Last Suppers

As I was driving today from Job 1 to Job 2, stuck in my usual traffic,  I realized something.  A month from now I will probably still be stuck in traffic, except instead of it being from Astoria to Great Neck, I will be stuck in traffic getting from the Argentinan to the Brazilian side of Iguazu.  Yeah, I know my life is rough.

There are only 18 more days left before I leave New York for the longest consecutive time I’ve ever spent away from my beloved city.  This whole idea of taking an extended leave has really put things into perspective and the “what would you do if you only had a week to live” concept has been ringing in the back of my head for the past few days.  And don’t tell me if you had a week to live, you’d travel the world, because if you have a week to live and you’d rather spend it in the sky lounge in the Bangkok airport than with your family and friends, you suck.  Unless all your friends and family go with you to the sky lounge in Bangkok, then in that case you and your family/friends are extra awesome.

Aside from being with family and friends the other thing that always comes up with last wishes is “the final meal”.  I’ve had this conversation more than a few times in the past couple of weeks.  So here it is, my list of final meals – because  no one wants to see a tribute to my friends post here instead that reads like one of those geocities pages/long AIM profiles everyone had when we were in middle school listing out all my friends in an extensive list of idiotic inside jokes (LiSa- my fAve jUbAt, your mOm was like Wh@t tHe FuCk?!   BFFAEAEUDDUP! ) <–see your bored and annoyed already

Voila!  The meals! (in no particular order, except the first one)

And please let me know if you’re interested in joining for any of these – because a good meal is only as good as the company you have it with.

1) First and foremost, my last meal has already been decided.  My flight leaves in the evening.  My immediate family (ahem, Cadie and Dillan) must drop anything they have planned for the afternoon of the 22nd and come with me to get beef noodle soup from Lan Zhou followed by xiao long bao (soup dumplings) and beef tripe at Nan Xiang Xiao Long Bao.  If there’s time I’d also like my dad to cook steak and green beans with a side of wintermelon/watercress soup.

2) Soon do bu and BBQ grilled squid at my favorite place in Sunnyside.

3) Must eat at M. Wells again before I leave.  Dinner companion must be willing to eat escargot and marrow bone until they explode.

4) Salt and Fat oxtail brownie.

5) Drunk night that cumulates in me ending up at Decibel eating tako wasabi

6) Grilled calamari from Kyclades.  And maybe some grilled octopus, horiatiki, branzino and galatabourko while I’m there anyway.

7) MPD night out  that ends in waiting in the 5 am line outside Cafeteria with drunk clubbers and tranny prostitutes, to get truffle mac and cheese and a iceberg wedge salad- this one is definitely more about the company than the food.

8) A good order of buffalo wings…possibly at Mudville 9.  Amurrrrica!

9) Good buttery Uni

10) Popeyes.  Fuck you.  It’s amazing.

11) This one doesn’t technically count because I probably won’t have the money to make it here before I leave, but if I really did have a week to live I would 100% make the trip up to Montreal to try out Au Pied de Cochon and all its legendary deliciousness.

That’s all folks!

Oh – and for last drinking requests, Mark, Aracely and I are doing a joint going away party on Friday the 18th somewhere in the city where so come by or else!  Location TBD

And on the following Saturday I will be exactly where you’d expect me to be on my last Saturday night in New York.