I hope everyone had a safe and enjoyable holiday! I'm very pleased to say that I did! Anytime I have an extra day off work, it's enjoyable for me! My Mom and stepdad breezed into town on Wednesday night to have the 4th festivities down in the ATL.
On Thursday, they did their own thing in the city. They did a tour of CNN and my mom got some cute pictures taken of her behind a mock news desk. While they were touring the studios, me and LB (friend from work) were at SIX FLAGS!!!!!!!!!!!! I LOVE rollercoasters, so anytime I can go scream and get my adreneline rush, I'm there. This trip started out as a "firm" outing, until the partners pretty much put an end to that pipe dream. So, the office was closing early on Thursday at noon, so me and LB decided to go anyway at the last minute and we had a BLAST! LB was a little skeptical thinking that it would be crowded due to the holiday. I have been to various Six Flags theme parks on holidays such as these and that never seems to be the case. The opposite usually holds true and I'm more than happy to report that I was right! We left the office at noon, got there in no time, scored a supremo parking spot near the front and breezed right in. However, this wouldn't be a cwrites and LB outing without some Lucy and Ethel antics though.
Well, LB had to go the bank before getting on the road. She goes in the bank and leaves her Prada (real, not knock-off) sunglasses in the bank. She conveniently discovers this after we pull all the way out and are sitting at the stoplight. So, she unsuccessfully tries to manuever backing up but doesn't have enough room because there is now a huge truck behind us that can't back up enough to let her get back in the parking lot. So, out of nowhere LB yells "CHINESE FIRE DRILL"! WHAT??!!! I wasn't given the memo back in elementary school what this means. So, for the few of you that are in the same boat as I was, this simply means switch places. She yelled that out for me to get in the driver's seat so she could run back in the bank to get her sunglasses. How we were able to do all this without the light turning green, I'll never know. On second thought, I can see God and the angels in heaven looking down nodding their heads saying, "they're at it again, hold the green light folks!" Anyway, the "fire drill" was succesful and the light turned green as soon as I was in the driver's seat. I pulled out, made a u-turn and picked up "Lucy" standing on the corner with sunglasses in hand. Never a dull moment when we get together!
Okay, now back to the park. We breezed through all the lines with no problem at all. We even managed to get on the best ride in the park, Goliath two times! I unfortunately was not prepared food wise for this trip. I always have my little organic snacks to take with me into the park to ensure I have something to eat. Well, I ended up getting some greasy french fries, but they were "vegan" and I was STARVING so they served the purpose for the day. We had a great time and were glad that we still go to go!
"Here we are with Bugs"- we don't know how they can bear being in those costumes in this ATL heat and humidity. LB joked that while we're all smiles the person in the costume is probably making the most pissed face imaginable.
Now, on to the 4th. Everyone was coming to my crib for a bbq. By everyone, I mean, my parents, sister, nephew and JJ. By bbq, I mean they scorch flesh on the grill while I make vegan fare for me and JJ. I happily report however, that I have mastered my vegan chocolate chip cookies, I just add two tablespoons of molasses to this recipe and they are divine. EVERYONE raved about them and took some home! I've taken cookie pictures before, so I didn't bother this time. So, my vegan cookies were the contribution I made that everyone enjoyed.
For me and JJ there were Amy's Veggie patties, corn on the cob, organic chips and I whipped up some bbq black beans. I just took a can of black beans, warmed them on the stove, added chopped onions, some brown sugar and organic bbq sauce to taste and voila..bbq black beans! My family enjoyed the non-veg regular baked bean variety with pig shavings or excuse me, pork flavoring. I kicked myself for not thinking of making some pasta salad, but I still have the rest of the summer to do that!
After dinner, my parents and nephew played the card game 500 and I drew them into watching some episodes of The Next Food Network Star. After that, we ended up watching Akeelah and the Bee. This was my second time seeing it, and it's such a great movie. I highly recommend it for a blockbuster night. I conveniently was able to order it On Demand on cable from the comforts of home. By the time the movie was finishing, fireworks had started and we were able to see some over the houses on my back patio. This was how I had intended to see them anyway. I wasn't in the mood for any crowds at a public gathering. My family was going to go to Stone Mountain to see them there but the park was packed to capacity already around 5:00 so that ended that plan. All in all it was a very nice and relaxing 4th.
Mom preparing flesh and veggie kabobs for the grill (LOL)
My grill being used for the first time!
Dining table dressed in 4th of July fashions
