Category: I know I’m not the only one who feels this way…

Grown and Sixty

I turned 60 years old on February 14th 2022.  I was tripping about my “advanced age” (smile) for a minute because it suddenly hit me that I more likely then not have more years behind me then I have in front of me…

However, on the flip side, I consider my age to be a blessing because not everyone lives to the ripe old age of 60.

And to truly celebrate this milestone birthday, as well as our 10th year love anniversary, me and my boo embarked on a much needed and long overdue vacation to Cancun, Mexico.  My travel agent Karen booked our stay at an Adults -Only, All-Inclusive Iberostar resort.  We upgraded to an oceanfront junior suite on the 13th floor which had a spiral staircase on the bottom deck leading up to the top deck which featured a hot tub, an outdoor shower plus a small table and two lounge chairs.   It was so cozy looking especially at night when the warm ocean breezes slid into our room.

 

Our beautiful Junior suite – fit for a King and a Queen (smile)

 

Our beautiful view from the room…

Our private hot tub on the upper deck complete with 2 lounge chairs, a small table and a private shower

And this is where we spent our days on the beach right outside our Junior Suite:

 

We spent more time resting in these beach huts during the daytime especially fighting the surf all morning

 

On our 2nd night at the resort, we met, conversed for 5 minutes and subsequently had dinner together at an American Bistro with this couple from Southern Virginia.  They had been married for 40 years and told us over dinner that although they were no longer working for a living, they had not “retired” but rather re-set.  I’m going to use that term when I officially ‘retire'(smile).  Anyway, towards the end of the night, they shared with us that their next vacation stop was at a semi-nude beach in the islands…

 

La Parilla Restaurant (steakhouse) on our 3rd night was where we received a cheesecake after our dinner with Happy 10th Anniversary written on it…this was a big surprise to us although we did recall our lovely waiter asking us if we were celebrating anything special that night…

 

Lovely dinner with delish cheesecake

 

We missed the reservations we made for the Japanese restaurant on our 4th night because we got caught up in downtown Cancun at La Isla Shopping Village.  This village was a super wide open indoor/outdoor market consisting of retail clothing stores, souvenir shops, restaurants, travel excursion booths and much, much more.  We were solicited by a man on the street who worked for one of the travel agencies and he sold us on a speedboat and snorkeling tour that costs $150 (including the snorkeling gear) and left the dock everyday at 9am, 12noon and 3pm.   We agreed it was a good deal and returned the very next day to take advantage of it.  The iconic Cancun tour was a blast – so glad we made the decision to go – first up our own speedboat!

 

Captain James and Lajeune – ready for take-off!

 

The most memorable dinner of all was on our 5th night – A private dinner for 2 with special menu and upgraded wine (courtesy of Quinn/Panzer Travel Agency at a resort restaurant of our choice).    We chose La Horma, a gourmet restaurant where the wait staff literally treated us like a King and Queen the minute we walked through the doors.  They were quite literally tripping over themselves as they sat us at a table with a view of the ocean.  Plus they anticipated all of our needs, fed us way too much food – James had sushi appetizers with breaded shrimp, crostini bread topped with veggies, meaty beef tacos with ceviche and for his entree: flank steak and sides.   I ordered off the menu – I chose linguini with pesto sauce topped with parmesan cheese which looked as good as it tasted.   I also devoured the piping hot extra long dinner rolls with olive oil and parmesan cheese.   In recognition of our 10th year love anniversary, I received beautiful roses from our waiter.

 

Delish linginin with pesto sauce and shaved parmesan cheese

 

A piping hot extra long dinner roll

 

Olive oil with fresh parmesan cheese for the piping hot extra long dinner roll

This night just keeps getting better – courtesy of our waiter

 

 

Now posing on the lovely staircase outside the restaurant with my beautiful new roses

 

I stopped drinking alcohol (wine) almost 2 years ago in 2020 when the Pandemic first started so I probably lost money to the resort since for beverages I threw back grapefruit juice, mineral water, beet juice, coffee, expresso, virgin strawberry daiquiris, green smoothies and bottled waters (smile).

 

The Green monster (smile)

 

Fresh resort waters and Frozen Strawberry Daiquiri – my beach drinks

 

Our 6th and final day consisted of breakfast outdoors at the resort (now sporting our street clothes) and waiting on the emailed results of our Covid tests which, of course, were negative.

 

I’m gonna miss these healthy and hearty breakfasts every morning – back to the gym when I return!

 

We caught our airport shuttle the designated 3 hours before our flight and mentally prepared ourselves for the trip back to Connecticut.

 

So long Cancun, hope to see you soon!

Sincerely,

 

 

TVFL

 

 

 

Frog Eyed and Bushy Tailed

I was raised in the small town of Groton, Connecticut (population around 40,000). I graduated from Mary Morrison Elementary School, Robert E. Fitch Jr. High School and Robert E. Fitch Sr. High School.   And, as is the case of most small towns, the “legal age” residents (like myself back then) were usually looking for something fun and/or exciting to do post graduation.

 

I was in luck that year.  It was 1980 and the nightclub scene in Groton and the surrounding towns and cities was lit!   Again this is wayyyyyyy back in the day so Disco music was very popular.   And the dance scene was all the rage.  Saturday Night Fever had already shown at the movies so everyone was looking to out-do John Travolta and his partner on the dance floor (smile).  I personally liked Disco Music because it was fast paced with heavy bass and lots of beats.   Disco dance tunes also seem to go on forever when dancing.

 

 

I so vividly remember this time in my life.  Going to nightclubs at 18 (which, incidentally, was the drinking age back then) and having plenty of options to choose from.  It was a different time, for instance I was able to survive on very little sleep (smile).   So starting the Summer before I left for college, I would ‘club’ 4 or 5 nights a week and still manage to get up in time to work not one, but two jobs – as a full-time Drive-Through-Window Cashier at Wendy’s Hamburgers in Groton and as a part-time Cashier at a small grocery store directly up the street from Wendy’s.

 

I recall on weekdays diligently packing my large overnight bag with my Wendy’s uniform, my grocery store tunic and Levi jeans, and my nightclub gear.  I had a long day ahead of me so preparation was key (smile).  After getting off from the grocery store, I would excuse myself and go to the ladies room in the rear of the store to wash off and get dressed for the evening.  My bff Connie would then pick me up If I was not driving my mother’s blue Mustang (smile).

 

And grabbing food on the go was a cinch as I truly had a cast-iron stomach.  I would inhale Wendy’s French fries dipped in tartar sauce for breakfast and wash it down with a delicious chocolate Fribble.  Lunch would sometimes consist of a Wendy’s Crispy Fried Chicken with Cheese Sandwich and a Dr. Pepper.  Dinner could be a Junior Whopper with cheese and fries courtesy of Burger King.  Healthy eating was not a factor in my life then.   And “clean eating” to me consisted of washing my hands before and after I ate and wiping the corners of my mouth while eating a messy burger (smile).

 

 

Rhana Pippins, located in a shopping center called Lighthouse Square in Groton,  was the premier Disco nightclub as well as ya girl’s personal fav.   There were other nightclubs in town but everybody went to Rhana Pippins on Wednesday nights and I mean everybody!  As it turned out, the ambience was key – it was beautiful inside with gargantuan frogs which served as the motif and doubled as speakers.  Also Wednesday nights was the traditional Ladies Night and word had spread quickly throughout Connecticut about free admission for the ladies, the Chippendale male strippers, the cheap drinks and the hunky men who arrived afterwards…

 

The iconic matches – perfect for getting those 7 digits (smile).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Saturday nights at Rhana’s Pippins were also Fire!  There was a different vibe on Saturday nights though, people came dressed to impress.  Saturday Night Fever had revolutionized the nightclub scene so it wasn’t uncommon to see men dressed in open collared shirts and designer threads.  It also wasn’t uncommon to be entertained with an upscale fashion show and/or other nightclub event.  I found the crowd older and more sophisticated on Saturday nights and therefore preferred the Wednesday night crowd (smile).

 

This Hottie, who just so happens to be my brother Michael, was def a crowd pleaser back in the day…

 

Fun fact:  Rhana Pippins means frogs in Latin.  I often wondered why the dance floor was surrounded by gargantuan frogs that doubled as speakers.  I also uncovered this tidbit:   West Hartford, Connecticut’s own native Suzanne Langlois designed the interior of the nightclub.  Very Cool…

 

 

Anyway on Wednesday nights at Rhana Pippins, me and my BFF Connie, fresh out of high school and feeling ourselves, were quite literally the first females to break out with dressy shorts, nice blouses and low heels.   At first the other females were looking at us like we were crazy for wearing shorts at night (dressy or not!) and then suddenly everybody was doing it (smile).   We also couldn’t forget our sunglasses.  Sunglasses at night.  It made us look cool, dark and mysterious (smile).

 

 

Connie and I were at the age where we didn’t think we were cute, we knew we were cute (LOL!) and we went to Rhana Pippins on Wednesday Nights not because the Chippendale dancers were there but because of the free admission, cheap drinks and hunky men who came in later.

 

 

My drink of choice back then was at first Seagrams 7 & 7 and then Alabama Slammers or better known as a “Southern Slammers.”   By the time I was in my early 20s,  I had graduated to Long Island Iced Teas (you can’t go wrong with 7 different liquors – LOL!).

 

Alabama Slammer

 

As soon as the Chippendale dancers begin to come out on the dance floor me and my BFF Connie quickly headed to the rear of the nightclub close to the large bar, sipping our drinks on the bar stools and watching the comedy parade unfold.  The “30+ something” married women were always one of the largest demographics on Wednesday nights and seemed to also be the most aggressive, waving their dollar bills in the air and gyrating their hips like they just don’t care (smile).   The former was so the Chippendale dancers would come over to give them big kisses and more…

 

Connie and I weren’t paying them any mind, we were doing our own thing,  chit chatting, snapping our fingers to the music and slowly sipping our drinks until the “real men” arrived.   By this time we were thoroughly liquored up and ready to partaaay!!!   We were young and cute and therefore always asked to dance.  Once out on the dance floor we gravitated towards the middle where the huge mirror ball hung with its sparkling multi-colored lights and lost ourselves in the music…

 

Must be the music (smile)

 

At 2am, Rhana Pippins shut down for the night but Connie and I were not ready to go home.  IHOP in Groton was the place to be after all the nightclubs closed.   And around that time we were famished so we ordered large breakfast food (pancakes and sausage and coffee or eggs, bacon, toast and coffee) and talked throughout the night with our respective dates.

 

 

I would get home just in time to get in 2 hours of sleep before the alarm clock went off then I would shower, dress and start my day all over again.  Frog eyed and Bushy Tailed (smile).

 

P.S.  Rhana Pippins was my number one nightclub choice back then but there are some notable mentions:  The Love Boat, Christopher’s and Atlantis in Misquamicut, Rhode Island just to name a few.   However, they still didn’t compare in my eyes to Rhana Pippins which to me had it all: ambience, music, fashion shows, dance-offs, a variety of specialty drinks and lots of eye candy (smile).

 

And incidentally, Sundays were for Church (service) and Mondays were our ‘official rest days’ (smile).

 

Sincerely,

 

TVFL

 

My Current Situation – Part X (Goodbye 2021!)

 

I’m sure this comes as no surprise to anyone that on this Friday, December 31st,  I am happy to see 2021 Simply. Go. Away. (smile)

 

I am cautiously optimistic though that even when the 2022 pandemic brings its own variants, we will all learn to effectively work around them so that we can resume a somewhat “normal” life.

 

 

I have already noticed the following habits in my own life as I head into 2022:

 

  • I still wear a face mask practically everywhere I go

 

 

 

  • I’m still working 50% hybrid (one day from my home office; the next day from my work office and so on…)

 

 

 

  • I am still washing my hands multiple times a day even when they’re not dirty

 

 

  • I am still waddling around in yoga pants and baseball caps on the days I work from home

 

 

  • I still have not travelled outside of the U.S. and/or drove more than 300 miles  away from home for personal travel

 

 

I’m also still counting my blessings every day that this dreadful disease does not directly impact any one of my family members and friends.

 

 

Sincerely,

 

 

TVFL

 

 

 

My Current Situation Part IX

It’s the season of what we like to call “Fall” in New England.  The days are short, the air is brisk and the leaves are “falling” from the trees.   I happen to like this season because the temperatures in Connecticut tend not to be too extreme plus it’s a great time to enjoy backyard bonfires.

 

It’s also cold and flu season so I scheduled my flu shot this coming week at my place of employment.  I was advised by my Primary Care Physician to get the Shingles shot this year which by the way comes in two separate doses.  I’m well over 50 but for some reason was advised to take care of it this year.  Our local pharmacy (Walgreens) made it real simple for me.

 

The drawn-out Covid pandemic (which could easily turn into a “Twindemic” with the upcoming Flu season upon us) is still causing me to pause as to what activities I should or should not participate in.  For instance, I went to see Erykah Badu a few weeks ago at the Hartford Healthcare Amphitheater in Bridgeport, CT because the people in charge were asking all attendees to be fully vaccinated and wear their masks.  However, I skipped going to an outdoor festival in Hamden, CT because there would be children there under the age of 12 who, at this time, cannot be vaccinated.   Decisions, decisions…

 

And as far as work goes I am currently in month 15 of working hybrid for the News 8 local sales department and I’m not mad about it (smile).  You see I enjoy working from home every other day because it keeps me in the practice of dressing up to go into work in the first place (smile).  I am forced to put on a nice dress or blouse and skirt every other day.  Otherwise I would just live in yoga pants and baseball caps (double smile).

 

I also get to touch base with my fav co-workers and experience a change of scenery from the home decor.  But working from home also has its perks:  those aforementioned yoga pants and baseball caps, no commute, noontime walks and healthy lunches.  Truth be told I actually work harder when I’m working from home as I still get up at the same time every day but on those days can begin at least an hour earlier, multi-task at lunchtime and end whenever I feel like it (after quitting time) since I’m already home.

 

 

Being a true fan of  Social Media, I am noticing more and more posts of people in general spending quality time with their families and their friends.  In my opinion the notion of Family is back in a Big Way and it is very apparent.  If nothing else comes from this pandemic, it will have shown us that Family and Relationships are truly what we all have been missing.

 

 

TVFL readers, have a Great Week.

 

 

My Current Situation Part VIII

There was a small window in time at some point in July of 2021 where life was beginning to feel a little normal, albeit, the “new normal,” as masks were flung off, dressy outfits were put back on and baseball caps were sent back to the ball field.

 

 

 

Then along came Delta, it sounds like a movie title but instead it’s the name of the new variant that is quickly turning our everyday lives into a mini nightmare.  The medical doctor on the last WTNH News 8 segment I watched explained that even if you are fully vaccinated, you can still catch and/or transmit the COVID virus –  Yikes!  It’s no wonder that it’s spreading like wildfire.

 

 

 

And now the Connecticut Department of Public Health recommends that all state residents go back to wearing masks inside public buildings.

 

 

 

Yes.  Again…Wait, Really?!?

 

 

So as of today, me and my fellow News 8 Account Executives continue to work (masked up outside our cubicles) in the same hybrid fashion we started about 14 months ago.  Call me crazy but I happen to like working 50 percent from home and 50 percent from the office.  I have even created a cozy home office in one corner of my dining room that easily fits my desk, office supplies, desktop computer, office chair, printer and work files.  I can’t lie: I’m not looking forward to going back to work in the office 100 percent of the time.  Especially since I’ll have to face those crazy, unhinged drivers every day as opposed to just half the week.

 

 

Being the Optimist that I am though, I take a deep breath and remember what I am truly grateful for: I am truly grateful that me, my family and my loved ones are all healthy, fully vaccinated and presently living Covid- free lives.

 

 

 

And I certainly hope and pray the same for all of my TVFL readers.