finally some excitement!

the last few days have been VERY exciting...to me at least. sunday, tony took me to brunch and it was just spectacular. the century restaurant at the ritz is done in lovely hues of caramel and bronze. the table was set with silver and crystal and fresh flowers. the buffet was great:

• a cheese board, with about a dozen choices, garnished with fruit, crackers and rosemary focaccia
• eight kinds of sushi
• stone crab claws, iced shrimp, oysters on the half shell, a large assortment of smoked fish including salmon, scallops, baby shrimps, mussels, trout and sturgeon; accompanied by cocktail and mignonette sauces as well as capers, onion and hardcooked egg whites and yolks
• an antipasto spread, with various salame, olives, cipolline ala grecque, artichoke hearts, hearts of palm, roasted tomatoes, caprese salad, field greens and caesar salad, served with baguettes
• omelettes made to order, with about 14 different fillings
• housemade croissants and danishes, muffins and pain au chocolat
• hot entrees in silver chafers, including chicken, sea bass, portobello raviolis, sausage and bacon, eggs benedict made with virginia ham, and garlic cheese mashed potatoes
• a carving station with glazed ham and herb crusted sirloin
• french toast and belgian waffles with warm fruit sauce, maple syrup and whipped cream
• a massive dessert setup with probably 20 different individual miniatures. some of the best were a zombie glass filled with creme brulee and topped with an orange reduction; an intense chocolate raspberry layer cake; opera cake; chocolate cheesecake; panna cotta with brandied cherries, a dark chocolate mousse dome; cheesecake; banana meringue tart; traditional creme brulee; tiramisu; poundcake; banana walnut bread; chocolate chip coffeecake; gugelhopf; a bowl of fresh berries; warm apple pecan crisp with whipped cream and warm bread pudding with caramel sauce

of course there was coffee and juice on the table. we made at least a half dozen trips to the buffet! and if all this were not enough, as you were leaving there was a samovar full of coffee with paper "ritz-carlton cleveland" cups (in that lovely 'ritz blue') and a big basket full of cookies to tuck in your pocket for the ride home. it was easily the best meal i have had since moving here. i would certainly go back.

then back at his house, tony gave me my birthday present...a new cuisinart! it is way cool in the brushed chrome finish, so it matches my fridge. my old one (circa 1985) has been making some odd noises...this will be a great replacement! this is another item i talked about months ago that he was thoughtful enough to remember.

then we went on to a barbecue for his spirit clan at church. this group is a sort of chosen, extended family and i like them all alot. they are very protective of tony. the last time i met them, several of them grilled me on my job, past and what my intentions were with him in the future. this week, tony and i both had our rings on for the first time with them. two of the women took him aside and wanted to know if he and i had done our cermony without including them. they would not have been pleased about this. the word has gotten out that we are planning something for the late winter/spring and they have made it quite clear that, invited or not, they all plan on attending. i think it's just wonderful that all these folks care so much about him, and by extension, about me.

the day was also made nice by the many phone calls i got from friends across the country. it was good to get caught up with some folks and hear the happy birthday song sung to me on more than one occasion.

the other excitement this week was getting to see john edwards speak. (the vice presidential candidate, not the psychic) he was the guest at a breakfast sponsored by the city club of cleveland, held at the inter-continental hotel. i was my sister's guest at a table purchased by the patriots for change, a grassroots political group she's involved with. our table was quite close to the stage, so he was very close to us. afterwards, we waited in line and were lucky enough to shake his hand. it's the closest i've ever been to a candidate for such a high office and it was thrilling!

how's that for some action? we're going to see "sky captain and the world of tomorrow" tonight, so i'll let you know what i think of that. at work, we did, in fact, have our biggest week and our biggest single day ever. we broke the 400k mark in sales for the week, which was a sort of psychological barrier. things went relatively smoothly for most of it, so we all seem confident about the holidays coming up. and i guess that's all the news that's fit to print, so i'll see ya next time...

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