. 

 

A trip in Manhattan for a bite to eat and a movie to watch

 

As one would expect, like many couples, RQS and I get bored staying in the house all weekend.  So she suggested that we see a movie, and I said OK.  But I caved when she wanted to see The Devil Wears Prada 2, as this was a more popular movie.  So, I put on my new dress (see below)  and we took the subway into Manhattan to see the film.

We got into Manhattan at 3:15, and walked over to the theater to pick up tickets for a 4:30 showing.  One problem: The only seats that were available were right in front of the screen, not a good spot to watch a film.  So we decided to bail on the movie, and then go to the restaurant for some food.

I was prepared for something more classy.  But RQS knew of this place called Tattoonette, a Middle Eastern fast food place.  Even so, I ended up spending a smidgen over $50 for dinner there.  The Chicken Schnitzel was good, but the Fwlafel was small for what one might expect.  Was it good value?  Yes.  But it is certainly a place where a couple would not go on a first or second date.

Given that everything was 13th street related, we ambled over to the Quad Cinema to watch Fantasy Life. I won't go much into the film's plot, save that it is a love story which could not and should not be consummated.  (Look up the film on IMDB if you want to know more.)  Both of us enjoyed the film, and then it was time to go home.

By the time I got home, I couldn't wait to take off my bra (and the rest of my clothes) and get into a nightie for bed.  Just before I stripped everything off, I looked into the mirror and thought - boy am I getting old!  I'd better try to lose my weight now, or I won't be ab;e to get the FFS I desire.  (I'd love to look like that woman in the picture, even if I have to keep my current plumbing to have a stable relationship with RQS.). 

Lunch with Short Vicki, and dinner with RQS

 

No, I didn't order a "Hot Dog" for lunch.  But the menu I had for lunch wasn't what we planned....

- - - - - -

Vicki and I decided to get together today, as this was the only day she could be sure that her schedule and mine would mesh together.  Since I had planned to drive to RQS's place for the weekend, I packed up my stuff the night before and carted it to my car before meeting Vicki in Ardsley.

Ardsley, NY would have been a quaint, maybe picturesque village had the NYS Thruway had not cut through the center of town.  What was once its main street is now divided by the Saw Mill River parkway (which may have had a traffic light controlled intersection with Ardsley road many decades ago), and by the NYS Thruway (built in the 1950's). Ardsley road is routed over both of the two limited access roads now, but addresses on the old Ardsley road still carry the Ardsley road address.  This can be confusing to people not local to the area.

I had just enough time to get to Ardsley, even with the "confusing" route I had to take.   When one exits the Saw Mill River Parkway, one has to take a stub of old Ardsley road away from town to connect with the part of "New" Ardsley road to get into town.  Once one crosses over the highways, one has to make a sharp "U-Turn" to enter the other stub section of "Old" Ardsley road.  At least, parking is free for 3 hours.

When I arrived at the original restaurant, I realized that it would be impossible to eat inside.  So, when Vicki arrived, I suggested that we go across the street to Liebman's, an "Old School" Kosher Deli.  Vicki noted that it would be expensive.  But I was willing to pay for a good lunch - and knew the quality of the food at this place.  We sat down to eat.  I ordered the Matzoh Ball Soup with a half Pastrami sandwich, while Vicki ordered the Kreplach Soup with a half Corned Beef sandwich.  Both were yummy!  There is only one place that better pastrami, and Katz's in Manhattan is a matter of taste.

All too soon, lunch ended, and I was off to RQS's place.  It was hard to believe that I parked right in front of RQS's place by 2 pm.  And this was perfect timing.  Shortly after arriving at RQS's place, we went to the nearby Bodega to pick up food for the evening.  Once back at home, I showed RQS the dress I hoped to wear on Mother's Day (I can never be a mother, for obvious reasons - I only note which Sunday is being referenced.)  She liked how the dress and the shrug worked together, and I'm glad that I went out of my way to pick it up.

It was a long day, and I was glad to take off my dress, leggings, bra, etc.  This will be a weekend that I'm in full Marian presentation, and it's nice to be with someone with whom I can do this. 

RQS had to go home, and I had to go food shopping.

 

RQS had to go home today.  It's always a sad thing.  Yet, it's something that gives us time to do the things that nourish us alone during the week.

- - - - - -

I awoke early, and let RQS sleep past her morning alarms. Around 9:30, I woke her up, and both of us got dressed for the day.  Since it was "warm" outside, RQS had to carry her heavy coat home.  While I was dressed in a tunic dress and leggings.  We arrived at the train station around 11:30, and we parted for the week.  She took the train into the city, while I went home and changed into something more comfortable - a floral dress I bought from Amazon.

I like this dress, and I was glad I had decided to buy it.  It was cheap at the price, so I decided to buy a second one today, this time in a red pattern.  There were two more dresses I am interested in, one from Universal Standard, and the other from Kohl's.  Both are good values, but I don't have the money or room in my closet right now to justify buying them.  You might be asking - Why???  Well, I just dropped $5k into repairs on the family homestead, and have another $1.6k in insurance expenses to be paid before June. At least I can afford this short term hit to my bank account.

- - - - - -

After a little bit of rest, I put on the dress and went to Costco - and bought nothing.  But I ended up going to Lidl to do some food shopping.  And there, I ended up spending $40 on food.  It would have been $50, but the scanner didn't want to handle my meat purchases.  So I left one package on the scanner (naughty me) and brought the rest of my items to a human to be checked out properly.

Will I eat anything I bought tonight, or will I cook it tomorrow?  Right now, I do not feel hungry, and I ate too much starch during the day.  So, I figure that I'll use the toaster oven tomorrow, and toss out expired stuff from the icebox tonight.  And, if the weather is as warm as I expect tomorrow, I will wear the one dress I bought from Kohl's the other day.

It's May, and it feels like March

 

This weekend would be the first time RQS would be up at my apartment for the first time since before our Bermuda Triangle cruise.  Even though it was the beginning of May, RQS had to prepare for weather that could get close to freezing at night.  As for me, I couldn't break out the new summery dresses I wanted to wear. Cool weather would define the start of the weekend.

On Friday, RQS arrived wearing her heavy winter coat.  Yes, it was a little bit too much for the daytime.  But it served her well in the evening.  When she arrived, we drove to White Plains to pick up fresh sea scallops for dinner.  And then it was back to the apartment for the evening.  Dinnertime came quickly, and we had a good dinner.  (We also learned something about cooking scallops, but that's another story for another day.)  It was easy to fall asleep afterwards, so I don't have much to say about the day,

- - - - - -

Saturday came, and we had a few things on the docket.  So, I got dressed in something comfortable, but warm enough for the cool weather - a tunic length dress over leggings.  And then we went to Walmart to pick up a few items: (1) a narrow rolling cart for the bathroom, (2) a shower mat for the bathtub, and (3) a set of pillowcases to match the sheets I have on the bed.  (Right now, I'm using pillowcases that are too large, and wanted to get something that fits my pillows correctly.)  Once we were done at Walmart, we had time to kill before dinner.

We had scheduled a 7 pm dinner with Vicki.  It's been a while since the 3 of us were together.  Yes, RQS and I are together every weekend, and I see Vicki (on the average) or every month.  Today, we'd be sitting at the same table for a change.  RQS and I arrived first, and Vicki a few minutes later.  Vicki almost made the mistake of going to a restaurant with a similar name in the same village.  But I made sure she knew which one of the two restaurants where I planned for us to meet.

For the next 2 hours, we chatted non-stop.  It was a long overdue get together.  Vicki understands what RQS and I see in each other, and RQS understands what I share with Vicki.  These are all special relationships, and something I cherish.  Vicki thought that my past 2 cruises had me traveling as Marian until I told her about my caution in regards to interacting with Federal authorities given the Orange Monster's attitudes involving TGs.  RQS and Vicki talked about how they deal with their ailments.  We all had things we would talk about for hours.

All too soon, dinner had to end, and we had to part.  So, we drove home, and I got around to taking care of putting together the rolling cart from Walmart.  It is not as good as the cart I bought from IKEA several weeks before.  But it will do for now.  Now, things that were casually dumped into baskets are organized in areas of the cart.  Although cluttered, things look a bit less messy than before - a small victory for me.

A trip through Brooklyn to see a new friend

 

I may have mentioned that RQS grew up in Brooklyn before gentrification started.  Neighborhoods that had been segregated by race were now segregated by economic status.  Although RQS is mixed race, she grew up identifying as Black.  (My family on my mother's side became whiter and whiter as we assimilated into American society. That might be the only thing I might respect my maternal grandfather for doing when he arrived in America over 100 years ago.)  

- - - - - -

Today, RQS and I were scheduled to meet one of her friends at her apartment in Crown Heights.  Like Bed-Stuy, both of these Brooklyn neighborhoods were classic ghettos (in the modern US sense) a generation ago.  Now both neighborhoods are being transformed from "The Hood" (with all of its crime) to a up and coming "Neighborhood" with all of the problems of gentrification.  RQS's friend bought into her apartment building before gentrification, and will likely see it increase in value as poor people get squeezed out of the area.

Around 2:30 pm, we took an Uber across Brooklyn to reach RQS's friend, IS.  They have known each other for decades, and I was a little nervous about meeting someone new.  So, I ended up being extremely talkative.  Yet, this wasn't a problem - I made a good impression on IS.  While there, I fixed a problem IS had with her entertainment system before IS cooked dinner for us.  And then we feasted.  We chatted until 10 pm, and then Ubered home for the night.

Although my original plans were to drive home that night, I decided to stay the night and drive home the next day.  This was a good move, as both RQS and I were exhausted, and only sleep was on our minds when we got home.

PS: I feel that it will be safe to tell IS about Marian.  We'll see what happens in the future.

 

Rakugo (Again)

 

Rakugo, the Japanese art of story telling.  If anything, it focuses on one person telling a story, and setting people up to have a good laugh.  Even though we knew we'd hear some stories we knew from our last visit to see this man perform, we also knew we'd have a good laugh or two.

- - - - - -

Our day started with both of us feeling a little lethargic.  I had awakened early, and was starting to get tired again by the time RQS was up for the day.  After a nice breakfast, we made our plans for the day.  Around 5, we'd go into Manhattan and get a bite to eat around Union Square.  Then, after a little time killing, it would be off to the theater to see Katsura Sunshine's (KS) performance.

We were supposed to meet RQS's new friend at the theater.  However, we got there late, and her friend went inside without us.  What surprised us was that RQS's friend was seated adjacent to us.  So we settled down to see the performance. 

Tonight's performance was broken up into several sections.  First was one of .KS's apprentices, who told a story I've heard before.   

She was good, but her accent made it a little difficult to understand what she was saying in English (a second language for her.)  Next came KS himself.  He opened up in a different way than he did when we last saw him.

This time, we knew a little more about him as a story teller, and we found out that he spends most of his time in Japan, coming to New York once per month for this show.  And then came a performer who was not here the last time around - someone practicing the art of Japanese dance.

To me, this was the weakest part of the show.  The art of Japanese storytelling via dance is lost on me.  But there was more storytelling to go.  KS's second apprentice was next.  Unlike the first apprentice, this fellow came from New Jersey.  So he'd be easy to understand. 

This apprentice told a story which KS told the last time we were here.  The story was still amusing, but not as much as when KS told it.  Next up was the first apprentice with another story.  She was entertaining, but only if you could wade through the thickets of her accent.

Then, the dancer came back in full regalia.  This dance was more interesting.  But, without the cultural context, the performance was a little flat.

Finally, KS came back on stage, and told one last story

Although KS covered much of the same ground in this performance that he did in the last one we had seen, both RQS and I agreed that seeing Rakugo could be a once every other year treat.  This would give KS and his troupe enough time to have their performances evolve, so that it would be fresh each time we came to see it.

- - - - - -

We exited the theater with RQS's new friend, and she invited us back to her place to chat.  Neither of us wanted to be on the subway at midnight, so we begged off.  But we made sure this friend knew we do want to see her again - some time after our next cruise. 

 

Driving to RQS's place (a short post)

 

Normally, I would focus on what happened during the day.  Today, I'll simply focus on the drive to RQS's place, as  something weird happened - I was not delayed by any traffic jams on the way to Queens, and that's strange!.

- - - - - - 

Given that this weekend required for me to present as Mario for both Saturday and Sunday, I took a more relaxed approach to getting dressed today (Friday).  Although I didn't need to shave my full body, I did so anyway, as I knew that it's easier to do it at my place than to do it at RQS's place.  Knowing that I didn't have to make up my face, and that it would be quicker for me to dress as Mario, I figured I'd be out of the house early - and I left my apartment an hour earlier than usual.

Normally, I hit a traffic jam in lower Westchester county, switching over from the Bronx River/Sprain Brook Parkway to the Hutchinson River Parkway, to have an easy approach to the Whitestone bridge.  (There are 3 bridges that connect the New York mainland to Long Island, and the Whitestone is the most direct way to RQS's place.)  From there, I'd normally take the expressway to Forest Hills then take local roads to RQS's place.  Miracles of Miracles - there was no traffic on the expressway, and I was able to get on the (former) Interboro parkway to reach RQS's area.  I was at RQS's place just as the kids were getting out of school.

I was there about 90 minutes early, and RQS was hungry.  So, it was off to the local deli for a late lunch.  Even though I had stopped by the lobster truck on the way down, I was glad to have stopped for another bite to eat - the sandwich at this local joint was good!

- - - - - -

For the most part, it was a quiet day and evening.  But tomorrow would be a busy day, as we were going to see Rakugo again in Manhattan.

RQS had to go home, and I had time to myself

 

It's always a touch of sorrow when RQS and I have to part.  Yet, this parting gives us the freedom to live at our own pace without having to worry about the others' concerns.  And maybe, just maybe, this makes our relationship work as well as it does.

- - - - - -

RQS's schedule was busy today - 2 doctors' visits and pottery class in the evening.  I won't go into details of her life, but she was busy from the moment she got out of bed to the moment she was able to get back into her own bed.  As for me, I took a little drive, went home, then relaxed for the rest of the day.

Right now, I have a book on JavaScript being delivered by Amazon.  Once it arrives, I will start on my next project: converting a web page with a downloadable spreadsheet to be used in calculating a true per-person cost of a cruise to a JavaScript program which performs the same function without making the computational guts too easy for others to duplicate.

Did I do any reading while I relaxed and had little to do?  Nope.   Instead, I watched videos most of the time, and then did some minor reorganization in the kitchen.  Although I could have gone out again later in the day, I didn't have the energy or inclination to do so,  Nor did I have any energy to deal with a medical appointment I should have made 4 weeks ago.  AARGH!

- - - - - -

At least, I did one thing of note:  I cooked some pad Thai.  Was it good?  No.  Next time, I'll try something different with rice noodles.

Finishing up Shore Excursion booking for an upcoming cruise.

 

Later this year, RQS and I will be cruising the British Isles.  RQS booked most of the shore excursions for our cruise.  Today, I booked the last one - a Beatles walking tour of Liverpool.  Although much has changed in the 66+ years since they started performing in their respective bands, historical information is easily seen in the streets upon today's visitors walk  (Yes, I'm including the time they performed as rank amateurs.)

- - - - - -

Neither of us wanted to go out for Easter Sunday.  The weather was dreary and it was both cold and clammy.  Since I didn't sleep much the night before, I knew RQS wouldn't mind getting up late and having a restful sleep.  So I moved into the living room at 8:30 and started watching TV until RQS arose from her slumber.

This was a perfect day to stay inside and rest, and that's what we did.  Yes, we became couch potatoes for most of the day.  But what was there to do at 2 pm on a Sunday?  But this wasn't a loss.  Having a day where we could stay inside was just what we needed to recharge our batteries.  By the time we finished dinner, I was ready to book our last shore excursion, and firm up our expense balance before our next cruise.  (I owe RQS some cash.)

- - - - - -

As you can see, this was a Jammie day for the two of us.  Tomorrow, I'll have things on my docket which must be taken care of this week.  One of these things will be getting a check to reimburse the co-op president for some expenses she incurred.  Since I'm the only other person who has signing powers for the co-op, I have to go to the bank as Mario to get a teller's check for her.  (That's about all I'll say of the details of my co-op's business, save that we're seeing a light at the end of the tunnel for problems that started 2 years ago.)

Lunch with DS (a short post)

 

Although RQS is coming up today, I only want to discuss two things: Lunch with DS and a chat with my brother.  (I can always chat about RQS later on in another post.)

- - - - - -

We scheduled lunch for 12:30.  So I had to set reminders to make sure that I'd be well on my way to getting showered, made up and dressed before noon.  Unlike cisgender women, I always feel a need to apply makeup, as my face will otherwise look sort of masculine.  The less people notice these facial features, the better.  But I digress.

On the way down to White Plains, TCL called me up.  She lost one of her car keys the other day, and now the second key fob broke.  Although she has a valet key, it didn't do her much good sitting back at home.  Luckily, she has a neighbor who could be counted on to get into her house, find TCL's keys, and bring them to her to get her car home.  TCL still doesn't know what she wants from car keys and the fob, but I'd bet that she's going to cheap out, and only duet the valet key, and not pay for a replacement key fob which would allow her to open the car's trunk, as well as to open doors remotely.

I arrived at the diner around 12:30 and met DS.  Both of us enjoyed lunch, and caught up on what's happening in each other's lives.  Although I can't say she's doing well, she has been taking on gigs to pay the bills, and had a little extra for lunch today.  Hopefully, we'll be able to get together more often, and I mentioned that I'd like to have her come with me to one of the "20 at 20" off Broadway shows during their last week.  But that's only if I make the effort to go myself.   It's always nice to have female friends to do things with.... 

I can't believe that I'm falling behind on my posts.

 

I just looked at the date this post will be available to everyone, and I realize that I've been struggling to keep things up to date lately.  No, I'm still roughly where I want to be, but not with as much lead time between the time the post is written and the time it is available to the public.

- - - - - -

Today, I had 2 things on the docket.  One was laundry, the never ending task of putting money into the washer and folding clean clothes.  It's not bad, but not a job I enjoy doing.  Yet, if I were to take it to the local cleaners to get done, it would cost me several times more than when I pay for it now.  Since I'm frugal, I might as well trade time for money that stays in my purse.  The other thing was much more enjoyable - dinner with a friend I haven't seen in over a year.  Although you wouldn't know it to look at her, she likely has 2-3 times as much money in the bank than I have, and enjoys having a chance to spend some of it - on dinner.  

So, I dawdled until 2 pm, and then dumped a load of clothes (plus bed sheets) into the washer.  About 90 minutes later, I was bringing the basket upstairs to fold at my leisure.  Next, it was time to get ready for dinner.  This meant showering, shaving, applying makeup, then dressing to go out.  Since it was a bit raw outside (a light drizzle made the cold outside feel worse than it was), I decided to wear a dress with tights, as I wanted to get some use out of the dress before I pack it away for the summer.  And then, it was off to Brewster for dinner.

I met my friend at an Indian restaurant, and we proceeded to catch up on things.  I mentioned all of my cruises, and she mentioned some things going on with family.  A lot was said, and nothing was said.  She asked if RQS knew about this dinner, and I said yes.  (There will always be traces of sexual tension between some people of the opposite biological sex.  But I digress.)  She said that she'd like to meet RQS, and I noted that I can do that on weekends.  So, RQS will soon meet another one of my friends soon.

All too soon, dinner ended.  And I had to drive home.  I regretted not taking a bio-break at the restaurant, as I barely made it home.  And when I did, you never saw a gal pull down her knickers as quickly as I did to take care of some important business.   (I now understand the urgency my late wife felt when she had to make her mad dashes....)

Taxes, taxes, and more taxes.

 

Twas two weeks before tax day, and all through the house.  Two ladies were stirring, both seeing an empty purse. One purse got emptied, the other got filled. No, I'm not going to continue with working those lines.  But they illustrate the differences between RQS's position in life and my position in life.

- - - - - -

This was a day that I had to spend in Mario mode.  Our tax lady doesn't know that I am TG, nor do I want her to know.  It works out better for me that I am able to live in stealth mode when I need to, and in this political climate, it's a bonus.

Both of us were ready and out the door by 10:30, and were at the tax lady's office at noon.  Unfortunately, she has to redo my paperwork once again, so I couldn't pick up my tax forms.  But RQS was able to do so, and paid the bill for her taxes, as well sending money out to the tax man.  Once done, our next destination was RQS's place, where I dropped her off.

I left RQS's place at 1:45, and was home 2 hours later.  There were some idiots on the road, and I was almost nailed by one trying to squeeze between me and the car to the side of me.  Yet, this wasn't the worst of it.  Some person totaled his car in a fight against an 18-Wheeler.  The car's front end and roof was destroyed, while the truck and its trailer didn't show any damage. The traffic slowdown leading to the accident site wasted a bit of my time.  Yet, by planning to take an exit, I bypassed most of the traffic jam by passing it on the right, and by merging back into traffic just before the accident site which just happened to be 300 feet away from the exit I planned to take.

- - - - - -

Once I was home, I was in for the night.  Tomorrow, I'll be back in Marian mode, and have another nice day outdoors.

A birthday dinner at Chazz Palminteri's (a short post)

 

Tomorrow is RQS's birthday, and I wanted to take her out tonight.  (It's easier to get a good meal on Saturday than it is on Sunday at many places, and I wanted to make sure she enjoyed the meal.)

- - - - - -

Originally, I wanted to take RQS out to a place where we had to get dressed up a little.  But, with the weather as cold as it is, getting dressed up didn't make sense.  Instead, we both decided to dress for the weather, and drive down to White Plains for dinner.

Chazz Palminteri's place is in the heart of White Plains, NY, in an area where one must park at a garage, than on the street.  Although they have an arrangement with the hotel next door to use their valet parking, I did not want to remove my car's key fob from my handbag just to have my car parked.  Instead, I drove into the public garage nearby, parked the car (not needing to tip the valet anything when picking up the car) and walked to the restaurant.

How do I describe the food?  Well, we split an order of Calamari for an appetizer, and it was some of the best Calamari we've ever had.  The pieces were lightly battered, and cooked to the point of wellness just before the meat becomes rubbery.  It was a pleasure to eat the squid, and I almost wished I could have ordered a dinner portion for myself.  Instead, I ordered the Seafood Fra Diavolo pictured above and feasted on the clams, scallops, and lobster tail resting on a base of spinach fettuccine, YUM!  Everything was cooked to perfection!

Eventually, we left the restaurant and drove home.  It was a nice day, and something we'll do again when the budget permits.