OMG

Good news: I'm in NYC, one of my favorite cities.

Bad news: NYC is in the middle of a record-breaking heat wave. Manhattan at 100 degrees with it's humidity just plain sucks. :(

We're talking humidity so bad that every toilet handle I flush is dripping wet with condensation and that just ain't right. Naturally I've been staying indoors as much as possible while simultaneously praying for no black outs. *shudder*

We're now cruising into the fun part of the weather. All day long I've been hearing about some big inevitable thunder storm that seemed to have stalled somewhere along the way. Well, it's finally here and it's so cool! I'm sitting at the desk by the window in my hotel room watching the sky light up the NY buildings. The nerdy California girl in me just LOVES real weather. It's so beautiful to see the buildings back lit by lightning. Rain is slapping against my window and I couldn't be happier.

So far I've had a good, well paced trip. It's been really good. In fact, lately I've been encouraged to have a car service deliver me to the airport but, being a control freak, I've denied the car service offers thus far. This time, however, my flight was so early (8:00am) that I decided to have someone drive me to the airport. (The only good thing about gas prices going up is that it's now cheaper for me to take a car service.) My driver was a nice young woman named Shelby. We chatted the whole ride over to LAX. Shelby used to drive back in '98 & '99 but eventually left, she didn't mention why, and recently decided to pick up driving again. I told her I always thought it might be a nice job because of the flexibility. She agreed. Turns out you can run a few errands and get some reading in while waiting between pick ups. Sounds good to me. Shelby had a bunch of her gossip magazines in the seat back pockets so we discussed the latest celebrity "news". I had no idea Lindsey Lohan was bisexual and just had a big blow out fight with her girlfriend at Katsuya. Who knew!? Well, Shelby knew all about it. We got along nicely.

Once in the city a bunch of us met for a late dinner at Rosa Mexicana. Man is that good stuff. I'd been there a few times before but I'd forgotten just how good it is. The first time I went there I'd heard they served the best Mexican food in the city but, being from SoCal, I was skeptical. Everyone raved about their guacamole but I found it difficult to believe a good Mexican restaurant could actually exist on the East coast. Well, I'm here to tell you this snob was wrong. I don't know where they get their avocados but they are fantastic. I had some amazing carne asada tacos that I'll dream of for a long time to come. I nursed a margarita all night long that had just enough alcohol in it to help me sleep very well.

This morning I met some folks for breakfast. When I mentioned to my boss that we were unable to secure a car service for the afternoon a friend came to the rescue with a car service voucher. Now, before you start thinking I'm now expecting everyone to just drive me around, let me explain a few things. I'm' here for a trade show. The trade show is at the Javitz Center which is located in the only area in New York that not enough cabs seem to frequent. There is a cab line but it takes at least an hour to get through it. Add the 100 degree heat and it's beyond a bummer to have to endure that cursed line. After the show, while searching for my gifted town car, I ran into a couple of friends heading for the dreadful cab line. I stopped them and told them to get in the car with me. These happen to be two very nice women who can be extraordinarily helpful to me in doing my job. My boss and I were happy to share the car with them. I would have felt guilty driving away with only two of us in there anyway. Those two women have officially sworn that they owe me big time. We were all SO happy to step out of the heat and into that wonderfully cool and clean car. Ahhhhhh. Pure heaven. The driver, as usual, got mad at a cab next to us, rolled down the window and yelled "Fuck to you! Yeah, I fuck to you!" I turned to my friend and informed her that I enjoyed that turn of phrase and that I'd be using it from time to time in all of our future discussions. I told her to consider herself warned. She agreed she'd try to use it in conversation as well. The best part is that she's a lawyer. I can't wait to hear her say it.

We got to the hotel in time to enjoy a couple of hours of down time before heading out to dinner. Later, we walked a few blocks to Bar Americain (Bobby Flay's place). Yum! I ate so much last night that I really held back today. I had a crappy Greek salad (no chicken) for lunch and was seriously hungry. Tonight I had, get this, a lobster-avocado cocktail (holy crap is that a delightful combo) followed by a fillet with asparagus. For dessert we split the Chocolate Praline Layer Cake and the Milk Chocolate Black Layer Tart. Words can't describe just how yummy it was... especially those desserts. Amazing!

I'm now happily digesting and still enjoying that lightning. I'm off to wash my face and enjoy the NY Times in bed. Sweet dreams!