Tag: random meetings

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Cocktails at Omega

A Second Invitation

I’d taken over my old instructor’s class for a number of years when his work schedule changed but then everything went to hell with Alison, so he returned, and I went back to just being one of his students.

But I still have a handful of people that I tutor – I’m not their main instructor but I give them tips and tricks to improve their kali.

One such person is a Radiologist from Pittsburg (which happens to be exactly where the Professor lives).

In any case, the Radiologist dropped me a line the other day.

Him: Hey! I remember us talking a while back about nice watches. My sister works for a luxury brand, and they are hosting some fun swanky event. Would you have any interest in taking your fiancée to something like that?
Me: 100%! Where and when?

So, before we knew it, we were downtown at Brookfield Place at the Omega Store there.

Turns out that the Radiologist got the time a bit off, so we walked around for 30 minutes beforehand, checking the place out.

And then, afterward, we went to the Omega store and met up with the Radiologist’s sister, who was just a sweetheart and got along with the Firecracker, swimmingly.

Her: Do you want to try on the pink one?
Firecracker: Sure, thanks!

She was also kind enough to have someone bring us some champagne…

Me: This reminds me of when we were in Pasadena.
Firecracker: Oh right, at Tiffany’s. We should check out wedding bands.

…as well as some hors d’oeuvres.

We spent most of the time chatting with his sister but also with the person in charge of alla the Omega stores in North America – turns out, he’s proficient in ranged weapons while I focus mainly on melee weapons.

Later on that week, the Radiologist was in town and we brought him to the same bistro I brought the professor for some drinks because he was fully scheduled.

Me: (to waitress) I bring all the Pittsburg doctors I know here.
Her: (laughs) OK!

Afterwards, the Firecracker and I chatted.

Her: It’s nice that you always get invited to the rando things.
Me: Like I said, the whole point of being invited someplace is to get a second invitation.

Location: all over midtown with a hot blonde and a dog
Mood: less ache-y
Music: The city won’t change us, we beat to the same drum (Spotify)
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Boston 2025: The pub crawl

Lobster Roll Quest

The next morning, the Firecracker woke up bright and early to check out the city while I slept in.

After she got back, I got dressed and we headed out to Faneuil Hall Square for our Independence Pub Crawl, something else that was part of the Boston package we booked.

Gotta say, it was far more interesting that I thought it was gonna be and 2.5 hours went by pretty quickly.

The weirdest thing was I ran into my buddy Kar’s husband and three kiddos there.

Me: Frenchie! What are you doing here?!
Him: I was just telling [the kids], “Hey, I think that’s Logan.”

Wild.

Me: Isn’t that nuts?
Firecracker: (shrugging) Not really. You know a lotta people.

We caught up for just a few minutes before we had to return to our tour group.

We ended up hitting up four historical pubs and drinking at each of them…

…even ordering some oysters at one of them.

Another traveler: You two got food?
Firecracker: We figured they didn’t have to cook them and we could just down them.
Him: Smart.

After we left the group, we ended up checking out the Boston Public Market…

…where we had a little snack of Boston clam chowder…

Her: Normally, I’d consider hot clam chowder in the summertime crazy, but we’re in Boston.
Me: Yup, I get it. Let’s do it.

…before heading off to Faneuil Hall.

Her: I really want a lobster roll, now.
Me: I don’t have a problem with that, but I wanna sit.

We had originally planned to get her a lobster roll over at the Boston Sail Loft, but the wait was too long, so we headed off to Joe’s Waterfront instead.

Her: Finally, lobster roll!
Me: I need a salad because I feel like a fatty-fat-fat, what with alla that drinking we’ve been doing.

It was only a mile walk back to our hotel and, despite the heat and humidity, I figured the walk would be good for my back, so off we went.

After alla the sun, food, and booze, we both needed a quickie nap before exploring Chinatown at night.

I’ll tell you about that in the next entry.

Location: my superheated room
Mood: sweaty
Music: Forever and not at all, with a boathouse (Spotify)
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Travelogue: Miami 2024

Dinner in the sky

The very next day after I proposed, we woke up at the crack of butt to catch a plane to Fort Lauderdale.

Her: Wait, you booked an 8AM flight?!
Me: (slowly) Yes?
Her: So, we have to wake up at like 5AM?
Me: (slowly) Yes?

The train ride there was pretty uneventful, although we were close to the only people out and about that day.

We did have to run in one portion of the trip, but that’s a story for another time.

My MIL bought that bag for the Firecracker for Christmas. If that doesn’t tell you everything about that family, I dunno what will.

We were in Miami by noon.

I booked an inexpensive hotel that was in a GREAT location on South Beach so that we could stroll around.

We were both pretty hungry, so our first stop was a Cuban sandwich shop; unfortunately, the Firecracker wasn’t in the mood for a Cuban.

So, we ended up getting a turkey sammie, which was ok but not Cuban sandwich ok.

This was $28 (!)

We then strolled around the neighborhood for a while…

…before we ended up at the beach.

Me: Man, this is awesome. We’re on a beach in December!
Her: This is great. Hey, what are we doing for dinner?
Me: Oh, the Frenchman and Tess recommended a joint for us; I made reservations. It’ll be pretty low-key.

It was not.

But more on that in a moment.

So, after a quick nap, we got dressed and walked the mile to the hotel where the restaurant was.

We’re New Yorkers so a mile walk’s nuthin to us.

Her: Wait, that looks just like [the Frenchman and Tess].
Me: (to them) Hey, guys!

Arriving at the hotel elevators, I saw the Frenchman and Tess and waved.

I didn’t tell the Firecracker that they both just happened to be in Miami at the same time and were joining us for dinner.

The Firecracker: What are you two doing here?
The Frenchman: Oh, he didn’t tell you?
Tess: Is that ok that we’re here?
The Firecracker: Are you kidding? That’s great! (turning to me) OMG, you are full of surprises.

Tess had been to the restaurant before, so we let the two of them order everything.

The food was absolutely killer…

…but the views were even more so.

Here’s the view from the bathrooms.

The bathrooms!

Tess encouraged us to take pictures because the rooftop pool was empty, and the views were spectacular.

The waiter heard that we just got engaged so he comped us some champagne.

No vibe like drinks in the sky vibes, lemme tell ya.

Afterwards, they drove back home and she and I walked back to our hotel room, taking more pics as we walked.

Me: Good engagement so far?
Her: Amazing!
Me: OK, well that’s the end of the surprises, everything else is as you know it.
Her: It’s been just great so far.

Actually, at least for you, there’s one more surprise.

I’ll tell you all about it in the next entry.

Location: back in freeeeezing NYC
Mood: brrrrrrrrrrr!
Music: Drinks in the sky, that’s the vibe (Spotify)
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Frozen Picklebacks

If only for a few weeks

Him: I’m so excited to come home!
Me: Not as much as I am, kiddo!

I picked up my kid from my in-laws the other day along with the Firecracker.

We stayed for a dinner of pizza and other delicious things.

Didn’t remember to take pics until after we ate almost everything but here’s a pic of some watermelon.

The Firecracker also got her kid as well, but – before we got them – she took the day off work so we could have one last night to ourselves, so we started the night early around the way.

Because it was so early, we were the first people in the bar, so she did some stupid human tricks – as in the main pic of this entry – which I enjoyed.

In another bar, I asked the bartender about the pea green drink they had.

Her: That? It’s a frozen pickleback. The people that like it are just awful. Do you wanna try some?
Me: How could I say no?
Her: (later) What did you think?
Me: It’s admittedly pretty awful…but I couldn’t stop drinking it.
Her: (nodding) Yeah…

She liked us enough to comp us some more shots…

…and we rounded things out with more drinks.

The kids are now back and we’re now back in parenting mode, which we both happy about.

Still, it was nice to be carefree if only for a few weeks.

Location: Governors Island, with my favourite tiny human and some of my fave normal-sized humans as well.
Mood: fatty-fat-fat
Music: Oh, I’ve finally decided my future lies beyond (Spotify)
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Meeting friends

My brain just glitched

Him: Hey! Any chance we could meet up a little earlier tomorrow? Say 10 vs 11?
Me: Sure!
Him: Perfect, see you then! I’ll be the gray-haired guy with the 6’ tall sixteen-year-old.

My buddy Danny came by with his kid the other day. He moved to Texas ages ago.

Don’t think I’ve seen him since this entry waaaay back in 2007, far before his daughter was born and before he had grey hair.

I gave them a quick tour of the Upper West Side before I had to run back for some zoom meetings.

Gotta say, I think about stopping this blog alla time but then I’m reminded how nice it is to have a place I can just remember things.

Me: His daughter really was six-foot tall.
Her: You know, one of these days, the kid and all his friends are gonna be taller than you.
Me: (…)
Her: (laughing) You ok?
Me: My brain just glitched.

Him: I’m glad we could meet up! And you’re right by my sister.
Me: It is the upper BEST side, after all. (stopping in the middle of the street) Hold on…
Him: Everything ok?
Me: Yeah. (pointing down) That’s a baseball imbedded into the street and thought it was interesting enough to take a pic of. (shrugging) It’s kinda what I do.

I’ve also been having some zoom classes for a physcian that lives in Pittsburg. He’s also a former boxer that’s gotten really into kali and reached out to me to see if we could do private zoom classes.

So, for the past few months, I’ve been teaching him here and there.

He randomly ended up like two blocks from my home the other day so we met up for a cuppa joe.

Whenever possible, I always try to make time for people if they’re willing to head up to where I am.

After all, I never know when – or even if – I’ll ever see them again.

Location: watching Rob and Andy sing in Newark
Mood: entertained
Music: If you would leave it’d be a crying shame (Spotify)
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Let’s hear it for the boy

Showing up

When I was a kid, there was either no afterschool programs or my family couldn’t afford to send us, but, in any case, I never knew about the very idea of “afterschool” growing up.

For my own kid, I put him a program so I had time to work, and that was a musical production of Footloose.

Because it was his first time, he only had a bit part with one line, but he was in the cast and had to sing and dance in a number of the songs.

In any case, they had their three shows last week and I went to two of them.

My MIL, SIL, and I went to the one on Thursday; ABFF, her kids, and her sister went on Friday; the Firecracker, her niece, her sister, and I all went on Saturday.

On the one hand, it was pretty well done, I gotta say.

On the other hand, watching two of the same grade-school musicals is pretty much my limit.

The kids with parents that went to all three are pretty lucky as they, clearly, have better parents than my kid has.

On the flip side, there was this nice kid that was also in the show that waved to my kid after the last performance was over and proceeded to walk home alone.

Me: Oh man, that really bothers me.
Her: What? That he’s going home alone?
Me: Yeah – it means that no one came to see him.
Her: Maybe they came to another show.
Me: Still…

I’m confident my kid will be angry with me because there’s something about fathers and sons that means there’s always friction there, somehow.

But I hope he remembers that, whenever possible, I showed up.

Him: Thanks for coming! I was looking for you.
Me: (laughing) And you found me.

I’m pretty sure the fella on the lower left-hand corner is Tony Danza.

Quick little side story:

On the first night I went with my MIL and SIL, Tony Danza from Who’s the Boss fame sat two rows ahead of us.

We all assumed that he had a kid or grandkid in the audience but one parent told me the following – which, keep in mind, is like the game “telephone” in that you’re like hearing it from the person that heard it from the person that heard it.

Me: Does he have a kid here?
Him: I just heard him tell another parent that he was at the park the other day and some kid walked up to him, not knowing who he was, and said, “I’m in a play on Thursday, will you come and watch it?” I think that kid was asking everyone he met to come by. Anyway, Tony Danza heard this and said, “Sure!” and he actually showed up!
Me: Man, I always liked him. I hope that’s true.

Regardless, he sat through the whole thing, laughed and clapped at the right times, and left without a fuss.

What a class act.

Should mention that my brother did that picture of my kid for the back cover of the Playbill above – he’s amazing at stuff like that.

Location: at a NYC splash pad, reading about Michigan and hating people.
Mood: upset
Music: Tell me why, ain’t nothin’ but a heartache (Spotify)
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Travelogue: Los Angeles 2024, Day 2 – Champagne Breakfast at Tiffany’s

A crispy potato delight

Woke up the next morning and immediately thought of my usual Lucky Boy brekkie, of course, so, off we went.

But not before meeting a new friend.

Right next to Lucky Boy is the very first Trader Joe’s so we had to stop for a picture.

We finally got to Lucky Boy and I got a breakfast BLT and a double cheeseburger.

Three people commented on my jacket, positively.

Her: I just want to say, that is a great jacket on you.
Me: Thank you! My brother doesn’t think so.
Her: (laughing) He’s wrong.

Our bellies full, we walked over to Old Pasadena to check things out.

But first we needed some coffee and pastries.

Once we were fully caffeinated, we continued our walk.

Her: Wait, is that a Tiffany’s?! Can we go in?
Me: …yes?
Her: I’m going to look at engagement rings…because.
Me: Noted.

Do not read into this.

There, we met a fella named Richard…

Him: …Queens. You?
Me: I’m from Queens as well!

…who was nice enough to offer us up some champagne in Tiffany crystal on a literal silver platter with white gloves.

Me: Well, technically, it *is* 2PM for us.
Her: This is true!

The Firecracker and I chatted with Richard for a bit more before we left his fine company.

The Firecracker stopped into another store and tried on some clothing.

Her: What do you think?
Me: You look great!
Her: I’m gonna wear this out.

And she did just that.

Afterward, we stopped in a quiet alleyway, and I got some writing done.

And met another new friend.

We decided to head over to the super wealthy part of Pasadena and check out the multi-million-dollar mansions there.

The coolest thing about them were so many of them had fruit trees everywhere – we saw figs, tons of oranges, limes, and more.

Plus, there were cool things like aloe just growing on the sidewalks.

Although, not everything we saw on the street was fruit.

Me: Someone did not have a good day.

The fruit was definitely nicer to see.

We went back to my brother’s and crashed for a bit, before waking up and having a crapton of Chinese food, mainly dumplings.

Me: There is no soup in these soup dumplings!
Her: They’re just dumplings now.
Me: Blargh.

We ended up playing a buncha board games, including Scattagories.

Our question was: Beginning with “M,” something that you get from a vending machine.

Me: Munchos.
Her: Munchies?
Me: Munchos! They’re a crispy potato delight.

The jet lag was real, so we crashed pretty early.

Location: earlier today, Newark, NJ
Mood: sore
Music: We pulled up for some west coast passion (Spotify)
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Travelogue: Winston-Salem Pt. 4 – some Rain

We’ll see

We woke up on Easter and promptly went to a Starbucks to caffeine up.

The big reason why we went down to North Carolina was that a relative of the Firecracker’s had passed and the extended family was there to mourn and spread that relative’s ashes.

So, we did that on the last day.

I stayed in the car because I figured this was a private family event and this wasn’t really the time nor place to make formal introductions.

Afterward, we went to her aunt’s house where everyone celebrated the relative’s life as well as had Easter dinner.

Her extended family were also quite nice and I ate myself silly, taking a nap in her aunt’s sunny backyard.

Now, I’d been speaking to Rain this whole trip because he moved to a neighboring state down south.

Rain’s taken a huge 180 in his life and essentially changed from being the ultimate city boy to a farmer.

Legit, he’s a farmer now.

To wit, he wanted to give me some grass-fed beef from a cow he had slaughtered.

Him: This will be the freshest best beef you had in your life.
Me: Well, you already had me at free.

So, the Firecracker and I headed back to Walmart to get a cooler.

Gotta say that being in Walmart is a trip for a city boy like myself, who has yet to transition to becoming a farmer.

Literally, they had everything including guns and shotguns on display and various projectiles scattered about.

Me: I could live here. They have everything!
Her: Welcome to the south, babe.

We then went back and crashed, only to wake up a few hours later at the crack of ass to make the 12 hour trip back.

But we stopped off first at the parking lot of a Chick-fil-A where I met up with Rain, who arrived in this HUGE red pickup truck.

Me: You’re legit a farmer now.
Him: (taking sawdust outta his pockets) Yup.

He filled up the cooler with meat while the Firecracker and her kid went in to get some food. Presently, he and I went in as well and we shot this impromptu video below.

We chatted for just a few minutes before he had to get back on the road – I had to pick up my kid and we were still hours from where we needed to be.

After what seemed like forever, I got the kid…

Me: There you are! I missed you so much!
Him: Me too, papa! How was North Carolina?
Me: Good – but it woulda been better if you were there.

…and then made it home after being stuck in NYC traffic for a while.

She wants to do this trip every year and I’m not sure I can do that. But I see the appeal for her.

We’ll see.

Location: earlier today, stuck on 14th Street, waiting for mass transit
Mood: old
Music: Looking fine as hell in aisle four. Would you come over? (Spotify)
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Travelogue: Winston-Salem Pt. 3 – Stopping for BBQ

Hot damn, yeah!

We woke up relatively late to meet the Firecracker’s BIL and sister at a North Carolina BBQ joint called Lexington Barbecue.

Her: You’ll like it if you prefer dry rub to sauces.
Me: I like all types of BBQ.
Her: This is authentic southern BBQ!

I actually ended getting the fish.

BIL: Lemme get this straight, you come to a Carolina BBQ place and you get…fish?!
Me: I’m just gonna eat some of [the Firecracker’s] food – she never finishes.

Turns out she did.

BUT her niece didn’t want any of her food, so I ate that.

After we left, I took some pics outside when I heard a fella called out to me…

Him: Hey! Hey, man! You want some real pictures, come on into the smoker.
Me: Hot damn, yeah!

He was the pitmaster and also just a prince of a fella.

So were the two gents working back there as well.

The pitmaster pulled a piece of pork right outta the smoker and handed it to me.

Him: Whaddya think?
Me: (eating it) Jesus, that’s good.

We closed out the day having dinner with the Firecracker’s immediate family at the AirBnB that her sister was staying at.

The next day, we celebrated Easter and then headed back home but not before seeing an old friend.

I’ll tell you that part next, if you’re interested.

Location: A sunny playground, trying to not get hit by a baseball
Mood: irritated
Music: mountains, slowly they’ll arise before our eyes (Spotify)
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A night at hot pot, the Library, pizza, Criff Dogs, and (almost) a Speakeasy.

And we ran into another friend, too

The Firecracker needed to get some legal work done but it was outta my wheelhouse, so I asked my buddy Reed to take a look at it for us, which he did.

So, as a mini-thanks for the help, the Firecracker and I took him out to eat hot pot and get some drinks.

We started off at Hou Hot Pot; the Firecracker and I arrived first, and he came just a few minutes later and had on a pearl necklace, like the Firecracker.

Her: Hey, we’re both wearing pearls!
Him: Yes, yes, we are.
Me: Dammit, left out again.

We ordered a ton of food and just caught up.

Afterward, we went to the Library of Distilled Spirits…

….where we chatted with the bartender, who also starred in Drunk Shakespeare.

Me: Is it always the same person drunk each time?
Him: Nah, we take turns.
Me: Seems sensible.

Reed ordered a Paper Plane variation, while I had my old standby, the Old Fashioned…

…and a rum drink that I’ve never had before.

Bartender: Have you ever had an Old Cuban?
Me: Nope, but I’ll have one now.

It was honestly, pretty good – but nuthin could beat that first Old Fashioned.

We got pretty lit there and I got snacky, as I’m usually wont to do.

So, we got some pizza.

Her: Whenever Logan drinks, his “no carbs” rule goes out the window.
Me: You sold me out!
Her: But it’s true!
Me: That’s not the point!

It wasn’t enough.

Reed: Let’s go to Crif Dogs and get cheap beer and some dogs.
Me: Sold!
Him: We can also check out the speakeasy there that’s hidden behind the phone booth.
Her: What? Wait, is this Please Don’t Tell?

It was.

But the line was waaaaay too long so we just got dogs and beer.

Turns out the guy running the front desk grew up in Ithaca, where I went to college.

Him: My family owned Rogan’s.
Me: For serious? Man, I haven’t had that in ages.

We just ended up chatting the night away.

Him: Oh, I was engaged once.
Me: No kidding?
Him: We’re still friends. Her daughter visited the city not too long ago and I showed her around.
Me: You’re such a mensch!

It was late when we headed back, and we ran into my buddy Lau who had just finished up a private show.

A lot more happened, but I suppose this is all I wanted to tell you.

Location: in bed almost all day
Mood: sick, send soup
Music: Lethal poison for the system (Spotify)
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