So, Mama and I celebrated the right way- with a delicious and savory meal from Sal and Mookies New York Pizza & Ice Cream Joint. Sal & Mookies was delicious! I reminded Mama you had told me about it, so I knew it should be good! We both loved every ounce of the place! It was one of those situations I had to ride home with my pants unbuttoned we ate so much. We had Cheese Filled Fried Ravioli for Appetizer, Mama had a Spinach salad and I had a Mesclun salad, then we shared a pizza half Rockaway Beach (Mozzarella, provolone, yellow cheddar, grilled chicken and sautéed green bell peppers & onions- NO SAUCE) and half Meat Packing District (Italian plum tomato sauce, mozzarella, pepperoni, spicy Italian sausage, prosciutto, and Genoa Salami). Luckily we only had a slice a piece and brought the rest home. We were both glad we talked ourselves out of sharing a pasta, too!
Jeremy, our waiter at Sal & Mookies, was great. For some reason, Mama feels the need to tell everyone my little story, and he was no exception. Cool thing is, he’s been through this journey as well, and is now on the other side. He had melanoma. Had to undergo chemo 5 days a week for a month I believe, and then give himself a shot daily for a year. He even gave me “knuckles” when Mama told him what we were celebrating. It was nice to hear his story and share a little bit of mine as well. He was one of those waiters that had a passion for his job, and wanted to go on to do bigger and better. He has a few different business plans in hopes of opening his own place one day, but that door has not yet opened for him. He inspired me with his passion, and I hope people say the same about me.
After getting a belly full of scrumptious food, I decided I would drive home. Mostly because I don’t like the way Mama drives. Eventually, after a 20+ minute detour going the ass-backwards wrong way, we got back on track and arrived home in one piece.
Regardless of her bad driving and storytelling, I wouldn’t change a thing about my dear mama. I was exceptionally pleased for her to share my last treatment with me. It was perfect.
Lucky for me, my parents, my sweetheart of a husband, my sister, niece, nephew, handful of friends, and our Skidmore’s Grill crew have stuck by my side throughout all of this. They have been the daily reminders of what a support system truly is, and I am eternally thankful for them. I know this chapter of my life would have been much more difficult to endure without them to share my life with. So, we are anxiously looking forward to beginning and ending another chapter of my life in the very near future- radiation. I am thankful to know in my heart that these same people will be there for me through this as well. Who are you there for?
