Dinner @ Dave & Donna's

David and Donna usually have their Polish version of Easter dinner on Easter Sunday but this year there were some scheduling conflicts and they had the dinner party on Saturday evening instead. That was fine for us as we weren't going anywhere. We probably would have been in Philly with Kate and the kids if not for my recent eye surgeries.

It was a wonderful meal as usual with that Polish flair. I had a big plate full of the pork schnitzel, grilled Polish sausages, kraut and potato perogies and a lot of other stuff including some nice veggies including a good green beans dish. Becky made an asparagus and peppers dish. I wish I took a photo of my full plate.

We left with a big container of leftovers too. 

Of course there was the Gaspar Special desert table that was a big hit as always. There were some amazing deserts laid out there including Becky's chocolate chip cookies with M&Ms on the top. Donna had an assortment of her great cookies and there was a nice pile of candies too.

There were a lot of people there. 18 all total. I had lots of nice conversations. I spent a lot of time with Tom and sat next to him at dinner. We talked a lot and I could see and feel his struggles. Diane wasn't there because she was recovering from a medical procedure. Eric brought Tom to the dinner and drove him home afterward. I had a nice talk with Joe and Lori. Joe wants to be included the next time me and Dave walk down to the PM for a couple of beers. I had a talk with Any and her daughter Natalie who is 15 now. We talked about music and Natalie is getting into it just like her mother. I asked her about her favorite new band and she immediately said boygenius and was surprised when I said I had albums by the three members of that supergroup... Phoebe Bridges, Julian Baker and that my favorite was Lucy Dacus. I then asked her what her favorite old band was and she immediately said The Velvet Underground. She was very excited when I said I saw them a couple of times in concert back in the 60's and I had all their albums. Amy was excited too.

I had fun hanging outside with Dave and Joe while Dave was grilling the sausage.

The Lockers

I woke up from a dream about lockers. It didn't make sense. A little later it got me thinking about my experience with lockers throughout my life. We had our own lockers in high school for storing our books and coats. I remember mine vividly from North Catholic and the  Each year you got a new locker. I think my first experience with lockers was at the Germantown Boys Club and the swimming pool there. When you went there to go swimming you first waited in a line to get a locker to put your clothes in while at the pool. I went to that swimming pool regularly for many years.

Perhaps my most intense experience with lockers was in the Navy. In our barracks we always had a locker for your uniforms and personal belongings. Later that's where we kept our civilian clothes too. The lockers onboard our ships were a little different. They were part of the bunk. They were often called coffin lockers or racks. The mattress area lifted up and our locker was under the bunk area. That is unless you had the top bunk and then you had a regular standup locker instead of the bunk locker.

A lot of people use lockers when going to the gym or some club for playing golf. I haven't done anything like that in decades.

Just the other day I used a locker. Now I'm using medical lockers. I was having a scan of my injured shoulder and I was given access to a locker for my stuff along with a key. After the procedure I went back to the locker for my clothes and stuff. I guess we use lockers our entire lives.

Driving Without Glasses

I ran some errands yesterday and it was the first time in my life I drove a car without wearing glasses... oh, I did try out driving with my new big black freebee sunglasses the nurse gave me. It did feel a little weird but I could really see well. Much better than I have the past year or so. My eyes have a ways to go for a full recovery.

Today I had an eye doctor appointment out on Sheridan Drive at 8 am. I was on the road a little before 7:30. It was a quick and easy drive because it was Good Friday and there wasn't much traffic on the roads. I did run into some serious early morning sunrise glare when I was driving toward the sun. These sunglasses were absolutely necessary because of that very intense glare.

It was much better driving home. No glare at all. 

Some Bad Wine

We had Becky's cousin over an evening last week. She stopped by for a couple of hours and brought a bottle of wine. She was excited about bringing a bottle of Barefoot merlot. That brand is a well known bad wine but is cheap.

Becky was drinking some soda water and I had an NA beer. Val had two glasses of wine. I had no desire to have any of that wine. The bottle sat on the counter for a week without either of us touching it. I was tempted a couple of times because I generally like red wine but I opened the cork and the wine smelled bad. 

There was a lot left in the bottle. We should have had Val take it home with her but we just were not thinking about the wine when she was leaving. It was just going to go really bad sitting around the house. I took this photo and then I poured it down the sink. It really did stink and I had to flush the sink with lots of hot water. Then I took the empty bottle outside and put it in the recycle container.

I remember that at our neighborhood weekly Wine on Wednesday get togethers it is always a joke when someone brings a bottle of Barefoot. It doesn't happen very often but people do tend to avoid those bottles. It's some kind of joke that on their bottles they have a slogan... "Most Awarded Wine Brand". LOL.

Coles Tonight

Becky and I decided to go out for dinner tonight. We wanted something simple like good sandwiches. Pub food. We went to one of our old favorites, a regular place for a good meal and a place for some interesting beers. So it was over to Elmwood Avenue after parking at our usual spot on Potomac Ave. Coles. 

Becky had a chicken finger Buffalo tortilla wrap with fries. I had a Clancy Sandwich which is roast beef with melted provolone, peppers and onions on garlic bread with a side of au jus.  Some really delicious fries too. 

I had two beers. A Patty's Irish Ale from Rohrbach Brewery and then a Pseudo Sue Pale Ale from Toppling Goliath Brewery. Becky had an Athletic Brewery NA.

As usual we had a very good server and this young lady was very talkative and seemed to enjoy our company. We certainly enjoyed hers. 

Cole's continues to be one of our favorite restaurants. We think it would be a good idea to take Sara and whoever is with her when they come to Buffalo for the eclipse event.

Trump's Bible

 “When fascism comes to America, it will be wrapped in the flag and carrying a cross.”― James Waterman Wise from The Christian Century 1936

Trump is selling bibles to raise money for his criminal activities. He is such a pathetic lowlife and will stoop to any kind of scam or con. He even had a fund raising ad with his bible where he talks about "making America pray again". It's amazing how many suckers there are in this country.

It's also pretty amazing that this antichrist is doing such a scam on Holy Week. I heard that Trump selling bibles is like Satan baptizing infants.

March Chamber Music Concert

We went to a wonderful chamber music concert tonight with the Takacs Quartet. It may have been the best show of the series so far this year. The final piece Beethoven's String Quartet No. 8 was spectacular. The playing ability of the musicians was amazing.

3 Body Problem - TV Series

I just finished watching the new Netflix science fiction series 3 Body Problem and enjoyed it very much. I read the novel several years ago during the early days of the pandemic. I think I liked the television series much better. After reading that book I had no great urge to read the other two books in the series. Now I will.

March Snow Day

Here it is the 22nd of March and we are getting some unexpected accumulation of snow on a Friday afternoon. The birds are going a little crazy today at the feeder. It's been highly entertaining. Well, we might have gone to an art opening tonight but we really don't have anything planned. It's supposed to snow all night and into tomorrow morning before ending. We do have plans for tomorrow evening. Dinner with Dave & Donna at The Place and then to the Buffalo Philharmonic with four of those good tickets from Barbara.

An Eclipse Get Together

We got a text from our niece Sara about she and her daughter Eliza coming to Buffalo for the eclipse which is coming over directly above the city on the afternoon of Monday April 8th. She asked if they could stay at our house for the event. Of course we said yes. Later we found out she would be coming in on Saturday and leaving on Tuesday morning. So now it was three nights.

Becky and I were not planning on doing anything special for the eclipse event. We knew it was going to be a crazy crowded weekend with people coming to Buffalo from all over the country. It was also not a good thing for me to be looking up at the sun even with the special glasses on because of my eye surgery so we were going to ignore the eclipse for the most part. It was also not a good time to be going out to a restaurant that weekend or down to the waterfront.

But with Sara and Eliza coming in Saturday, Sunday and Monday we thought we may need to entertain them or take them out somewhere. Then she texted again with news that she wanted to bring her brother Chris along with Olivia and Nolan. That was going to be an issue as to where we would put them. Sara talked about sleeping bags on the floor. Becky was a little upset about this and I told Sara in the text that we didn't have the room and were uncomfortable with that many people coming for three days. She said they would look into maybe getting a hotel room.

I did some online searching for hotel rooms available in Buffalo that weekend and came up with a big nothing. Bookins.com actually stated that 98% of hotel rooms in WNY were booked for that weekend. Sara was talking about the girls Eliza and Livvie having a road trip get together and if it was just Sara and the two teenage girls we could make it work but Chris and Nolan complicate things. We really only have one bed for an adult and two children's beds that would not be comfortable for teenagers. 

We talked with Sara on the phone last night and she clarified some of their plans. Apparently Chris heard about her trip to Buffalo and thought it would be fun for him and the kids went along too. He is looking for a hotel room and seems to think he will be able to find one ok. We think that maybe he and Nolan will get a room while Sara, Eliza and Livvie stay at our house. They also talked about stopping in mid PA after touring around on Saturday. They would stay at a motel Sat night and then come into Buffalo on Sunday. 

The weekend of their coming is still two weeks away so we will see how things go. We are looking forward to spending some time with them.

20/20 Vision

Today I had my post op appointment with the surgeon following my second cataract surgery yesterday. Everything went well and my eyes are feeling good. The tech gave me an eye exam and both eyes were 20/20 which she said was extraordinary on the day after surgery. My meeting with the surgeon was good and we talked about the surgery, the recovery and what to expect in the future especially with my need for reading glasses.

The glasses I recently had made for my computer that had a mid-range prescription have now become useless. I can't see anything with them. I got one of Becky's reading glasses and I can use them for working on the computer, up close reading and looking at my cell phone. It's weird now needing reading glasses when I didn't need them prior to my surgery. The doctor said I would eventually need reading glasses and I was lucky to not have needed them up until now. This is all going to take some getting use to. In the meantime it's nice not having to wear my glasses all the time.

Started looking at reading glasses on Amazon. Quite the assortment.

Irish Soda Bread Continues

We're still working on that loaf of Irish soda bread Becky made on St. Patrick's Day and we've been enjoying it at least once a day since. We're a little more than half way through the loaf now. Next time she makes it maybe it should be when we have a house full of guests. That would be nice.

I'm eating some now smeared with butter.

Love That Chicken

Becky made some more of that wonderful chicken from Dash's today along with some nice broccoli and carrots and sweet potatoes. Very tasty. She also made enough chicken so that there would be some significant leftovers to put in a soup later.

It was a nice dinner after a day of early morning surgery and a nap. Then watching some March Madness.

Mary's Art Opening

Today Becky and I went up to SUNY Niagara College for Mary Begley's art opening of her show at the Dolce Valvo Art Center. The title of the show was "From the Forest Floor to the Ether"

She and Becky were in the graduate school MFA program together at UB in the late 1980's. 

We saw lots of people we knew at the show.  I had nice conversations with Pete & Barb, Al, Kate P, Barb B, Gerry M, Mary C, 

Doty came up to me. I really didn't recognize her as it has been about twenty years since I saw her. I first met her in 1979 when I first came to live in Buffalo. She played bass in The Stains.

When we were leaving and getting into the car I saw Cheryl and she was going off in the wrong direction. Her car was parked next to ours and she came back to get some flowers she had for Mary. I said hi but she didn't recognize me at first probably because I had a hat on and wasn't wearing my glasses. I told her where the art opening was but she still went off in the wrong direction with the flowers. I guess she would eventually find Mary and the gallery.

Our drive up there and back wasn't too bad. There was no snow on the way up but coming back it snowed a lot but fortunately it wasn't sticking. It was just messy. Overall we had a wonderful afternoon.

Scallion Pancakes & Rice Dish

Having a rice dish is a good excuse to have some nice scallion pancakes which we love. We like having some in the freezer just in case because they always taste so good with that special sauce on them. This evening Becky made some stir fried rice and veggies with peanuts and of course we had some scallion pancakes on the side. Or was it the rice dish on the side?

More Daffodils

And then the daffodils popped out all over the front garden. Lots of them in the backyard too. They love the cool weather and the sun. We'll see how they do over the next few days of cloudy weather with rain and snow showers. 

So today I went outside and snapped this photo of the daffodils today. Becky will probably go out there tomorrow and cut a few for some vases in the house.

Skillet Irish Soda Bread

For St Patrick's Day today Becky made some Irish Soda bread for the first time. She got a recipe from the NY Times for an Americanized version of a skillet Irish soda bread made with raisons. This American version also had sugar, eggs, butter and buttermilk. Authentic Irish soda bread contain no raisons, butter or, eggs. She baked it in a heavy iron skillet. It was delicious.

We will be eating this for several days.

Another Salmon Dinner

We love eating salmon and our neighborhood food markets have it available. Becky cooks a wonderful meal with salmon. We recently had it last month with creamy rice and veggies but tonight she made some nice potato home fries and a salad. Very delicious.

Post Op 1

Today I had my post op appointment with my surgeon. This time we had to drive down to the Ross Eye Center in Orchard Park because that is where the surgeon was on the day following surgery. Apparently that is his MO. He had quite a few surgeries yesterday and all of the people were in that waiting room with me.

The appointment was for 12:45 and we got down there a little early. Fortunately the route was the same as yesterday but just about 10 miles further down the road. We were checked in and in the waiting room by 12:30. Just a few minutes after that I was called into the nurse station where she took down all my information about how I was after the surgery. She also checked my eyes and gave me an eye exam. After I was done with her I was led to another waiting room where I spent a little more time waiting to see the doctor.

I saw him about 1:15 which wasn't bad considering how busy the medical center and he in particular. The exam was fairly short but he did closely exam my eye. He said everything was fine and we would see me again next week. I had a few questions which he answered for me. He also assured me that I would not need to wear regularly wear glasses anymore but maybe for reading. I would also need to wear that eye protector for a week after the surgery which means I will be wearing that thing in bed for two weeks. 

I'll be taking those drops every day for five weeks. The only real discomfort I've had since the surgery has been a sore finger which is a little bruised. The vein coming from that finger was the one they used for the port in my had for the anesthesia drugs. Who would have thought. 

Last evening Katie did a video call with the kids. First Violet saw me and looked very perturbed that I wasn't wearing my glasses. Then Clara said hi but immediately asked me where were my glasses. Henry looked at me and asked if I was feeling alright.

First Daffodils

The first daffodils of the season came up early this year. For the past couple of weeks there were a few of them in our front garden that looked like they would bloom at any time. This week they did. Well, a several of them. The weather is supposed to get bad again this coming week which will have a negative effect on the daffodils that bloomed. They will droop, lie down on the ground and not be viable in the coming weeks of spring.

So Becky cut a few of them and put them in a vase so that we can enjoy them in the house for awhile. It does look like there will be a lot more blooming in the coming weeks but for now we have some nice flowers in the house.

Eye Surgery Day 1

Today was eye surgery day for my first procedure on my right eye. This was the eye that was the much worse of the two. The difference in my two eyes was stunning. This is also the eye that has pre-glaucoma and the one I've been treating with drops over the past several months. A few days ago the time of my operation was changed from 10:30 am to 6:00 am because of their concern with my malignant hyperthermia susceptibility. They wanted me to be the first surgery that morning. 

We got up about 4:30 am this morning. Becky got a quick breakfast but I wasn't allowed to have anything to eat. We both had our showers last night. We were out of the house and on the road about 5:15. Becky had already done a dry run to the surgery center in West Seneca on Saturday and was ready. This morning was dark of course but now she knew the route. We ended up getting to the center at 5:45 and we had to wait until 6 for it to open. 

We went into the center and checked in. The we sat in a waiting room. I was taken in at 6:30 where I was processed by a nurse. I spent a half hour getting 24 drops in my eye after getting a quick checkup. Then I had a needle and a set up in my left hand for the drugs. I was also given some things for use after the surgery including an eye protector for sleeping at night. A big pair of sunglasses too.

At around 7 am I med with the anesthesiologist and answered lots of questions about my medical history and the malignant hyperthermia in my record. Also the brain aneurysm surgery and family history. Then the surgeon and a resident came in with similar questions and then he focused on the specifics of my upcoming surgery. He used a marker to make a mark over my right eye which took a long time after the surgery to remove.

At about 7:30 I was put on a gurney table and taken into the surgery room. It took several movements of my body to get me into position on the table so that my eye was in the ideal spot for the surgeon's equipment. Then the procedure began. I really didn't feel any pain or discomfort. The procedure was quick and very psychedelic. Lots of colors as he worked. The resident was standing next to him during the surgery and he was explaining everything to the student as he worked on me. I was aware enough to hear everything he said and it was somewhat comforting and distracting. I was paying more attention to what he was saying rather than what he was doing to my eye although he was talking about what he was doing to my eye. The whole thing was done in about a half hour.

I was taken to a recovery room and Becky was called on her phone that I was going to be ready soon. They also explained to her what was done and what was needed to be done as part of my recovery process. I felt pretty good following the procedure. I even asked to go to the bathroom before getting ready to leave because I knew it was a long drive home. They offered me a drink and I had some water along with a little bag of graham crackers. They soon had me in a wheelchair to take me out to the car when Becky pulled out in front. 

I had the plastic eye protector on and my new sunglasses. I looked a little weird. My glasses were in my personal effects bag.

It was a lot easier driving back in the morning daylight at we were home by 9 am. When we got home I had some breakfast... tea and toast. Then I started on my drops routine and then I took a nap for a couple of hours.

When I got up I felt good. We enjoyed the rest of the beautiful day. Follow-up post op appointment tomorrow.

The Eye Drops

Today I started with the eye drops. One day before the surgery. Two of the three medications and I keep track of them with my chart. 

I also have a fourth eye drop that I have been using for the past several months.

I've never been good a putting drops in my eyes but lately I've learned how to do it good. I've had to learn. 

Starting tomorrow I will be having a lot more drops in my eyes over the month.

Time to go to bed soon. It's an early day tomorrow with an appointment at the surgery center at 6 am down in West Seneca. 

The eye drops

• Pred Forte - PrednisolOne Acetate - the steroid.
• Acuvail - Ketorolac Tromethammine - NSAID (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug)
• Vigamox - Moxifloxicin - antibiotic
• Brimonidine Tartrate - glaucoma

Chicken Cutlets & Sweet Potatoes

Having lemon chicken cutlets is a regular dinner but what goes with them changes regularly. For dinner this evening Becky made some delicious fresh sweet potatoes from Wegman's and instead of our regular salad she put together a really nice tomato, cucumber and sweet pepper salad. No lettuce. We also had that wonderful store made bread from the co-op that we love. 

I had to eat good tonight because I will be fasting starting at bedtime. No breakfast tomorrow because of my eye surgery. Nothing to drink in the morning either.

Another Repug Resigns

I heard on the news that another republican congressman is resigning next week. He had already announced that he wasn't running again for congress in the fall but today he said he is not going to finish out his term because his party is dysfunctional and is no longer his republican party. Well, that's nothing new. It's trump's party and that is the state of the GOP. And this guy was already one of the country's most far-right members of congress but apparently he doesn't like the way trump is running his party.

Colorado Rep. Ken Buck fancied himself a traditional republican. His announcement came as a surprise to the republican leaders. His departure makes the repugs much weaker and they were already having trouble getting enough votes to pass anything. Now they have one less. The majority is eroding away.

He decided to walk away from the crazies because they were out to get him because he was often sticking to his traditional conservative principals which ended his career like a few others in his party. Of course that means it's not about the party or tradition but only about current power at whatever cost.

Karl Wallinger RIP - World Party

Karl Wallinger was a wonderfully talented songwriter, musician and bandleader who sadly passed away today at the age of 66. His group World Party was one of my favorite bands 1987 to 2000. He also played keyboards for The Waterboys on two albums in 1984 and 1985 which was another one of my favorite bands.

World Party albums in my collection:

• Private Revolution, 1987
• Goodbye Jumbo, 1990
• Thank You World EP, 1991
• Bang!, 1993
• Egyptology, 1997
• Dumbing Up, 2000
• Best in Show (Compilation), 2007
• Arkeology (5 CD Box Set), 2012
• World Party Live, 2014

Murder in the Latin Quarter - Book

Murder in the Latin Quarter by Cara Black, 2009

I'm always ready to read another Cara Black crime novel set in the neighborhoods of Paris. I think this is the 13th book of hers and the tenth in her Aimee Leduc Investigations series that I've read and like all of her novels I got into it right away. There is always something about her plots, her writing style and her descriptions of Paris just grabs me and holds on. I read this book in about ten days and it took me that long because there were a couple of other books I was reading at the same time. I really love how she describes the streets and the buildings of the many Paris neighborhoods and she also always focuses on the history of these sections of the city and the people who inhabit them. 

Another aspect of this book I found fascinating was it's plot location in the Latin Quarter. I was familiar with this neighborhood from our trip to Paris and it was very interesting to learn more about it. I especially liked the history of the university and the scholars living in the neighborhood going back to the Middle Ages. The author really does have a way with history and place.

The thing that caught my attention in this novel beyond the regular Cara Black storyline was the Haiti plot that included it's history and current politics. This story takes place in the mid 1990's. Haiti is currently in the news right now for terrible gang activity and it breaks my heart. I loved my experiences in Haiti and Port au Prince in particular during my several times there in the early 1970's with the Navy.

After reading this book I wanted to read more about Haiti in fiction. I downloaded the Haiti Noir e-book collection of short stories that all take place in Haiti. There are some other books I put on my to-read list too.

Snowy Day in March

After so many wonderful spring weather days this past week of temperatures in the 70's... today it snowed. Well, at least it didn't accumulate. We mostly saw some snow land on the ground and on cars but not on the streets or sidewalks where it just didn't stick. There were a couple of brief moments when the snow came down hard and fast in the backyard but just didn't last very long. Most of the day it was a gentle snow shower.

There was no shoveling and only a little swipe of the snow off a car's windshield. We had a lot of bird activity 

Yesterday was very nice. It was sunny and pleasant. We were sitting in the backyard sunroom and it got up to 82 degrees there.

Tomorrow it is going to be nice too. But right now it is still snowing after 9 pm and expected to snow further into the night.

Burgers Again

Burgers again and there is certainly nothing wrong with that. Especially when there are also home fries again. So tonight for dinner Becky grilled up some burgers along with another platter of her very special home fried potatoes. We had a salad and she made some wonderful fresh guacamole and chips too. And of course I needed some pickles too.

When I was setting the table we certainly had a lot of condiments for this meal. Hot sauces, pickles, BBQ sauce, salad dressings, It seemed like we were filling up the table with stuff.

Eggs & Home Fries

Becky made some eggs and home fries today using some of the egg's from our neighbor's hens. Those scrambled eggs were delicious and a very bright fresh orange color. Becky made her usual very good home fried potatoes along with the eggs. It was a very nice dinner and we are looking forward to having a few more of those delicious eggs from down the street.

More Prepping for Eye Surgery

Today I got a couple of phone calls from medical staff concerning my upcoming eye surgery next week. Yesterday I also got a packet of information about the surgery. And then I got my text notice from Walgreen's telling me my eye drop medications for the surgery were ready to pick up. Getting busy prepping for my cataract surgery. Both eyes but a week apart. Right eye on Wednesday April 13 and the left eye on Wednesday April 20. They were both scheduled for 10:30 am at the surgery center in West Seneca. 

The photo here is a chart for eye drop medications that was included in the packet of info I received in the mail yesterday. The first phone call today was from the surgery coordinator who asked a series of medical questions all of which I answered previously in the lead up to these surgeries. 

Last week I was contacted about post-operative follow-up appointment with the surgeon the day after the surgeries. So I have those doctor visits scheduled for 12:30 on the Thursday following each surgery at the Ross Eye Southtowns office in Orchard Park. Another long drive. I tried to get them to move the appointments to their Northtown office but down there is where the surgeon will be on those days.

The second phone call today happened while Becky and I were on our afternoon walk and the surgery coordinator was changing the surgery time on both days from 10:30 to 6:00 am. The reason was their concern for my Malignant Hyperthermia susceptibility from some anesthesia chemicals that are commonly used in surgeries. They knew about the MH in my medical history but they decided to be extra cautious and have me be the first patient of the day for surgery to make sure there is no possibility of chemical contamination in their system. So now we need to get up very early and get on the road around 5:15 am to make sure we get there on time at 6. 

Today Becky made a dry run down to the surgery center after her time at the studio. She wanted to make sure she was familiar with the route because on the mornings of the surgeries it will still be dark. She felt good about the trip and is ready for next week.

Dried Plants that Lasted

A couple of days before Christmas Todd went out with the kids and came back with a couple of beautiful dried flower bouquets for Becky. They looked great in vases on the dining room table and side table. They lasted a very long time and looked good that entire time. 

Eventually now after two and a half months in our dining room Becky decided they were starting to wither and it was time to put them in the backyard to compost in the wayback. It was a nice day and she walked back there and put the greens in the flower bed where they will be part of the coming year's garden. 

I took this picture of the plants and sent a copy to Todd with a thank you that they lasted so long. 

The Caz

Where you had to go up to get down. 

Becky and I were talking about old restaurants we had gone to over the years and this one came up. The Caz as everyone used to call it.

When we moved to Buffalo in 1979 one of the first restaurants we went to in our new neighborhood was the Casa di Pizza over on Elmwood Avenue and Hodge Street. We went there mostly for the chicken wings and it had a good bar.

There was also a night club upstairs in the banquet room where they had a DJ playing disco and new wave music on weekends.

We went to this restaurant a lot in the 80's and 90's. I remember taking Betsy, Joe, Chris and Sara there one time when they were visiting us in Buffalo. We went for the chicken wings. Over the years we stopped going there as their pizza quality declined and Mr. Pizza and Just Pizza got more of our business. 

The Casa di Pizza on Elmwood Avenue was one of the longest standing independent pizza restaurants in Western New York operating since 1953. Over the years it expanded with multiple dining rooms, a full service bar and banquet hall. During the 1980's the upstairs banquet hall had for a time became the Elmwood Village Disco with the theme motto... "the only place you go up to get down". 

They eventually closed the Elmwood Avenue restaurant in 2015 and opened a new one downtown on Mohawk Street called JJ's Casa di Pizza. 

The Place for Dinner

It's been a while since we've had dinner at The Place. Earlier today we decided to go out for dinner tonight and it was just a matter of where to go. We thought about going to Cucina over at the Richardson Complex but we wanted something a little lighter than an Italian dinner. We headed over to Lexington Ave and The Place.

It was crowded over there on an early Thursday evening with three good restaurants right on that corner but we found a parking spot nearby. The restaurant and bar was crowded for 5:45 pm and we got a table for two in the dinning room. 

We started off with a couple of beers. I had a Sullivan's Irish Red Ale on tap and Becky had an Allagash White draft. I ordered a Beef on Weck with the roasted sliced potatoes, peppers and onions. Becky had the Chicken Milanese. The food was wonderful and the service was great. 

The place filled up but was not too loud or overly crowded. It was a happening place. I had a second beer... a 42 North Craftsman Lager.  I had some significant leftovers with that large meat and potatoes dinner. 

Unpleasant Sensations

Unpleasant sensations is a good way to describe what has been happening to my left leg these past months. It is a combination of various kinds of pain and assorted different feelings like numbness, itching and burning sensations. All of them unpleasant. 

I've been to the doctor a few times over the past couple of years to have my hip checked out. This included a visit with a spine doctor from UB Neurology. Initially they thought it was arthritis flaring up in my hip but some scans have shown that I have a bulging disc in my spine that is causing discomfort and these unpleasant sensations because of nerve pressure on my left leg.

Maybe this is something I will be living with for the rest of my life. This problem is certainly not as bad as what a lot of other folks my age and even younger are going through all the time. It's just that I'm not used to it but I will probably need to get used to it.

Another Spring Day in March

Today was another very nice spring day in early March. It was 71 degrees again too. Since it was two nice days in a row there weren't as many people out and about seemingly taking the day off from work like yesterday.

I spent some time in the morning sitting on the front porch reading. Then I did some work in the backyard. Becky went to the studio in the morning and then after lunch we went for a walk in Delaware Park. It was busy but not as much as yesterday. When Becky was up taking her nap in the afternoon I was sitting in the backyard reading where there were lots of birds singing and squirrels running around.

It was too warm again in the sunroom and the temperature there was up to 88 degrees. I was almost ready to open up the windows and put in some screens but it is too early yet. There will be some cold days coming.

By evening it had clouded over and there was the beginnings of some rain. The temperature was starting to go down too. My phone was giving me a weather report that tomorrow it would be 27 degrees colder. 

It looks like it's back to a regular March week coming up.

Eggs from the Neighbor's Hens

Today our neighbor Dan came by the house while I was sitting on the porch reading. He gave me a container of eggs from the hen's in his backyard. They got a few chickens last summer to raise for their eggs. They also have a rabbit in the yard. Their little boy Andrew took Becky by the hand last summer and brought her into the backyard to see the chickens. I came along too and Dan gave us a tour of the hen house and rabbit hutch.

So over the past year we could sometimes hear the chickens from our yard and we can also see them pecking around in their backyard. 

We are very happy to have some of the eggs and we're looking forward to trying them out for some meals. It's amazing to see the different colors of the eggs. The hens are different colors too.

March 4th - A Spring Day

Today was an amazing spring day. I think everyone in Buffalo was happy. The temperature went up to 71 degrees. When Becky was over at the studio this morning I was out in the backyard doing some cleanup. 

I had a doctor appointment in the early afternoon out in Amherst. I drove out Main Street though Williamsville with my car windows open. I saw many people walking around in shorts and short sleeve shirts. I even saw a couple of convertibles. The folks at the doctor's office were talking about wishing they were outside enjoying the great weather.

While I was out at the doctors Becky went for a walk in Delaware Park and said it was crazy there with all the people walking along the ring road. When I got home I set up the chairs both on the front porch and in the backyard. We sat in both and enjoyed the fantastic weather. I sat and read both in the front and the back.

It was amazing to see all of the spring flowers that were getting very anxious to bloom. The backyard was full of the sounds of birds. There were some flies too. It was actually too warm to sit in the enclosed sunroom and too early in the season to open the windows. It was about 86 degrees in there today which is why I got out those backyard chairs.

Another Shoulder Visit

I had another appointment today with Dr. Daye's Orthopedic Surgery Office. I had a CT scan two weeks earlier and this was my scan evaluation session with Dr. Daye. I thought I was seeing a PA like last time but when she came in the room to see me I was a little nervous as her specialty is as a surgeon.

She examined me and we talked about my healing process, physical therapy and medications. She said this more detailed scan, the last time was an X-ray, showed more of the damage to my shoulder. Apparently there was some cartilage broken apart and shifted about in my should which was causing pain and discomfort. Over time it would probably settle down in place and not cause me more problems but the possibility of further problems is there. She said surgery would fix the problem by removing the torn cartilage but I was not there yet. She recommended that we wait for another couple of months and let the shoulder healing process happen. We made an appointment in mid-May to look again at my shoulder.

In the meantime I would continue to do the PT exercises and take pain killers as needed although we ended the anti-inflammatory meds. 

Parable of the Sower - Book

Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler, 1993

I've read several novels by Octavia Butler but finally got to this one which has been on my to read list for a couple of decades. 

The novel was written in 1993 and the story takes place in 2026. It felt like a dystopian America after Trump winning a 2024 election where the president in the book was claiming to "make America great again". Very scary place where only the rich and powerful were safe. It was also a novel about people turning toward religion to overcome the violent disintegration of America from economic, environmental and political devastation. A very terrifying vision of America today. 

There is a second volume in this Earthseed series which I couldn't get myself to read right away. I will but I needed a breather. Maybe next month I will tackle it or maybe I should wait until after the election.

Chicken Lemon Cutlets

Becky cooked up some delicious chicken lemon cutlets for dinner tonight along with her wonderful home fries potatoes and onions. A nice salad too. I like that she always makes enough of those potatoes for some serious leftovers. We have enough of that chicken leftover for a nice sandwich tomorrow.

PM w/ Dave

Last night Dave and I walked down to the Parkside Meadow to have a couple of beers and talk. We met down at the corner and walked together up to the bar on Parkside Avenue. I thought it might be crowded and we got there at 6:30 pm on this nice Friday night. It's Lent too and this place is always busy on fish fry night but last night it was mobbed. Every table was full and so was the bar where we were looking to sit down.

The owner Nancy saw us come in and she immediately came over to me and I told her we were just stopping by for a couple of beers and not there for dinner. She got us a couple of seats at the bar by asking some other people to move their stools around a bit. So we ended up with the last two seats in the place.

We had a very nice time sitting there talking about all kinds of things. We hadn't had the opportunity for just the two of us to sit and talk at any length of time. We really enjoyed ourselves there and didn't leave until a little before 9 pm. By that time the place had cleared out significantly in the dining room although the bar was still crowded.

Dave and I started out with a pint of Narragansett Lager which is a very drinkable lager. I stuck with it all evening while Dave tried a couple of other brews. Overall the PM doesn't have a good selection of beers that change or rotate. Actually I don't think the lineup of draft beers has changed in at least three years and probably longer. Same with the bottled beers. 

We enjoyed our time there and did run into some folks I knew. One guy in particular who served with on the PCA board was happy to see Dave. I had connected them together when Mike needed some help fixing a computer problem.

Becky and I don't go there very much because we really don't like eating there. The only thing I will order is the fish fry. Everything else I think is not near as good as so many other restaurants we have in town but they somehow do get their crowds on Friday nights.