Hurrah for Pep Boys and Brazil

The kids invited me down for Thursday afternoon. Lori is doing some remodeling-mind changing. The house was in disarray but the painters are Brazilians- good-looking, good workers. They suggested two authentic Brazilian restaurants. We chose Minieros, the more casual one. The thing in the middle of the table is a signal. Red top up means "leave us alone." Green top up means "bring us more meat!"

Since I no speakee Portuguesee, I couldn't wrap my tongue around this traditional rum drink's name. It tasted a lot like a daiquiri, though. There was a plentiful buffet with many dishes. You fill your plate with those. Then Luis or someone like him comes to your table and slices off delectable char-broiled meats of several kinds. Luis, is in charge of selecting, cooking and serving the meat. You have tongs in your cutlery to catch the meat with.

His knife is very sharp and if you complain he can swiftly cut your testicles off. (just kidding-who is going to say anything bad to a guy with a sharp knife, though). The Brazilian desserts were ho-hum but since I inquired about them, Luis quickly fixed a pineapple, put a generous coating of cinnamon on it and char-broiled it. Sliced thinly, it was delectable. We were waiting for the karaoke but it must have started on Indian time because we left a half hour after start time and no action. It was a very good meal, and a very nice time. Lori's treat. This restaurant definitely goes on the do-over list.

I got the Van into Pep Boy's before noon yesterday. They performed the services I asked for, reported no mechanical problems and I walked out for $87.00. The slight shimmy I had detected was from a thrown balancing weight-just as I supected- I even knew when it flew off. The oil is changed and we are ready to roll when the time comes.

Jeanne called during the meal. She translated Therese's email. Rene is doing well at home, gets exhausted, speech is very hard for him, it is hard waiting for the biopsy results. He has no problem understanding spoken language but mentioning his illness causes him surprise and distress.