Report of the Last Decade Never Sent

(Photo Courtesy of Virtual Tourist)

Dear Friends and Certain Family Members,

You would have no way of knowing that I’ve never included one of those year-end summaries with my holiday cards. Regrettably you've fallen off my list. Since we haven't connected since the year 2000, I thought I’d break the ice with a report providing the high points of my life during the last decade:

Acquisitions

(1) I made the switch from Dell to Apple, and from desktop to laptop, and couldn’t be happier. It’s not that I never owned a Mac computer before, but that was back in the ‘90’s, when that big bug appeared on the screen the week before Daphne’s college applications were due, and I knew we were screwed. Lest you think I’m completely lacking in tech skills, I set up the wireless Internet connection without the help of the incompetents who work at my ISP.

(2) Several months after my son-in-law -- Etan, who by the way is about to start a new job at CNN in Atlanta -- got an iPhone, I decided to toss my Motorola Razor, an embarrassingly archaic piece of junk. No regrets. Remember how once upon a time I lit a cigarette to kill time waiting for friends to show up at restaurants and other venues? Now I play with my iPhone, Tweeting, and monitoring text messages from Etan.

(3) Daphne may have sent me my first Starbucks gift card back when she was in college and I was drinking lattes. But it’s only recently that I’ve begun recharging the card amid the discovery that it’s a drag to have coins ruining the distressed Coach wallet I hope will last another decade. I now have a Dunkin Donuts card, courtesy of my employer, and also an iTunes card, thanks to Daphne and Etan.

(4) Recently I purchased a second digital camera in partnership with Dennis. It’s funny that when I was ordering that Dell desktop back around the turn of the century, a friend at the office asked if I’d need extra memory to accommodate photo downloads. Early adopter that I am, I said “Nah, I don’t think I’ll ever buy a digital camera.”

(5) The many large pieces of decorative glass, mostly purchased by Dennis, strike fear in my heart when I think of small children or the cleaning people I don't have. Though some folks decorate with colorful towels, table linens or plants, Dennis prefers the brilliant colors of Waterford and Kosta Boda studio glass. Forgive me for bragging but I think we now have a better collection than Bloomingdale's.

Travel

If you think I’m going to engage in a game of one upmanship by telling you about trips to Nepal, Bhutan or Patagonia, you’re setting yourself up for disappointment. Given our limited funds, we dedicated the bulk of our travel budget to visiting family.

(1) Dennis and I traveled to Copenhagen to attend a post wedding reception for his daughter, Julia and son-in-law, Ras. Herring buffets, trips to legendary pastry shops, and long runs around the canals were the order of the day. Not that I’m status conscious, but at the reception, Ras' mom seated me next to a former high-ranking official from Maersk.

(2) One of Daphne’s first jobs after Columbia Journalism School took her to Williamsburg, VA. Dennis and I were there within weeks of her move. We dined at A. Carroll’s Bistro, a place with a great martini bar and delicious crab cakes, which Dennis didn’t eat because he grew up in a Kosher home. We also dined at the Williamsburg Inn because Dennis wanted Daphne to experience a scene of sweeping green lawns and spring flowers while enjoying a mint julep. After Daphne introduced Dennis to The Cheese Shop, he developed an addiction to Virginia ham and Swiss cheese sandwiches on crusty whole grain bread.

(3) I spent a fabulous five days at The Sanderling on the Outer banks. Daphne joined me for part of the time. After spending each day doing nothing more taxing than sunbathing on a large, private swath of beach featuring only one or two quiet, well-behaved children, and bathing in the warm ocean water, we relaxed with raspberry iced tea and freshly baked shortbread, butterscotch and chocolate chip cookies.

(4) Orlando is what it is, but when Daphne’s job took her there, Dennis and I were happy to make the trip. Just for the record, I had never been there before, favoring Barbados and Cancun for winter breaks. But Dennis came to love the Charles Hosmer collection of Tiffany glass in Winter Park, and I found the designer outlet malls irresistible. But the best part was going to a Tweetup with Daphne and Etan, where I query the Orlando Sentinel's former food critic on restaurant ideas.

(5) Lest you think I’m lacking in sophistication or an appreciation of the finer things in life, I’ll close by mentioning that Dennis and I had the privilege of visiting the Uffizi and the Accademia in Florence. My husband wowed a couple from Bay Ridge with his knowledge of art. Now would be a good time for me to apologize for shooting that pic of the guard talking on the phone while the rest of the group on our Perillo Tour was admiring Michelangelo’s David. Our tour guide attributed the guard’s subsequent outburst to mental illness, and I feel bad about the incident.