@sheba2011

Had a bit of nostalgia yesterday with the train ride. Hubby and I used to drive to New Haven to pick up the Metro North Train to Manhattan. It was a lovely ride with tons of scenery to admire and many bridges to cross. The train left us at Grand Central and oh how I enjoyed looking at those old clocks and watching people hustling to other destinations. Within Grand Central was a walk to the subway where we picked up the R or N Train for both the Italian Area and Asian Fare. Loved the many scents from the bakeries and of course before returning home we would pick up so many items. Luckily, we always took one of those carts or what we used to call baggage carts. They, like the Z-Best, folded nicely. We always brought the bungee cords to tie things together. It was fun. We stopped at all the grocery stores on Canal and often bought dishes, chopsticks, and canned goods. This was way before the time where we had Asian markets nearby. There is now a huge market in Rhode Island where they had vegetables that I had never seen before. They had a flowering tree . The flowers were actually buds. I had no idea what they were, but since I was mesmerized by the flower, I bought a few twigs. Well, those twigs turned out to be mini cauliflowers and so delicious. That will be one place I will venture to when we return North. But, going back to New York, the trip home was one more stop. I had to get our bagel fix. Luckily, our favorite bakery had a small market in Grand Central. We not only picked up the water bagels, but also homemade rye bread, seeded of course. Their chicken salad and Matzo Balls were not to be forgotten either. The bakery, Zabar is phenomenal. I just wish they would send things our way. They deliver to the surrounding area only. It’s a deli and grocery store. Oops, just saw the time. Need to get going. I’m debating Asian on the way.

@taci

Welcome home and thank you for your kind thoughts. About three weeks prior to Helene we were inundated with a severe rainstorm that brought some drops into our den area. It seemed to be in the same spot from back to back storms about two years ago. Not wanting to contact the contractors from that time I went on line and found a network that came up with four plus names. Everyone contacted me, but one stood out. I contacted that roofer and he was here the next morning and gave me a price. He did a magnificent job and so when the next storm came I was prepared for water in the house. We were bone dry and everything looked good. Milton came about 10 days later and I hankered down in a middle school about 4 miles from home. There were over 4,000 in this school by Wednesday afternoon. I had stopped to get food for the two days or so, but none were needed because we were fed three meals/day. When we finally got the all clear to leave, I went home. No street lights were working. There was debris everywhere. Roofs were gone, homes were completely demolished. This was just 4 miles from our home. When I arrived, I found that our carport was hit, but it would be an easy fix. Then I went inside. Everything looked good as I went from room to room. On the way back I noticed more light than usual in our den and found no roof. The lanai was again totaled. However, there was no water anywhere. This was a wind event. I immediately contacted the roofer and he was here the next morning and took pictures. Saturday they were here all day and by the time I left to see hubby we had a roof. Not one house on our street remained unscathed. I figured it had to be a tornado. Saturday, the adjuster will be here. I am finding that the insurance company is turning everyone down and I assume the same for me. That company is also negating policies right and left. We heard rumors that they were almost bankrupt. But prior to the storm they said they were OK.. We lost power for five days and of course the frig had to be emptied. The roofer has some last minute things to do for us and then we are squared away. Thankfully we are both OK.

Now, tell us about that trip you took. Guess you were amazed on the food prices. It’s sticker shock for us also.

Sunshine, I have not been to the outlet stores in quite a while. All stores are in Largo, Port Richie and Brandon. When I visited the outlets they carried jewelry, clothing, shoes, purses, luggage, sheets, towels, dishes, kitchenware, electronics. Not sure what they have in crafts. If all you are interested in are the crafts, then I suggest you contact CS. Both the Brandon and Largo stores are near Tampa. Port Richey is about 41 miles North of Tampa. Also be aware that there is construction on Interstate 75 in both directions. They are widening the highway as well as making changes to the on and off ramps.