Mandy Boyle NEPA Girl with Moxie. Writer. Nerdess. Practically Balanced.

Almost five years later, Brent and I finally had the perfect first date.

Well, it wasn’t really a first date at all. We’ve been dating for years, but on Friday night, we had the first date we always should of had but never did. It was THAT perfect. Like, movie perfect.

Now, if you know Brent and I, then you know the story of our first date. If you don’t know, ask me sometime. It’s, um, quite entertaining (also, it’s a miracle we continued to see each other after it. No one got arrested, but there was plenty of mortification). This date, however, was much different.

It started on Friday morning when Brent asked about what we should do that night for dinner. He suggested that we go out somewhere, do something different. Excited at the prospect of doing something new, I agreed and said I would think of something and give him a call during the day to figure out the details.

My first idea was to get chili and go for a walk around downtown Scranton (romantic, right?). He just laughed and said, “I’m offering to take you out to dinner – and the best you can do is chili?” Okay, back to the drawing board. Sometime Friday afternoon, I called him and asked him if he had come up with any ideas for dinner. We tossed a few thoughts back and forth before I recalled a place we had driven past a few times and had always been curious about.

“How about that jazz place that we drive past all the time but never actually stop to check out?”

“You mean Bonnie and Clyde’s? Sure – let me call for reservations.”

A few quick searches on Google and we had reservations at Bonnie and Clyde’s Hideaway (it says jazz hideaway on the sign – I was close!)

We came home from work, changed into nicer clothes (we clean up well!), and headed out. We weren’t too sure what to expect. We couldn’t find a menu online but every review we did find said that the place was awesome. I also dug up an old article from the Times-Tribune that noted they cut their own meats and had a great Chilean sea bass. That’s all I needed

We arrived and were seated. Bonnie and Clyde’s is a small but really cozy restaurant and bar on Main Street, Eynon. From the outside, it looks like a cute cafe. Old building. Lights in the trees. Some tables for alfresco dining. Inside is where the real magic is.

The interior makes you feel like you walked into a speakeasy or a hotel lobby in the 1930′s. Great wood, amazing light fixtures, lots of rich color and texture. The bar is huge and it was already starting to fill up. The bartender, who I believe owns the place, showed us to the dining room where the waitress sat us in this charming window nook. A table for two – right in it’s own window platform. Really, really cute.

We got our menus. Okay, it’s a little pricey, but hey, it’s a date. It’s worth it. We both got specials for the evening. For him, a rib eye and for me, lamb. Rolls came hot out of the oven, served with finely sliced cheese, olive oil, and whipped butter. Already, we were off to a great start.

Then came salads, bursting with color (and homemade dressing) in perfect portions. We both remarked on how we hate when we get huge but unsatisfying salads. This one was fresh and delicious. Our water glasses were always full – and we never had to ask.

Finally, dinner arrived. My lamb had this great herb crust and came served with homemade garlic mashed potatoes, steamed broccoli, and carrots. Everything was cooked perfectly and the portions were generous. I took a bite of Brent’s rib eye. Melt in your mouth tender and full of flavor. This was how a dinner was supposed to taste.

Plus, you know it’s truly a great meal when you don’t feel bloated and gross after eating it. Even thought they were large portions, we both felt comfortably full – and light – when we were finished.

The thing I loved most about this place was how we never felt rushed. When we looked at the clock, we noticed we had been at the restaurant for a few hours. We took our time eating, talking, and just enjoying ourselves. We never felt hurried or stressed or that anxious feeling you get in the pit of your stomach when you’re in a busy restaurant. The food was superb, the service friendly, and by the time the dessert question came up, we were all in. Two chocolate lava cakes, or as I shall refer to them now, moist-heavenly-chocolate-pillows-of-awesome.

As we were finishing our dessert and waiting for the check, we heard some loud booms outside. At first, we thought it might be the rumblings of thunder, but when we looked out the window, it was fireworks. Turns out, we had a perfect view of Olyphant’s fireworks display. Yes, a great dinner AND fireworks. How flipping awesome would that be on a first date? We strolled slowly back to the car, hand in hand, enjoying the fireworks and the balmy summer evening. So comfortable and the air smelled sweet.

To be real, I’ll include the only imperfection (but not really) in the evening. I think the chocolate lava cake may have aggravated my egg allergy, but only slightly. It was no biggie. We made a quick stop at a Giant we found nearby and grabbed some allergy meds. We drove home with the windows down and continued to talk, easily and comfortably, appreciating just how wonderful a start our weekend was getting.

Amazing dinner + fireworks + spending time with the person you love most = the ingredients of the perfect first date that just so happened to occur a few years later. But that’s just fine with us.

A few months back, when my journey as part of the Fearsome Foursome began, I wasn’t quite sure what to expect. I walked in knowing three things:

• I was surrounded by beautiful, talented women who are passionate about new ideas
• Our area is in desperate need of new ideas
• I was going to be a part of one of the coolest, biggest things I’ve ever done

Last Friday, the four of us launched the NEPA BlogCon website, which is one of the biggest steps toward the conference we’ve taken.

If you haven’t heard of it yet, NEPA BlogCon is Northeastern Pennsylvania’s first blogging and social media conference. It’s put together by Karla Porter, Michelle Hryvnak-Davies, Leslie Stewart and I and we’re all quite in love with the idea of bringing the 570 forward a few steps. Launching was one of our first forward steps, and I’m happy to say, it was a success.

We had our Launch Party at the River Grille in Plains on June 22nd. The turnout was great, there were free appetizers, and we put together a rag tag band of giveaways. In a word, it was awesome. I think the thing I’m most happy about concerning this event was the people we got to meet.

Some bloggers came to our Launch Party as first-timers, never having met with other bloggers before. Others, who are socially active in NEPA’s blogging community, came out to network and show their support. My co-workers came. Family members came. Significant others came. And it all just…WORKED.

Having an event run this smoothly was amazing. It worked out exactly the way we expected and in some ways, better.

Launching has made me even more aware that what I’m doing – no, what WE (Karla, Leslie, Michelle, and I)- are doing, is so important.

This is big. And I hope you’ll share it with us.

http://nepablogcon.com/

Earlier tonight, I was watching an episode of 30 Rock on Netflix (note: Liz Lemon and I share the same passion for food – and we may shop at the same stores, but I digress). It was the episode where Liz goes to her high school reunion and finds out that instead of a loveable geek, she was actually quite the jerk. As my own 10 year reunion is only a few years away, it got me thinking: what the hell was I like in high school?

Here’s a story.

Imagine a girl, about average height, who is pretty skinny. She has long limbs, big feet, and braces. She wears glasses sometimes and sports a pair of Chuck Taylor low tops. She tells stories that don’t really have a point and tends to ramble just to hear the sound of her own voice.

She does chorus, track, and theater. When approached, she has a hard time looking you in the eye. When called on in class, she puffs herself up like a peacock and proudly croons the correct answer. She gets As and isn’t afraid to tell you about it.

Her classmates voted her “Biggest Brown Noser” in the yearbook. She eats the crusts off of her friend’s PB&J sandwiches at lunch. Her group of friends is small. She mimics those she admires.

She has an unacceptable amount of tardies, mostly because she hates getting up in the morning. She sets three alarm clocks and spends hours on AIM, usually not going to bed until after 1 or 2 a.m. She has a boyfriend that goes to another school, but is rarely seen. She has a blue Nokia cell phone with the default ring tone. It’s annoying. She drives a purple car…poorly.

Her favorite subjects are English, History, and French. She spends study hall in the chorus room, newspaper room, or the library. Her forehead breaks out a lot. She sings whenever she can, proud of her maturing voice that’s slightly out of pitch but a little more full than her classmates. She walks as if she may fall over at any second, from clumsiness or the awkwardness of having grown into a body seemingly overnight.

She wears Dr. Pepper lip balm because a boy she likes once said that he liked it. She eats PopTarts in Physics. She tries to be funny, usually by copying someone else’s joke, but only sometimes succeeds. When threatened, she turns up her nose but turns into a real snot. She’s not afraid to use the f-word freely (but only with friends, of course).

She tries to be nice to everyone, but isn’t always as nice as she could be. She says things without thinking.

She’s vindictive and can be a bit of a spitfire. She’s bossy when she really wants to feel like a leader. She works part-time at a movie theater and always smells faintly of popcorn. Her favorite colors are purple and green. She admires Audrey Hepburn and listens to showtunes more than anything else. There’s a tape of The Who in her car that always seems to be in the player.

Her face blushes bright red around boys she likes or when under pressure. She is jealous.

She wants to fit in and tries desperately to do so among a select group of outliers. They’re not outcasts, per se, but they’re definitely a little different. They’re all well-liked, attractive, and a little bit quirky. They go swimming with each other, have sleep overs, and have a running list of inside jokes. She gets invited to their post-prom parties and the occasional get together. She takes a beginner ballet class taught by one of them and gets attention for her costume after one particular performance.

She both respects and rebels against authority. She is afraid.

She reads books and magazines during class, often hiding them underneath her binder or textbook. She plays Tetris in AP Calculus on her TI-83 Plus. She’s given up on the subject, much to her family’s chagrin. Her track spikes smell awful and her hurdling form isn’t what it could be. She’d much rather spend time in the auditorium than the stadium.

She wore a blue dress to prom one year and a red one the next. She never did much with her hair. She wore scarves and flats and thrift store t-shirts. Never makeup.

Then, she grew up. She got older and went to college. She sprouted and curved and decided she wanted to write the rest of her life. Now she blogs, telling endless stories about high school, communicating, and everything in between.

But she’s still the same. Still looking to be noticed, still waiting to be heard. And still working on being nice to people…and a little less awkward.