Nothing is more exemplary than a beautiful, refreshing summer drink. The past two months have been very challenging for me – carrying difficult and unpleasant loads. Trying to recover. Trying to find the time to practice the things I love to do, like drinking my favorite wines and making cool cocktails, lol.

I would like to share with you a homemade drink I call Jade Skirt Mojito. A delicious and satisfying mojito made with fresh mint leaves, lime, Kiwifruit, white rum, sugar, Midori Melon Liqueur and club soda.


Jade Skirt Mojito

6 mint leaves
1/2 Kiwifruit
1/2 lime (freshly squeezed)
2 teaspoons of sugar
2 1/2 teaspoon of Midori Melon Liqueur
1 1/2 shots of white rum
1/2 cup of club soda
Ice (optional)

​Muddle the freshly squeezed lime, sugar, Kiwifruit and mint leaves in a mortar and pestle or you can use the end of a wooden spoon and small jug. Pour into a glass of ice. Add the Midori Melon, white rum, club soda and stir. Garnish with mint leaves and serve.

Monarch #3. April 2023
-"Grown-ups underestimate kids."​

My wife and I traveled to Orlando, Florida last week to see our daughter during her college softball tournament, The Spring Games. Luckily, on the day we arrived there were no scheduled games, so we went straight from the airport to her team’s hotel in Winter Garden, FL. We were extremely excited to see her and definitely made the most out of our visit. While the tournament started earlier in the week, we did have a chance to catch a few games. The games were held at two field locations, Legends Way Ball Field in Clermont, FL and Sleepy Hollow Sports Complex in Leesburg, FL. I should tell you, watching softball games can be exciting and extremely stressful at the same time.

​Here are a few photos from our trip…

Happy New Year!!! Asenath and I would like to thank you for your support in 2022. 2023 will hopefully be as amazing and fun with more of our posts about relationships, travel, food, art and design and books. Yesterday Gigi made her famous delicious tostones for breakfast and I made my flavorful jerked fried sea bass for dinner. Here are some photos from the kitchen. Enjoy!!!

Asenath and I thought it would be a cool idea to find one or two cheeses that we can have for our holiday snack treat, so we decided to have a cheese tasting at home.

I took a trip to Di Bruno Bros. in Philadelphia and purchased an assortment of cheeses we could try. Di Bruno Bros. has a great selection of “signature cheeses, to the blues, the Bries and creamy cheeses, cheddars, fondue, fresh & chèvres, Goudas, Parmigianos, pecorinos & grating cheeses, provolones, the stinky & funky, and truffle cheese—WHEW!” I went a little over my budget but picked up these cheeses…

​Cheeses:

Auricchio Stravecchio Provolone. “Imported from Italy, and aged for 12 months. It smells slightly pungent, and its flavor is robust, nutty, and piquant.”

Normandie Brie. “Soft, mild, buttery and creamy taste.”

Cabot Habanero Cheddar. “Sharp cheddar taste with flavors of habanero peppers that gives a spicy kick.”

Drunken Goat. “Pasteurized goat's milk cheese. Aged for a short period of time then immersed in wine for at least 72 hours. Mild and creamy taste.”

Etxegarai. “Unpasteurized sheep’s milk cheese aged 6 months and smoked over Hawthorne and Cherry woods.”

Campo de Montalban. “Aged for three months. 60 percent cow’s milk, with the remainder being a mix of goat and sheep’s milk. Mild buttery with notes of nuts and a balanced acidity.”

Our favorites were the Drunken Goat and the Campo de Montalban. I particularly liked the subtle flavors of the Drunken Goat cheese and Asenath enjoyed the Campo de Montalban. She said, “I liked the texture and the flavor. It was firm but smooth.”

​What’s your favorite Netflix movie? Rurouni Kenshin: The Beginning is the best adaptation of a Japanese manga/anime I have ever seen. It was released June 4, 2021, directed by Keishi Ohtomo. The visuals are amazing and the action scenes are brutal.

​The story takes place in 1864 during Japan’s civil war. An assassin Kenshin Himura, also known as Battosai the killer pledges to protect the revolution. I literally lost count of how many bodies he dropped.

Some of the Cast: Takeru Sath (Kenshin Himura), Emi Takei (Kaoru Kamiya), Nobuhiro Watsuki, Munetaka Aoki (Sagara Sanosuke), Kasumi Arimura (Tomoe Yukishiro), Munetaka Aoki (Sagara Sanosuke).
​