and i don't have to leave until july 12! i never thought i would be traveling so much, but it's kind of fun. i have lots of pictures to upload to my computer, but last night i just needed to take a night to relax.
the drive back from hershey was about 2.5 hours and felt like a mini-road trip. i had the windows rolled down, the ipod cranking out rocky votolato, regina spektor, sleigh bells, and radiohead. had such a great time singing at the top of my lungs. and have you heard sleigh bells? my summer favorite, definitely. i love how distorted the sound is, with her sweet vocals on top.
last night TH and i took a walk around our neighborhood with nice weather for the first time in weeks. we ended up at sweetgreen for salad and froyo, then back to our apartment to watch the funniest not-meant-to-be funny 80's movie ever: wall street.
working-class new jersey guy, bud fox aka charlie sheen, makes it big on wall street and has a moment where he looks out over the city from his upper east side apartment and says outloud, "who am i?" HILARIOUS. he also litters, rides a motorcycle, buys pretentious modern art, and eats steak tartare. i'm just saying, if you want to laugh, watch this movie.
it was a great night. it's nice to be back home. tonight i'm going grocery shopping like a normal person. that's the thing i'm looking forward to most this whole week. sweet.
Jun 30, 2010
Jun 28, 2010
hershey, pa. living the dream.
finally, all those years in college and working in DC have paid off! i got to come to a conference in hershey, pa. all expenses trip paid to stay in the sweet hershey hotel and eat all the free chocolate i can get my hands on. i'm only here for like 30 hours, but it's still a dream come true for me.
we flew in last night at 2am from utah, and i left my house at 10am to drive up to pennsylvania. i'm a little tired of being on the road, except that i don't really care because it is literally 100 degrees and the humidity is out of control in DC and guess whose apartment window AC is performing subpar? so i don't mind at all staying in lovely air conditioned hotel rooms, and by the time i come back to dc, the weather is supposed to drop down to the mid-eighties. i can deal with mid-eighties.
utah was just the most delightful breath of fresh air. we had a great time. mei and dave got married. we played with family. we rode the bobsled on the olympic track (aii!!). we ate entirely at 3 out of the 4 diners, drives and dumps or whatever that show is and we felt STUFFED by the time we left. it was the perfect vacation, really. will report with pictures soon.
now i have to go eat chocolate-dipped something and drink chocolate-laced something. and then fall asleep in a chocolate induced coma. hooray.
we flew in last night at 2am from utah, and i left my house at 10am to drive up to pennsylvania. i'm a little tired of being on the road, except that i don't really care because it is literally 100 degrees and the humidity is out of control in DC and guess whose apartment window AC is performing subpar? so i don't mind at all staying in lovely air conditioned hotel rooms, and by the time i come back to dc, the weather is supposed to drop down to the mid-eighties. i can deal with mid-eighties.
utah was just the most delightful breath of fresh air. we had a great time. mei and dave got married. we played with family. we rode the bobsled on the olympic track (aii!!). we ate entirely at 3 out of the 4 diners, drives and dumps or whatever that show is and we felt STUFFED by the time we left. it was the perfect vacation, really. will report with pictures soon.
now i have to go eat chocolate-dipped something and drink chocolate-laced something. and then fall asleep in a chocolate induced coma. hooray.
Jun 23, 2010
a baseball game.
although strasburg hadn't started pitching yet, we still had a fun time at the nats game. who was playing? oh...um...hmm...well, i went for the food and friends to enjoy a hot summer night - the best part of baseball.
lil' kim
hot steph
and richie, the birthday boy.
we finished this night with subs at taylors deli - the perfect late night spot.
and now, the many faces of the nationals stadium. these pictures have made me laugh for weeks. i love these people.
miss annie gray
mr. husband
miss annie gray
mr. husband
lil' kim
hot steph
and richie, the birthday boy.
we finished this night with subs at taylors deli - the perfect late night spot.
humor.
yesterday morning on our way to work, we were approached by a guy in his mid-twenties standing by the metro entrance. "want to come to a GOP happy hour tonight?" and i said, "oh, you guys dedicate one hour a day for happiness? is that how you live with yourselves?" haha. i kid, i did not really say that but i wanted to.
the last time i said something funny to someone i did not know was on earth day when i saw a greenpeace volunteer asking for donations. i said to him, "it's like seeing a leprechaun on st. patricks day!" he laughed, and we hi-fived.
then i started thinking about all the funny and witty things that people i do not know have said to me over the years. and i wondered, maybe that thing they said to me was the funniest thing they've ever said! because i don't know if i've ever said anything funnier than the leprechaun thing before. so i always walk away thinking, "man, i wish i were as funny as that person". but maybe i am, folks. maybe i am as funny as the person who gets one good zinger in their whole life.
also, fyi - today is another good hair day. of course, that's after taking a shower. this morning i looked like kevin bacon when i woke up. aiii!
the last time i said something funny to someone i did not know was on earth day when i saw a greenpeace volunteer asking for donations. i said to him, "it's like seeing a leprechaun on st. patricks day!" he laughed, and we hi-fived.
then i started thinking about all the funny and witty things that people i do not know have said to me over the years. and i wondered, maybe that thing they said to me was the funniest thing they've ever said! because i don't know if i've ever said anything funnier than the leprechaun thing before. so i always walk away thinking, "man, i wish i were as funny as that person". but maybe i am, folks. maybe i am as funny as the person who gets one good zinger in their whole life.
also, fyi - today is another good hair day. of course, that's after taking a shower. this morning i looked like kevin bacon when i woke up. aiii!
Jun 22, 2010
old knees.
ok and today i'm having a great hair day. who knew. thanks for your kind words yesterday, they meant a lot. and yes, the quote was from little women. i'm glad me and my blog friends all have love for this movie. it makes me feel close to the interwebs, which may be a good or bad thing i do not know.
yesterday i left work early because i felt awful. head ache and leg ache. my knee has been bothering me since our big hikes and it's getting worse. i started taking glucosomine, which works better when you do not drink soda, so i stopped drinking diet coke. so caffeine withdrawals and a sore and tired body apparently do not make for a happy gnomie. i went home, watched a movie, iced my leg, and wrote some more thank you notes from the wedding.
i felt worse this morning, and now i'm kind of nervous. i think it's an IT band injury, but how is it that it's just getting worse? i haven't ran or done any physical activity since Seattle, but it's not letting up. anybody had this problem before? i wake up with super stiff knees and it's getting kind of hard to go up stairs. i have a drs appt next week, hoping i can still walk by then.
yesterday i left work early because i felt awful. head ache and leg ache. my knee has been bothering me since our big hikes and it's getting worse. i started taking glucosomine, which works better when you do not drink soda, so i stopped drinking diet coke. so caffeine withdrawals and a sore and tired body apparently do not make for a happy gnomie. i went home, watched a movie, iced my leg, and wrote some more thank you notes from the wedding.
i felt worse this morning, and now i'm kind of nervous. i think it's an IT band injury, but how is it that it's just getting worse? i haven't ran or done any physical activity since Seattle, but it's not letting up. anybody had this problem before? i wake up with super stiff knees and it's getting kind of hard to go up stairs. i have a drs appt next week, hoping i can still walk by then.
Jun 21, 2010
chia pet.
if only i were a chia pet, with hair that could grow back in a matter of weeks.
today i hate my hair.
tomorrow i will probably love it again.
it's amazing how back and forth i go in a matter of hours. extreme hatred and near tears to swinging my hips a little more cause i love it.
my coworker came in my office today asking why i cut it off and told me i looked like a boy. what a jerk. did she ever think that maybe androgyny was what i was going for? or maybe that its nice to not have to worry about being in the olden days where women had to have long hair? or was my hair my one beauty (points to someone who can name that quote)?
today i hate my hair.
tomorrow i will probably love it again.
it's amazing how back and forth i go in a matter of hours. extreme hatred and near tears to swinging my hips a little more cause i love it.
my coworker came in my office today asking why i cut it off and told me i looked like a boy. what a jerk. did she ever think that maybe androgyny was what i was going for? or maybe that its nice to not have to worry about being in the olden days where women had to have long hair? or was my hair my one beauty (points to someone who can name that quote)?
short week or utah here we come.
weekend was awesome. lots of family time. and you know what we finally did? CLEANED OUR APARTMENT!! i like it sooo much more now. we have 2 functioning bathrooms. we have our other half of the bedroom. we have an organized kitchen. i love the smell of a freshly cleaned house. now we only have to organize the laundry room and the office and we are done.
this weekend was really fun. friday night we ate a yummy pasta dinner at pasta mia (with the best caesar salad i've ever had) with robbie and hannah. saturday we woke up early to get started on cleaning house. around noon, we went to old town manassas to see TH's dad sing in a 4th of july performance. afterwards we went to an old bookstore and found a really cool print of the stone bridge - in manassas. we hung it up in our house and i feel like it's finally becoming home for us. yay. saturday night, my dad and sister and company came up to go to good stuff burgers with us. everytime before i go i think i'm sick of eating greasy food and milkshakes, but then its always SO good. sorry for doubting you, good stuff. after dinner, we ran into naomi and josh, and i thought how much i love living on capitol hill where i just run into friends all the time. it's kind of like living in crystal city. you can't throw a stone without hitting a friend (not that i want to hit friends with stones...you understand).
we go to utah on thursday for mei and dave's wedding. and i can't believe i'm saying this, but we are SO excited to go! it's been about 2 years since i visited, and having lived there for about 5 years there are lots of things i love about utah, mainly food related (shocker). i'm looking at you bakeries, one world cafe, red iguana, and mexican taco trucks by Sears. we're also going to try to get out a little and see things we haven't seen before, like the spiral jetty. and of course, excited to see our cute relatives, too. and get away from the oppressive 95 degree heat and humidity in VA.
so...how was your weekend?
this weekend was really fun. friday night we ate a yummy pasta dinner at pasta mia (with the best caesar salad i've ever had) with robbie and hannah. saturday we woke up early to get started on cleaning house. around noon, we went to old town manassas to see TH's dad sing in a 4th of july performance. afterwards we went to an old bookstore and found a really cool print of the stone bridge - in manassas. we hung it up in our house and i feel like it's finally becoming home for us. yay. saturday night, my dad and sister and company came up to go to good stuff burgers with us. everytime before i go i think i'm sick of eating greasy food and milkshakes, but then its always SO good. sorry for doubting you, good stuff. after dinner, we ran into naomi and josh, and i thought how much i love living on capitol hill where i just run into friends all the time. it's kind of like living in crystal city. you can't throw a stone without hitting a friend (not that i want to hit friends with stones...you understand).
we go to utah on thursday for mei and dave's wedding. and i can't believe i'm saying this, but we are SO excited to go! it's been about 2 years since i visited, and having lived there for about 5 years there are lots of things i love about utah, mainly food related (shocker). i'm looking at you bakeries, one world cafe, red iguana, and mexican taco trucks by Sears. we're also going to try to get out a little and see things we haven't seen before, like the spiral jetty. and of course, excited to see our cute relatives, too. and get away from the oppressive 95 degree heat and humidity in VA.
so...how was your weekend?
Jun 18, 2010
Stuck on a bridge
Last night was a costco night. We stocked up on enough vitamins and tp to cover us through the second coming. Pretty great. After costco we went to quatro formaggi in old town Alexandria to pick up a tomato and olive pizza, and I decided to take 495 home. And wouldn't you know it we got stuck on the drawbridge waiting for a boat. So there we were, car full of bulk food items and a hot pizza, not to mention- our friend sent us a wedding present in the mail yesterday- four bags of black and white cookies from westside market, my absolute favorites!! Anyway we had so much fun, making jokes, eating pizza and cookies and loving the time together, uninterrupted by distractions.
I was real happy to be so lucky to get stuck on a bridge with my loves in one car. Husband, pizza, and cookies. Gimme a break.
I was real happy to be so lucky to get stuck on a bridge with my loves in one car. Husband, pizza, and cookies. Gimme a break.
Jun 17, 2010
chop goes the scissors. gnomie goes pixie.
let's revisit the metamorphosis of gnomies hair in 2010.
january 2010. 
march 2010.
march 2010.
april 2010.
may 2010.
june 2010.
i feel brave. i feel so nice. having short hair makes ponytails look funny on other people. "why don't they just cut it off?", i think to myself. i still have some learning to do on styling, but for now i'm just loving the feel of the breeze blowing on my bare neck and the small dime sized shampoo i use. hello new summer haircut.the koens come for a visit.
last week, for just a few hours, i was able to see my sister and her family before i left on whirlwind trips to seattle/alabama. i am so in love with her family. they are perfect. and little evie was the tiniest thing ever and i may have pretended she was mine for a little bit and may have liked it when people on the streets gave me "awwws" and cocked their heads and smiled gently. the "aww, you have a baby" smile.
she already hams it up for the camera. this is a good baby.
papa mickey, tony, and mini tony (elijah) walking through folger park.
gnomie and her new baby...niece. that baby holder thing is so awesome. i want a purse like that - its so ergonomic!
lijah and mary playing games. please everyone move to our neighborhood! we had so much fun!
elijah is the toughest, most independent baby/toddler i've ever known. he climbed up here all by himself and only when he was up on top of everything did he stay still for a few minutes. he just likes to be in control. i can get behind that.
so excited to see these people again next week! and the rest of our utah family, too. wa hoo!
but look how tiny! this is like 2 minutes after seeing her for the first time. i was so impressed with her manicured fingers.
she already hams it up for the camera. this is a good baby.
papa mickey, tony, and mini tony (elijah) walking through folger park.
gnomie and her new baby...niece. that baby holder thing is so awesome. i want a purse like that - its so ergonomic!
lijah and mary playing games. please everyone move to our neighborhood! we had so much fun!
elijah is the toughest, most independent baby/toddler i've ever known. he climbed up here all by himself and only when he was up on top of everything did he stay still for a few minutes. he just likes to be in control. i can get behind that.
so excited to see these people again next week! and the rest of our utah family, too. wa hoo!
Jun 16, 2010
mid-june assessment
1. it's hot. everywhere i go is hot. somebody let me sit next to a pool, please!
2. not blogging helped with my internet ADD. i will start again, but am trying to lessen other blogs i look at. only reading people's blogs i know and a few select design blogs.
3. denver. seattle. alabama. = check. halfway done with the traveling for this month. it's safe to say i hate airports and will try for the rest of my life to only get direct flights, or i always miss my connections. HATE.
4. our apartment is scarily messy. since we've been in and out so sporadically on various trips, it's like a flea market in our place. dishes everywhere, camping stuff strewn about, clothes lying on the ground...i'm struggling to like where i live right now. luckily we have declared saturday as national cleaning our apartment day. i have never been so excited to clean.
5. comcast cable sent us a letter saying they accidentally gave us too many channels when they installed our cable and they are taking them away at the end of the month. what are they taking away? please don't say comedy or bravo or AMC or...lifetime! secretly i want them to take it all away. TV is such a time waster. this is supposed to be the summer of reading, after all.
6. oh yes, summer of reading. i'm cheating my way through it. i got a book on tape or whatever you call it now (digital book?). The Help. it is amazing and i'm loving just turning on my iPod and listening to the great reading voices. i can't recommend this book enough. plus listening to it rather than reading has forced me to take in every word. i'm a big time skimmer when i read, so this is quite different for me. i like it. i only have 45 minutes left in this book, then it's onto the next! i think i'm going to read a classic.
Last night, TH picked me up from the airport. We came home and he surprised me with some SweetGreen salads he'd picked up for us! I was so happy, and so tired I almost started crying. We watched The Daily Show and ate our salads like a typical night home, and I was so happy to be back. happy to be back.
2. not blogging helped with my internet ADD. i will start again, but am trying to lessen other blogs i look at. only reading people's blogs i know and a few select design blogs.
3. denver. seattle. alabama. = check. halfway done with the traveling for this month. it's safe to say i hate airports and will try for the rest of my life to only get direct flights, or i always miss my connections. HATE.
4. our apartment is scarily messy. since we've been in and out so sporadically on various trips, it's like a flea market in our place. dishes everywhere, camping stuff strewn about, clothes lying on the ground...i'm struggling to like where i live right now. luckily we have declared saturday as national cleaning our apartment day. i have never been so excited to clean.
5. comcast cable sent us a letter saying they accidentally gave us too many channels when they installed our cable and they are taking them away at the end of the month. what are they taking away? please don't say comedy or bravo or AMC or...lifetime! secretly i want them to take it all away. TV is such a time waster. this is supposed to be the summer of reading, after all.
6. oh yes, summer of reading. i'm cheating my way through it. i got a book on tape or whatever you call it now (digital book?). The Help. it is amazing and i'm loving just turning on my iPod and listening to the great reading voices. i can't recommend this book enough. plus listening to it rather than reading has forced me to take in every word. i'm a big time skimmer when i read, so this is quite different for me. i like it. i only have 45 minutes left in this book, then it's onto the next! i think i'm going to read a classic.
Last night, TH picked me up from the airport. We came home and he surprised me with some SweetGreen salads he'd picked up for us! I was so happy, and so tired I almost started crying. We watched The Daily Show and ate our salads like a typical night home, and I was so happy to be back. happy to be back.
Jun 15, 2010
hard times for a vegetarian.
i'm a bipolar vegetarian. it's getting ridiculous. one day i refuse to eat any meat and become upset if there are no good veg options for meals, and then the next day i will sit down to a chick-fil-a sandwich. so sue me.
apparently alabama is testing my dedication to the vegetarian cause, as well. i was dying for a salad today, but there was nothing green to be found in any "restaurant" i found. it was street after street of whattaburger, cheeburger cheeburger, chick-fil-a, burger king, waffle house, cracker barrel, burger king, chick-fil-a, waffle house, etc, etc. i finally found a sandwich place and got a veggie wrap. turns out they grill their veggie wraps which means i got a hot tortilla stuffed with hot wilted lettuce, soggy cucumbers, and mushrooms. i can't think of anything sicker.
anyway tonight i went to a work reception and got my fill on salad. i basically filled my entire plate with salad, throwing a couple hushpuppies on top for balance. people stared at me like i was alien and guess what - i WAS. but man, i've had it up to here with snacky foods and fried stuff. SweetGreen just opened by our house and i couldn't be happier. they have the best salads and froyo, too.
you guys, basically what this boils down to is the fact that i'm just a picky eater with bouge problems. what's a girl to do.
ps i found really cute shoes today at target. score.
pps this trip makes it final - i've visited all states in the southeast! now i only have a few more on the list to cross off. the dakotas, the great lakes states, and the northeast. i smell a road trip...
apparently alabama is testing my dedication to the vegetarian cause, as well. i was dying for a salad today, but there was nothing green to be found in any "restaurant" i found. it was street after street of whattaburger, cheeburger cheeburger, chick-fil-a, burger king, waffle house, cracker barrel, burger king, chick-fil-a, waffle house, etc, etc. i finally found a sandwich place and got a veggie wrap. turns out they grill their veggie wraps which means i got a hot tortilla stuffed with hot wilted lettuce, soggy cucumbers, and mushrooms. i can't think of anything sicker.
anyway tonight i went to a work reception and got my fill on salad. i basically filled my entire plate with salad, throwing a couple hushpuppies on top for balance. people stared at me like i was alien and guess what - i WAS. but man, i've had it up to here with snacky foods and fried stuff. SweetGreen just opened by our house and i couldn't be happier. they have the best salads and froyo, too.
you guys, basically what this boils down to is the fact that i'm just a picky eater with bouge problems. what's a girl to do.
ps i found really cute shoes today at target. score.
pps this trip makes it final - i've visited all states in the southeast! now i only have a few more on the list to cross off. the dakotas, the great lakes states, and the northeast. i smell a road trip...
Jun 14, 2010
Living in the airport
Hi friends.
I'm just back for a brief update. Spent last weekend in Seattle doing the craziest things on the side of a snowy mountain. Now headed to mobile Alabama for a short work trip. So many things have happened I wanted to share on el blogo, but it was also nice to have some moments to just enjoy without thinkig about how to document.
Last week the highlight was seeing my baby sister and her two babies. I held her newest one all evening and fell completely in love. She was a preemie so she is just now at newborn size at 2 months old. Holding a little tiny baby really changes your perspective on life, you know? People are crazy to have one of their own, but I'm sure I'll jump on the bandwagon at some point.
Right now we are taking advantage of newlywed status by doing things such as sleeping on the side of a snowy mountain in June, hopping over to Utah for the weekend, skipping up to NYC for weekends, going to Sunday night shows(the national at DAR. Swoon.) anyway, I feel really lucky and happy to be where I am in life. Grateful to be alive after this adventurous weekend, and really interested to check out the south and the oil spill and document it. I will update soon with pictures and stories!
I'm just back for a brief update. Spent last weekend in Seattle doing the craziest things on the side of a snowy mountain. Now headed to mobile Alabama for a short work trip. So many things have happened I wanted to share on el blogo, but it was also nice to have some moments to just enjoy without thinkig about how to document.
Last week the highlight was seeing my baby sister and her two babies. I held her newest one all evening and fell completely in love. She was a preemie so she is just now at newborn size at 2 months old. Holding a little tiny baby really changes your perspective on life, you know? People are crazy to have one of their own, but I'm sure I'll jump on the bandwagon at some point.
Right now we are taking advantage of newlywed status by doing things such as sleeping on the side of a snowy mountain in June, hopping over to Utah for the weekend, skipping up to NYC for weekends, going to Sunday night shows(the national at DAR. Swoon.) anyway, I feel really lucky and happy to be where I am in life. Grateful to be alive after this adventurous weekend, and really interested to check out the south and the oil spill and document it. I will update soon with pictures and stories!
Jun 1, 2010
media fast.
goodbye blogworld for a while. the internet is incredible distracting so i'm taking a break to refocus my life. it's amazing how much of my day is filled with blogs, facebook, twitter, news, online shopping, music sites, gawker, emails, etc. it's actually been bothering me quite a bit lately, so i'm turning it all off. i need to breathe.
i am a survivor.
22 miles, 5 mountain summits, 2 nights camping, and gallons of water later...i am alive!!
the 10K was cake compared to this. we hiked the devils path in the catskills, which many believe to be the toughest hike in the east coast. i believe them. the ascents were all extremely and relentlessly steep with parts that felt more like rock climbing. the descents were the same, prompting many to call one particular mountain "suicide mountain". we hiked down it in the dark with headlamps only! (we are all crazy.) 6 mountains in total, you summit 5 of them as part of the hike. my quads and knees feel like jello.
TH's friends, owen and anna invited us on this trip to prep us for our hike next weekend in Washington state. i'm so thankful they did because i feel like i could pretty much do anything now! my body once again totally surprised me as i was able to conquer all those mountains without breaking down to cry. it was really hard, don't get me wrong, but i was capable of hiking it. i just didn't think i could do it. yay me. it also helped to be with friends in the woods, starting a rousing fire, scaring ourselves with bear attacks, having so much fun with the doggy, Ciara (what a trooper she was!), and breathing the fresh mountain air. in the end - a great retreat to the mountains. it was so beautiful.
on the 7 hour drive home, we drove through princeton, nj to visit TH's old stomping grounds to eat pizza and ice cream (reward food, obvs) and we got absolutely poured on in a freak rain storm. my tired legs could barely muster up strength to run to the car. they felt like someone elses legs! even this morning, i'm just waiting for the dull soreness to leave my body please. you know, so in another 8 days i can murder my legs again.
TH and i turned in early, around 10pm. as soon as we pulled back the covers and slipped into the fluffy bed, we were OUT. arrgh so nice! and i felt happy to have used my body so bravely and boldly over the weekend. finally, a good reason to REALLY sleep, rather then "i had a tough day at work". haha. another reason i am in the wrong line of work.
how was your weekend? did you enjoy the welcome of almost summer?
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