Jeez, I am So Sorry again but my fingers will not STOP blogging, as hard as I try. Despite cramping, hunger, need for medication and the cries of anguish from Cheryl I cannot drag myself away from this laptop. Please help me! Stop reading/enjoying/commenting on/referring to the Transplant Trib 'cuz that tends to encourage me to spew out more and more BS than I could have ever believed I possessed. Today I got caught up in the Early Edition and was late to Cardiac Rehab (a class, not exercise) once again emphasizing my brand-new lack of punctuality and crazed focus on this ongoing nonsense. Oh, and no, there will not be any such thing as a (regular) Early Edition or even Late Edition or Any Doggone Edition!
OK, I have calmed down now. That was a close one. Anyhoo, I am trying to clear up a few loose ends before I need to do something useful like do the dishes or finally watch some of LAST week' s televised racing events.
A (LAME) ATTEMPT AT A RESTAURANT REVIEW
Despite over 300 years experience in various forms of the food service industry (restaurants, hot dog stands, hospitals, retirement homes) I have never formally put down my thoughts about a dining event in writing, until this very moment. So here goes nothing:
Recently it was my honor and pleasure to host the April edition of the long-running Dinner with the Gang. Those who are not familiar with this phenomenon may happily search the Archives for a detailed description. Suffice it to say it was my first after missing several due to my hospitalization(s). Taking a firmly positive recommendation from good friends Dan and Carol I made reservations at Dona Tomas, located in the trendy Temescal neighborhood of Oakland. Open Table told me the next reservation for a group of nine would be in eight weeks! Yeah, right. With much trepidation I phoned the restaurant and managed to score a table at 5:30 (when they open) on a Saturday night.
We obediently lined up at the door with many others and were immediately seated in a small room located beyond the patio behind the main area. This turned out to be perfect as the noise was not bad ("What? I can't hear you... Eh?) and with all due respect to kids everywhere there was an absolute minimum number of loud, squirmy, sniffling and coughing rug rats to infect, oh, for example, a vulnerable post-transplant patient. Yes, I had a mask but it is no fun trying to force food through one of those things.
OK now for the food and service. The food was, uh, very good and the service was,er, real nice. Sorry but I have already forgotten most of the details of our meal due to the understandable and dreaded loss of memory I have been experiencing. I do recall that Jane T.RD forbid me having any of the ceviche ("yes it is marinated but I still say it's RAW") and for the first time in anybody's memory Tanya R. RD consumed her entire meal. No doggie bag this time, eh Tan? I am reasonably sure she had the same thing as I did which was the Carne Asada con Salsa Pasilla which came with killer pureed sweet potato that hadda be loaded with butter and sugar. Good thing I didn't eat mine (attn: Transplant Team if you are seeing this) though I devoured the grilled asparagus. Cheryl I believe had carnitas and if memory serves it was quite good although she told me later on the way home it was a little dry and not the best she ever had. In general although I can't for the life of me recall what everybody else ordered , they all seemed more than happily satisfied with everything. And, oh yeah, our traditional dessert-sharing was done with my delicate condition in mind (I went first) but again I can't remember what we had except the flan which was quite good.
Well there you have it, as promised. I guess the Chronicle can safely keep their critic without too much of a threat from me. So be it.
TODAY'S "NORMAL" EVENTS (relax, this the last paragraph)
These included furious blogging in the morning followed by a panic dash to LifeStyle Rx for the My Heart's Content class. Then I did a bit of grocery shopping all by my very own self like a real Big Boy. Simple, yet satisfying. It is now time for a bit o' dinner and perhaps a brief period of TV before beddy-bye time. Maybe I can find a moment or two sometime for those old races I need to see. Tomorrow it will be off to the ophthalmologist for a much needed appointment that has been postponed at least three times since December. And Suzy I have not forgotten your third FAQ. It's a-comin'. But for now, "ThThThat's All, Folks".
Bob /Irv
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