One of my pet peeves is when I ask someone a question about herself and she responds in the plural, telling me how she and her significant other are doing.

“How have you been?”

“We’ve been fine.”

-

“What do you think of this?”

“Well, we think …”

-

“Can you get to this task?”

“Well, we’ve been busy with work …”

-

The editor in me feels the need to point out that yes, I realize “you” can be plural or singular. But when I’m asking you how you’re doing, I’m talking about you, the individual. Not you the couple or you the family. I will ask how your significant other or your child is doing as well; of course, I want to know that information too.

But this exchange, this translation of singular to plural, really bothers me. It conveys that people that speak this way cease to exist as individual once they partner up. My significant other can be fine and I can be under the weather. Or vice versa.

Moods and thoughts continue to be individual, people, even if you’re part of a couple.

Ok, that’s all. Sorry, just had to vent.

Ok, before this I would have said The Melting Pot is my very favorite restaurant simply based on their food, but now all I can say is – wow, they’re the whole package. They sure know how to romance a girl into giving up all those calories burned. I wonder if one could marry a restaurant …

P.S. They are talking about the Charlotte Running Club’s runner of the week, in which I was featured here.

A few years ago I went through a period of time where I was working one and a half days a week for a newspaper in York, SC, designing their weekly newspaper. Every Monday night I would spend the night at my grandmother’s in Lake Wylie, as her house was closer to the newspaper office and it was a great excuse to spend quality time together. We would spend our time talking in the evenings, both of us tired from a long day, me from working and her from gardening or yoga or laundry. On Tuesday mornings we’d watch Good Morning America over coffee and English Muffins and the morning newspaper.

I realized something during that time. Although I had known this woman for almost 30 years, there were still things about her I didn’t know. I didn’t know about the times she and my grandfather would take their pontoon boat up to the Red Fez Club, get blitzed with their friends, then boat back home. I didn’t know about all the times she and my grandfather moved for his job before he finally joined the Navy, and that the only reason he joined the Navy was because the draft was coming and he didn’t want to be in the Army. How is it I can know someone my entire life and still not know everything about her?

Of course, the writer in me came out quickly – “We have got to write these down, Mia!” I finally told her. And she agreed.

Mia writes about her college days.

Working on her memoirs has been sporatic. Sometimes she doesn’t feel up to it, and other times I’m typing or writing so fast and I still can’t keep up. Our approach is two-pronged. She thinks memoirs means “biography,” so she spends her time writing the basics. Where she was born, where she grew up, where she went to high school and college. That stuff is important, of course, but what I really want are the stories. Our best days are when she’s just talking to me, Melissa the granddaughter, not Melissa the biographer, and I’m able to write down every word.

The picture at the top of this post is a book cover design I was playing around with. That is her handwriting in the background. The title and fonts are working ones, of course, but I know I and every member of my family will know that handwriting at a glance – we’ve been reading it our whole lives, in birthday cards and letters to summer camp and post-it notes in her kitchen and calendar items reminding her of grandchildren’s and great-grandchildren’s birthdays.

Last night we worked on the memoirs until 11 p.m. when she finally had to go to bed. We will work on them again on Friday. I was trying to balance my time against a client deadline, which begins on Friday, and I was wondering if I should put them off until next week. But next week I’ll be in DC, so that leaves the week after. And then it hit me – I’m on deadline with Mia, too. I just don’t know what that deadline is.

So Friday night, I’ll be exactly where I’m supposed to be, listening and recording her stories until she decides she doesn’t want to talk any longer and it’s time to eat her nightly ice cream and go to bed.

“I tell my friends the only reason I have wrinkles and they don’t is because they are all fat.”

She set up shop at the top of the driveway and she greeted every customer with a smile. She was savvy enough to offer the lemonade, wait for the confirmation, and then inform them it was 25 cents a glass.

 One lady gave Mia two quarters and Mia informed her that only one was necessary. The lady told her it was a tip and Mia sighed loudly and said, “That’s okay, you didn’t know how much it cost.” She was forgiving the client for giving her the wrong amount!

At the end of it all, she’d earned $8.50 and a button with a bicyle on it. Not a bad day’s work!

After, it was time to play in the pool. Playing in the pool apparently means trying to splash Aunt Melissa:

She sure knows how to beat the heat!

In the beginning of my running career, when I would show up for 5Ks or 10Ks, I would only know the friend or two who came along with me. Now, when I show up at a race, it’s a social event. At the Ballantyne Triathlon, my neighbor Melissa (who was doing her first tri) wanted to know how my brother Kevin and I knew so many people there. “I know him from this run, her from the group runs here, him from these runs, and him from drinking.” (Hmm, which ones of these doesn’t belong, Vince?)

If you are even thinking about running and you aren’t doing it yet, reach out to another runner you know. It’ll make all the difference in the world. And, I hate to be a comment-seeker, but it would be super cool if you’d go to CRC’s blog post here and comment on the post. They showed me support, so I’d love to show them some back!

So, would you have guessed this photo was taken just last month in Las Vegas – when temperatures were touching 110 degrees?

This was one of the coolest (coolest, get it?) things I’ve experienced in Vegas. Anil, Jeff and I went to a bar called Minus5 Ice Lounge, located in Mandalay Bay. Everything inside the bar is made of ice, and the temperature is, you guessed it, -5 degrees C (27 F).

After having spent a week and a half in scorching 100+ heat (mostly hovering around 107 or 108), I was all over this experience. As you see in the photo, we were given coats, gloves, and I got boots (I was wearing heels; the guys weren’t.) The package we got included two drinks, which were served in glasses made of ice. My margarita couldn’t have salt on the rim because it would have melted my glass! The bar was made of ice; there was an ice sculpture (haven’t seen one of those since college, and this one was shaped like a woman …)

We didn’t stay long; too many other fun things to see and do, but this is definitely a place I’d come back to. We already decided that next time we were gonna wear bathing suits under the coats just to pose for some “cool” pictures!

—

Much later in the evening, we wondered why all the bars were closing so early. Then we realized it was 3 a.m. Anil asked the bartender for a recommendation for a place that was still open, and the bartender named a place called Deja Vu. Anil started laughing. “What’s so funny?” I asked.

“It’s a strip club,” he said.

“Who cares?” I said. “They’re open, right?” (Ok, so I probably didn’t say “Who cares?” I probably actually said something like ”Ooh, fun!”)

As you may remember, I’ve only had one strip club experience prior, and I don’t think that really counts as a strip club experience. What better place to really experience a strip club than Las Vegas? So off we went.

The lovely man at the door informed us it was a $20 cover. Each. Toto, I don’t think we’re in Charlotte anymore … (ok, I say that, but truthfully I don’t have any clue what the strip clubs in Charlotte cost to enter). So, we paid the cover and were getting ready to go inside when all of a sudden these two guys came storming out.

“The strippers aren’t even taking their clothes off!” one of them said angrily to the bouncer. “We want our money back!” Then he turned to us and said “Don’t waste your money, guys!”

Anil sprung into negotiating action. “Hey, can we get our money back?” he asked.

I almost wanted to laugh at the whole thing – the poor bouncer is getting it from all sides now. One the one hand, I was thinking, “Who cares if they aren’t stripping; it’s a place to go and it’s open …” and on the other hand, I’m thinking, “We just paid $20 apiece … for what, exactly?”

Well, the bouncer had some harsh words for the angry clients who were now causing him to lose business. And then he informed us that he couldn’t give us our money back but he could offer some buy-one-get-one-free drink coupons. (He didn’t mention that those coupons were only for beers like Bud Light and that beers like Bud Light cost $10 apiece at this club. Yes, $10. For Bud Light.)

But free drinks seemed pretty cool at the time so we headed inside. And the strippers were indeed, clothed. They were dancing on poles in bikini-type outfits. For the record, the reason they were not topless was because apparently sometime around 4 a.m., this strip club turns into an “after-hours” club. We sat at the bar and a very nice woman started talking to me. She was complaining about how much she hated this place, and how she hated being here day in and day out. I was having a hard time figuring out why she would go to a bar she hated, until Anil informed me she was a stripper. Oh, she works here!  

The other thing to note about this place was the bathroom. Note I said bathroom and not bathrooms. Yep, we’re talking Ally McBeal style here. Ally McBeal style if they had hired Steve Buscemi to play the role of bathroom attendant. I’m not kidding. Steve’s long-lost twin greeted me at the entrance to the bathroom, and he was wearing a too-big sports coat and a pencil-thin moustache. He escorted me to the bathroom stall. I was more than a little creeped out, especially when I saw the stall doors were made of see-through glass. And the toilets were illuminated with red lights. If my phone battery hadn’t been dead I would have taken a photo because I’m certain you don’t believe me right now. Apparently the doors are supposed to frost over once you lock them, but either my lock didn’t work or my eyes didn’t work because it did not seem to frost over. I peed as fast as I could and got the hell outta there.

Later I actually had to go again and, sadly, Steve was gone for the evening. I did find two guys wandering around the stalls, confused. I was confused, too – didn’t realize yet that these bathrooms were unisex. “Which bathroom is the guy’s bathroom?” they asked me.

“Do you see urinals?” I asked. No … “Then this must not be your bathroom!” I sent them away, and it wasn’t until later I realized that we had all been right in thinking it was our gender’s bathroom …

Finally it got to a point where I could barely keep my eyes open. I felt so lame, not being able to hang, but I asked Anil if he would mind if we headed back. He was tired, too, so that worked out. We opened the front door of the club – and we were greeted by sunlight. No wonder we were so tired! I no longer felt lame. Took a cab back to the hotel, and as we’re about to head back to our rooms, he suggested breakfast. I was actually hungry, but tired was winning over hungry, so I rainchecked for after a siesta.

In all the time I spent in Vegas, this was the first time I actually felt I had the “Vegas experience.” Cool bars (I didn’t even mention EyeCandy, Raffles, Red Square, EyeCandy again …), hanging out in a winter coat, non-strippers, and back to the hotel at breakfast time. Vegas rocks!

It starts with new shorts and a smile, even at 7 a.m.

Hydration is always key to a day of fun, especially when it comes in a pink cup.

It helps to live in a state with beautiful places,

and to have friends who love adventure.

It can be a tough climb to the top,

but when you get there, it’s so worth it.

Drinks with friends are lighthearted, coffee with friends is intimate, shopping with friends is awesome. But there is something pretty special about sweating off 800+ calories before lunch and catching up on all the latest gossip at the same time. I can’t wait for our next adventure! Thanks for a great day, Jessica!

Jason and Sarah just moved to Charlotte from Orlando. Jason is an old friend of Jeff’s and they’re staying here for a few weeks until they find a house to rent. They’ve been here for two weeks now and they are looking for the best neighborhoods/schools/place to raise a family. The challenge here is to show them enough of Charlotte that they feel they can make a decision on an area of town to live in, yet not overwhelm them with information.

So, I’ll tell you first what we’ve shown Jason and Sarah in the two weeks they’ve been here (which hasn’t been much, due to work and job hunts and other busy activities):

Amelie's Bakery

= Petra’s. The question was asked, “Where’s the gay karaoke bar?” Petras it is! We had a blast hanging out and singing (badly) the first weekend they were in town.
= Boudreaux’s. Sarah had never had a mojito, so Boudreaux had to be an immediate stop. I was actually disappointed with the mojito that night; it was too sweet for me, but she liked it. They still haven’t had the yummy food there, though.
= Macs. Jason mentioned loving barbecue, so off we went. I’m not a barbecue fan but I will say Macs has awesome food in general.
= The Peach Stand. Call me biased, but when someone asks for a good place to raise kids in the Charlotte area, of course I think of Fort Mill. It’s my hometown, and I turned out just fine … (shut up). We did a drive-through of the town and didn’t get the chance to show them the Anne Springs Close Greenway or the Complex, but we did drive through downtown and Baxter and we had to stop at the Peach Stand to show them how Fort Mill does gas stations.
= The Penguin. Cheap, greasy, dive bar food? Fried pickles, grilled peanut butter and banana sandwiches, corn dogs? We’re there.  This restaurant is even famous, featured on Diners, Drive-ins and Dives.
= Park Place. You can’t take someone to Park Place without telling them the story about how it used to be known as Courtneys until the owner faked his own kidnapping and had the city looking for him for several days. That fiasco meant the end of Courtneys but I think Park Place tastes even better!
= Smelly Cat.  Well, technically it was closed when we got there so they didn’t get to have the coffee, but we sat outside for a few minutes and enjoyed the patio before going to …
= Amelie’s. The awesomest bakery in town. And that it’s 24 hours is even awesomer. Everyone needs to go here.

Now, back to Anil. He’ll be in town for three days only. Here’s the list of places so far I’d like to show him:

= Boudreaux’s. He loves cajun food and we had some yummy mojitos in Phoenix last month so of course I’d like to take him there!
= Flying Biscuit. He’s never had grits. I repeat: He’s never had grits. I told him I’d make him some homemade but Flying Biscuit is going to beat mine, hands-down.
= Olde Mecklenburg Brewery. Gotta show him some local brews, and OMB is conveniently located on the light rail. For the record, he’s staying the first night at my house; then everything after that has to be light-rail or cab or foot accessible.
= The Epicentre. We’re planning to party Uptown; even have reservations at the Aloft hotel for the after party. Speaking of Uptown, I’m thinking Cosmos for sushi and martinis; Crave for a dessert bar experience;  Cabo Fish Taco and other NoDa areas to show off the arts district, and Landmark or  for a middle-of-the-night meal. Of course, Mert’s for breakfast … or Pike’s.
= NASCAR hall of fame. This was his idea. I haven’t been here myself but I’m all about giving him the Southern experience; bring it!
= Lake Norman. A boat rental and a day on the lake – sounds like a great way to recharge before going back Uptown.
= Whitewater Center. I’m putting this on the list even though I’m guessing there won’t be time for it this trip; just means he will have to come back! Same with Crowders Mountain and the greenways. He’s thinking of running Thunder Road in December with me so I’ll have to point out the parts of the marathon route that he’ll be running …

Ok, so what am I forgetting to show my friends? What makes Charlotte Charlotte to you?

I thought this article was super interesting until I realized I have no idea if my belly button is high or low. I never thought about it before!

So, you tell me:  is it high or low?

And also, tell me – is yours high or low? Is the research correct or incorrect?