Friday evening, I tell Justin that I want sushi for supper. When I get to the house, we immediately leave and drive to RuSan's. They are packed! The atmosphere is fine, but they were so crowded and the service isn't always good. We ordered, quickly ate, and left. The food was good, but Justin has been telling me for a while that he wants me to try some "good" sushi.
Saturday evening, I ask Justin if he's up for sushi again and he says he is. He wants to try a different restaurant. I'm a little hesitant, but eventually agree.
We head to Nakato on Cheshire Bridge Road. Note: their main parking lot is valet only (free, but you are expected to tip), however, they have another lot around the corner on Monroe that is self park. We parked in the self park lot and walked to the entrance through the Japanese garden. After experiencing that, I can't imagine why anyone would want to miss that little treat.
We entered and were seated at a table in the sushi bar. Their sushi menu wasn't as large as RuSan's, but I did find some rolls that were appealing. Their prices were a little higher, too. We ordered and waited for our food.
The rolls started arriving in pairs within a few minutes. My first one was an asparagus roll. It was a cooked piece of asparagus, drizzled with some kind of spicy sauce, wrapped in rice, and then wrapped in Nori. Justin's first roll was something with tuna, I think.
My second one was Shrimp 101. I can assure you it was VERY delicious. It was a piece of tempura fried shrimp drizzled with Japanese aioli, wrapped in a Shiso leaf, and then wrapped in rice. My mouth is watering. I stopped paying attention to Justin's rolls at this point.
My third and final roll was a King Shrimp Roll. It was similar to the Shrimp 101 Roll. Heaven on a plate! I think I could have eaten 10 of those rolls. It was a piece of shrimp tempura with avacado wrapped in rice and then drizzled with a spicy aioli sauce and dusted with sesame seeds. Yumm-o!
If you haven't tried good sushi, you don't know what you are missing. It is wonderful! Please do yourself a favor and try some. Nakato also has a hibachi menu and hibachi grills. Since we didn't order from this menu, we have no idea what that food is like. The valet parking lot was full and there were only 3 people in the sushi section, so I'm assuming the other people were at the hibachi grills.
The atmosphere of this restaurant was so relaxing. The ceilings were tall and the decor was somewhat simple and minimal. We were fortunate enough to sit near a large window that overlooked the Japanese garden. Fabulous!
Justin and I highly recommend this restaurant. Like I said, it is a little pricy. We paid $38 before tip, but it was well worth every penny.
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Monday, May 18, 2009
48th Street
I miss our house in Tifton. I don't know if Justin "gets" this, but I miss it. It was familiar. It was our first house together. So many memories were made at this house - some were happy and some were very sad.
This was our dining room. The curtains and those wooden curtain holders were at the house when we bought it in 2003. I never really liked them, but I never did replace them. I left them when we moved. I had plans to replace them, but never got the chance. I also wanted to replace that chandeliere. It wasn't terribly ugly, but I thought something else would look better.
I loved the high ceilings. This house wasn't particularly large, but the high ceilings in the living room, foyer, and dining room made those rooms seem much larger than they actually were. We put those ugly black covers on the sofa and love seat to protect the furniture from the dogs. I never knew I would miss that. The house wasn't decorated particularly well, but I had lots of plans. We had just finished installing the bamboo floors when Justin went to Atlanta, so we never had time to enjoy all that hard work. I hope the new owner appreciates those floors. I hate knowing that some stranger is enjoying my pretty house, my pretty paint on the walls, my pretty rooms.
This was our dining room. The curtains and those wooden curtain holders were at the house when we bought it in 2003. I never really liked them, but I never did replace them. I left them when we moved. I had plans to replace them, but never got the chance. I also wanted to replace that chandeliere. It wasn't terribly ugly, but I thought something else would look better.
I loved the high ceilings. This house wasn't particularly large, but the high ceilings in the living room, foyer, and dining room made those rooms seem much larger than they actually were. We put those ugly black covers on the sofa and love seat to protect the furniture from the dogs. I never knew I would miss that. The house wasn't decorated particularly well, but I had lots of plans. We had just finished installing the bamboo floors when Justin went to Atlanta, so we never had time to enjoy all that hard work. I hope the new owner appreciates those floors. I hate knowing that some stranger is enjoying my pretty house, my pretty paint on the walls, my pretty rooms.
To say I'm bitter is an understatement. I think I'm close to accepting moving to Atlanta. What choice do I have. I've become numb to the drive up each week. I think I could move forward if I actually lived in Atlanta and could make that house my own. There is only so much you can do on the weekends. It's hard hearing about things that happen at that house, memories other people are making there, envying them for being there when I can't, doing things I can't.
Saturday, May 9, 2009
Happy Mother's Day, Mama!
My mother's name is Renee. My sister, Carrie, and I are very blessed to have her as our mother. She made many sacrifices so Carrie and I could have most anything we wanted.
Our father died when my sister was 8 and I was 5. I'm sure Mama was scared to raise us alone, but she stepped up and did a great job. People stop her all the time and tell her what a great job she did.
When we were in high school, Mama was fairly lenient with our curfew. It was midnight, but as long as we called her (with a good excuse) and let her know where we were, she was fine with it. Carrie and I were on danceline in high school and parents were needed as chaperones. Mama didn't enjoy riding on the "yellow dog", but she did it when we asked her to. Most of the other girls didn't want their mother to chaperone, but Carrie and I didn't mind. In fact, people would usually request Mama as the chaperone.
Carrie and I were involved in after-school activities and Mama was always there to watch games, performances, or whatever. I took dance lessons for 15 years. Mama never once missed a performance. My niece now dances and Mama has been at all of her recitals and Nutcracker performances.
This is Mama when she was much younger.
Mama has always had very fashionable eyewear. (I love you, Mama!)
Daddy, Carrie, and I were riding in his dune buggy when it got stuck in the mud in the woods. Mama was asked to steer the dune buggy while Daddy pulled it out of the mud with his Jeep. Eventually, his Jeep, his father's tractor, and a friend's Jeep were also stuck. A large bull-dozer-type machine eventually pulled everything out. How many women would willingly do this?!
Mama and me
Mama, me, Carrie, and my niece at my wedding. Everyone looked very pretty.
Our father died when my sister was 8 and I was 5. I'm sure Mama was scared to raise us alone, but she stepped up and did a great job. People stop her all the time and tell her what a great job she did.
When we were in high school, Mama was fairly lenient with our curfew. It was midnight, but as long as we called her (with a good excuse) and let her know where we were, she was fine with it. Carrie and I were on danceline in high school and parents were needed as chaperones. Mama didn't enjoy riding on the "yellow dog", but she did it when we asked her to. Most of the other girls didn't want their mother to chaperone, but Carrie and I didn't mind. In fact, people would usually request Mama as the chaperone.
Carrie and I were involved in after-school activities and Mama was always there to watch games, performances, or whatever. I took dance lessons for 15 years. Mama never once missed a performance. My niece now dances and Mama has been at all of her recitals and Nutcracker performances.
This is Mama when she was much younger.
Mama has always had very fashionable eyewear. (I love you, Mama!)
Daddy, Carrie, and I were riding in his dune buggy when it got stuck in the mud in the woods. Mama was asked to steer the dune buggy while Daddy pulled it out of the mud with his Jeep. Eventually, his Jeep, his father's tractor, and a friend's Jeep were also stuck. A large bull-dozer-type machine eventually pulled everything out. How many women would willingly do this?!
Mama and me
Mama, me, Carrie, and my niece at my wedding. Everyone looked very pretty.
Happy Mother's Day, Mama! We love you!
Monday, May 4, 2009
Sushi at Ru San's
Justin has been trying to get me to eat sushi for a while and I have resisted. He really enjoys sushi and really wanted me to try it.
A couple of months ago, I finally gave in. I tried a salmon tempura roll from Ru San’s in Atlanta (in Buckhead). It was tasty but not something I would eat all the time. It seems like they wrap cooked salmon (it appears to be cooked) around a thin strip of cream cheese, wrap that with Nori (dried seaweed paper), and then wrap all that with rice. After the roll is made, it is covered with tempura and fried. The roll is sliced and served with a spicy aioli sauce. It is delicious!
This weekend, Justin and I were talking about where to eat supper Saturday night and we ended up going to Ru San’s near Piedmont Park. I had the salmon tempura roll again and I tried the tempura cream cheese maki. The cream cheese roll looks like they wrap a thin strip of cream cheese with Nori and tempura fry it. Then they wrap that with rice and slice it. I like to dip mine in soy sauce. The cream cheese is so soft and warm from being fried. Yummo! This has to be something developed in the South since we’ll deep fry anything.
Justin likes the more authentic sushi – i.e. sushi that hasn’t been deep fried. He likes the Nigiri pieces (wad of rice topped with a piece of fish – there is probably more to it than this, but that’s what it looks like to me). He also likes the rolls that aren’t “inside out”. “Inside out” rolls have the rice on the outside instead of the Nori wrapper. He likes these more because they have less rice. There are probably other reasons too, but I think less rice is the main reason.
We decided to go back Sunday afternoon for late lunch/early supper. I had the same rolls from Saturday night. Justin ordered several pieces of Nigiri and one was topped with octopus. It wasn’t very appealing to me. Actually, I was disgusted by it, but he said it was delicious. I’ll take his word for it.
I’m working up the courage to eat something raw.
A couple of months ago, I finally gave in. I tried a salmon tempura roll from Ru San’s in Atlanta (in Buckhead). It was tasty but not something I would eat all the time. It seems like they wrap cooked salmon (it appears to be cooked) around a thin strip of cream cheese, wrap that with Nori (dried seaweed paper), and then wrap all that with rice. After the roll is made, it is covered with tempura and fried. The roll is sliced and served with a spicy aioli sauce. It is delicious!
This weekend, Justin and I were talking about where to eat supper Saturday night and we ended up going to Ru San’s near Piedmont Park. I had the salmon tempura roll again and I tried the tempura cream cheese maki. The cream cheese roll looks like they wrap a thin strip of cream cheese with Nori and tempura fry it. Then they wrap that with rice and slice it. I like to dip mine in soy sauce. The cream cheese is so soft and warm from being fried. Yummo! This has to be something developed in the South since we’ll deep fry anything.
Justin likes the more authentic sushi – i.e. sushi that hasn’t been deep fried. He likes the Nigiri pieces (wad of rice topped with a piece of fish – there is probably more to it than this, but that’s what it looks like to me). He also likes the rolls that aren’t “inside out”. “Inside out” rolls have the rice on the outside instead of the Nori wrapper. He likes these more because they have less rice. There are probably other reasons too, but I think less rice is the main reason.
We decided to go back Sunday afternoon for late lunch/early supper. I had the same rolls from Saturday night. Justin ordered several pieces of Nigiri and one was topped with octopus. It wasn’t very appealing to me. Actually, I was disgusted by it, but he said it was delicious. I’ll take his word for it.
I’m working up the courage to eat something raw.
Sunday, May 3, 2009
Master Bedroom
After the ceiling fan was installed, we cleaned the bedroom floor and started moving our furniture to the new room.
The bedroom we were using isn't tiny, but our king bed is huge and took up so much of the room. I had to turn to the side to get between the bed and wall on my side.
When we bought our bed about 5 years ago, we had to purchase a new mattress set. We bought a solid latex mattress, which is well worth every penny we paid for it, but it is a nightmare to move. There is nothing rigid about it and it is just dead weight. You'd think that for what we paid for that monster, the factory could have installed handles or something like that. I almost don't think that would work because it is soooo heavy - they would probably be ripped off. Words cannot describe how difficult this thing is to move. When we moved it out of the house in Tifton to my grandmother's house in Nashville before we moved it to Atlanta, we had 4 people helping, and we still had a lot of trouble. When we moved it to the moving truck for the drive to Atlanta, I decided that we should try to roll it and use rope to tie it and use the dolly to move the huge roll. This worked much better than just trying to drag it, but it was still hard. One person pushed the dolly while 3 people walked on the remaining 3 sides to keep it from dragging the ground.
We get the headboard and footboard moved and the rails installed (with help from Grant since the headboard and footboard require someone supporting them so they don't fall and turn you into mush. They're kind of big, too. The headboard is just under 7' tall, so it barely fits through door openings.
We get that monster of a mattress on the boxsprings and the room is pretty much finished after we make the bed. Yay!
We're trying to decide what to do for night stands. We never bought night stands to match the bed (kind of expensive) and they've stopped making this particular bed. We can always find something and stain it to match, so this isn't a huge issue with either of us. For now, we're just using the old ghetto fabulous ones we've had for years. They don't match each other or the bed and are just ugly, but they work. We also have pretty lamps that look great with our bed linens.
We are both so amazed with the amount of space we have in the new room. It's huge compared to our old room at this house. It's even larger than the master bedroom at our house in Tifton.
We're not exhibitionists - we did move the curtains from the old bedroom to the new one.
The ceiling fan. Looks are deceiving. It's pure EVIL!
Justin and I aren't fans of bed skirts or dust ruffles. I am a huge Martha Stewart fan ("It's a good thing.") and she suggests using fitted sheets over the boxsprings in lieu of bed skirts and dust ruffles. This makes cleaning under the bed easier, too.
This is the ceiling fan remote. It can be easily removed from the wall, but the wall holder is pretty convenient, too.
The bedroom we were using isn't tiny, but our king bed is huge and took up so much of the room. I had to turn to the side to get between the bed and wall on my side.
When we bought our bed about 5 years ago, we had to purchase a new mattress set. We bought a solid latex mattress, which is well worth every penny we paid for it, but it is a nightmare to move. There is nothing rigid about it and it is just dead weight. You'd think that for what we paid for that monster, the factory could have installed handles or something like that. I almost don't think that would work because it is soooo heavy - they would probably be ripped off. Words cannot describe how difficult this thing is to move. When we moved it out of the house in Tifton to my grandmother's house in Nashville before we moved it to Atlanta, we had 4 people helping, and we still had a lot of trouble. When we moved it to the moving truck for the drive to Atlanta, I decided that we should try to roll it and use rope to tie it and use the dolly to move the huge roll. This worked much better than just trying to drag it, but it was still hard. One person pushed the dolly while 3 people walked on the remaining 3 sides to keep it from dragging the ground.
We get the headboard and footboard moved and the rails installed (with help from Grant since the headboard and footboard require someone supporting them so they don't fall and turn you into mush. They're kind of big, too. The headboard is just under 7' tall, so it barely fits through door openings.
We get that monster of a mattress on the boxsprings and the room is pretty much finished after we make the bed. Yay!
We're trying to decide what to do for night stands. We never bought night stands to match the bed (kind of expensive) and they've stopped making this particular bed. We can always find something and stain it to match, so this isn't a huge issue with either of us. For now, we're just using the old ghetto fabulous ones we've had for years. They don't match each other or the bed and are just ugly, but they work. We also have pretty lamps that look great with our bed linens.
We are both so amazed with the amount of space we have in the new room. It's huge compared to our old room at this house. It's even larger than the master bedroom at our house in Tifton.
We're not exhibitionists - we did move the curtains from the old bedroom to the new one.
The ceiling fan. Looks are deceiving. It's pure EVIL!
Justin and I aren't fans of bed skirts or dust ruffles. I am a huge Martha Stewart fan ("It's a good thing.") and she suggests using fitted sheets over the boxsprings in lieu of bed skirts and dust ruffles. This makes cleaning under the bed easier, too.
This is the ceiling fan remote. It can be easily removed from the wall, but the wall holder is pretty convenient, too.
The Evil Ceiling Fan
A few weeks ago, Justin and I ordered a ceiling fan for the master bedroom. The Saturday morning it arrived, Justin removed the old light fixture and realized that the box in the ceiling that helps hold the fixture to the ceiling was loose and would have to be replaced. We headed to Lowe's and bought boxes (one deep on and one standard one). We think the old box was installed before the drywall was installed on the ceiling. Because of this, Justin had to cut the drywall as he removed the box (some of it just fell on its own). We had quite a hole in the ceiling whe he was finished.
Justin had to go to the attic and move insulation to find the area over the master bedroom. This part of the attic is very difficult to move around in because the roof framing is not very high, so you're basically crawling. There is also no light in this part of the attic, so you're crawling in the dark while trying to hold a flashlight in the heat. Good times.
Justin cut two-by-fours and nailed the new box to them and installed that over the hole. As soon as we started trying to install the first part of the ceiling fan, we realized the deeper box we bought and installed was too deep. Before Justin removed the new box to start over, I went to hardware stores looking for longer screws. I was not successful, so we had to start over, which didn't take too long.
Before we could begin actually installing the ceiling fan, the hole had to be patched. Justin started this, but it was time for me to leave that weekend, so we didn't get very far with the installation. He worked on the hole during the week since the stuff had to dry between coats.
The next Saturday morning, we began installing the fan. As we worked, the ceiling patch was crumbling, but we continued. Justin even let me help wire the fan, which was actually very easy. Before we finished installing the fan, we turned on the electricity to that room to make sure it worked. It did, so we continued (after turning off the electricity, again). We finished installing everything and stood back to admire our fine work. We turned on the electricity and pressed the button on the remote (yeah, isn't that lazy?!). Nothing. We checked everything, but couldn't get it to work.
We began going back through the directions and came to the part that tells us to stick the remote sensor through the ceiling box so the remote will work. Note, this step is very important since the remote is the only way to operate the fan/light and the remote waves (or whatever they are) cannot go through metal. I haul a chair in the room and am given the task of holding the ceiling fan near the ceiling after Justin "unscrews" it from the ceiling plate holding it to the ceiling. That ceiling fan must weigh 30 pounds, which doesn't sound like much, but when you're holding it above your head with outstretched arms, it's heavy! I eventually gave out and Justin had to call Grant in to help (he did this several times because I apparently have no upper body strength). I am a weakling.
Justin worked fast and got the fan reinstalled. We flip the switch and nothing happens. Justin decides one of the wire connections is loose so we'll have to remove the fan again and check everything. He does remove some of the blades and uses the ceiling plate hook to support the fan so I don't have to hold it that entire time. He finds the loose connection and fixes it. We get everything reinstalled and ta-dah...we have lift-off! The blasted thing works! During the next week, Justin purchases joint compound to repair the hole. He says this works much better than the previous stuff. He sands it and paints it before I arrive the next Friday.
It only took three weeks, but the ceiling fan was installed.
Justin had to go to the attic and move insulation to find the area over the master bedroom. This part of the attic is very difficult to move around in because the roof framing is not very high, so you're basically crawling. There is also no light in this part of the attic, so you're crawling in the dark while trying to hold a flashlight in the heat. Good times.
Justin cut two-by-fours and nailed the new box to them and installed that over the hole. As soon as we started trying to install the first part of the ceiling fan, we realized the deeper box we bought and installed was too deep. Before Justin removed the new box to start over, I went to hardware stores looking for longer screws. I was not successful, so we had to start over, which didn't take too long.
Before we could begin actually installing the ceiling fan, the hole had to be patched. Justin started this, but it was time for me to leave that weekend, so we didn't get very far with the installation. He worked on the hole during the week since the stuff had to dry between coats.
The next Saturday morning, we began installing the fan. As we worked, the ceiling patch was crumbling, but we continued. Justin even let me help wire the fan, which was actually very easy. Before we finished installing the fan, we turned on the electricity to that room to make sure it worked. It did, so we continued (after turning off the electricity, again). We finished installing everything and stood back to admire our fine work. We turned on the electricity and pressed the button on the remote (yeah, isn't that lazy?!). Nothing. We checked everything, but couldn't get it to work.
We began going back through the directions and came to the part that tells us to stick the remote sensor through the ceiling box so the remote will work. Note, this step is very important since the remote is the only way to operate the fan/light and the remote waves (or whatever they are) cannot go through metal. I haul a chair in the room and am given the task of holding the ceiling fan near the ceiling after Justin "unscrews" it from the ceiling plate holding it to the ceiling. That ceiling fan must weigh 30 pounds, which doesn't sound like much, but when you're holding it above your head with outstretched arms, it's heavy! I eventually gave out and Justin had to call Grant in to help (he did this several times because I apparently have no upper body strength). I am a weakling.
Justin worked fast and got the fan reinstalled. We flip the switch and nothing happens. Justin decides one of the wire connections is loose so we'll have to remove the fan again and check everything. He does remove some of the blades and uses the ceiling plate hook to support the fan so I don't have to hold it that entire time. He finds the loose connection and fixes it. We get everything reinstalled and ta-dah...we have lift-off! The blasted thing works! During the next week, Justin purchases joint compound to repair the hole. He says this works much better than the previous stuff. He sands it and paints it before I arrive the next Friday.
It only took three weeks, but the ceiling fan was installed.
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