He's the Man!

Took the train into New York Saturday for dinner and drinks with the girls in Bayside.

Had dinner in Monahan's (note to waiter: good service does not consist of avoiding eye contact and finishing every sentence with, "Ladies;" as in, "Will that be all, Ladies?", "What can I get you, Ladies?", and so on. Yuck).

After dinner, we had a couple of drinks at the bar before M. rolled up to pick up A. The rest of us headed over to Donovan's, which was more crowded than I've seen it in years (not that I get in there much). Really amazed myself by staying out until 2AM. As we left Bell Boulevard, the bars were rocking.

Slept over in Bayside with U. and P. They got a new dog on Saturday, a black lab named Buddy. He's three-years-old and friendly without being slobbery. We managed to just miss the Palm Sunday crowd for breakfast at the Omega on 32nd Avenue. Can't beat breakfast at the Omega! I had a Greek omelet but skipped the home fries and toast in atonement for my gluttony the previous evening (some guy kept putting pretzels on our table in the bar, and I went through two bowls of them).

Met Daddy in Grand Central on my way back home. Went to that "Caffe" downstairs; he had a cup of coffee, and I had a glass of Merlot to right my head. While I waited for him to show at the information booth, some guy in a black ski cap shouted, "Dude!" into his cell phone so loud I nearly dropped my wallet. "I'm at the information booth in Grand Central, Dude!" he boomed. "Sure, you know what it looks like. You saw Madagascar, didn't you?"

Sometimes you don't realize how attractive a person you know well is until you see them in a crowd, and that was the case with Daddy. The guy is 74 1/2, steely-haired, fit, and handsome. He's swimming five days a week and, as always, walks everywhere. If he ever decides to start dating, I suspect he won't be lonely for long. I don't think it's in the plan, though, and my father is not one to ever change the plan.

Can't see him dealing with some other woman and her children, being expected to visit them on holidays. Not in the plan.

Was very pleased to find Peter waiting for me at the station in Connecticut in my Saturn, instead of his monster truck, which gets, like, -6 miles to the gallon. On Friday night, I found him whizzing around a motorcycle website, which means he's getting fuel conscious, but not necessarily in the way I'd hoped.

In brighter news, he did steam clean the bathroom in our bedroom during my absence. (I felt like I was in a hotel when I took my shower this morning). He also laid the forms for the new walk he's putting in the front of our house.

He is definitely the man.

What does all this have to do with dating? Not much, although the boys and girls were out and in fine form in the bars on Bell Boulevard Saturday night. Here's a tip, though: If you meet a cute guy in a bar, it's not necessary to make out with him while waiting for the bartender to pour your drinks.