another this and that

I'm still obsessing over the Gabby Petito case.   HLN, one of the "true crime" cable channels, is running a nightly segment about the ongoing investigation and manhunt. And of course I have been watching. I have a feeling someone will find Brian Laundrie soon. I hope he is brought to justice quickly.

Which is why a statement on a friend's blog is bothering me so much...he wrote about the case after Gabby's body was found but before the coroner announced that her death was a homicide.   His theory was that Brian abandoned Gabby in the wilderness and that she died of exposure.  And he described their horrific fight, the one where the police separated them overnight, as a "lover's spat".  I don't know whether he truly meant to trivialize their argument or whether he was just being intellectually lazy.  His writing tends to be hackneyed, he relies on clichés, overused metaphors and trite sayings, so I will give him the benefit of the doubt and go with "intellectually lazy".

Got my flu shot last week, and I’ve made an appointment for my COVID booster.  I want to be protected against illness.  I really enjoyed not having a cold or bronchitis last winter, so maybe I’ll wear my mask again this year.

We went to a lovely party Sunday afternoon.  A double occasion, a friend was celebrating her 60th birthday and also that she's 10 years cancer free.   She has a very large family, so only a small group of friends were invited.  I was honored to attend.  The party was at an Italian restaurant -- good food, good wine, and excellent company. Any place where the meal ends with cappuccino …

We have two more friends celebrating birthdays in the next few weeks, so we're planning to get together to celebrate.  One of the celebrants is deathly allergic to tomatoes, so we have to be careful about where we eat.  Italian is clearly an issue.   I think we'll do Brazilian barbecue.  

So of course Drew is thinking about his birthday.  He'll be 64 in February. This year he wants a quiet birthday, but he  wants a big party when he turns 65, and he's already thinking about places where we can hold the celebration.  When we were at Jones Beach the other day he grabbed a brochure from the catering hall.  Becca went to an engagement party at the beach a few months ago, and it was amazing, so I'm sure a birthday party would be fantastic.  

As for me … dinner and birthday cake, and I'm fine. I am not interested in a party for myself.

I'm looking forward to this weekend.  We're going into the city Saturday, we intend to visit the observation deck at Rockefeller Center, and plan to go to Chinatown for dinner.  And we have tickets for a Ducks game Monday.

Yes, lots of good things happening around here.