The St. Louis: Pics and Pans

I've been to St. Louis for a spell, and right before I left, I told a woman at church that I was spending a good deal of the summer in St. Louis with the Duber-ers. She did not miss a beat, and there wasn't a change of expression on her face (which could or could not have been due to botox...I am a professional speculator) as she retorted "You will hate it."

Geepers. Way to support. I tried to massage away the awkwardness with a smile and some self deprecating humor as I slunk off to be with the 3 year olds who are supportive of my life choices.

Now that my stay in the Lou is over, I've come up with this list of Pics and Pans. You know...a list like they have in some newspapers on Fridays in the editorial section, where the Pics would be something that the editors love, like say for instance, gun control after Columbine. A Pan would be something that they hated, like, George Bush throwing up on the leader of the Japanese nation. Comprend?

BTW, I loved my experience there....both the positives and the negatives, the pics and the pans. So lady at church, guess what? I didn't hate it at all. Take that. And here, take my list of Pics and Pans put it in your oversized handbag.

PIC #1

There's this Pizza Restaurant there called PI. Not only is the name clever, the food was so good we went back twice and dreamed about it in between. The deep dish pi was made with a cornmeal crust and the toppings were done in opposite order: cheese on the bottom, then toppings, and this chunky tomatoey deliciousness on top. The crust around the edge, you know, the part you usually leave on your plate and toss??....the best part. Delish.

Like to hear about the Milkshake bar at PI? You would? The S'mores Milkshake came with the following pretties on top: a chocolate disc with the pi symbol on it, a bucket of whipped cream, chocolate bits, a couple of homemade graham crackers, a skinny skinny wood skewer with a freshly toasted homemade marshmallow on the end, and two paper straws with green and white stripes around them. I apologize for causing you to froth.

PAN #1

Everywhere in St. Louis, and I mean everywhere (CHURCH, (and I put church in capital letters because it was particularly heinous to me because, hello, you're trapped there for 3 hours) the grocery store, the mall, Nordstroms, any restaurant, the beauty salon where you have to drop a payload to get your hair done,) absolutely everywhere you go, the drinking fountains provide water that IS NOT CHILLED. And like a sucker I fell for it every time.

PIC #2

Everything is free, and everything is grand. Zoo? free. Art Museum? Free. Thomas the Train Exhibit and Playland? Free. Natural History Museum? Free. Shakespeare in the Park? Free. La Dee Freakin' Free!!!! I Love.

PIC #3

Everything is Family Friendly. The People are Family Friendly. The activities are Family Friendly. The people you meet and greet are family friendly. The Owner of PI danced with Sawyer in the aisle of the Restaurant because that's just what you do when a darling baby is groovin to your music. And then he gave him a free 'gooey butter cookie' fresh from the oven and he gave us one too. I'm telling ya. Family AND Friendly.

PAN #2

Can't they do something about that humidity thing?

PIC#4

Everything you want is within a stone's throw. Temple? 10 minutes. Pretty great Mall? 10 minutes. Other even better Mall? 10 minutes the other way. Church? 10 minutes. Trader Joes? 5 minutes. Viewing the sun glinting off the ARCH at sunset? OK. 15 minutes. Maybe 20 tops. It was quite breathtaking I might add. The material the arch is made of is silvery and clean and shining. I was surprised that I liked it as much as I did because I'm not much of a touristy gal. Plus I was eating Peanut Butter M&Ms at the time which may or may not have added to the experience.

PAN#3

I mentioned the humidity, right? It deserves an honorable mention.

PIC#5

Lightening. AND Lightening Bugs. Both SO fun, right?

PIC#6

Warm puddles of water. When you're walking along and the rain is pouring down on you (what I really meant to say was dumping down on you) and you are trying to get from Fedex to your car and you accidentally step in a puddle in your new sandals and the water is bathtub warm, well, I've just got to say it was a lot better than it being cold.

PAN#4

It rains a lot for the summer and while you'd think I'd be used to a fair amount of rain, I found that I DO expect the sun to be out in the summer.

Let's review. I like convenience, stuff for free, a good family friendly atmosphere, delicious beautiful food, and I hate anything that makes me uncomfortable.

Any questions?

Class Dismissed.