I called Mom to make sure they would actually be home that weekend. Then I called Andy to randomly ask if he felt like coming out too. And, because he is the bestest sibling ever (or *really* wanted to spend oodles of frequent flier miles and enjoy the lovely Delta experience), he made a quick late night decision to book a ticket and come too. Suddenly my birthday was, well, fantastic.
Arrived on a slow moving bus from Bethesda (a few blocks from my apartment) to Penn Station (importantly, adjacent to a Starbucks... I had a caffeine withdrawal headache after the extra hour of Lincoln Tunnel traffic), and was picked up in style by the parents in the Prius who had scooped up an Obama-Detroit-visit-delayed-Andy from JFK en route. Mom has named the Prius "Slick" before dad can come up with another PT Cruiser Porkchop equivalent, although "the Beep-Mobile" may catch on. We glided silently and fuel-efficiently down to Chelsea, parked, and walked over to the latest and greatest addition to the island of Manhattan: the Highline.
A decaying, grisly ghost of an elevated train line running along the eastern avenues of NYC has been looming over the meatpacking district for ages now. Someone had the good sense to turn it into a pedestrian only elevated park, with wild and natural plantlife and spectacular views through, around, over, into, and beyond the buildings it navigates. I don't have too many experiences being able to see the Hudson river, which is suggested in the glow of the setting sun in the nice family photo taken by a Droid-savvy passerby.
Following a nice walk along the finished section, we traversed the trendy meat-packing district (which does actually still have a sausage making plant or two amid the ultra hip restaurants!) and found our Zagat recommended mexican restaurant. Some Margaritas, guacamole, and AMAZING FOOD later, and we waddled back to the Prius, er, "Slick," and drove out the island to home.
Saturday we spent the whole day in relaxed food preparation mode, with fresh corn being shucked, marinated chicken bits being skewered, cornbread being "set," and lots of goodies facing the outdoor grill (BBQ maestro Andy in charge). Barbara and Charlie came from next door, bringing even more food, and we ate an epic feast of birthday deliciousness. And I blew out four candles (four years until I'm thirty!) set into glorious rhubarb cupcakes with burnt butter icing. Utterly perfect.
The next night we had presents. Pictured is Andy, with his belated birthday presents from the parents. I headed back to the Penn Station bus with lots of kitchen goods: my family knows me well :)
Well, I am clearly rambling on here to avoid working on my latest thesis chapter. Tsk tsk. Did I mention? Dave's present to me is a visit this September, so I need to have lots of thesis done by then!
