The shortest month of the year has come and gone. After a whirlwind of travel and New York visitors, February was much more of a subdued normal month. But don’t think that stopped Jenn and I from enjoying it. Really though if I could capture February in one word it would be food.

RECAP OF THE MONTH

As we’ve started to get into more of a routine here in New York we’ve started to expand out of our cocoon here in the Upper West Side and venture out. Part of that is to try new places to eat, see plays, and just enjoy the weekends. On the first weekend in February we went and tried one of Eater.com’s favorite new restaurants Gupshup in the Flat Iron district. We love Indian food and the meal did not disappoint. I’ll never forget that Sunday we had 50+ degree weather and it was like everyone finally came out of their winter cocoons and was out and about. We spent much of that Sunday walking Riverside park and taking in the ice coming down the river.

Unfortunately (maybe because of the vast swings in the weather) Jenn got sick and we spent the next weekend hunkered inside while Jenn battled the flu. I think she watched five movies and a bunch of TV and slept more then I’ve seen her sleep in a long time. That weekend after six years with my MacBook Air I finally upgraded to the new MacBook Air which I’m using to write up this post right now. It’s been quite the upgrade and I love it more than I even realized I would.

Jenn started to feel better over the next week. We celebrated Valentines Day at home, I got The Jin (a nearby Korean takeout restaurant) and we ended up celebrating over the three-day weekend. Jenn got her hair cut (a couple of inches chopped off) and it looks stunning. To celebrate Valentines Day we went to a local fondue restaurant called Mont Blanc 52 where we split their cheese fondue, had some wine, and Jenn had some pasta.

The following day after Church we went to one of the restaurants that I’ve been dying to go to since we moved here, Frenchette. It’s a small place across the street from where I work but its gotten a rave response since it opened. We started off with a truffle and slice ham appetizer along with a glass of champagne and a cocktail for Jenn. For our entrees Jenn had the duck confit and I had the pork schnitzel. It was one of the best meals we’ve had in New York City thus far. I’ve already told Jenn I want to go back and try their dinner and more of their breakfast items for brunch.

Over the next week we finally put the finishing touches on our first big trip of 2019. Jenn and I have had this itinerary stewing for about a year now and mentioned to Jake that we were thinking about going somewhere in June. He said he wanted to come and so over February and a couple FaceTime calls we’ve booked a three week trip that starts in Cairo, then goes to Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Mumbai and ends the trip in Singapore. It’s going to be quite the adventure for the three of us and one that I know we all cannot wait for.

Our one and only play this month came over the last weekend of February. We made our way to Midtown and first had dinner at L’Adresse. We went on the lighter side for dinner. Jenn had a seafood pasta and I had a burger with a salad. We finished with a delightful bread pudding that was a great end to the meal. We walked from their back to the American Airlines theater to sit in the third row to watch Paul Dano and Ethan Hawke square off in True West a beautiful play about two brothers. We were both so engrossed not only in the story but the superb acting.

The month of February rang to a close with us watching the Oscars. This is the first year we’ve been on the East Coast for the Academy Awards which meant we had eaten dinner, cleaned up, and got ready for the week before Adam Lambert played his string of Queen songs to open up the host-less show. And yet with all the turmoil leading up to the show I found it to be quite a good show this year. Highlights for me were the pure joy of Spike Lee winning for Black Klannsman (amazing movie), along with Rami Malek and Olivia Colman speeches. And let’s not forget the chivalry of Captain America helping Regina King up the stairs. But unlike most years I was not crowned victorious in our annual ballot, Jenn and I tied with nine correct guesses (or 15 incorrect guesses).

TV WE WATCHED

Start with the good. Jenn and I loved and binged straight through Russian doll and Sex Education on Netflix. Both delightful shows for very different reasons. We also welcomed the return of both Hasan Minaj and John Oliver back to the airwaves with their two incredible shows. Jenn for some reason had a desire to go back and watch Survivor so we started a random season (28) and she’s hooked.

And one of the most underrated shows on TV is Chef’s Table. Nine times out of ten I watch an episode of that show and come away inspired.

BOOKS I READ (OR LISTENED TO)

I didn't manage to read five books in February (like I did in January) but I did finish three and start a fourth. All four books have been tremendous. An American Marriage was a beautiful, sad, insightful look at a young marriage ripped apart by a wrongful conviction. Calypso by David Sedaris was one of the most funny, enjoyable, and insightful reads I’ve had in a long time. And about 50% through Shadow of the Wind and its been a really enjoyable, fun read.

But the book that really captivated me was Yuval Noah Harari’s novel 21 Lessons for the 21st Century. A beautiful look at the past, the future, and what we can make of the world today. I adored this book and immediately bought both of his previous works as well and can’t wait to read them.

MOVIES WE WATCHED

After five months of running through the top-100 movies of all time (in a list that we conjured up) we decided to alter our approach a bit and limit the movies down to 50 we actually wanted to watch. After the amazing Almost Famous (which we loved) found ourselves not enjoying LA Confidential and having just watched Jaws a few months prior re-watching Jaws for no real reason other then it was on our list. Our first movie from the revised top-50 list was Back to the Future which was a lot of fun.

GAMES I'VE BEEN PLAYING

Most of February was spent playing Assassin’s Creed Odyssey with small stints in both FIFA and Golf Club. But really I put 30+ hours into AC Odyssey and am hoping to finish the game by the end of March.

2019 GOAL TRACKING

Goal #1: Read 33 Books: I've read 8 books and am currently on track to hit my goal.

Goal #2: Run 300 Times: I ran 54 times so far in 2019. On track to hit the goal.

Goal #3: Keep Weight Under 140: I've yet to go over 140lbs

Goal #4: Eat at 12 Michelin Star Restaurants: Zero so far, but hoping to rectify that with two in March.

Goal #5: 12 Monthly Recaps: 2 for 2.

A Look Back - February 2019