May I Have This Dance?

Grace Kelly

"To be fond of dancing was a certain step towards falling in love." --Jane Austen

A Continuous Birthday Celebration

Though Birthdays come but once annually (thank goodness) their celebrations can be joyously innumerable.

Last night my dearest and best friend Mary hosted a dinner for me. This is something we've done for each other throughout our adult years. She is my best friend and we have known each other since the "third grade."

I want to blog about our friendship but that's a long ,long story so it will have to be saved for another time.

The night was filled with the kind of comfort that comes from being with an old friend. She is family to me. So many stories, so many jokes, so much history between us...things that do not need words. Everything about being with her is comfortable and secure and timeless.

I love her so much that if I stop to ponder the depth of what her friendship means to me I start to cry. We have shared so much of each others lives... great joys, great sorrows, great blessings. We shared our youth and all the adventures that come with growing up together. When you have this kind of history and longevity with someone it is quite a treasure. Mary is such an important part of my life. She is a part of me. A part of my spirit and my joy. No one could ask for a better or more faithful friend.

The cake she served is called "The Paradise Cake". What a lovely name for a cake. It did taste heavenly!

My brother and his wife and my sister and her husband along with Mary's husband David were there with Mike and I. She served a wonderful dinner. It's always warm and cozy in their home.

Here's a photo of two best friends that have known each other since they were in the third grade!

Best Friends Forever

Barb and Mary

"Each friend represents a world in us, a world not born until they arrive, and it is only by this meeting that a new world is born." by Anais Nin

More Hat Thoughts

"A hat is a shameless flatterer, calling attention to an escaping curl, a tawny braid, a sprinkling of freckles over a pert nose, directing the eye to what is most unique about a face. Its curves emphasize a shining pair of eyes, a lofty forehead; its deep brim accentuates the pale tint of a cheek, creates an aura of prettiness, suggests a mystery that awakens curiosity in the onlooker."Jeanine Larmoth

Women and Hats

"Women wearing hats are at once sophisticated and whimsical....

Their faces are younger and softer.

They carry themselves differently,

daintily, like deer.

Their voices flutter a bit...even when they are talking about things like money and power and work, even when it's clear they're very much in charge of their lives." (from "O" Magazine).

A Different Take On The Hat

The way you wear your hat...

The right hat may enliven our imagination of the past...

an old fashioned cloche, a picture hat,

or a toque trimmed with a pouf of polka-dotted veiling

is just enough to make us feel as if we are living in another,

romantic age.

WHAT You Have Never Eaten at The Hat?

I grew up near this place. Yet in all those years and even in recent times when we often drove by this eatery I had never eaten there. The wonderful and most recognizable neon sign stands out during the day and at night. When relatives come from out of town my brother takes them to eat the famous pastrami sandwiches. Recently my nephews were talking about "The Hat" and I said I had never eaten there. They both responded increduously, "WHAT, you've never eaten at the Hat? Uncle Mike would love that place!"

So this past Saturday when we had time on our hands and found ourselves in the San Gabriel Valley we said, "Let's have lunch at The Hat!" The original location is located at a busy interesection of Garfield and Valley Blvds.

You will stand in a long line but it moves very quickly.

Mike ordered drinks, a pastrami sandwich and a chili tamale. We watched in amazement at the orders being picked up by people in the know.

Here's our order a killer pastrami sandwich.

I forgot to take a photo of the chili tamale but it was very tasty too.

Here are some other things you can order. We didn't even know what some of them were but they were gigantic portions and people seemed to really love them.


Wet fries? Who knew...I still don't know what that means.

Okay here's an order I recognize...chili fries (someone else's)

They also serve fries with pickles and pastrami

or this monster dish of chil fries with cheese, tomatoes and pickles.

If you ever find yourself in the San Gabriel Valley/Monterey Park area (or several other locations) stop by and sample

the food at this landmark eatery. It's a fun experience. Make sure you're hungry!

Wikipedia says this:

The Hat is a Southern California fast-food restaurant specializing in pastrami sandwiches.This iconic eatery, once local only to the San Gabriel Valley has been offering its "World Famous Pastrami" to Southern California residents since 1951. Its customers consume 13 to 15 tons of pastrami per week.
The first restaurant opened in Alhambra. It was across the street from the historic Garfield theater (on Valley Blvd and Garfield).

The pastrami sandwich, or pastrami dip, served by the restaurant is a signature item. It comes on a french roll with mustard and pickle with over 0.5 pounds (0.2 kg) of meat. You may also add tomatoes. Along with the large portions of pastrami, the restaurant is also known for serving french fries in a paper grocery bag. The Hat offers no table service, so all of the items are wrapped to go, but paper plates are given to customers who wish to "dine in."

1 W Valley Blvd

Alhambra, CA

91801

Neighborhood: Alhambra

My Own Umbrella

"Be daring, be different, be impractical, be anything that will assert integrity of purpose and imaginative vision against the play-it-safers, the creatures of the commonplace, the slaves of the ordinary." -Cecil Beaton