Heading to Boston for a party on Sunday, so…since Staten Island, NY is mostly on the way, just a slight detour, so…
I worked all day, then loaded up the car with my bags, my Cricut Joy, the dogs, and me…and we were off! On the road again…ha ha, you are welcome for the ear worm!
It’s about 2.5 hours to get to my dad’s house from ours, not too bad, didn’t hit much traffic, thankfully! We got to my dad’s house, I took the girls for a walk around the neighborhood, gave them dinner while I unloaded the car, and then they explored their ‘paw-paw’s’ house. Check out this shirt I made him for ‘pawther’s day’ last year! World’s Best Paw Paw, with pictures of his grand-doggies! could you just diah! [you need to read that last word with a southern accent!]
I set up the travel crate and, after a bit, got the girls in, then dad and I went to dnner. We were debating where to go and I mentioned mediterranian and we went near the house to a place that used to be a Perkins, which is a 24-hour diner, and now is Zara Forest Grille, a very nice Turkish restaurant. I would say at least 90% of the people there were Turkish or somewhere from the mediterranian.
It was quite the experience! We sat at a small table for two, they brought out a long platter with a giant piece of pouffy bread and olives. We ended up ordering a Shephard Salad, cheese on the side, and an appetizer plate, it had tabbouleh, hummus, baba ghanoush, eggplant salad, and aci ezme. Everything was amazing, except for the aci ezme, it was sssppppiiicccyy! O M G! No thanks! It stayed on the plate! Dad had a soda, he was hoping for Turkish wine, he absolutely fell in love with Turkey and all things Turkish when he and my mom were there for her 50th birthday trip. No Turkish wine dad, sorry. I had a pot of green tea, maybe next time I’ll get Turkish tea, they said it was very strong, I think I’ve had it, but I’ll try it next time.
For dessert, we had…baklavah! It was soooo good! We reminised about living in Israel and him going to the Arab market and coming back with a giant pink box with nothing but baklavah, and I think it weighed about two pounds, and it cost… about 2 dollars! What an amazing experience that summer was…I need to think about it more, maybe share some stories, at least what I can remember!
What a great experience at this restaurant, they had this one dish, we asked about it because there was such a celebration when it came out! First of all, the lights go out, next the music and clapping starts, then the waiter, well almost the entire wait staff, singing over the flaming plate of meat! It was awesome! Not something I’ll ever get, but still fun to see! Thanks for the great evening out, dad!
Then, back to the house, I was going to show my dad how my little Cricut Joy works, I had been telling him about it a few weeks ago, so now he can see it in action. I helped him with an art project that he was working on, it was a win-win! We discussed, rearranged, and figured out where he wanted what and I was able to print some stuff for him to place. That was a lot of fun! Dad, if you need more stickers, or whatever, just let me know!
Eventually, it was time for the girls to go to be, for dad and I to climb the stairs, get in our jammies, and for me to get in my childhood bed, sink into the covers, tallk to you, then pass out. Sounds pretty good!
I think I told you I was thinking about skiing today, but Mother Nature had other ideas, gee thanks…
PSM had to go into work to meet some folks, so I figured since we would be gone/occupied for a few hours, I’d go and hit the slopes for a few, and then we’d meet somewhere new, you know, somewhere off my list!
Since we have four places left to go on our Lebanon Valley Java Journey, let’s get up early, take the dogs for a walk, go to a new place for brunch or at least a drink and a pastry, then he would go off to work, I’d go skiing, etc, but as you know, that didn’t happen! I got up, Bee decided when we got to the end of the driveway, she would not be joining us on our jaunt this morning, grrr…fine…back to the house, collar back on, PSM was still home getting some things prepped to go into work and Ruby and I went for a rainy walk.
We came back and then by the time we got out of the house, we didn’t have enough time to grab anything, so he went off, I went back into the house to take care of things, feed the dogs, laundry, talking to you, you know, stuff. When we was done, he called and then came to pick me up and we went into downtown Lebanon for our first stop at Timeless Cafe. The last time we went, or the first time we tried, it was not a successful venture. The restaurant was crowded and we waited, and waited, and waited for someone to at least look at us and say hello. At that point we were hungry and not interested in waiting so we went somewhere else.
This time, I am happy to say, was a much different and better experience. If it wasn’t on the Java Journey passport, because of that last experience, we might not have gone back. I’m glad we took another chance! Inside, it’s charming, quaint, welcoming, and timeless. Could be all the clocks on the walls set to different times, and the clock hands aren’t moving, so definitely timeless! I just remembered that the first time we went, that was the first time I saw the mugs for the Java Journey and I was intrigued!
I ordered a chai latte, of course, with oat milk, it was pretty good. PSM ordered their signature drink, it definitely wasn’t for him, I think I told you, he’s not a fancy, sweet, or inventive coffee kind of guy, and that’s ok. Someone else probably had it and loved it. I went to the counter and got him a straight up decaf with a little cream, the guy behind the counter didn’t charge me, even when I said I would pay. Score one more for the cafe. PSM was going to have one of their breakfast sandwiches, then a bagel with cream cheese called to him and he answered! They have breakfast sandwiches or wraps that start at 7 o’clock, 8 o’clock, through 12 o’clock, which is what I had: egg, provolone, spinache, and tomato, skip the mushrooms, all on spinache tortilla wrap! I took a chance with the provolone, it wasn’t the best idea, but it was tasty!
We sat, ate, enjoyed, and chatted with the women at the table next to us, they were having baked french toast made with croissants, oh my! We may have to go back! They were also on the Java Journey, we chatted about that, then we asked for some recommendations for things to do, see, eat. Anything that wasn’t on my list already went on it! Thank you ladies!
We tiptoed through the raindrops, got in the jeep and headed on the road, where to? Well, we need to go grocery shopping, soon, not right now. We motored down the road to Jonestown to go to Swatara Coffee, [not sure what happened but their site is under construction, the link is to Google Maps to find them.] another stamp on the passport. I wasn’t expecting to go to another one so soon, but hey, you only live once! Wait, isn’t that what YOLO means? Yes, I am that goofy geek! Thank you very much!
We were wondering why the main drag looked so familiar, did we look at a house out this way? Not sure, but we’ve been through here! We went to Swatara Coffee, it’s a little smaller than the other location in Annville, but it was equally charming. One thing I noticed is that a bunch of these coffee houses sell not only their wares, like t-shirts and hats, some have vendor areas set up, others, like Swatar Coffee, have a specific artist’s earrings for sale, hmm…
The other thing, I’m not used to drinking more than one chai latte in a day! I usually have one in the morning, then it would be a ‘regular’ cup of tea or two, maybe more, but just a teabag, water, and sugar. The days we go to multiple new coffee houses, I’m getting chai, I know, I could get something else, but I want to try their chai latte, so sue me! ha ha
PSM had ordered an egg sandwich, I was not that hungry, but I was thinking a pastry would be nice, and I got their chocolate chip cookie thing! I don’t like chocolate, which you may or may not know, but…I love the cookie part of the thing! It was a thick cookie, some sort of frosting, then cookie chunks on top, let’s just say… O M G! YAASSS! PSM got their french toast muffin, tasty! I enjoyed it at the other location, and now here!
We got there at just the right moment, there was one other person in there, so we got to chat with the girl working behind the counter for a while, we spoke about the Java Journey and she works at the other location and really wants to go to the Whirling Dervish and hasn’t, I showed her pics and really encouraged her to go, but their hours…not easy to get there!
Just as we got to our seats, the place started to fill up! It’s not a very big space, maybe 2 2-person tables, then 2 6-person tables that could be broken up, if needed. In the middle is the coffee bar area, in the back was a room with a few tables. Today the back room had a crochet circle happening, some people were new to it, others experienced, a group of folks crafting and helping each other out. What could be more loverly?!
We got our drinks, I got my chai with mac milk, or macadamia nut milk, I remembered they had it from the other location. Another yum drink! We will definitely be going back, not sure to which location, maybe both, why not?!
After enjoying, laughing, talking with other patrons, we headed out, back towards the house and as we were driving, I suddently realized why it was so familiar! We were right near where the dogs were boarded when we took our 3-week motorcycle trip over the summer! I know I haven’t told you about it yet, I will, it was AH MAZING! I love when things click!
We went to Grocery Outlet, they have a decent selection of vegan stuff for me, score! We were there to pick up salad fixings for the week and see if they had any other goodies! Their prices are really good! The thing about Grocery Outlets, they have the staples, but they don’t always have the same things each time you’re there, and when I talk about goodies, they had Christmas mugs left over with chocolate in them for $1 each! I bought what they had and next year, someone[s] is getting one of these mugs personalized! With fresh chocolate, of course! ha ha
After the grocery store, we were trying to figure out what to do next. It was a chilly, rainy, blech day, we didn’t want to be outside, but we weren’t quite ready to go home. In the same parking lot is Michael’s, the craft superstore, which can sometimes be like kryptonite! I realized I haven’t been in almost 2 months, so PSM pulled into a spot and I went in, just to look, ha ha! I ended up finding some Cricut supplies, normally $18-$20 for $5! You cannot beat it, so I bought a bunch! And I will be using it, some great colors and patterns! Oh, the Cricut, that’s a whole other post!
After I came out, we decided we still weren’t ready to go home and he wasn’t that jazzed about the first playoff game, so we went to one of our favorite activities…mani-pedi! And what that is, a manicure, for the hands, and a pedicure, for the feet! We like Lebanon Nail & Spa of PA, they’re very nice and they do a good job. And PSM’s favorite part…the massage chair, nap time!
Oh, the joy! The bubbles, the jets, the massage chair, the foot massage, oh my! The thing I love about going is to get my cuticles trimmed, my fingernails shaped, and looking cleaner. I’ll be honest, the polish never lasts more than a few days at the most, but my hands look so good! The pedicure, same procedure, luckily, the polish lasts a lot longer on the toes! Just makes me feel purdy!
They finished my nails, I was dry, it’s time to go home! We loaded up, headed home, let the pups out, played with them, and PSM settled in to watch some ‘fusball’. I did something else! I don’t remember! Then about 615p, he headed to the 7th Street Bar & Grill, a neighborhood place we like to go, good staff, good food, and a good local hang out, some of PSM’s co-workers go there and we seem to run into them every once in a while. He was headed there for the game and I hung out with the pups, finished my pho from last night, and worked on the IMRG Chapter 2024 Calendar, I think I told you…I am now the Calendar Queen!
Is that enough for one day? I think I’ve had enough, it’s been fabulous talking with you, but I need to decompress and settle in. Have a fabulous night! See ya’ tomorrow!
Peaches Prattlings 