May 31, 2010

Weekend Wanderings: CT!

This weekend James and I ventured to Monroe, CT to spend the holiday weekend with Lauren and Pat. We did everything from frisbee to sushi. HA! Sushi? On Memorial Day Weekend? What about the burgers? No. When your with Pat and Lauren, its all about the Asian Cuisine. We did have some delicious shrimp and chicken kabobs--so no, it wasn't all about the raw fish.







We went and wandered around in Huntington State Park and enjoyed the sunny day. ALLEGEDLY, there are beavers there. I SAW NO BEAVERS. Oh sure, I saw the hard work beavers might do to make their dams but I never did come across a beaver in the flesh or the fur or whatever. I mean, I'm coming off a weekend of seeing herds of wild horses. BEAVERS?! I'm less than impressed. (I'm kidding--it was a beautiful park but we were not very successful in finding those pesky creatures)









It was so nice to be out of the city and back amongst the beautiful trees! and flowers! and back yard bbq's and parks! James and I took a walk around Pat's neighborhood before dinner one night and saw kids playing soccer in the front yard of their house and another family having a big Memorial Day Weekend party. We could hear the lawnmowers in the distance and could smell the fresh cut grass. It was perfect. It was Summer. It just doesn't feel like summer to me here in NYC. Summer is a big grill outside fired up with dinner and sand in the car from a trip to the beach. I think I need to make my own summer memories here so I don't need to escape the big apple every weekend.

I ventured into the hot hot city today after we got back to go to the farmers market in Union Square. I bought an unholy amount of strawberries because they are so damn sweet and this ultra pretty bouquet of flowers.



Good weekend with great friends--hoping there are many more this summer.

May 27, 2010

Favorites

I never knew what is was about the word favorite that got under my skin for all these years--but I think I've figured it out. Favorites are just so hard. When you were little you were always expected to choose.

Favorite color!

Favorite animal!

Favorite song!

I never really had any of those things. I still don't. I guess if you forced me to choose I could probably spit out answers on almost all of my 'favorite' things but in my head there would be numerous other options floating around for the taking. I don't know what it is about me--but I just can't choose what tops my list. I started this blog with the intention of helping me narrow down my interests and figure out my one passion but I just don't think I'm that kind of girl.

I know what I'm good at. I know what I like. I know what I don't like. Why does it have to be just one thing? I always tell James that I'm jealous of his love for photography if only because it is something that he has as his own. It is his thing. Well, I just don't have one. Maybe one day there will be something that can stand alone at the top of my list but for now I forge ahead with quite a few interests and more than one favorite in almost every category.

But, if you were to ask me to name my favorite warm weather drink (or really just one of my favorite things to sip on) it would be this:



What is this? This is seltzer with just a little splash of juice. This is so good. You don't even want to know how many cases of seltzer my mom brought for me on a recent visit. HEY--At least its not BOOZE! Although I do love a summer cocktail. I told you I couldn't choose!

May 26, 2010

Suspense!

Lately, I've been reading mysteries. Never have I been the thriller type but having been a bit sick of my usual reads filled with heartbreak and/or drama and/or babies (I swear I'm semi educated despite my interest in less than scholarly reads) -- I decided to switch to a new genre.

Now let me make this clear, if you see me reading a book that is even a tiny bit science fictiony mystery thriller--you are seeing a girl that looks like me but is most certainly not me. I don't do fantasy. Never saw Lord of The Rings, never read Harry Potter and don't even get me started on the Twilight series. I just don't do it. My feet are waaaayyy to firmly planted in reality and my imagination comes to a dead stop when an alien enters the picture. Seriously, ALIENS?!

Anyway, my new fond love for more drama based mysteries with a bit of a story behind them and for good measure, throw in a little tiny love story amongst the detectives started with this book:



In The Woods by Tana French (via here)

I loved it. Read it--the next one is called The Likeness and its just as good. BUT, I need another mystery to get attached to. Help?

May 24, 2010

Assateague Island

Our vacation was amazing. I don't even know where to begin. I guess I didn't do enough research because I kept getting STUNNED by the beauty! and the horses! and the beaches! and the sunsets! James kept asking me if I even knew where we were going and why didn't know I know how awesome this was going to be. I guess I've been too busy catching up on my reality television to notice that I was basically jetting off to the most beautiful place I've ever been.

Some highlights from the trip:

James must be a threat to homeland security because the boy got detained at every security check point we crossed. If it wasn't one of this twenty cameras it was the water that was hanging around in his water bottle. If it isn't his water bottle it was the corkscrew! Needless to say, the people behind him in line at LaGaurdia didn't really have a lot of good things to say about Mr. Turnley.

We stayed in Ocean City, MD. Although it had a pretty boardwalk and a beach for miles, we concluded it was the tackiest place either of us has ever been. I can imagine the cast of 'The Jersey Shore' fitting in perfectly there. It is lined with cheesy hotels and motels and has a french fry stand every other block. Holy hell--it was quite a bit different from the beautiful Assateague Island.

We found horses. When I say that we stumbled upon a pack of wild horses at sunset, I know it sounds like I've been drinking, but for I'm serious. It was unreal. They were, at times, less than a few inches away from us. I have no words. It was the most unbelievable scene I've ever been a part of. I kept saying to James, "No one is ever going to believe us!" but then I remembered we were armed with 48 cameras. We came back the next day and searched for them--they were miles out into a field that we couldn't get to but thanks to my restlessness on our last afternoon I drove our little rental car around the island and happened to stumble upon them at the exact right time. They were galloping across the marsh and right past us. I claimed it was because they missed me and that I was their horse whisperer--upon which time James turned and walked the other way. Apparently he had heard enough of my tales of horsemanship.

It was the perfect mix of relaxation, adventure and summer. The weather was beautiful and the company was even better (and by company I mean the wild ponies but it was nice having James there too.)

Here are a few great shots from the trip but head over to my Flickr (on the right) and you can check out all of them. It felt great being able to use my new camera--still learning! I'll probably post some more stories about this trip but I just wanted to share before two weeks go by and I forget whether it was ponies I was chasing or something else entirely.







(Also, click the pics to make them bigger! click them!)

May 19, 2010

Happy Weekend!

Kicking off the weekend early this week! Headed on my big trip with James tomorrow morning but wanted to share a few favorite songs with you guys for the sunshiney weather that is headed to the east coast! I'm sick of this cloudy rainy mess and will be glad to see the sun tomorrow! Enjoy!





May 17, 2010

Opposites Attract

James and I met on a mostly blind date. I may or may not have stalked him a bit before and caught a glimpse of him in a photo but for the most part, we were strangers. Even with the power of the internet these days, James wasn't sure if I was a student or a professor at Quinnipiac due to my mostly illusive internet presence at the time.

Needless to say, right around the holidays of last year we met up for coffee--we talked for hours. I remember my friend Jess texting me several times wondering if I had been kidnapped. Who goes to grab a coffee with a complete stranger and doesn't return for four hours? Me--well Us.


(photo via Ross Lambert)

James is brilliant and creative and compassionate. He is, as my friend Lauren would say, a stand up guy. Men of this caliber are hard to come by I'm sure.

We joke because after taking a random personality test online, the internet categorized him as a 'dreamy idealist'. And for me? Well, I am a 'reliable realist'. We are different. Very very different. BUT, we compliment each other and both teach each other valuable lessons and learn all at the same time.

Last year, over New Years, James came to stay with me for a few days at my old apartment in Connecticut. He snapped this photo of our shoes strewn about in the hallway. We laughed about this photo later because it highlights our differences so well. I tend to be a bit more pulled together--tall leather boots with a kitten heel. He tends to be a bit more haphazard--worn tennis shoes.


(photo via James Turnley)

He is always keeping me on my pointy black high heeled toes and when he isn't driving me crazy, he keeps me sane. James is a catch and most days I'm not sure how I got so lucky.

May 16, 2010

Pony Island

James and I are taking a little mini vacation this week. Where to, you might be asking?! Well--Pony Island. HA! It's not actually called that but Jen started calling it that and I think it's cute.

We are going to visit Assateague Island which is off the coast of Ocean City, MD.

Basically as a little girl (and lets be honest, still..) I loved horses. My favorite favorite book was 'Misty of Cincoteague' and when James and I were chatting about summer plans a few months ago somehow we stumbled upon Assateague Island which is basically a haven of wild horses that the book I loved as a wee girl is about! There are two sides to the island, one in Maryland and the other in Virginia, and we are hoping to explore both.

We are staying on the boardwalk in Ocean City and I'm not sure about James, but I plan on eating my fair share of boardwalk goodies! Does this not sound wonderful? You might be thinking oh yeah yeah, I'm sure there is one lone horse roaming the island but seriously, there are tons. I mean, I haven't been there before but what I've seen in pictures--its my paradise.

If you search on Flickr for Assateauge Island--this is what you get:





I am getting very excited. I am sure between James and I we will have a million pictures of our own that I will post upon our return. It is a little bit of an adventure considering it is a city/island/beach town that neither of us has been to but we are hoping it will be the perfect getaway. We shall see!

May 12, 2010

Day Trips: Bridgeport Bluefish

Internet, meet Lauren.



She's cute isn't she? She is the friend you call when you can't decide between the skirt with black stripes or blue. She is the kind of friend you call when your reading this insane article about bed bugs and your so itchy you need someone to talk you out of it. She is the kind of friend you call when you say something stupid to your boyfriend but apologizing is just so gosh darn hard sometimes! ha! She is my best friend and how I love her so.

Okay, now this is Pat.



He is Lauren's boyfriend and a friend o' mine for sure. Once, right at the very beginning of Lauren and Pats relationship, Pat and I went out for breakfast to kill some time while Lauren was teaching. Basically the entire time he talked about Lauren this! and Lauren that! but I was so distracted by the GIANT OMELETTE he was eating that I didn't hear a word. He is a man after my own stomach and a really great guy.

Pat got some extra tickets to the Bridgeport, CT Bluefish game--a minor league baseball team. He had some box seats (fancy!) and so Lauren, Pat and I went to check out the game. It was a really nice day and not too crowded at the game and best of all, it was totally different. It felt great to be doing something I haven't ever done before and even though it wasn't the Red Sox v. Yankees it felt just as fun!



And, even though it was only 1:00pm--the beer selection was just too tempting.



Pat got his hands on a foul ball and ran to grab an autograph. He scurried from our box seats, down the stairs, through the stadium and over to where the players were standing around. He managed to get there before a group of kids and he snagged an autograph. He was pretty proud of himself and it is surely an item he will treasure.



We had a great time and I'm hoping that there will be more day trips to come this summer because getting out of the city, out of the routine, out of the crazy--felt really good.

May 9, 2010

Have you seen these?

Watch this.



and then watch this..



(via Amy Krouse Rosenthal)

Smarty Pants

It is hard to imagine when you are little that the friends you have at that very moment, on the playground or in your dance class, might not be your friends forever. You think that you'll live in the same neighborhood, go to the same college and then work at the same job--when you are little, it is hard to imagine what your life will be like when your all grown up.

I don't know if I'd consider myself to be 'all grown up' but a lot has changed since those little girl hometown dreams. I moved out of Massachusetts and to Connecticut for college. It was at Quinnipiac University that I met some of my very best friends. They are some seriously stellar women (and men, but for todays purpose it is all about my lady friends!)

Today I got the chance to see one of these ladies graduate with her DOCTORATE. Laura is now a DPT (Doctor of Physical Therapy) and is now officially the smartest out of all of us. Lauren and I surprised her at the ceremony--we wanted to be there to see her special day but we also wanted to incorporate a little element of surprise. When her name was called as she walked across the platform we shouted and yelled! We called her name and when we finally got her attention, we got the look we had been waiting for. She was truly surprised and also so so happy we had come.







It was so great to be back at QU for a little bit and to help Laura celebrate her HUGE accomplishment!

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