Dragon Lady

Dragon Lady with Dino

And by Dragon Lady, what I mean to say is that I am SUCH a drag!!!

How’s that you might ask (those of you who you don’t know me well, that is)?

Ten and I were  in Pittsburgh for ONE afternoon. We could’ve gone to the Carnegie Melon Museum or ridden the Incline or gone to Station Square. We could’ve wandered Liberty Ave – Pittsburgh’s old Red Light District, to see how radically it’d changed in the 30++ years since I lived around here.

Shroud of Turinesque Buddha Tshirts
No, I could NOT resist

What’d we do? Took a stroll on the main drag of the Strip District looking, ostensibly, for tie dye Ts (which, shockingly, we didn’t find though we DID find these charmers at left.). After our relatively short walk, I was so battered, broken and sweat soaked from the soggy 84º heat (sheesh! Am I a pansy OR WHAT!?) that all I had the energy for was a dinner of sammiches and a WAY too expense sauvignon blanc from the hotel bar.

I was reminded of The Amazing Bob who was such a homebody that, after  30 minutes of sitting with Jen, Oni and I on the porch (all of us reading and wave watching) he would stand up and, tongue firmly in cheek, indignantly announce/ask “we bought these perfectly good houses – WHY are we sitting outside?!” He’d then, mock-huffily, head inside. This was AOK ‘cause…C’MON…this was TAB fer fucks sake!

So yesterday I was thinking “we paid for this perfectly good hotel room – WHY are we leaving it!”

Ten, just FYI, has WAY more energy (and heat tolerance) than I. Yes, I feel desperately guilty about this. If guilt was an Olympic event I’d take the gold every damn time. Also, me back’s, loudly, threatening to off me, my knees are volunteering to donate to the Kill Donna Fund and my internal thermostat is all “so you thought hot flashes sucked – well…TAKE this!”

NOT a chilly male parental unit
but a frosty soda
OR tonic if you’re from Southie

The sandwich shop we went to, here in the the theoretically hip and enlightened Strip District, was  named Peppi’s. The large menu wasn’t ALL meat but close. Under the “Vegetarian” header they listed a tuna melt, tuna salad and, get this, CHICKEN strips! FYI Peppi, while some vegetarian’s DO eat fish (more accurately termed  “pescatarians”) chicken is NOT in any book, considered vegetarian.

I was reminded of the old timey Chinese restaurant  back home which, under vegetable selections, listed dishes which included pork. Is the thinking “only cow is meat?” Ummm…WRONG!

Peppi’s DID have two entire, honestly veg, selections. There was a grilled portabella mushroom sub and something called The Shadyside (grilled onions, mushrooms, sweet peppers and provolone)

The Shadyside was very good.

Afterward, not unexpectedly, I experienced a series of small explosions which would eventually lead to my own personal Fartmageddon .

Incredibly, Ten did NOT kick me outta the hotel room. The man’s a saint.

In a few hours we’ll drive to my father’s wee hamlet for a visit or three. We’re staying with Michal, out in the gloriously gorgeous, peaceful and pastoral Idaho with her three cats and BIG Jake dog. I’m SO looking forward to it.