Foodies Untie

Friday in Lexington

While my husband had to scramble first thing in the morning so he could go play golf, I had the leisure of taking it nice and slow. I had decided that I wasn't going to worry about eating a big breakfast, so I didn't have to rush to get down to the hotel restaurant before they stopped serving breakfast.

Hmm, I thought I wasn't going to eat a big breakfast? I stopped in at the hotel's Starbucks Coffee Shop and got a large, er grande, er venti (who comes up with this stuff?) coffee and a blueberry muffin. But of course this is not your average muffin. No, this is a muffin on some serious steroids. This muffin is the size of a small country. But it was so very good, even if I couldn't eat the whole thing.

I had found a seat overlooking the hotel's lobby and sat down to drink my coffee, nibble on the huge muffin and write in my notebook. I also people-watched, one of my favorite activities. People were traveling to and fro, some there for conventions and business meetings, others on vacation. I saw some people I knew from our own large group (figure about 400 people).

And now, a public service announcement: Men, please heed this piece of advice. If you are wearing shorts and must wear socks, then you may only wear white socks. No, this is not the time to match your socks with your shorts or your top. Only white socks may be worn with shorts. Got it?

Also, if you are going to wear socks with shorts, then you must wear tennis shoes, sneakers, high tops, running shoes, etc, but not sandals. If you are going to wear sandals then you must go without socks. That is all.

After the storms last evening and through the night, Friday morning shone bright and clear.

Don't you like the views from our balcony?

I'm happy to say that I was able to spend quite some time out on the balcony, writing on my laptop. I figured out that I could plug my computer into the wall under the desk and sit outside with the computer. Neat, huh? By noon I had finished my first blog post for our trip and I was feeling pretty good about myself.

Looking at the clock, I realized that unless I wanted to rush through my lunch, I had better get down to the hotel's restaurant, JW's. As the hostess was getting ready to seat me, two of our Masonic friends spotted me and told the hostess that I would be eating with them. Right away I noticed the electric scooter parked next to their table and asked who had gotten hurt. It turns out that my partner in crime from last year's Council of Deliberation had gotten a stress fracture in her foot and was to stay off that foot as much as possible until it healed.

While Sally and her husband had ordered the buffet lunch, I opted to order off the menu. I was craving salad and found one that I could happily eat.

JW's lunch menu.

I ordered the Steakhouse Sirloin Salad served with Gorgonzola, Red Onions, Bacon, Tomatoes and Blue Cheese Vinaigrette.

Just what my body wanted and needed.

Ah, and my body wants and needs this too. Prior to our arrival, I had made an appointment for the Spa at Griffin Gate.

The wonders of an 80 minute Griffin Gate Signature Massage. Oh, and don't forget the Griffin Gate Spa Pedicure. Very nice. And in case you are wondering, yes, a deep tissue massage does hurt, but you feel so good afterwards that it is worth the momentary pain.

The hotel even sports a hat shop. Yes, I had brought my own hat for the evening's festivities, but let's look at the offerings.

I like this hat. And it's only $150. Yeah, did I mention that I brought my own hat?

This *cough* beauty will only set you back $1,500. Yikes. Reminds me of something that my great, great, great grandmother might have worn.

Okay, so obviously we won't be purchasing any of these fine hats from Anne Sawyer. Sorry, Anne, but I'm just too cheap for your tastes.

Now I'm ready for the events.

Oh, and my hat? I had several people comment on my plain hat and insist upon taking pictures of me in my hat. You want to know a secret? This was my gardening hat. And I probably paid about $10 for this hat, max.

Friday evening we went out to the Pavilion behind the hotel. This is a large, somewhat permanent tent, complete with chandeliers, several large air conditioning units and a sprinkler system. We guess-timated that there were about 400 people in attendance for the buffet and "An Evening at the Races". Each year we have a different theme for the Friday dinner.

I chose roast beef, ham, roasted potatoes, salad and a corn muffin from the buffet for my meal. Regretfully, I had to pass on the fried chicken. Beef burgoo was also offered, so I had to have some of that. Yep, it's spicy. I'd say this is a very nice alternative to your average run-of-the-mill beef stew.

My husband chose a pecan pie for his dessert.

He was nice enough to pick up a piece of chocolate cake and a lemon bar for me. Yum!

And now on to the entertainment. We were each given a packet containing the six-race program, a pencil and $6,000 in play money. We were told that the top three winners at the end of the evening would win prizes.

One of our friends at our table declined to participate, given that he is a retired Methodist minister and gambling goes against his beliefs. To his credit, George made sure that none of us, including his wife, felt bad about playing along.

And they're off... placing their bets.

At the end of the evening, I had "won" $1,000 overall. I also had several losing tickets, but I am pleased with my haul.*

*Please note that I would likely never bet real money. I would certainly side with George and decide that I would rather keep the money I have in hand rather than risk it in betting.

My husband "won" $18,000.

But even that wasn't enough to win tonight. The three winners had "won" $84,000, $88,000 and $100,000 respectively. Remind me not to bet against those three.