Yesterday was Valentine’s Day. Donna and I aren’t too big on Hallmark holidays, but we celebrated. Donna’s Valentine’s gift to me was a full body therapeutic massage. I was badly in need. My gift to her was dinner at Got Sushi.

When we lived in Mesa, Got Sushi on the corner of Power and McDowell was a place where we frequently dined. Being half Japanese, I’m very particular about sushi. We found consistently good sushi at Got Sushi when we lived here. Yesterday, not so much. I guess things change. The  maki (rolls) left something to be desired. The spider roll was too heavily battered. It also had too much sauce. It should have just a light drizzle, but it was covered in sauce. The volcano roll also was too heavy on the sauce.

The nigiri and sashimi were quite good though. So, it wasn’t not all bad. All in all, we enjoyed our meal even though the maki was a little disappointing.

When we returned home, I fixed myself a cocktail. Last weekend, when we went out to dinner with Howard and Sara Graff, the topic of vodka came up. Sara and I are fans of vodka martinis. We both are also fans of Tito’s vodka, made in Texas. Sara brought up a new vodka she likes. It’s Polish vodka called Sobieski. I asked if it was potato vodka (it’s not). This led to discussion of Russian vodka versus Polish vodka and grain vodka versus potato vodka.

Vodka originated in Poland during the middle ages. In Poland they make vodka from potatoes or grains. Russia started producing vodka late in the 14th century and typically Russian vodka is made from grains.

It’s more difficult to make vodka from potatoes than grains. Grains are easier to handle and store. Potatoes can be bruised and spoil. But, when good vodka is made from potatoes, it’s superior to my palate.

I’ve tried Sobieski vodka before. It’s not high on my list of favorite vodkas. My all-time favorite is Chopin, made from potatoes. Too bad Chopin is so expensive. Yesterday, while I was at Basha’s grocery, I saw Luksusowa (pronounced Look-soo-so-vah), a Polish potato vodka. I hadn’t tried it before, so I bought it.

Back to last night’s cocktail. I made a vodka martini with the Luksusowa. What a find! This is very smooth vodka, it makes a great martini and it’s very affordable. I would rate it 4.5 stars on a scale of five.

I’m very late writing today’s post – for one thing I had to wait while my computer installed updates that the good folks at Microsoft thought I urgently needed. While I was working on my laptop, a pop-up announced that my computer will restart in 14 minutes to complete an important software update! No option to restart later or cancel the restart. I guess the folks at Microsoft know what my priorities should be. End of rant.

This morning, Donna went for a 35-mile bike ride with her friend, Dara. While she was out riding, I rode the scooter over to the Mesa Marketplace Swap Meet. I remembered this large flea market from when I lived near nearby in 2005. I rode down Ellsworth to Baseline and turned east. I thought I knew where it was, but I began to have my doubts.

The old neighborhood has changed. Where open land was, now there were housing developments and condos. Shopping centers that I didn’t remember seeing before were on the corners. The swap meet used to be easy to find – it stood out on a barren landscape. I crossed Crismon Road. This used to be wide open, but now it is filled with housing. I thought this was where the swap meet was.

I rode another mile east and found it, just west of Signal Butte. It’s almost hidden by the housing developments there. I couldn’t miss it though. There was a long line of cars trying to get into the parking lot. The parking lot is huge. The marketplace has structures with permanent metal roofs and tent-like walls.

It’s similar to the big tent in Quartzsite, but I would say it’s five times as big. There is a mile and a quarter of covered shopping halls with about 1,600 shops.  It’s open Friday through Sunday from 7am to 4pm. I was looking for a couple of inexpensive tools. They have everything you can imagine for sale there, and some things you probably never thought of.

I roamed through a couple of hallways before I found what I was looking for. Tables covered with tools! I bought a mechanic’s mirror (a small mirror on an expandable wand), a mechanic’s magnet and some hemostats.

These aren’t the type of tools I would use frequently and I didn’t want to spend much money on them.

While I was roaming around, I found a digital clock that not only displays the time, it also displays the date and day of the week. It also has an ambient temperature display. We’ve been wanting a clock/thermometer, so I bought it for $10. I also got a good deal on socks and a couple of T-shirts.

Today the temperature might reach 90. I think a trip to the pool will be on the agenda.