Hey Family!
I had brunch with my old friend Lawrence Axmith a few days ago. Lawrence was my old theater director during my New York Youth Theater days. He lived in NY during out theater days but he moved back to his hometown of Toronto, Canada a few years ago. Occasionally he comes to NY to visit and lol...mostly shop. We always try to hook up when he's here and this time was no different.
We decided to have brunch in his old stomping grounds in Chelsea and we met at a restaurant called The Dish on 20th Street & 8th Avenue. It was ridiculously hot this morning but beautiful nonetheless. As I walked down 8th Avenue I couldn't help but notice how much the area has changed in the last few years....gone are all the eclectic little restaurants with the great food and the little shops that added so much character to the area. Of course the rainbow flags are still proudly hanging everywhere but that was one of the few things that were still familiar to me.
Anywhoo....The dish is this cute little restaurant with a diner sort of feel to it and I was a little early arriving so I took advantage of the lovely little bench they had right in front of the place. The awning was down as I read the paper but it didn't matter.....lol...I still felt like a roast goose by the time Lawrence arrived.
I was so engrossed in the paper I was reading that I didn't even see him approach me. When I looked up and I saw him standing there a big ol' smile crossed my face....I hadn't seen him since out last shopping trip a few summers ago. He looks good and more importantly he looks happy to me. We quickly got out of the sun and took a booth in the back of the restaurant, I immediately ordered a cup of coffee for myself as we both took a look at the long and varied menu.
We both decided to have The Dish's version of a "Grand Slam Breakfast"...Eggs, Pancakes, Bacon, Ham & Sausage (yeah..I KNEW I shouldn't have been eating all of that damn pork...but I did it anyway..lol). As we waited for the orders to come, we sipped out coffees and got caught up on each other's lives. Lawrence has a new girlfriend and she's a cutie!!! He also showed me photos of his nephews who are absolutely gorgeous and growing so quickly.....
By the time our food arrived I had brought him up to speed about the Daytime Emmy Nomination for Made and all of the other happenings in my life. The plates were loaded with steaming hot food and I realized immediately that my "eyes were bigger than my stomach" but I gave it the old college try anyway.....lol....I DID however, eat all the damn meat that came on my plate!! After having 12 cups of coffee (lol...just kidding) and taking a bunch of photos, Lawrence called for the check and after bidding good bye to the ENTIRE STAFF...lol...ya'll know how I do fam.....we decided to walk over to the East side so Lawrence could stop at a few stores.
By the way family...you DO know that all that pork made me sick as hell right?? Yup. It did.
We hit Steve Madden, Calvin Klein, Aldo, Banana Republic and a few other stores before I bid him adieu near the Empire State Building. He bought some great slacks and a white jacket that I thought was FUNKY AS HELL!!!! I love being the style critic when I shop with him!!
He also gave me copies of some of the shows we had performed together at NYYT and I promised him he'd have them back before he left town on Monday....so you KNOW I rushed home and burned copies of every last one!!! (yeah...I know...I'm a collector) and then I burned him some copies of some of my work that I knew he hadn't seen yet.
Thanks for the Brunch and the "Walk & Talk" my love!!! You know that I always enjoy your company and I truly miss the input you had in my "theatrical life"...lol...I cannot wait to get the opportunity to work with you again.
I will see you soon....maybe next time...I will come to YOU!!
**MUAH!!!** Love you Pookie!! Continued Success in ALL that you do!!!
"It is one of the blessings of old friends that you can afford to be stupid with them."
