[I was hoping that Hines Ward's "Dancing With the Stars" Mirrorball Trophy was on display somewhere and I could get a cheesy picture with it, but this was the best we could do. Mirrorsaurous!]
Last weekend I headed up to Pittsburgh for five glorious (really!) days with my friend Alvina. By now you must know that I grew up in that area, and lived in the city for a few years after high school as well. I went to the University of Pittsburgh for a year, where I learned to drink beer and play pool, skills that I use to this day.
Alvina had to go to the 'Burgh for a work conference, so I tagged along/chauffeured. Hanging with Alvina is no joke. I think I spent about a month's rent on dining out. She is quite the foodie and we have to try (and photographically document) EVERYthing. She also does not take research lightly, which is a good thing, because all of my old favorites had since closed, so we relied on the list of places she had looked up and wanted to try. Then there was the debacle of trying to go to a bar owned by Hines Ward. It made for one of several interesting cab rides, but alas, it seems Hines sold it some time ago. Before the trip was over, however, I did make it to Jerome Bettis' Grille 36, which was very nice and had great food and service. Cutest little mini-pierogies I've ever seen in my life!
I think we'd been talking about this trip for about two months before I landed the new jobby-job, and luckily they were super cool about letting me take the days off. And I am SO glad I got to go. We stayed at the William Penn Hotel, which is stunning, and great service, and smack in the heart of the city. Though I had lived inside the city, I didn't ever spend much time downtown. After 5 days, I must say I was seriously impressed. Stephanie Rawlings-Blake needs to take Luke Ravenstahl out for one helluva dinner, and get him liquored up so he will tell her all his secrets about running a city. The difference I saw in Pittsburgh compared to just ten years ago is probably the same difference one could have seen in downtown Baltimore comparing 5 years before the Inner Harbor renaissance and 5 years after. But in Pittsburgh, it seems to be city-wide, and definitely the entirety of downtown, not just one area. I couldn't believe how many swanky restaurants and bars were downtown, and they were all packed! The Convention Center looks like a cross between The Starship Enterprise and a cruise ship, in a good way, and its views of the rivers are unbelievable. Both Pride Festival and the Three Rivers Arts Festival were going on that weekend, and it just seemed like Pittsburgh was the place to be. We also managed to take in a reception at the Andy Warhol Museum and a Pirates game and the gorgeous PNC Park in the same night. AND they were filming the new Batman movie right outside of our hotel!
What amazed me maybe more than anything was how CLEAN the city was. I am not making this up, it was practically spotless, even in the famous wholesale district known as The Strip. Everything seemed sparkly, fresh, and proud of itself. It made me very happy to see the city looking so incredible. Pittsburgh is the mousy girl in a John Hughes movie, when she takes off her glasses and suddenly everyone realizes she is smokin' hot.
And speaking of movies, yes, I realize this blog is supposed to be about movie-related things, and once again, I have digressed. But if you are still reading, apparently it does not bother you too much.
I got to see my ex-roommate, Lorraine (in the dino pic with me), and one of my best friends from high school, Andy. Drew, as I usually call him, is a doctor at Pittsburgh's famous Children's Hospital. We caught up over lunch at a joint on Liberty Avenue, a few blocks away from his office. It's funny, my Mom still lives up that way and once in awhile she'll tell me that she saw Andy on the local station as a "medical expert" for a news story. He is married now, and has three boys, and even if you didn't know him you could tell by meeting him that he is doing exactly what he was put on this earth to be doing. It seems that everyone from our tight-knit high school group is also following their bliss. Drew and I talked about that, as we always do during our rare get-togethers. We were so damn innocent back in the day, we really were. Not one of us lost our virginity in high school, no one drank until at least 17 (and truth be told, that was just me, with my friend who lived up the street who went to public school), and trying drugs never crossed our minds. Even if it had we wouldn't have known where to get them or what to do with them. It sounds idyllic, but it's true. We were having too much fun just being together to bother with any of that stuff that people do when they are bored or miserable.
I believe that those formative years, wherein we managed to make good choices and keep good company, did indeed carve our individual paths in life somewhat. We have all fallen in and out of touch over the years, (and unfortunately, a few of the Motley Crew, as we used to call ourselves, are no longer with us) but they - Lauren, Andy, Robert, Beth Ann, Michaela, Ace, Shawn, Brian, Chris, Elyse, Jessica, Janet, Nancy, Laura, Beth B, and a few others - will always owe each other a bit of gratitude, I think, for the successes we have had in life as well as the strength to overcome adversity. These people, and this city of Pittsburgh, instilled in me those credos that dominate my life - skip the drama, get it done, no excuses, have fun.
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