Well, here we are in the last few hours of 2008. It’s been an interesting year, hasn’t it?

And as for the upcoming year–which I expect will fly by just as quickly–I don’t know if I’m ready to jump into action quite yet. It’s so tough to get motivated! Although for once I’m ready to pack away all the Christmas decorations and whip our house into shape. (Getting organized is ALWAYS on my list of resolutions!! The hubby and I are both quite “paper-challenged”, sadly.)

I didn’t really make a “resolution” list. Although I put together some goals for my business which I’m sure I’ll have to add to.

And for other fellow biz owners out there, here’s a link to Toilet Paper Entrepreneur’s New Year’s Resolutions–there’s some media buzz around it, so don’t forget to add your entry if you want a little exposure for your website!

In any case, here’s wishing everyone a very safe and happy New Year’s celebration, and a year of great success in 2009!

Happy Holidays, everyone! I took a brief break last week to attack the last-minute Christmas frenzy, and of course, to enjoy the holiday with family and friends. I hope all of you had as wonderful a time as I did!

And on the coat-tails of continuing to enjoy the festivities, my hubby and I went to use some Free Slot Play yesterday at the Hard Rock Casino in Hollywood. (We won about $50.00 from their $100, but unfortunately lost it back on blackjack. Yikes!)

After enduring our bad run at the blackjack table, we were famished and stopped at Jazziz Bistro–currently my favorite restaurant in the Ft. Lauderdale area–since I had a Restaurant.com certificate for $25.00. This is the 3rd time we’ve eaten there, and the restaurant has consistently been outstanding! The quality of food is excellent, and the service is always fantastic as well.

We usually sit outside, but it was a bit cool (in the 70’s, this is chilly by Floridian standards!) so we dined indoors. The decor is very cozy and modern, in blacks and whites and reds.

We started with the Jazziz salad, and of course an order of their scrumptious cheesy bread. I warn you–the bread is addictive! It’s small pieces of toasted French bread with bubbling cheese (asiago and jack, we got the scoop from our server) and a hint of garlic…the best in comfort food, if you ask me. We also tried the Lamb and Orzo Stuffed Pepper. A bit too much orzo for my personal taste and not enough lamb, but very tasty nonetheless.

My mom and I had the Alaskan Halibut, served over warm spinach with red onions. Mmmmmm. The hubby, being the true caveman carnivore that he is, had the New York Strip prepared rare, and it was perfect.

The only critism I really have, is that they had live entertainment just outside, which was in competition with the music they were playing inside (quite loudly, to boot). It would have been nice to enjoy the live jazz music, which we could easily hear just inside.

Jazziz is definitely a bit on the pricey side, but even if you stop by to enjoy a variety of appetizers, it’s worth every penny. And don’t forget to order some of that amazing cheesy bread!!

Bon apetit!

We’ve all heard the phrase you can’t teach an old dog new tricks…well, I beg to differ! And I didn’t really even try to teach the dog–or in this case, my husband–he just taught himself the new trick all on his own!

For those of you who know me, you know I’m big on surprising other people whenever I can–especially for birthdays. And every year for my husband’s birthday, I plan a surprise trip somewhere or find some really unique experience for him–like the Dream Car Tour or like the Richard Petty Experience, or swimming with the Dolphins at Discovery Cove.

And every year for my birthday…no surprises for me. I usually have to plan my own birthday fun.

Now I’m not complaining, just stating the facts.

So a few weeks ago, my hubby Graham tells me to leave the night of December 14th open, because he has a surprise for me. Hmmmm…I’m thinking, what can he be up to? What’s happening on a Sunday night around town that I don’t already know about?

And I decide to just wait and see and not ruin his surprise…but I have to admit, I kind of had an idea of what it could be–and I hoped I was right!

So Sunday rolls around and we’re rushing to leave the house on time (I was given a drop dead departure time of 5:00pm) when he takes me next door to our neighbors. Which confirmed in my mind that I had discovered the secret surprise–I thought maybe he got tickets to go see K.C. and the Sunshine Band, because I’d gotten an email from the Hard Rock Live about that event coming up–and it turns out, I was right! Because the only thing my neighbors usually like to do is go to concerts. And they love the old school 70’s and 80’s bands.

So along with 3 other couples (our next door neighbors and their family and friends), I was whisked away via mini-van to go see not only K.C., but also Kool and the Gang! I have to admit, I really wasn’t very excited about seeing Kool and the Gang, but I sure changed my mind after that show.

Kool and the Gang

What a far cry from my experience at the Jingle Ball the night before!! I went from feeling like the oldest person there, to just plain feeling OLD. In a nostalgic way, that is. Because I certainly was one of the younger attendees in that audience.

To begin with, Kool and the Gang had about 12 band members–not all orginal–but let me tell you, Chris Brown and those youngsters out there could learn a thing or two about performing from THESE guys! They had two separate drummers (each with their own drum sets) and two saxophone players, a trumpet player, and a trombone player…of course a few guys on guitar and then a bunch of singers (one of course was the original Kool, Robert “Kool” Bell, and also his brother Khalis Bayyan, their longtime friends Dennis “DT” Thomas and George “Funky” Brown. )

These guys are no spring chickens–but they can still groove with the best of them. The energy level was through the roof, and the audience was dancing and singing right along–myself included! It was one big dance party. They sang and danced their hearts out to all the hits, including “Celebrate”, “Get Down On It”, “Ladies Night”, “Jungle Boogie”, “Joanna”, “Hollywood Swinging”, and “Too Hot”. I was actually sorry to see them go after their hour was up.

KC in all his glory

Then came K.C.–aka Harry Wayne Casey–I couldn’t wait to see what he was going to do, because the stage hands had set up some brightly colored feather boas and I was wondering if that was for him?? Turns out they were for his dancers and back-up singers–which I believed were a ploy to get us to look at someone other than him. Because K.C.? Hasn’t aged too well–and he’s the first to admit it–in his comment that he started playing 35 years ago, and that he’s now 58–and to quote “What the hell happened??” He asked if there were any kids in the audience, and explained that he was “your mother’s In Sync” and that in 30 years this is what Justin Timberlake could look like. Great sense of humor, K.C.!

So he’s a little older, a little heavier, and has less hair…and doesn’t have the greatest rhythm–but he knows how to work an audience and put on a helluva good show! I was really impressed at how he got everyone out of their seats and really kept the fun and energy levels high. His dancers did some fun routines with cute costumes. His horn section was excellent–all very young guys–and he had one drummer on a regular set of drums and another on congos/bongos–and they were phenomenal. The drum solo from David Simmons was explosive, to say the least.

He sang through hits like “I’m Your Boogie Man”, “(Shake, Shake, Shake) Shake Your Booty)”, “Keep it Comin’ Love”, “Boogie Shoes”, and “Give It Up “, and when he slowed it down for “Please Don’t Go” I was catapulted back to the days of my feathered hair and weekends at the roller rink, complete with my brush in my back pocket (This is a “Couple’s Skate”!)

All in all the night was a very tasty slice of nostalgia pie for me…and my husband definitely got a gold star for giving me a GREAT surprise for our anniversary. Maybe not quite as exciting as driving a Ferrari, but definitely up there in my Top 10 Most Fun Concerts List.

So you see…an old dog CAN learn new tricks…and sometimes it’s great fun to watch the old dogs doing their old tricks too.