Fur-Babies

I’ve been posting so much about puppies lately, I think it’s time to share some kitties. Below is Maya. You don’t see her much on the blog because she’s a scaredy-cat and hides a lot. She’s very skittish and flees when people enter the room she’s in. She’s silly. I wish she was more affectionate because she’s such a small and gentle cat.

And then of course there is Fat Kitty. He’s always around. When I watch TV, this is what it means:

Two different days and pretty much the same view for me. No complaints here! It’s awesome. The cats are doing good. I recently got them one of those bubbling cat water fountains. Supposedly it’s supposed to entice them to drink more water. I put it together over the weekend and it took about three days before they finally drank from it. I think they were scared of it. Fat Kitty stalked the water fountain and then would look at the bubbling water, then look at me, then back at the water. Finally they drank from it! So there you go, an update from the fur-babies in my house.

The other night I met my friend Sam for dinner at Tarboush. It’s a Lebanese restaurant I’ve wanted to try for years and just never got around to it. The place is on SE Hawthorne, a very popular place to visit in Portland, in an old Victorian house. There’s also a ton of vegan, dairy-free and gluten-free options marked on the menu.

Sam started with the TarBoush Blood Simple drink. It was a bunch of ingredients I’d never heard of (Fernet-Branca, Canton Ginger Liqueur, lemon & lime juice, and Pomegranate Grenadine) but it was tasty–sweet and tart at the same time.

I got a glass of Lebanese white wine (Masaya Vin Blanc), it was like a dry pinot gris with a hint of pears. I liked my wine a lot. I asked the waiter (who was super nice and attentive) for advice because I didn’t recognize any of the Lebanese wines. This was a good choice.

Sam and I shared a happy hour appetizer of “Foul Mouddamas,” it was fava beans cooked with garlic, lemon juice and olive oil. It was really tasty. I ordered the Lamb Shawarma Plate. I almost always order lamb when I go to Middle Eastern restaurants because it’s not something I ever cook at home. It was so good! I ended up eating a little more than I should have. It came with basmati rice and tahini sauce.

After eating a little too much, I took the rest for leftovers. The next day I had a salad for lunch and topped it with some of the lamb. After dinner Sam and I wanted to continue our chatting because we were having so much fun so we went for a walk on Hawthorne. It was such a nice evening and it almost felt like summer–a warm night that was still light out at 7pm. We ended up at Cup and Saucer where I drank too much peppermint tea and ate some coffeecake.

Don’t be fooled by the picture, the coffeecake was huge. It was a cream cheese coffeecake and they warmed it up before serving it. The crunchy, sugary topping was the best. I asked for a box immediately and cut the cake in half so I wouldn’t eat the whole thing!

Before I knew it, it was 9pm and I was getting sleepy. When I got home Fat Kitty was anxiously awaiting my return from the front window, saw my car and then raced to the kitchen where he flopped onto his back with his legs in the air. This is what I come home to every day: the “come scratch my belly” pose! It makes me so happy. 🙂

Have a great weekend guys!