Yeah, I'll admit it, I can be a bum

Sometimes I even disgust myself.

Today, the weather was beautiful, and I decided to totally spoil and pamper moi, because, fuck it all, no-one else does (mom doesn't count) – so I was a total derelict all day.

First, I slept late (ok, I admit, that's not necessarily a unique thing for me) and then decided to treat myself to lunch at one of my fav places, the Union Square Cafe, consistently named one of the best restaurants in NYC.

Let me just say, totally relaxing. I sat at the bar, read the Daily News (loving the dirt about the Maury scandal – good stuff!) and started with a fettuccine with braised duck ragu and parmigiana appetizer, then went on to the slow roasted Berkshire pork shoulder on a Parker House roll with mustard fruit. Can I just say - yum.

After lunch, since I was in the area, I decided to check out Trader Joe's on 14th Street. That's the hot and apparently trendy supermarket from California that got so much buzz when they opened because of all the exotic items they sell.

People were lining up to get in when it opened several weeks ago. Which is crazy. Hell, I wouldn't line up to get into Butter, never mind a supermarket. (And that's a moot point, anyway, as I think I'm self-exiled from Butter because of an embarrassing incident some years ago, trying to get in with a few friends, including the infamous Jan Brady. I don't think I could show my face there again.)

I digress. So, perusing Trader Joe's, but not really being a maniacal grocery shopper - I could care less about Thai lime or jalepeno blue cornbread - I had to go over and check out the wine section. Joe's is famous for its house label, Charles Shaw, which sells for ridiculously low prices. I'm talking $3 a bottle. (In California, it's $2 and is affectionately called Two-Buck Chuck.) So, of course, I had to get me some Three-Buck Chuck.

Mission accomplished, and then I swung by Home Depot in midtown to check out kitchen stuff, as the renovation from hell continues. Oy.

Well, that wore me out, so, on the way home, I stopped in at a little martini bar and had a few lemon drop martinis to ease the strain. Because, you know, I hadn't had enough to drink by this point.

And, finally, here is an as-it-happens report on Three-Buck Chuck, since I opened the bottle when I got home a little while ago: ok, it ain't the best wine I have ever had, but, for that price, I wasn't exactly expecting much. I guess I would say it isn't totally horrendous. Three dollars for an entire goddamn bottle. Hell, I was paying ten bucks per glass at Union Square Cafe.

I've been told that some of TJ's other California wines, at slightly higher prices, are a much better level of vino, so, if I go back, I will check them out instead. All in all, an amusing little experience. And what a day! I have to go relax now.