Nov 19-21 - Gaming Nights and Latenight Beef

Too much week and never enough weekend. But such is life. I arrived home at 10pm with a chicken parmesan dinner and Pais and the Jimmy watching basketball. I consumed the dinner, went on to the back bathroom to cut my hair and cleaned up before selecting an outfit and readying for the trip out into the night. We left just after 11pm after watching live and highlight of the basketbrawl that happened between the Pacers and Pistons on the Detroit home court. I especially liked the last televised punch thrown on the court itself. It happened as Artest walked away and the guy who attacked him on the floor got his comeuppance as a fist came fast and furious from the side and took him out of the fight. Thank goodness such acts of violence don't happen when I go out (not usually). I wouldn't want to see people get suspended from the clubs, or even the bars when they just came there to dance. I know emotions run high and all but its all about the fun. After those sights we left the house and journeyed into the city only to be held up by an accident underneath the promenade, construction on Broadway and runaway garbage trucks blocking traffic on side streets. After we finally found parking and made our way to the club it seemed friendly enough when we arrived but then found the doorman was holding us up for some reason. In his slightly fuzzy state he kept us standing at the door until a check on his phone for the time and conferring with the cashier he determined he would let us in after midnight. We saw through his ploy however and made a note to cut him out of the will. But other than that there was no other drama upon arrival and the coatcheck and then finding our bartender at the downstairs bar went over rather easily. Brett stated that he enjoyed the new mix CD and had already loaned it out to a friend/fan of the tunes and mix. I gave Jimmy the dime rate tour of the downstairs as this was his first trip to Splash since before they had completed renovations to the new decor. I hung out downstairs for a while and then journeyed upstairs to dance. I was on the floor for the my dance and worked my way out to the middle of the crowd. However when Ofra Haza and "Love Song" came on I knew I had to make my way up to the stage and dance in front of the big mirror. I even ignited my hands and flashed the lights to the crowd. I waited until after the song concluded (to make sure the mix of songs was not in the same order as my own), before heading back downstairs to get another drink. While I was waiting to order another who should appear behind me (to a huge hug in response) but our dear friend Ricky. After having talked on the phone earlier in the week he surprised me by coming out and looking for me at the bar. We headed upstairs and talked and wandered around and then came back ordered some drinks and I gave another tour of the amenities downstairs (dancer showers, DJ booth, new lounges and redesigned bathroom). We then headed back upstairs and danced some more. The evening passed quickly and we hung out with the boys and enjoyed the sounds of DJ Billy Carroll well into the night. We left the party around 3:45am and caught a taxi back towards Brooklyn. The ride was quick and smooth and the time to go to sleep was upon us. I remembered to take my vitamins and take out my contacts before I went to sleep then and woke up the same day.

I got up around 11pm and watched TV, ate breakfast, and moved stuff around the house until I got a call from my brother who was headed off of SI and into BK to hang out. Later on when I called him back he was in transit and almost to the last stop so we headed out to pick him up on 86th street and then pick up lunch on the way back. We ended up getting the late lunch at KFC and having a bucket, coleslaw, and macaroni and cheese to stuff with before watching movies on the DVR. With some of the oldest movies finally watched and then erased the DVR should act better for once. (For some reason if it does not have plenty of empty space it starts getting cranky). Finally after some disco napping and a quick shower I was ready to head out into the city once again. Pais drove and the music was popping for another trip into the city. Thankfully the various dramas of the previous day were not in evidence as we made good time and parked in the lot before heading over to the line at the front door. Rumours from the previous night and posters on the walls seemed to indicate that Destiny's Child was supposed to be visiting the Roxy. However once inside we noted that the stage configuration, the fact that the space in front of the booth was open to dance on, and that Peter was not yet manning the turntables at our arrival showed that rumors were just that and no special guests were going to be attending on this night (maybe next week since Peter was DJing the following weekend as well I figured it could still happen soon). The music started out as buildup candy that I'm used to hearing on these nights and as the classic "Turn me Over" played on the speakers Peter himself took the party reigns mid-song and the night truly got underway. The mood turned tribal and then segued into the full club night story as the levels of complexity built with visits from Duane and Jeff to hang with us on the dancefloor. Then a stop over in the asian section as the at first standoffish denizens of the speaker became congenial and smiling after I lasered the discoball during one of the dark moments while the song of the moment was building. Our barman Barker kept the drinks up to par and after I turned down an offer to drink and then decided better of it he then gave me a drink so strong I could wave it at my friends for them to get a contact drink on. However in the zone as I was I enjoyed it fully and with a trip outside to cool off and then some more dancing (and even lip synching while hanging with Pais) I had a very good time and even the line at the bathroom couldn't slow me down. Before I left for the evening I climbed up onto the speaker near the door, lit up both my hands and did one final dance for the crowd before stepping down and heading out and onto the street. I told Pais I was in the mood for something to eat since we had eaten our late lunch/early dinner so long before. We headed right across the street to the diner (trap) that was close but crowded and got a seat. After waiting for a bit I looked at the oncoming waitress expectantly but was ignored as she muttered something about 4 others waiting for her attention. At 4:30 in the morning I was not in the mood to wait so we quickly left and ignored the protesting staff as we walked out and got into the car and drove up the street to the diner with the bright lights at about 22nd street. Instead of the service we had received just a few minutes before the staff at the new place rushed over to place water on our table and ask us for our order. Several minutes after that when I was eating my potato chip french fries and my juicy bacon cheeseburger I knew I had made the right choice and bit into the afterhours meal with gusto. Once that meal was over and feeling much better we headed for home and made it look easy. Echoes of the songs of the eve were playing in our heads and the mix CD was playing in the car. We arrived in BK with no stress and with a quick check to make sure all was in order it was off to sleep.

The Sunday rolled in nicely with a great breakfast and then time to watch some more TV, play some video games with Ian through the afternoon and then decide where to go for dinner. The new Dallas BBQ in Bklyn was not phone listed but I knew the location so around 6:30 we headed out and over to Schemerhorn behind the Fulton St Macy's. Of course with all of the church traffic and BK proximity the place was packed and very loud and I could not see myself waiting with the crowd so we piled back into the car and headed over the Bklyn Bridge once again. We ended up going to the always ready 23rd St BBQ and enjoying quick service, good food and a very enjoyable tangerine colada. Ian had a Blue Hawaii and we all enjoyed a great dinner as the food was just as good as we expected. Afterwards we headed back towards home while enjoying the nice toastiness of a good drink on a Sunday night. We stopped at Pathmark for some soda, juice and milk and then made our way back home to enjoy some mint girl scout cookies and milk. Pais went to bed as Ian and myself played XMen legends on the Gamecube until late in the night. We finally had to stop playing when I could not keep my eyes from burning any longer and said our goodnights.

Another weekend under wraps. Plenty of talking, eating and dancing and video games too. Too bad the weekend isn't longer. But that's what vacation is for. See you next week.