Breakin' Balls on a Chill Friday

So I was up early yesterday, and driving Wifey to MIA for a trip to D2 in the City.  Her journey was uneventful, and I got some nice photos and later lovely FaceTime (tm) of our new go-to hotel in Greenwich Village (2 blocks away from the new daughter digs) and Wifey and the young couple strolling the lovely and historic streets.

I decamped to LOL, and caught up with Lori, my 20 something year waitress.  She went back to nursing school, at advanced age, and in August finally begins work locally.  The good news is she plans on staying at LOL weekends, so there will remain life balance in this corner of the 305.

I thought about heading to the office, and then assessed the personnel situation.  My partner -- off doing his thing.  John -- on a plane to Pensacola, to start FD early.  Stu -- continuing the "it takes a village to help an elderly mother" project -- off helping his Mom following hip surgery.  So had I been the only one in the office, it would have meant I was a schmuck -- and my Daddy didn't raise no schmuck...

So instead I happily surprised the dogs, and went home, where a lovely late afternoon nap, during the unwatchable POTUS Miami Cuban speech, was in the cards for me.  I really don't get it.  Trump comes here, says "Castro Si/Cuba No" to the silly old men who have been unable to free Cuba for nearly 60 years now, they cheer, and Trump does actually nothing.  He promised to break the "weak" deal Obama made with Cuba.  Essentially all he did was make it tougher for individuals to travel there.  And morons cheered.  Such is our country -- at least a sizeable part of it...

Anyway, I awoke and Ubered to the Grove, where I had plans to meet young Vince and older Joel.  We met at Glass and Vine, the preface to a joke:  An Italian, Jew, and Irishman walk into a bar...

Vince grew up wealthy in LA, but his parents were working class Irish folks from LI.  His Dad hit it big in the record business, and moved the family to the City of Lost Angels.  Joel grew up upper middle class in Pinecrest, but likes to think he has street cred since it was the crazy Miami 80s.

Vince is a confirmed bachelor.  Coming from his big Irish Catholic family, and seeing all the dysfunction among his siblings and their marriages -- he wants no part of it.  He dates exotically gorgeous, mostly Eastern European and South American beauties -- not types to bring home to mom -- and he's happy as a clam at high tide.

Joel is married to an awesome lady -- half Irish and half Italian, also from LI, and they have three handsome sons.  Joel sends them to the top private schools in Miami, and I thoroughly enjoyed telling Joel his boys, unlike his school life, were among some of the worst human beings in city -- spoiled, entitled, born on third base and thinking they hit triples...

Joel ground me about certain aspects of my life, and we both made fun of Vince, and so it went...it was exquisite...three men mercilessly making fun of each other -- breaking balls, as we call it.

There was no better way to spend an otherwise uneventful and chill Friday...I enjoyed it immensely.