Another Year Older; A Brazilian Feast

Last Saturday (7 Feb.) was my birthday. It was a low-key celebration at home with my Mom, as I opened a few presents (including a new bed robe, a model kit, and a book. At noon, I co-hosted Writer's Block, the monthly online radio show from ANCA Radio Shows--Autistic People. Host Tim Pylypiuk and I discussed adaptations (such as from book to movie), and the challenges writers and editor have with them. It went well and you can listen to it here: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/autistic-people-/2015/02/07/writers-block-adaptions--10am-pstradio-drama-the-grooming-hour-11am-pst

After the show, Mom and I went to Crusoe's Restaurant in Oakville for lunch. I had a coupon for several dollars off an entree from there. We had a good lunch and returned home.

The next night, after a rather quiet weekend (apart from working on a couple of model kits), I was at Yemanja Brasil Restaurante in St. Louis' Benton Park neighborhood. I joined 10 others from the Ethnic Restaurant Fans Meetup group for the Yemanja Day Celebration. (Yemanja is the Queen of the Ocean in the Umbanda religion in Brazil, which combines African traditions with Roman Catholicism, Spiritism, and Indigenous American beliefs.) We enjoyed a four-course dinner from a menu for the night. I started with a Cocktail de Camerão appetizer (which featured rock shrimp), followed by Salada de Bacalhau (shredded cod and vegetables on a bed of lettuce), an entree of Caldeirada do Mar (a kind of fish stew), and completed with Pudim de Chocolate (a flan dish) for dessert. I drank a Cadillac Caipirinha before and during this dinner, then had a cup of hot coffee with and after dessert. All in all, a very good dinner and some wonderful conversation. I highly recommend Yemanja Brasil Restaurante. You can visit their website for more info: http://www.BrazilDining.com.

Back to work Monday and things have been going well at our branch. Plenty of business to keep us humming. After work Monday, I was at the Grand Glaize Branch of the St. Louis County Library for the monthly soccer referee clinic. We had a presentation on the evolution of the Laws of the Game, which I found interesting, followed by discussion of the correct decisions in several game situations.

Took care of my laundry today and got in some painting on one of my models. I'm getting close to finishing them for this Tuesday's IPMS/Gateway meeting, which will have the Out of the Box Contest--the first of four contests in 2015 towards Modeler of the Year. More info on the club here: http://ipms-gateway.com.

I'm going to a planning meeting tonight. Will tell you more in my next post.

Later.