Starlite Diner - Ryan Adams

2.13.20

My appetite hasn't been great but luckily, no vomiting.

I'm really tired but I'm always tired because the RA, so this is no change from the norm. 

I know I need to brush up my eating habits - more protein, more leafy greens and decaf coffee - so, I went out and bought yogurt and kale salad yesterday. 

Yogurt remains a terrible food that should only ever be made into tzatziki and only two places do kale salad well - the Whole Foods salad bar (it’s so garlicky) and Kapow Noodle Bar. The Chinatown Caesar is filled with kale, firecracker cashews, crispy wontons and this ginger-soy caesar dressing that’s just awesome. They also have the best G&T in West Palm Beach made with Tanq Rangpur. To co-opt the words of Big Papa Hemingway, they’re cool, clean and make a girl feel civilized.

I had my first craving today. I really wanted a tall, ice-cold glass of Strawberry Nestle Kwik - remember that stuff? It was the same exact color as my Strawberry Shortcake doll and smelled about the same.

It’s such a weird craving to have considering I don’t particularly like that fake strawberry flavor and haven’t had a glass of milk in about 30 years because milk is only good when it’s cheese.

Oh God, I miss soft cheeses.
And blue cheese.
And wine.

The hospital gives new parents a steak dinner but since I don’t eat steak, I’m going to see if I can finagle my way into a cheese plate - just give me a big thwack of Cambozola, some honey, a nectarine, bread and some champagne and I’ll be happy.

That’s the secret to life right there - people you love and a cheese plate shared.

Hey kiddo - it's Mom.

We went to Howley's Diner a few nights ago. Daddy and I have been going there for years and we always do the same thing - we sit at the bar with our knees touching and our favorite server Dara brings us a PBR and a Diet Coke with like, three whole lemons in it.

I started thinking about how I can't wait to bring you to Howley's.

We’d go on Saturday morning after taking your brother to the dog park. Nestled together in a booth, we’d shimmy to The Clash and The Rolling Stones. 

There's gonna be a lot of classic rock in your life. You might rebel and hate it but I hope you come back to it because Let It Bleed is as close to perfect as an album gets. I mean, it opens with Gimme Shelter and closes with You Can’t Always Get What You Want.

I hope you get to see The Stones play one day. There’s a solid possibility of that happening because Keith Richards is basically gonna live forever.

I always order the same thing for breakfast at Howley’s. The Sunshine Special is a perfect amount of food - one egg (sunny side up with crispy edges), one veggie sausage, home fries and rye toast. And then, you douse the whole thing in Cholula.

Daddy and I always share a waffle - it's tradition.

And now, it's a tradition we'll get to share with you. Not gonna lie - thinking about this made me tear up a little.

Yeah - Mommy does that. She cries when she’s tired, when the dogs are cuddly with one another, when she hears Maps by The Yeah Yeah Yeahs (Daddy and I danced to it at our wedding) and one time, she started crying at Indus because the gobi manchurian was super spicy and exactly what she wanted.

We’ll have crying in common. At least for the first couple of months.

I can’t wait to meet you - to share old traditions and forge new ones all our own. We’re going to have a lot of fun, Little Bird.

See you soon.

We love you xx

Oh and all of these letters will feature a song because a wise man once said, “Love is a Mixtape” and this is Side A of yours.