It was a pretty uneventful weekend for me especially after the high and excitement of last weekend. The young adults group did go out for dinner on Thursday to a restaurant that I’ve not been to in a number of years called Phat Chefs. I remembered that it was a very good restaurant and for the price, it was definitely reasonable. All in all there were five of us at dinner. When I spend the evening with the kids around New Year’s time, Joel, Kathy and her sister and brother in law went to Phat Chefs for dinner and Joel was raving about the duck. So, the first thing I did when I entered the restaurant was to greet the chef/owner and introduced myself and mentioned Joel’s name. He’s familiar with Joel because the Iowa Pain Institute meets roughly once a month at the restaurant. I informed him that unless the special for the night really strikes my interest, I’ll be getting the duck. Dean (the chef/owner) informed me that they did not have any special for the evening which pretty much meant that it was duck for me. We ordered a number of appetizers which were good and I had one of the best French Onion soups in my life. It was one of the thickest and heartiest soups I’ve had. When I saw the duck, I knew it was going to be delectable. It was cooked to perfection and it was oh so very moist and yummy. I enjoyed every single bite of it to my stomach’s content. Dessert was right up there too. All in all it was a very wonderful dining experience. Everyone in the group thought so too.
On Saturday, Joel and I went to a jazz concert by Joe Lovano and his nonet. In the jazz world, Joe’s name is right up there with the very best. It’s easier to list the people he’s not worked/collaborated with than to do the opposite because there are just so many people. The concert was out of this world amazing. I told Joel that into the third song did it all of sudden really hit me that these guys are a nonet and the way they played off one another was spectacular. Each individual are accomplished musicians in their own right, but to hear them play together was awesome. Experiences like that do not come often and they were given a well deserved standing ovation. I’m so glad I got to experience it. There are not many jazz nonet groups around and when they can play off one another that well, all you need to do is just sit back and enjoy the experience and my, what an experience it was.
Sunday was a very good day at work. It was quiet in so many ways and the residents for the most part all were respectful of one another. That makes for a very easy work day. Days like these really make start my week out right and that’s just the way I like it.
Monday, January 28, 2008
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Overnight.
All the years I’ve lived in this world, I’ve never worked an overnight shift and the opportunity presented itself to me on Friday. You see, I went into work my regular time and was informed that the overnight staff at the other house could not come in because she had a sick child. Normally, the temp agency would be called and most of the time they would be able to find someone to work. However, all their staff had already been scheduled. Therefore, no one was able to work the overnight shift which pretty much meant that the team leader needed to come in. I really did not have any intention of working the overnight shift, but I ended up calling the team leader letting her know that I’ll work the overnight shift with the condition that I would need be coming in the next morning to work my regular Saturday morning shift. She was more than happy with that arrangement because she informed me that they would not have any problem getting someone to take my Saturday morning shift.
So, fifteen minutes before I got off at the regular house, I got myself some coffee because I knew that would be my salvation to keep me awake and it very much did the trick for me. When I went over to the other house, the guys were more than surprised to see me because they know I do not work the overnight shift. In many ways, there’s not a whole lot to do when you work the overnight shift. Most of the guys stay in their rooms although some of them have to go out to smoke. This was by far the coldest day during this winter season and it meant that the regular smokers pretty much stayed in their room. There are a couple of chores that needed to be checked off while working the overnight but all of it could easily be done in an hour and a half. I looked at the menu and saw that bacon and eggs was to be served and the guys normally do not have it because most staff do not want the hassle of cooking it. They much rather put out cereals for the residents. I started cooking the bacon at 5AM and trust me, there’s nothing like the smell of bacon to wake one up! During the night, I got to read a little and watched the Australia Open match which was pretty exciting to say the least. I know a couple of overnight staff do nap a little while but I not really tired and had no problem staying awake. It’s the coffee, I tell you!
The morning staff arrived at 6AM and got the medications ready for the resident and she too was kind of surprised to smell bacon cooking at that time. All in all it was a neat experience working the overnight shift. Would I do it again? Probably not, but you just never know. I left the residence at 7AM and went to bed at roughly 7:45AM. I initially got up at 9:30AM and knew that it was too little sleep so I forced myself to go to bed and I finally got up at 12:30PM. Surprisingly, I was not tired at all, but it did throw my schedule off a little. The weather was really cold and I did not leave my apartment the entire day. I pretty much watched dvds all day which was nice.
After Mass on Sunday, I headed over to Joel and Kathy for brunch before the Royal Philharmonic concert up in Ames. Joel prepared an amazing veal dish with marsala wine. It was scrumptious to say the least. Overall, it was just a good meal and a fun brunch spent with great friends. We made it up to Ames with more than ample time to spare and I was so happy to see that the auditorium was almost fully packed. What can I saw about the concert? It was mind blowing. This was the third time in three years I’ve heard the Bruch piece played and I have to say that the orchestra and Zukerman by far did the best job. The entire concert was flawless beyond belief and I still cannot belief that I heard the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra – Live! What an experience to be treasured for the rest of my life. The best part about it is the fact that I paid $20 for the tickets because I’m a student! I know, it’s daylight robbery but oh well. I was supposed to have dinner with Kristi after I got back from the concert, but she was feeling under the weather so she cancelled on me, but I still ended up going to the restaurant since I had already made reservations.
Yesterday was a day off from work because it’s Martin Luther King Day. I really did not do anything productive at all. The day was spent in my apartment watching some tv and dvd. Oh, I did get to the watch the Liverpool game which was a pretty exciting game especially in the second half. Liverpool should have won if they had converted their chances. I guess that’s pretty much how their season will go this year. Later that day, John and I went to the theater and watched the movie, “Juno” which was a very good movie. The actress was amazing and I won’t be surprised if she wins a couple of awards over the course of the year. Her performance definitely stole the show.
Well, after all the festivities over the week and weekend, life pretty much goes back to normal again and that’s something to look forward to.
So, fifteen minutes before I got off at the regular house, I got myself some coffee because I knew that would be my salvation to keep me awake and it very much did the trick for me. When I went over to the other house, the guys were more than surprised to see me because they know I do not work the overnight shift. In many ways, there’s not a whole lot to do when you work the overnight shift. Most of the guys stay in their rooms although some of them have to go out to smoke. This was by far the coldest day during this winter season and it meant that the regular smokers pretty much stayed in their room. There are a couple of chores that needed to be checked off while working the overnight but all of it could easily be done in an hour and a half. I looked at the menu and saw that bacon and eggs was to be served and the guys normally do not have it because most staff do not want the hassle of cooking it. They much rather put out cereals for the residents. I started cooking the bacon at 5AM and trust me, there’s nothing like the smell of bacon to wake one up! During the night, I got to read a little and watched the Australia Open match which was pretty exciting to say the least. I know a couple of overnight staff do nap a little while but I not really tired and had no problem staying awake. It’s the coffee, I tell you!
The morning staff arrived at 6AM and got the medications ready for the resident and she too was kind of surprised to smell bacon cooking at that time. All in all it was a neat experience working the overnight shift. Would I do it again? Probably not, but you just never know. I left the residence at 7AM and went to bed at roughly 7:45AM. I initially got up at 9:30AM and knew that it was too little sleep so I forced myself to go to bed and I finally got up at 12:30PM. Surprisingly, I was not tired at all, but it did throw my schedule off a little. The weather was really cold and I did not leave my apartment the entire day. I pretty much watched dvds all day which was nice.
After Mass on Sunday, I headed over to Joel and Kathy for brunch before the Royal Philharmonic concert up in Ames. Joel prepared an amazing veal dish with marsala wine. It was scrumptious to say the least. Overall, it was just a good meal and a fun brunch spent with great friends. We made it up to Ames with more than ample time to spare and I was so happy to see that the auditorium was almost fully packed. What can I saw about the concert? It was mind blowing. This was the third time in three years I’ve heard the Bruch piece played and I have to say that the orchestra and Zukerman by far did the best job. The entire concert was flawless beyond belief and I still cannot belief that I heard the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra – Live! What an experience to be treasured for the rest of my life. The best part about it is the fact that I paid $20 for the tickets because I’m a student! I know, it’s daylight robbery but oh well. I was supposed to have dinner with Kristi after I got back from the concert, but she was feeling under the weather so she cancelled on me, but I still ended up going to the restaurant since I had already made reservations.
Yesterday was a day off from work because it’s Martin Luther King Day. I really did not do anything productive at all. The day was spent in my apartment watching some tv and dvd. Oh, I did get to the watch the Liverpool game which was a pretty exciting game especially in the second half. Liverpool should have won if they had converted their chances. I guess that’s pretty much how their season will go this year. Later that day, John and I went to the theater and watched the movie, “Juno” which was a very good movie. The actress was amazing and I won’t be surprised if she wins a couple of awards over the course of the year. Her performance definitely stole the show.
Well, after all the festivities over the week and weekend, life pretty much goes back to normal again and that’s something to look forward to.
Monday, January 21, 2008
The week that was.
I can’t believe I had forgotten to send my weekly e mail. Well, you guys probably did not miss the e mail especially with Anne’s death. I figured since I have some time now, I might as well send the e mail.
So, what fun and exciting stuff happened over the past week/weekend? Not a whole lot really. I did not go into work on Friday because after I arrived at the office on Friday morning, I started getting the chills and my body was downright freezing. So, I left after two hours and went to the other worksite to fill out my timesheet and to let them know that I won’t be coming into work that evening. Once I arrived back in my apartment, I covered myself under the sheets and ended up sleeping for close to 4 hours which is unlike me since I’m not a person who naps. I knew something was not quite right. Later that evening, I called the house and told them that I would not be coming in the next morning to work.
I actually felt pretty good on Saturday morning although I did have some chills. Later that evening, I went over to Ann’s house for dinner. It was a great evening filled with a great meal and amazing conversation. I’ve not seen Ann since she and Harley got back from their Christmas vacation in Arizona. They had a blast there. Ann had me working on her computer because her other daughter gave them a computer for Thanksgiving and there were certain things she needed downloaded. Personally, I do not like the new Windows Vista system and trust me, it’s not user friendly at all. I’m so glad that we’re still using XP and I hope we continue using the XP operating system. I’ve not heard anything about the agency upgrading computers so that’s a good thing.
On Sunday, the Newman Guys sang and boy, did we sound good. Some days we sing better than others and this day was definitely one of those days. I only got the news about Anne’s death after I turned my cell phone once Mass was done. I do not turn my cell phone on Sunday mornings before Mass because I’m utterly afraid that if I do, it’ll ring during Mass and that’s never a good thing. Work on Sunday was fine. I got word that a resident was admitted on Wednesday and discharged on Friday. Supposedly the Mobile Crisis Unit was called and they informed the house that they would not come, and the cops would have to deal with the situation because Mobile Crisis Unit was very familiar with this particular resident. Should the resident even have spent a night at the residence in my opinion? No. It would have been put the other residents and staff in a very tough situation.
Monday evening, John and I went to this new Sushi place in the East Village. At least five people told me to try the restaurant and said that it’s by far the best sushi you will find in the greater DM area and possibly in the entire state. Boy oh boy, was I not disappointed at all. The restaurant was small and the décor was minimal as the emphasis was on the food and it soared to say the least. Instead of ordering from the menu, I asked the waiter if I could order “Omakase” (Chef’s choice) and she told me that it would not be a problem whatsoever. The chef was right in front of me and he was more than happy to prepare whatever he saw fit. All the seafood was fresh and tasty beyond belief and the rice was perfect for sushi. Because I ordered the chef’s choice, I had a soup, sashimi salad, tempura, nigiri and moshi for my dessert. It truly was a very good meal and I’m so happy that DM now has an excellent sushi restaurant. I would rate this restaurant equal if not slightly higher than some of the sushi restaurants I’ve been to in Boston, Philly and Florida. Now, I just need to make sure I don’t go there too often! Talk about a great way to start the week.
That’s pretty much how the week/weekend went. I’m looking forward to this weekend because Joel and I will be going to a classical performance up at Iowa State and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra will be performing conducted by Pinchas Zukerman. It promises to be an out of this world concert. The pieces that will be performed are very familiar pieces and it’ll be interesting to see how well they perform. I figure this is probably a once in a lifetime experience to hear the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra perform in the US unless I make a trip to England.
So, what fun and exciting stuff happened over the past week/weekend? Not a whole lot really. I did not go into work on Friday because after I arrived at the office on Friday morning, I started getting the chills and my body was downright freezing. So, I left after two hours and went to the other worksite to fill out my timesheet and to let them know that I won’t be coming into work that evening. Once I arrived back in my apartment, I covered myself under the sheets and ended up sleeping for close to 4 hours which is unlike me since I’m not a person who naps. I knew something was not quite right. Later that evening, I called the house and told them that I would not be coming in the next morning to work.
I actually felt pretty good on Saturday morning although I did have some chills. Later that evening, I went over to Ann’s house for dinner. It was a great evening filled with a great meal and amazing conversation. I’ve not seen Ann since she and Harley got back from their Christmas vacation in Arizona. They had a blast there. Ann had me working on her computer because her other daughter gave them a computer for Thanksgiving and there were certain things she needed downloaded. Personally, I do not like the new Windows Vista system and trust me, it’s not user friendly at all. I’m so glad that we’re still using XP and I hope we continue using the XP operating system. I’ve not heard anything about the agency upgrading computers so that’s a good thing.
On Sunday, the Newman Guys sang and boy, did we sound good. Some days we sing better than others and this day was definitely one of those days. I only got the news about Anne’s death after I turned my cell phone once Mass was done. I do not turn my cell phone on Sunday mornings before Mass because I’m utterly afraid that if I do, it’ll ring during Mass and that’s never a good thing. Work on Sunday was fine. I got word that a resident was admitted on Wednesday and discharged on Friday. Supposedly the Mobile Crisis Unit was called and they informed the house that they would not come, and the cops would have to deal with the situation because Mobile Crisis Unit was very familiar with this particular resident. Should the resident even have spent a night at the residence in my opinion? No. It would have been put the other residents and staff in a very tough situation.
Monday evening, John and I went to this new Sushi place in the East Village. At least five people told me to try the restaurant and said that it’s by far the best sushi you will find in the greater DM area and possibly in the entire state. Boy oh boy, was I not disappointed at all. The restaurant was small and the décor was minimal as the emphasis was on the food and it soared to say the least. Instead of ordering from the menu, I asked the waiter if I could order “Omakase” (Chef’s choice) and she told me that it would not be a problem whatsoever. The chef was right in front of me and he was more than happy to prepare whatever he saw fit. All the seafood was fresh and tasty beyond belief and the rice was perfect for sushi. Because I ordered the chef’s choice, I had a soup, sashimi salad, tempura, nigiri and moshi for my dessert. It truly was a very good meal and I’m so happy that DM now has an excellent sushi restaurant. I would rate this restaurant equal if not slightly higher than some of the sushi restaurants I’ve been to in Boston, Philly and Florida. Now, I just need to make sure I don’t go there too often! Talk about a great way to start the week.
That’s pretty much how the week/weekend went. I’m looking forward to this weekend because Joel and I will be going to a classical performance up at Iowa State and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra will be performing conducted by Pinchas Zukerman. It promises to be an out of this world concert. The pieces that will be performed are very familiar pieces and it’ll be interesting to see how well they perform. I figure this is probably a once in a lifetime experience to hear the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra perform in the US unless I make a trip to England.
Monday, January 7, 2008
New Year's Day.
Well, my highlight from last week was definitely the New Year’s Eve party at my apartment. It was a blast to say the least. I had made dinner reservations for two people and I had resigned myself to the fact that I’ll be going to the restaurant alone, but at the very last minute, a friend who just got back from a family cruise to Mexico asked me if the offer still stood and it did. So she joined me for dinner. Anna is someone I’ve known since my time at Drake. She’s part of the young adults group and both love good food so it was nice to have another foodie join me. The only reservation I could snag was 5PM which actually worked out perfectly for me because after dinner, I needed to get some stuff done prior to my guests arriving. So, dinner was a five course meal and I had asked Anna if she would be open to splitting her meal with me and by doing that, we both would be able to try different meals. She was open to it and we both had a jolly good time with the meal. Anna had never been to the restaurant before and was most impressed by it. After dinner, we came back to my apartment and she sat around while I got things ready for the party.
I told my friends to come at 9PM or earlier if they wanted to because I’ll already be in my apartment and most of them started arriving at around 8:45PM. Now, I personally thought that at the most five people would be coming, but unbeknownst to me, those who did not reply the invite came and that was fine. So, all in all I had roughly twelve people in my apartment and we all had a blast. I had more than enough food and some of them brought extra alcoholic beverages which made the party even more fun. The entertainment for the evening was provided by Delaney (Matt and Angie’s one year old daughter), and I made the comment that not one of my guests would have guessed that a one year old would be entertaining all of us. She has grown so much since I last saw her and is a cutie pie. I’m so happy that Matt and Angie brought her. Those who thought they were going to just pop by ended up staying longer than expected. By the time midnight came around there were roughly eight people and we all rang in the New Year with some champagne.
Here’s one of the funniest parts of the night. Because genetically my body takes a longer time to break down alcohol, I turn red really fast even after drinking one or two alcoholic beverages so after a couple of drinks, some of my friends thought it would be hilarious to get me all liquored up and drunk so they started doing shots with me. Unbeknownst to them, I know my limit and no one can get me to go beyond my limit. So, after a couple of shots and drinking different mix drinks over the course of the night, I was feeling the effects of the alcohol and told them that I’m done with drinking anymore shots or alcohol. They were rather disappointed that I would not go beyond my limit, and I explained to them that I would be working the very next day at 2PM and the last thing I wanted to do was have a huge hangover. All of us stayed up till 4:30AM and that was when they all left my apartment. Yeah, I too could not believe I lasted that long. I decided to clean up the stuff the next morning because I needed my sleep/rest.
I finally got up at 10AM and started cleaning up and that did not take long at all. Once I showered and changed, I was ready for some food in my stomach. The weather was cold so I was craving a nice bowl of pho and was keeping my fingers crossed that my Vietnamese restaurant would be open – it was. I knew exactly what I wanted to order. One of the regular wait staff approached me and informed me that she had a note from a group of Malaysians but she left it at home. A couple of weeks ago, when I was at the restaurant, I saw this group of four Asians having a meal and I gathered they were Malaysians but did not know for sure until I heard them speak. I was right. When it came time for me to pay for my meal, I told the waiter that I would be paying for their meal – I’ve done this before. So I did that and left not thinking twice about my deed. We all have heard of the virtue of paying forward and that’s exactly what happened because I was informed by my waiter on New Year’s Day that the group of Malaysians were surprised that someone paid for their meal and decided to pay for someone else’s meal! How cool is that? I can’t wait to go back to the restaurant and read the note they left me. What a great way to start the New Year! That news definitely got me in the proper frame of mind for my work at the Westminster. Some of the residents were out with their family on New Year’s Day and those who were there pretty much watched the television. It was definitely a pretty uneventful day for all.
On Saturday after work, I hung out with Sr. Carola who was in town and would be headed up to MN for a month of classes. She had a couple of computer and cell phone questions for me and I helped her out with that. We got to catch up with one another and she told me how her retreat went. It sounds like the location in Illinois is ideal for a short mini retreat. I need to check into it. After we got the computer and cell phone stuff taken care of, we had dinner at Flying Mango – a Cajun and Barbeque joint. The food was good. Carola had invited me to join her at the musical, “Iowa Caucus” and the reviews were really good. I was excited about it and was not disappointed one bit. It was a fun, well choreographed musical and all the actors and actresses did a very good job.
That’s pretty much it with regards to all the different festivities that took place over the week. In many ways, it’ll be nice to have a regular not too eventful week but you just never know what’s going to happen during the week. I just have to brace myself for whatever may come my way.
I told my friends to come at 9PM or earlier if they wanted to because I’ll already be in my apartment and most of them started arriving at around 8:45PM. Now, I personally thought that at the most five people would be coming, but unbeknownst to me, those who did not reply the invite came and that was fine. So, all in all I had roughly twelve people in my apartment and we all had a blast. I had more than enough food and some of them brought extra alcoholic beverages which made the party even more fun. The entertainment for the evening was provided by Delaney (Matt and Angie’s one year old daughter), and I made the comment that not one of my guests would have guessed that a one year old would be entertaining all of us. She has grown so much since I last saw her and is a cutie pie. I’m so happy that Matt and Angie brought her. Those who thought they were going to just pop by ended up staying longer than expected. By the time midnight came around there were roughly eight people and we all rang in the New Year with some champagne.
Here’s one of the funniest parts of the night. Because genetically my body takes a longer time to break down alcohol, I turn red really fast even after drinking one or two alcoholic beverages so after a couple of drinks, some of my friends thought it would be hilarious to get me all liquored up and drunk so they started doing shots with me. Unbeknownst to them, I know my limit and no one can get me to go beyond my limit. So, after a couple of shots and drinking different mix drinks over the course of the night, I was feeling the effects of the alcohol and told them that I’m done with drinking anymore shots or alcohol. They were rather disappointed that I would not go beyond my limit, and I explained to them that I would be working the very next day at 2PM and the last thing I wanted to do was have a huge hangover. All of us stayed up till 4:30AM and that was when they all left my apartment. Yeah, I too could not believe I lasted that long. I decided to clean up the stuff the next morning because I needed my sleep/rest.
I finally got up at 10AM and started cleaning up and that did not take long at all. Once I showered and changed, I was ready for some food in my stomach. The weather was cold so I was craving a nice bowl of pho and was keeping my fingers crossed that my Vietnamese restaurant would be open – it was. I knew exactly what I wanted to order. One of the regular wait staff approached me and informed me that she had a note from a group of Malaysians but she left it at home. A couple of weeks ago, when I was at the restaurant, I saw this group of four Asians having a meal and I gathered they were Malaysians but did not know for sure until I heard them speak. I was right. When it came time for me to pay for my meal, I told the waiter that I would be paying for their meal – I’ve done this before. So I did that and left not thinking twice about my deed. We all have heard of the virtue of paying forward and that’s exactly what happened because I was informed by my waiter on New Year’s Day that the group of Malaysians were surprised that someone paid for their meal and decided to pay for someone else’s meal! How cool is that? I can’t wait to go back to the restaurant and read the note they left me. What a great way to start the New Year! That news definitely got me in the proper frame of mind for my work at the Westminster. Some of the residents were out with their family on New Year’s Day and those who were there pretty much watched the television. It was definitely a pretty uneventful day for all.
On Saturday after work, I hung out with Sr. Carola who was in town and would be headed up to MN for a month of classes. She had a couple of computer and cell phone questions for me and I helped her out with that. We got to catch up with one another and she told me how her retreat went. It sounds like the location in Illinois is ideal for a short mini retreat. I need to check into it. After we got the computer and cell phone stuff taken care of, we had dinner at Flying Mango – a Cajun and Barbeque joint. The food was good. Carola had invited me to join her at the musical, “Iowa Caucus” and the reviews were really good. I was excited about it and was not disappointed one bit. It was a fun, well choreographed musical and all the actors and actresses did a very good job.
That’s pretty much it with regards to all the different festivities that took place over the week. In many ways, it’ll be nice to have a regular not too eventful week but you just never know what’s going to happen during the week. I just have to brace myself for whatever may come my way.
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