No. 90: Another New Restaurant

No. 90:Another New Restaurant- Bar Louie


When Bunny got home from college, she knew she needed a job. And she knew she needed to make decent money.  Off she went in search of gainful employment.

A new place had opened up in the same spot as where she used to work in Sugar Land's Town Center.  Bar Louie had replaced Lasagna House and apparently it was the hopping new spot to eat. And to work.

Bar Louie

Great outdoor seating area. 

Unless it's June in Texas.

So Bunny of course went and got herself hired. Her work experience has not been painless.  She works ridiculously long hours, has one very difficult manager and frequently ends up working the outside tables which can be lucrative and/or a waste of time. Depends on the weather. But she's making good money so she isn't complaining. (Too much.)

Anyway, like a good mommy, I had to go see what all the fuss was about.

Libby and I met for happy hour a couple of weeks ago. Happy hour is a deal. Half price martinis, wines and beers plus a good selection of half price appetizers. The food portions are plentiful and filling.

Libby ordered the bruschetta for us to share. A giant martini glass lined with toast slices and the center piled high with tomatoes, garlic and goodness was deposited on our table. We also tried a couple of martinis. My new fave is the Lemon Drop and yay! they have a yummy grand one.

Sadly, no pictures exist of this evening.

Once we had decimated the bruschetta, I ordered some buffalo wings (still on the half price menu) while Libby tried an enormous plate of chicken nachos. And maybe we each had another martini.

Good food, plenty of it and great deals from 5pm to 7pm, what's not to love?

In fact, I loved it so much, I went back the following week on a Tuesday night. Tuesday just happens to be $5.00 burger night, too.

This time I went with Martha. Again we tried some martinis. The chips/queso/salsa/guacamole appetizer started our evening. (Still half price here, guys.)   Dinner was a $5.00 hamburger that came with my favorite, tater tots. So filling I could not even contemplate finishing it.

Martha/Me: martinis in hand, burgers in belly.

This is not diet food. This is not health food. But for a fun evening with affordable prices and good solid food, Bar Louie is the place.

And if you're lucky, you'll get this really cute waitress.

Bunny

Waitress extraordinaire

Sometimes the Universe Speaks to Me

Sometimes the Universe Speaks to Me....


Actually I imagine the universe speaks to all of us a lot. But we don't hear. Or don't listen. And then the universe, just like a mom that's been ignored after she has asked for the umpteenth thousand millionth time for someone to please pick up their shoes N.O.W., loses it and screams.

And then I think "Wow! Wise words from the Universe!"

This happened on Friday. The Universe screamed.

If you read my last post, it was a recap of my last month or so. Moving, packing, cleaning, more packing, more cleaning, more organizing kids and dogs and things and more and more and more. All while working almost full time and living life. And signing contracts because THE HOUSE SOLD!!!  I should wait to scream that until the option period is over because I know very well that sold houses often don't stay sold, but I feel fairly positive about this one.

Anyway, after all that running around I had a pretty quiet week where I just worked and signed paperwork and did normal stuff.  My day off on Thursday was non stop with errands, lunch with a friend (at The Dunlavy, my review here) and completing No. 94 followed by taking my mom to her former assisted living place for Casino Night.

A little blurry but of course we had to hit the photo booth.

I have so few pics of me and my mom together. 

Trying to rectify that. 

I had plans to go to Austin on Saturday morning to see friend Ann. Just a quick trip, up Saturday and back on Sunday. See Melissa Etheridge on Saturday night. I knew that didn't allow for any down time, but Melissa Etheridge...  That sounded too good to pass up. And I can have down time when I'm dead.

And then the Universe said "Nope. You need to stay home and just chill."   (Sadly, it didn't suggest Netflix and Chill which would have been more fun.)

How did the Universe tell me this?  Letters written across the sky? A phone call? Nope.

An email from Visa asking me if I had just spent $406 at Target.

Well, of course not. If I was shopping at Target I would have used my Target card. Five percent off.

So I checked my wallet and realized "O yea, that Visa is in the change purse in the car. In my beautiful Kate Spade handbag on the floor in the back seat. Where it has been since I switched purses last week."

You see where this is going?

I walk out to my car to find broken glass and a hole where my back window used to be. The beautiful Kate Spade is gone along with my favorite little pewter cross body that was just the best little all purpose bag.

This isn't how the window is supposed to look.

The Kate Spade had the change purse that had some gift cards (bye...) and my Visa (bye...) and some Loyalty cards (bye...) and who knows what else. There were probably some crumpled Target receipts in there, a few lipsticks and some Advil.  Really I don't know what else. The pewter cross body was
empty.

That little pewter cross body was the perfect size.

It held an iPhone, sunglasses, money AND a brush.

Sigh. 

It was upsetting to see the hole where the car window should have been, but the loss of the purses is what really makes me sad. I bought that Kate Spade as a birthday present to myself when I turned sixty. It elevated everything. I constantly got compliments on it. I constantly got compliments on what I was wearing when I carried it. ("Great outfit!"  Really? I have on jeans with holes, a v neck t shirt and Vans BUT I'm carrying a good handbag. Honestly. It was the bomb.)

Me and Kate.

Yummy leather, big enough for an iPad. 

It's rare for me to find a bag I really love. 

So that was my scream from the Universe. Weather forecast for the weekend was rain. Lots of it. Couldn't get the car to the insurance appraiser until Monday.

That black stuff used to be my window.

You need to stay home. That's what the Universe said.

So I did. Taped my car window up with plastic. And put the car in the garage.

Can we say "Ghetto"?

Friend Cherrilla says maybe my car just has bad juju.

I think she's right.

And Saturday?? I slept in until 11am. Eleven. In the morning. An hour before Noon. I did not get dressed until 3:00pm.

The Universe knew what it was talking about.

Stay home.

Chill.


(And I have already ordered myself a replacement bag. Not the same, but hopefully as wonderful. Maybe better?! We shall see.)

Does the Universe ever talk to you?

Hola!

Hola!
Que tal?

I've surfaced again for a day.

Barely.

What have I been doing the past month?

Packing. Throwing stuff away. Negotiating.
Supervising painters and carpet people and sprinkler people and adult kids and dogs and storage units.

All to end up with this:

It's a sign!

Yep. A "For Sale" sign in front of the house.

I have stripped every bit of personality from a house that we have lived in for 18 years.

Now it is a blank beige slate.

To get to that blank slate I have had to tackle kids rooms....

 Bunny's room 

 It looks like her suitcases threw up.

I will say this was a few days after she returned from college. 

It's not usually this bad.

 After one solid day of cleaning. 

And the Big Guy's room .

Looks like Carlos is probably hunting down some varmint. 

I quit going into this room years ago.

After new carpet, new paint, LOTS of packing and cleaning.

The Big Guy did a fabulous job of pulling it all together- 

even though he did push his deadlines a LOT

Red wallpaper in the kitchen.  I liked it. But apparently it doesn't "show well".

I love this pic.

Bunny in heels doing laundry. 

Won't she make a great housewife??

She probably has on her pearls, too.

Anyway, that red kitchen is not "appealing'. 

Also, way too cluttered. 

See what it looks like ready to sell? 

This is the professional picture off the realtor's page. 

See? Blank slate. 

Pack and pack and pack.


Getting ready to move or sell requires a lot of "decluttering". Also sorting, decision making, wrapping, lifting and cleaning.


When I put No. 20: Move on the original 60x60 list I didn't really know how that would work out, I just knew that I'm a peripatetic sort and a change would be fun.  I thought I had satisfied that challenge sufficiently by relocating to Colorado for a few years, even though that was pretty much just part time.

I had no idea it would eventually end up being a full fledged, clean out every single room and handle every little item kind of move. But it is.

And that's cool. It's a ton of work. I mean, a TON. The adult kids aren't too happy about it but they are adjusting and actually being helpful when it gets to the "clean up your room and get out of the house" part of the showing process.

O! And in the middle of getting this house ready to sell, there was a quick trip to Florida (less than 48 hours) to move Belle and her furniture out of her rental house.
Because, you know, I had not had enough fun packing and moving in Texas.
It started with a delayed flight, then a cancelled flight, a flight rebooked into another city two hours further away, monsoon rains, more furniture and stuff in the house than I had been led to believe and ended up with some amazingly sweet helpers ("Straight up thugs" Belle said but in the end, they emptied our truck and stacked it into the storage unit in ⅓ the time it would have taken us and much neater and more organized than we could have ever hoped for), the use of a truck that saved our behinds and the realization that you can do the impossible if you just put your mind to it.

 Belle has always said she wanted to be a trucker.

Pretty sure I don't have a future as a moving person. 

I will say Belle and I loaded 98% of this truck ourselves. 

I have the bruises to prove it. 

And this is her storage unit.

I swear we did NOT think everything would fit. 

But it did. 

And where am I going to move TO? Who knows?!

I can only cross one bridge at a time. For now that bridge is selling the house.

Stay tuned.