I did my usual Gold Bar, but it was too darn hot to stay out. Instead of Italian pasta, we opted for Malaysian noodles.
The crushed iced dessert was by far better than the ones I've had at other places. I was in bed by 9PM. I was too tired to
stay up. Why stay up for new episodes on BravoTV when they will eventually show countless repeats. Instead of buying one
bag of Starburst candy, I bought two because they were on sale. I didn't bike today because of the rain. Should I wrap her gift or not? I can be petty and not wrap her gift since she
never wraps her gifts. Tonight is all about packing and drinking. Tomorrow is a full day of nonstop errands and commitments.
June 28, 2012
Why can't I ever sleep in? So it's official. Precious will be departing in the middle of next week. We have a bit
of packing to do. Rafael pretty much pushed her through the finish line.
June 27, 2012
I skipped out an all day meeting because my money maker was not back to normal yet. Today, it is fine. David
noticed some sagging, but then he stopped himself short. Let's give it a couple more days and I should be back to normal.
Chi Mai was right on point with her diagnosis. Somehow, I am not impressed with Dojo's offerings. I can never get it right
with the vegetarian options. Speaking of vegetarians or vegans, I am to meet with Mr. Vegan tonight. It's difficult I tell ya.
I ran into Nabila at today's session. I would love to join you for your going away happy hour, but my bike and I already
have plans. Good thing I cancelled on KNT last night because it would have been a threesome instead of an evened out
foursome. I need to stock up on new tshirts. Vicki and Tamra are no longer friends. It's because of Brooks. Let's see who
is left standing at the end of the day. Chicks come and go, but at the end of the day, who really has your back? I found
something for Jacq. She definitely needs it for her kitchen. Fake pearls in the Garment District...you can't top that.
What did I tell you? I told you I didn't pay for his $8 Chinatown haircut. That's just absurd. I can pay for a $40 meal, but
I refuse to pay an $8 haircut. Today was Christmas at the Computer Store. I stocked up on an iPad and an Air.
June 26, 2012
It's already the last week of June. Mike arrived on schedule as expected. I left on the dot at 5PM instead of staying
behind to work on the memo. Agnes ended up finishing it. We didn't do the 9/11 Memorial because Chang said it's just two
pools of reflecting water. The actual museum is still under construction. We skipped the museum. They went off to see
Jersey Boys and I met up with Rob and Brandon at the Grace. We made it down to Hell's Kitchen. I was back at Junior's
for a late dinner. The following day, we didn't eat much for dinner because Jacq cancelled on us at the last minute. I was
disappointed. The Joy Luck Club remains missing. We made it over to Elliott's. Apparently, the tequila attributed to the
mass destruction in my bathroom. I threw out the shower curtain. The next morning, everyone arrived pretty much on time
for an early brunch. We walked over to the parade and took in some sun. The girls left to go home early. Melissa and I
left the guys to get drinks. We met up with Ryan and his group. After 30 minutes of walking, we found a place in the
far West Village. We couldn't meet up with the rest of the group because everyone was using the cellular networks. I managed
to hop on a downtown train and ended up in Tribeca. I got lost and found a cab to take me home. I ran into Anh Binh on
my block. He came up for some Che Thai. I was knocked out pretty early. I took an old friend to JFK and said our goodbyes
there. It was a nice long weekend. I experienced a very bad reaction to something that I touched on the treadmill. It
wasn't anything I ate. I hurried home and took two benadryls. My face is still a bit swollen as if a bumble bee bit me. According
to David, it should take a few days for the swelling to subside.
June 19, 2012
Oh boy...here we go again. Let's see if it will actually happen. I have my doubts. Nothing is for sure until the very end.
I was downstairs for dinner at Jacq's. She made her usual banh canh. It is consistently good every single time. We went through
the agenda and forgot to discuss one item. We discussed it on our morning run. I may skip the gym at lunch today because
I ran this morning. I finalized the arrival details for tomorrow afternoon with Mike. Good Luck Car Service is the way to go.
They have come through for me every single time except for that one time when I wanted to transport Chang's boxes
from LaGuardia Place to Mott Street. At that point in time, they had no cars available. I found it odd. We went over the plans
for next weekend. An all day beach affair is now optional. Dinner, however, is mandatory. Rafael appeared out of the blue.
I wonder why. I will take full advantage of the cool weather before the return of 90 degrees. Yes, you can get ready in five
minutes. So apparently my cousin from Vietnam is getting married or recently got married. I have two more days to go
and I can call it a weekend.
June 18, 2012
A very relaxing weekend indeed...I didn't think I would do anything upon my return, but I managed to get some
socializing out of the way. It all started with Viet and Melissa on Saturday afternoon. It ended right before midnight.
We are more than half way through the month and I'm dreading the first of the month. I should have written down the
instructions that Nick gave me. Let's give it a try and see if I can wing it in a couple weeks. I fell asleep at 10PM and woke
up at 4AM. I have not been able to go back to sleep. I did a bit of reading. I am on the last book of the three books.
I learned two things...I come correct and I got me a dime piece.
June 16, 2012
Something is happening outside my door. I hear people going up and down the stairs. They sound like they don't live in the
building. I don't recall having any black neighbors in the building. Perhaps they are movers. Either they are hired movers
or thieves. Construction that I had anticipated will only take place during the daytime. This is according
to Jacq. I don't have to crash anywhere else then. I got laundry and dry cleaning out of the way yesterday afternoon.
Immigration and Customs at EWR are much nicer than the ones at JFK. My first meal upon my return was rice with ruoc.
My mom sent another supply through SL a couple weeks ago. Benadryl helped me sleep last night. I have another hour
before everything opens up. The fancy fans all go to Mom. The boys had a fun day at a Blue Bayou. They stayed at a hotel
to rest up before returning home today? "21 Jump Street" was filmed on the west bank of Jefferson Parish. The school that
the guys went to was actually Higgins High. The park scene was from Lafreniere Park in Metairie. The car chase scene
was filmed on the GNO Bridge. I'm not sure about the Korean Jesus.
June 14, 2012
The close out went well. The meeting took way longer than expected. It didn't seem that long though. We started
the night with champagne in the hotel bar. Our new friends called in a reservation at this seafood place. It was in the
"UES" part of town. It reminded me a lot of Madison Ave. I had a creamy seafood soup and grilled fish. We finished a bottle of cava and were given more liquor after dessert. I thought I could stay up and
hang after dinner, but I was getting a bit tired. We all decided to go up to the hotel rooftop bar. George and I left for
the night. We met up with them again at breakfast. I didn't know you had to wait for everyone before getting your food
at the buffet. My eggs came out perfecto! I did my last currency exchange at the front desk. The guy gave me the correct
amount of money this time around. He even joked about it. I did some calculating before going into the office. It will be
a full house next weekend. I may need to get a new airport. I am disappointed with apple products. They should last
much longer than PC. Marc, great hearing from you and good call on leaving what's her name. She can't be snooping
around all the time. She was probably up to no good.
June 13, 2012
We finally ate at the same time as everyone else. It wasn't because we were not hungry or the appetite was not there
to consume food. We had a tight deadline. We ate the crepes that we have been eyeing. It was pretty amazing. The food here
has been nonstop goodness. The only bad dish I've had here was spaghetti. I have ordered it on two separate occasions
and both did not deliver as expected. I will stick to non-Italian food from now on. We left the office early to visit the Prado.
I got to see Philip the Fourth's family portraits. Debby got to see Goya's work. Debby is my kind of museum buddy. We
were quick with the artwork. Just as we were done with Goya, Agnes called. We hurried back to the hotel to work on the memo.
Instead of eating out, we ordered in. I was knocked out by 10:30PM. I woke up this morning and did a bit more work before
arriving late for breakfast. Ask to boil your eggs for more than 10 minutes. Five minutes is not enough unless you want
all that runny stuff. Today is the close-out and tomorrow is catch up day. The weather this weekend is supposed to be sunny
skies with highs in the 70s. We will be bringing Spanish weather to New York...you're welcome.
June 12, 2012
I think Debby and I are magnets for gay Americans. We met a couple last Friday night at dinner. We met another
couple this morning at breakfast. We have a dinner date with the second couple this coming Wednesday. Although everyone here is
friendly, the Americans tend to keep an eye out for other Americans. You can't miss us. We are loud and crude. We also
eat a lot. I asked for hard boiled eggs for breakfast this morning. I wasn't sure how to eat the eggs. They served the eggs
in little cups with miniature spoons. I managed to figure out how to eat the eggs. You crack the top part with the spoon. You get rid
of the shell. You leave the bottom half of the shell intact. You use the spoon to scoop the egg out. It looked civilized enough.
It's no longer Continental Airlines. It's United now. Get it right! There was a nice cool breeze in the park this morning.
I like to get it out of the way so I can relax all day. Today will be a long day. The trip is almost coming to an end. I can
see the finish line...it is within reach. Happy Birthday, Henrietta!
June 11, 2012
KNT, sorry for the delay. It has been nonstop. Just as I had expected, the days and nights here are long. We eat breakfast
at the hotel every morning. It is a very nice spread. The servers wear black suits with no aprons. We get to work
by 9AM. If there is no traffic, we are there within 15 minutes. If there is traffic, it's more like 20 or 25 minutes.
The people at the site are very nice and accommodating. They gave us the conference room with a huge window. One of the
accountants we met with looks like someone I know. My allergies have been acting up since I got here. If I am not sneezing
in my room, I am sneezing at the office. It's not so much the pollen outside, but I think it's something indoors. Maybe I am
not a fan of Spanish dust mites. Restaurants do not open for lunch until after 1:30PM. We were told to eat two breakfasts
every morning...one when you wake up and one when you make it to the office. Restaurants and most businesses close
between 3PM and 8PM. This is their time to rest before they open up for dinner. Some restaurants and bars open during
this time, but they only serve tapas. Sangrias are in full supply as are liquor. You can find a fully stocked bar anywhere you go,
including the local candy store. Debby and I finally found a Chinese restaurant. We ran into some Americans from Dallas
and Oklahoma City at dinner. We ended up going out with them that night. I had to wake up the next morning to go on an
all-day tour. The first stop was to a monastery on the foot of a mountain. We returned to the city for lunch. In the afternoon,
we were off to Toledo...not the one in Ohio. I would not recommend these tours to folks who cannot walk for hours. It was
a lot of climbing up and down the stairs. The highlight of the tour was seeing and hearing the choir practice at the monastery's
church. They sure do love their Corpus Christi. The next morning, we met up with our new friends on their hotel's rooftop
for some sunbathing. After a few bottles of cava, we headed to a Mexican place for lunch. After lunch, I napped for
almost three hours. Dinner consisted of paella and this really good noodle soup. I went back to the room and cleaned up a bit before
hitting the sack. Here are some things to remember...don't take a long nap in the afternoon if you plan on sleeping early
that night. Don't go out drinking the night before an all-day walking tour.
June 2, 2012
It literally took an hour to get from my place to the Lincoln Tunnel. The driver wanted to do the Holland Tunnel at first, but
the traffic was insane. Traffic was not so bad uptown. We also got caught in some traffic on 95 in NJ. After an hour and a half
in the car, I made it to my terminal. I was told to check in downstairs instead. I ran into Debby just as she was leaving
the check-in counter. I am not impressed with United. Self-service was truly self service. I liked the dedicated security line.
The flight was delayed for 30 minutes. I slept immediately after take-off. The girl next to me also slept immediately.
I slept for most of the flight. Thank you, Benadryl. However, there was serious turbulence
throughout the flight. We landed on time...I think. Immigration was a quick stamp on my passport after a simple "hola". No
questions asked. I think I brought way too much cash. I definitely overestimated thinking this is the Middle East. After a 20
minute cab ride to our hotel, we checked into our respective rooms. I am impressed so far. All I know is hola and gracias.
I'll pick up some more words while I am here. Oh and my phone does not work.