Wingnut's World

a new home

2009-06-20T00:21:00.001-04:00

I've moved to: http://scrumptiousexplorations.blogspot.com

Update your bookmarks and join me there!

The pain of Heroes

2009-06-17T07:28:00.001-04:00

We finally caught up on the TV show Heroes. Thank you TiVo! But, oh the pain! They had a wonderfully complete, nice tied up ending where the bad guy could be gone forever, and they just had to twist it to keep the story going for another season. So painful! I was ready for the bad guy to be done. I've been looking forward to that moment for so long. What do they need another season for? Is there anyone who watches the show besides A and I? I wish I'd gotten a vote on how the season ends. I would've told them I like perfect fairytale endings.

Isn't it funny...

2009-06-16T18:28:00.001-04:00

Isn't it funny how one can take the same route to and from work everyday and one day notice a building that has sprouted? It's a huge building, really tall. How did I not see it before it got so tall?

a few things you might want to know

2009-06-14T13:34:00.001-04:00

it's rainy today in Boston

we LOVED our cupcake tour yesterday (details below)

I'm still in my pajamas at 1:30pm in the afternoon

the phlebotomist informed us that in order to know how much water you should drink every day you take your weight and divide it in half. That's how many ounces of water you should drink in a day. Drink Up!

Cupcakes! Part 2

2009-06-13T18:01:00.001-04:00

At Sweet we did frosting shots and shared a lemon raspberry cupcake and a mini organic karat cupcake. The lemon raspberry had lemon frosting and was filled with raspberry jam. Light and summery, it was scrumptious. The organic karat was carrot cake with cream cheese frosting and topped with little gold flakes. It felt like quite a party with seating and all the various things we ate at Sweet.

From there we walked down the Charles River to the North End. We stopped for a pizza for some "real" food before Lulu's. At Lulu's we shared a Boston creme cupcake. It was good but not WOWing.

We walked along the Rose Kennedy greenway over the Big Dig to the Fort Point area to Flour. They do one kind of cupcake and they do it WELL! We shared their signature giant chocolate cupcake with vanilla frosting. The cake is moist and rich while remaining light and airy. The frosting is not to thick but not too light. It really is a perfect cupcake. It is so big, one might just call it a small cake.

The last stop on the tour was the South End Buttery. In honor of gay pride weekend we shared a chocolate cupcake with rainbow flag icing. It was good but not WOWing. The location is fun. I love the brownstones and the vibe of the South End neighborhood. The ambience was great too, a fun little cafe with plenty of seating indoor and out. I'd definitely go their again for lunch or an afternoon break from walking in the City.

In the end, Sweet won the favorite vote by a landslide. It came down to Flour and Sweet for having quality, delicious, cupcakes. The variety at Sweet took one up on Flour and wins in our minds for cupcakes. However, Flour provides a variety of other pastries and sandwiches which are delicious. As a cupcake vendor, Sweet takes the cake!

Our first annual cupcakery tour was a success! And, thanks to splitting cupcakes all along the way, A and I are feeling good. We're off to a BBQ.

Cupcakes!

2009-06-13T11:52:00.001-04:00

We have begun our cupcake adventure! One down at Party Favors. A and I split a chocolate cupcake withe three truffles on top.

The sun is out and it's a beautiful day for cupcaking!

WEEKEND!

2009-06-12T08:48:00.001-04:00

Today, Boston is happy, despite the rain. The Red Sox just swept the Yankees in a three game series. That always makes Boston-ites happy.

Tomorrow we are headed on a Cupcake Tour organized by Sam. Check this out:

http://www.allsamsidea.com/2009/06/cupcakes-cupcakes-cupcakes.html

I've been pricked!

2009-06-11T14:27:00.001-04:00

After two finger pricks I was allowed to give blood last night. I guess my right hand has more iron in it than my left. Perhaps my left hand is using all of its iron to heal the finger I burned the other night. (see separate story below) After work, A and I walked pretty far into the industrial parts of South Boston to get to the Red Cross blood drive at the Boston Athletic Club. We thought we'd never get there...but we eventually did. I had to break into the juice bottles prior to giving blood. We answered all the questions and got our fingers pricked. Once up on the bed, the lady did a great job putting in the needle, but then she did some adjustments! She wiggled it around until it was in the right place. YIKES! I made it through the whole donation, ate my oreos, and filled out my entry to win Red Sox tix. Phew, we were done.

I was in desperate need of a cheeseburger. We headed over to Atlantic Grill (a new place that opened up on the water). The place is FULL of flat screen TVs. Everywhere we turned our head we could see the Red Sox beating the Yankees. We enjoyed some great cheeseburgers, great baseball, and then headed home. HOORAY for Youkilis and Lowell's 10th home runs of the season!

At home, when I took my jacket off, I found my gauze pads on my elbow were all red. I had been bleeding during the burger fest, I guess. I washed out my jacket sleeve, peeled the tape off my arm (OUCH!) and examined my needle hole. It's more like I've been sliced than poked. It doesn't hurt and it's not bleeding anymore, so I guess I'll be ok. And, I'll probably donate again.

my burned finger

I try to be a good wife by cooking dinner and doing the dishes, and what do I get? a burnt finger! Dinner was successful. I went to the kitchen to make hot chocolate after dinner and decided to wash some dishes while the kettle warmed up. I was jammin' through dish duty and grabbed a pot lid from the stove. As I was washing it and spinning it in my hands, a hot part reached my finger. OUCH! It was hot. That lid was sitting next to the kettle...silly me. It wasn't a bad burn, but I did go to bed with an ice cube.

2009-06-08T20:11:00.000-04:00

My apologies. I left out a few things from my SWG. 1. My sis and I had one of our best conversations. We talked China (she loved the journal I kept for her), Twilight, weddings, and more. We had great fun.
2. I talked with my Pops. He's as perky as ever.
And....
3. I watched our garden grow.

SGW

2009-06-08T11:44:00.001-04:00

This post is documenting my Super Great Weekend! I went on many dates with my husband, who I don't get to see much since we've gotten back from vacation. He goes to work and I go to work, and we only hang out in the evenings now. (sad face). BUT, this weekend, we had lots of fun. On Saturday morning, A hopped up and went for a run. Go A! I worked on the china pics (some are posted to our picasa website now). When he came back we made breakfast burritos and watched the movie Twilight. Such a great way to start the weekend! (I'm reading the fourth book of the Twilight series now, so it was great fun to bring A into the vampire world that I have been enjoying). Saturday afternoon was filled with dishes, laundry, vacuuming, an oil change, etc. Somewhere around 4:30pm we looked at each other and said, "oh, I have to get ready for a date with my honey!"

I showered and put on my Red Sox shirt and cap and joined my honey in the hallway for departure. We strolled in the beautiful sunny afternoon air to the T. We disembarked at St. Mary's and enjoyed a fabulous dinner at the Beacon Street Tavern (the name of the place is something like that). My lamb kabobs and cous cous were delicious and A's oyster po'boy was the fanciest most fun po'boy I'd ever seen. We dined on the patio and watched the Red Sox fans walk by heading to the game. With full tummies we joined them and walked over to Fenway. A bought me a program so I could practice my baseball scoring skills (we had to run into 7-eleven to buy pencils).

Our seats were near the Pesky pole for the second game in a three game series with the Texas Rangers. It was a GREAT game and we had a blast. We also managed to eat peanuts, fenway franks, and drink lemonade before the game was over. Our eating fenway franks, I'm convinced, gave Big Papi the luck he needed to hit a home run. It bounced off the Pesky pole... It was his second HR of the season and we were there. The crowd was so proud of him. Lester pitched the entire game. Ellsbury (my fave) made several outs in center field. The Red Sox won 8 - 1. Waaaa Whoooo! A great game for us to be at. (I love dates with my honey)

We walked all the way home in the beautiful warm night. Sunday morning, A took a spin on his motorcycle, I went to Costco, and we met A's cousin Ashley for brunch at 11 (well, I was a little late). We hit the S&S in Inman Square. It had been a long time since I'd been there. My eggs benedict with smoked salmon were great. A enjoyed the corned beef hash and Ashley loved her quiche lorraine. We chatted about her upcoming graduate school adventures, told stories about China, etc.

In the afternoon, A and I went on another date! We are so spoiled. We went to the Star Trek movie at the Boston Common theater. LOVED IT! My upbringing in a family of trekkies was very beneficial to my appreciation of the movie. I laughed and very much enjoyed the adventure. My favorite line in the movie goes something like this: "Since my traditional farewell seems somewhat self-serving I will just say 'Good Luck'."

After the movie we strolled through the Boston Common (because I always love to walk through the park) and ran into Koolaid and Chris! We're invited to a swap party at their place next weekend. We took some time to catch up and chat in the park before parting ways. A and I continued through the public garden. The palm trees and summer plantings are very tropical! We went to the Beacon Hill Hotel and Bistro for a divine dinner. (so spoiled). We used a restaurant.com coupon...and enjoyed duck (me) and pork shoulder (him) followed by beautiful lemon tart (us). Then, as an extra special bonus, we walked through the public garden again! (I love dates with my honey).

Sunday night we relaxed (sort of) with a scary movie while I put wedding pics (picked up at Costco) into an album. We watched The Happening. I don't recommend watching it before bed. Luckily, I didn't have any nightmares. We went to bed very happy with our weekend and reminiscing on the fun we had.

America the Beautiful

2009-06-05T09:21:00.007-04:00

Welcome Back you say? Why Thanks!!! (There were more postings from China...but they didn't get emailed to the blog...so if you didn't get the emails, I guess you were left hanging after the Yangtze River cruise. Let me know if you need to be filled in...the pics are still a work in progress but will be shared on our Picasa site soon.)

We arrived happily back in the U.S. in mid May. Our five week adventure was fabulous and grand, but we were ready to come home and enjoy the conveniences of this country. We spend a full day at home recuperating before going to "the office". I went for a run around the Charles River and had an experience which I felt was a message from the world that it was my Lucky Day. As I was running along, some bird doo doo landed splat right next to me. NOT on me! What a Lucky Day!

A few days later, I had an even Luckier Day. I was lucky enough to go to Newport, RI on two of the most beautiful weather days for a conference and found a $5 bill in the parking lot. What a Luckier Day!

This country is made for me. We are having fun reminiscing the trip and enjoying the routine of summer life in Boston.

We've planted some flowers and vegetables on the porch. We go to A's softball games twice a week and enjoy the beautiful evening air.... Life is great.

our cruise is coming to an end...

2009-04-12T01:00:00.001-04:00

Today is our last day on the Victoria Princess (insert sad face here). We went through the 5 stage ship lock at the Three Gorges Dam the day before yesterday. It took nearly 4 hours to get through them all. We had previously had a 2 hour tour looking around the dam site, we drove on a bus to the top of the dam and had some great overlooks of the locks. So..by bus we went over and past the dam in about 10 minutes, but by boat, through the locks it took all evening.

We are getting much better at bartering. The class didn't teach us much technique, but we learned the phrase for "that's too expensive". We're finding the best technique is to just walk out. If they really want to sell it to us for our price they chase us outside the store with the calculator (to continue bartering) and the item we were looking at all wrapped up and bagged.

We learned to play Mahjong the other night. I think they taught us the most simple version (we didn't get to use the North, South, East, West, Flowers, Dragons tiles). The version we learned was similar to Rummy 500. We get to play again this afternoon after we learn how to make dumplings. They crew have a very difficult job of serving our meals, cleaning our rooms, and entertaining us. They have put on several fashion and talent shows (based on the chinese culture) throughout the trip.

Sailing through the Three Gorges was magnificent. It was rather foggy, but that made the area mystical. We got on a smaller boat (glass top) and explored a lesser gorge so we were able to be a little more up close and personal with the steep jagged mountains that line the now flooded gorge. The water level is almost at the max the dam can hold. It can hold water up to 175 meters above sea level and we are traveling on water at 165 meters above sea level. So, we're essentially seeing the completed effect of the Three Gorges Dam. The guides joke that they will have submarine tours in the future to see the old Three Gorges area before it was flooded.

When we disembark for shore excursions our local guides all tell us about the new home the government gave them since their town was flooded. They talk about how much bigger and better their new home and their new town is.

Well, I'm going to sign off before I lose the connection. Happy Easter!

(tomorrow we visit some Pandas in Chongqing and fly to Xi'an where we'll see the Terracotta Soldiers...more updates when we can!)

Greetings from Shanghai!

2009-04-05T05:24:00.001-04:00

We weren't Shanghai'd, we came willingly and are having a blast! Adrian and I arrived in Shanghai two days ago and have enjoyed the assistance of a private tour guide for most of our stay thus far. We did adventure for a full day on our own and felt pretty proud of ourselves.

Our tour guide, Cindy, picked us up at the airport and showed us around the city a bit then got us squared away at our hotel. Yesterday, we successfully navigated the Metro system and ran a few "errands" which included booking a hotel room for later in our trip near the ferry terminal (where we'll take the ferry to Japan). We found a hotel with a very nice man who spoke no english at all. With a combination of sign language (hands together by our ears for 'sleeping'), pointing to "I'd like to make a reservation" in the phrasebook, and a calendar, we got a tour of the rooms, picked the one we want and made a reservation. We paid $22 for a very nice room with a TV and computer. Yesterday we ate lunch for less than a dollar. We are lovin' the cost of living around here. Our four star hotel stay downtown for the past two nights cost $70/night and included breakfast.

(The breakfast buffet certainly provided a lot of interesting options...this morning I had some green glop! Literally. It tasted like green tea and had the consistency of mochi which is a very glutinous (super sticky) rice. It looked like something from a Dr. Seuss book.)

Today, our tour guide (who goes by Cindy) picked us up at 9am and took us around the Yu Yuan Garden, a fresh water pearls wholesale shop where they cracked open an oyster and showed us 17 pearls inside, a silk museum (on how silk is made) and then to the Shanghai Museum. It worked out well to have her book our tix for the Yu Yuan Garden and the Shanghai museum in advance. There were long lines at both and we slid right in. The other two stops were lures for tourists to get us to buy Shanghai products, but it was fun to see how silk is made! I did purchase some pearls. They were such a deal! The Yu Yuan Garden is a 400 year old (after being re-built several times) home and garden built by a rich retired man. He was a treasurer in Chongqing and took his big money to Shanghai when he retired to built a little world he could be ruler in. It was a fun place to tour traditional chinese buildings and gardens.

We did a one hour speed tour with head sets in the Shanghai Museum. Adrian is really good at speed museum visiting. We covered a lot of it. There were bronze cast cooking items, bowls, wine goblets, etc from 1100 B.C. I can't even comprehend how long ago that was. It's a really good museum. I recommend it to those of you heading to Shanghai in the future.

Right now, we have boarded our Yangtze River Boat cruise. We're about to pull away from Shanghai for 9 days of the river life. We've got a great room with a little balcony. We plan to do a lot of sightseeing and relaxing. Tomorrow morning there are tai chi lessons before breakfast and chinese bartering lessons after breakfast. We've had one very unsuccessful attempt at bartering so far. We can use the lessons.

All in all, we are doing great in China and looking forward to more adventures.

Spring is in the ground!

2009-04-01T07:34:00.000-04:00

People say Spring is in the air, but I disagree. It's still pretty chilly here. I do are Spring in the ground. There are many fun green things sprouting up from the dingy, brown, tired ground. Pretty soon Boston will be covered in beautiful blossoms!

World Travelers

2009-03-29T23:06:00.001-04:00

This week we are disembarking on a 5 week delayed and extended honeymoon! First stop, Shanghai. From there, a 10 day cruise up the Yangtze river, a visit to Xi'an, a few days in Beijing, then back to Shanghai, a boat ride to Osaka Japan, and two weeks of play time in Japan!

We are so proud of ourselves for packing this weekend. We are literally, packed (zipped up) and ready to go three days in advance!

I'll try to post as we move through our travels, but no promises... Don't worry, we'll have a blast!

My dad is 60!

2009-03-29T23:03:00.001-04:00

I'm still coming to terms with the fact that my Pops is 60. He says I can go ahead and forget it, but how can I? We went out to Cali for a GREAT party. He didn't know we were coming and that was half the fun.

Saturday morning my eyes popped open (they, apparently, were still on east coast time) so I walked over to M&D's house from Sis's house while A and Sis were enjoying their Saturday morning snooze. When Mom came down to answer the door, I learned that they too were enjoying their saturday morning snooze (before the doorbell rang). I walked up to the bedroom and surprised Dad in his sleepy state. He literally did a double take. It was fun to watch the surprise, shock, and glee pass through his face. Then, of course, there was lots of hugging and happy birthday wishing. (I'm glad I didn't give him a heart attack. He is a little older now.)

Mom threw a shabang of a party with a seated four course meal for more than 15 people. Butternut squash soup, salad, corned beef and potatoes, dessert. Sis helped with the dessert, being the fabulous pastry chef that she is becoming. Her apple pie and fruit tart were "to die for". Seriously, Dad's friend Tim said the apple pie was an "experience". It was the most flavorful apple pie I'd ever had in my life. As is customary to our family, we decided that two desserts (as yummy as they were) would not be enough. We supplemented Chef Mara's creations with a carrot cake from Costo. This made for a great airplane snack!

After good conversation (meeting Dad's friends) and with full tummies, we introduced the crowd to the game Apples to Apples. This is a game that anyone who can read can play. Look it up. Seriously, if the folks at a 60 year old birthday party have fun with it, and believe me they did, then you'll like it too!

It was nice to be in the warm weather of Cali for a weekend. We felt like such jet setters. I even made it to the gym with Mom. The step class instructor was flattered that I'd travelled all the way from Boston just to be in his class. He has hopes that I'll make him world famous.

We're glad we were part of Dad's big day. He really doesn't seem any different than he was at 59. You're still young Pops (despite the teasing). Thanks for letting us all celebrate your birthday with you.

Restaurant Week!

2009-03-19T18:20:00.002-04:00

We LOVE Restaurant Week around here. Check it out at www.restaurantweekboston.com. All the participating restaurants offer a three course meal for a fixed price. Some people act fancy and say prix fix. Lunch is $20.09 and dinner is $33.09. Appetizer, entree, and DESSERT! I'm sure you can figure out the significance of the 09 cents... (hint: the year is 2009).

I spoiled myself this week. On Tuesday I got to have lunch with A! We joined S & J at Clink. The building used to be a jail, and is now the fancy Liberty Hotel. Lunch was delicious. I started with a peach/pear soup. It was creamy and warm, which surprised me. Most fruity soups are cold. It was delicous. Three of us had the cuban pork sandwich for the entree. The bread was inside out! Picture a baguette sliced in half ready for sandwich making. Then flip over both sides and make the sandwich on the crusty side. It was panini'd so the "inside" of the bagquette was all buttery and toasted. It was a delicious sandwich that came with a side of sweet potato fries. For dessert, it was the apple cranberry cobbler all around. I learned that I like the fruit in my cobbler baked more than left intact as raw fruit. The puff pastry topping and vanilla bean ice cream was superb! We left there stuffed.

On Wednesday, 7 of my coworkers and I trekked over to Smith & Wollensky (always a good bargain for restaurant week, because it's uber expensive). I started with the split pea soup. It was good, but a little gritty for me. I guess that's the naturalness of the pea coming through. It felt wholesome. For the entree, I enjoyed the filet mignon steak sandwich (medium rare) which came with a few giant sweet potato wedges and a pickle. For dessert (two hours later), I had to go with the chocolate cake. It was GIANT. I brought most of it back, and you won't believe this, gave the leftover to a coworker who was sick yesterday and couldn't come to lunch with us even though she had been looking forward to it for weeks. I shared my chocolate cake. I shared my chocolate cake. I shared my chocolate cake. I will survive. (She super appreciated it, being as there is no cupcake cart that comes around at 3pm every day).

I learned a few things at Smith & Wollensky.
1. The castle it is located in was built in 1891 to house the first US Army Corps Cadets.
2. It later turned into an armory and then a museum.
3. As part of the restaurant's lease they are obligated to display the museum artifacts (civil war flags, guns, etc).
4. Anyone (even you!) can go into Smith & Wollensky and ask for a tour at any time. A manager will show you the museum items on all four floors.
5. Lunch is not supposed to take longer than one hour. Ours took almost 3!
6. Smith & Wollensky management understands the problems with a super long lunch. (They made our entire bill FREE and gave us a free creme brulee for the table!)

In conclusion, I LOVE restaurant week.

2009-03-17T18:08:00.001-04:00

Isn't Beantown great?

Happy Birthday Pops!

2009-03-16T08:31:00.005-04:00

Pops,
Today you are turning 60, which means I've known you for more than half your life. This also means that I am qualified to state that you are one totally awesome dude and a super cool Dad!

Happy Birthday!

Love,
Your first baby.

Our new sport

2009-03-09T17:30:00.000-04:00

A bought us a handheld GPS for my birthday / Christmas. He figured it would be helpful while we wander around China. We named it Gus and have finally gotten around to giving Gus a little exercise.

Our relatively new and totally awesome friends, S and J, told us about Geocaching. It's a pretty simple concept...Someone puts coordinates online, we download them to Gus and go find them. Apparently there are different things marking each geocache, like a sealed tupperware with a book to sign in as proof we were there.

Our first adventure for Gus, we found out on site, was a virtual cache. This means there was no physical object to be found, but Gus told us when we had arrived at the coordinates and A scaled the lighthouse looking for any sign of previous geocachers. We eventually figured out what the word "virtual" meant. We have a picture if anyone needs proof and can officially call ourselves geocachers.

It was a great exercise in learning how to use Gus. He was much more helpful after we calibrated his compass! This involved A spinning in a circle twice which was quite fun to watch. We are ready for more adventures with Gus!

We did enjoy a beautiful walk along the coast of P-town, along a dike out to the West End Light House. The weather was warm. The tide was out

Dear Mother Nature

2009-03-09T07:56:00.001-04:00

You know I always appreciate a good snowfall. I relish in the beauty of the snowflakes and I roll around making snow angels everywhere I go. I know we were spoiled with warm weather this weekend. We enjoyed it to the fullest, being outside as much as possible. We walked around some reservation land on the Cape, found our first geocache, sat on the beach, and marvelled at the magestic moon. We went to bed last night revelling in the joys of the beautiful spring day you brought us. Thank you.

So, what is up with the snowballs precipitating from the sky this morning? It feels like yoi want to start a snowball fight. You're bound to win (you always do). You've melted the snow for me to make snowballs with. The snowballs coming from the sky seem to always have the perfect angle so they splat on my knee, my head, a few of them went down my neck. Good throw. I have no means of retaliation, so I'm writing to say thank you for the constant adventure. I'm going inside now to watch your artwork from a warm dry atmosphere.

Take Care and Bring it On!

Boston Massacre (again?)

2009-03-07T19:15:00.002-05:00

Saturday night I was walking past State Street towards Faneuil Hall and happened upon a reenactment of the Boston Massacre. I couldn't see a thing, so it's all in the picture. I think 7 or 8 people died...

It reminded me of a happening in Stars Hollow

Get This

2009-03-07T19:04:00.001-05:00

Check it. I walked around outside today with no hat, no gloves, and just a light jacket! That's what I'm talkin' about, Yo.

Toasty

2009-03-04T22:25:00.000-05:00

This morning's walk to the T was frigid. Again. Tonight, I left the office all bundled up, such that I have no idea what temperature it is outside because I'm in my own cocoon of fleece and windbreaker. As I was walking to the gym I let my chin out of my scarf and noticed that it was rather nice out. For a fleeting moment I contemplated running outside instead of on the treadmill. I figured I'd be cold without my long winter running pants, so into the gym I went. As I hopped onto the treadmill I saw the current temperatures being reported on TV. 30 degrees, it said over the word Boston. No wonder I felt toasty!

No typhoid for me

2009-03-04T22:04:00.001-05:00

I finished the last of four pills and am officially vaccinated for Typhoid. I could've gotten a shot but it's only good for 2 years. The pills cover me for five!

2009-03-03T09:23:00.002-05:00

It's really tough to get out of bed in the morning when you know it's 15 degrees. It would be much more fun if Mother Nature could let my breath turn into snowflakes on days like this. I would love to go outside and see all the beautiful snowflakes from my breath!

The snow covering the ground today has the same sparkle as the snow surrounding Santa's house in the mall. It's really beautiful.

Pearl's Latest Accessory

2009-03-02T22:55:00.001-05:00

I couldn't download the browser application that Pops recommended. I don't know why..the one on Pearl seems to meet my needs (for now). A did however find a free Sudoku app for Pearl and is enjoying playing digital Sudoku on the train.

My Lucky Day

2009-03-02T22:54:00.001-05:00

A and I came straight home from work (skipped the gym) with the rationale that we had such a busy weekend, we were exhausted and we needed to do laundry. We were six quarters short of being able to wash our third and final load. I scrounged three from my bag and made the pouty face like "bummer, we don't have enough money to do the last load". When I went down to the basement to switch the second load into the dryer a sparkle caught my eye. There was a quarter on the ground between the washer and the dryer! I pushed the dryer to the side and found two more quarters down there in the dusty muck. I raced upstairs with the good news. We completed three loads of laundry tonight!

Happy Birthday Dr. Seuss!

2009-03-02T11:09:00.000-05:00

Visit www.google.com today and you'll see that it's Dr. Seuss's 105th birthday!

Here's a place to vote for your favorite book:
http://blog.wired.com/geekdad/2009/03/happy-birthday.html

Celebrity Sighting

2009-03-02T09:50:00.002-05:00

We saw John Stewart with his kids at the Natural History Museum in NYC. We didn't want to bother him, but I couldn't resist taking a picture with Pearl. He's in there. Do you see him behind the railing with his kids? He's not the guy standing in front of the arch. He's to the left squatting below the railing (at kid height). N is the large decoy to the left of the picture. I'm a great spy, eh?

SNOW!

2009-03-02T09:33:00.002-05:00

We woke up to half a foot of snow this morning! Thank goodness the storm waited until we had safely driven back to Boston from NYC. It's coming down at a rate of an inch per hour. I'm just happy to have made it to work (with no problems on the T) where it is warm and dry and not windy!

The snow is beautiful. I'll always find the snow beautiful. But, as S pointed out last night, we are looking forward to tulips! I do love tulip time.

The trip haps

2009-03-01T21:38:00.004-05:00

Here's how it all went down in NYC this weekend...in poetry?

Reliquary. (The community museum in Brooklyn where H has displayed her own exhibit on Milk!)

tacos. guacamole. chips.

Slumber party.

Mini market breakfast.

Subway.

Natural history museum.

Meet up with M and N.

Celebrity sighting.

Magnolia cupcakes.

Pizza lunch.

(gotta love dessert first!)

Strolling Manhattan.

Pass Julliard.

Arrive at Rockefeller Center for coffee and hot cocoa break while watching ice skaters.

Stroll to Madison Square Garden.

Note the temperature is getting cooler.

Meet up with J and let M and N get checked in.

Subway to Greenwich Village.

Stroll and search for fun dinner place that can seat seven.

Cuban place is packed.

Pub place is hosting a party of 50 and is full.

Dumpling place is too small and better for takeout.

Japanese place has two tables of 4 available. They rearranged the tables into one and we took up the whole restaurant. It turns out they just opened the day before and their kitchen wasn't fully open. All they could do was sushi. This was a little more adventurous than A2, T, and J bargained for, but it was a great adventure. I had to converse in Japanese a little ,cuz they didn't understand our English. It made me happy to see Japanese people working a sushi restaurant. I got my favorite and sometimes hard to find Natto Maki.

M and N left for the Rangers game. Goodbye is always tough. I miss them.

Dumplings for the adventurous sushi tasters.

Cousin party at J and H's

Spades

Celebrity (a cross between of charades and Taboo)

Slumber party

Morning hug for "running in the snow" B and a quick visit.

Lunch with F C E and T2.

Smiles.

Tickles.

Catching snowflakes in our mouth.

Driving.

Stop # 1 drop off A2

Driving.

Stop # 2 drop off T and visit with his parents while they feed is dinner.

Dessert.

More dessert to go.

Driving.

Driving.

Discussing music and the fun weekend.

Shower.

Blogging.

Sleeping.

A = adrian, M = mikey, N = nate, J = jake, H = Hi'ilei, T = tim, A2 = ashley, F = flint, C = christa, E = emeline, T2 = tucker, and B = britta

Whirled Peas

2009-03-01T21:09:00.001-05:00

Imagine Whirled Peas

This phrase was on a bumper sticker in NYC and I keep creating different mental images of whirled peas. Yellow peas, green peas, black eyed peas, swirls of different whirled peas...

World Peace would be much more helpful, in my opinion, but definitely less tasty.

Magnolia Cupcakes!!

2009-03-01T20:59:00.003-05:00

Wingnut's Cupcake Review:

At Magnolia it's serve yourself, so we grabbed a box for six and the boys (M, N, and A) all chose chocolate with mocha frosting. T got a cookie. I chose the blue frosting. A threw in the carrot cake and I chose the red velvet cupcake. The carrot cake cupcake was later enjoyed by A2.

We all dipped our fingers into all the frostings, because that is the most important part of a cupcake.

The mocha frosting got rave reviews. The blue frosting tasted blue and was super thick and pasty. It's reviews were not very rave at all. The cake part was a bit old..that cupcake was beautiful and cute, but not so tasty. I don't like coffee flavored things, but I definitely vote the mocha frosting the best of the bunch. It was the perfect consistency! The red velvet cupcake had good frosting and the bright red cake stuck to my teeth. I had red teeth for a while.

I've just recently been introduced to red velvet cake (via A&N's wedding in October 2008) and this red velvet cupcake could not even compare to the wedding cake we had in October. That was delicious!

I think the moral of the story is this:

When at Magnolia, choose the fresh cupcakes.

Of course, there were plenty of other pastry types that we didn't sample, and I'm definitely willing to go back and give them a try!

A = adrian, M = mikey, N = nate, J = jake, H = Hi'ilei, T = tim, A2 = ashley, F = flint, C = christa, E = emeline, T2 = tucker, and B = britta

The ABCs of my trip to NYC.

2009-03-01T20:57:00.003-05:00

A and I rolled down to NYC this weekend to hang with M and N. J and H were kind enough to host a Cousins Partaay at their pad in Brooklyn so we picked up T and A2 along the way. We were excited to be joined by F, C, E, and T2 for lunch today! I snuck in a quick visit with B this morning while everyone else was sleeping. It's so fun to "run" into her in different cities!

It was an action packed weekend that deserves more write up, but I'm currently laying in bed with the electric blanket turned on writing this on Pearl because I'm too tired to sit up at the computer. The bathroom clock says it's after 11:30, but that's just because the batteries died. It's really only 8:58PM. (S will appreciate this time!)

A = adrian, M = mikey, N = nate, J = jake, H = Hi'ilei, T = tim, A2 = ashley, F = flint, C = christa, E = emeline, T2 = tucker, and B = britta

Going to China

2009-02-26T16:34:00.001-05:00

We can officially go on our honeymoon!!! Our passports with Chinese visas arrived today! WAAAWHOOOO!

My BlackBerry

2009-02-25T18:46:00.001-05:00

Let me tell you about my new best friend. Her name is Pearl and she was brought to me by the letter B and the fruit BlackBerry.

I've dreamed about her for long befor I got her. The night before she arrived at my door, she was in my dream, really.

She has brought me the capability of using three email accounts at the same time, seamlessly. She allows me to make phone calls. She allows me to check the weather forecast. All of this from anywhere there is cell service. And where there is no cell service, Pearl entertains me with the Brick Breakers game. (I've gotten very good at this game!)

There were two things I didn't like about Pearl. I overlooked these things because they are insignificant when compared to the greatness that is Pearl.

Today, I learned how to delete the "sent from Verizon Wireless BlackBerry" signature from emails sent using Pearl. I also, in looking for this, found the super simple way to browse the internet. Before, I could only find the shortcuts that BlackBerry provided to the weather and the news. Now I can easily go to any URL I desire!

Not only, do I feel a little more tech savvy, but I have even MORE appreciation for my beloved Pearl.

Oh yeah, Pearl has become my lifeline into the world of FaceBook. She really is invaluable. I find myself staring into her little screen many hours of the day. I'm going to go read a book now.

Tiger Time

2009-02-25T10:44:00.001-05:00

Coincidence? I heard this morning on the radio that Tiger Woods is back in action and competing. His legs are stronger than ever. The last time he competed was June 16, 2008. The last time I blogged (before yesterday) was in June. Coincidence?

2009-02-24T17:14:00.002-05:00

And now I am blogging from the train! Thanks to Mr. BlackBerry and my addiction to email.

I'm on my way to spinning and yoga class. A and I have a good routine with the gym these days. I'll tell you more about it later.

A few random thoughts

2009-02-24T16:27:00.001-05:00

To get back in the swing of things... I've now tested out this nifty email address that lets me post directly to the blog by just sending an email! So...here are two things:

Check this out! http://craziestgadgets.com/2009/02/24/giant-outdoor-scrabble-board/

Some Amazon books I ordered on Sunday arrived today! Gotta love the super saver shipping. Thanks Amazing Amazon! I'm hooked on the Twilight Series and this shipment includes the last two books of the four book series by Stephenie Meyer.

Wingnut? Where Are You?

2009-02-24T14:30:00.000-05:00

Did you miss me? I haven't been here in sooo long! Here are the excuses:

Life last summer became so busy with bridal showers, a wedding (mine!), a barn dance (to celebrate my wedding!), our first holidays as married people, etc... Lately MY HUSBAND (formerly known on this blog as "A") and I have been hunkering in. Winter this year has been cold. It's also been full of snow! I enjoyed many hours watching perfect snowflakes land on my gloves and sleeves. I love snowflakes.

I've been testing out some (shhhh don't let Blogger hear this) other websites (aaack!). We've got a picasa website with all our photos uploaded (wedding and other adventures). We've also got a pbwiki website where we brag about our honeymoon plans and have been summarizing our adventures, sort of as dialogue to accompany the picasa website of pictures. If you know us, you have these links... If you want the links leave me a comment here.

So, with a renewed inspiration and appreciation for the fun that is blogging, I am back! This is only the first post of 2009 and I'm expecting it to be a most excellent year. Stay tuned and follow along. It's gonna be a wild ride ('cuz that's the way I like my life).

Adults in the Summer Time

2008-06-16T21:53:00.000-04:00

It's especially fun to be grown up this month. I just finished takning the AICP exam (American Institute of Certified Planners). It's the culmination of a masters degree and a few years of professional experience. And...It's more letters after my name! (Well, I get the test results in August). It was nice when A called it the equivalent of the P.E. for my career. Don't tell the planners, but I don't think it even compares to the rigorous exam that engineers take. Anyway, it was a momentous day for both A and I as professional adults. While I was answering multiple choice questions for post name letters, A was on his first business golf outing! Yup, swingin' at little white balls and shmoozing with the clients, just like a big boy! Sometimes, this being an adult stuff is kinda fun!

In celebration of no traveling for work, and no studying for exams, A and I have continued to enjoy adventures. We took ourselves for a quick camping trip last weekend to Otter River Campground in northern central MA and hiked Mt. Monadnock (the most hiked mountain in the country). We both suffered from sore legs, but had a great time climbing. It felt great to be out in the fresh air working up a sweat alongside great views of the New England scenery.

This past weekend we continued our fun with a trip to Hull, MA. We visited the local kite store and purchased some kites! We hung out on the beach for the afternoon flying Opie and Boxer (our kites). Opie (the tie-dyed octopus) flew really well! Boxer (the pyramid shaped box style kite) needed a little help getting into the air. We clipped Boxer onto Opie's line and let Opie take him up! We felt quite proud of our solution.

We're enjoying the start of summer and looking forward to many more mountain/camping/hiking/beach adventures!

Springtime in Boston

2008-04-23T20:56:00.000-04:00

Did I mention how much I love Boston in the springtime? The tulips in the public garding are beginning to bloom! The weather is warm, perfect for walking! I hope that today represents a typical spring / early summer day for us. This afternoon I walked from work, through the public garden, down Newbury street and stopped in for a haircut with my favorite stylist. After that I walked up to Kenmore (with all the Red Sox fans), and straight on through to Coolidge Corner. Nope, no tix to the game for me. At Coolidge Corner, I stopped in at Trader Joes and picked up some spinach (for salad), ground beef (for burgers) and foccacini bread (also for the burgers). I walked from TJ's up over the hill, saw some beautiful cherry trees along the way, to home where A was waiting with the charcoal and the grill! We grilled up some yummy burgers (using a meat rub for flavor in the patties), and sat on the porch enjoying the nice weather. We had spinach salads with cranberries, pecans, and goat cheese (the Britta Special). A nice breeze mixed in with the heat from the coals felt wonderful!

I love springtime in Boston. According to mapmyrun.com the walk I did this evening was 5.03 miles! Now, I'm going to online school to study for the AICP exam.....

Boston Weather (again)

2008-04-10T16:09:00.000-04:00

Just when I get sick of it, it changes to something gloriously fun! I arrived back in Beantown from Louisiana at lunchtime today. It felt like a warm, yet crisp, spring day. The sun was shining and I didn't need a jacket!

I reflected on how much fun the weather cycle is. At the end of Fall, I looked forward to snow and the beautiful winter that New England brings. The fun of wearing pink snowboots and shoveling snow is welcome after the leaves have fallen and things begin to look dreary. A few weeks ago, I was begging for winter to end and today, Spring has sprung! I will enjoy the beautiful flowers and the perfect walking/running weather. Then, it will get hot! and I'll look forward to the cool days of Autumn. Ahhh, the seasons of New England. I truly enjoy them.

2008-03-31T15:13:00.000-04:00

Why is it that I think of GREAT April fool's jokes in December, but can never remember them when it's time to use them?

Happy April Fool's Day!

The tulips are starting to sprout out of the ground in the Public Garden! Cherry trees are blossoming in DC!

I'm ready

2008-03-21T07:38:00.000-04:00

I'm ready for spring. Conveniently, according to the calendar, it has arrived! To celebrate the first night of spring we ceremoniously removed the electric blanket from the bed. Yup, a momentous occasion.

I've given up on scarves and gloves completely, but am still wearing a winter hat outside. This morning, I walked by the little fish pond in front of a house in our neighborhood and noticed it had a nice layer of ICE over it, so the temps are still cool.

But, I have hopes that it will actually feel like spring sometime soon because last week it felt like spring in DC. Just last Saturday, I was strolling the monuments in the sun wearing short sleeves. Here in Beantown, I'm looking forward to the tulips in the Public Garden!

SNOW!

2008-02-22T12:02:00.000-05:00

Enjoying a beautiful snow storm today! (of course, those people who drove cars this morning, are not so happy..., but me with my pink snow boots and no pressing need to drive am loving the weather!)

With the expected 6 - 8 inches, I'm planning to resurrect Fred.

Giving & Gaming

2008-02-18T09:25:00.000-05:00

A and I gave blood Friday evening! It felt good. Not the needle prick, per se, but knowing that I was helping someone. I hadn't given blood since I was back in Sacramento. It's such a simple thing (not for everyone, I understand) that doesn't take much time, that I can do regularly to help people in need. The fun part of our experience was that the blood drive was on the campus of MIT in the student center. We reminisced of our college days. A was amazed that there's a whole university of engineers right next to his work. The blood taker lady did a good job. No bruising!

Our weekend following was nice and mellow. We purchased a new strategy board game for our collection. It took us 3 hours to set up and read the instructions for Axis & Allies. We took a break after that for lunch and a walk. We played into the wee hours of the night. I had some lucky roll of the dice and the Axis powers were conquering victory cities right and left!

Weather and Movies

2008-02-11T14:04:00.001-05:00

I love New England weather! We awoke yesterday to a warm sunny morning and by lunch time it was pouring. Last night we were visited by snow squalls and gusty wind. This morning it was frigid and dry! So cold that the fallen snow blows around like dust. Speaking of dust, we watched the movie Stardust this weekend. Great flick! A says it reminded him of The Princess Bride. The only thing I remember about that movie is that the orthodontist invited all of his clients to see it at the theater. I thought it was a weird thing for the orthodontist to do for us, but I remember liking the movie!

We also watched The Namesake. The movie makers changed a few things from the book, but overall it was well done.

SNOW!

2008-02-07T12:27:00.000-05:00

We awoke to beautiful snowflakes falling daintily from the sky this morning. We got to walk in the falling snow to the train. It's so much fun to experience the beautiful snowflakes. So far, nothing is sticking in the City...

2008-02-06T12:45:00.000-05:00

oh where oh where do I begin? It's been so long and so much has happened.

First, I suppose, I'll mention that a co-worker of mine passed away this morning. He was struggling with pancreatic cancer. He deserves first mention today. He'll be missed.

Second, I've been reading the newspaper! We subscribed to the NY Times and it's so much fun to read. I'm rootin' for Hillary all the way. It's fun to keep tabs on what's going on. I also enjoy the business section and all the random things I learn such as problems with elephants in downtown areas of third world countries. The police don't want to enforce the "elephants aren't allowed here rule" because they'll be stuck with trying to control the elephant. So the elephant owners just ride around on their elephants selling peanuts to people to feed their elephant. Meanwhile cars, storefronts, and the bustle of people milling about are all disturbed by the ginormous elephants. ( I do love elephants, but I'm not sure how I'd feel if one were sniffing the vegetable stand I was shopping at.)

Third, Life's been busy! When is it not? After the last post, I jetted out to CA to spend a weekend with Sis. We celebrated her 25th (*wink) birthday with a trip to the Monterey Bay Acquarium, birthday cake, a cultural day in San Francisco, and a dinner of Fun Fondue. Family, friends, cake, chocolate fondue, and otters! What more can one ask for?

I left birthday weekend for a two day business trip and have been playing "catch up" ever since.

A and I are having fun discussing our life plans, politics, and of course wedding celebration details.

The weather has turned to rain for now..but I think I heard Al Roker say something about snow. Someday, Fred will be resurrected, I'm sure.

For now, I leave you with this quote I read somewhere:
"People may not remember what you say, but they will remember how you made them feel".

sad news

2008-01-21T08:24:00.000-05:00

Fred (the snowman, remember? You have to remember Fred!) is dead. He melted away a few days ago. Now the weather is FRIGID. My buttocks froze and fell off on my walk to work. I do not know where they are.

2008-01-18T08:33:00.001-05:00

The rain is melting away my beautiful winter wonderland.

a compelling argument

2008-01-16T08:30:00.001-05:00

The Boston Now is one of those daily newspapers passed out around town. It competes with the Metro (the other daily newspaper). Anyway, makers of the Boston Now and the Metro feel that their circulation is higher if they hire people to stand at the train stops and busy corners to literally hand out the free paper. I guess people are more likely to take it from someone who is shoving it at them, than to open the box and get one for themselves. (I don't usually read them, A picks one up out of the box every morning for the sudoku puzzles).

When I get to Park Street, and I walk through Downtown Crossing, there's one gentlemen who's always calling out "Boston Now. Get your Boston Now. Have a cup of coffee and sit down with your Boston Now. Boston Now." His voice has become a morning comfort, if you will, part of the routine.

Today, he had quite a compelling argument: "Boston Now. $1,000 can be yours. Just pick up a Boston Now. Find the clues. Solve the clues. $1,000 is yours. Take the day off work."

I almost took him up on the offer.

Winter Wonderland

2008-01-15T08:43:00.000-05:00

This morning I took off for the T walking through the Winter Wonderland of whatever that street is that I walk down every morning. (no, I don't know it's name, and no, there's no sign)

It was absolutely gorgeous with literally two inches of snow covering each tree branch. The whole street was flocked in white. I thought I'd seen flocked trees, but these are FLOCKED! As I was admiring the beauty of the snow covered trees and appreciating the clear sidewalks, I noticed that I was walking right next to a giant fallen tree. Right there on the side of the road, an enormous tree had fallen (from the weight of the beautiful snow?). I stood there gaulking for a few minutes at the enormity of the tree which I hadn't noticed because I was looking forward and up. Who know a winter wonderland could be so dangerous?

Living Snowman

2008-01-14T12:36:00.000-05:00

Winter is back! Saturday was the most perfect autumn day, sunny, crisp, and warm. I enjoyed a run around the reservoir. Yes, for those of you keeping track, it was my first run of the year, and my first run since the half marathon in September! The run felt great. I'm feeling rather sore now, but the run was fun. he he ...fun run...

This morning we awoke to THUNDER SNOW! An estimated foot of snow is falling as I write this. It's been falling at a rate of 1.5 inches per hour. There were about 3 inches when I shoveled this morning. Meet Fred:

I built him when my shoveling duties were done and am eager to see what he looks like after a full day of snow has fallen over him. I'm hoping he grows! (living snowman?)

On the walk to the train, in the falling snow, I thought to myself: "Gee, if I could dedicate my life to art, today would be a perfect day for a project entitled 'The Living Snowman'. This project would involve myself, dressed in my warm parka, snow pants, hat, scarf, mittens, and boots. I would stand outside on the front lawn very still, for as long as I could, letting the snow pile up on me and around me. The idea being that I would eventually look like a snow man! I'd need someone to come by periodically and take pictures of my progress for my portfolio. Perhaps install a straw mechanism so that person could also feed me hot chocolate."

Here's hoping that the snow brings out your creativity too!

Happy New Year!!

2008-01-13T09:39:00.000-05:00

2008 is officially underway! This is the year A and I get married!! We are full steam ahead on celebration planning and looking forward to the month of September.

This year began with a bang. We strolled around First Night Boston on New Year's Eve. We caught the parade, the 7pm "family" fireworks, and the ice sculptures scattered throughout the city. One was of Snow White and the Seven Dwarves! Of all the years I'm in town to appreciate the ice sculptures, I thought it was very kind of them to include my favorite fairy tale. I grew up a huge fan of the Disney Dopey character. How could one not love him? He dressed in green and purple and he's adorable! (just like me)

We were actually home by 10:30 pm and rang in the New Year watching the rest of Boston's celebration and the Times Square ball drop on TV from the comfort of our warm couch. New Year's day we relaxed...read magazines, books, played a game of scrabble, and watched some Netflix. It was a great day!

Since then, we have both been working hard including long hours and some weekend time. We did fit in a snow tubing adventure with some of A's work buddies. We'd never been before (almost no one in the group had). It was a blast! We went to Nashoba Valley, right here in Massachusetts, just north of Boston! There were dedicated lanes (like water slides) that we hopped in an innertube (with a hard plastic bottom closing the hole) and went WEEEE all the way down the hill. We spun around, slid side to side up the edges, and glided at the bottom until we stopped. I did a lot of WEEEE -ing. We even went down as doubles and threesomes. A and I figured out that we had maximum momentum as a twosome compared to linking our tubes with a total of four people. This is what happens when you snow tube with engineers. They calculate the most efficient means of getting everyone up the hill (via a rope pull) and down the hill (via the sledding lanes) and repeating the fun. We finished the day with some hot chocolate and hot dogs before moving on to Jasper White's Summer Shack to celebrate the snow tubing organizer's birthday (Janice). All in all it was a great day!

In more recent news, A had his wisdom teeth pulled on Thursday and is doing very well recovering. He calls himself the fourth chipmunk, but I think he looks cute! We are having a challenge to identify (and diversify his diet) many different kinds of non-chunky soups.

We hope your New Year is happy and fun!

Happy New Year's Eve!

2007-12-31T08:57:00.000-05:00

We got a beautiful inch of snow this morning! That's an excellent sign for the new year.

I thoroughly enjoyed the big storm a few weeks ago...made a snow angel for Ambs even! Here it is:

Our Christmas trip to Cali was fun and somewhat sunny. The families enjoyed their presents, Tammy's house is beautiful, and it was a good mellow Christmas all around. When we got back, all the snow was gone...

Tonight we're hittin' the city of Beantown for some New Year's Eve celebratin'!

Happy New Year!

a moment of silence please

2007-12-19T13:27:00.000-05:00

Please, a moment of silence.

shhhhh... this is in honor of my appendix.

One month ago today, the docs cut me open and took it out. I don't know where they put it or exactly how the tests were processed on it, but the appendix is no longer. We must respect that with a moment of silence.

shhhh.. it's almost over.

Thanks!

In other news, we've been having fun with Mom visiting. She didn't really plan to come to Boston in the winter...it's not her idea of fun, but when the boss says to go, I guess that's what you do. Anyway, I feel lucky that at least I could be here and have a warm apartment (even if we do have mice) for her to hang out in. She's well into Season 2 of the Gilmore Girls DVDs.

We saw the Boston Holiday Pops last friday. It's such a great show. I think every new englander should make that show an annual tradition. We all sang along and Santa told jokes. It was a blast.

Over the weekend Mom cooked some meatloaf, and some soup, we whipped up some pumpkin bread. (We think the cooking attracted the mice). It's great to have the comfort foods when the outside is covered in snow and ice! (i'm not ready to write publicly about the mice yet...still in shock)

A and I are headed to CA on Friday. He confessed that he's been missing the California life lately. We're looking forward to a relaxing few days for Christmas.

Merry Christmas everyone!

2007-12-07T11:37:00.000-05:00

8 year old kids were asking Santa (over the phone, broadcast on the radio) for laptops! When I was that age... I believe we were using Dad's Apple IIe to play simple computer games at home. There's so much more on the internet and through computers for kids these days that they feel obliged to have their own laptops before the age of 10! They probably already have their own cell phone so no need to ask Santa for one of those...

Now that I'm 30, I have a perspective on time and how technology has advanced just in my lifetime.

Words from a Wise Woman

2007-12-04T18:27:00.000-05:00

So, I'm 30 now... Do I sound different in your head as you read this?

I had a great day on my birthday! A cooked pancakes and omelets to order for my pals! We enjoyed a brunch feast and then, of course, the birthday cake! and Cynthia's homemade cupcakes. They are fabulous. The pics are on snapfish..let me know if you need the link.
Following brunch... A and I rested up for his company's fancy holiday party that evening. We donned our best and joined in the sparkle at the Lanham Hotel. This is the hotel that hosts a weekend chocolate brunch. Needless to say dessert is never a let down at the holiday party. Despite the presence of a very fun chocolate fountain (which I induled in, of course) I liked the chocolate bread pudding the best. I must get that from my Mom. It was fabulous! Hmmm..perhaps Fabulous is the word for this new decade of mine. Fabulous! Like totally Fab dude!

As my sister and Periodic Visitor have it... I should feel like I'm 10. But I don't. I feel 30, which is a good thing. It's nice being 30. All of my highschool and college pals have already had their 30th birthdays this year... so I'm just joining the crowd!

A did point out to me at the holiday party that I was the oldest person at the table. Amazing! I haven't typically been in that situation before... Not that it makes a huge difference, but it made the 30th birthday a bit more monumental.

So, I'm recovered from the appendectomy...feeling good. Glad that it's over with.

The snow is falling, the cold air is here, and we have gotten out all the blankets to keep ourselves warm. It's too bad we don't have a fireeplace...

have you heard of twitter.com? it's a new web craze...a little like a blog, but more instant...if you're curious, check it out. I created an account so you can find me there (with my real name).

Take care!

3 Days to 30!

2007-11-28T09:01:00.000-05:00

Only three more days to enjoy this decade of my life. I'm looking forward to my 30s. Everyone I speak to says the 30s are grand. Of course, Ambs sometimes forgets that she's 30...but it's still new.

30, here I come!!!

A's countdown is thus: "In three days I'll be in love with a 30 year old...."

Ode to My Appendix

2007-11-26T15:49:00.000-05:00

Oh Appendix

You have served me well.

I'm not sure what you did,

But, I thank you for the 29 years you've given me.

Oh Appendix

You'll be sorely missed.

You caused quite a sore last weekend.

It was just your way of saying goodbye.

Oh Appendix

I'll remember you always,

as I enter a new decade of my life,

without you.

Oh Appendix

I appreciate the simplicity of your departure.

Good Bye.

Singin' in the Rain

2007-11-13T08:35:00.000-05:00

A bought me a new rain jacket for my birthday. I love early birthday presents! It's green and it's waterproof! I look very cute in it. We bought it at REI last night and this morning we woke up to the sound of raindrops!!!! Yup, I walked to work (and rode the train) wearing my lovely green rain jacket and keeping dry. You should've seen the water bounce right off it! Absolutely amazing!

We also got a great deal on a four person tent... now we have a big one for those car camping trips. We haven't put it together yet, but seriously, it was practically free! We're so lucky to have found such a deal. It's green too. It's going to be Britta's room when she comes to stay with us. She'll love it!

25 days and counting

2007-11-05T07:44:00.000-05:00

I was supposed to be born yesterday...but I wasn't. It's 25 days until my 30th birthday! (I apologize for not getting a post up on November 1st. That's when I started the countdown. You'll just have to catch up with me.)

A and I enjoyed a lovely day in the sunny crisp autumn weather yesterday. We rode our bicycles downtown. Yup, clip pedals and all for me! I didn't fall once, nor was I scared. This is major improvement for my bike riding skills. I did ride a bit slow....but "better to be careful than hurt". We took pictures (of us) in the Public Garden with the beautiful fall foliage. Many other people were doing the same. Some thought we were real photographers (I think the tripod fooled them). Our little digital camera is nothing compared to some of the lenses that were out yesterday. It was amazing!

I hope you're all enjoying autumn. A picked up a pecan pie to get us in the holiday spirits. The holiday season is upon us.

Cheers!

Go SOX!

2007-10-26T12:24:00.000-04:00

I've become quite a Sox fan during the post season.. I watched the whole Sox/Indians series (well, not the last two games)... and have been singing and cheering from my living room for the World Series. I apologize to the Sox for falling asleep at the start of the 6th inning last night. Why do they have to start the games so late?

ohayo gozaimasu!

2007-10-22T20:43:00.000-04:00

I just spent the weekend with some japanese friends of mine in LA. They travelled from Japan to LA for business and had the weekend free to play. Being the jet-sette than I am, I popped over there in time for a Friday evening night cap, a ton of fun on Saturday in Long Beach, Venice Beach, and Santa Monica, and then a day of touring Hollywood and Beverly Hills on Sunday.

It had been seven years since I'd seen these folks who became my family during my homestay/internship in Japan. It was absolutely wonderful to chat with them and remember the good 'ol days...my first trip to the children's home where they work was 10 years ago! Wow..it makes me feel old...but makes sense when I think about the fact that my 30th birthday is coming up.

It felt like they brought the Japan that I know and love to America and I was lucky enough to get immersed in it. I spent the entire weekend speaking Japanese. (okay, yeah, I did a little bit of english conversation practice with them). I was really excited that my japanese still works and we were able to talk!

The pics will be up on Snapfish... If you don't have the link, let me know.

P.S. Since when did Ben & Jerry add chocolate cows to Phish Food ice cream? It's like having a farm and an aquarium in my mouth all at once! All made of chocolate! (are you wondering where the phish food came from? A stopped at 7-11 on the way back from picking up chinese food while I was in the hot tub. Such a wonderful life I have!)

flashbacks

2007-10-17T13:06:00.001-04:00

I realized today...that the part of the 80's that I remember (the later part) was .........
Twenty Years AGO!!!!

Wow.

2007-10-16T19:01:00.001-04:00

I like this picture... It's from our weekend in the White Mountains. Look at our giant back packs!

Survey on Libraries!

2007-10-16T16:46:00.000-04:00

If you're in Generation X or Y and haven't completed this survey for Cara's class project. Please do so now. It only takes 2 minutes!

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=raepLngsnonSz3wVg93nwA_3d_3d

Make Way for Ducklings

2007-10-16T08:59:00.000-04:00

Thanks for the comment! We don't currently have a copy of Make Way for Ducklings...but it's definitely a great read. I recommend it to all!

Speedy B

2007-10-16T08:57:00.000-04:00

A tried out his new running shoes last night!!! Go A! He looked speedy upon returning home...at least, he was sweaty... Nice job A!

Back in the Thick of It

2007-10-15T13:30:00.000-04:00

We're back in action with busy weekends! Friday night, A and I TGIF'd with our respective co-workers and then enjoyed a nice dinner and Red Sox game at O'Leary's near St. Mary's. We didn't stay for the entire game but ensured the team won from under the cozy warm comforter at home.

Saturday we hit Providence and the Red Bull Soap Box Derby! Thanks for the fortifying grilled cheese, Carissa! Pics of the derby races will be on Snapfish soon. We're so glad Ambs recommended the event. From Seattle to Providence...we have covered it.

Saturday night we fell asleep while the Red Sox were tied at the top of the 8th inning. Apparently the game finished at quarter to 2am! With seven runs by the Indians in the 11th inning...the Sox lost. So sad. Poor Coco and J.D. Drew were out there on the bases ready to come back...but no love...

Sunday morning was chill...sleepin' in. A was sick. We don't know if it was stress related or not..but some home made french toast helped him heal! I let him rest for the afternoon and visited Cynthia in her new house in Worcester. We watched the Patriots in a close game against Dallas (and talked wedding stuff). They're up against another undefeated team next week.

New England sports are big these days! (I missed Desperate Housewives last night and will have to catch it online).

I'm still working my way through Jack Finney's sequel to our Book club book....which we still haven't gotten around to meeting about. Poor book club :(

That's the weekend news in brief. I hope A's deadline day goes well. At least he got to rest over the weekend!

Happy Monday All!

Story Time!

2007-10-10T10:41:00.001-04:00

After a great weight lifting workout, A and I came home for a dinner spinach salads and orange chicken. When the dishes were done and the laundry was folded, A read to me from a recently acquired Dr. Seuss book of ours. I love story time! AND I love Dr. Seuss! How can you not love Dr. Seuss?

Costco has a book with six Dr. Seuss stories in one volume. Last night we read "To think I saw it on Mulberry Street" and "Bartholomew's 500 Hats". Such fun words to fall asleep by. *smile*

Relaxing Weekends!

2007-10-08T09:56:00.000-04:00

I could get used to these relaxing weekends. Does two weeks in a row make us regulars at the Sunday yoga class? We're proud of ourselves!

This weekend I rediscovered the joy of Lifetime TV. What fun! We also hit up Costco...man does stuff there add up quick!

A and I had fun in the kitchen yesterday from a grand breakfast of eggs, turkey bacon, and pepper jack grits, to a delicious dinner of spinach salad, Boston cod marinated in a honey dijon sauce, and a side of cous cous followed by a fresh out of the oven home made apple cobbler topped with vanilla ice cream. Good eats!

2007-10-02T13:26:00.001-04:00

Amber was here this weekend. What fun! Maybe she'll compete next year....

2007-10-01T09:44:00.001-04:00

Two months from today I'll be 30!!!!

2007-09-26T21:26:00.000-04:00

Britta made this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jZgeZpJnwVk

I now pronounce you.....

2007-09-25T08:31:00.000-04:00

That's me. The Officient of Em & L's wedding. What an amazing experience. After two full days of showing off my badge, I truly enjoyed the honor of marrying my friends. Even though we'd practiced (and I cried during practice), I cried the whole way through the ceremony. Weddings are always touching, and to have the best seat (stand) in the house makes it even more touching. I could see the joy, passion, love, and emotion in each of their faces as we recited their vows. It was absolutely beautiful. I made sure to speak very boldly for the key line: "By the virtue of the authority vested in me as Deputy Commissioner of Civil Marriages, I now pronounce you husband and wife!" (it makes me tingle just writing the line. Such power I had.) My badge is now invalid, but the pictures and memories are with me forever!

Em did a fabulous job planning the event. A and I were seated with her hard core running friends. Wow! A half marathon is very short compared to the 100 mile races these people run. The cake was fabulous, the dancing was a blast, the weather was perfect, and the whole affair was just plain fun!

Anyone out there need an Officient? I received plenty of kudos and can provide references.

Poor Little Stumpy

2007-09-25T08:23:00.000-04:00

Stumpy is the three-legged mouse that found his (her?) demise in the trunk of our car last night. When we first met Stumpy, he (she?) had all four legs. Friday night, while we were sleeping in a tent at a campground in NH, Stumpy was busy moving the nuts from our bag of trail mix (in the car) to some secretly located stash. A saw Stumpy (with all four legs) scurrying around the car on Satruday morning. As quick as A is, Stumpy (with all four legs) was quicker. We hoped he'd find his way out...but of course, why would he leave his (her?) stash of nuts?

Sunday night upon returning from a beautiful backpacking weekend in the White Mountains, we set a trap for Stumpy (still having all four legs) in the trunk. Monday morning, we found a closed trap that was drug to the corner of the trunk. In the trap was one little mouse leg. Thus the name Stumpy.

We worried that Stumpy might stay in hiding for a while licking his wounds, and then take revenge on us by chewing wires or doing damage to the car. Instead, the greedy little bugger was attracted to fresh peanut butter on a fresh trap last night. We found him (her?) in whole and dead this morning. Poor Little Stumpy. He (she?) really was a cute fella.

(there is currently another trap in the car, just in case Stumpy has friends)

2007-09-16T00:50:00.000-04:00

I'm currently a Deputy Commissioner of Civil Marriages! Today was the rehearsal. A already dreamed that I'd do a great job. After practicing vows with the Bride and Groom separately ('cuz they want their personally written vows to be a surprise), I know it's going to be a beautiful wedding!

When's the next half-marathon? After a few days of rest, I'm ready for a "do-over"..one where I don't get a cramp in my side.

2007-09-11T17:54:00.001-04:00

My first half-Marathon successfully completed!!! I couldn't have done it without my devoted fan, A, who consistently cheered me on from the start of my training, and of course my running mate, Britta! We had an absolute blast of a weekend in Montreal.

A and I woke up early Sat AM and drove (with no traffic) to Canada! We had forgotten our passports...and couldn't remember when that new rule starts. We were already in NH when we thought about it, so we crossed our fingers (A continued dozing) and hoped that we wouldn't be blocked at the border. We weren't. I think A had fun telling border patrol that I was running a half-marathon. We thought it sounded cool, although border patrol didn't seem so interested.

Yes, I'm an international racer :)

We arrived at BR's place before noon and had a full afternoon and evening to sight-see, scope out the race course, pick up our bibs, etc. We checked out Olympic Park and walked through Old Montreal. Britta and I raced some teenage girls on paddleboats and lost miserably. It was ok though. We were conserving our legs for the big race!

Sunday morning's race conditions were perfect! BR and I jumped out of bed, eager to run and took the Metro with the rest of Montreal over to the start. We high fived at every kilometer marking starting with "1 down, 20.1 to go!" and continuing consistently through to "18 down 3.1 to go" and then I got a cramp in my side. Until then I was doing absolutely dandy (despite a major allergic attack in the middle which resulted in major sinus pressure and poofy eyes). I tried my best to run. walked a lot, and hobbled across the finish line!

Thanks Gu!
At 8K we "cheers'd" with our Gu packets and came up with lots of commercial/advertising lines for Gu. (we had a second Gu at 15K, although, I didn't really feel I needed it)

Here are some of them:
-Gu got me through!
-I'm Gu'd to go!

Here are our results:
Britta - 1975 2:16:04.3 6:27 2:12:22.0 4201 B 601/829 68/81 Femmes 24 & - 1:14:59 1:01:06

Me - 2063 2:19:57.9 6:38 2:16:15.2 640/829 128/157 1:14:02 1:05:57

Metadata:
I came in 2,063rd place of the entire race. The race clock said 2 hours 19 minutes and 57 seconds. My average pace was 6min and 38sec per Kilometer. My personal time (according to my chip) was 2 hours 16 mintues and 15 seconds. I came in 640th place out of 829 women. I came in 128th place out of 157 people in my age category. I'm in the female age category of 25 – 29. I ran the first 11K in 1 hour 14 minutes and 2 sections. I ran the second 10.1 K in 1 hour 5 minutes and 57 seconds.

There were 2,396 participants in the half-marathon.

Meanwhile, Em PR'd (again) and won her age category in a 10 mile race on the same day!!!

Tomorrow, I'm off to CA to do my wedding officient duties. Each night, I practice my line..."By the power vested in me, I now pronounce you husband and wife!". The fireworks always go off in my dreams. I wonder if there'll be fireworks on Sunday....

2007-09-07T09:08:00.000-04:00

2 days 'till race day!

I did my last and final training run (around the reservoir) last night. It felt great! The run felt good, I had a good rhythm. And it felt great that it was the final training run! My body has really been working hard through all this and it's looking forward to a break.

But first, I've got a few people to whiz past on the race course. Bring on the 13 .1 miles!!!

(More importantly, bring on the Britta! YIPPPPEEEE!!)

We watched "Wild Hogs" last night. Good Cast. Well Done. Funny. (some stupid parts) Overall, very entertaining. A great blob out and laugh movie.

2007-09-05T09:52:00.000-04:00

Well, I moved the 10 mile run up from Sunday to Saturday. It was very successful once I actually got running. I woke up before the troops (A's dad and bro were visiting) filled up my fuel belt, ate a banana, went to the bathroom, etc. Then I drove all the way to the river, parked the car, and went to put on my fuel belt. It was still on the counter in the kitchen! So, back to the house I went.... grabbed the belt and headed back to the river. I ran west from the "Publick Theatre" where I park to Watertown Square and then east back to Harvard Square and back to the car. It was a nice run. I felt good. My feet and legs thanked me for the break.

I hit my Tues AM run and my Wed AM run this week with flying colors! Only one more pre-race run tomorrow and then the real thing! 13.1 miles in Montreal on Sunday!

Yesterday, I think I ate a bazillion of those little tiny bugs that hover over the running path. The geese, however, have been in the water and not on the path, which is nice.

Last Weekend's Highlights:
Friday night - A and I enjoyed a quiet evening just chillin'
Sat AM - ran 10 miles
Sat early PM - caught up with Sis on the phone
Sat late PM - A took his dad and bro on a walking adventure in the neighborhood. I took a 2 hour nap!
Sat night - Pizza and a four person game of Super Scrabble!
Sun day - We adventured to Battleship Cove in Fall River and toured the U.S.S Massachusetts and some other WWII ships
Sun night - Bill (friend of A, A's Dad, and Bro) came up for the night and we hit the night time scene! We checked out a new bar call Joshua Tree for dinner (great wings!) and won 2nd place in the Trivia contest!
Mon day - Took Bill on a walking adventure of downtown Beantown and introduced the crew to the China Pearl in Chinatown. A's dad and Bill were down with the dim sum, Andrew stuck with ordering something "normal" (lemon chicken).
Mon night - I hit the Super Stop and Shop to prep for book club tonight and restock our shelves :)

All of a sudden it was time to go to work again! The weekend was quick.

What's going on in the kitchen?
Last night (Tues) I cooked up a storm. Made some soup (even though it's summer time) with beans and tomato broth that Mom left us....I cooked up pork ribs and corn on the cob, we scarfed all of that down quick.... and of course, I baked some brownies. YUMM! Now, we have food to eat in the fridge...

Tonight's menu for book club is corn on the cob, fresh tilapia marinated in Cheriyaki glaze (handed down from Mom and Pops), cous cous, and asparagus sauteed with baby portabella mushrooms...with brownies and ice cream for dessert. Hopefully it turns out yummy!

2007-08-31T08:45:00.000-04:00

Friday before a three day weekend makes for a quiet day in the city. No crowds on the train this morning, and no crowds on the sidewalk downtown. It's kind of like a snowy winter day, but without the snow and the cold weather...just the quiet.

I slept through "running hour" on Thursday and didn't make it up. My toes are healing. I made the decision to take the extra rest day. I think it was important for my feets and my legs. I'll run 10 miles on Sunday to keep in shape for the big race next week. Em advised me to drink electrolytes regularly until race day to make sure my body stores up on them.

The entire bookclub is behind on the book, but we're such socialites we're going to meet next week anyway! Adelaide will be four weeks old! She's got her own website now. It's all the rage for kids her age.

Happy Labor Day! (I'm planning to veg, visit with the visiting family members as they are around, and read read read).

2007-08-29T09:03:00.000-04:00

I danced in the elevator this morning. Just because I can!

The running is taking its toll on me. I think I have "Runner's Hobble". On the Vineyard on Sunday I hit the pavement for what looked like (on the tourism map) a 12 mile run. At 2 hours and 17 minutes of running in the HEAT, I decided I must've hit 12 miles already and that my map was wrong. So, I walked. I was still a 30 minute walk from the house. Thanks A and A for driving by and cheering me on! It's great to have a fan club.

I've been so good, despite the "Hobble", and ran Tuesday AM and this morning. I feel like my legs are getting achier and achier. It's actually more comfortable to run than to walk. I am getting to know a lot of leg and buttocks muscles that I haven't met before.

This morning's sunrise opposite the moon setting was absolutely gorgeous on the reservoir. Yesterday I saw some good wildlife (in addition to the geese, ducks, and swans). I saw a rabbit and a chipmunk!

Vineyard time this weekend was a blast. We were definitely "On Vineyard Time". On Saturday, We hit the farmers market, flea market, and a fundraiser for Hillary! On Sunday, we hit the beach. It was my first beach trip of the summer! We buried each other vertically in the sand :) The pics are great! Check my snapfish link to see them.

Can't believe September is almost here!!!!

2007-08-22T17:39:00.000-04:00

Well, it's Wednesday.....

I saw Adelaide last night. She's still little. She'll be two weeks old tomorrow!

Monday night was burrito and movie night. We watched Zodiac...Really well done. A bit scary for my tastes, but since it was based on true case files, I guess there wasn't much they could do about the scariness. It just is scary. YIKES!

I ran Tues AM (50 min, nice and easy). Tonight is my last and hardest SPEED workout. 15 min warmup, 30 min FAST, 15 min cooldown. I just ate a banana, so I should be potassiumed and ready to run when I get home.

This weekend, we'll be on the Vineyard so I'll get to find a 12 mile route for my longest pre-race run on Sunday. It's fun to run in such glamorous places!

A has been run down with a cold this week. He's on the upswing now! (After a full day of sleeping and lots of Nyquil.)

There are some new pics on my Snapfish site... If you still have the link, you should be able to see them. If not, let me kow and I'll send you a new link.

TTFN

2007-08-20T08:45:00.000-04:00

I hit the Stowe, VT bikepath yesterday for 10 miles!!! (with my running shoes of course). I did 10 miles in 1hour45min! With 2 miles to go I sang to myself "You're a rockstar. You're a good runner. Go Corinne. You're so Speedy". Trust me it sounded good on the trail. I did feel like a rock star. I picked up the pace and ran in the last mile and a half pretty darn fast!

The rest of the weekend was a blast as well. We hung out with the little cousins, ADORABLE! The weather in VT was cold, overcast, and a bit rainy, but we found plenty to do. We even had a big whiffle ball game at the Farm. No one seemed to mind that there were chickens running through the game.

happy Monday!

two thoughts

2007-08-17T15:55:00.001-04:00

1. If I sit on my sweater, it warms up and then feels extra warm when I put it on! (The AC at work is frigid)

2. I passed a bird ( a little one) with a worm and a moth in it's mouth. Talk about a MOUTHFULL! He's gonna eat well tonight.

2007-08-15T09:01:00.000-04:00

Two days in a row, I've woken at 5:30am and went for a run around the reservoir! Amazing! This morning I ate a Gu (actually a Cliff Shot) and did a speed workout. No Cramps! (last week's speed workout was a miserable failed attempt...I blame the "electrolyte juice" I was drinking) I ran fast for the entire 25 minutes I was supposed to (according to my training schedule). I also did a 15 min warmup and 15 min cooldown of slow running or wogging as I like to call it (a mix between a walk and a jog).

Today, I was rewarded with a beautiful sunrise. A bright orange ginormous sun was rising over the Hancock and Prudential towers in the midst of a misty morning sky. It was absolutely gorgeous. It reminded me of the fond memory I have of Mom and I waking up early in Ogunquit to see the sunrise. We, being west coasters, thought we should embrace the opportunity to see the sun rise over the ocean as opposed to set over he ocean. That morning, there was a big bright pink/orange sun rising up over the water. Perhaps, the theme is that sunrise is a beautiful time of day.

I wonder what it was like yesterday.... I must have been sleeping during my run and not noticed..hmmm...

2007-08-14T08:52:00.000-04:00

I figured you must all be dying for an update on my half-marathon training.

This past Sunday I ran 9.2 miles (along the charles river path) and felt great! I figured out how to nourish my body successfully...with a banana before the run and a Gu in the middle. Of course I had water in my fuel belt too. The most amazing part of the whole thing is that at the end of the 9.2 I felt like I could keep going! (This is important because come race day, there'll be 4 more miles to go.) Oh yeah, and I only tripped and fell once! I have a little scrape on my knee to show for it.

This weekend I'm aiming for 10 miles!

A and I bought ourselves fun engagement presents this weekend. It was tax free shopping here in Massachusetts! An engagement ring for me...running shoes and a courrier bag for A...New cell phones for both of us (those were free! but quite an adventure in the store) and a new digital camera! We celebrated the day of shopping with spending an extra $20 at the movies to see Bourne Ultimatum. It was a great flick. Jason Bourne is quite an impressive man.

NEWS

2007-08-13T08:42:00.000-04:00

There's excitement in the neighborhood....... Here are the snippets.

Adrian and I are engaged to be married!

Amber is 30!

Adelaide Hickey was born on Amber's birthday (Kate and Peter's baby). Adorable!

Mikey and Andrea gave birth to Jason a couple weeks ago!

Cynthia and Kenney bought a house!

Rattler and Michael bought a house (including a barn!!)

Anything else?

2007-08-08T09:21:00.001-04:00

We are eating our FIRST homegrown tomato today!! We've grown the plants from seeds! (It's in my lunch, so I can't report, yet on how it tastes.)

time is flyin!

2007-08-07T07:57:00.000-04:00

Phew! I think I'll be in town for a while now.... Here's a little update.

South Dakota is an awesome state for road trips!

A quick jaunt to Sac allowed me to partake in Em's bridal shower, visit with Mom and Pops, and say howdy to my pals M & N et al. Between working long hours and several business trips, A and I were able to spend his birthday in Vermont! We rode a gondola to VT's highest peak and hiked down. We tasted cheese. We golfed at the country club. Yup, I played a full 9 holes! We swam in the lake. We kayaked in the lake. We played junior monopoly (soooo much simpler than adult monopoly). AND We went to a Barn Dance. It was in a big barn and there was SQUARE DANCING!!! We had a blast.

We ended our weekend in VT with a run along the Stowe bike path. It's a fabulous bike path and every 1/4 mile is marked. It was easy to keep track of how I was running and be able to pace my miles. I ran 7 miles in 1 hour and 18min.

This past Sunday, a week after the Stowe run, I ran 8 miles in 1 hour and 29 minutes. I think this means that after running for over an hour I'm still going at an 11 minute per mile pace. Not too shabby if I say so myself. Last night, I ran at a really good clip around the reservoir. In 27 minutes I ran from the house to the reservoir and around it. I cooled off by running uphill for six more minutes to the pad thai place. Yummy!

stay tuned for more exciting adventures

2007-07-25T17:58:00.000-04:00

I got stung by a bee!!!

on my ankle.... my ankle is super swollen.... weird stuff from a bee that is soo small!

Still travelin'. Enjoyin some time in Vermont this week. Life is grand up here. I've got to figure out how to make a living in this state...

Words from the Wise Traveler

2007-07-14T15:28:00.001-04:00

I'm busy travelling this month..so the posts will be sporadic and few. Sorry! Are you ready for the words from the wise traveler? I just spent three days in Chicago...gorgeous city! Flew from there to Raleigh and came back to Boston via a missed-connection in DC. The missed connection resulted in an unplanned overnight stay. It would've been fun, if I weren't tired and wasn't wearing fancy shoes. I was only in my hotel room for six hours before hopping on the 6am shuttle back to the airport. Anyway...the wise words are:

"thunder and lightening storms cause severe delays in air traffic"

Pretty profound, huh? I think I'll start flying in the morning as much as I can. As opposed to afternoon/evening flights.

This coming week I'll be on tour in South Dakota!

Fireworks!

2007-07-05T08:34:00.000-04:00

Every year that I see fireworks, I wonder how much pollution is going into the air and how much debris is falling into the water body below...

A and I ventured down to the Mass Ave bridge for a prime viewing of the fireworks (in the rain). They were absolutely fabulous! Boston really does do a spectacular job There was a full 25 minutes of fireworks, all different shapes and sizes, super shimmery ones, skyrocketing ones, booming ones, ones that sounded like popcorn and looked like camera flashes going off. Comedian Craig Ferguson and John Mellencamp were the big stars this year. We were only listening via the speaker, but they did a great job. It was also neat to see the fireworks reflecting off the tall buildings along the river...such gorgeous shimmering.

Now we must think about the fact that it's summer already! Wow, July is here in full force!

Enjoy!

Horseshoes!

2007-07-03T13:24:00.000-04:00

This weekend I was lucky enough to see the hungarian and his family. It was great. I also tried my hand at horseshoes! Yes, my arm is sore after the fact, but I didn't do so bad. Actually, I had a glorious "ringer" which landed right on top of the tie breaking "ringer" and cancelled it out. I maintained the tie long enough for A to get a ringer on his next turn and win the game for us! We also hit the driving range that afternoon. What a sporty saturday we had. Oh yeah, I ate the most ginormous ice cream cone ever. Wish we had a camera...

Sunday morning A and I hit the pavement. Before long, A was on the ground with a sprained ankle. The curb jumped up at him when he was trying to step off it (or something like that). It's still swollen, but getting better. I've been carrying on the training with out him (sad face here). I did two laps around the reservoir and back on Sunday (60 minutes). Last night I ran around the neighborhood for 30 minutes. Tonight is a rest night and tomorrow is another speed workout!

The bookclub is reading "A Thousand Splendid Suns" by Khaled Hosseini (sp?). He's the guy that wrote "The Kite Runner". ATSS is a fantastically intense book. Absolutely amazing. Super well written and a dramatic plot. I'm loving it.

Tomorrow's Mom's Birthday!
Happy Independence Day everyone!

Brighton Wildlife

2007-06-29T11:02:00.000-04:00

So.. I did my activities last night...made it to japanese class (after the train dumped me out at Winchester St to go express) and then went for a run at the Brookline Reservoir. On the way home, on my very own street but down a few blocks from my house, I saw the cutest little things scurring across the sidewalk and hiding under parked cars! Little opposums! They were all fuzzy and had long tails and pointy little noses. Last year was raccoons, I guess this year is opposums.

The last japanese class was good. The weird kid asked me out. I said no. He had asked one of the married girls in class a while ago. He's just weird and obsessed with dates, I think.

The run was great. I warmed up for 12 minutes and then ran fast (well fast for me) around the reservoir 1 and 1/2 times for 15 minutes and wogged my way home after that. To wog is to walk and jog. Sometimes it is in one motion, other times it is a trade off between walking and jogging intermittently.

Post run, I sat on the porch, amongst my flowers, enjoyed the cool breeze and read the book club book. Summer is nice!

Happy Friday!

Do they sting?

2007-06-28T15:17:00.000-04:00

The girls and I took a walk down Wollaston Beach last night. Lots of folks were wading and swimming in the water even though we could clearly see bazillions of dried up, dead, jellyfish on the sand. We even saw some, not dried up, still gooey, jellyfish in the process of being washed up (riding the waves). We walked out onto a concrete peir and dangled our feet in.

Then, some jellyfish came swimming by. We pulled our feet out at that point. I'm curious why the swimmers were not afraid of the jellyfish. Things that make you go hmmmmm....

I haven't run since Monday... so tonight and tomorrow night it's on!
Tonight's run: 10 minutes easy, 15 minutes at a faster clip, followed by a 10 minute easy cool down. This, of course, will take place at 8pm after the last japanese class of the semester and hopefully the temps will have cooled down by then. Oh, I think there's a forecast for thunderstorms this evening. Fun!

The tomato plants are flowering!!! The porch pansies are beautiful.
Happy Thursday!