Thursday, January 10, 2008

Garrett and I drove to West Point tonight to visit the newest property of the U.S. government. Our friends Alison and Paul had their beautiful baby girl Ellery Rose yesterday. (Many people say babies are beautiful, but they’re usually lying. This time it’s totally true. She’s precious.) Congrats to their new little family.

It was great to get out of the little box (AKA our apartment) today. Not only did we get the great news about their baby and get to visit, but I also ventured into the city to see my friend Stephanie via train and subways. I must have had that little lost girl look on my face because most of the time people offered help before I asked for it. I didn’t get lost and got to where I wanted to, so that’s okay. The NYC subway system makes a lot more sense to me than the NJ trains—and don’t even mention the bus schedule. Geez, it’s confusing. I’ll figure it out eventually. In the meantime, I’ll depend on the kindness of strangers. They’re so friendly. Some are a little overly friendly. I was asked out twice on the way there. I guess my new puffy warm coat makes me a hot ticket around here.

Steph and I went to an East Village tea room called Podunk’s. We’d both read an article online where it was listed as one of the top eight tea houses in the city. http://gonyc.about.com/od/restaurants/tp/tearooms.htm I’d read reviews where the woman who ran it either sounded like a sweet little frau or a demonic evil witch. The online reviews mentioned an unwritten rule about using cell phones under the threat of being cussed at and having things hurled at you, so we dutifully turned ours off before entering. I’d also heard that if it’s empty, we shouldn’t go in because she’s maybe chased people out. It was empty, but we were adventurous and entered anyway. I’m so glad we did. We had a delightful tea in a charming area with mismatched tables and chairs. The lady behind the counter was as sweet as her chocolate chip cookies. When I tried to pay when we picked up our tea, she said, “Oh, no. No one should ever pay before tea. It’s just not right.” After savoring her vanilla coconut tea, I asked her if she took debit, credit or cash. She smiled apologetically and said, “We only take cash, check, and IOU here.” Our eyes about popped out of our heads at the last part, but she told us we looked trustworthy and it’s always worked in the past. We had enough cash, though. To top off the day, I told her that Stephanie thought her cookies tasted like the ones her great-grandmother baked. Steph said she hadn’t had one since the ‘80s and wanted to purchase some. The woman didn’t even hesitate but popped a couple in the bag for her on the house. I’ll try the place again. Hopefully, it will be as sweet as it was today.

Subway sighting: I saw a rat the size of a small cat or a good-sized squirrel on the tracks today at the subway. I’d seen smaller ones in the past, but this one was a prize-winner.

Garrett had success at work today. Well, the gym at work, at least. The company makes them undergo a fitness evaluation before allowing them to use the facilities. Garrett completed more pushups than anyone had ever completed. He was upset. He didn’t know it was going to be a competition. If he had, he would not have worked out that morning before going to work (yes, that means he works out twice a day). Instead, he claims he would have trained specifically for the evaluation, so that no one could unseat him. Nah, he’s not competitive.