Sunny very late Winter/ very early Spring Monday

So begins another week after a somewhat frustrating yet overall enjoyable weekend. The weekend started off well enough with my driving in from the beach late Friday morning. That afternoon, I was to join JG to go to the Philadelphia Flower Show. By most accounts, it's the largest flower show in the United States, if not the world, and countless visitors attend the event. Some travel great distances to view the enormous display. We were going to be met at the show by her friend A then afterwards, we would join A's partner J and JG's partner JT for dinner in Chinatown. I have met A and her partner J on a couple of different social occasions in the past and though I don't really know them well enough to consider them friends, they both seem very personable and I'm sure that by the end of this year, I will be able to move them from the "social acquaintance" category to the "friends" category.
I arrive back in NJ at about 12:30 and do a few things about the house for a couple of hours as JG is picking me up at 3:00. While I'm tending to the cats, my phone rings and it's JT. We chat briefly about the flower show that she will be missing this year and then she asks me about my plans for Saturday evening. I told her that George was coming up and that we had tentative plans to hang out with MS and KK and to attend an art event at their place as well as to check out the latest exhibit at the Perkins Center for the Arts which was opening that night. It's an exhibit of wood-turning and a friend of mine had some work in it.



JT informed me that she and JG had been invited to the home of CS and MM for dinner on Saturday evening and that they had asked her if George and I were free as they would like to extend the invitation to us as well. I have met CS and MM on several occasions over the last year and a half and we always get along very well. They are on my "friends" list. Late last Summer, they purchased on of my works entitled "Memory".



At the time that they purchased my work, they informed me about a close friend of their's who was a well connected art buyer. They told me that they wanted me to meet him one day because they thought that he may be interested in my work. It just so happens that he and his wife would be attending the dinner Saturday evening as well. I told Jacquie that that sounded not only like a great opportunity but that it sounded like fun as well. I told her that IO wanted to check with George, though I was sure that he would agree, and that I needed to call MS & KK and change my plans. Being both artists, MS & KK , would understand the importance of dinner with a well connected art buyer and potential client.



So I phoned George, MS & KK, and informed them all about the change of plans. At around 3, JG shows up and we decide that we would take the High Speed line into the city to avoid the massive amount of traffic connected to the Flower Show. It was held at the Convention Center so we got off at 8th and Market and walked in. It was very sunny bit still a bit cold.
We arrive and I have to but tickets. I figured that I would use my brand new USAirways Dividend Miles Visa card to purchase the tickets to add to my air miles. I stand in line briefly only to have my card declined for some reason at the window. That's when the yellow caution light whet off in my head that something was amiss with USAirways. I had already had a nightmarish experience with them the previous weekend when I purchased our tickets to Italy. I couldn't help but think that this was connected somehow.
I pule out another card and purchased my ticket and Janet and I waited for A to appear. There were people everywhere though we had yet to enter the actual show. It wasn't long before A arrives and we all head up stairs. The theme of the show was "The Flowers of Ireland" or something of that nature. The first thing you notice of course is the lovely scent of fragrant flowers everywhere.
I wish I could explain how large this display is but I simply can not. We were there for over 3 hours and we still didn't see it all.



There were so many people everywhere that taking photos was rather difficult and many of mine didn't come out very well. These displays were really breathtaking with waterfalls, Irish Cottages, life size, robotic animals, Irish dancers, bagpipes and more. Here are a few of my images that did work.







You can read more about this wonderful display (and see much better photos) at their website. The Flower Show.com.
After the show, we took a short walk to Rangoon, where we were to meet JT and J. Rangoon is a Burmese restaurant in the China Town section of Philadelphia. I had never had Burmese food before and I was really looking forward to it. I was also so hungry at this point that on old shoe in Burmese sauce would have proved tempting. The restaurant was simply, but nicely decorated and very popular. A suggested it was because of the Flower Show. We had made reservations and it wasn't long before we were seated. It was a bit awkward at first because of the table we were seated at. It was a rectangular table for 6. There were 5 of us, 4 of whom were 2 couples. So after JT and J arrived. they sat next too and across from each other. I sat on the end away from the wall which threw the balance off a bit. It was visually I'm sure odd because I was this giant blond haired man sitting at the end of a table with 2 somewhat petite lesbian couples. Because of where I sat, it was somewhat difficult to join into the conversation, but I was able to enough that we all enjoyed the experience. I must say, that the food was very enjoyable. We all ordered several different salads and entrees sampling some of each. They were all just phenomenal. You can check out their website here...http://www.phillychinatown.com/rangoon.htm

I really want to include here how totally crazy my Saturday turned out to be starting with the hell of trying to work out the USAirways issue and ending with the dinner party, but I have to get my day started. I will revisit this afternoon and follow up.