The Garnet Grill replaced the Barrington Diner in the tiny square space next door to the Antique Center. It was a vast improvement. Shining, heavy dark wood tables, whitewashed walls, garnet-colored accents, and polished wood floors created a far more inviting and less seedy atmosphere than the previous chrome and tile room. Their simple menu specialized in basic comfort sandwiches - burgers, chicken fingers, and cheesesteaks. Lauren had the Single Smash Burger (onions, pickles, and cheddar cheese) with dill pickle chips and a Diet Dr. Brown Black Cherry. My Single Cali-Burger was identical, adding tomatoes and lettuce and replacing the "special sauce" with mayo. Had mine with an Orange Cream Coke Zero and sea salt kettle chips. Oh, yum! They were so good, juicy, tender, and just the right meld of flavors.
Went straight into the Antique Center after lunch. This enormous rabbit warren features everything from vintage clothes to recent DVDs, Victorian glassware to sports memorabilia.They were surprisingly busy for a Tuesday afternoon. Lauren found a room filled with boxes and boxes of vintage comics for between $1 and $3 dollars. She ended up with five Captain America and Marvel titles. I managed to dodge people's elbows long enough to pick up the "America" and "Patriot" Beanie Babies for $5 each. They'll join my other patriotic Beanies for the 4th of July.
It was a lovely day for a stroll down the hill to Haddon Heights. For one thing, the weather couldn't have been more gorgeous. It was sunny, hot, and breezy, without a hint of humidity or clouds around. It made the walk mostly a pleasure.
Alas, I did get our first check on our plans for the day as we walked. Jessa told me she wasn't up to going out to dinner tonight. Oh well. I would still meet Lauren in Moorestown later. I'd just take Uber there, and we'd have to Uber home.
We arrived at Doc's Finds in Haddon Heights around 1 PM. This small antique and collectibles shop had a great record selection. Lauren didn't find anything here. I didn't want to haul around too much, so I just ended up with two records:
The original cast album of the very 1977 Broadway show I Love My Wife (still sealed!)
A picture-disc soundtrack of the animated Dumbo
And one two-disc CD:
Billy Joel - 2000 Years: The Millennium Concert
Made a few quick stops next. I led her down to John's Friendly Market, where we got drinks and snacks. I got water. She got a Diet Cherry Pepsi. We bought bought raspberry fig newtons. Went in the opposite direction after that to Local Links Cafe. She said she was fine with her soda. I had a PBC - peanut butter, cocoa, oats, honey, and almond milk - that hit the spot despite the oats making it a bit grainy.
We parted ways at this point. Lauren called an Uber to get her to Moorestown. I called one that would get me to the Thomas Sharp School. No trouble here, either. In fact, I got to the school a bit early. Ended up taking a stroll around the bock before I headed inside.
I was glad to see the kids again. They are almost done with the school year! I'll miss them when it ends next week. There was some trouble with the boys, who were rowdy even for them and got into trouble for being noisy when they played loudly with the Hot Wheels cars they brought. On the other hand, they were all eager to hear stories of what Lauren and I did together, especially our trips to the Shore and the arcades. It was even their idea that I draw something for Lauren. (I drew her purple flowers, since she can't take real ones home on the train.)
Going outside was both fun and a bit problematic. Thank heavens there's shade in the playground. The swings and bike rack are covered by four large trees, and the slides equipment does have a roof and a shaded underside. I did have to remind a group of boys that, no matter how hot they were, hanging out on the stairs of the slides blocked the other kids and created a bottleneck for those who wanted to use the slides. They also kept tossing those cars they were playing with over the fence early-on, and I'd have to go chase them. All of the kids eventually ended up under the trees, either swinging or checking the mulch for ladybugs.
Called Uber again after I got out. No trouble here, either. The pleasant rider with the charming African accent arrived in 7 minutes. Though there was heavy traffic around Pennsauken (and he kept saying he needed to get cheap New Jersey gas before returning to the city), we ultimately made it to Moorsetown within 20 minutes.
I wanted to introduce Lauren to that tasty Cava restaurant I went to with Jessa a few months ago. This is basically Chipotle, but with Mediterranean cuisine instead of Mexican. You make your own bowl of rice, veggies, hummus, meat, and dressing. I had brown rice, salad greens, broccoli slaw, cucumbers and tomatoes, crumbled feta, grilled chicken, and hummus. I think I saw white rice in Lauren's, and she said she had the spicy honey chicken - it was so spicy, it cleared her sinuses! She mixed their soda and lemonade. I had the sweet Strawberry Citrus juice, then their own house-made diet cola.
Lauren had strolled around the Moorestown area earlier. She got a few things at Ross and had looked at the big GameStop but picked up nothing there or at Old Navy. We finally decided the only other place we wanted to see at Moorestown was their massive Barnes and Noble. It's even bigger than the one at Deptford, though with more books and puzzles in the music area. I did eventually find one book:
The Bartered Bride by Mercedes Lackey
One CD, which was on sale:
Soundtrack from Moana 2
And one classic album for a good price:
Etta James - At Last!
The sun was sinking slowly behind the mall as I called the last Uber of the day. They got there within 5 minutes, not bad for 8 PM. The older gentleman talked to us about books and buying them the whole 20 minutes going home.
Finished the night after a shower honoring Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys, who passed away today. I found an album that supposedly had his favorite Beach Boys songs on Hoopla. In addition to typical entries like "Good Vibrations" and "Surfer Girl," The Beach Boys Classics...Selected By Brian Wilson does feature a few lesser-known or slightly more obscure titles. You really hear Wilson's genius in my personal favorite Beach Boys song, the dynamic "Heroes and Villains," along with "Caroline, No," "Time to Get Alone," "This Whole World," "Marcella," and "Sail On, Sailor."
Oh, and the school inadvertently gave Lauren and me the perfect place for our last meal together before she goes home early Friday morning. They're holding a big "Blacktop Bash" at the blacktop play area tomorrow evening, with music, games, and food trucks. Instead of me meeting Lauren, this time, Lauren will meet me after I finish, and we'll eat there.
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