Snow Day

Dear Mom,

We got a big winter storm on Tuesday. The weather man said Central Park got 6 or 7 inches, and a gauge on the Upper West Side measured 10 inches! 

I guess it wasn't that bad in the end, as they didn't close NYC public schools. But John told us all to head out early from work. The gal who sits beside me waited two hours for a bus that never came! UGH. 

I headed home around 3 (yes...I love my job...and my sweet boss!), so I decided to scoot to the grocery store and cook myself a yummy dinner. (And assemble my new bed frame...more on that in the other post.) 

I took some photos as I walked out of the subway and headed down my street... 

View from my apartment...

Walking back from the grocery store and thinking, "Wow, I sure am glad I don't have to be out delivering packages right now...God bless those who do!"

When I visited Peggy and Charles in San Francisco, they gave me a copy of a cookbook they love from the Bi-Rite Market. I flipped through it and found a recipe for braised chicken and vegetables. The recipe called for braising the meat in riesling (similar to a recipe I made you once...something Anne and I both made from Bon Appetit), but since I still had a bunch of cider on hand from last week's pork chops, I decided to use that instead. 

The Food Emporium on my street just got renovated and is fairly decent, but I couldn't believe their root veggie offering consisted of celery root! No parsnips or turnips! I almost got the celery root (it looked like a big ol' brain), but it was $10, and that just seemed (a) ridiculous (b) potentially bizarre or flavor-twisting. 

Since I was going to the trouble of cooking, I asked my neighbor Cyrus if he'd like to pop down and eat. He took me up on it, but then I felt bad because it wasn't ready until 8:30! Oops. I guess "city folk" like to eat that late, but not moi. 

Cyrus texted to see if I had a fireplace. "Nope, but I'd definitely put out for someone who did!" I texted back. So, I decided to put this on Facebook and see who responded...

I got some funny responses. You would have enjoyed reading along. An old classmate messaged me to say he couldn't imagine I had trouble getting a date. I admitted I MIGHT be just a LITTLE bit pickier than the post had let on... 

Cyrus and I had a fun time visiting while the meat cooked in the oven. It was really tender and tasty, but we needed some crusty bread to sop up the sauce. Then I stayed up entirely too late watching TV, and wondering why the hell they make reporters drive around doing live shots behind the wheel... Remember when I turned down that job in Rock Hill because they wanted me to run my own live truck? Give me a break! 

Anyway...the next morning I could have worked from home, but I decided to head in, since I have a fairly short walk to and from the subway. This shot of my colleague and friend Serg says it all... 

Our colleague Steven came in too. We died laughing over what I called his "shoe condoms." He had these slip-on rubber sleeves to protect his shoes. They fit perfectly and were actually rather brilliant! 

I actually stayed until 7 and had a really productive day. So much for the snowication!

Aunt Debbie called to check on me and make sure I was staying warm. Just like you would have.

Saudade,

Lynerd