On re-reading my last entry, I realized that I forgot to tell you about Davie's Yahrzeit. That is German/Yiddish for the anniversary of his death, with is February 6. It is hard to believe that it is 7 years now. For the last several, since I have been wintering in the desert, I have gone to Davie's Hideaway (yes, that is really its name, an old time Palm Springs restaurant, with a piano player, and all of Davie favorite foods; he would have loved it!) to commune with my husband on that date. I did it again this year, with friend Mariah who had come down the day before.
Looking none too happy, I'm afraid
The piano player was happy to play the old favourites
And Mariah, as previously noted, has never taken a bad picture!
The next day was considerably more cheerful, as we had happy hour at Tropical (still my favourite watering hole) with the gym group, as well as Mariah and her friend Sue who was visiting for the week.
Continuing with the usual theme - i.e., eating and drinking, that is - Mariah and I shared our neighborhood Mexican restaurant, El Gallito, with Sue. It really is a neighborhood place - about 10 tables, always full, with the family serving the food, which, of course, is terrific!
(At last, a happier picture of me, Sue to the left and Mariah to my right!)
On February 14, Art and I drove to Phoenix to participate in a Sectional Bridge Tournament. It was not as well organized as the Regional we had attended in November, but two full days of bridge are two fun days for me! (We played two sessions each day, each session lasting about 3 1/2 hours, and even won some master points!). We were meant to stay for another day, but bothe of us were bridged out!
.....which meant we were home in time for a neighborhood party, given by friends (and, of course, neighbors), Michael and Paul.
Just in case you didn't think the desert was the land of eternal youth, this man is 92!
So, if you add sunshine to the food and booze, this is what you come up with!
During the following week, colleague and friend Brian and his wife Barbara visited briefly from Vancouver, bringing a carton of books for my newly budding Palm Springs library (gratefully appreciated, guys!) and what little gossip there was from work! Great to see them, if only briefly, and share the benefit of my great view and the sunshine!
And the following week, I had yet another new dining experience; Art and Wally took Mariah and I out for dinner at a new (to us) restaurant, Trio, in down town Palm Springs. It has actually been around for a while, and received great reviews from the folks at the gym, and everyone else. It is really a trendy place - filled to the rafters on a Monday night, no less - but in spite of that the food, drinks, service, and atmosphere were all good. We all agreed that we would come again!
Followed the next day by another new experience. I had been told about a performance of Tosca to be performed in Segerstrom Center for the Performing Arts in Costa Mesa, California by the Pacific Symphony Orchestra. I had never been to the venue, and although there would be minimal sets and costumes, I like Tosca any way I can get her, and it would be an experience. So, off I went! Costa Mesa is only about 1 3/4 hours from Palm Springs, and the hall was spectacular!
Modern right down to the bar, where I enjoyed a pre-prandial drink...
...and, having scored a seat on the second row (a new friend works for the Pacific Symphony) thoroughly enjoyed the performance. The (admittedly minimal) staging was brilliant, as were the singing and the orchestra! It was a grand evening, and as I had had the brains to get a motel room, I got to enjoy the walk in the balmy air to the car, and get a good night's sleep before heading back to Palm Springs in the morning.
Finishing the week, I finally connected with friend Laurel (from Salt Spring, but with a place down here not 5 minutes from mine) for a walk and talk, and with friend Robin for bridge, and yesterday, was back at the Met in the Movies to see and hear Parsifal. As some of you know, this was Wagner's last opera, and he was giving vent - to the tune of 5 1/2 hours - to his spiritual side. It is lovely music, but although I know Wagner would have loved the Met's staging (he used every theatrical gimmic available to him, after all)), I didn't. Not to mention it would have been criminal to spend 5 1/2 hours of a lovely day inside. Instead, I left after the second act, and did my errands with the top down and Saturday Afternoon at the Opera blaring from my radio!
And, to bring you up do date, today, the usual cast of characters had breakfast at Elmer's. We actually hadn't been together for weeks, and it was a good chance to catch up.
From left to right, Bob, Greg, Pete, Ron, Deb and Arlene. They are a great group, funny and smart and loving and kind. I really feel lucky to have them as friends.
After breakfast, I returned home to a lovely rest of the day on my patio, with the sunshine and the New York Times. In fact, I was so lethargic that I totally spaced on having a party for new members at the Art Gallery this afternoon! Oh well, there will be other opportunities!
Late this afternoon, Art and Wally came by to show off their new car...
If it looks familiar, that's because it is just like mine in Vancouver, except red! (They can afford to get a red car - they drive more slowly than I do!). Anyway, it's a great car, and I'm sure they'll have fun with it.
Oh, and I got hearing aids about 10 days ago! My hearing starting going bad several months ago, and I found out that I had mild to moderate hearing loss on the right side, and moderate to severe on the left. (When I asked if the left side could be worse than my right because of 30 years of driving around in a convertible, the doctor agreed that indeed that was probably the reason.) Anyway, the new technology is great - the hearing aids are tiny tiny, they are connected to blue tooth so that I can hear the phone right in my ears, and frankly, if that is the worst thing that old age can throw at me, I will be one lucky puppy!
What else can I tell you. Oh yes, plans for the big trip to the Middle East are finally coming together (no thanks to me, I have to tell you - Hank, and his friends Holly and Ted on the ground in Egypt have done all the wok.) I'm starting to get excited - it all starts in less than a month!
And that's all she wrote for now. I will have to be better about writing, or I will never keep up on the big adventure to come!
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