#27

Or how I gained 10 pounds in one weekend and am now undoubtedly a candidate for blood pressure meds.

This past weekend, Atlanta was invaded by northerners (again). A fair chunk of my family came to town to attend graduation at the Creative Circus. I was initially a little worried about having to host my family in a town that I have yet to explore (school keeps me phenomenally busy). However, there were only two really hiccups the whole weekend (once when I tried to take my mom to one of the most popular restaurants in town and once when we got stuck in heinous traffic).

In addition to getting to hang out with two of my brothers, my sister-in-law Krista and my mom, I was also able to cross #27 off my list with a bang (and a few stomachaches).

First stop was Fox Bros BBQ on Dekalb. It was far and away the best BBQ I have ever had. My family and I attacked the menu with reckless abandon... and we paid for it later. All in all, a solid start to the weekend.

Next was a breakfast at The Silver Skillet. I've driven by the Silver Skillet more than a few times (MAC paper, one of my paper suppliers is next door); however, I had never been inside this Atlanta institution. We all had amazing breakfasts complete with an awesome waitress who gave my brother Grant the nickname Junior.

Here is the aftermath.

My brother Austin really loves his breakfast lemon pie.

Our third stop was another BBQ dinner, this time at DBA Barbecue. It's a slightly more upscale barbecue joint located in the Highlands. However, that doesn't mean it's any less delicious.

Our last restaurant on the tour was one last lunch at the Vortex (we had thought about The Varsity, but decided against it because of their lack of vegetarian options for Krista). Even though I lived down the street from this restaurant, I had never once been. However, I had heard amazing things about their hamburgers. I will say that the guacamole burger did not disappoint. I did need to order a side salad thought.



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Let's take a look at that list, shall we?

As of today, there are 389 days left in this hair-brained experiment. So far, I've accomplished 34 out of 101 items. I won't lie, I'm pretty proud of this. Never in my life did I think that I would get so much of this list done. However, I still have a fair ways to go.

If you happen to know me and would like to help me get more stuff done, just let me know. I am always looking for a partner-in-crime. Figuratively speaking, of course.


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1. Climb Mt. Monadnock
2. Go to Bonnaroo
3. Go on a date
4. Grow out my hair 
5. Finally read all of the books in my bookshelf
6. Hike the Georgia portion of the Appalachian Trail
7. Go camping twice (0/2)
8. Go skiing at least once per winter (1/3)
9. Take a trip by myself
10. Take a roadtrip with friends
11. Read all of the Jane Austen novels (2/6)
12. Wear my hair down at least twice per week
13. Write 5 letters, just because (3/5)
14. Learn calligraphy
15. Take a picture a day for a month (28/28)
16. Get my Leica fixed... and learn how to use it
17. Go to Savannah, Georgia
18. Go without TV for a week
19. Consciously learn one new thing a day for a week (0/7)
20. Make a surprise visit home (Amy's bridal shower)
21. Visit Danielle in Seattle
22. Take a hot air balloon ride
23. Go bungee jumping or skydiving
24. Visit 4 states I have never been to (0/4)
25. Lose the 20lbs I have gained since college (so close!)
26. Call a college friend at least once per week
27. Visit four new restaurants in a month (0/4)
28. See four movies by myself in a month (0/4)
29. Get my golf game in order (my local driving range is helping with this one)
30. Turn off the email in my phone for a week
31. Learn how to grill well
32. Learn how to bake pies
33. Cook every recipe in a cookbook
34. Do yoga every week for two months (0/8)
35. Visit Machu Picchu
36. Build a house with Habitat for Humanity
37. Visit New Orleans, Louisiana
38. Find a red wine that I like
39. Save $500.00
40. Take a spinning class
41. Run a half-marathon
42. Climb a rock wall
43. Floss three times a week for a month
44. Get a makeup lesson
45. Organize all slides and photos
46. Read two books on American History (0/2)
47. Read two books on European History (0/2)
48. Read two biographies (2/2)
49. Go to three minor league baseball games (0/3)
50. Go to an Atlanta Braves game
51. Go to the Atlanta Aquarium
52. Go to Zoo Atlanta
53. Go to the Fernbank Museum
54. Visit a distillery (Jack Daniels, Makers Mark, etc...)
55. See a drive-in movie
56. Donate blood twice (0/2)
57. Send a postcard to Postsecret
58. Do a Crossfit session
59. Learn to bake bread from scratch
60. Shoot a bow and arrow
61. Go to the gun range
62. Finally try lobster
63. Graduate from the Creative Circus
64. Do at least two blog postings a week
65. Tell Ryan Dodge that I like his blog and think he's really cool
66. Spend a day at the beach
67. Finish my daisy needlepoint
68. Set up reminders in my Google calendar for my friends birthdays
69. Go visit cousin Michele in Maryland
70. Get a job
71. Get a dog
72. Go to Waffle House
73. Move to a new city
74. Break one of my rules
75. Be able to run 5 miles
76. Take a spontaneous trip
77. Go to Europe
78. Buy a little black dress
79. Kiss someone in the rain
80. Sit outside during a thunder/lightning storm
81. Send flowers to myself
82. Send flowers to a friend anonymously
83. Actually remember my little brother Jake's birthday
84. Go one week without buying anything unnecessary
85. Snorkel
86. Send a thank you note for ALL gifts received
87. Go to Charleston, SC
88. Go out one night and NOT be Designated Driver
89. Keep a sketchbook for my time in Atlanta
90. Wear my bathing suit in actual public (Thank you Greece)
91. Learn to sail
92. Go swimming in the ocean
93. Take a flying lesson
94. Flirt shamelessly with a boy
95. Buy a guy a drink at a bar
96. Learn to do a headstand in yoga
97. Let Ashley Reid make me a one day playlist
98. Go to Wimbledon
99. Not complain about anything for a whole week.
100. Call in to a radio station
101. Take a ballroom dancing lesson.

#41

Disclaimer: This is me changing the rules. Why? Because I can. #41 originally was: "do a pull-up". I've never been able to do a pull-up. I never will be able to do a pull-up. So, I'm changing #41 to "run a half marathon". Conveniently, this is something I've already done. 


So, around Thanksgiving of last year, I was trying to catch a Metro-North train from the 125th street station so that I could go home and eat turkey. The M60 bus from LaGuardia had been delayed in traffic, leaving me with mere seconds to spare before my train left. Because I'm me (and I pack light - for easy running), I decided to chance it. I bounded off of the bus two stops early and sprinted across 2 city blocks and up 2 flights of stairs.

My lungs almost exploded.

It was there that I decided that I needed to run more. Somehow that turned into me running a half marathon 11 months later. October 4th was the big day. It is a road race named for Grete Waitz (a Norwegian who won the NYC marathon 9 times!).

Unfortunately, my sister-in-law Krista was unable to run because of a foot injury. Thankfully, she served as official race photographer (a job I have held for the past 2 years).

       

My brother, Austin, and I get ready for the race. (Our pre-race was un-officially sponsored by Halls, as you can see)

About 10 minutes before the race started, I moved into my starting corral. I start wondering whether or not this was a good idea (I'm leaning towards not). With a singing of two national anthems, we were off.

My first lap around the park goes well. Krista tells me that I went faster than anticipated (we were measuring my times against glacial movements).

Austin finished 00:00:15 behind his personal best time (which is pretty damn good). Ironically, he slowed down in the last bit because he thought he had his personal best in the bag. I would tell a little story about "assuming" things, but he can kick my butt.

 

Post race pose, or why I need to stop giving the "metal sign" in photos. I was feeling fine here. Little did I know that things were about to go south. Fast. 

 Here is my post-race breakfast. Long story short, it did not stay my post-race breakfast for long. After the entertaining ride home, Krista gave me some sport beans and put me to bed for a little nap. Two hours later, I awoke (still in my running clothes) completely refreshed. Since all I'd eaten all day was sport beans and Gatorade, we had an awesome Greek dinner.

All in all, a solid day. However, I do not think I will be running that far anytime soon... unless I'm being chased.

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#61 - with an actual bullet

Like many items on this list of ridiculousness, #61 was a vague attempt to recapture some of the fun of my youth. The first time I set foot on a gun range was when I was 12 at Forest Lake Camp in the Adirondacks. It wasn't anything fancy, just a bolt-action .22 rifle and a small paper target, but I loved it (and I have the pro marksman pin to prove it).

So, a few weeks ago, one of my teachers assigned me a brand identity project for a gun store. This seemed like the perfect opportunity to do some research and knock something else off my list. My only problems? I hadn't shot a gun in 14 years. And all of the gun stores in Atlanta are capital i Intense. Thankfully, my friend Mike had a range that he knew and he was willing to teach me how to shoot (again).




This is the range. My gun (a "child sized" 9mm) is on the right. Mike's gun (the "adult-sized 1911) is on the left.




He's a significantly better shot than I am.




We soon switched from regular targets to ZOMBIE TARGETS!! This is zombie target #1... Before he was riddled with bullet holes.




My zombie target, which proudly hangs on the back of my front door. It's hard to tell, but almost his whole face is gone.

All in all, it was a pretty awesome afternoon (aside from being made fun of because I couldn't load a clip to save my life). I now have a healthy respect for handguns and a new stress reliever should I ever live in a "gun friendly" state ever again.



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#3

All I will say about #3 is that I accomplished it. I won't go into details because of the spectacular level of fail involved. However, I will tell you that I shudder everytime I set foot inside a Mellow Mushroom (a pizza joint around town).


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Day 31

I am well aware that my 28 day photo project is over (take that #15!); however, I've kind of enjoyed doing this (and my one reader requested that I keep on going). So, let me introduce you to day 31.



Meet Busko.

He's the dog of a family I babysit for. He's a rambunctios weimeraner who delights in nibbling on my arm and stealing my shoes. However, he has some of the best dog ears I have ever seen.


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Day 30

I think that this photo was taken somewhere in North Carolina (maybe near Greensboro). From 830am until 1030pm today, this was my unchanging view. For some reason I decided to drive straight from New York to Atlanta with 3 gas breaks and 1 Wawa sandwich stop. Hopefully, I never have to do it again.


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Day 29

Today was the big day. I'm proud to say that I made it all 13.1 miles without actually dying (that came later). It was a great experience that I don't think I'll be repeating anytime soon.


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Day 28

I am officially runner number 7176. Tomorrow is the Norwegian Festival and the half marathon that I have been "training" for since November. Unfortunately, my sister-in-law Krista won't be running with me, so it will just be my brother Sam and I slogging through 13.1 miles.


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Day 27

This is my half-ginger half-Brazilian nephew Lucas. Today, I went to his house to visit and play trains. However, since I only see him 4ish times a year, he didn't remember who I was. This was him giving me his "bish pleeze" face. Thankfully, by the end of the night he gave me a big hug.


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Day 26

Today my mom and I went on a long bike ride through the Rhode Island shore. We started off in Misquamicut and then made our way to Watch Hill and then back again. This picture was taken in Watch Hill near Napatree Point.


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Day 25

Today I picked up the first apple cider bottle of the fall. This bottle comes from a small orchard where I used to pick apples when I was little. It is most definitely one of my favorite things about fall.

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Day 24

Today's photo is of what I've always called a "fuzzy woolly bear". I don't know what it actually is. In fact, it could be the most poisonous creature on earth and I wouldn't know.


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Day 23

This is my puppy Lucy. I'm so excited to get 5 whole days her while I am home. It makes driving 1,023 miles totally worth it.



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Day 22

This is sidecar, a bar in Philadelphia near where my friend Sarah lives. Right after this pic was snapped, we became new best friends with the people seated behind us, two of whom turned out to be Sarah's neighbors.


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Day 21

This is Summit. He is probably my favorite Circus dog. His owner, John, just graduated; so, unfortunately, today might have been the last time I see Summy for a long time.

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Day 20

Here they are!! My business cards that is. These TRIPLEXED wonders make me smile and so happy. Plus, each one has a fun fact on the back.


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Notice anything new around here?

In the past (almost) 2 years, this blog has undergone 2 transformations. Today marks #3.

Ta-Da!

If you're wondering at all what the stripey things are, or what the heck those fonts are, I can't help ya. Kidding. It's all to match my spanking new website (that I created with my own two hands ... and some dreamweaver) and my twitter.

So, go. Check 'em out. Tell me what you think of the new look. Be honest. That's what I pay you guys for.



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Day 19

Blog fail.

I had been doing so well with the pictures. Then I wasn't anymore. Sorry all 4 of my readers. I'll try harder next time.

People who ride horses are always saying that if you fall off, you should get right back on. So, that's what I'm going to do. Without any further ado ...


my breakfast cooking away in the pan.




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Day 16

Today is a two-fer. Why? Because those are the rules that I just made up.



This is the craziness and shenanigans that occurred last night at The Whiskey Gentry show. They're a local bluegrass/rock band that's pretty darn awesome. A byproduct of living in the south has been an increased appreciation for bluegrass, an these guys are some of the best.




As we were leaving the show, I spotted this guy taking a little snooze. I just couldn't resist taking his picture.


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Day 15

This is a redo. The day 15 image was originally my ceiling fan, but I decided it was too pathetic. So, this one's for my democratic friends. I keep a Barack Obama magnetic dress-up thing on my fridge. This month, he's only wearing a sign.


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Day 14

This car runs on biodiesel. How do I know? Because driving behind it, all I could smell was Chinese food.


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Day 13

Watching The Blind Side out by the pool at my apartment complex.


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Day 12

Northside United Methodist Church


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Day 11

For the past 6 of 7 quarters (aside from that time I went to bonnaroo with James and Ash), I have had the same night-before-panel ritual. I go to a movie at my favorite small theater and then out to dinner. It relaxes me and gives me a much-needed night out. Tonight was that night.


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#93

Originally, I put #93 on the list for "shits and giggles". I didn't actually think I was going to be able to take a flying lesson ever (let alone in the 1,001 day timespan). However, one morning a few months ago, my phone pinged with a new email (at 630am natch). It was the kind folks at Groupon letting me know that they were offering a 1 hour flying lesson for $98. I didn't even hesitate before buying it. With that, #93  officially became a reality.

I originally became obsessed with flying when I was very little. Growing up, my Dad had his pilots license and for three sweet years of my childhood even owned a small regional airport in Chester, Connecticut. My fondest memories of that time were the Bazooka gum in the break room, hanging out in the flight simulator, ogling the case of Ray Bans near the front desk/control tower, rollerblading down the taxi way and of course, taking one of the planes on our weekend beach trips (this is when my Dad would let me fly all by myself). 

So, last Sunday afternoon, I drove out to Peachtree Dekalb Airport for my one hour lesson. My co-pilot for the day was a kid named Eric from New Hampshire, and our instructor was a surly gent named Ed. I let Eric take the controls first and he flew us out to scenic Gwinnett county; after switching seats, I flew us back.

Here are a few shots of our time in the air.

And lastly, proof that I don't just wear aviators because they're cool...

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Day 10

This is Philip, the boy that I babysit, showing me his Sillybandz. These rubberbands have become all the rage across the country. Today, Philip gave me my first Sillyband, it's a hand giving the "metal sign". It's awesome.


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Day 9

I originally was going to post a picture from an adventure I had today. Unfortunately, those pictures will have to wait a day or so.



Every week, New York magazine arrives in my mailbox. I've been getting this publication for the past 4 years. I stopped reading the articles 3 1/2 years ago. NY magazine's main redeeming feature? It's crossword. For me, a blank crossword is a great way to start the week (plus, it makes me feel smart if I get close to finishing it).


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Day 8

WON TON SOUP

Won ton soup is my happy place. Tonight I was in need of a happy place, so my friend Chris and I went in search of Chinese food. Since I have written off the Chinese buffet near my house (after an unfortunate won ton related incident), we found a new (and much better) restaurant. So, I present to you: won ton soup! And dumplings.


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Day 7

What today's photo lacks in beauty, it makes up for in yummy deliciousness. That, is a King of Pops Popsicle. Blueberry mojito, if you're wondering. It was the perfect late summer/ end of summer/ just because treat. If you happen to hail from Atlanta, follow them on Twitter or go to the corner of N Highland and North (that's Buddy's gas station)with $2.50. You won't be disappointed.


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Day 6

This was taken from the floor of my "office". Aside from being a student, I also work as a babysitter (or child care specialist, if you will). Today is a long day of work, so I felt the need to document it, plus that kid is pretty adorable.


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Day 5

This, ladies and gentlemen (all 3 of my readers) is a stroopwafel. This particular confection warranted its own entry in the photo-a-day section of the blog because of how many I ate when I was in Amsterdam this past June (I blame Ashley for introducing me to them). I highly recommend that you get yourself to the nearest starbucks and pick up one or a dozen. You won't be disappointed.


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Day 4

Today's photo will slide in just under the deadline.





This is the logo of a project that I have been working on all quarter. Tomorrow morning at 930, I'll be handing this project in. Thus bringing me one step closer to the end of the quarter.


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#15 : Day 3

Today's photo comes courtesy of this week's running route. For some reason, I get lost really easily while out running (plus, I change routes every 2 weeks), so I've taken to writing the route on my hand in permanent marker. It looks pretty silly, but it decreases my chances of getting lost, again.


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