Summer Kick Off

Those of us living in New England couldn’t have asked for a better weekend to ring in the official start of summer.   Not only was it the kick off of Marinaville, the Summer Solstice AND the Supermoon, but the temps have remained in the upper 80’s and my newly re-acquainted, longtime friend Christian Kryger, came back into town for a visit from Portland, ME… Again J

By trade Christian is an amazing chef and culinary genius.  He has worked for some of the best restaurants in Portland and has been featured in a variety of gourmet magazines and food blogs.  He has had the opportunity to cook for some of the top dogs in the industry and even got a chance to prepare a meal for our very own President Obama.  So you can imagine my excitement when he mentioned a while back that he would love to cook me dinner sometime.

Well that sometime occurred this past Saturday when Christian decided to whip us up a lil somein’ somein’.  Our 1^st course consisted of Pan Seared Diver Harvested Jumbo Scallops over Citrus Marinated Golden and Chioggia Beets, with Spring Pea Tendrils and Grapefruit Supreme.  Next came our main dish of Oven Roasted Gulf of Maine Haddock over garden Baby Bok Choy, Seared Asparagus, and Wild Maitake Mushrooms dressed in a Citrus Buerre Blanc.

Our meal was enjoyed with a nice bottle of white (Christians second area of expertise), accented with a beautiful bouquet of hand picked flowers (my contribution to the meal), all while watching the rise of Supermoon 2013 … definitely a meal to remember.

Next week I’m headed up to Portland for the 4^th of July festivities and a long overdue visit w/my college roomies and friends.  Christian and I will be spending more time together and maybe, just maybe, if I play my cards right, I can convince him to cook me another wonderful meal.  Thanks CK… it was delish!! 

20 Years Later....

It was more than 20yrs ago that our class prez and dear friend Liz Baker (Meehan) sealed our class presidency by reiterating how she was the candidate that would remember our class for years to come… she promised to organize reunions and help keep classmates in touch.  And true to her words from back in the day, the BUHS graduating class of 1993 gathered together this past weekend to celebrate our 20 years out.

The festivities kicked off on Friday night, where a bunch met at the Marina for a pre-reunion reunion.  This was a chance for those who couldn’t make it to the “official reunion” on Saturday to gather and catch up.  This was also an opportunity for those w/children to bring the kids out for a meet and greet.  Due to a prior commitment I wasn’t able to arrive in time to meet the couples with children, but I did arrive just in time to join the bar-crawl that went well into the night (last call, 2am ouch!).

Out of 250 graduates from our class approx 35 classmates showed up at the Elks on Saturday evening. (Not including spouses, partners and a handful of reunion crashersJ).   I was surprised by the number of no-shows, but it was definitely a treat to catch up w/all who attended.  And remarkably, it wasn’t awkward at all.  Funny how 20yrs can pass and everyone seems to be exactly the same…. just a wee bit older.

Thanks to all who attended and helped make it a memorable evening.  A good time was had by all and I look forward to seeing everyone again in 5 more yrs.  Although I’m pretty sure it’s gonna have to be a potluck in someone’s back yard, cuz as of Saturday the class of 1993 is officially broke!   Maybe that open bar we had at McNeil’s on our 5^th wasn’t such a good idea after all…. oh who are we kidding, it was a great idea. J

**** Picture #1:  Jen Smith, Courtney Christmas, Sharon Brooks = 1993  /  Picture #2:  Jen Smith Ogden, Courtney Christmas Millerick, Sharon Brooks = 2013 /  Picture #3 group photo in 2013 ****

Atlantic City Getaway

I love the beach and I love family get-togethers, so a mini-vaca back to my roots was definitely in order.  Most of my immediate family (including myself) is from the Jersey Shore.  In fact, I used to spend my summers frolicking in the surf, playing ridiculous boardwalk games (wack-a-mole was my fav), and going on those super sketchball rides, operated by those super sketchball carnie types.  Living so far away for so long, it had been a while since I paid a proper visit to our mid-Atlantic coastline.  And what a fun time it was.

The damage and destruction from hurricane Sandy (that devastated much of the East Coast last October) was still very apparent in certain spots.  But the one good thing that came of all that destruction was the opportunity to rebuild… more specifically, build a mega Jimmy Buffet/Margaretville themed resort casino in Atlantic City.  With a Margaretville Restaurant on the boardwalk, a Landshark Bar and Grill right on the beach, and Buffett music blasting everywhere, its only fitting that my time was spent eating, and beaching and sipping away… w/a little gambling and shopping in between.

And boy there have been some major improvements to slots since I last remember.  You can now order drinks via a kiosk on your slot machine (at least in Bally’s you can).  All you do is choose your liquor, choose a mixer and wait.  It will tell you when your order has been processed.  It will then tell you that your drink is ready.  And then it tells you to please stay in your seat, your drink is on its way.  A minute later here comes your cocktail waitress w/your beverage of choice in tow… Genius J

Now its recover and rest up for the next big event; 20yr high school reunion.  As long as I don’t dwell on the twenty-year part, I’m sure it’s gonna be a blast!