The entire weekend was a harmonious blend of my favorite things -- family, friends, Mom's cooking, NYC and Winter weather as cold as 13 degrees. Winter is a character in my life that doesn't visit often enough. It's so sensory, full of life and I love everything about it. The reason for the trip was a celebration, my niece turned 16! She's a great kid. Before the party, I had absolutely no concept of what 16 year old kids were like but I was surprised that a lot of them seemed like really good kids. There weren't any obvious nose piercing, tattoos or use of vulgar language so I was pretty impressed and surprised.
I spent Sunday in the city with my oldest and one of my dearest friends. We walked through Central Park, had lunch at the Boathouse, went to the Met and had drinks at the Oak Room at the Plaza hotel. It was an exceptional and lovely day. I love everything about the city, especially this time of year. I was all bundled up in my hand knit scarf and fingerless gloves. And yes, they survived the trip and got tons of use! I know so many of you live in cold climates but for this Florida guy, it was paradise. The only really beat part of the whole weekend was I forgot my knitting. I must have said 10 times before I left, "get something out of the ottoman to bring on the trip." Never happened! I did have my Nook so the trip was not lost. Just for fun, I wanted to try knitting with twine and two pencils at my parents. I could hear my Mom, "Joseph, give it a rest already!" Gotta hear it with the New Yawk accent ... Classic!


