Monday, February 22, 2016

To Vancouver and back

When I left you last - and yes, I know that it was more than a month ago, don't nag - I was on my way to Vancouver.  I was there for 21 days.  I worked for 21 days straight.  I am here to tell you, I am too old to do that any more.  Admittedly, I tried to have a social life as well, but I used to be able to do both work and play.  I guess I still did it, but the end result was, I was bone tired when all was said and done.  And being bone tired makes me feel old.

Part of it was the nature of the work.  I was doing oral hearings, and they are always fraught with emotion for me.  And they are messy, in the sense that they almost never go smoothly.

But, as noted above, there was some play time as well.  There was sushi and bridge with the boys, twice, once at John's place and once at mine.  There was a movie with friend Deb.  (45 Years.  The critics loved it.  I found it dreadful.  If I saw one more soulful look......perhaps the older actors couldn't remember their lines, and thought the looks would work just as well.  Anyway, I don't care what the critics thought, two thumbs down from me.)

We had two Pho lunches in one week instead of our usual Monday only; one of our departing colleagues refused all offers of a party, and opted for a celebratory Pho instead.  Hence, two in one week.



The soon to be departed is Lisa, the furthest away on the right...

There were various coffee dates and lunches with colleagues, ex-colleagues and friends..... (camera not always in evidence) .....

And, of course theater.  January being a slow season for restaurants in Vancouver, we have something called Dine-Out Vancouver in January, where participating restaurants have Prix Fixe (have I spelled that right?) and/or half price menus.  Tom and I went (as we usually do this time of year) to The Water Street Cafe....




We both love the restaurant, but seldom spring for it at full retail.  We followed it with theater - something called The Motherfucker with the Hat.  Usually, I don't go for a lot of profanity in the theater (Sam Sheppard makes me a little sick to my stomach), but this was such a good play that it just seemed to be part of the life that they were showing us a slice of.  Once again illustrating one of my favourite adages - that's what we have friends for, to drag us kicking and screaming to do things that we otherwise wouldn't have done.

A second theater outing was more conventional, Stephen Sondheim's Company at Jericho Beach.  I love musicals, and I love Sondheim (the language is the polar opposite of TMFWTH, just glorious), but it is a silly play, I think...

Friend and former neighbor from Salt Spring Island, Jean, is between city planning jobs and was coming to Vancouver from Salt Spring.  She stayed with me for a few nights, and it was lovely to catch up - it has literally been years since we have seen each other, although we play Scrabble on Facebook nightly....Here we are, at my now-go-to local Indian dive, The Original Tandoori....




 And, of course, I couldn't be in Vancouver for three weeks without going for dim sum.  The usual cast of characters went back to our favourite, Fisherman's Terrace, in Richmond, and it never disappoints.  ....



I did manage to connect with old law-school friend Philip and his wife Linda.  He lives in Victoria, and is seldom over on my side of the puddle.  They were staying at The Metropolitan Hotel, one of numerous boutique hotels that have sprung up like mushrooms in downtown Vancouver (they say I can highly recommend it.  Certainly, the martinis at the bar were good - and generous (not usual in Vancouver, where they measure, they don't pour like they do in the Desert) - as was the food.  I was sorry to have forgotten the camera for that outing - as I say, I don't get to see them that often.

Lunch with colleague Julie was memorialized....


.....mostly because, although we have known - and respected, I think - each other for years at work, this is our first lunch, and, I think, the start of a friendship.

I even had friends Deidre and Susan over for dinner - I cooked, even!  (and yes, I know how.  I even do it fairly well.  It's just that I find it way too labour intensive to do for just one!  I got good reviews, so I guess I haven't totally lost the knack.  God, food is expensive (like everything else) in Vancouver, though.  I swear, it would have been cheaper to eat out!

February 6 is the anniversary of David's death.  I can hardly believe it has been 10 years.  As most of you know by now, I go out for dinner with my husband twice a year, on his birthday and on the anniversary of his death.  I always have the same meal, bourbon and prime rib (David's two favourite food groups), followed by key lime pie if it is available (another of David's favourites).  Some people seem to think this makes me morbid..



I don't think I am morbid.  I still have a relationship with David, is all; it is just different.....

Of course, being winter in Vancouver, it rained for 19 of the 21 days I was there.  It did clear up for the last two days, however, letting my have two wonderful walks and some wonderful sunsets.




And on February 10, I flew back to paradise, a.k.a.  Palm Springs.  Friend Mariah picked me up from the wonderful Palm Springs airport, and we had our customary lunch at Sherman's Deli.

And then the Palm Springs rounds begin.  Gym, five times a week.  Zumba classes.  Bridge (way too often.  What can I say; I'm addicted.).

Dinners...


(That's Mariah and her friend Joyce, and yours truly, at our favourite Mexican joint, La Tablita...

I even hosted our weekly neighborhood Thursday party the day after I got back....






In March, April and May, we hold these by the pool, but it is still too cool when the sun goes down, so we have been rotating houses in the neighborhood, and it was my turn.

Of course, there are the movies.  Mariah and I saw Carol, another one that the critics raved over and I hated.  Another two thumbs down. Make that another two thumbs down for Hail, Caesar.  As far as I am concerned, the Coen brothers haven't made a good movie since Fargo!  However, I did love the new Star Wars.  It was neat to see old Harrison Ford and Carrie Fisher, and the young crew coming in.  And for a change, I actually understood the action.  And one last movie (I have been back in Palm Springs less than two weeks, and have seen four movies and played bridge seven times - do you think I might be overdoing it?  And you wonder why I don't have time to write blog posts....), Hush Up Sweet Charlotte.  Are you guys old enough to have heard of Hush Hush Sweet Charlotte, the old Betty Davis movie.  Well, this is a take off on that, done completely in drag.......I walked out after a while.  Oh, well, I have walked out of more expensive performances....

Our complex had a meatball and spaghetti dinner for Valentine's Day....
















Lots of familiar faces, but some new ones as well...

I've entertained twice.  Hank, my friend from San Francisco, was on the way from Phoenix to San Francisco, and stopped by for a few nights.  Mariah and Joyce joined us for breakfast ....


And I even had Mariah over for Cobb Salad one night (another one of those things that is too fussy to make for one).

And one final dinner at La Tablita with Laurel...




...who I met at the bridge tournament last December, and is soon to head back to the cold North.

Mariah and I finally made it to the street fair at College of the Desert, and even with the Canadian dollar at ridiculously low levels, I managed to spend some money.

And to top it off, it is finally warm enough for pool time, so my one retirement skill is back in play - I can still read a book on a float in the pool without getting the book wet!

Speaking of reading, aside from reading John's Economists in Vancouver, and the usually Sunday New York Times in both places, I also finished a book about Ghengis Khan by Jack Weatherford (in anticipation of the Trans Siberian Railway trip - actually a great read) and a new novel called A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara, which I am in the middle of.  It is very Dickensian, and I can't put it down, but quite depressing as well - I don't dare read it before I go to bed....

So, once again, you are caught up with my boring life.  And once again, I promise not to be so long in writing.  But you can see, it is not exactly as if I am sitting around.....