Breakfast and Genocide: A Tale of Three Omelets

Hello LilyOnTheLam.Com Readers:

I am back from vacation - the beautiful Grace Bay, Providenciales in the Turks & Caicos Islands!  It was an absolutely wonderful trip and I am rocking a fantastic tan.  (I know the status of my flesh color is very important to all my readers - no need to thank me for this update.)  

When I do "tropical" vacations, I have to ratchet down my "Now, NOW, NOW!" mentality and slow myself down to "Island Time."  When I first arrived in Providenciales, I had to deal with the immigration staff working on "island time" (a.k.a. a snail's pace).  So when I was getting ready to leave Turks & Caicos on the 9:10 a.m. American Airlines flight, I decided to get to the airport super early in case the bag check and the security personnel were working on "island time" speed.  

I arrived bright and early but no one bothered to tell me that the security line doesn't open until 7 a.m. and here it was 6:40 a.m.  Luckily the airport restaurant (Gilley's Restaurant and Bar) was open.  I figured this was God's way of telling me to have an omelet, since I had not yet eaten.

In addition to being one of the least expensive meals on Turks and Caicos (restaurant food is so expensive in the TCI!), I have to say my omelet at Gilley's was like going back in a time machine.  This omelet tasted exactly like the omelets my mother occasionally made for me as a kid.  (This may have something to do with the fact that the Gilley's omelet had a large amount of American cheese [in addition to ham, peppers and onions] and our impoverished family was no stranger to a gigantic block of welfare cheese.)  

Regardless of the reason, every bite of this omelet tasted like my childhood breakfast.  It blew my mind that my tastebuds could transport me on a journey across time (I am 974 years old, after all).  And btw, the omelet was pretty tasty.  Win-win!    

My Omelet Time Machine

Gilley's at Providenciales Airport

I love it when there are pickled peppers and several bottles of hot sauce on my table!

I flew back to Miami, Florida.  On the flight, I finished reading the terrific book "The Girl On The Train" by Paula Hawkins.  I usually only read non-fiction, but for this book I made an exception.  Also while I was on vacation, I read Melissa Rivers' book "The Book of Joan: Tales of Mirth, Mischief, and Manipulation" about her mother comedienne Joan Rivers.  That book was beyond fantastic and if you are a Joan Rivers' fan, you must read it.  I had the great pleasure of seeing Joan Rivers' one woman show in Los Angeles.  It was amazing to see such a tiny woman be such a dynamic powerhouse.

While driving from the Miami airport back home to Tampa, I stopped in Bonita Springs for lunch and ordered - another omelet!  This one did not remind me of my childhood but it was still yummy.  I have a Tater Tot obsession, so I was a little too excited that the Bonita Springs Perkins Restaurant now offers "Tots" as one of their side dish options.  

Perkins' Restaurants now have TOTS - spread the word!

So are you keeping score?  Two omelets in one day.  So what did today bring?  Work was so crazy busy that I didn't have time for breakfast, but I did get a break in my day to run out for lunch.  And what did I have?  Omelet #3!  Sheesh - is it lack of originality or a protein-deficiency?

Omelet #3 from Village Inn may not look pretty but it was pretty tasty (and attention Perkins, the ham pieces in the Village Inn omelet were not microscopically small like in your omelet!)  

I was getting ready to dive into my Village Inn omelet when the people at the table behind me were talking about the fact that a friend's daughter was on an archeological dig.  Well, this is definitely a higher cultural topic than I usually hear at the local Village Inn chain restaurant.

But then the table started discussing what the friend's daughter was excavating ... mass grave sites.  Ugh.  I ordered a side of hash browns with my omelet, not a side of genocide.  

Then the gentleman at the table said "And what about her other child?  Doesn't he have ADHD?"  

The woman responded: "No, Tourette's."  

I almost dropped my fork.  Seriously?  Am I seated next to the Debbie Downer table?  I could hear the "waaaaaaaah wah" Saturday Night Live TV show sound effect in my head.

People, please!  No mass graves.  No children with Tourette's.  Just sunshine and rainbow conversation while I am eating yet another omelet.  PLEASE!  Is that too much to ask?  

I think I am done with my omelet kick now.  Time to move on to some other egg dish with potato accompaniment!  And hopefully the conversations around me will also migrate to other less depressing subjects.  But even if the depressing topics do not change, I can always look at my Turks and Caicos pictures and smile.  Here are some for your viewing enjoyment ...

P.S.  This little guy was in my room in Turks and Caicos.  If you are a long time reader of LilyOnTheLam.com, you will know that I have a baby gecko phobia.  (Read about it here: Lizard Blocked)  I let out a scream so loud that I probably shattered the baby gecko's ear drums.  Two days later, while I was packing I discovered that the baby gecko had set up residence in one of my sandals.  I dropped the sandal and screamed bloody murder.  The baby gecko will probably be suing me for intentional infliction of emotional distress.  I'll be counter-suing.  Waaaaaaaah wah!

Thanks as always for reading!