Yesterday I worked from home and took off at three, because Tiffy, Richard Bonomo, and I were going to take a Betty Lou Cruise. However, they had canceled it the day before so instead I played pickleball with my neighbor, and we saw people leaving a Betty Lou Cruise. I highly suspect they canceled our regularly scheduled Friday Fish Fry Cruise (they said due to low registration numbers) because they got a more lucrative offer from a private charter, and that was what we saw the people leaving. Then Tiffy and Rich came over, and we went to Mariner's for fish fry. When Travalon got done with work, he joined us too.
Today was Tiffy's birthday. This morning Travalon and I met Tiffy, Rich, Jilly Moose, and the woman with the fabulous porch at Fair Trade for coffee, then Tiffy, Travalon, Jilly Moose, and I went up to the Farmers' Market around the Square, where I bought what I really need: another plant. It's a kalanchoe with purple smudges on its leaves. Travalon went to the Union Terrace, since it was such a beautiful day, while we ladies went to the Globe for lunch and sat outside. Tiffy said she needed to get her free medium bubble tea from Sencha, and I said, "They're only giving you a medium because you're a Virgo. If you were a Libra, they'd let you get a large." She said, "That made me think of something - I can get a free bubble tea for a week after my birthday, but I have to get my free Starbucks drink on my actual birthday." So we went to Starbucks, where I abstained but Tiffy got her birthday drink, and Jilly Moose ordered an apple oat milk shaken espresso. However, when the barista announced it, both Tiffy and I heard "apple oatmeal chicken espresso," and we thought, Dang, Starbucks really is getting adventurous! I said, "That would make an excellent blog post title." Then Jilly Moose headed home, while Tiffy and I went to the roof of her sister's building. In the elevator there was a sign that said if you gave blood at an upcoming blood drive, you would get a T-shirt (supplies limited) and a coupon for a haircut by email. We were surprised to learn that you can get haircuts by email these days, but I guess you can do everything on the computer.
In the evening, Rich drove Travalon, Tiffy, Jilly Moose, and me to Ishnala, the famous supper club where "the only thing they overlook is Mirror Lake." Rich and Tiffy both had trouble remembering what it was called, and they were thinking it was Inshallah, but when Tiffy googled that to find the menu, she discovered it was an Arabic saying. I said, "Just remember that it's Fishnala, but you gotta get the F outta there," and Rich thought that was a good mnemonic, even if he didn't appreciate the naughty part. Ishnala is in an incredibly beautiful location, in the woods around Mirror Lake, and they told us there would be a four-hour wait (they don't take reservations), but we enjoyed going for walks as we waited. There was also live music down on the beach, a guy singing Jimmy Buffet songs (RIP!) and other stuff. There were so many people there that we couldn't find a real seat in any of the five bars or the many seats and tables scattered around the place, so we sat on two rocks by the path, and a waitress kept coming by and bringing us brandy old-fashioneds and duck tenders. (We did have to pay for them.) There was a free wine-tasting that I did not try, but Travalon and Jilly Moose did. I went to the gift shop and ended up buying a sea foam green Ishnala hoodie that says: "I'm so old-fashioned" and has a drawing of the drink on it. That was partly practical, because I was wearing a light dress, and we weren't sure how cool it would get as we waited outside.
What joy! Our buzzer went off after only three hours! As we were heading into the restaurant, a guy joked, "How much can I pay you for that buzzer?" The restaurant was just as beautiful inside, and it was like being in a tree house. And the food! It did not disappoint. I've read that Ishnala is the best supper club in the state, and I believe it. The filet mignon was so good! The ice cream drinks and the chocolate mousse were so beautiful that Tiffy and I had trouble choosing. We did get the mousse but then could only eat half - I guess we could have split one? Maybe I should have made it a real supper club experience and gotten the grasshopper. Travalon got the special Ishnala ice cream drink, caramel with Rumchata, and he said it was the best ice cream drink he'd ever had. (I tasted it, and it was really good.) I have been wanting to go to Ishnala for years, since we always see it when we hike at Mirror Lake State Park, and it did not disappoint at all. Too bad it's not open in the winter, because Rich, Travalon, and I can't go for our birthdays.
Famous Hat
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