Adios Valarie And Valarie's Mom

Well, all good things must come to an end and the other day Valarie and her mom's stay here in Puerto Vallarta came to, well, the end. So what could we do but have a little party to send them on their way.

Drinks In The Courtyard


It's My Drink And I Need It Now


Apologies to JG Wentworth for that last picture's caption.

And, of course, we had to have the obligatory group good-bye photo.

The Send Off Committee And Those Being Sent Off


That is Valarie's mom in the middle and Dolores and Tom, who may be new to you, on either end. And, of course, the ever bashful Allison front and center and prone.

And finally wveryone had to get into the waiting cab to head off to the airport.

Wait, Allison, You Aren't Leaving


This picture has nothing to do with Valarie and her mom's departure, but I thought I would share it with you. It is my friend Sharon from Canada getting a sun tan.

Canadian Sunbathing


Couple of more posts in the queue, a dinner out and the now infamous omelette in a bag party. Then, of course, tomorrow is St. Patick's day. A day of wild celebration which will be followed by a day of remorse and the realization that our Puerto Vallarta vacation is drawing to a close. Well, we will still have a bit over a week left but, nonetheless, St. Patrick's day does seem to mark the begining of the end. In fact Steve and Allison go home on the 20th, and then who will ply me with alcohol and teach me new drinking skills?

Friends And A Party

As promised, my friends Rico and Sandy showed up the other day and I whipped up a bunch of blue margaritas to welcome them

Don't Be Blue, We Love You


They didn't stick around long because their room was available early so they didn't need to spend the night with us. And Sandy was eager to get to the beach and augment her salon tan with a bit of real sun.

Last night we had another deck party (we love to party down here) with just snacks this time around. I once again made my deviled eggs, and let me tell you, with the eggs down here it isn't easy.

The Yolks On Me


And this time I actually got the eggs a week early and dutifully rotated them to try to center the yolks. My labor might not have been entirely for naught, there did seem to be a higher percentage of useable eggs than usual.

I followed Julia Child's recipe for boiling the eggs. Leave it to Julia to make just boiling eggs complex. Put the eggs in a pot with water covering the eggs by one inch. Bring to a boil, remove the pot from the heat, cover and let stand for exactly seventeen minutes. Put the eggs into ice water for two minutes and bring the water back to a boil. Put the eggs, no more than six at a time, back into the boiling water for ten seconds and them put them back into ice water. I will say, though, the eggs peeled really easily.

As usual we had quite a spread of goodies ranging from prosciutto and mellon to a flourless chocolate cake.

Quite The Little Spread




And, of course, most of the usual suspects were there and a great time was had by all. I had to make sure to post a picture of Valarie who has yet to appear on my blog this year. She said her husband, Dave, is begining to wonder if she is really down here.

Valarie, Valarah, Valarah Hah Hah Hah Hah


Party Pictures




















And, of course, the high point of the day is the end when the sun sinks into the ocean.

Is This Really The High Point Of The Day?


Actually, it was kind of a high point because we saw the very rare Puerto Vallarta Green Flash. A strange occurance where the sun takes on a bright green hue just as it sets and sometimes a flash of green shoots out along the horizon.

Of course after the party was over a few of us who have no sense headed up to my place for some end-of-the-night shots of tequila.

The After-Party Is Always The Most Fun






Bella tought us a Mexican toast and we had to practice it numerous times to get it right. Of course today I can't remember it at all. But we had a great time and I feel no worse for the wear today. The trick is to drink cheap wine and good tequila.