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out of town
February 25, 2015, 7:33 P.M.
Vacay was nice. Dad's mind was blown by my surprise arrival in Phoenix, and in short order, MY mind was blown, because I got "kidnapped" by Dad and Auntie and carted off to San Diego for five days at Auntie G's! Who lives in the hills above the city in what my mom used to call the "Million Dollar Mansion on the Mountain"!
Auntie G is totally amazing--the perfect hostess, and a magnificent cook. We were there for 5 days and she baked three cakes. On top of making fantastic breakfasts and dinners every day, and hauling us around to see the sights in between.
So here’s the low-down.
Woke up early on Saturday the 14th, to cold, high winds, and lake-effect snow. Went out to breakfast at the Melrose in Franklin, then Spouse took me to MKE. Airport was easy, flight was full, but good, and I got into Phoenix around noon local time, and Dr. Cousin and her son picked me up at the airport. The weather was stunning--bright, sunny, and about 82 degrees.
After we'd sprung the big surprise on Dad, we sat around and visited, went out to dinner at The Phoenix Grille (pan-seared scallops, grilled tenderloin, creamy mashed potatoes, and crisp haricots verts--followed by bread pudding with a Jack Daniels-lime-caramel sauce), then went back to the house to exchange valentines--which was a surprise to me, so I didn't have anything for anybody. Cousin gave me a Lush gift box, with lots of wonderful creams and soaps and balms in it. Auntie gave me a pound of See's Chocolates, since that is a huge favorite. I felt bad that I couldn't return the favors, but they assured me that just having me there was their valentine. And this bunch always MEANS it when they say that stuff. How can that not be my happy place, when it is so full of people that love me and spoil me?!
Since Auntie's house was full to overflowing, Cousin and I went to a hotel for the night. We were going to have a bit of a slumber party, but we were just too tired, and went to bed. Got up in the morning, went back to the house, and had some coffee and a piece of chocolate, then Dad, Auntie and I hit the road, stopping in Buckeye to have breakfast & stock up on hard candy at the Cracker Barrel. It's about a six or seven hour drive to Auntie G's, so we got there about 4:30 and had a nice visit on the patio, enjoying the view and being treated to the sight of about 8 hot air balloons going up while G made dinner: charcoal-grilled swordfish steaks and a sweet & sour potato salad that was simply the bomb. Dessert was scratch-made coconut cake with cooked frosting. Damn, G can cook--and bake!
After the long drive, and that wonderful dinner, we decided that we wanted to go to Coronado on Monday, and then we crashed early.
Monday morning was gorgeous--like a perfect Easter Sunday. Balmy, sweet air, sunshine, fragrant tulips blooming in the front yard. The kind of day I want to press in my memory book. I found myself taking big gulps of breath, trying to suck all that tasty fresh air in at once. Breakfast was exquisite, of course--Auntie G buys good coffee, grinds her own beans, and brews pour-over coffee to perfection. She also sets her table like my mom always did--the perfect table linens, dishes, and silverware for every meal. So we were greeted with heart-shaped bowls of mixed fruit--every bit of which was hand-selected and perfect. Strawberries, grapes, orange pieces--even the pears were perfect. Sumptuous! I'd have been fine with that alone, but she also had fantastic, perfectly crisp bacon, eggs, and Challah toast with butter!
After breakfast, we set out for Coronado Island, and proceeded to enjoy the heck out of just walking around the grand old Hotel Del Coronado, poking around the shops, and walking the grounds. We had a bit of lunch on the sun deck, shopped a little more, and I got a lovely souvenir--a picture frame with a motto on it that will look great in my bathroom. It says "May you always have a shell in your pocket and sand in your shoes" and will hang in my beachy bathroom, holding a picture of Dad and the Aunties with the hotel in the background. I got some great pictures of Dad, and put them on Facebook so all his friends could see him and know that he's doing well. That tickled him--he was on there every five minutes, checking how many "likes" he had. Adorable!
By the time we drove back up into the mountains, it was late afternoon, and we had some quiet time at the house. G made a simple but delicious dinner of spicy Italian sausage soup and homemade bread, and we had more coconut cake. I sorted and edited photos while they watched TV, and went to bed about 8:30 (hey! 2 hour time difference, y'know!).
We ate light on Tuesday morning--G had a good lunch place picked out, so we didn't want to fill up. Just coffee, juice and toast (from homemade bread, of course). The Aunties had a very special day in store for me. We went to Escondido for lunch at the Stone Brewing Company, and had a lovely time on their patio, enjoying the lovely weather and great food. They are a farm-to-table place, and the ingredients are all absolutely top notch. I mean--we had Brussels sprouts for an appetizer--and I enjoyed them! I actually LOVED them! ME! The sprout hater of all time!
For lunch, I had their yakisoba, and O.M.G. Jidori chicken, soba noodles, carrots, mushrooms, green onions, cabbage, cashews, sesame seeds, and pickled ginger, prepared in a way that I can't put my finger on but clearly involves some kind of sorcery. Sheer foodie brilliance. And only eighteen bucks, to boot! I am not much of a beer person, but they brew their own all-natural sodas as well, so I had their root beer--very hearty and bold. Delicious. Dad had some kind of bbq chicken & pork sandwich with their Arrogant Bastard Ale, and he loved it. Auntie G had the almond-crusted tilapia, and Auntie E just ordered a bowl of their cheddar-beer soup--a move she regretted, because it was a very bitter concoction. Not bad, just stronger than she was ready for. Since my lunch was enormous and very satisfying, I shared my yakisoba with her and she adored it as much as I did.
For our expedition after lunch, Auntie G had gone to some lengths to arrange a very special treat for me--a guided tour of the Gemological Institute of America. HO-LEE-SHIIT! It was the experience of a lifetime! What an absolute thrill for me--and for Dad, because he loves gems and jewelry as much as I do. We simply drank that in, and enjoyed the hell out of it all. Just the right sort of thing for a quartet of learning junkies who are all into jewelry and interesting gemstones. Happy happy happy place. And it doesn't hurt that the GIA campus is right down by the ocean, with a stunning view of the water.
Dinner that night was roast pork and green chili burritos--mildly spicy and mouth-wateringly delicious. And a molasses snack cake with whiskey-pecan frosting! Dang, that was yummy.
I think G was happy to have the opportunity to cook and bake for people, as she lives alone, and as she put it--"at my age, most of my friends are diabetic".
Wednesday, we took on Balboa Park, and that was really spectacular. You could spend a week sightseeing in SD, and never get out of there! I basically walked around making a list of things I want to go back and get a good look at: the Air & Space Museum, the International Village, the Automotive Museum, the Model Railroad Museum, all of the art museums (there are like seven of them!) The only "attractions" we took in (outside of the park in and of itself) were the Japanese Friendship Garden and the Botanical Building, both of which were gorgeous and enjoyable. But we walked all the way around and through the park, taking it all in. And that park is 1200 ACRES--circling that was no small accomplishment for our group, encompassing as it did the old, infirm, and fat!
We had lunch at the Prado, on the park grounds, and it was my third consecutive blue-ribbon outdoor lunch. I kept it light, with a fabulous spinach salad. Another culinary first for me--I discovered I like Maytag Blue cheese. I've a hunch I still dislike lesser bleu cheeses, though. We shared flatbreads with hummus and pitcher of marvelous sangria, as well. I was really surprised that the Aunties, being devout Catholics, skipped Ash Wednesday services. I even tried to push them to go, but they declined. Wouldn't have bothered me and Dad if they had.
Dinner that night was a lovely tuna salad on Jewish rye--G had whipped it up before we left in the morning, so it had all day to meld and chill to perfection.
We took it a little easier on Thursday--I was feeling kind of seedy, and I think we were all kind of tired. Auntie E was suffering from either allergies or a mild cold, as well. So we hung out at home in the morning. Auntie G made her third cake, a recipe of her mother's that they fondly remembered from childhood.
And in the afternoon, we took a little car tour of UCSD, La Jolla, and the coastline up to Carlsbad. I avoided food because of my wonky tummy, so by evening I was feeling pretty droopy. I was really looking forward to dinner--only to be faced with another gustatory hurdle. G had made hot wings for dinner. Something I am usually denied, due to my cayenne allergy. But these I got to enjoy! Auntie G made hers with a mild and tangy chili sauce that was just nicely warm, and they were perfect. We had chips and salsa and a pinto bean salad, followed by the cake. It was a malted milk cake with cooked pecan icing, and so moist it practically melted in your mouth. G and I decided it was sort of related to a German Chocolate cake in texture and icing. Lovely!
Since we planned to get on the road back to Phoenix at about 8 am Friday, Dad and I sorted out our packing, and Auntie took a hot shower and early bed to fight her cold.
Friday, G fed us a going away breakfast of lighter-than-air pancakes with boysenberry syrup, her brilliant coffee, and more of that great bacon. Then we loaded up the Honda and got ready to head east. G and E got into a discussion of what route to take, and we ended up doing a different way than we came. Unfortunately, because Dad and Auntie went by the stupid iPad sat-nav instead of the directions G printed out, we ended up on the 10, which is a horrid way to go. Ugly, boring, and full of trucks. I did get a glimpse of some places I hadn't seen in many years, though. We went by Palm Springs, and I got to see the intersection of The Sonny Bono Memorial Highway and Bob Hope Drive, LOL.
When we got back to Phoenix in the late afternoon, Auntie drove us over to the lake where her grandson's rowing team practices, but they were not training on the water that day. Kind of a bummer missing that. Cousin had made a lovely dinner of pot roast with mushroom gravy, mashed potatoes, and asparagus, followed by the rest of the malted milk cake, which G had carefully packed for us. After that we all visited for a while, and then Cousin and I took off to a hotel and had our slumber party. Actually, I went for a February outdoor swim while she had a soak in the tub--both things that are rare for us. The hotel pool (Marriott Residence) was just the right temperature, and it was a saline pool, so it was awesome. The hot tub rocked, as well.
We talked for quite a while before we conked out, and resumed conversation in the morning. We have a great relationship that has always allowed real heart-to-heart talks with no awkwardness, despite rarely spending time together. I finally got the low-down on the marriage thing, and she says they are incompatible, he's a bad parent, and he's selfish. I can see the stuff that he does that makes her feel that way, but I still tend to have sympathy for her husband, because I figure if you look someone in the eye and tell them they come third in your life, after your dad and your son--you can't be too surprised when they are unwilling to put YOU first. Plus, I think he is an okay dad, but his parenting style is very different from hers. And he has never had any confidence in his ability to be a parent--which is something she chose to make worse, instead of better. So I love my cousin, but in my book, she comes in for a share of responsibility in the failure of her marriage. LST--they are separated, cooperating, civil, and will remain so until their son is grown or one of them meets someone.
She has also convinced herself that living with her mom is for Auntie's benefit, so she can stay in her home. Yeah, okay.
After we were up and dressed, we checked out, then hit the DD drive-thru for coffee and headed to the house to pick up dad and The Kid for a jaunt downtown to the farmer's market. That was a cultural blast--hippies and hipsters, immigrants and indigents, folk and funk and food and fun. I got some lovely high-quality teas, artisanal, allergen-free dog treats, killer good peppermint oil, and a soft pretzel. The rest of them had breakfast burritos the size of a football. It was really quite a fun experience, and I can totally see why my cousin calls it her happy place.
I had a few errands to run before I left town, so after Dad dropped a pair of pants off at the alterations lady, we drove over to See's so I could get some Toffee-Ettes for Spouse and some strawberry truffles for Auntie. She'd selected a couple of those for my valentine assortment, and they were so sublime I thought she needed some of her own. I was glad to see they had some left and was able to get her a quarter-pound (6) of them.
After that, we stopped at the Biltmore Shops and got a bottle of Cave Creek Bacon Olive Oil for Spouse, and poked about some of the shops, stopping for some amazing cold-brewed iced coffees for Cousin and me, a hot pour-over for Dad, and an iced chai for The Kid.
Back home to hang out for a while, then a late lunch--my favorite dish (lemon chicken) at my favorite Chinese restaurant. Then it was goodbye time--that week seemed to go past in the blink of an eye! Lots of hugs, then Cousin and The Kid dropped me at the airport.
Whizzed through check-in and security, only to find myself with a long wait at the very crowded gate. Vacation was definitely coming to an end. My flight was a half-hour late taking off, overbooked, and full of obnoxious Wisconsonians. I got an aisle seat in the last row, and the guy who took the middle was the last one on board--I think they pulled him out of the bar. He proceeded to settle his elbow into my fat roll for use as an armrest and passed out. And since I had to lean into the aisle, I was a human turnstile for the endless stream of bathroom users.
At least they put the hammer down and made up the lost time in flight. Once I was out of that flying tube of hell, I hiked up the ramp and met Spouse, and we booked for home, amid cold, high winds, and lake-effect snow. Got there about 11:30, had some cereal, went to bed.
It was a great time. Wonderful to spend high-quality time with some of the most important (to me) people in the world. They are all so much fun to be with. Smart, funny, interesting, kind, generous, and loving. I was ambivalent about going to visit family, because I felt like I needed a vacation that was just about me. But I forgot that these are the people in my life that MAKE me the center of things. The change of weather, the change of scenery, and the time together with people I adore, who adore me—I couldn’t have asked for a better vacation.
Reading: The Bolted Door (1911), by George Gibbs. A spoiled society girl and a manly young inventor and engineer get forced into marriage by the conditions of their mutual uncle’s will. She needs the money because she’s not fit for anything but being a rich girl, and he needs it for his inventions, so they cave to his terms and tie the knot.
Listening: Shawn Colvin, Counting Crows, Smashing Pumpkins, The Alarm
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