the best way to kick off a long weekend...

... is with some good, old-fashioned pampering.

When I got to work today, there was just NO ONE there. Which was really annoying, because I was there before 9 for once, and I don't even have any witnesses! In any case, I stayed for a few hours and decided to go home.

On my way back I text messaged Miriam, who was also leaving early. "Food?" I asked. "Yes," she replied. "Herbivore?" I suggested. That got me a real live phone call. "I was actually thinking Memphis Minnie's," she said. The exact opposite of light vegetarian fare, but what the heck, its the weekend.

Afterwards, I mentioned that I really needed a manicure, as I had rib tips stuck under my nails. "That's exactly what I was thinking!" Miriam exclaimed, and we headed over to her favorite salon - Bliss - for a mani/pedi combo.

Mmmmm. I think I may have discovered another "favorite" spot in the city. Bliss isn't like any of the hundreds of ghetto nail places in the city, where no one really speaks English, and they yell at you if you try to leave before your nails dry. (I say all this in fondness, mind you.) The walls are painted a cheerful yellow, there are space-age looking chairs for the manis, and the whole place smells like lemongrass. I got the Moji-Toe pedicure, which included soaking my feet in water with fresh lime and mint, a mint scrub, and a fantasic 10 minute foot massage.

I'll definitely be back. We may even make it a standing mani-date.