Back For Miami Summer

The jet lag is off, and we're fully back home now. Friday night Wifey and I met D1 and Joey at a fun new tapas place in the Roads -- Xixon. The Roads was originally a Miami Jewish 'hood -- along with some Greek folks. My buddy Norman grew up there, and when my in laws came from Israel, in 1960, it was where they first settled -- Wifey being sent to Beth David, where she came home crying since the kids all spoke English and she only Hebrew...

After Castro, the Cubans came and the area became mostly Cuban -- always kept up, though. Lately, like a lot of Miami, it's coming full circle -- less Latin - and many young folks are moving in to enjoy the nice old houses, very close to Brickell and Downtown. And now Coral Way, the main drag, has new restaurants and clubs and stores. In fact, we saw an ad for a new luxury townhome with a cool shared rooftop patio promising views of Downtown. Norman and I actually checked it out -- it had one major problem -- it was tucked right next to Metrorail. Nah -- my family used to , 3 generations ago, have to live near elevated train tracks. I wasn't going to recapitulate that...

Anyway -- we met and had a lovely catch up dinner, hearing about the bubbly and busy lives of our kids. They're leaving today for Europe -- Joey has business in Bulgaria, a country I truly thought only existed in old Rocky and Bullwinkle cartoons -- and D1 is going to stay with friends in London while he's there. Joey will then fly back to London, where they'll spend the weekend, and then go to Amsterdam for a few days before returning to the US, on, appropriately, July 4.

Wifey and I took possession of the spoiled Spaniel, who will live in our hotel for dogs while her Mommy is overseas. Madeleine loves spending time here -- running free in our yard unencumbered with the leash she has for urban living.

Yesterday Paul called and asked if we could meet for lunch. We could, though Wifey had made earlier plans with Diane. So we fetched Diane and met Paul and Patricia at Brickell Citi Centre, where we did a bit of Saturday feasting at Casa Tua, the amazing Italian food hall. Then we strolled through the center, which is outside but cooled by a high tech cooling ribbon that supposedly cost millions to build, and capped the day off at Diane's in the Grove, where we were treated to a spectacular T storm rolling in from the West while we watched in awe.

This am I'm meeting Dr. Barry for breakfast -- we have a lot of debriefing to cover -- and then later will go with Wifey to see my ancient suegra. If the rains stay away, we'll take her on the one excursion she still desires -- to the cemetery to visit her beloved husband's grave.

Of the three Brooklyn best friends, Wifey, Edna, and Jeannette, all had parents who lived a LONG time. My father in law was the first of the Dads to pass, and then Jeannette's Dad and just last week Edna's as well. Now all three mothers survive -- my suegra is the oldest, at 93, and the other two are in their 80s.

It's the classic pattern -- the men die earlier. I always joke that you want to avoid visiting the Palace, where my suegra lives, on Mother's Day -- tough to get parking. But go on Father's Day and it's empty -- most of the Dads are gone.

But for now, I'm just happy to be home, and back into the routine, even though Summer in Miami is my least favorite season. Except for those awesome T storms rolling in most afternoons from the Everglades...