Post-Cancer Solo Celebration! March 4-9, 2018 (UPDATE 3/10: DAY 3 DINING REPORTS)

DINING REPORT
DAY THREE - DINNER
RALPH BRENNAN'S JAZZ KITCHEN

My daughter lives an hour outside of New Orleans, so I always stay in the city when I visit her (including this summer at her upcoming wedding!). I've had a lot of amazing meals, but my favorites have always been at the Brennan family's upscale flagship: Brennan's. Breakfast or dinner - it's always an amazing treat.

And while I wasn't expecting that level of experience, I was really looking forward to trying Jazz Kitchen. Unfortunately, between my creeping pain, feeling groggy from a long nap and having eaten WAY too much at Blue Bayou, I don't think I gave JK enough of a chance. I will definitely need a redo!

That said, it's a truly lovely space, inside and out, with courtyards, iron works and stairs that definitely remind you of NOLA. Here's the entry to my dining room through the main courtyard:

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This guy played some great tunes on the piano, include several cute versions of 'happy birthday'. My only problem was he kept claiming he was from New Orleans, and pronouncing it completely wrong. At one point, I texted my sisters and mom (we grew up in Bayou Country) and said that every time he said it, I wanted to scream: "NO, YOU'RE NOT!!!"

I didn't. ;)

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My server (dressed to the nines as I'd expect at a Brennan's restaurant) was clearly new, and had to read his spiel off a cheat sheet. He did admirably though, and I gave him a big tip just because I knew he was new. (I even left a note on the receipt thanking him for the great service; I like to do that especially with new servers, because the boss sees it.)

Here are the menus:

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I wasn't feeling wine or cocktails so I stuck to a Coke, and then ordered a salad as a starter. This was...not great, to be honest. First, it hardly had any mixins: just a huge pile of leaves. The dressing had no tang to it and quite honestly was mostly a slick of oil. And the weird things on the top? Those are supposed to be candied pecans but they were chopped so finely that when he set it down in front of me, my mind immediately flashed to my cat's kibble. Not appetizing. I probably wouldn't order this again.

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The shrimp and grits however? As I told my sisters, they were LEGIT! The grits - which are impossible to get right in California - were amazing with a tang from the parmesan and a bit of a bite from the bits of andouille sausage. The shrimp were perfectly cooked, and swimming in a nicely textured BBQ sauce with just the right amount of kick.

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I would eat this every trip if I could, and just might. I only wished my stomach had more room!

Now, my server really, really wanted me to have to dessert. I just had no room, and I had really been enjoying the various desserts in the lounge (they changed nightly), so I passed. He tried again and I passed again.

Then he brought me my check and said he'd gotten me a dessert anyway. ??? I didn't even have my button on, I don't think, so I don't know what was up with that.


Anyway, sure enough he came back with a HUGE bag of beignets. Not one beignet. At least four. I thanked him profusely, but honestly, I just didn't want them and they're not exactly good cold.

As I walked back through the entrance to the hotel, I asked the young men at the metal detectors if they could have them. They looked at the bag longingly but said they weren't SUPPOSED to...until their boss walked up and said: "Sure! Grab 'em!"

Hopefully they got to eat them while they were still warm.
 
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REAL LIFE BONUS

Thought you might want to see StellaDog enjoying her new presents. The Minnie dress/harness is from Disney Home (this dog does love her some clothes) and I found the Marie cat with extra-long, fluffy tail for Stella to rip out at World of Disney.

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And yes, I spent entirely too much money on a dog. Story of my life.

 
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I have really loved the stories of human interaction, connection, and human kindness that you have shared in your TR. The rides are great and the food is unique, diverse, and tasty, but it is the positivity that you feel in those human interactions that make the Disney parks so very special. The story of Sarah and the Tigger Tails guys were especially touching. It warms my heart that you have been able to take such a challenging experience and make it one that creates connections and a dialogue on coming out the other side and getting back out there.

Stella looks great by the way - I'm sure your roommate is just as happy as she is that you are home :goodvibes
 
I have really loved the stories of human interaction, connection, and human kindness that you have shared in your TR. The rides are great and the food is unique, diverse, and tasty, but it is the positivity that you feel in those human interactions that make the Disney parks so very special. The story of Sarah and the Tigger Tails guys were especially touching. It warms my heart that you have been able to take such a challenging experience and make it one that creates connections and a dialogue on coming out the other side and getting back out there.

Stella looks great by the way - I'm sure your roommate is just as happy as she is that you are home :goodvibes

Thank you so much; that means a lot coming from you. I think that's really the magic about Disney...people are generally so happy to be there that our walls we build around ourselves come down a bit and you're able to connect more with people than you might in your daily life. The people I met absolutely were the best part of this trip.

And Michael loves Stella (EVERYBODY loves Stella), he was just worried because her behavior was so out of character. And my cat was also acting weird and sad, so yeah, he was glad I was home so they'd be happy again. They're both on top of me as I speak. :)
 


I'm going to take a break from these boards for a bit, and maybe come back to this update. Thanks for everyone who's followed along.

All I can say is...

Be kind.

Be kind.

Be kind.

One day, that person who needs kindness WILL be you.
 
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I'm going to take a break from these boards for a bit, and maybe come back to this update. Thanks for everyone who's followed along.

All I can say is...

Be kind.

Be kind.

Be kind.

One day, that person who needs kindness WILL be you.

Beautiful... and worth repeating...
 


Thanks for your words of encouragement. I look forward to your return! :hug:
 
I don't think I'm the only reader who has fallen a little bit in love with you...! :D Thanks for your very sweet and inspirational Trip Report. It made me consider how much the tiny thoughts and actions we choose can impact others.
 
Oh my God...can't believe I've been gone so long! I blame my new job! I'll start catching up...
 
DAY FOUR, OVERVIEW
PART ONE

On the way out this morning, I was on a full elevator with some seniors, and a woman a bit older than me. The grandad recognized my button and congratulated me, then told me to have faith because his mom and grandmother also had cancer and both beat it. I said I was thrilled to hear about survivors and the other lady told me she was one too. I spoke to the senior couple a bit more and they told me about their 4 yo grandson who’s going through it and how hard it is for everyone. Breaks my heart.

Day Four started out with gorgeous weather, and a DCA EMH. It was definitely more crowded than my first EMH; the lines at the gate were fairly long. That was partly due to the fact that a lot of people don’t understand the EMH concept. Tons of people waited 20-30 minutes only to get turned away at the gate. Why don’t they have signs??

Anyway, I got in and truth be told, it wasn’t a great EMH for me. I wanted to ride the lesser known rides, but most of them weren’t open. I started with another ride on Soarin’ (still awesome). I greeted both of the CMs:

“Good morning, Michael”

“Good morning, Clinton!”

Clinton seemed especially happy at that and said “Well, good morning, sweetheart! How are you?”

The lady in front of me thought I came here all the time until I pointed out they had name tags.

“Oh. I thought you were magic, but it turns out you can just read.”

I laughed and laughed.

After that, I went to see if the pier rides were open, but they weren’t except for Goofy’s Sky School, which I rode again. Still fun, but my tummy was a bit funny feeling after that. I did run into the dad and kids who’d been behind me in line yesterday and was sure to ask them about the rides they had wanted to go on. The little boy was bummed because he was too short for Star Tours, but I assured him he’d be super tall soon enough.

Afterwards I decided to check out Bugs Land for Flik’s Flyers. Still closed. I ended up with a trip on Monsters Inc, then headed to DL for my 10:30 breakfast.

Here’s where the fun started! Pluto was meeting in Town Square and his line was short, so I jumped in. A sweet lady offered to take my picture. When it was my turn, he threw his arms around me, and knocked off my Minnie ears. He was so embarrassed! But all was right with the world when I put them back in place.

He then pointed to my button, and scratched his head like: ‘What does remission mean?’ I told him what I told kids: that I was really sick and now I’m better. He started jumping for joy and gave me a huge hug and kiss. It was such a great meet that I decided to do more characters.

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But first stop was Carnation Café for breakfast and my first ever Mickey waffle! (Yes, seriously.) Then it was off on a character hunt!


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I started off with Tinkerbell, who was completely sweet and charming and put me at ease right away. (Though I wish she’d had a PhotoPass photographer; the pics the CM took for me weren’t great.)

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Next, I decided to visit the Star Wars launch bay and meet some bad guys. First stop, though, was Chewie. Let me just say, he DOES give the best hugs. He was also impressed because we both had bags worn cross-body and wanted to compare. He was the only character with a photopass guy.

Next up were Darth Vader and Kylo Ren. Vader asked me if I was a rebel spy and I paused for a long time thinking then finally said: “Uh…no. No, not me. Absolutely not.” He paused himself and then said, “I don’t believe you.”


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As for Kylo, when he walked up to me, I said “Hey. How’s it going”, and he replied “Let us hope you did not expect an answer to THAT.”

KR: Join the First Order or be destroyed.

Me: But I can’t join the first order. I’m wearing pink shoes! You can’t join the First Order in Pink Shoes.

KR: ::stares::

Me: I’m just saying…

KR: Stop talking.

ME: Okay


The attendant broke character and laughed when I pointed out my shoes.

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Since I was on a roll with the characters, I headed toward Fantasyland and Royal Hall. The wait seemed interminable (though it was probably only 15-20 minutes) and my joints were killing me. I really needed a pain pill, but didn’t want to drop out of line so suffered through it.

They also did not have a PP photographer, and it was kind of a pain to get the attendant to take pics for me.

I started out with Snow White, who was super boring. She just basically said “Hi. Let’s take a picture”. Ariel just prattled on about a bunch of stuff I couldn’t understand. But Cinderella was great.

She asked me who else I’d met, and I explained about the Dark Side boys and my shoes. She nodded knowingly and said: “No, I’m afraid that even if you wanted to – which you shouldn’t – you can’t join the Dark Side in those shoes. It just wouldn’t be good for anyone.”

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Cinderella 1, Dark Side 0

Afterwards, I finally got my pain pills and limped over to New Orleans Square, where I bought three new Pandora charms for my new Pandora bracelet. On the way back to the hotel, I did check Anna and Elsa’s line, but wasn’t willing to wait 45 minutes, so I headed back to the hotel to rest, getting a return time for Toy Story on the way.
 
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She asked me who else I’d met, and I explained about the Dark Side boys and my shoes. She nodded knowingly and said: “No, I’m afraid that even if you wanted to – which you shouldn’t – you can’t join the Dark Side in those shoes. It just wouldn’t be good for anyone.”

Haha - I am enjoying reading your trip report!
 
This has to be one of the most inspiring trip reports i've ever read. You capture the spirit of Disney along with Cinderella's moto of 'Have courage and be kind'. Congratulations on your remission, may it ever stay that way. Looking forward to the rest of the your report.
 
Did you have a port a catheter? I’ll be going in July 1 week after chemo ends. Thanks!
 

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