This is a photo of my clearing off my car for the SECOND time. The first time, it was about double this amount!
Friday, December 29, 2006
Photos of the snowstorm
This is a photo of my clearing off my car for the SECOND time. The first time, it was about double this amount!
Let it Snow!
Well, I am sure most of you have heard about the Holiday Blizzard that hit Denver last week. It all began Wednesday with initial predictions the previous day of 4-8 inches. Then Wednesday morning, they began saying 8-12 inches. By the time afternoon rolled in, it was 1-2 FEET. It was insane. The worst part of it was that Brian, myself and a whole slew of our friends all had travel plans for Thursday and Friday to go to our respective 'homes'. By Wednesday late afternoon, the airport officially shut down. That's right, no flights going in or out of DIA. They initially started to cancel flights through noon on Thursday, which was good news for me, as I was traveling Thursday at 5:30 pm. Then the snow just kept coming down... and down... and down. The news reported that Denver International Airport had hopes of opening Thursday evening. I thought, this might be good... perhaps my flight will just be delayed. We went out mid-afternoon to shovel. Apparently we should have went out mid-MORNING to shovel, because by the time we got out there, there was a foot of snow to shovel, and let me tell you it's no fun shoveling a foot of snow all at once. It was fun though, we got to talking with some of the neighbors and one neighbor even came by handing out beers to everyone! By the time the sun went down on Wednesday, it was STILL snowing. Brian's flight for Thursday afternoon of course had already been canceled. He called American to rebook and the best he could get was an insane 14 hour, 3 flight, coast to coast itinerary that would get him into Fort Lauderdale at 10am Christmas morning. He would leave Denver Christmas Eve night at 7pm, fly to Los Angeles, take an overnight flight from LA to Dallas, then fly from Dallas to Fort Lauderdale Christmas morning. Needless to say, he was none to happy about this. Brian and I went outside to shovel for the second time in the evening and had to shovel another 6 to 8 inches. While we were out shoveling we were discussing how I would even get to the airport the next evening if my flight was still on. The streets in the neighborhood were impassable and it didn't look like any cars were driving on the main road we could see. We finished round two of shoveling and headed in, after deciding that I should try to call and rebook my flight. I went over to my computer to refresh my flight status and it was indeed cancelled. I called to rebook it and the best flight I could get out was Christmas Eve night, flying through St. Louis on a tiny commuter plane. Yay. ;)
So with knowing we weren't leaving until Sunday, we tried to make the best of it and spent the next couple days, while we were snowed in, watching Christmas movies, playing cards, completing puzzles. On Friday afternoon, cabin fever severely hit me and I HAD to get out of the house. We drove the 6 or 7 miles down to my apartment to pick up Lola (oh I forgot to mention she had been at my apartment alone this whole time) and went out to dinner in Olde Town Arvada.
Throughout the weekend we continued to watch the news and heard reports from friends that got flights out on Saturday and we were frightened of the lines and delays at the airport. The airport itself was suggesting travelers to arrive 4 hours prior to their flight's departure. In addition to this, we were hearing it was taking people an hour to travel the short 10 mile road that leads into the airport. My flight on Sunday was taking off at 3pm and Brian's was at 7pm. But with all these horror stories, Brian decided to just come to the airport with me, rather than dropping me off, going home, only to return a couple hours later. And again, with all of these reports, we decided to leave at 930am for my flight, allowing us plenty of time to find parking, check in, and get through security.
I think it took about 35 minutes to get to the airport. Pretty much the same amount of time it takes to get there on a clear, sunny day. There was little traffic and the majority of the roads were clear. Brian dropped me off at curbside check-in and went to park at long-term parking. I walked up to curbside and found absolutely no line. I had my bags checked and was in the airport in less than 5 minutes. Then, I headed to the security lines, anticipating an insane line meandering throughout the terminal. The lines were bad, but not THAT bad. I was fortunately flying first class, so I got to go to the nice short line, that only had a family of 5 in front of me! By the time I got on the train to the concourse, Brian was still in the parking waiting for the shuttle. He had similar experiences checking in, though it took him a bit longer because of his 3-leg flight plan, he couldn't check in at curbside so he had to wait in line at the counters. We met up again in the concourse, had lunch, watched the plows clearing off the tarmac, and waited for my flight to depart.
Just before boarding, I heard my name being called over the intercom asking me to come up to the desk. My heart immediately started beating fast and I had visions of them telling me I had been bumped from my flight. I walked up nervously to the counter and the agent asked me if I would mind being bumped to a later flight. One leaving just 10 minutes later AND was direct to Chicago! I couldn't believe it. I said absolutely. Especially after seeing the little commuter plane I was supposed to be boarding to St. Louis- scary! The direct flight I was bumped to was a little delayed, but it was great because I wasn't going to have to connect, and I ended up getting into Chicago about an hour early.
Brian had put his name on a standby list for a flight to Dallas that evening with hopes of getting to Ft. Lauderdale Christmas Eve rather than Christmas morning. He lucked out as well and got on that Dallas flight and made it to Dallas only to find out there were no more flights to Ft. Lauderdale that late. He still had his 630am flight in the morning, and had avoided traveling to LA for no reason, so he staked claim on a cot and a blanket and stayed the night at the airport.
Despite the craziness of all of this, I had made it into Chicago for Christmas Eve and Brian got to Florida for Christmas morning.
So with knowing we weren't leaving until Sunday, we tried to make the best of it and spent the next couple days, while we were snowed in, watching Christmas movies, playing cards, completing puzzles. On Friday afternoon, cabin fever severely hit me and I HAD to get out of the house. We drove the 6 or 7 miles down to my apartment to pick up Lola (oh I forgot to mention she had been at my apartment alone this whole time) and went out to dinner in Olde Town Arvada.
Throughout the weekend we continued to watch the news and heard reports from friends that got flights out on Saturday and we were frightened of the lines and delays at the airport. The airport itself was suggesting travelers to arrive 4 hours prior to their flight's departure. In addition to this, we were hearing it was taking people an hour to travel the short 10 mile road that leads into the airport. My flight on Sunday was taking off at 3pm and Brian's was at 7pm. But with all these horror stories, Brian decided to just come to the airport with me, rather than dropping me off, going home, only to return a couple hours later. And again, with all of these reports, we decided to leave at 930am for my flight, allowing us plenty of time to find parking, check in, and get through security.
I think it took about 35 minutes to get to the airport. Pretty much the same amount of time it takes to get there on a clear, sunny day. There was little traffic and the majority of the roads were clear. Brian dropped me off at curbside check-in and went to park at long-term parking. I walked up to curbside and found absolutely no line. I had my bags checked and was in the airport in less than 5 minutes. Then, I headed to the security lines, anticipating an insane line meandering throughout the terminal. The lines were bad, but not THAT bad. I was fortunately flying first class, so I got to go to the nice short line, that only had a family of 5 in front of me! By the time I got on the train to the concourse, Brian was still in the parking waiting for the shuttle. He had similar experiences checking in, though it took him a bit longer because of his 3-leg flight plan, he couldn't check in at curbside so he had to wait in line at the counters. We met up again in the concourse, had lunch, watched the plows clearing off the tarmac, and waited for my flight to depart.
Just before boarding, I heard my name being called over the intercom asking me to come up to the desk. My heart immediately started beating fast and I had visions of them telling me I had been bumped from my flight. I walked up nervously to the counter and the agent asked me if I would mind being bumped to a later flight. One leaving just 10 minutes later AND was direct to Chicago! I couldn't believe it. I said absolutely. Especially after seeing the little commuter plane I was supposed to be boarding to St. Louis- scary! The direct flight I was bumped to was a little delayed, but it was great because I wasn't going to have to connect, and I ended up getting into Chicago about an hour early.
Brian had put his name on a standby list for a flight to Dallas that evening with hopes of getting to Ft. Lauderdale Christmas Eve rather than Christmas morning. He lucked out as well and got on that Dallas flight and made it to Dallas only to find out there were no more flights to Ft. Lauderdale that late. He still had his 630am flight in the morning, and had avoided traveling to LA for no reason, so he staked claim on a cot and a blanket and stayed the night at the airport.
Despite the craziness of all of this, I had made it into Chicago for Christmas Eve and Brian got to Florida for Christmas morning.
Saturday, November 25, 2006
Catch up. Part II
The weekend after we were in Aspen, Jen came into town for some partying and visiting and site-seeing. I was so excited to have her come visit me and doubly excited to have her there to share in the excitement of our recent engagement! I had a great time with her, we did lots of eating and drinking (wine, of course!), and did a little bit of sight-seeing which included the essential tour of the Coors Brewery. I even dragged her to a couple of bridal shops and we found my wedding dress! So, not only was it fun having Jen in town, it was also quite productive! Jen was in town until Wednesday, so we spent Halloween together and even went to a Haunted House. Though, I am pretty sure no one will ever go to a Haunted House with me again. I get a ... bit... no, crazily scared. Scary movies, scary stories, haunted houses, etc... plus ME do not mix!
A couple weeks later, Colleen, Dahx, and Jason were in town. I go from having no friends come to visit to a ton visiting all in a 2 week span! Dahx has family in Denver and they were having a big tailgate party down in Colorado Springs for the Notre Dame/Air Force game. So Brian and I joined them for the tailgate and various other activities during the weekend. It was great to see them and I even got Colleen all to myself for an afternoon. :)
Last weekend, we had a little Engagement Get-Together at the Purple Martini downtown. The first thing people were asking us when we got engaged was either, "when's the wedding?" or "are you having and engagement party??" I suppose it was the power of suggestion, so we had a laid back evening of drinking some frou-frou martinis and toasted with champaign. After the martini bar, we headed down to LoDo's for some late night dancing and then capped of the night with some breakfast food at Denver Diner.
In between all of the above activities, we have been busy planning our wedding for next September. We've found our reception site and have started the process with our church for getting married... Who knew getting married would require a test, a gazillion meetings, and classes?? It's really not that bad, we were just both a little surprised at all of the requirements to get married in a Catholic church. Now that we have the big things decided like the date and the reception site, we're moving on to the 'littler' things like photographers, dj's, etc... It's so much to think about, but it really is fun and we're determined to have an awesome time and even more determined that our guests have a fantastic time!
On Thanksgiving, Brian and I had some friends over to his house and we cooked a huge feast. We played some games, drank some beer, watched some football, and ate a lot of food. It was just as Thanksgiving should be! We're trying to relax the rest of the weekend, though it seems like we've been doing a lot. On Monday, I leave for Dallas for a weeklong business trip... It'll be fun, but I'm definitely not looking forward to being gone for a whole week. Though by the time I get back, it'll be the weekend again, so I guess that's some good news!
A couple weeks later, Colleen, Dahx, and Jason were in town. I go from having no friends come to visit to a ton visiting all in a 2 week span! Dahx has family in Denver and they were having a big tailgate party down in Colorado Springs for the Notre Dame/Air Force game. So Brian and I joined them for the tailgate and various other activities during the weekend. It was great to see them and I even got Colleen all to myself for an afternoon. :)
Last weekend, we had a little Engagement Get-Together at the Purple Martini downtown. The first thing people were asking us when we got engaged was either, "when's the wedding?" or "are you having and engagement party??" I suppose it was the power of suggestion, so we had a laid back evening of drinking some frou-frou martinis and toasted with champaign. After the martini bar, we headed down to LoDo's for some late night dancing and then capped of the night with some breakfast food at Denver Diner.
In between all of the above activities, we have been busy planning our wedding for next September. We've found our reception site and have started the process with our church for getting married... Who knew getting married would require a test, a gazillion meetings, and classes?? It's really not that bad, we were just both a little surprised at all of the requirements to get married in a Catholic church. Now that we have the big things decided like the date and the reception site, we're moving on to the 'littler' things like photographers, dj's, etc... It's so much to think about, but it really is fun and we're determined to have an awesome time and even more determined that our guests have a fantastic time!
On Thanksgiving, Brian and I had some friends over to his house and we cooked a huge feast. We played some games, drank some beer, watched some football, and ate a lot of food. It was just as Thanksgiving should be! We're trying to relax the rest of the weekend, though it seems like we've been doing a lot. On Monday, I leave for Dallas for a weeklong business trip... It'll be fun, but I'm definitely not looking forward to being gone for a whole week. Though by the time I get back, it'll be the weekend again, so I guess that's some good news!
Friday, November 10, 2006
Catch Up
My, oh my... It's been entirely too long since my last blog... I apologize for the lack of posts for the past couple months. Let me try to catch ya'll up with what's been going on in my little world.
September:
After returning from Chicago for Labor Day weekend, I was really busy with work and we were also winding down our kickball season. Brian and Danielle had a business trip to Chicago for our last game, as well as a few other team members no-showing to the game so we were short on players, but made a good showing. In fact, it was probably our best game of the season. I think if we had played with that much determination (and beer) in previous games we might have won a few. Desiree and I were the only girls there that game, so basically we were up to bat every 3rd time... (you have to bat boy-girl-boy-girl). There were a couple close calls and then one exceptionally bad call at the end of the game, where we would have tied up the game and gone into extra innings. Despite Bill arguing with the ump and the other team for quite a while, we had no luck in getting them to reverse the call, so the game was called and we walked away with no wins this season. How pathetic are we!?! Anyways, it's fun nonetheless and we're going to get a team together in the spring to kick some ass. Or at least just drink some beer.
The last weekend of September was not only Danielle's birthday but also the Great American Beer Fest. In what's become a Danielle/Birthday tradition, we went down to the Beer Fest to celebrate her birthday with 1000's of kinds of beers and also a few thousand people. The line was incessantly long to get in to the beer fest. And despite Brian and I getting there late and after Danielle and the rest of the crew, we somehow snuck into line ahead of them and got in a good 20 mins before they did. I attribute it to our short heights and clever ways. Anyways, we finally all got in and the drinking began. Rich, Dez, Bill, and Kimberly also joined in the festivities. After the beer fest concluded we all headed over to Paramount Cafe on the 16th Street Mall for some eats and more drinks.
So, I think that about covers September. I am undoubtedly forgetting many, many things... But this'll be the highlight blog. :)
October:
The first weekend of October, Brian and I headed up to Fort Collins for a day. We were wanting to do some thing sort of touristy, and since I had never been to Fort Collins, we thought that might be a great idea, and then almost simultaneously, we both came up with the idea to do tours of all of the microbreweries up in Fort Collins (there are like 4 or 5 there). So we drove up in the morning and began our brewery tour at the Fort Collins Brewery. There, we tried 5 or 6 different beers and enjoyed their lovely patio. After trying such beers as Pomegranate Wheat (my favorite) and Retro Red (Brian's fave), we purchased a couple 6 packs and moved on to the next Brewery down the road... Odell Brewery. The tasting room at this brewery was much larger and more commercial than Fort Collins Brewery. We got to try 9 different beers that were served on a neat wooden tray with an explanation of each beer. After Odell's, we headed over to New Belgium Brewery- home of Fat Tire... We tried 4 beers in their bar-style tasting room. So, I guess we didn't really do tours of the breweries, but just did tastings at each of the breweries. But, let's face it, that's the best part!
On October 21st, Brian and I went to Aspen for the weekend. The night before we were watching the news and ALL of the meteorologists were talking about a big winter storm going on up in the mountains and advising that no one go up there if they don't have to. But we had reservations at a hotel up there already and I was super excited to go up in the mountains in the winter (well, it wasn't winter yet, but sure did look like winter). So, we got up early on Saturday morning, grabbed some coffee and donuts and got on the road. The snow had pretty much stopped by the time we got up into the mountains, so it was really just an issue with the roads not being cleared off. But, honestly, the roads were really fine. The only time I was driving super slow and cautiously was up through the Eisenhower Tunnel, as the roads were snow-packed. Once we got past Vail, the roads were totally clear and there was hardly any snow. We stopped in Glenwood Springs for lunch and walked around the little town. It's pretty cute- very small, but I think we counted 3 tattoo/piercing shops, which we thought was a little odd. From there, we drove down to Aspen and checked into the Hotel Jerome, a very nice, historic hotel in the heart of Aspen. Since it was still an off-season weekend, the town and hotel was quiet and we got upgraded to their largest suite. It was seriously twice the size of my apartment. We spent the afternoon walking around Aspen and window shopping. Window being the key word. Aspen is full of couture shops and boutiques and is anything is absolutely ridiculously priced. I was HOPING to find a pair of nice shoes there, as I neglected to pack any dress shoes for the weekend and was going to be stuck in my New Balances the remainder of the trip. After walking in and out of stores filled with Manolos and Jimmy Choo's, I gave up!
We had dinner at a cool Mexican restaurant. It had all of the regular Mexican entrees on the menu, but they all had a cool little twist to them and what we ate there was sooo yummy. And the margaritas were delicious as well. After dinner, we headed back to the hotel and were going to hang out at the J-bar, the little bar in the hotel. We decided to run our coats up to the room before having some cocktails. While we were up in the room, we were looking at the window overlooking the town and admiring Aspen Mountain and Brian asked me to marry him! Yup, you guessed it, I said Yes. :) I know blogging about a proposal does not do it justice. We are both extremely happy and excited for our upcoming wedding, and most importantly, our life together. After the excitement of the proposal, I thought I was going to pass out, but managed to collect myself to call my mom and share the good news. After that, we headed down to the J-Bar for some celebratory cocktails. Forever, Aspen will hold a very special place in my heart!
On Sunday, we drove back to Denver and spent a lot of time on the phone with our parents and family sharing the good news, of course!
Ok, taking a break to post this... More catching up to come soon!
September:
After returning from Chicago for Labor Day weekend, I was really busy with work and we were also winding down our kickball season. Brian and Danielle had a business trip to Chicago for our last game, as well as a few other team members no-showing to the game so we were short on players, but made a good showing. In fact, it was probably our best game of the season. I think if we had played with that much determination (and beer) in previous games we might have won a few. Desiree and I were the only girls there that game, so basically we were up to bat every 3rd time... (you have to bat boy-girl-boy-girl). There were a couple close calls and then one exceptionally bad call at the end of the game, where we would have tied up the game and gone into extra innings. Despite Bill arguing with the ump and the other team for quite a while, we had no luck in getting them to reverse the call, so the game was called and we walked away with no wins this season. How pathetic are we!?! Anyways, it's fun nonetheless and we're going to get a team together in the spring to kick some ass. Or at least just drink some beer.
The last weekend of September was not only Danielle's birthday but also the Great American Beer Fest. In what's become a Danielle/Birthday tradition, we went down to the Beer Fest to celebrate her birthday with 1000's of kinds of beers and also a few thousand people. The line was incessantly long to get in to the beer fest. And despite Brian and I getting there late and after Danielle and the rest of the crew, we somehow snuck into line ahead of them and got in a good 20 mins before they did. I attribute it to our short heights and clever ways. Anyways, we finally all got in and the drinking began. Rich, Dez, Bill, and Kimberly also joined in the festivities. After the beer fest concluded we all headed over to Paramount Cafe on the 16th Street Mall for some eats and more drinks.
So, I think that about covers September. I am undoubtedly forgetting many, many things... But this'll be the highlight blog. :)
October:
The first weekend of October, Brian and I headed up to Fort Collins for a day. We were wanting to do some thing sort of touristy, and since I had never been to Fort Collins, we thought that might be a great idea, and then almost simultaneously, we both came up with the idea to do tours of all of the microbreweries up in Fort Collins (there are like 4 or 5 there). So we drove up in the morning and began our brewery tour at the Fort Collins Brewery. There, we tried 5 or 6 different beers and enjoyed their lovely patio. After trying such beers as Pomegranate Wheat (my favorite) and Retro Red (Brian's fave), we purchased a couple 6 packs and moved on to the next Brewery down the road... Odell Brewery. The tasting room at this brewery was much larger and more commercial than Fort Collins Brewery. We got to try 9 different beers that were served on a neat wooden tray with an explanation of each beer. After Odell's, we headed over to New Belgium Brewery- home of Fat Tire... We tried 4 beers in their bar-style tasting room. So, I guess we didn't really do tours of the breweries, but just did tastings at each of the breweries. But, let's face it, that's the best part!
On October 21st, Brian and I went to Aspen for the weekend. The night before we were watching the news and ALL of the meteorologists were talking about a big winter storm going on up in the mountains and advising that no one go up there if they don't have to. But we had reservations at a hotel up there already and I was super excited to go up in the mountains in the winter (well, it wasn't winter yet, but sure did look like winter). So, we got up early on Saturday morning, grabbed some coffee and donuts and got on the road. The snow had pretty much stopped by the time we got up into the mountains, so it was really just an issue with the roads not being cleared off. But, honestly, the roads were really fine. The only time I was driving super slow and cautiously was up through the Eisenhower Tunnel, as the roads were snow-packed. Once we got past Vail, the roads were totally clear and there was hardly any snow. We stopped in Glenwood Springs for lunch and walked around the little town. It's pretty cute- very small, but I think we counted 3 tattoo/piercing shops, which we thought was a little odd. From there, we drove down to Aspen and checked into the Hotel Jerome, a very nice, historic hotel in the heart of Aspen. Since it was still an off-season weekend, the town and hotel was quiet and we got upgraded to their largest suite. It was seriously twice the size of my apartment. We spent the afternoon walking around Aspen and window shopping. Window being the key word. Aspen is full of couture shops and boutiques and is anything is absolutely ridiculously priced. I was HOPING to find a pair of nice shoes there, as I neglected to pack any dress shoes for the weekend and was going to be stuck in my New Balances the remainder of the trip. After walking in and out of stores filled with Manolos and Jimmy Choo's, I gave up!
We had dinner at a cool Mexican restaurant. It had all of the regular Mexican entrees on the menu, but they all had a cool little twist to them and what we ate there was sooo yummy. And the margaritas were delicious as well. After dinner, we headed back to the hotel and were going to hang out at the J-bar, the little bar in the hotel. We decided to run our coats up to the room before having some cocktails. While we were up in the room, we were looking at the window overlooking the town and admiring Aspen Mountain and Brian asked me to marry him! Yup, you guessed it, I said Yes. :) I know blogging about a proposal does not do it justice. We are both extremely happy and excited for our upcoming wedding, and most importantly, our life together. After the excitement of the proposal, I thought I was going to pass out, but managed to collect myself to call my mom and share the good news. After that, we headed down to the J-Bar for some celebratory cocktails. Forever, Aspen will hold a very special place in my heart!
On Sunday, we drove back to Denver and spent a lot of time on the phone with our parents and family sharing the good news, of course!
Ok, taking a break to post this... More catching up to come soon!
Wednesday, September 13, 2006
Sweet Home Chicago.
So, Labor Day weekend, Brian and I headed to Chicago for a whirlwind weekend full of fun, friends, cubs, wine and beer. We arrive late Wednesday night, so we just went back to my parent's house and to bed. Both Thursday and Friday we were working, so we spent the days on our laptops and hit up the town in the evening. Thursday night, we met up with Jen, Mike, and Todd at Lou Malnati's for some Chicago pizza and beer. We even went totally Chicago and had Goose Island Beer. It was so nice to catch up with them at dinner AND eat some good pizza. After dinner, we headed over to the 10th Hole Pub for some beers. A trip to Bolingbrook just isn't complete without hitting up the 10th Hole Pub. Amazingly there was no one there that I knew- Hurray!
Friday evening, my parents had a wine tasting at this place called WineStyles in Darien. I highly suggest going there. It's a very cute little wine store and you can try our wines by either getting a tasting of a particular one, or a full glass while hanging out at the store. In the back of the store, they have a private room, where we were, and we tried out 6 different wines while dining on the tasty treats my mom had prepared. All of the wines were very yummy and it was nice to get to see some of my parent's friends and have a somewhat more relaxing evening. After the tasting, we headed back to my parent's house where the girls stayed in and played The Price is Right DVD game and the boys hung out on the patio by the fire while smoking cigars.
Saturday was our true Chicago tourist day. Brian and I headed downtown via Metra (the train) and arrived at Union Station around 10:30am. We started walking towards Michigan Avenue, taking in all of the sites (and smells- I forgot how bad Chicago can smell) and grabbing a quick bite to eat at a bakery. We walked up Michigan Avenue to the River and began our day of waiting in lines as we got in our first line of the day; to get our tickets for the Architecture River Tour. I think we waited in line for about an hour. Thankfully there were still tickets left by the time we finally got to the window. We received our tickets for our tour that would be mid-afternoon and headed out of that chaotic area. Picture a gazillion tourists speaking multiple languages and a very loud lady directly people around to multiple lines, then some more tourists wandering around aimlessly, then more coming in every 2 minutes or so equally confused...
Anyways, we headed over the river and had lunch at the Billy Goat Tavern which was totally fun and, I felt, totally Chicago. My double cheezborger was great and the atmosphere was just as tasty. After our lunch, we headed back to the docking area for the tour boats, as I was determined to be nearly first in line to get a primo seat on the boat, and plus, I felt like we should wait in another line for a good length of time. So, we waited in this line for about a half hour, and finally got to board the boat. We got the exact seats we wanted (well, except the old lady that pre-boarded took our first choice) and settled in for a educational boat ride along the river on a truly beautiful, sunny day in Chicago. The tour lasted about and hour and a half and covered all of the architecture along the river and then some. Pretty much if you could see the building from the boat, we learned a little something about it. I really liked the tour and it was a great way to show Brian a lot of the city without having to walk all over creation!
After arriving back at the dock, we walked over to Navy Pier for a little jaunt out to the end of the pier to check out the skyline. The Pier was packed. Well, I should say all of Chicago was packed. I think with it being Labor Day weekend, it was a big tourist weekend to visit Chicago, plus it's pretty busy any summer weekend in Chicago. Oh, and the Jazz Festival was going on as well. Anyways, we checked out Navy Pier and we figured we'd take the free trolley back to Michigan Avenue and hop on another trolley to Union Station. It all seemed like a great idea. As we were walking over to the trolley stop, one trolley was leaving and with them running every 20 minutes, we figured, not a big deal to wait for the next one. 20 minutes pass... 30 minutes pass... 40 minutes pass.... 45 minutes- Finally! A trolley arrives. One may wonder why we decided to wait all that time for the stinking trolley and not just get in a cab. Well, I figured after 20 minutes, it'd be coming any minute now and well, after 30 minutes, I was just going to give up. I do have to admit, after the 40 minute mark, I was very tempted to just grab the next cab that came by, but I just knew that the second I got out of line, the trolley would pull in behind that cab. So, we finally board the trolley, packed to the brim, and began our short journey over to Michigan Avenue. We get off and then get in ANOTHER line for the connecting trolley that goes over to Union Station. I don't even know how long we were in this line, I stopped keeping track after the Navy Pier trolley stop experience. The trolley stops and it's pretty packed. We're like 4th in line and they cut us off before we could board. I pleaded with the driver and we were able to get on. Woo hoo! All in all, it took about 2 hours for our little journey from Navy Pier to Union Station. We got off at the Union Station stop and headed over 90/94 to Greektown where we met up with Jen, Cheryl, and Jen's parents for a lovely dinner at the Parthenon. YUMMY!
After dinner, Jen drove us back to the Brook and home, but not before the obligatory beer at BWW. I HAD to take Brian to the BWW in Bolingbrook so he could learn how truly lucky he is that our Arvada BWW is THAT cool.
Sunday, we went to Wrigley for a Cubs game during the day with my parents and in the evening we went over to Colleen and Dahx's for dinner.
On Monday, we drove out to Lily Lake where my parents are building a new house to see the lot and to see how far they have come along on the house. It's amazing how quickly the house is being built and it really neat to see it in progress. After visiting the house, we headed back to Bolingbrook and then to the airport for our flight home. I'm tired and I have been working on this blog for far too long, so I'm going to publish it and not look back... In other words if there are typos, don't give me crap for it!!
Friday evening, my parents had a wine tasting at this place called WineStyles in Darien. I highly suggest going there. It's a very cute little wine store and you can try our wines by either getting a tasting of a particular one, or a full glass while hanging out at the store. In the back of the store, they have a private room, where we were, and we tried out 6 different wines while dining on the tasty treats my mom had prepared. All of the wines were very yummy and it was nice to get to see some of my parent's friends and have a somewhat more relaxing evening. After the tasting, we headed back to my parent's house where the girls stayed in and played The Price is Right DVD game and the boys hung out on the patio by the fire while smoking cigars.
Saturday was our true Chicago tourist day. Brian and I headed downtown via Metra (the train) and arrived at Union Station around 10:30am. We started walking towards Michigan Avenue, taking in all of the sites (and smells- I forgot how bad Chicago can smell) and grabbing a quick bite to eat at a bakery. We walked up Michigan Avenue to the River and began our day of waiting in lines as we got in our first line of the day; to get our tickets for the Architecture River Tour. I think we waited in line for about an hour. Thankfully there were still tickets left by the time we finally got to the window. We received our tickets for our tour that would be mid-afternoon and headed out of that chaotic area. Picture a gazillion tourists speaking multiple languages and a very loud lady directly people around to multiple lines, then some more tourists wandering around aimlessly, then more coming in every 2 minutes or so equally confused...
Anyways, we headed over the river and had lunch at the Billy Goat Tavern which was totally fun and, I felt, totally Chicago. My double cheezborger was great and the atmosphere was just as tasty. After our lunch, we headed back to the docking area for the tour boats, as I was determined to be nearly first in line to get a primo seat on the boat, and plus, I felt like we should wait in another line for a good length of time. So, we waited in this line for about a half hour, and finally got to board the boat. We got the exact seats we wanted (well, except the old lady that pre-boarded took our first choice) and settled in for a educational boat ride along the river on a truly beautiful, sunny day in Chicago. The tour lasted about and hour and a half and covered all of the architecture along the river and then some. Pretty much if you could see the building from the boat, we learned a little something about it. I really liked the tour and it was a great way to show Brian a lot of the city without having to walk all over creation!
After arriving back at the dock, we walked over to Navy Pier for a little jaunt out to the end of the pier to check out the skyline. The Pier was packed. Well, I should say all of Chicago was packed. I think with it being Labor Day weekend, it was a big tourist weekend to visit Chicago, plus it's pretty busy any summer weekend in Chicago. Oh, and the Jazz Festival was going on as well. Anyways, we checked out Navy Pier and we figured we'd take the free trolley back to Michigan Avenue and hop on another trolley to Union Station. It all seemed like a great idea. As we were walking over to the trolley stop, one trolley was leaving and with them running every 20 minutes, we figured, not a big deal to wait for the next one. 20 minutes pass... 30 minutes pass... 40 minutes pass.... 45 minutes- Finally! A trolley arrives. One may wonder why we decided to wait all that time for the stinking trolley and not just get in a cab. Well, I figured after 20 minutes, it'd be coming any minute now and well, after 30 minutes, I was just going to give up. I do have to admit, after the 40 minute mark, I was very tempted to just grab the next cab that came by, but I just knew that the second I got out of line, the trolley would pull in behind that cab. So, we finally board the trolley, packed to the brim, and began our short journey over to Michigan Avenue. We get off and then get in ANOTHER line for the connecting trolley that goes over to Union Station. I don't even know how long we were in this line, I stopped keeping track after the Navy Pier trolley stop experience. The trolley stops and it's pretty packed. We're like 4th in line and they cut us off before we could board. I pleaded with the driver and we were able to get on. Woo hoo! All in all, it took about 2 hours for our little journey from Navy Pier to Union Station. We got off at the Union Station stop and headed over 90/94 to Greektown where we met up with Jen, Cheryl, and Jen's parents for a lovely dinner at the Parthenon. YUMMY!
After dinner, Jen drove us back to the Brook and home, but not before the obligatory beer at BWW. I HAD to take Brian to the BWW in Bolingbrook so he could learn how truly lucky he is that our Arvada BWW is THAT cool.
Sunday, we went to Wrigley for a Cubs game during the day with my parents and in the evening we went over to Colleen and Dahx's for dinner.
On Monday, we drove out to Lily Lake where my parents are building a new house to see the lot and to see how far they have come along on the house. It's amazing how quickly the house is being built and it really neat to see it in progress. After visiting the house, we headed back to Bolingbrook and then to the airport for our flight home. I'm tired and I have been working on this blog for far too long, so I'm going to publish it and not look back... In other words if there are typos, don't give me crap for it!!
Tuesday, September 12, 2006
I'll never look at a squirrel the same way.
So, the other day, I'm at Brian's house and was leaving for some reason or another and went out through the garage. Or I should say, tried to exit via the garage door. I walked into the garage and heard screeching and scratching noises and saw a very frantic squirrel climbing the inside of the garage door in what looked like an attempt to get out or maybe to look at the outside world through the little windows. I proceeded to scream, run back into the house, and shake. Okay, I didn't shake but it DID scare the crap out of me. So, after a conference with Brian, we decided the best thing would be to go outside and open the garage from the opener in the driveway and hope he leaves. So, I bravely go out to my car, click the opener, and eagerly awaited the squirrel to come running out. No such luck. The little thing ran somewhere, but where??? I could still hear him in the garage making squirrelly noises. After a sufficient amount of time had passes, I got out of the safety of my car and started walking into the garage and Mr. Squirrel had crawled up into the rafters and was screeching and looking back at me. Freak Out. Although apparently not wanting to be in the garage, he neglected to leave when the door opened. I left, came back an hour or so later and look in, and he's still there! WTF. So, anyways... Long story short, after leaving the door open for many hours, and finally not hearing squirrelly noises in the garage anymore, we are cautiously assuming that he has finally gone. But, seriously, I'll never look at a squirrel the same way again.
Monday, August 28, 2006
Blah, blah, blah....
So, I know it's been a while since I last updated... The past week or so has absolutely flown by, but I really can't recount what I've done! Over the weekend, Danielle and I had a girl's night out, celebrating our 1 year anniversary. Yes, we're dorks, but it's been one year since we met each other and decided it would be fun to celebrate. :) We went out for dinner at D-note, a little music venue/restaurant and had some of their awesome pizza and a bottle of wine while listening to some semi-decent jazz. Afterwards, of course, we headed over to the Arvada Tavern for some beers and shuffleboard and ended up closing down the place, which seems to be a reoccuring instance for us.
The rest of the weekend, I took it easy. Brian and I went for a nice long drive on what felt like a cool, fall day up north to Loveland. And on Sunday we took another drive, though much shorter around some parts of Arvada that neither one of us knew existed. We ended the weekend with dinner at Ted's Montana Grill up by my old apartment. How I miss that neighborhood! Yes, so the weather here for the past several days has totally felt like fall. I can't wait for it to really be fall and for Halloween and Thanksgiving to roll on by. Because that only means we are that much closer to my favorite holiday, Christmas!
This week, I know, is just going to fly by. We are heading to Chicago for Labor Day weekend on Wednesday. I'm very excited to be going to Chicago and especially psyched to show Brian around and have him meet my peeps there. ;) We'll be dining on some Chicago pizza (Lou's), Portillo's, attending a Cubs game, doing some touristy things, and hanging out with my friends and parents. So, I will hopefully have some more interesting things to say next week!
The rest of the weekend, I took it easy. Brian and I went for a nice long drive on what felt like a cool, fall day up north to Loveland. And on Sunday we took another drive, though much shorter around some parts of Arvada that neither one of us knew existed. We ended the weekend with dinner at Ted's Montana Grill up by my old apartment. How I miss that neighborhood! Yes, so the weather here for the past several days has totally felt like fall. I can't wait for it to really be fall and for Halloween and Thanksgiving to roll on by. Because that only means we are that much closer to my favorite holiday, Christmas!
This week, I know, is just going to fly by. We are heading to Chicago for Labor Day weekend on Wednesday. I'm very excited to be going to Chicago and especially psyched to show Brian around and have him meet my peeps there. ;) We'll be dining on some Chicago pizza (Lou's), Portillo's, attending a Cubs game, doing some touristy things, and hanging out with my friends and parents. So, I will hopefully have some more interesting things to say next week!
Thursday, August 17, 2006
Rain, Sleet, Hail, Snow, & Sunshine
This past weekend, my parents came into town for a somewhat brief visit to attend the Cubs game while they were playing the Rockies, and of course to see me. ;)
They arrived on Friday evening, and I took them out on the town. The town of Arvada, that is... We went to dinner at Amici's, my new favorite restaurant. You just can't go wrong when a restaurant has a wine list with bottle prices betwee $8.50 and $11.50. And did I mention pretty yummy Italian food? Oh yes, I love it. After dinner, we headed over to the Arvada Tavern, the little dive bar in Olde Town Arvada, just blocks from my apartment. It's a fantastically tiny place with 2 pool tables, a killer juke box, and free shuffleboard. The beer is cheap, the people are awesomely scary, and I just love this place. We ended up closing the bar and all-in-all had a great time.
Saturday, we slept in and then prepped for the Cubbies game. After getting my mom to wear my Cubs jersey, I put on my Cubbies hat and shirt, and TRIED my best to get my dad and Brian to at least wear a Cubs hat. No luck. No worries, though, as more than half the fans there were rooting for the Cubbies. Before the game, we went to Wynkoop Brewery for some pints and dinner. The game was fun, though the Cubs lost (of course). After the game, we just came home and took it easy, as we had a full day planned for Sunday.
On Sunday, we drove down to Colorado Springs. First things first, we arrived at the train station and got our tickets for our train ride to the top of Pikes Peak. The weather wasn't terrible down in Co. Springs, but was sprinkling a bit. We get on the train and begin our ascent up the mountain, with fantastic scenery on both sides of the train. As we climb up the mountain, the rain turns into sleet, then into hail... We arrive at the summit 1.25 hours later and are rushed from the train to the building up top, because lightning was hitting the summit. At the top, we couldn't see much because of the storm. We spent about a half hour at the summit building and then had to head out to the train through the inch of snow that had fallen, all the while, dodging lightning. The descent down the mountain was uneventful, but was so neat to see the weather changing, and by the time we got down, it was sunny and precipitationless.
After leaving the train station, we drove over to Garden of the Gods and drove through the park. We took a quick walk through the park and then drove over to Old Colorado City for dinner. Brian and I had seen this Greek restaurant there the last time we were down there, so we headed straight there and luckily they were open and we had an awesome Greek feast for dinner. All of the food was excessively delicious.
Monday I had to work, as did my dad, so we stayed in that day. My mom organized my tupperware cabinet- thank goodness, it was scary. It was to the point where I was shoving stuff in there and slamming the door shut, hoping nothing else was going to fall out in the split second it took me to close the door. That night I cooked out on my awesome little (and I mean little) grill. We had some burgers and dogs, beers, potato salad, and I made strawberry shortcake for dessert. Yummy. After dinner, we met up with Rich and Dez at the Arvada Tavern for some more shuffleboard and pool. We called it a somewhat early night, as the weekend full of activities had worn us down.
Tuesday, we took it easy and sadly I had to take my parents to the airport mid-afternoon. After we said our goodbyes, I began mentally preparing myself for my kickball game that evening. Ha. It was so nice to have them out here and for them to see my new apt and to meet Lola finally! I can't believe I'm going to be in Chicago in just over a week!
They arrived on Friday evening, and I took them out on the town. The town of Arvada, that is... We went to dinner at Amici's, my new favorite restaurant. You just can't go wrong when a restaurant has a wine list with bottle prices betwee $8.50 and $11.50. And did I mention pretty yummy Italian food? Oh yes, I love it. After dinner, we headed over to the Arvada Tavern, the little dive bar in Olde Town Arvada, just blocks from my apartment. It's a fantastically tiny place with 2 pool tables, a killer juke box, and free shuffleboard. The beer is cheap, the people are awesomely scary, and I just love this place. We ended up closing the bar and all-in-all had a great time.
Saturday, we slept in and then prepped for the Cubbies game. After getting my mom to wear my Cubs jersey, I put on my Cubbies hat and shirt, and TRIED my best to get my dad and Brian to at least wear a Cubs hat. No luck. No worries, though, as more than half the fans there were rooting for the Cubbies. Before the game, we went to Wynkoop Brewery for some pints and dinner. The game was fun, though the Cubs lost (of course). After the game, we just came home and took it easy, as we had a full day planned for Sunday.
On Sunday, we drove down to Colorado Springs. First things first, we arrived at the train station and got our tickets for our train ride to the top of Pikes Peak. The weather wasn't terrible down in Co. Springs, but was sprinkling a bit. We get on the train and begin our ascent up the mountain, with fantastic scenery on both sides of the train. As we climb up the mountain, the rain turns into sleet, then into hail... We arrive at the summit 1.25 hours later and are rushed from the train to the building up top, because lightning was hitting the summit. At the top, we couldn't see much because of the storm. We spent about a half hour at the summit building and then had to head out to the train through the inch of snow that had fallen, all the while, dodging lightning. The descent down the mountain was uneventful, but was so neat to see the weather changing, and by the time we got down, it was sunny and precipitationless.
After leaving the train station, we drove over to Garden of the Gods and drove through the park. We took a quick walk through the park and then drove over to Old Colorado City for dinner. Brian and I had seen this Greek restaurant there the last time we were down there, so we headed straight there and luckily they were open and we had an awesome Greek feast for dinner. All of the food was excessively delicious.
Monday I had to work, as did my dad, so we stayed in that day. My mom organized my tupperware cabinet- thank goodness, it was scary. It was to the point where I was shoving stuff in there and slamming the door shut, hoping nothing else was going to fall out in the split second it took me to close the door. That night I cooked out on my awesome little (and I mean little) grill. We had some burgers and dogs, beers, potato salad, and I made strawberry shortcake for dessert. Yummy. After dinner, we met up with Rich and Dez at the Arvada Tavern for some more shuffleboard and pool. We called it a somewhat early night, as the weekend full of activities had worn us down.
Tuesday, we took it easy and sadly I had to take my parents to the airport mid-afternoon. After we said our goodbyes, I began mentally preparing myself for my kickball game that evening. Ha. It was so nice to have them out here and for them to see my new apt and to meet Lola finally! I can't believe I'm going to be in Chicago in just over a week!
Wednesday, August 09, 2006
BARF.
First it was Bennifer. Then Brangelina. Now, Vaughniston. WTF. I thought the whole name combination thing way back, when it was Bennifer, was so freaking retarded, and the media keeps coming up with these combos thinking they are oh-so-clever. Well, only thing I have to say to these fools is: "YOU'RE NOT CLEVER, YOU SUCK!!!" What are they going to do when people couple up and their names are not suited towards this combo styling?? Seriously, you can't combine every couple's names, can you?
Wednesday, August 02, 2006
If I have to hear about the freaking heat one minute more...
Seriously, it's been incredibly hot in Denver for the past two months. Multiple days, one after another, over 100 degrees. Do we get any news coverage?? No.
It's not til the heat hits precious New York City that it seems to be the most important news story of the day, exceeding the amount of airtime the media covers on Castro, the Isreal-Lebanon crisis, and obviously other numerous stories that have GOT to be more important than a few hot days in NYC.
I'm just so sick of hearing about it and I know I'm not the only one. Jen, this one's for you, girl. ;)
It's not til the heat hits precious New York City that it seems to be the most important news story of the day, exceeding the amount of airtime the media covers on Castro, the Isreal-Lebanon crisis, and obviously other numerous stories that have GOT to be more important than a few hot days in NYC.
I'm just so sick of hearing about it and I know I'm not the only one. Jen, this one's for you, girl. ;)
the daddy of 'em all!
Oh yes, I went... I went to the daddy of 'em all. Yes, the rodeo at Cheyenne Frontier Days! It was my first time to Wyoming, my first time to Cheyenne, AND most importantly, my first ever rodeo. Brian, Matt, and I headed up to Cheyenne Saturday morning; it's just an hour and a half drive from Denver, maybe a little more depending on traffic. We arrived in Cheyenne around noon and headed over to the Frontier Days at Frontier Park. Being that this is the state capital of Wyoming and seemingly is the biggest event that happens in the state all year, I expected chaos- trouble finding parking, long lines, etc. However, we were able to park just a couple blocks from the entrance to the park and after a quick walk in the blazingly hot sun and heat, we were in.
We passed by an Indian Village (which we later visited and were disappointed to find it just a bunch of shacks full of crap for sale- the teepee's in the village that I was excited about were off-limits!), walked through a chuck-wagon cook-off, and then found the insanely long line for tickets to the rodeo.
My first Rodeo! After a long wait in the sun to get our rodeo tickets, we entered the arena and I was shocked and appalled by the cattle roping or whatever you call it. I mean, it's not that it's inhumane or anything, but it was just nothing I had ever seen before...
1. Cowboys on horseback lasso cattle.
2. Calf/Cow/Whatever it is, upon having a rope around it's neck, falls to ground.
3. Cowboy jumps off horse and ropes the cow's hind legs together.
There's nothing inhumane about that, right?? Anyways, once the shock wore off, I found this portion of the rodeo to be fairly entertaining.
The Rodeo had many events... The highlights were the bull-riding, the trick-riding (awesome boy and girl riders on horseback doing flips and whatnot in fantastically bright and shiny and sparkly outfits- the horses even had little sparkly leg warmers on too. You just can not go wrong watching horses donning leg warmers), and the wild horse race. Now, THIS was something to see. They have all these wild horses they bring out, and teams of 5 or so guys each take a horse. The team has to attain control of the horse, saddle the horse, and then some poor fellow hops aboard and TRIES to get the horse to go down the track in the correct direction. The horses are wild and crazy and the horses that escape from the teams go running in all directions on the track. This causes the other horses to follow after. Basically, one guy gets his horse to go in the right direction, some other horses follow. Meanwhile, other horses are headed in the opposite direction around the track. When they meet, chaos ensues. They all turn around and now they're ALL going in the wrong direction, except for a couple horses without riders who are headed in the right direction. Then another random horse heads towards them, and they all turn around AGAIN. Repeat. Repeat again. It was awesome. In the end, only ONE rider/horse combo actually crossed the finish line. Also, another guy got around to turn 3 and the horse stops and won't move, he never crossed the finish line before the time limit. Absolutely hilarious and the total highlight of my day at the Rodeo. I know I wrote a long time ago about the motorcycle demolition derby which was inexplicable. This was very reminiscent of that event, especially in that I just can not do it justice writing about it.
After the rodeo, we roamed around the carnival area. Oh, and I forgot to mention the awesome carnival food we ate during the rodeo. Now, I did not eat all of the following personally, but this is a sample of what the three of us consumed (note: everything was deep-fried. Well, except the drinks): spiral spud potato chips, corn dog, french fries, funnel cake, fresh-squeezed lemonade, beer. Also, I must add for breakfast on the drive up to Cheyenne, we had donuts (also deep fried). Matt kept with the theme and when we went to dinner that night, he got chicken-fried steak. I can only imagine the pain he was in the next day.
After dinner at a local brewery in Cheyenne, where we met up with our friends Rich and Des, we headed back home, bellies full of grease and beer. You just can't beat a day like that.
We passed by an Indian Village (which we later visited and were disappointed to find it just a bunch of shacks full of crap for sale- the teepee's in the village that I was excited about were off-limits!), walked through a chuck-wagon cook-off, and then found the insanely long line for tickets to the rodeo.
My first Rodeo! After a long wait in the sun to get our rodeo tickets, we entered the arena and I was shocked and appalled by the cattle roping or whatever you call it. I mean, it's not that it's inhumane or anything, but it was just nothing I had ever seen before...
1. Cowboys on horseback lasso cattle.
2. Calf/Cow/Whatever it is, upon having a rope around it's neck, falls to ground.
3. Cowboy jumps off horse and ropes the cow's hind legs together.
There's nothing inhumane about that, right?? Anyways, once the shock wore off, I found this portion of the rodeo to be fairly entertaining.
The Rodeo had many events... The highlights were the bull-riding, the trick-riding (awesome boy and girl riders on horseback doing flips and whatnot in fantastically bright and shiny and sparkly outfits- the horses even had little sparkly leg warmers on too. You just can not go wrong watching horses donning leg warmers), and the wild horse race. Now, THIS was something to see. They have all these wild horses they bring out, and teams of 5 or so guys each take a horse. The team has to attain control of the horse, saddle the horse, and then some poor fellow hops aboard and TRIES to get the horse to go down the track in the correct direction. The horses are wild and crazy and the horses that escape from the teams go running in all directions on the track. This causes the other horses to follow after. Basically, one guy gets his horse to go in the right direction, some other horses follow. Meanwhile, other horses are headed in the opposite direction around the track. When they meet, chaos ensues. They all turn around and now they're ALL going in the wrong direction, except for a couple horses without riders who are headed in the right direction. Then another random horse heads towards them, and they all turn around AGAIN. Repeat. Repeat again. It was awesome. In the end, only ONE rider/horse combo actually crossed the finish line. Also, another guy got around to turn 3 and the horse stops and won't move, he never crossed the finish line before the time limit. Absolutely hilarious and the total highlight of my day at the Rodeo. I know I wrote a long time ago about the motorcycle demolition derby which was inexplicable. This was very reminiscent of that event, especially in that I just can not do it justice writing about it.
After the rodeo, we roamed around the carnival area. Oh, and I forgot to mention the awesome carnival food we ate during the rodeo. Now, I did not eat all of the following personally, but this is a sample of what the three of us consumed (note: everything was deep-fried. Well, except the drinks): spiral spud potato chips, corn dog, french fries, funnel cake, fresh-squeezed lemonade, beer. Also, I must add for breakfast on the drive up to Cheyenne, we had donuts (also deep fried). Matt kept with the theme and when we went to dinner that night, he got chicken-fried steak. I can only imagine the pain he was in the next day.
After dinner at a local brewery in Cheyenne, where we met up with our friends Rich and Des, we headed back home, bellies full of grease and beer. You just can't beat a day like that.
Care to be bathed in ethereal melodies??
So, I'm working on a program bookley for a client of mine. They have a conference coming up in a couple weeks and as I'm working on this program, I can't help but notice some awesome workshops they are having and I just have to share with you all...
Sacred Sound Circle with Tibetan Bowls
Patricia begins by toning with the bowl and then invites others to join in. Participants may then choose to take turns sitting in the center of the circle to be the focus of the sound and vibrations created by the group. All are bathed in ethereal melodies and leave feeling renewed in body, mind and spirit.
Make a Journey Necklace
Make your own Journey Necklace. This is a stone and bead arrangement on a leather cord that is designed using the concept that our lives are a series of beginnings and endings. A pendant is chosen to represent where you are in your journey now, or a vision you wish to achieve. Beads are added to mark the seasons, according to the Native American medicine wheel philosophy.
Jail Inmates Return to the Body Soul
Committing crime frequently involves a physical act that is disrespectful to the integrity of the body. Dance therapy allows female inmates to feel, express and communicate their body experience. Work using the IFS model as a guide will be examined and explored.
The Multiplicity of Gender
Is it a boy or a girl? In response to society’s rigid constructions around gender, many of us carry burdens that are attached to gender identity. Using the IFS model, the complexities and sensitivity to the nuances and multiplicities of gender will be explored.
Earth Surrendering
This workshop will facilitate participants’ experience of guides. A phenomenon in the IFS model, guides may appear on their own or may come when called into a session. Earth Surrendering is a transpersonal experience for receiving guidance from the Earth.
The Meaning of Mother
This workshop will examine the archetype of Mother: how it shapes our parts and how it continues to affect the capacity to care for ourselves and others. Transforming this power into wisdom, love and healing will be explored.
Self-led Divorce
A Self-led divorce creates the opportunity for healing the re-structured family. Whether in therapy or mediation, couples are offered a new paradigm for parenting that transcends the typical adversarial process.
Sacred Sound Circle with Tibetan Bowls
Patricia begins by toning with the bowl and then invites others to join in. Participants may then choose to take turns sitting in the center of the circle to be the focus of the sound and vibrations created by the group. All are bathed in ethereal melodies and leave feeling renewed in body, mind and spirit.
Make a Journey Necklace
Make your own Journey Necklace. This is a stone and bead arrangement on a leather cord that is designed using the concept that our lives are a series of beginnings and endings. A pendant is chosen to represent where you are in your journey now, or a vision you wish to achieve. Beads are added to mark the seasons, according to the Native American medicine wheel philosophy.
Jail Inmates Return to the Body Soul
Committing crime frequently involves a physical act that is disrespectful to the integrity of the body. Dance therapy allows female inmates to feel, express and communicate their body experience. Work using the IFS model as a guide will be examined and explored.
The Multiplicity of Gender
Is it a boy or a girl? In response to society’s rigid constructions around gender, many of us carry burdens that are attached to gender identity. Using the IFS model, the complexities and sensitivity to the nuances and multiplicities of gender will be explored.
Earth Surrendering
This workshop will facilitate participants’ experience of guides. A phenomenon in the IFS model, guides may appear on their own or may come when called into a session. Earth Surrendering is a transpersonal experience for receiving guidance from the Earth.
The Meaning of Mother
This workshop will examine the archetype of Mother: how it shapes our parts and how it continues to affect the capacity to care for ourselves and others. Transforming this power into wisdom, love and healing will be explored.
Self-led Divorce
A Self-led divorce creates the opportunity for healing the re-structured family. Whether in therapy or mediation, couples are offered a new paradigm for parenting that transcends the typical adversarial process.
I'm a sap.
Has anyone seen the alzeimer's association commercial that basically recounts a person's life with "Memories" playing in the background? No? Oh, anyways... I just saw it and I'm pathetic and got a little teary-eyed. I think it's because I'm overtired. Yes, that's it. I'm overtired, and thus over-emotional. Memories.......
Monday, July 24, 2006
A very Brady weekend.
So, I'm not sure if anyone else caught on TVLand the Brady Bunch weekend marathon... 2 full days of Brady glory. We must have watched 25 episodes of the Brady Bunch in the past couple days. AND, I have the rest recorded so I can watch those this week while I'm going through Brady withdrawal.
The best part of the marathon was the top 10 Brady episodes. Can you guess which made the top 10? Well, here they are, see if you agree:
Gosh, I LOVE the Brady's.
The best part of the marathon was the top 10 Brady episodes. Can you guess which made the top 10? Well, here they are, see if you agree:
10. Getting Davy Jones- you know the one where Marcia says she can get Davy Jones to perform at the prom.
9. Ghost Town USA (Part I) / Grand Canyon Or Bust (Part II) / The Brady Braves (Part III- who can forget the Grand Canyon trilogy where Bobby and Cindy get lost and meet that groovy indian boy.
8. Where There's Smoke- the one where Greg takes up smoking...
7. Confessions, Confessions- "Mom said don't play ball in the house."
6. Adios, Johnny Bravo- Greg gets signed and fame goes to his head...
5. Hawaii Bound (Part I) / Pass The Tabu (Part II) / The Tiki Caves (Part III)- When I was in Hawaii, I did in fact search for the Tiki idol. It's tabu, ya know.
4. The Personality Kid- pork chops and applesauce, anyone?
3. Her Sister's Shadow- "Marcia! Marcia! Marcia!"
2. Dough-Re-Mi- Oh yes, we CAN Make the World a Whole Lot Better
1. The Subject Was Noses- Marcia Brady with an swollen nose, it just doesn't get much better than that.
Gosh, I LOVE the Brady's.
Monday, July 17, 2006
Hot. Hot. Hot.
You know it's freaking hot and has been for weeks when you leave your air conditioned apartment and think, ah, it's really cooled down a lot out here, only to find that the temperature is 86. It's been hovering around 100 degrees off and on (more on than off) for the past several weeks, actually, almost a month. I just checked the weather and hurray! There's an end in sight. The end of this week, it's supposed to cool down to highs in the lower 80s. I CAN NOT WAIT!
Vegas, Baby, Vegas!
Last weekend, Brian and I went to Las Vegas for a quick little trip. I had never been, so it was super exciting for me and Vegas did not disappoint. We left Denver on Saturday on a 730am flight. Not quite sure what I was thinking when I decided on that flight... Oh, and also, the night before we went to see Mason Jennings perform downtown, so it's not like we got to bed early! Mason Jennings was awesome. I had never seen him in concert before, and I think it only made me like him more. Anyways, we arrive in Vegas around 830am after an uneventful flight, grab a shuttle and headed to our hotel, Caesar's Palace. I had no idea of the enormousty (is that a word??) of Las Vegas and was totally blown away by the sizes of the hotels on the strip that I could see as we were leaving the airport.
We arrived at Caesars early in the morning, so just stowed our bags at the bell desk, took a brief tour of the Caesars casino, and then headed out to walk the strip. I immediately saw Barbary Coast and was like, that's the coolest hotel here. This is when Brian was like, oh you'll love downtown... Because Barbary Coast is distinctly retro and old looking and was what I was envisioning Vegas to be. Don't get be wrong, the rest of the hotels on the strip were AMAZING, but Barbary was just so old and vintage that it made it that cool. We walked through the Bellagio to cross over the street and check out Bally's and then Paris. Paris is awesome, I totally want to stay there next time I go to Vegas, and oh yes, there will be a next time. Then, we walked through Aladdin, Excaliber, and took the tram to Mandalay Bay to have lunch at the Burger Bar, a restaurant we saw on Rachael Ray's Tasty Travels. Gotta Love Rachael Ray. But, much to our dismay, it seemed that it didn't exist any more. So, we headed back on the tram to Luxor and checked out that hotel and ate lunch there instead, at Nathan's Hot Dogs (ya know, the famous Coney Island/NY dogs). Yum. I had never had a Nathan's dog, and it was quite pleasing, I got mine with chili on top. It was sort of like a Olneyville NY System Hot Weiner (all you Rhode Islanders out there know what I'm talking about), but not AS good. Yet, better than any dog I've had in Colorado so far. So, anyways, the chili is like real chili, not like the fine meat sauce you get in Olneyville. Oh well... It was still yummy.
Me in front of Paris:
After our lavish lunch, ;) we walked back to Caesars and grabbed our bags and checked into our room. The room was pretty nice, in one of the older towers, so not the fanciest, but it would do. Took a nice long nap (I think I slept nearly 4 hours!!) and then got up and got ready for a night on the town. We walked down to Treasure Island to catch the Pirate Show before dinner but it was cancelled due to high winds, so we continued over to the Venetian, watched the Gondolas struggle to dock in front of the hotel because of the winds, and then when that excitement wore off, we headed inside and had dinner at the Grand Lux Cafe (Jen will be so proud!). After dinner, we walked down to the New Frontier Casino in hopes of going to Gilley's bar, a bar with a mechanical bull. But, there was a cover charge and a line and the $2 margaritas were calling us at the video poker bar, so we headed over there. After playing video poker for a while (this turned out to be my favorite form of gambling), Brian headed to the blackjack tables and I to the slots. We gambled there for a bit, got some free drinks (I love Vegas) and then left there to head back to Caesars. The walk back was quite painful, as being the dumbass I am, I wore heals that night and my feet were sooooo hurting. But so were Brian's, so I didn't feel as bad walking about .00003 miles an hour down the strip. We finally arrived at Caesars and walked in through the Forum Shops so I could ditch the shoes and barefoot it the rest of the way to the room. We stopped at a bar in Caesars, Cleopatra's Barge, for some awesomely Vegas performance and a drink, and then went to sleep.
Barbary Coast, my fave: ;)
Sunday morning, we slept in and then headed for an afternoon by the pool. The pool at Caesars is really nice and it's even nicer that there are bars next to it and waitresses coming round to your lounge chairs to server you drinks. It was hotter than heck out, and thankfully, was partly cloudy. When the sun came out from behind the clouds, it would get insanely hot and a jump in the pool became necessary. We also were able to catch the end of the World Cup final on the TV at the bar by the pool which was cool and very exciting. After several hours by the pool, some dark clouds started rolling in and it began to rain... So, we headed back to the room to get ready for another night out in Vegas.
Sunday night, we decided to eat in the hotel, so we had a very authentic Japanese dinner at a, you guessed it, Japanese restaurant in the hotel. Then we headed out and decided to go downtown to start out the night. We grabbed a cab and went downtown, starting at one end of Freemont Street. After going into several casinos down there (they are so awesomely old and glittery and retro), it was finally dark and we got to see the huge shows they put on the big TV that spans the whole Freemont Street 'ceiling'. It's hard to describe, so if you don't know what the heck I'm talking about, look at: http://www.vegasexperience.com/. The Casinos in downtown Vegas are much less extravagent, yet have such a charm to them, I couldn't resist. One casino down there even has a microbrewery, so while you're gambling, you can drink free yummy (and potent, I found out first hand) microbrews. I did some more video poker gambling down there... I was addicted because I'm not much of a gambler, and because $5 on a video poker machine would last me hours (and get me lots of free budweisers). Following our downtown experience, we went back to Caesars and had a drink at the Shadow Bar, and then off to bed.
Monday morning, we slept in, got packed up, and checked out of the hotel. With our flight not leaving Vegas until nearly midnight, we stowed our bags and began another marathon walk down the strip to grab some lunch at a New Orleans restaurant in the shops at Aladdin. The entire reason we went there was because they had a lunch special of 25 cent martinis. Can you believe that?? And, the restaurant was pretty fancy and even better was that the food was REALLY good! We got a three course dinner, including beignets, turtle soup, and drank 4 25 cent martinis and had a great time there! After making fun of the lady at the table next to us when she got up and felt all sloshed, we got up from our table and I was feeling exactly the same way! I had a lemon drop martini, a couple chocolate martinis (SOO good), and another lemon drop-like martini with Blue Curacao in it. After lunch, we walked around a bit more, checked out the moving statues in Caesars, drank a refreshing frozen Hurricane, and then stopped in Barbary Coast to watch (and bet on) the Home Run Derby. I decided the very first day in Vegas that I loved the Sports books in all of the hotels. I think Caesar's Sports Book was my fave, but Barbary Coast was less intimidating, so we hung out in there for a while. After watching the majority of the Derby, we headed for dinner at... Burger Bar! Brian saw in a magazine that it DID still exist and was at Mandalay Bay, but in the shopping/mall area of it, not in the actual casino. We arrived there and dined on Kobe beef burgers with bleu cheese and yummy sweet potato fries. It was all very tasty and being that it was accompanied by microbrews, was all the more delicious. Following dinner, we walked back to Caesars, stopping at the Bellagio for a couple of their amazing fountain shows, then grabbing our bags and heading to the airport for our midnight departure.
The entire weekend was so much fun and it was awesome to finally get to Vegas!
Looking down the strip in one direction:
And the other:
We arrived at Caesars early in the morning, so just stowed our bags at the bell desk, took a brief tour of the Caesars casino, and then headed out to walk the strip. I immediately saw Barbary Coast and was like, that's the coolest hotel here. This is when Brian was like, oh you'll love downtown... Because Barbary Coast is distinctly retro and old looking and was what I was envisioning Vegas to be. Don't get be wrong, the rest of the hotels on the strip were AMAZING, but Barbary was just so old and vintage that it made it that cool. We walked through the Bellagio to cross over the street and check out Bally's and then Paris. Paris is awesome, I totally want to stay there next time I go to Vegas, and oh yes, there will be a next time. Then, we walked through Aladdin, Excaliber, and took the tram to Mandalay Bay to have lunch at the Burger Bar, a restaurant we saw on Rachael Ray's Tasty Travels. Gotta Love Rachael Ray. But, much to our dismay, it seemed that it didn't exist any more. So, we headed back on the tram to Luxor and checked out that hotel and ate lunch there instead, at Nathan's Hot Dogs (ya know, the famous Coney Island/NY dogs). Yum. I had never had a Nathan's dog, and it was quite pleasing, I got mine with chili on top. It was sort of like a Olneyville NY System Hot Weiner (all you Rhode Islanders out there know what I'm talking about), but not AS good. Yet, better than any dog I've had in Colorado so far. So, anyways, the chili is like real chili, not like the fine meat sauce you get in Olneyville. Oh well... It was still yummy.
Me in front of Paris:
After our lavish lunch, ;) we walked back to Caesars and grabbed our bags and checked into our room. The room was pretty nice, in one of the older towers, so not the fanciest, but it would do. Took a nice long nap (I think I slept nearly 4 hours!!) and then got up and got ready for a night on the town. We walked down to Treasure Island to catch the Pirate Show before dinner but it was cancelled due to high winds, so we continued over to the Venetian, watched the Gondolas struggle to dock in front of the hotel because of the winds, and then when that excitement wore off, we headed inside and had dinner at the Grand Lux Cafe (Jen will be so proud!). After dinner, we walked down to the New Frontier Casino in hopes of going to Gilley's bar, a bar with a mechanical bull. But, there was a cover charge and a line and the $2 margaritas were calling us at the video poker bar, so we headed over there. After playing video poker for a while (this turned out to be my favorite form of gambling), Brian headed to the blackjack tables and I to the slots. We gambled there for a bit, got some free drinks (I love Vegas) and then left there to head back to Caesars. The walk back was quite painful, as being the dumbass I am, I wore heals that night and my feet were sooooo hurting. But so were Brian's, so I didn't feel as bad walking about .00003 miles an hour down the strip. We finally arrived at Caesars and walked in through the Forum Shops so I could ditch the shoes and barefoot it the rest of the way to the room. We stopped at a bar in Caesars, Cleopatra's Barge, for some awesomely Vegas performance and a drink, and then went to sleep.
Barbary Coast, my fave: ;)
Sunday morning, we slept in and then headed for an afternoon by the pool. The pool at Caesars is really nice and it's even nicer that there are bars next to it and waitresses coming round to your lounge chairs to server you drinks. It was hotter than heck out, and thankfully, was partly cloudy. When the sun came out from behind the clouds, it would get insanely hot and a jump in the pool became necessary. We also were able to catch the end of the World Cup final on the TV at the bar by the pool which was cool and very exciting. After several hours by the pool, some dark clouds started rolling in and it began to rain... So, we headed back to the room to get ready for another night out in Vegas.
Sunday night, we decided to eat in the hotel, so we had a very authentic Japanese dinner at a, you guessed it, Japanese restaurant in the hotel. Then we headed out and decided to go downtown to start out the night. We grabbed a cab and went downtown, starting at one end of Freemont Street. After going into several casinos down there (they are so awesomely old and glittery and retro), it was finally dark and we got to see the huge shows they put on the big TV that spans the whole Freemont Street 'ceiling'. It's hard to describe, so if you don't know what the heck I'm talking about, look at: http://www.vegasexperience.com/. The Casinos in downtown Vegas are much less extravagent, yet have such a charm to them, I couldn't resist. One casino down there even has a microbrewery, so while you're gambling, you can drink free yummy (and potent, I found out first hand) microbrews. I did some more video poker gambling down there... I was addicted because I'm not much of a gambler, and because $5 on a video poker machine would last me hours (and get me lots of free budweisers). Following our downtown experience, we went back to Caesars and had a drink at the Shadow Bar, and then off to bed.
Monday morning, we slept in, got packed up, and checked out of the hotel. With our flight not leaving Vegas until nearly midnight, we stowed our bags and began another marathon walk down the strip to grab some lunch at a New Orleans restaurant in the shops at Aladdin. The entire reason we went there was because they had a lunch special of 25 cent martinis. Can you believe that?? And, the restaurant was pretty fancy and even better was that the food was REALLY good! We got a three course dinner, including beignets, turtle soup, and drank 4 25 cent martinis and had a great time there! After making fun of the lady at the table next to us when she got up and felt all sloshed, we got up from our table and I was feeling exactly the same way! I had a lemon drop martini, a couple chocolate martinis (SOO good), and another lemon drop-like martini with Blue Curacao in it. After lunch, we walked around a bit more, checked out the moving statues in Caesars, drank a refreshing frozen Hurricane, and then stopped in Barbary Coast to watch (and bet on) the Home Run Derby. I decided the very first day in Vegas that I loved the Sports books in all of the hotels. I think Caesar's Sports Book was my fave, but Barbary Coast was less intimidating, so we hung out in there for a while. After watching the majority of the Derby, we headed for dinner at... Burger Bar! Brian saw in a magazine that it DID still exist and was at Mandalay Bay, but in the shopping/mall area of it, not in the actual casino. We arrived there and dined on Kobe beef burgers with bleu cheese and yummy sweet potato fries. It was all very tasty and being that it was accompanied by microbrews, was all the more delicious. Following dinner, we walked back to Caesars, stopping at the Bellagio for a couple of their amazing fountain shows, then grabbing our bags and heading to the airport for our midnight departure.
The entire weekend was so much fun and it was awesome to finally get to Vegas!
Looking down the strip in one direction:
And the other:
Dirty Hippies at Red Rocks
On the fourth of July, after surviving the hangover from hell, we went to Red Rocks to tailgate and see Blues Traveler perform. We got to Red Rocks early enough to get into the prized parking lot super close to the entrance, dined on KFC (there's a fire ban so no grilling), dranks some beers, and people watched. The people watching was awesome. Lots of hippies. Lots of them. Hippies selling chocolate (which steve informed us was really chocolate infused with shrooms), hippies selling glass pipes, and the latest (or at least new to me) fad for hippies is to hula hoop. The hula hooping ran rampant in the parking lot. I had no idea of this phenomenom and that hippies loved to hula hoop so much. And let me say they hula hoop quite well. I had no idea there would be so many hippies at a Blues Traveler concert, but I guess it makes sense since it's a jam band and in that was is Phish-esque. Steve is a huge Phish fan so he knew the type of crowd quite well and taught us about all of the code words and whatnot. It was quite an educational concert experience.
Danielle and I tailgating:
We finally go into the ampitheater, grab a beer, our seats, and start watching the opening band. Johnny Lang?? I can't remember, except I do remember not really caring for him much. As his set is about to end, it starts to rain. Then it starts to POUR. THEN... I'm almost certain it was hailing. Or at least sleeting. We all huddled under the blanket I brought, of course still getting soaked and waited for Blues Traveler to come on.
Danielle and I under the blanket during the storm:
The rain finally ended, Blues Traveler came on and we enjoyed the concert. After the first intermission (yes, they took a break, something I was not too familiar with, but apparently is the status quo at jam band shows), we walked to the edge of the theater and got to watch nearly a dozen area firework shows. Red Rocks is sort of in the foothills, so higher than the Denver metro area, so we could see out to all the Denver/burbs shows, it was really awesome. We ended up leaving the show a little early still a little soggy from the storm earlier in the night.
Danielle and I tailgating:
We finally go into the ampitheater, grab a beer, our seats, and start watching the opening band. Johnny Lang?? I can't remember, except I do remember not really caring for him much. As his set is about to end, it starts to rain. Then it starts to POUR. THEN... I'm almost certain it was hailing. Or at least sleeting. We all huddled under the blanket I brought, of course still getting soaked and waited for Blues Traveler to come on.
Danielle and I under the blanket during the storm:
The rain finally ended, Blues Traveler came on and we enjoyed the concert. After the first intermission (yes, they took a break, something I was not too familiar with, but apparently is the status quo at jam band shows), we walked to the edge of the theater and got to watch nearly a dozen area firework shows. Red Rocks is sort of in the foothills, so higher than the Denver metro area, so we could see out to all the Denver/burbs shows, it was really awesome. We ended up leaving the show a little early still a little soggy from the storm earlier in the night.
Rockies and Fireworks
On the 3rd of July, Brian, his brother (Steve), Danielle, and I went to the Colorado Rockies game to watch them play and then afterwards see the fireworks. The game was lots of fun and the fireworks were even better. They had such a fantastic fireworks show, I was really impressed and surprised at how good it was. We had excellent seats for viewing the fireworks (though if we would have gotten Rock Pile seats we would have gotten to move down to the field for the fireworks show) and drank lots of beer and have a great time.
Danielle and I at the Rockies Game:
Brian and I at the Game:
After the game and fireworks, we headed over the LoDo where we saw the Real World house (they are filming in Denver now) and went to a cowboy bar of some sort that was surprisingly popular. Danielle knew the bartender so we got in free and then got one too many free drinks there. How do I know I had one too many free drinks?? Oh yes, because the next morning I was writhing in hangover pain and thought I was going to die.
Oh and I must mention... So, Steve (Brian's brother) is from NYC and just couldn't imagine why anyone would want to live in Colorado (especially those 'weirdos' who live up in the mountains). He thought it was pretty boring with not much to do and full of hicks and serial killers (those are the ones living out in the middle of nowhere or in the mountains). So I thought it quite funny that the one night we go out downtown, we take him to a bar with line dancing and people in cowboy hats. Way to prove him wrong. ;)
Danielle and I at the Rockies Game:
Brian and I at the Game:
After the game and fireworks, we headed over the LoDo where we saw the Real World house (they are filming in Denver now) and went to a cowboy bar of some sort that was surprisingly popular. Danielle knew the bartender so we got in free and then got one too many free drinks there. How do I know I had one too many free drinks?? Oh yes, because the next morning I was writhing in hangover pain and thought I was going to die.
Oh and I must mention... So, Steve (Brian's brother) is from NYC and just couldn't imagine why anyone would want to live in Colorado (especially those 'weirdos' who live up in the mountains). He thought it was pretty boring with not much to do and full of hicks and serial killers (those are the ones living out in the middle of nowhere or in the mountains). So I thought it quite funny that the one night we go out downtown, we take him to a bar with line dancing and people in cowboy hats. Way to prove him wrong. ;)
Casa Bonita
Okay, so, I haven't blogged in a LONG time. I have lots to catch up on, so I am going to try to relive the past few week's momentous events and write about them now (finally!)
First things first... This is going way back to the beginning of July. Brian's brother came into town, and what other way to welcome one to Colorado than with a visit to the legendary Casa Bonita. I was especially excited, as I had never been there, though have seen the South Park episode that showcased the place. How can I sum up Casa Bonita?? Well, think like a Chuck E. Cheese but more of a restaurant than an arcade, terrible food, tons of kids running around, and Mexican themed.
Casa Bonita as seen on South Park:
We arrive at Casa Bonita and step within it's hallowed walls and into a long winding line reminiscient of a line for a giant roller coaster. With children outnumbering the adults and signs on the wall displaying the 'gourmet' Mexican food and taglines such as "Eat so Mucho, Peso Little," I knew this was going to be an experience I'd not soon forget. We finally get up to the part where you order your food (all you can eat Beef Deluxe dinner for $10.98!), then you continue down the line, grab a tray and collect your food cafeteria style. You wind down a curving hall to the hostess desk and then truly enter the Casa Bonita. The interior is decked out with 'authentic' mexican stylings, lush tropical pools with cliff divers (yes, cliff divers), and strolling mariachi bands (though I never saw them actually move, let alone stroll). We are seated and begin feasting on our first (and last) portion of beef tacos, enchiladas, rice, and beans. After finishing one beef enchilada, I was thinking, hmmm... this isn't so great, but I continued on with the beef taco and then finally gave up, yet not soon enough, as the rest of the night my tummy was not so great. (okay, have I mentioned that Casa Bonita is not necessarily known for the greatest food??). Anyways, we finish our meal off with the sopapillas, which were most definitely the highlight of the dinner- fried pieces of dough doused in honey, you just can't go wrong with that. After eating, we stroll the insides of Casa Bonita watching the cliff divers, a shootout between the sheriff and Black Bart (who was not black at all), a pirate hosting a pinata whacking party for the young'uns, and even saw Black Bart's cave. Now, I must mention that on the back of the menu, it boasted "dancing monkeys in costume". I was eagerly waiting to see these dancing monkeys, but then my dreams were shattered when Brian explained to me that the dancing monkeys in costume were actually the dude dressed up as a gorilla running around the restaurant while we were eating. I thought it was horribly deceptive advertising, as I truly did expect (and really wanted) to see real-live monkeys in costume dancing around the restaurant. Oh well, what can you do.... Despite the terrible food, Casa Bonita is an experience that must be had by all. I can't wait to have kids so I can frequent this joint a whole bunch more!
The Real Casa Bonita:
You can check it out at: http://www.casabonitadenver.com/
First things first... This is going way back to the beginning of July. Brian's brother came into town, and what other way to welcome one to Colorado than with a visit to the legendary Casa Bonita. I was especially excited, as I had never been there, though have seen the South Park episode that showcased the place. How can I sum up Casa Bonita?? Well, think like a Chuck E. Cheese but more of a restaurant than an arcade, terrible food, tons of kids running around, and Mexican themed.
Casa Bonita as seen on South Park:
We arrive at Casa Bonita and step within it's hallowed walls and into a long winding line reminiscient of a line for a giant roller coaster. With children outnumbering the adults and signs on the wall displaying the 'gourmet' Mexican food and taglines such as "Eat so Mucho, Peso Little," I knew this was going to be an experience I'd not soon forget. We finally get up to the part where you order your food (all you can eat Beef Deluxe dinner for $10.98!), then you continue down the line, grab a tray and collect your food cafeteria style. You wind down a curving hall to the hostess desk and then truly enter the Casa Bonita. The interior is decked out with 'authentic' mexican stylings, lush tropical pools with cliff divers (yes, cliff divers), and strolling mariachi bands (though I never saw them actually move, let alone stroll). We are seated and begin feasting on our first (and last) portion of beef tacos, enchiladas, rice, and beans. After finishing one beef enchilada, I was thinking, hmmm... this isn't so great, but I continued on with the beef taco and then finally gave up, yet not soon enough, as the rest of the night my tummy was not so great. (okay, have I mentioned that Casa Bonita is not necessarily known for the greatest food??). Anyways, we finish our meal off with the sopapillas, which were most definitely the highlight of the dinner- fried pieces of dough doused in honey, you just can't go wrong with that. After eating, we stroll the insides of Casa Bonita watching the cliff divers, a shootout between the sheriff and Black Bart (who was not black at all), a pirate hosting a pinata whacking party for the young'uns, and even saw Black Bart's cave. Now, I must mention that on the back of the menu, it boasted "dancing monkeys in costume". I was eagerly waiting to see these dancing monkeys, but then my dreams were shattered when Brian explained to me that the dancing monkeys in costume were actually the dude dressed up as a gorilla running around the restaurant while we were eating. I thought it was horribly deceptive advertising, as I truly did expect (and really wanted) to see real-live monkeys in costume dancing around the restaurant. Oh well, what can you do.... Despite the terrible food, Casa Bonita is an experience that must be had by all. I can't wait to have kids so I can frequent this joint a whole bunch more!
The Real Casa Bonita:
You can check it out at: http://www.casabonitadenver.com/
I loathe Mondays
And not because of the obvious. No, Mondays in my world mean landscaping day at my apartment complex. This means, I awake to weed-wackers, leaf blowers, and lawnmowers. Well, that's not entirely true, I usually wake to trains going by at 515am. That's what really gets me up. But anyways, the landscapers usually come around 8am and begin their trimming and cutting and cleaning-up. So, there is an area in front of my building that is about 10 feet of grass from the building to the curb, and runs the length of the building. Not much grass to cut, a few trees and shrubs to trim, but really not more than an hour's worth of work.
Yet, the weedwacking, mowing, and trimming continues till noon. Then it stops. I think, ah, finally, they are done. No... apparently they just stopped to eat lunch. The noise restarts around 1245 and continues not for a couple more hours, but pretty much till 430 or 5 pm. I have no idea what they do, but they are landscaping in front of my apartment for 8 hours EVERY week. It drives me insane because the walls are thin here and I have to listen to the machinery going ALL day long.
Sorry, just had to vent about that...
Yet, the weedwacking, mowing, and trimming continues till noon. Then it stops. I think, ah, finally, they are done. No... apparently they just stopped to eat lunch. The noise restarts around 1245 and continues not for a couple more hours, but pretty much till 430 or 5 pm. I have no idea what they do, but they are landscaping in front of my apartment for 8 hours EVERY week. It drives me insane because the walls are thin here and I have to listen to the machinery going ALL day long.
Sorry, just had to vent about that...
Tuesday, June 27, 2006
Full House
Last night I went to play poker with Danielle and had the best poker playing night ever. I've only played about 4 times, but proved that I may have a bit of Texas Hold'em talent in my bones. The first hand I won, I was a bit shaky, since I don't play that often and am not sure of myself. I looked at the cards on the table and what I had in my hand and was like, "ok, this is looking pretty decent." Turned out I won the hand, with a full house... Nice! But what had everyone rolling was I say, "Oh, I thought I just had a pair and three of a kind!" Realizing what an idiot I sounded like, I turned 5 shades of red and laughed till there were tears in my eyes. Everyone else was laughing too, and I pretty much never lived that statement down the rest of the night.
Another good hand I had was what I like to call a Royal Straight. It's really an Ace-high Straight, but I prefer my name. Sounds fancier. Anyways, that was just luck, I got the Ace on the river and took some poor soul out on that hand. Sweet! So, at first I was excited that I wasn't the first one eliminated from my table, then I was excited that tables were starting to be merged... THEN, I made it to the final table! I couldn't believe it. Anyways, I ended up coming in 4th, and with the amount of people that play there, I was very proud of myself that I made it that far. Go me. ;)
Another good hand I had was what I like to call a Royal Straight. It's really an Ace-high Straight, but I prefer my name. Sounds fancier. Anyways, that was just luck, I got the Ace on the river and took some poor soul out on that hand. Sweet! So, at first I was excited that I wasn't the first one eliminated from my table, then I was excited that tables were starting to be merged... THEN, I made it to the final table! I couldn't believe it. Anyways, I ended up coming in 4th, and with the amount of people that play there, I was very proud of myself that I made it that far. Go me. ;)
Saturday, June 24, 2006
holy crap!
Best word of the day in a loooooong time!
Brobdingnagian: gigantic; enormous.
Isn't that fantastic? I'm thinking I need to add that to my everyday vocabulary.
Brobdingnagian: gigantic; enormous.
Isn't that fantastic? I'm thinking I need to add that to my everyday vocabulary.
Wednesday, June 21, 2006
Fine Dining.
Seafood & Tomato Bisque
Beef & Egg Skillet
Savory Hunter's Stew with Duck
Savory Hunter's Stew with Venison
Salmon & Whitefish Entree
Orleans Seafood Jambalaya
The above are flavors of cat food. Yes, cat food. I couldn't believe it, I had to get some for Lola. Surprise, surprise... Seems she doesn't like them! Guess my kitty is not gourmet.
Beef & Egg Skillet
Savory Hunter's Stew with Duck
Savory Hunter's Stew with Venison
Salmon & Whitefish Entree
Orleans Seafood Jambalaya
The above are flavors of cat food. Yes, cat food. I couldn't believe it, I had to get some for Lola. Surprise, surprise... Seems she doesn't like them! Guess my kitty is not gourmet.
Tuesday, June 20, 2006
Back home again...
My whole weekend in Chicago was great. It was extremely busy, but I got in most of what I wanted to do, including eating Portillo's, Papa's Pizza, and (shhh...) White Castle. Thursday and Friday I spent with my mom choosing interior stuff for the new house they are building, while Saturday, our appointment was for the exterior brick and siding.
Friday night, Jen came over and we ordered in Papa's Pizza and my mom made some yummy margs. Later on in the evening, we headed over to Bennigan's to see Jen's parents and to have a drink there, it was great to see them. Even later on in the night, more like very early in the morning, Jen and I went to Buffalo Wild Wings for one last beer where I got hit on by some drunk 22 year old that was horribly slurring his speech and I was literally laughing in his face. For some reason, every time I go to that BWW something hilarious like that happens. Either that or I see someone from High School that I really didn't want to see.
Saturday night I headed downtown to meet up with Todd and Kristin. We had some drinks at Todd's place and somehow got sucked into watching (rather intently) "Long Island Lolita," the Buttafuco story. It was quite funny because we all sort of were joking around when we put that on, but then mysteriously, we all sat there, till basically the end of the movie, truly watching the whole thing. I think Rich probably even stuck out the last 10 minutes and saw the entire masterpiece. Anyways, we left to go to Todd's new favorite bar, the Hungry Brain, and I think it is now my favorite bar in Chicago. We had a great time and before I knew it, it was 1am and I was heading back to the brook. Since I didn't have a 'real' dinner that night, I decided this was the most opportune time to grab some White Castle sliders for a midnight snack.
On Sunday, my flight back to Denver was mid-afternoon, so with the limited time, my mom made a nice Father's Day brunch and we took it easy. My travels home were rather uneventful, I enjoyed about 6 glasses of wine on the plane since it was free (and also these glasses are like shot-glass sized) and a lovely Chicken Salad sandwich. Gotta love first class.
Lola was so happy when I got home. She spent the night purring and meowing and just sticking by my side. It's cooled down the slightest here, so instead of being over 100 degrees, it's like 92-95, a welcome cool-down.
Friday night, Jen came over and we ordered in Papa's Pizza and my mom made some yummy margs. Later on in the evening, we headed over to Bennigan's to see Jen's parents and to have a drink there, it was great to see them. Even later on in the night, more like very early in the morning, Jen and I went to Buffalo Wild Wings for one last beer where I got hit on by some drunk 22 year old that was horribly slurring his speech and I was literally laughing in his face. For some reason, every time I go to that BWW something hilarious like that happens. Either that or I see someone from High School that I really didn't want to see.
Saturday night I headed downtown to meet up with Todd and Kristin. We had some drinks at Todd's place and somehow got sucked into watching (rather intently) "Long Island Lolita," the Buttafuco story. It was quite funny because we all sort of were joking around when we put that on, but then mysteriously, we all sat there, till basically the end of the movie, truly watching the whole thing. I think Rich probably even stuck out the last 10 minutes and saw the entire masterpiece. Anyways, we left to go to Todd's new favorite bar, the Hungry Brain, and I think it is now my favorite bar in Chicago. We had a great time and before I knew it, it was 1am and I was heading back to the brook. Since I didn't have a 'real' dinner that night, I decided this was the most opportune time to grab some White Castle sliders for a midnight snack.
On Sunday, my flight back to Denver was mid-afternoon, so with the limited time, my mom made a nice Father's Day brunch and we took it easy. My travels home were rather uneventful, I enjoyed about 6 glasses of wine on the plane since it was free (and also these glasses are like shot-glass sized) and a lovely Chicken Salad sandwich. Gotta love first class.
Lola was so happy when I got home. She spent the night purring and meowing and just sticking by my side. It's cooled down the slightest here, so instead of being over 100 degrees, it's like 92-95, a welcome cool-down.
Thursday, June 15, 2006
Sweet Home Chicago
I'm so f*cking pissed. I just wrote this long-ass post about my arrival to Chicago and my activities today, and then my browser crashed. I was going to rewrite it all, but screw it. I'm in no mood right now to do it. Here's the mini-recap:
*Flew to Chicago via First Class (woo hoo!)
*Arrived in Chicago last night
*Had a bunch of appointments today to help my parents pick out stuff for the new house they are building, a prospective client meeting, and a haircut
*Ate Portillo's
*Had Dunkin' Donuts Coffee direct from the source- YUM
*Ate my mom's good cooking
The End.
I'm so freaking pissed right now. Todd, Firefox "can get f*cked".
*Flew to Chicago via First Class (woo hoo!)
*Arrived in Chicago last night
*Had a bunch of appointments today to help my parents pick out stuff for the new house they are building, a prospective client meeting, and a haircut
*Ate Portillo's
*Had Dunkin' Donuts Coffee direct from the source- YUM
*Ate my mom's good cooking
The End.
I'm so freaking pissed right now. Todd, Firefox "can get f*cked".
Sunday, June 11, 2006
Feeling like I was back in college.
Satuday night I went over to Derek and Lisa's house up in Evergreen- absolutely beautiful. Their house is gorgeous, their furnishings are even better, and the view is insanely breathtaking. Hangin out with Derek and his friend Rob is like being at a frat party (they are in fact frat brothers from back in the day). A keg being present didn't help. Before I knew it, I was being yelled at to get "on your knees" to drink from the keg, or as they called it "talking on the phone" or something like that. I really resisted the whole drinking from the keg for seriously hours, but then we were standing by the keg and I asked if we were going to do keg stands (jokingly, of course) and that evolved into them saying I couldn't drink from the keg for 5 seconds and I just had to prove them wrong. So, all in all, it was a fun night. And, yes, I did prove them wrong.
Today I watched a lot of TV. A LOT. I started the morning off by watching two terribly cheesy movies on the ABC Family channel. Sad thing is, I think I had saw one of the movies a while back, yet I still continued to watch it. Then I caught up on Sex and the City and followed that up with 2 episodes of Deadwood (I'm trying to get caught up on Season 2 of that show before I start watching the new season). Now I'm watching my beloved channel, Food TV.
Oh! So I know I had mentioned me getting a new roomie. And I want to introduce you all to Lola.
She's 10 years old, a black long haired cat with gorgeous green eyes and quite possibly the sweetest thing. I've only had her a week, but she's already warmed up to me, and is presently laying next to me on the couch right now. I'm sure I'll be posting more pictures of the pretty kitty soon. :)
Today I watched a lot of TV. A LOT. I started the morning off by watching two terribly cheesy movies on the ABC Family channel. Sad thing is, I think I had saw one of the movies a while back, yet I still continued to watch it. Then I caught up on Sex and the City and followed that up with 2 episodes of Deadwood (I'm trying to get caught up on Season 2 of that show before I start watching the new season). Now I'm watching my beloved channel, Food TV.
Oh! So I know I had mentioned me getting a new roomie. And I want to introduce you all to Lola.
She's 10 years old, a black long haired cat with gorgeous green eyes and quite possibly the sweetest thing. I've only had her a week, but she's already warmed up to me, and is presently laying next to me on the couch right now. I'm sure I'll be posting more pictures of the pretty kitty soon. :)
Saturday, June 03, 2006
Two-steppin'
After an amazing vacation in Hawaii, I came home for 1 day and then had to head back to the airport for a business trip to Dallas. This trip turned out to be a complete disaster in many ways, but also was a lot of fun and very productive. Let's start with the bad stuff... First, on the plane I took a nap, awoke and all of a sudden started feeling like I was going to pass out. The man sitting next to me, blocking me in, was fast asleep and I couldn't ask him for help. I started looking around the plane and everything begun to turn black. Just as I mustered enough energy up to hit the flight attendent button (all the while wondering what they could even do for me), I leaned forward, rested my head on the seat in front of me and with the air conditioning hitting the back of my neck, started feeling miraculously better. I was so relieved that I didn't actually pass out. After arriving in Dallas, I'm walking off of the plane and on the jetway to the gate I totally fell on my face. Well, my face never hit the ground, but I fell forward dropping all of my bags and making a total scene. That was fun. So, I get to the hotel finally and hop in a cab to go to downtown Dallas to meet up with my dad, as he was in Dallas on business too. ON the drive down to downtown Dallas, what happens?? The freaking taxi gets a flat tire! We're on the tollway and had to wait 15 minutes or so (felt like an eternity) for someone to come fix the flat and then I finally got downtown, eventually.
The rest of the trip was fairly uneventful, thankfully. It was great to meet some of our new employees and also to just work with everyone in person for a couple days. We had a happy hour with our ad agency on Thursday night at Mi Cocina, my favorite Mexican restaurant in Dallas. Well, I guess it's the only one I've been to in Dallas, but they have killer margs and great food.
I arrive home last night and was so happy to sleep in my own bed and just be home. This morning I'm getting a delivery. More on that later. :)
The rest of the trip was fairly uneventful, thankfully. It was great to meet some of our new employees and also to just work with everyone in person for a couple days. We had a happy hour with our ad agency on Thursday night at Mi Cocina, my favorite Mexican restaurant in Dallas. Well, I guess it's the only one I've been to in Dallas, but they have killer margs and great food.
I arrive home last night and was so happy to sleep in my own bed and just be home. This morning I'm getting a delivery. More on that later. :)
Thursday, June 01, 2006
Hawaii Recap
Here's a not-so-brief review of our travels to Hawaii...
Wednesday: Left Denver around 11am and arrived around 3pm at Honolulu International Airport. The airport count was 15 people wearing sweats and 8 people wearing hawaiian shirts. Got our rental car, and surprisingly got a free upgrade to a convertible. One word: Sweet! Checked into our hotel, The New Otani Kaimana Beach Hotel right on the quiet end of Waikiki Beach and near Kapiolani Park. Got to the hotel just in time to attend a manager’s reception with free pupu’s (appetizers)and mai tai’s. Also got our room upgraded for free to a partial ocean view. After a couple free drinks and pupu’s, we walked down Waikiki Beach to the Mai Tai Bar in the Royal Hawaiian hotel (where the Mai Tai was invented). Drank our first ‘real’ mai tai (of the many that followed that week...) Then we walked on the beach to Duke’s Canoe Club (right next to The Royal Hawaiian) and ate dinner there- had Opah fish, so yummy and, of course, more tropical drinks. After, what I considered a fantastic first day on the island, we walked back to the hotel along the beach, stopping in the Sheraton Moana Surfrider Hotel, which is this gorgeous hotel built in, I believe, 1909 for a quick walk-through.
Thursday: We got up pretty early because of the time change, I think around 5am-ish, had breakfast at the hotel, and headed to Pearl Harbor to see the USS Arizona Memorial. Drove around the free parking lot for what seemed like hours trying to get a parking spot, stalking military men leaving base, who only were changing in their cars and not actually leaving. It seemed like all of the other stalker drivers around us were getting parking spots but none for us... No luck, so we ended up paying 5 bucks to park in the lot farther from the memorial! With over an hour till our tour, we did the audio tour that told of the history of the attack on Pearl Harbor and the memorial. Watched a movie about the memorial and then took the ferry over to the Memorial. What I found interesting was that we saw lots of Japanese tourists there, which was sort of weird, in my opinion. And even weirder that they (and American tourists as well) were getting their photo taken in front of the Memorial. Just seemed wrong to get your photo taken in front of what is in effect a grave of over 1000 people. From Pearl Harbor, we headed up the Kamehameha Highway, which we dubbed the Kakameme Highway as we were having problems pronouncing the hawaiian words, so this name stuck, and even the locals apparently shorten the name to the Kam Highway, to the Dole Plantation. Ate a yummy Dole Whip (mine in a waffle cone, Brian’s in a cup with coconut), then rode the train around the plantation. I got some fantastic photos of the wooden cut-out people ‘working’ on the plantation. After the surprisingly short (and somewhat disappointing) train ride, we opted out of the world’s largest maze and decided to head up to the North Shore. Ate lunch at Kai Ama Sandwich- which we had read about- yummy hamburgers in the north shore surfing town of Haliewa. From there, we continued on the Kakameme Highway towards with Windward side of the island, hoping to catch a glimpse of the Banzai Pipeline, but with it being summer, the North Shore waves aren’t as crazy as they are in the winter, so it was hard telling where that was. Oh yeah, and it didn’t help that street signs and directions in Hawaii are basically non-existent. And if they do exist, the sign is typically off to the side of the rode behind a tree so you can’t see it until you’ve just about passed it. The road took us back down towards the South side of the island, where Waikiki lies and took the Likelike Highway back to our hotel. After freshening up in the hotel room and cooling off in the A/C, we headed out to dinner at Keoni’s, a Thai restaurant. I had my first curry dish, which had shrimp and pineapple in it and it was quite delicious! After dinner, we headed back to our all-time favorite bar in Oahu, the Mai Tai Bar at the Royal Hawaiian, of course. Had another delicious Mai Tai, enjoyed some local music and the view of the beach, and then headed back down Waikiki to the hotel. Along the way, we stopped at Tiki’s Bar and Grill, which we had noticed several times because of the gigantic tiki’s they had lining their second floor lanai of a bar/restaurant. We finally get to the bar, after Brian took us on a crazy elevator ride to a floor with just hotel rooms and we ended up walking along some outdoor pathway by the parking garage that looked like something only housekeeping uses. Thankfully we were able to find our way back into the hotel and found some stairs to take us down to the level of the bar and headed there to have some more tropical drinks. I must say, I was looking forward to, and so was Brian, going to this bar, because it looked so cool and fantastic from down on the street. But we get to the bar, order our drinks and were quite disappointed... It was nothing more than a chili’s-esque restaurant outdoors with gigantic tiki torches. After just one drink we headed back to the hotel. I must mention at this time, after having experienced several bars and different tropical drinks, we decided, hands-down, that the Mai Tai bar is the place to be for drinks. First of all, the drink prices everywhere are quite expensive, like between 7 and 9 dollars. The mai tai’s at the Mai Tai bar are $9, but were well worth the couple extra dollars. The ambience there was awesome; live music, free mixed nuts, right on the beach, and the drinks had a serious kick to them. One of these mai tai’s and I was feeling gooooood.
Friday: Friday morning we met up with Brian’s friend, Jason, and his girlfriend to head over to Diamond Head for the hike to the top. It was a pretty cool hike, nothing too strenuous, though Jason and his girlfriend seemed to be competing for the world’s fastest ascent up Diamond Head. Brian and I followed behind, sometimes getting caught behind groups of 30 Japanese tourists walking at 1 mph. At the top, there are some old military bunkers and a cool, dark tunnel you get to walk through, and about 100 super steep steps. The view from the top was gorgeous- I got some fantastic photos of Waikiki and up to the north too. After we hiked Diamond Head, we went back to the hotel and cooled off in our icebox of a hotel room. We were keeping the hotel room at about 65 degrees and compared to the balmy tropical weather outside, it felt like a meat locker. It ruled. For, what we a expected, a quick drink, we went to Lulu’s, a 24 hour restaurant and 22 hour bar. We were pretty psyched about this place too before we actually went there, like Tiki’s but, we got there and after waiting about 15 minutes for a waiter or waitress to come to our table were about to leave. Finally an absent minded waiter came to our table and took our order, who was apparently surprised we hadn’t ordered, apparently having a closed menu in front of you means please don’t come take our order. After the whole waiting for service, we were pretty disappointed with the place, especially since they weren’t at all crowded and had numerous wait staff hanging around. And the drinks weren’t THAT great. After this, we headed for the free trolley to Hilo Hattie, apparently the official store of Hawaii. We anticipated this would get us over to the downtown area, and we’d stop at Chinatown on the way back, but the way the trolley worked, we weren’t able to do that (though the trolley did drive us about 1 block from the Dog’s office, so that was exciting). So, we just hit up Hilo Hattie, got some souveniers and then headed back to our hotel, via the free trolley. Friday night we headed back to the Mai Tai bar (yes, again) to meet up with Brian’s friends that were in town for the wedding. We decided this night that we would get drunk, and drunk I got. We each had 3 mai tais at this bar, because we purposefully got there early to get a head start on the evening. With the combination of empty stomachs and the very strong drinks that we had become addicted to, the night was off to a great start. We walked over to a japanese bbq place that we were really looking forward to eating at, but with a group of 8 on a Friday night, the wait was an hour, so we decided to move on to find a different restaurant. Several of Brian’s friends have been to Oahu a few times, so we left the dining decision in their hands (I think... I was quite drunk at this point) and walked around a bit, passing a Planet Hollywood that I was very concerned we were going to end up eating at and very adement that this not happen (of course in my drunken confusion, I don’t even think this had ever been an option) and then on to a very odd hotel that had a Japanese restaurant in it. After being buzzed in, we walked by the pool and entered the restaurant. The food was quite good, from what I remember, I had california rolls and shrimp tempura, along with a slew of side items that accompanied the meal. Following dinner, we headed to the Shore Bird Bar on the beach. I think I had a Mango Margarita or something of the sort. We had one drink there and then walked back to our hotel. We decided we would give Lulu’s another shot and have a drink there on our walk back, but when we arrived, discovered there was a cover charge and once again Lulu’s dissed us. So instead, we stopped by Jack in the Box for a cheeseburger and then one of the 5 million ABC stores on Waikiki and picked up a 6 pack of beer to take back to the hotel. We got back to the hotel, drank a beer on the lanai (balcony), and then I literally passed out!
Saturday: Waking up a tad hungover, it was a slow-going morning. We walked what seemed like miles to Leonard’s Bakery to get some of their famous Malasadas. On the way back, we saw a super cool sushi bar with a conveyor belt that the food goes around and you take what you want- it looked like so much fun! It must have been a pretty popular spot too, because before they even opened there was a line at their door. We then stopped at Ono’s Hawaiian foods for a traditional hawaiian lunch. With not many descriptions on the menu, I ordered Chicken Long Rice, which turned out to be like a soup. Brian had Kalua Pig and with our main items, it was accompanied by some sort of salmon/tomato salsa like dish, a beef jerky? I think, poi or rice (I had the poi, which is pounded taro root- quite interesting), and coconut called haupia which was quite tasty. We can’t say we would go back there, but am definitely happy I had some real traditional Hawaiian food. Heading back towards the hotel, we stopped at Bailey’s a vintage store with an enormous collection of new and used Aloha shirts. The task of looking through these shirts was daunting, but Brian found a cool one that had tiki’s on it and said “aloha” (did I mention I said this word a gazillion times with my own special inflexion during the trip?? Plus constantly saying Mahalo over and over again). After the long and exhausting walk, we made it back to the hotel, took a nap and then got up to get ready for the wedding. We headed up to Kualoa Ranch in Kaaawa for the wedding. The setting was beautiful, overlooking the ocean on one side and the mountains on the other. The ceremony was really nice and included a traditional Chinese tea ceremony. After the ceremony, the wedding party was subjected to what seemed like 2 hours of photos while the rest of us guests enjoyed drinks and some tasty pupus. After the wedding party was announced we feasted on a delicious buffet with a whole kalua pig (it is tradition in a hawaiian wedding for the groom to bring pig), prime rib, crab covered ono fish (soooo yummy), salads, macadamia nut chicken, rice, and garlic mashed potatoes, among I’m sure other items I’m forgetting about. After dinner, we danced the night away.
Sunday: Our day began with some Malasadas for breakfast and then we headed to the beach outside of our hotel. Of course, the one day we decide to lay on the beach clouds roll in and we get sprinkled on, however it was glorious laying in the sand and listening to the waves roll in, and the clouds were probably a blessing because without them I’m sure I would have fried. After spending the morning at the beach, we headed back to the other end of Waikiki to visit the monstrosity known as Hilton Hawaiian village who's only saving grace is the Brady bunch stayed there. We went to lunch and drinks at the House without a Key. We dined on some yummy food, I had a delicious crab salad sandwich and Brian had a mahi mahi sandwich and there we tried a few different tropical drinks (mai tai’s at the Mai Tai Bar are still the fave). After House without a Key, we stopped at Big Kahuna’s Marketplace, which apparently looked like an awesome spot from the commercial Brian had seen on hawaii TV back at the hotel, but we got there and it was just a big room full of those carts with junk on them. We headed back to the hotel for a quick nap and then got up and walked back down the other end of Waikiki to see Don Ho! I must mention at this point, each time we walked from our hotel to the other end of Waikiki, it was a bit of a hike. Nothing bad, since, come on, we’re walking along the beach in Hawaii, just need to point that out, because by Sunday, my feet were a bit tired. Anyways, Don Ho. Now this was an experience. We got into line and the amount of elderly people there was awesome. I was really hoping to be the youngest person there, but alas when we get into the theater and are seated for dinner, I see several kids younger than me. Bummer. Anyways, we got our dinner, which was predominantly gross. Picture the worst wedding reception food ever. Then Don Ho posed for photos with whoever wanted a pic taken. Brian and I went to get a picture taken, but my stupid camera’s flash didn’t go off so it didn’t come out. Then they had their ‘professional’ photographer taking photos as well, for purchase, and that came out even worse. I was looking in one direction, Brian in the other. It was quite humorous. Anyways, so the whole performance was more of a variety show, with several different guests performing songs here and there and then Don Ho starting and ending the show with “Tiny Bubbles”. He’s getting pretty old, but is quite humorous and terribly un-PC. After the show, where did we go?? Yup, you guessed it, the Mai Tai Bar. There we had our last official mai tai of the vacation, as we were leaving on Monday.
Monday: Monday morning we had breakfast at the hotel at the beautiful Hau Tree Lanai Restaurant- it’s all outdoors and under a beautiful Hau tree where supposedly Robert Louis Stevenson, author of “Treasure Island” once sat many moons ago. I had poi pancakes there again, with Coconut Syrup and Maple Syrup- mixing the two syrups is scrumpulescent. We then packed up our stuff and checked out of the hotel. Our flight home wasn’t until 1030pm, so we had the whole day ahead of us to do a little more sightseeing. We drove up to the Halona Blow Hole to check that out and saw Haunama Bay, Sandy Beach, and a few other gorgeous scenic overlooks. After the Blow Hole, we drove to the Ala Moana Shopping Center to check that out. It’s like a big outdoor mall with super expensive, designer stores. And then Sears, which proved to be the best spot. They had some great Aloha shirts at unbeatable prices. We had a snack at a bar at the mall where I tried yet a couple more tropical drinks and had some nachos. Oh, and I must give this bar props because they actually had a fruity tropical drink with a decent amount of alcohol in it. Of course, I scoped out the menu and was trying to determine which drink would be more bang for the buck, and I found it, because even the waitress said it was a good choice, as it had a whole additional shot of liquor in it, compared to the other drinks. A girl after my own heart. Following our mall trip, we went to what I guess you would call another mall, the Aloha Tower. It is like a smallish outdoor shopping center and is surrounding the Aloha Tower, which is a really old and used to be the tallest building in Honolulu. I think I’m getting that right. This was a depressing spot. It was totally dead, like no one ever goes there, except to board the dinner cruise ships docked on the side of the shopping center. Though, I must say I found a store I liked quite a bit and got a couple of tanks there with a nice aloha shirt style print. We then drove to Chinatown for dinner at Little Village Noodle House. It was good food, though I started feeling pretty sick while we were waiting for our food and didn’t actually get to each much of it. Following dinner, we headed to the airport to check in and board our long, overnight flight home. I had never been on an overnight flight before and thought it was going to be a piece of cake, however, it only made me exceptionally crabby and miserable. I did get much more sleep than Brian, but it was still nothing that could compare to a real night’s sleep.
Tuesday: We arrived to Denver at 930am and spent the day laying around, taking multiple naps, and I actually did do a little work. It was so nice to have a vacation where I was actually on vacation, had my phone turned off, and no access to my emails. Due to the multiple naps, I’m still up and it’s now Wednesday... Almost 3am. Better try to fall asleep soon, I’m flying to Dallas tomorrow afternoon for a business trip.
Wednesday: Left Denver around 11am and arrived around 3pm at Honolulu International Airport. The airport count was 15 people wearing sweats and 8 people wearing hawaiian shirts. Got our rental car, and surprisingly got a free upgrade to a convertible. One word: Sweet! Checked into our hotel, The New Otani Kaimana Beach Hotel right on the quiet end of Waikiki Beach and near Kapiolani Park. Got to the hotel just in time to attend a manager’s reception with free pupu’s (appetizers)and mai tai’s. Also got our room upgraded for free to a partial ocean view. After a couple free drinks and pupu’s, we walked down Waikiki Beach to the Mai Tai Bar in the Royal Hawaiian hotel (where the Mai Tai was invented). Drank our first ‘real’ mai tai (of the many that followed that week...) Then we walked on the beach to Duke’s Canoe Club (right next to The Royal Hawaiian) and ate dinner there- had Opah fish, so yummy and, of course, more tropical drinks. After, what I considered a fantastic first day on the island, we walked back to the hotel along the beach, stopping in the Sheraton Moana Surfrider Hotel, which is this gorgeous hotel built in, I believe, 1909 for a quick walk-through.
Thursday: We got up pretty early because of the time change, I think around 5am-ish, had breakfast at the hotel, and headed to Pearl Harbor to see the USS Arizona Memorial. Drove around the free parking lot for what seemed like hours trying to get a parking spot, stalking military men leaving base, who only were changing in their cars and not actually leaving. It seemed like all of the other stalker drivers around us were getting parking spots but none for us... No luck, so we ended up paying 5 bucks to park in the lot farther from the memorial! With over an hour till our tour, we did the audio tour that told of the history of the attack on Pearl Harbor and the memorial. Watched a movie about the memorial and then took the ferry over to the Memorial. What I found interesting was that we saw lots of Japanese tourists there, which was sort of weird, in my opinion. And even weirder that they (and American tourists as well) were getting their photo taken in front of the Memorial. Just seemed wrong to get your photo taken in front of what is in effect a grave of over 1000 people. From Pearl Harbor, we headed up the Kamehameha Highway, which we dubbed the Kakameme Highway as we were having problems pronouncing the hawaiian words, so this name stuck, and even the locals apparently shorten the name to the Kam Highway, to the Dole Plantation. Ate a yummy Dole Whip (mine in a waffle cone, Brian’s in a cup with coconut), then rode the train around the plantation. I got some fantastic photos of the wooden cut-out people ‘working’ on the plantation. After the surprisingly short (and somewhat disappointing) train ride, we opted out of the world’s largest maze and decided to head up to the North Shore. Ate lunch at Kai Ama Sandwich- which we had read about- yummy hamburgers in the north shore surfing town of Haliewa. From there, we continued on the Kakameme Highway towards with Windward side of the island, hoping to catch a glimpse of the Banzai Pipeline, but with it being summer, the North Shore waves aren’t as crazy as they are in the winter, so it was hard telling where that was. Oh yeah, and it didn’t help that street signs and directions in Hawaii are basically non-existent. And if they do exist, the sign is typically off to the side of the rode behind a tree so you can’t see it until you’ve just about passed it. The road took us back down towards the South side of the island, where Waikiki lies and took the Likelike Highway back to our hotel. After freshening up in the hotel room and cooling off in the A/C, we headed out to dinner at Keoni’s, a Thai restaurant. I had my first curry dish, which had shrimp and pineapple in it and it was quite delicious! After dinner, we headed back to our all-time favorite bar in Oahu, the Mai Tai Bar at the Royal Hawaiian, of course. Had another delicious Mai Tai, enjoyed some local music and the view of the beach, and then headed back down Waikiki to the hotel. Along the way, we stopped at Tiki’s Bar and Grill, which we had noticed several times because of the gigantic tiki’s they had lining their second floor lanai of a bar/restaurant. We finally get to the bar, after Brian took us on a crazy elevator ride to a floor with just hotel rooms and we ended up walking along some outdoor pathway by the parking garage that looked like something only housekeeping uses. Thankfully we were able to find our way back into the hotel and found some stairs to take us down to the level of the bar and headed there to have some more tropical drinks. I must say, I was looking forward to, and so was Brian, going to this bar, because it looked so cool and fantastic from down on the street. But we get to the bar, order our drinks and were quite disappointed... It was nothing more than a chili’s-esque restaurant outdoors with gigantic tiki torches. After just one drink we headed back to the hotel. I must mention at this time, after having experienced several bars and different tropical drinks, we decided, hands-down, that the Mai Tai bar is the place to be for drinks. First of all, the drink prices everywhere are quite expensive, like between 7 and 9 dollars. The mai tai’s at the Mai Tai bar are $9, but were well worth the couple extra dollars. The ambience there was awesome; live music, free mixed nuts, right on the beach, and the drinks had a serious kick to them. One of these mai tai’s and I was feeling gooooood.
Friday: Friday morning we met up with Brian’s friend, Jason, and his girlfriend to head over to Diamond Head for the hike to the top. It was a pretty cool hike, nothing too strenuous, though Jason and his girlfriend seemed to be competing for the world’s fastest ascent up Diamond Head. Brian and I followed behind, sometimes getting caught behind groups of 30 Japanese tourists walking at 1 mph. At the top, there are some old military bunkers and a cool, dark tunnel you get to walk through, and about 100 super steep steps. The view from the top was gorgeous- I got some fantastic photos of Waikiki and up to the north too. After we hiked Diamond Head, we went back to the hotel and cooled off in our icebox of a hotel room. We were keeping the hotel room at about 65 degrees and compared to the balmy tropical weather outside, it felt like a meat locker. It ruled. For, what we a expected, a quick drink, we went to Lulu’s, a 24 hour restaurant and 22 hour bar. We were pretty psyched about this place too before we actually went there, like Tiki’s but, we got there and after waiting about 15 minutes for a waiter or waitress to come to our table were about to leave. Finally an absent minded waiter came to our table and took our order, who was apparently surprised we hadn’t ordered, apparently having a closed menu in front of you means please don’t come take our order. After the whole waiting for service, we were pretty disappointed with the place, especially since they weren’t at all crowded and had numerous wait staff hanging around. And the drinks weren’t THAT great. After this, we headed for the free trolley to Hilo Hattie, apparently the official store of Hawaii. We anticipated this would get us over to the downtown area, and we’d stop at Chinatown on the way back, but the way the trolley worked, we weren’t able to do that (though the trolley did drive us about 1 block from the Dog’s office, so that was exciting). So, we just hit up Hilo Hattie, got some souveniers and then headed back to our hotel, via the free trolley. Friday night we headed back to the Mai Tai bar (yes, again) to meet up with Brian’s friends that were in town for the wedding. We decided this night that we would get drunk, and drunk I got. We each had 3 mai tais at this bar, because we purposefully got there early to get a head start on the evening. With the combination of empty stomachs and the very strong drinks that we had become addicted to, the night was off to a great start. We walked over to a japanese bbq place that we were really looking forward to eating at, but with a group of 8 on a Friday night, the wait was an hour, so we decided to move on to find a different restaurant. Several of Brian’s friends have been to Oahu a few times, so we left the dining decision in their hands (I think... I was quite drunk at this point) and walked around a bit, passing a Planet Hollywood that I was very concerned we were going to end up eating at and very adement that this not happen (of course in my drunken confusion, I don’t even think this had ever been an option) and then on to a very odd hotel that had a Japanese restaurant in it. After being buzzed in, we walked by the pool and entered the restaurant. The food was quite good, from what I remember, I had california rolls and shrimp tempura, along with a slew of side items that accompanied the meal. Following dinner, we headed to the Shore Bird Bar on the beach. I think I had a Mango Margarita or something of the sort. We had one drink there and then walked back to our hotel. We decided we would give Lulu’s another shot and have a drink there on our walk back, but when we arrived, discovered there was a cover charge and once again Lulu’s dissed us. So instead, we stopped by Jack in the Box for a cheeseburger and then one of the 5 million ABC stores on Waikiki and picked up a 6 pack of beer to take back to the hotel. We got back to the hotel, drank a beer on the lanai (balcony), and then I literally passed out!
Saturday: Waking up a tad hungover, it was a slow-going morning. We walked what seemed like miles to Leonard’s Bakery to get some of their famous Malasadas. On the way back, we saw a super cool sushi bar with a conveyor belt that the food goes around and you take what you want- it looked like so much fun! It must have been a pretty popular spot too, because before they even opened there was a line at their door. We then stopped at Ono’s Hawaiian foods for a traditional hawaiian lunch. With not many descriptions on the menu, I ordered Chicken Long Rice, which turned out to be like a soup. Brian had Kalua Pig and with our main items, it was accompanied by some sort of salmon/tomato salsa like dish, a beef jerky? I think, poi or rice (I had the poi, which is pounded taro root- quite interesting), and coconut called haupia which was quite tasty. We can’t say we would go back there, but am definitely happy I had some real traditional Hawaiian food. Heading back towards the hotel, we stopped at Bailey’s a vintage store with an enormous collection of new and used Aloha shirts. The task of looking through these shirts was daunting, but Brian found a cool one that had tiki’s on it and said “aloha” (did I mention I said this word a gazillion times with my own special inflexion during the trip?? Plus constantly saying Mahalo over and over again). After the long and exhausting walk, we made it back to the hotel, took a nap and then got up to get ready for the wedding. We headed up to Kualoa Ranch in Kaaawa for the wedding. The setting was beautiful, overlooking the ocean on one side and the mountains on the other. The ceremony was really nice and included a traditional Chinese tea ceremony. After the ceremony, the wedding party was subjected to what seemed like 2 hours of photos while the rest of us guests enjoyed drinks and some tasty pupus. After the wedding party was announced we feasted on a delicious buffet with a whole kalua pig (it is tradition in a hawaiian wedding for the groom to bring pig), prime rib, crab covered ono fish (soooo yummy), salads, macadamia nut chicken, rice, and garlic mashed potatoes, among I’m sure other items I’m forgetting about. After dinner, we danced the night away.
Sunday: Our day began with some Malasadas for breakfast and then we headed to the beach outside of our hotel. Of course, the one day we decide to lay on the beach clouds roll in and we get sprinkled on, however it was glorious laying in the sand and listening to the waves roll in, and the clouds were probably a blessing because without them I’m sure I would have fried. After spending the morning at the beach, we headed back to the other end of Waikiki to visit the monstrosity known as Hilton Hawaiian village who's only saving grace is the Brady bunch stayed there. We went to lunch and drinks at the House without a Key. We dined on some yummy food, I had a delicious crab salad sandwich and Brian had a mahi mahi sandwich and there we tried a few different tropical drinks (mai tai’s at the Mai Tai Bar are still the fave). After House without a Key, we stopped at Big Kahuna’s Marketplace, which apparently looked like an awesome spot from the commercial Brian had seen on hawaii TV back at the hotel, but we got there and it was just a big room full of those carts with junk on them. We headed back to the hotel for a quick nap and then got up and walked back down the other end of Waikiki to see Don Ho! I must mention at this point, each time we walked from our hotel to the other end of Waikiki, it was a bit of a hike. Nothing bad, since, come on, we’re walking along the beach in Hawaii, just need to point that out, because by Sunday, my feet were a bit tired. Anyways, Don Ho. Now this was an experience. We got into line and the amount of elderly people there was awesome. I was really hoping to be the youngest person there, but alas when we get into the theater and are seated for dinner, I see several kids younger than me. Bummer. Anyways, we got our dinner, which was predominantly gross. Picture the worst wedding reception food ever. Then Don Ho posed for photos with whoever wanted a pic taken. Brian and I went to get a picture taken, but my stupid camera’s flash didn’t go off so it didn’t come out. Then they had their ‘professional’ photographer taking photos as well, for purchase, and that came out even worse. I was looking in one direction, Brian in the other. It was quite humorous. Anyways, so the whole performance was more of a variety show, with several different guests performing songs here and there and then Don Ho starting and ending the show with “Tiny Bubbles”. He’s getting pretty old, but is quite humorous and terribly un-PC. After the show, where did we go?? Yup, you guessed it, the Mai Tai Bar. There we had our last official mai tai of the vacation, as we were leaving on Monday.
Monday: Monday morning we had breakfast at the hotel at the beautiful Hau Tree Lanai Restaurant- it’s all outdoors and under a beautiful Hau tree where supposedly Robert Louis Stevenson, author of “Treasure Island” once sat many moons ago. I had poi pancakes there again, with Coconut Syrup and Maple Syrup- mixing the two syrups is scrumpulescent. We then packed up our stuff and checked out of the hotel. Our flight home wasn’t until 1030pm, so we had the whole day ahead of us to do a little more sightseeing. We drove up to the Halona Blow Hole to check that out and saw Haunama Bay, Sandy Beach, and a few other gorgeous scenic overlooks. After the Blow Hole, we drove to the Ala Moana Shopping Center to check that out. It’s like a big outdoor mall with super expensive, designer stores. And then Sears, which proved to be the best spot. They had some great Aloha shirts at unbeatable prices. We had a snack at a bar at the mall where I tried yet a couple more tropical drinks and had some nachos. Oh, and I must give this bar props because they actually had a fruity tropical drink with a decent amount of alcohol in it. Of course, I scoped out the menu and was trying to determine which drink would be more bang for the buck, and I found it, because even the waitress said it was a good choice, as it had a whole additional shot of liquor in it, compared to the other drinks. A girl after my own heart. Following our mall trip, we went to what I guess you would call another mall, the Aloha Tower. It is like a smallish outdoor shopping center and is surrounding the Aloha Tower, which is a really old and used to be the tallest building in Honolulu. I think I’m getting that right. This was a depressing spot. It was totally dead, like no one ever goes there, except to board the dinner cruise ships docked on the side of the shopping center. Though, I must say I found a store I liked quite a bit and got a couple of tanks there with a nice aloha shirt style print. We then drove to Chinatown for dinner at Little Village Noodle House. It was good food, though I started feeling pretty sick while we were waiting for our food and didn’t actually get to each much of it. Following dinner, we headed to the airport to check in and board our long, overnight flight home. I had never been on an overnight flight before and thought it was going to be a piece of cake, however, it only made me exceptionally crabby and miserable. I did get much more sleep than Brian, but it was still nothing that could compare to a real night’s sleep.
Tuesday: We arrived to Denver at 930am and spent the day laying around, taking multiple naps, and I actually did do a little work. It was so nice to have a vacation where I was actually on vacation, had my phone turned off, and no access to my emails. Due to the multiple naps, I’m still up and it’s now Wednesday... Almost 3am. Better try to fall asleep soon, I’m flying to Dallas tomorrow afternoon for a business trip.
Tuesday, May 23, 2006
Anticipation...
Aloha! I am sooooo super psyched, as I am leaving for Hawaii tomorrow morning. My bags are packed, actually they have been since before the weekend! More Hawaii details when I get back, but for now, I want to share with you my amazing birthday weekend!
Friday night, Danielle, Matt, Brian and I went for dinner at a little Greek restaurant where I dined on gyros and saganaki and drank roditis. After dinner, we went to the show I've been waiting years to see... Smoking Popes! It was amazing. They played at a super cool venue, a pretty small old theater called the Bluebird Theater. And they were awesome. It wasn't as packed as I thought it would have been, but that meant I got to stand up really close and it was just great. After the show we went to this awesome little dive-ish bar across the way where the ladies get a rose and everyone gets free shots. Sweet!
Saturday, my actual birhtday, was a little more low-key, with stops at Sonic, my favorite drive-in, and Baskin Robbins for some yummy birthday ice cream. Brian and I went to dinner at this great little Italian restaurant in Olde Town Arvada where I drank some Chianti and ate linguine with clam sauce. So good. Danielle met us there and we had some tiramisu. YUM!
So, one of Danielle's presents to me was a Boggle Gamefolio. It rules. It's a travel version of boggle, complete with an electronic timer, quiet plastic cover to the boggle grid so when you shake it, it does not annoy everyone in a 1 mile radius of you, and pencils/paper. So, I think most of you know my boggle addiction and my Queen of Boggle status... After dinner we came back to my apartment and the three of us prepared for a boggle-off. So, I'm kind of overly confident when it comes to boggle, since I normally beat my opponent by double the points most of the time. But I must say that playing with 3 people makes it much more difficult and both Danielle and Brian gave me a run for my money. After being in 3rd place for the first few rounds, I began working my way up in the standings, and alas I was victorious. Phew! That was really a close one. And I would have been especially upset if I would have lost on my birthday!
Sunday Matt, Brian, and I went to the Rockies game, getting there early to enjoy the half price beers at the Sandlot which apparently no longer exist because of some drunkards in Philly. I guess because there were people getting too drunk before the game, nationwide, the MLB has determined there will be no more half price beers. All I have to say is that is some major BS. Anyways, the game was fun, the Rockies won, and the highlight of my ballpark-eating was that I FINALLY got some Dippin' Dots. You know, the Ice Cream of the Future. It was quite tasty and I'm so happy I have finally experienced the ice cream of the future.
Well, I have to wrap up my work and finalize my packing and determine if I have enough to keep myself occupied for a 7 hour flight in my carry-on bag!
Friday night, Danielle, Matt, Brian and I went for dinner at a little Greek restaurant where I dined on gyros and saganaki and drank roditis. After dinner, we went to the show I've been waiting years to see... Smoking Popes! It was amazing. They played at a super cool venue, a pretty small old theater called the Bluebird Theater. And they were awesome. It wasn't as packed as I thought it would have been, but that meant I got to stand up really close and it was just great. After the show we went to this awesome little dive-ish bar across the way where the ladies get a rose and everyone gets free shots. Sweet!
Saturday, my actual birhtday, was a little more low-key, with stops at Sonic, my favorite drive-in, and Baskin Robbins for some yummy birthday ice cream. Brian and I went to dinner at this great little Italian restaurant in Olde Town Arvada where I drank some Chianti and ate linguine with clam sauce. So good. Danielle met us there and we had some tiramisu. YUM!
So, one of Danielle's presents to me was a Boggle Gamefolio. It rules. It's a travel version of boggle, complete with an electronic timer, quiet plastic cover to the boggle grid so when you shake it, it does not annoy everyone in a 1 mile radius of you, and pencils/paper. So, I think most of you know my boggle addiction and my Queen of Boggle status... After dinner we came back to my apartment and the three of us prepared for a boggle-off. So, I'm kind of overly confident when it comes to boggle, since I normally beat my opponent by double the points most of the time. But I must say that playing with 3 people makes it much more difficult and both Danielle and Brian gave me a run for my money. After being in 3rd place for the first few rounds, I began working my way up in the standings, and alas I was victorious. Phew! That was really a close one. And I would have been especially upset if I would have lost on my birthday!
Sunday Matt, Brian, and I went to the Rockies game, getting there early to enjoy the half price beers at the Sandlot which apparently no longer exist because of some drunkards in Philly. I guess because there were people getting too drunk before the game, nationwide, the MLB has determined there will be no more half price beers. All I have to say is that is some major BS. Anyways, the game was fun, the Rockies won, and the highlight of my ballpark-eating was that I FINALLY got some Dippin' Dots. You know, the Ice Cream of the Future. It was quite tasty and I'm so happy I have finally experienced the ice cream of the future.
Well, I have to wrap up my work and finalize my packing and determine if I have enough to keep myself occupied for a 7 hour flight in my carry-on bag!
Friday, May 19, 2006
Weirdest Dream Ever...
Actually, I was so taken aback by who was in my dream that I don't even recall what the dream was about. So, when I was wee, I used to play with Weebles at my Memere and Grampa's house. It was this big set with a camper, car, motorcycle, and 4 weeble people. I believe it was originally one of my younger uncle's toys when they were young. I would play with this thing for hours. I even thought that the dad weeble and mom weeble looked like my parents. Here's a pic of the groovy set:
And here are 3 of the little dudes I used to play with:
Anyways, the whole point being to this background information is that in my dream, I was hanging out with the weeble on the right. No lies. I was with some other human person and the weeble boy and we were all sitting around. I don't actually remember the weeble talking or coming to life; however, he was human sized. Well, not really full human sized but definitely the size of a 5 year old. Just had to share that with you.
I also had a dream last night that I was hanging out with Jon Stewart and we were talking about Ben Folds while hanging out on a boat on the Illinois River. I remember it was the Illinois River because we jumped in (yes, me and Jon- we're buds) and I was like why the heck are we swimming in this water, it's disgusting! Where do I come up with this stuff??
And here are 3 of the little dudes I used to play with:
Anyways, the whole point being to this background information is that in my dream, I was hanging out with the weeble on the right. No lies. I was with some other human person and the weeble boy and we were all sitting around. I don't actually remember the weeble talking or coming to life; however, he was human sized. Well, not really full human sized but definitely the size of a 5 year old. Just had to share that with you.
I also had a dream last night that I was hanging out with Jon Stewart and we were talking about Ben Folds while hanging out on a boat on the Illinois River. I remember it was the Illinois River because we jumped in (yes, me and Jon- we're buds) and I was like why the heck are we swimming in this water, it's disgusting! Where do I come up with this stuff??
Tuesday, May 16, 2006
Fondue and wine.
Lots of it. Wine, that is... Saturday night I had a little apartment warming party with yummy fondue, dips, and wine. Had quite a good group of people in my tiny place, but I think there was plenty of room, and I had such a good time. And I was paying for it most of the day on Sunday!
Well, it's the last week of my life that I will be 26 years old. It's a little depressing, I must say, because I always thought 27 was so old, I don't any more, but I remember being younger, like in my teens thinking, wow, 27, that's old... Plus I remember when my mom was 27 and when she was 27 she had a 7 year old, so I think that's sort of why I think it seems old... Again, I don't want to catch crap from any of my older friends and family members, so let me state again... I DO NOT think 27 is old anymore. :) But on the other hand, I think 27 is a much better number than 26. I'm babbling... Is this what happens when you get old and feeble?? Just joking.
Is there a reason Emeril always wears white socks with black pants and black shoes? Just curious. Yep, I'm watching food network. Emeril's Chefography. I love the chefography shows. It makes me want to pack up my mac and go to culinary school.
Well, I'm off to watch the last episode of "Love Monkey". It's a sad, sad day for me. No more Wayne.
Well, it's the last week of my life that I will be 26 years old. It's a little depressing, I must say, because I always thought 27 was so old, I don't any more, but I remember being younger, like in my teens thinking, wow, 27, that's old... Plus I remember when my mom was 27 and when she was 27 she had a 7 year old, so I think that's sort of why I think it seems old... Again, I don't want to catch crap from any of my older friends and family members, so let me state again... I DO NOT think 27 is old anymore. :) But on the other hand, I think 27 is a much better number than 26. I'm babbling... Is this what happens when you get old and feeble?? Just joking.
Is there a reason Emeril always wears white socks with black pants and black shoes? Just curious. Yep, I'm watching food network. Emeril's Chefography. I love the chefography shows. It makes me want to pack up my mac and go to culinary school.
Well, I'm off to watch the last episode of "Love Monkey". It's a sad, sad day for me. No more Wayne.
Monday, May 08, 2006
Why?
Why do freeze pops take so long to freeze???
Another note, the box says the freeze pops are "giant" sized. I open up the box to see if the glorious tubes of colored, flavored sugar water have crystallized (no luck) and find the same size freeze pops I have been consuming all my life. It was quite disappointing, though when I bought the pops I was really just wanting the regular size pops and they didn't have any on the end cap, or so I thought, so I just bought the giant size. So, I guess I really got what I wanted, I'm just a little miffed that all of a sudden, the normal sized freeze pops are now being called "giant".
Does anyone else find that freeze pops make you cough? They make me cough, so you may hear me call them cough-pops. I also have cough-gum. Extra brand gum, the light blue package. It's my favorite one, but it has a tendency to make me cough.
Another note, the box says the freeze pops are "giant" sized. I open up the box to see if the glorious tubes of colored, flavored sugar water have crystallized (no luck) and find the same size freeze pops I have been consuming all my life. It was quite disappointing, though when I bought the pops I was really just wanting the regular size pops and they didn't have any on the end cap, or so I thought, so I just bought the giant size. So, I guess I really got what I wanted, I'm just a little miffed that all of a sudden, the normal sized freeze pops are now being called "giant".
Does anyone else find that freeze pops make you cough? They make me cough, so you may hear me call them cough-pops. I also have cough-gum. Extra brand gum, the light blue package. It's my favorite one, but it has a tendency to make me cough.
Thursday, May 04, 2006
Seat dancing.
So, tonight I get an awesome phone call. My friend Jen, who had read my previous blog earlier today, calls me and all I can hear coming from the other end of the line is Sean Paul's "Temperature" cranked. Apparently Jen does the car seat dance too; I am not alone.
This got me thinking about some amazing hip-hop songs that get my booty shaking, this is not an all-inclusive list, but more of a 'these songs are on the top of my head' list and I regularly shake my ass to these...
1. "Get Low" - Lil' Jon
2. "My Humps" - Black Eyed Peas... Okay, I might as well list the entire latest Black Eyed Peas album because pretty much every song on there rules.
3. "Hypnotize" - Notorious B.I.G
4. "...Baby One more time" - Britney Spears
5. "Stronger" - Britney Spears. Yep, Britney made it on my list two times...
6. "Bubble Pop Electric" - Gwen Stefani
7. "Put your back into it" - Ice Cube
8. "Baby Got Back" - Sir Mix A lot
9. "Big Pimpin'" - Jay-Z
10. "Put it on me" - Ja Rule
11. "Izzo" - Jay-Z. I love Jay-Z, he makes the list twice. Nope, make that 3 times....
12. "Can I Get A..." - Jay-Z
13. "B.O.B." - Outkast. That's the best Outkast one, but I also must mention "So Fresh, So Clean" and "Hey Yeah".
This got me thinking about some amazing hip-hop songs that get my booty shaking, this is not an all-inclusive list, but more of a 'these songs are on the top of my head' list and I regularly shake my ass to these...
1. "Get Low" - Lil' Jon
2. "My Humps" - Black Eyed Peas... Okay, I might as well list the entire latest Black Eyed Peas album because pretty much every song on there rules.
3. "Hypnotize" - Notorious B.I.G
4. "...Baby One more time" - Britney Spears
5. "Stronger" - Britney Spears. Yep, Britney made it on my list two times...
6. "Bubble Pop Electric" - Gwen Stefani
7. "Put your back into it" - Ice Cube
8. "Baby Got Back" - Sir Mix A lot
9. "Big Pimpin'" - Jay-Z
10. "Put it on me" - Ja Rule
11. "Izzo" - Jay-Z. I love Jay-Z, he makes the list twice. Nope, make that 3 times....
12. "Can I Get A..." - Jay-Z
13. "B.O.B." - Outkast. That's the best Outkast one, but I also must mention "So Fresh, So Clean" and "Hey Yeah".
Flashbacks
I have been having some flashbacks this morning...
First, I was looking outside at the dump truck picking up the trash out of the dumpster and was totally fascinated by the process. It reminded me of being little and getting excited for the garbage guys to come by. Why is it that children are so enthralled by big trucks (garbage trucks, firetrucks, ambulances)? Was it just me?
Then, I busted out my TI-36 calculator to do some simple calculations this morning and it totally reminded me of being in 6th grade and getting my first scientific calculator, the TI-36, and feeling so super cool because I was in the honors math class (nerd) and got to get one of these, while others in the regular math class still were using their ghetto, non-scientific calculators. (That was one long ass run-on sentence). Sadly, I could hardly remember how to use it.
First, I was looking outside at the dump truck picking up the trash out of the dumpster and was totally fascinated by the process. It reminded me of being little and getting excited for the garbage guys to come by. Why is it that children are so enthralled by big trucks (garbage trucks, firetrucks, ambulances)? Was it just me?
Then, I busted out my TI-36 calculator to do some simple calculations this morning and it totally reminded me of being in 6th grade and getting my first scientific calculator, the TI-36, and feeling so super cool because I was in the honors math class (nerd) and got to get one of these, while others in the regular math class still were using their ghetto, non-scientific calculators. (That was one long ass run-on sentence). Sadly, I could hardly remember how to use it.
Top 5...
thoughts about music. Why? because (1) I just finished reading High Fidelity, thus the Top 5 list AND (2) simply because I've been thinking about random things like this lately.
Top 5 Thoughts about Music [05.04.06]
1. I get very upset when I discover a band that I really like only to find out they broke up years ago. I recall this happening when I first listened to Failure several years ago. It was a CD like no other, I fell in love with it. Then, much to my dismay (and bewilderment- I seriously could not believe the album I was listening to was THAT old and that they were never more popular), I found out it was from 1996 and they broke up long ago.
2. The Radio. I once thought it pure evil, aside from the jazz station broadcasted from College of Dupage. Now, without a CD player in my car, I find myself listening to it ALL of the time, at least 90% of the time, when I forget to bring the ipod or my awesome mix cassette tapes that I made in High School. Anyways, I digress... I find myself liking the radio, maybe not all of the music, but it makes me feel young and more 'with it'. I know now all of the popular songs and don't feel like an idiot when people are talking about Sean Paul and I have no clue who he is. By the way, that Sean Paul song rules, I literally do a seat dance when that comes on in the car, and when I hear it on the verizon commercial... somebody better stop me.
3. Kelly Clarkson: love, Love, LOVE this album. I have to say whoever produced/wrote these songs is PURE genius. Seriously. Even my mom didn't believe me when I said I wanted this CD. At least 5 of the album's 12 songs are huge hits. That in itself is huge, and seriously, it's about 20 times more amazing since this girl came from American Idol. Okay, let's just say, I can't get enough of Kelly.
4. Something that irks me: bands that make a come-back after being relatively unpopular (and refuse to give up) for years. Example: Pearl Jam. I'm not quite sure why this bothers me so much, perhaps it's because I remember listening to Pearl Jam as a freshman in high school and I just feel like they are now has-beens. Is that wrong? Loved them in high school, hate them now. And honestly, I haven't even heard their new single yet, I am just basing this purely on feeling and not objectively on their current music.
5. Something I love: good bands that come back after being on hiatus for years. Example: can I tell you how excited I am to see the Smoking Popes in just two weeks?! I never got to see them back in the 90s, and now I get my chance.
Top 5 Thoughts about Music [05.04.06]
1. I get very upset when I discover a band that I really like only to find out they broke up years ago. I recall this happening when I first listened to Failure several years ago. It was a CD like no other, I fell in love with it. Then, much to my dismay (and bewilderment- I seriously could not believe the album I was listening to was THAT old and that they were never more popular), I found out it was from 1996 and they broke up long ago.
2. The Radio. I once thought it pure evil, aside from the jazz station broadcasted from College of Dupage. Now, without a CD player in my car, I find myself listening to it ALL of the time, at least 90% of the time, when I forget to bring the ipod or my awesome mix cassette tapes that I made in High School. Anyways, I digress... I find myself liking the radio, maybe not all of the music, but it makes me feel young and more 'with it'. I know now all of the popular songs and don't feel like an idiot when people are talking about Sean Paul and I have no clue who he is. By the way, that Sean Paul song rules, I literally do a seat dance when that comes on in the car, and when I hear it on the verizon commercial... somebody better stop me.
3. Kelly Clarkson: love, Love, LOVE this album. I have to say whoever produced/wrote these songs is PURE genius. Seriously. Even my mom didn't believe me when I said I wanted this CD. At least 5 of the album's 12 songs are huge hits. That in itself is huge, and seriously, it's about 20 times more amazing since this girl came from American Idol. Okay, let's just say, I can't get enough of Kelly.
4. Something that irks me: bands that make a come-back after being relatively unpopular (and refuse to give up) for years. Example: Pearl Jam. I'm not quite sure why this bothers me so much, perhaps it's because I remember listening to Pearl Jam as a freshman in high school and I just feel like they are now has-beens. Is that wrong? Loved them in high school, hate them now. And honestly, I haven't even heard their new single yet, I am just basing this purely on feeling and not objectively on their current music.
5. Something I love: good bands that come back after being on hiatus for years. Example: can I tell you how excited I am to see the Smoking Popes in just two weeks?! I never got to see them back in the 90s, and now I get my chance.
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