Highlights of 40

I have delayed discussing my 40th birthday celebration on June 17, 2011, for a variety of reasons. One is that I do not yet have permission from the restaurant to post my pictures or information here -- I try to do that before I post. Suffice to say, however, that I had a scrumptious meal of Mexican food, sitting outside despite rain and relative cold, and wearing my muscle t-shirt! I can be stubborn that way, but doggone it, I went through the work to lose the weight and develop muscles, I was going to show off on my milestone birthday!

I had tea before my next big stop, The Upright Citizens Brigade. Here are a couple of pictures:

Here I am outside the theater...

And here I am sitting inside -- the young man who took my picture said I looked "pretty buff," so I couldn't help but post this, though I likely would have done so regardless.

The Upright Citizens Brigade prides itself, according to its website philosophy, on providing affordable shows, often with big names. Because my birthday fell on a Friday, and because I believe that my birthday is a personal holidy, to be celebrated on that particular day, I paid the Friday prices, the most expensive of the week -- $10. There were no other cover charges. The show was a lot of fun, and definitely the most inexpensive option I found for comedy show entertainment in New York City on a Friday night! Here is the link to the website:

http://www.ucbtheatre.com/about/

The night in Manhattan ended with more hot tea before the bus ride home.

I would have loved for my 40th birthday to have been spectacular -- it wasn't. I had other appointments earlier in the day, and Friday is a day I normally jog and lift. Life happened on this day. But, a good meal and a fun show -- not a bad way to enter my fifth decade of life!

40th Birthday Weigh-In

Hello dear readers, and my apology for the delay in blog entries. I have had a lot going on, but I have not changed my food plan, and it shows in my weight, which, on my 40th birthday, Friday, June 17, 2011, was between 126 and 128 on my analog scale -- I have lost another couple of pounds! I have to be careful now not to let my weight get too low -- I am looking to stabilize my weight at this point. I have a plan to add calories to my food, but rest assured, it will be careful, and it will be calculated. It's absolutely amazing that, after years and years of overeating, and obesity, I am now looking at avoiding getting too thin!

A Quick Stop in Birmingham

I arrived in Birmingham, Alabama, in the evening, and left around 3:00 P. M. the following day. That did not allow me a lot of time in the city. Coupled with the fact that pictures were not allowed inside one of the venues I visited, this will likely be a short discussion of my introduction into the 49th State I have visited. But that does not make the visit any less memorable! First off, I enjoyed a nice meal at night at Bottega, sitting in the courtyard. Here are some pics:

Here is a link:

http://www.bottegarestaurant.com/

Niki's West, where I had breakfast the next morning, was cute:

Quite a nice portion size, as I look at it now:

There are little sea gadgets around and in the restaurant, such as these anchors:

The link:

http://www.nikiswest.com/

Of course, you have to see the Civil Rights Museum, which is very thorough in documenting the history of the Civil Rights Movement in the area:

The link:

http://www.bcri.org/index.html

I was happy to have visited Reed's Bookstore. The store contains antiques and collectibles, such as little knickknacks around the store:

Of course there are some classics as well:

Here is a link to this very pleasant venue, which is a bit more obscure, though I did find it in a travel journal.

 http://www.jimreedbooks.com/index.php

Jim gave me a tour of the store, along with a free copy of a book he wrote, Dad's Tweed Coat, containing short stories of his life.

I finished my time in Birmingham with an attractively presented lunch at John's City Diner:

And the link:

http://www.johnscitydiner.com/

All in all, my short time in Birmingham was cute and enjoyable, with some education from the Civil Rights Museum. A fun stop to introduce me to the last of the contiguous 48 States I was to visit!

Recent Activities

As you may recall, I had plans to go to Cooperstown, New York over the Memorial Day Weekend. Plans changed, but myself and my travel partner, and his brother, still enjoyed a nice day at the Hayden Planetarium. I enjoyed learning about the expanding universe, and black holes. Here is a link to learn more about the Planetarium, which is connected to the American Museum of Natural History:

http://www.haydenplanetarium.org/index.php

We enjoyed lunch at Ed's Chowder House, followed by a trip to Grand Central Station, for our return trip. Sometimes, I get spoiled living in New York City, and I forget how extravagant the station is, with shops, restaurants, a food court, and majestic views. Here is a link:

http://www.grandcentralterminal.com/

Yesterday, I returned to Katonah, New York. I had the gyro and eggs, with homefries and whole wheat toast. A simple, yet scrumptious meal, along with another nice conversation with Mike, the part-owner. I followed this meal by going to the John Jay Homestead. Although I only spent enough time there for a guided tour of the house and viewing a few of the sites on the self-guided tour, there is a lot more I could have seen! The self-guided tour is estimated to last about an hour, and there is also hiking available, which I did not sample yesterday. Here is a link to the site:

http://www.johnjayhomestead.org/

I learned a lot from my trip, including the fact that John Jay was probably one of the most influential men in the forming of America as we know it, rivaling such people as George Washington in his influence. He is not, however, as well known outside of New York, in part because of conflicts in his nature -- for instance, he opposed slavery on moral grounds, while still owning slaves; he was a wealthy man, though he attempted to present modestly, etc. The homestead also discusses his involvement in agriculture.

My day ended in the town of Bedford. I had tea at The Meeting House, and Erica's Kitchen. Here are the links:

 http://www.meetinghouserestaurant.com/

http://eatlocalitmatters.com/

The Meeting House is a nice restaurant, with staff that was very considerate of my questions, even though all I had was tea. As for Erica's Kitchen, it is a relatively new, quaint little place in the village of Bedford. I had a caffeine-free, calorie-free tea that tastes "like a creamsicle," as Erica stated. Enticing, organic meals are available. If you're in the area, check out these two establishments.

Latest Weigh-In

As of this morning, my weight is down slightly more -- I weighed in at 130-131. I consider that staying steady more than anythng else, and, from what I understand, I am at a pretty perfect weight for my height. Thank God for that! Back in 2008, when I weighed 265, I hoped I could be at this weight for my 40th birthday, though my target was 160. I have truly been blessed!

Tupelo, Mississippi -- The Nighttime Ride, Elvis, and Hiking

My next planned stop after Natchez was Tupelo, Mississippi, where Elvis grew up. I left Natchez in the late afternoon/early evening, so a lot of driving was done in the dark. Little things from the drive stand out. I stopped in Jackson, Mississippi for a small break, drinking my iced tea, and taking pictures of the State Capitol building from afar. I had my tea at Whataburger, a chain I had never frequented before. I drove on the dark Natchez Trace Parkway -- very pretty in the daytime, very dangerous at night, I subsequently heard -- I suppose I was lucky to arrive in Tupelo safely! When I arrived, I was hungry for my final meal of the day, and decided for a rare meal in a chain -- Waffle House -- which I had frequented when I lived in Florida, but which are not seen in my neck of the woods in New York. My lodging was another American Best room, and very nice for the price.

Unlike many other places I saw on this trip, meals were not notable for the food I ate, but, rather, for the venues in which I ate them! Breakfast, for instance, was rather generic, but I thought that Papa V's, the gas station deli at which I ate, was kind of cool! Here are some pictures:

They have their own hot sauce!

The seats give a bit of a restaurant feel...

Naturally, after breakfast, I went for a tour of Elvis' childhood home. Below is just a small sampling of pictures. The first two are samples of quotes that illustrate my perspective on Elvis as down to earth, despite his immense fame:

The picture below documents what I think is an important fact. Elvis is called the King of Rock and Roll, but he is the only artist in Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, The Country Music Hall of Fame, and The Gospel Music Hall of Fame. I have heard that Gospel music was his first true love, and I thought that should be memorialized in pictures I keep for myself:

Here is a link to the site discussing the home:

http://www.elvispresleybirthplace.com/

Elvis also had a well-known love of cars, and Tupelo has an Automobile Museum. I am not the biggest fan of automobiles, but as I always say when traveling, when in Rome...

Since my knowledge of cars is not anything approaching that of an expert -- or even a person with a healthy hobby -- I can only discuss what I found to be the highlights of the museum. I was particularly fascinated that the original cars were so slow in terms of horsepower -- kind of like the Pong video games of their day! Here are some pictures:

I just liked this car below...

The first Delorean I have laid eyes on, other than the Back to the Future movies...:

And the obligatory tribute to Elvis at a Tupelo tourist spot:

Of course, now being in my 48th State, I enjoyed the license plates below from different States:

Here is the link to the site:

http://www.tupeloautomuseum.com/index.php

I had lunch at Johnny's Drive-In, which Elvis used to frequent. Here are two pictures:

The Elvis theme could have continued indefinitely -- I could have gone to see the school he attended as a child, for instance -- but I am not THAT much of an Elvis fan. I had seen enough for me, and decided to do a little relaxing, contemplative hiking on the Natchez Trace Parkway. Here are a couple of views I enjoyed:

I just liked being able to capture on film a butterfly sitting quietly:

The Elvis fan will not want to miss Tupelo, Mississippi. Nor will the hiker.

Natchez Night and Day

Resuming my review of my Southern Tour...

I arrived in Natchez, Mississippi early evening on Labor Day, September 6, 2010. There were few open establishments, but one of them was easy walking distance from my room (in an American Best, a fine, inexpensive chain). The restaurant was kind enough to stay open a bit late for me, and it is responsible for kicking off my love of Mexican food, which I had not previously known about! The restaurant's name is La Fiesta Grande, and it was the second of two of a small chain in Natchez:

The meal you see was recommended by the waitress, along with some alterations to fit my dietary tastes and needs -- an out of this world steak, yummy vegetables, and a scrumptious guacamole salad, along with tortilla chips. Too much for me to finish!

In the morning, I had breakfast at one of the recommended spots -- The Castle Restaurant at Dunleith -- and received a wonderful surprise -- a free tour of the grounds! It was only supposed to be a 25-minute tour, but my guide took me around for close to two hours, describing each area in detail!

Here are some pictures of my experience:

And here is a link to the house's website:

http://www.dunleith.com/home.html

I followed this experience by having a buggy tour of the city, seeing various historical buildings throughout the city. Little things stick out from this tour, like the dual staircases to entrances, one for the ladies, and one for the men:

I ended my time in Natchez on a more somber note, visiting Forks of the Road, where slaves were sold. I had visited the Nationa Underground Railroad Freedom Center in Cincinnati in 2009, and learned about the site, and the stop in Natchez provided continuity between trips:

The irony to this site in Natchez -- in my mind, anyway -- comes from something I learned in a brief stop at the Visitor's Center, where I watched a movie about thie city, and learned that several minority groups -- Blacks, Women, Jews -- contributed much to the development of the Natchez culture.

Natchez is full of history and attractive architecture. Again, I had learned about the city in an Allan Sherman song, as I described earlier. From the food to the sites, I am glad I visited.