First post of spring!!!

In celebration of spring, I have been planning a new lay out. I hope you like it! I wanted something springy, because it is high time for winter to be over and for us all to commemorate that.

I also wanted a spot specifically for poetry on my blog, which will be linked to Twilight spoofy picture on the right. You can check back from time to time to see new poems listed there.

So this first post of spring is a story. A story of what how spring can inspire and excite and motivate…organization.

So I kind of freaked out when I got this in the mail Friday:

Not only was this lovely collection on sale – that $1 off means I can get S a cinnamon bun on the way out of the store, which he lives for – but now that I am trying to save on food and cook more/eat healthier, this was the perfect item to use as an excuse to wander around Ikea for an hour or two, day dreaming and laughing and being drugged by whatever odor-free chemical they must pump through the vents in that place to make us love it so much.

So S knew we were on a mission on Saturday. He even dressed the part. And of course I documented it, seeing as my handsome boyfriend loves for me to take pictures of him all the time. Well okay, 25% of the time. 9% of the time?

The other 91% of the time, he finds me odd and obnoxious, and way too concerned with capturing these important Ikea-bound moments of ours. But he bears it, because he loves me.

We did indeed have a fun time shopping, and when we got home, I was all too excited to break out my new wares and get to cooking.

Soooo many little boxes – all microwave and dishwasher safe.

It took me about an hour, but the end result was this:

3 boxes olives
2 boxes mushrooms
2 boxes Spanish onions
1 box hummus
1 box white/wheat bread
1 box chipotle dip
1 box long grain brown rice
1 box potatoes
1 box collard greens
1 box boiled cabbage
(plus nuggets and sausage for S and 4 vegan sandwiches)

...and there was one, little, lonely extra box left!

Even O the Cat was impressed.

 I am so ready for a yummy spring!

Going green

Did you wear green on St. Patrick's Day?

I did, but barely, when I went to work. I had a pretty important meeting, so I couldn't really just pick my wardrobe for the day based on color. I wore a necklace with big, chunky green beads though, and thought that sufficed.

S did not wear green at all, and he got pinched by one of his co-workers! Serves him right!! Being nontraditional about St. Patty's day in the Boston area is a big mistake.

So to make sure S had truly made up for his lack of holiday cheer earlier, we went out that evening, decked out in more green. We didn't stay long at the lounge, because it got progressively more ridiculous with partiers every ten minutes or so, but we did stay long enough to enjoy the decorations, some delicious junk food, and to feel a part of a local celebration.

I love this picture. The bartender looks so at home, so pleased at the fun everyone's having with the green beer and the funky music playing in the background (Either singing or dancing to every song was pretty much required on a day like this).

So nothing crazy, nothing drunk, but a mighty good time going green this year.

Meaty weekend

S and I are kind of bums on the weekend. We don't stress about making plans every week, and we like to sleep in.

We do like to have a good breakfast, though, since we're normally grabbing granola bars or just some coffee most week day mornings.

There's just a difference between a good breakfast to S and I.

Neuroses

Do you ever spontaneously do anything that is just nuts? Like, in keeping with certain quirky aspects of your character, but not-thought-out, not a habit, just neurotic?

I just put hand sanitizer on my face, close to my mouth and nostrils, after hearing the tenant in the office next door sneeze.

I am responding perhaps to my stubborn nature, which is screaming, "No! You will not be sick when it is almost spring!! You will not ruin more hours of sunlight and the presence of new life with the flu!!!"

I am more than likely responding to my sleepy nature, which after only 2 hours of slumber last night jumps to conclusions like Purell=Snake Oil=Long life and good fortune.

Happy Monday.

Day Zero (Meaing no more days left!!)

So today was the last day of boarding at the Blue Hills. I think that I actually used the word "devastated" to describe how I felt to S as we did our Sunday errands, after my last few runs of the year.

I never expected to like snowboarding as much as I do. There is something very powerful about it - to me, it's unlike skiing. From my little experience with skiing, and maybe I am just bad at it, it is less of a whole body sport. Snowboarding is much more mentally and physically exhilarating to me. It is also much more of a goofy sport too, even though I may be saying this because I am a "goofy" boarder. But I think there is something about a sport, where most of your first few days learning is mostly spent falling, flailing, a lot of butt-landing that helps you take yourself less seriously and just have fun out there.

Here are a few pictures from our last time up on the mountain - they are pretty cruddy pictures, but I think they express something a bit different from our first time around, namely, a lack of mortal fear. We actually took turns snapping shots as we both rode down the hill, laughing, trying to show off, but having the end result being a bunch of lack luster pictures.

From this winter I'll remember the falling, the racing, the first trip down Big Blue, when I was petrified, and the last time when I got down the whole hill without falling. I'll remember the first time we went night boarding, and it flurried against the skyline.

To me, this was the absolute best way to 1) stay active during a grueling winter, 2) challenge ourselves, and 3) de-stress after all the weeks at work and snowed in days of sludge and freezing temperatures. I never thought I would be sad to see the sun out and the temperatures climbing, but I actually am in some ways.

Now if only I could live in a place where one could snowboard and swim outside any day of the year...

You just call...

Congratulations to James Taylor! 

I owe you one for all the beautiful music you've created over the years, out of your own joys and sorrows. 

Yea, Baby James!