Oysters with RQS

 

While at dinner in NYC, RQS and I discussed dinner plans for the weekend.  I suggested picking up Lobster at Shoprite, while RQS was thinking of Oysters at Whole Foods.  Guess what we chose - Oysters on Friday night and Lobsters on Saturday.  Yum!  (Just don't tell my doctor about this.)  Seafood would be the theme for the weekend, and all I might want to do was find some clam chowder or lobster bisque to make things perfect.

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I didn't get a good night's sleep before, and I woke up early on Friday morning having forgotten about our dinner choices for the weekend.  So, when RQS mentioned that she'd be coming up around 2:30 pm, I realized that I had to rush to get ready.  Like a typical woman, my dilemma was what to wear.  So I picked out a coral version of the navy blue dress I wore the night before and got ready to pick RQS up at the station.

Croton-Harmon station is undergoing major renovation.  The town is installing solar panels over the entire parking lot (at least, over the areas not prone to flooding) as a way of generating new revenue for the town.  This has caused major sections of the parking lot to be taken off line while the solar panels are installed above the parking areas.  (It'll be nice for many to be able to park in areas protected from inclement weather.  Sadly, this only helps those with preferred parking space permits.)  This week, construction took out the parking area that the local taxis normally use and this created a mess around the area where passengers usually depart the station and get to their rides home.  The taxi stands have been relocated to the far end of the station, people have to walk further to reach parked cars, and the pick-up area is much more congested than normal.  This made it hard for RQS to find me, so I had to call her to tell her where to find me.

Once in the car, we ended up going to Whole Foods for oysters.  Arriving at 3:00 (or so), the first thing we did was to order 3 dozen oysters and have them shucked for us.  30 minutes later, we were feasting on our trays in the store.  It's nice to be able to get oysters at $1 each on Fridays, as something expensive becomes an affordable treat.  Both of us found that 18 oysters each was a perfect midday meal to start a summer's weekend.

After finishing our meal, it was time to go home and relax.  Although we went out later for a ride, the oysters were the high point of the day....

It's a holiday weekend!

 

I'm not sure if my readers have noticed this, but I usually am a couple of weeks behind in my published posts.  The reason for this is that I don't want to give away my current location when I travel.  By doing this, I can always play catch-up with my posts when I return.  Hopefully, this explains why I gave this entry its title.

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Some quick thoughts on how I expect things to go:

RQS is coming up later today, and my place is a mess.  That's OK for now, but I have to clean it up a little before she gets here.  I'm not sure of how I plan to dress when she arrives.  But if I'm wearing trousers, it may be a surprise for her.

Sometime this weekend, we will be going to either Shoprite or Stew Leonard's to buy some live lobsters while they are on sale. My refrigerator is already filled to the gills, and I don't know where I'll put the lobsters while I'm waiting for the water to boil in which I'll cook them.  

I'm tempted to take a drive up to the New York State Museum (an exhibit is pictured above) over the weekend.  Saturday may be the best day for this long drive, as we can take our time going up to Albany and coming back to Westchester county in the evening.  Unlike my last long drive to the North Country, I plan on avoiding speed traps by taking slower routes on this trip.

Sunday may be a day spent nearby, where we may go to see a movie.  The third movie in the Equalizer series interests me, only because of its leading star.  With that being said, I'm not sure if I want to see another "action" film.

And Monday, RQS and I will be going to Yonkers to spend the day with the Game Night crowd.  RQS is usually busy on Thursdays, and would rarely see these people   But she was there once, and enjoyed being with these people.  So she's thinking of making them a dessert this weekend.  At least, it will not require the use of my oven....

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As you can tell, I didn't have much to say about my life today, save for my plans for the weekend.  Later on, I'll find out whether things went according to plan....

Looking for lobsters, and we didn't find any.

 

The North American Lobster - a treat to many.  And yet, these animals were once so plentiful that they were fed to prisoners, slaves and apprentices during the American colonial era.  Today, they are considered a delicacy, and I only buy them when they are on sale.

Last night, RQS and I planned to go to the local ShopRite after seeing a movie to take advantage of a sale they were having.  Lobsters were on sale for $7.99/lb.  That meant that I could stock up on lobster, cook a couple for the two of us to eat that evening, and have the meat for lobster salad over the next day or so.  Unfortunately, this was a mistake.  Before we made it to the store, they were all sold out of live lobsters. But we didn't know this when we went to the store.

Arriving at the store, RQS went to pick up some things while I headed to the seafood department.  The fellow behind the counter told me the bad news when I asked for lobsters.  So, I picked up a tray of two partially cooked lobsters (with potatoes and corn) ready to be steamed to perfection.  At that time, an announcement came over the PA system - Lobsters were on sale for $7.99.  So I sent RQS over there to find out what was going on, since I was there already.  That's when we found out that all of the announcements were on a prerecorded loop, and that no one could stop them if a selected item was sold out.

We then went home to try the "heat and eat" lobster dinner, and were both impressed and disappointed at the same time.  The seasoning for the food was very good, and we plowed through the food quickly.  However, both the quantity of lobster and preparation instructions (tiny lobster, with no reheating information) took away from the enjoyment of the dish.  (RQS had to saute the lobster meat in the tails because it was underdone.)

Would we do this again?  Maybe, but only if I wanted to reheat everything in my oven, and not using a steamer for the lobster.

Sofa shopping and lobster cooking

 

The original plans for this past weekend had me driving to RQS's place, and us doing things in Manhattan.  Specifically, we'd go to the "Curry Hill" area of Manhattan for Indian food, then go to Tipsy Scoop for some booze infused ice cream.  It was a weekend where I was supposed to be presenting as Mario.  But hot weather was predicted for Friday and Saturday, so we changed our plans.  RQS would come to Croton this weekend, and I'd trek into NYC next weekend.  As a bonus, I could stay in Marian mode for most of the weekend.

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Saturday came, and we got up late.  But we still had enough time to make it across the river and do some furniture shopping.  We knew the sofa I wanted to ask questions about, and this meant dealing with a very hungry salesman.  Boy, was he hungry!  He employed many of the sales tactics an aggressive (but ethical) car salesman might use to get someone to make a deal "right now".  But there was no way I would put my Jane Hancock on a contract - if their Memorial Day sale was a guide, I expect to see a Labor Day sale price $250 lower than it was on this visit.  Yet, RQS was impressed by this person's persistence.  Unfortunately, I was not impressed by his lack of knowledge in regard to the products on the floor.  What I told RQS, and not this fellow, was that there would be no way he'd get the sale - I have to be in Mario mode when I sign a contract, and this means that we will be going to another of their outlets when I'm ready to consummate a deal.

Our next stop was at Shoprite, where I picked up some lobsters to cook this evening.  By the time we got home, RQS was getting hungry, and I wanted to get some water to boil as quickly as possible - I was hungry for lobster too.  Shortly afterward, the lobster was cooked and we were ready for our feast.  And feast, we did! 

Dress Shopping

 

Today was the moment of truth.  Could RQS and I spend the whole day together with me in Marian Mode?  That was the question of the day.

We both started getting dressed around noon.  At various stages during the dressing process, I popped out to say hello.  She wasn't shocked.  However, I made sure NOT to go out to see her with my makeup on, but not my wig.  And I think that was the right decision.

Off we went to Karina Dresses in Kingston. It was a nice day for a drive, and I took it slow, so that RQS could enjoy the scenery. By the time we made it there, it was shortly after 3 pm. And that's when we both started trying on dresses.  Although I couldn't find anything that fit me perfectly (their sizes are slightly small), RQS found 2 dresses she loved.  So it was she who made the best out of the trip.  

Our next stop was in Peekskill.  We wanted to find out if ShopRite was still selling lobsters at $12/lb. If they were, we'd skip the lobster truck and cook some crustaceans on our own.  We ended up buying 3 tasty critters for me to cook.  For my own edification, I decided to find the lobster truck that was servicing the area.  And it was in the back of beyond in a place I'd never find without google maps.  

When we got home, we got comfortable while the water was getting to a boil.  Once the water was hot enough, in went the 3 lobsters.  A few minutes later, we pigged out on fresh lobster.  Instead of spending $50 on 2 lobster rolls, each containing 4-6 oz. of lobster meat, we had 3 x 1.5 lb lobsters to chow down on.  YUM!

All in all, it was a very nice day, and hopes for future nice days like this - with me in Marian mode.

I got nothing done this evening - except answering the phone

 

This morning, my "smart watch" told me that I only slept 4 hours.  So I knew that I'd be fighting to stay awake all day - which I did.  But I didn't know that I'd be on the phone all evening.

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Going to work as Marian adds about 30 minutes to my daily routine.  As Marian, I need to shave all over to remove all traces of masculine hair, and then do my makeup.  Mario doesn't need to do this.  So I lose a half hour of sleep every day I go to work.  And when I have only 4 hours of sleep, I become a zombie for much of the day.  In order to avoid big screw-ups, I double check much of the work I do while doing it, and after it's done.  So far, this has worked out for me, but I feel wasted at the end of the day.

I went shopping after leaving work, and stopped into both Target and Kohl's before going home.  With a quick stop at Shoprite to pick up lunch and dinner for the next two days, I received a call from Vicki on my (now) short drive home.  After unloading my bags, I got a call from TCL.  Then, just as I was falling asleep, TCL wanted to chat again. And finally, it was time for my nightly chat with MWL.  Not much done at all - even though I had 17 things on my to-do list.  

Sooner or later, I must take care of ALL the things on this evolving list.  But first, it's time for me to go to bed....

Have you ever seen a supermarket almost empty of goods?

 

On the way home from MWL's tonight, I had to go to the supermarket before closing to pick up lunch for the next tomorrow.  Although I knew that the Shoprite in Tallman, NY was closing, I didn't know how empty the shelves would be.  Saying that the shelves looked like this a month before the store's official closing would not be an exaggeration.  Most of the goods had already been picked over, and only those items that would perish before the store closed were still being stocked.  (Why keep a supermarket open if one can't find fresh veggies, meat, fish and dairy?)

I felt sorry for the people who work there, as they will have to drive to new locations if they want to stay employed.  (This assumes that the staff has been offered jobs in the other locations.)  In this environment, people who can't get a better job than working at a supermarket will likely have a hard time finding jobs elsewhere.

Luckily for the people who shop here, the Walmart next door sells many of the same items that are found at Shoprite, save for the items mentioned in the first paragraph.  Yet, many of these shoppers will need to drive more than a mile further away to do their shopping.  But this closure makes me wonder: Will Walmart expand its footprint on site to sell the remaining items that Shoprite used to sell?  If so, did Shoprite terminate its lease to avoid direct competition with Walmart?