I saw sunshine yesterday morning, while I was still lying in bed, then I rolled over and went back to sleep. Later when I awoke again, it was gone. Was it a dream or was it really the day before? Things are starting to run together around here for me. My monster winter holiday is racing past me now, faster and faster, but not without leaving me a few fond memories to treasure. It has been unusually grey around Saint Louis this December, with very few sunny days. It was definite grey the rest of yesterday. At least until it was time to go out for the evening, then it black and it started to rain. Actually, it was really more sleet, than rain.
Anne, the boys and I joined Joanie and her friend Vicki for a trip through this winter weather to a Winter Wonderland. We went to the Missouri Botanical Gardens, to see their holiday lights special. I thought about rescheduling this event, because of the weather, but our tickets said, “Absolutely No Refunds!” It was crowded, and it was either raining or sleeting and it was cold too, but not near as freaking cold as it had been last year. In some ways this year’s Garden Glow was better than last year’s and in some ways not quite as good. I liked what they did with the reflecting ponds better. Last year the ponds had been emptied, otherwise they would have been frozen solid. The tree that had been spectacularly wrapped in blue LEDs last year had lost a branch in the interval and this year’s wrapping seemed rather half-hearted by comparison. Still it was fun and by the end of our tour, the rain had stopped. The boys seemed to enjoy it too. They were the last ones out.
We all decided to go for an afterglow repast and Vicki suggested the Piccadilly at Manhattan, a place new for the rest of us. The restaurant is located at the intersection of these two streets. I thought that the restaurant was located in Maplewood, because we always used to cross Manhattan on the way to Bruce school for cub scouts, but our waitress informed us that we were a good two blocks into the city. I’ve biked by it before. Built in a house, this restaurant has been owned and run by the same family since 1901. They serve comfort food. The food was good and we were all impressed with it.