songbird's crazy world

Last year we tried Joe's Crabshack, and I was in love. But it's a pricey meal, and Oceanside is a  bit of a hike for us, so we never went back. Until tonight, that is.  A year to the day since our first visit. We arrived at dinner time and faced a very lengthy wait. Fortunately this restaurant uses an interesting system  to page patrons when their table is ready -- the hostess entered my cell phone number into her iPad, and I got a text message when our table was ready. It was very cold inside the restaurant ( I'd hate to see their bill for air conditioning!)  Once again let me recommend a Chilly Jilly wrap -- I keep one in my pocketbook this time of year. But the beach vibe is still there.  Loud music, line dancing, ti dyed shirts.  Could barely hear each other talk. This time around, we skipped the appetizer and went straight for the steam pots.  I ordered the same steam pot as I had last year -- a whole Maine lobster, two crab legs, shrimp, sausage, potatoes and co

Time to gear up for the breast cancer walk. Didn't do it last year, it conflicted with another event.  But I've walked at Jones Beach many times.  I wil do it again this year.  It's such a feeling of accomplishment .

So this year Becca got a PAID internship with a public relations firm.  And Jen just found a job with a day care/preschool.  Doesn't pay as much as sge made at the synagogue nursery school last year. But better than nothing, right? Now I've got to get Becca's financial aide squared away (her school is driving me crazy) and Jen needs to figure out this semester's grad school.  Baby steps . . .

You can read all the details in my cruise blog.

Too funny

This chain is unfairly disparaged by many "foodies".  Why go to a "faux Italian"  restaurant when there are so many "real" Italian restaurants on Long Island? Yet the place is always crowded at dinnertime. Why? It's a family-friendly chain with a pleasant atmosphere and interesting and delicious dishes on the menu. The food is pretty standard Italian.  Mostly pastas, with some chicken and seafood items rounding out the menu. You have a choice -- soup or salad.  Since we both selected salad, it was served family style  -- Iceburg lettuce, red cabbage, carrots, tomatoes and an occasional pepper served with croutons and Italian dressing, and grated cheese added at the table.  Nice.  (And no unripened tomatoes!) Salad was accompanied by their famous breadsticks -- actually closer to mini loaves of bread, soft inside but with a crunchy crust sprinkled with garlic. We ordered an appetizer trio.  The calamari was lightly breaded and fried, and was not

My office is in Jersey City, on the waterfront.  I look out the window and I see the new One World Trade Center rising above lower Manhattan.  My commute often takes me through the Trade Center. I subconsciously note the progress made in building that magnificent tower, and I move on.  It's become part of my landscape. But last week, as we were driving in the truck . . . As you come over the Veranzaro Bridge to Brooklyn and get onto the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway, there's a moment when lower Manhattan looms before you, the shining tower of One World Trade Center dominating the skyline. And Drew was looking at the tower as if he'd never seen it before. And then I realized:  He'd never seen it before. He has no reason to be in lower Manhattan these days, or any of the areas that have a view of downtown.  Sure, we go to the theater, but the Theater District is midtown. So manypeople haven't seen the new tower in all its glory.  Here are

My grandfather, Harry, came from a part of Poland that was under Russian control.  He wasn't able to get a visa to enter the US, so he went to Canada, then came to the US under the Canadian quota. My grandmother didn't speak about him much, he died when my mother was still a child.  So I don't know where they met, etc.  But I do know that after they got engaged, Harry was reluctant to set a date.  Ultimately they wound up at City Hall, with two of Harry's cousins as witnesses.  My grandmother acknowledged that she lied about her age on the marriage license, because she didn't want the cousins to know how old she really was. My great grandfather wouldn't let her live with Harry, though, until they had a religious ceremony.  That happened about a month later.

More crazy mixed up family stuff. My sister H, who has been unemployed for over three years, is moving back to the family home. My mom can't continue to pay her rent... My dad is coming home from rehab, we hope, but with even more limitations than he had before he was hospitalized, so we have to make modifications around the house.  Even with the confusion that comes with dementia, he's still  managing to manipulate my sisters. Drew is dealing with issues with his father and his uncle.His father is in the hospital and not doing well.  His uncle...a story for another day.

True confessions time. I am  a reformed nail biter.  I was engaged in that bad habit until I was 36 years old. Consequently, my long nails are a source of personal pride.  They're not just a beautification of my hands.  They're a symbol of perseverence and willpower. But for some reason, I have never gotten into the habit of a weekly manicure.  I should do it, should arrange a standing appointment at my favorite salon. . . I broke 3, count them, 3 nails in the past two days. My nails don't break off at the tips.  No, it's much more insideous than that.   My nails  . . .I'll see a hairline fracture on the side of the nail, running parallel to the nail bed, all across the top of the affected finger.  You can't file something like that.  I can try to glue it down or wrap it, and that brings temporary relief. But the crack creeps inexorably from one side of the nail to the other.  Until I am left with two choices:  let nature take its course, until the nail ca

"Lovely" encounter with a neighbor this morning. Background:  my parents' house is 90 feet back from the street.  There are trees and shrubs in the center of the lawn, which provide some privacy -- you can't really see the front of the house from the street. This morning I had an early meeting at the synagogue.  It must have been about 11:30 when I drove home. There was a woman walking her dog on my lawn!  She and the poodle were on the grass, halfway between the trees and the curb.  And the dog was in a very familiar pose. I stopped the car, rolled down my window and asked why she was on my lawn. She assured me she had baggies with her and would clean up after the dog. In all the years I had dogs, I never would have let mine do its business on tge neighbor's lawn! 

Grabbed some muffins from the hotel's continental breakfast, packed up the truck and hit the road. As we drove through Baltimore we could see Royal Caribbean's Grandeur of the Seas in port -- getting excited for our upcoming cruise. Grabbed a quick lunch on the New Jersey Turnpike. And then to the last leg of the trip --from Jersey to Staten Island to Brooklyn. The worst part of the trip, the part that actually made me hate being in the truck, was the drive on the BQE to the LIE and then home -- NYC traffic is the worst.  So our little adventure is over. Now we have to unload the truck and return it.  Drew is putting everything in storage here, so he has time to figure out what to keep, what to sell, etc . It was an interesting trip.  I'd do it again.  But not in a truck .

Our Civil  War adventure

So we're in Virginia, driving up towards Fredericksburg, and we see a sign:  Stonewall Jackson Shrine. You know we are history buffs.  And Drew loves the Civik War. So of course we had to stop. It was late in the day and the museum was closed,  but we were able to see the outdoot exhibits. Last night we stayed at the Candlewood Suites in Fredericksburg .   Ate at Steak N Shake -- good food, mediocre service. Today we took a break from driving, and instead we decided to spend more time exploring Civil War battlefields.  The National Parks Service runs the Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania Military Park, which is made up of four battlefields that were significant during the Civil War.  Fredericksburg, in 1862, was a decisive Confederate victory, but when Union troops destroyed the town, the tone of the war changed.  Chancellorsville, in 1863, where Lee won the battle but lost Stonewall Jackson.   Wilderness and Spotsylvania Court House, 1864 stalemates that ultimately lead to Gran