Ultimate DINKS

I realized that some of you who might eventually read this blog may not know what DINK stands for.  It is "Dual Income, No Kids".  And to paraphrase Kermit the Frog, "It's not easy being DINK."   Even when you're in your twenties, everyone immediately starts asking when you will have kids.  Then, when you get to be our ages (early 40s), everyone quits asking, but no one has time to spend with you because they are at school functions, soccer practice, etc.   So we have to wait until your kids are grown and, by then, who can party anymore?

Therefore, I dedicate this post to my favorite famous DINK couples, who are carrying the flag along with us.

1. Jeffrey and Ina Garten - for you non-foodies, this is the Barefoot Contessa and her husband, who is former dean of the business school at Yale.  She spends her days shopping at uber expensive supermarkets, growing herbs, and hanging with her gays. Her fridge always has multiple bottles of Veuve Cliquot. And then she counts the minutes til Jeffrey gets home from work to show the wonderful meal she prepared for him. (Okay, that part is a bit much).  But you can tell that they are truly partners and enjoy one another. 
2. Oprah Winfrey and Stedman Graham - are you sensing a pattern here?  Highly successful power couples.  They never married because they completely eschew the traditional roles.  Kudos!
3. Julia and Paul Childs:  This is somewhat cheating since I believe that they wanted children but it never worked out.  However, they are still a DINK couple, even though not childless by choice.  She was, well....freakin' Julia Childs, the person who brought families together around the dinner table with superb food.  She rocked.  And she had a husband who supported her work and did not blame her for not bearing children, which in that day and time was rare.   
4. Jay and Mavis Leno:  Honestly, I never knew much about them but I read an article where Mavis stated that when she was little, she knew she didn't want children.  I was that way too.  It was really worrisome to me that I would find someone that was okay with that because it's not the norm. 

See, there aren't that many heros to worship in this department.  So for those of you non-DINK, know that we love your kids (well, most of them) but it's a great pleasure to rely on you to do the heavy lifting.   And we will welcome you over for drinks anytime you find a babysitter!  Just give us a ring on our cell phones since we'll hopefully be out doing something that will make the world a better place for you and yours!  And having cocktails afterwards! (What? Did you think I'd make it a whole post without talking about drinking?! You don't know me at all.)

A Watershed Moment

We were fortunate to visit Chicago for New Year's and had some time to kill prior to our dinner at Sprout (which was amazing!  For you "Top-Chef" fans, it's Dale Levistki's place.)  But a serendipitous highlight was having a drink at Watershed, a new "speak-easy" style bar.  The concept is wonderful, only beer, wine & liquor from the Great Lakes region is served and everything is fresh and hand-crafted.  And the Moscow Mule I had was one of the best cocktails I have ever had.  I think this new movement of fresh, slow food & drink is a real boon to anyone who appreciates the finer, yet simple, things.

Thankfully, I had this awesome evening because the next night in the E.R. with a stomach bug....not such good times.