Days 5-7: Brooklyn, NY

This was going to be my "visit home" post; it was going to be full of the delcious foods I ate, people I saw, and fun things I did. However, that just wasn't meant to be. You see, all weekend (and truthfully, for a few months beforehand) one of my wisdom teeth had been giving me trouble (just not so much trouble that it couldn't be easily ignored ... whoops). So on the recommendation of my friend, Ally, I trooped over to the NYU School of Dentistry early Monday morning to get it checked. I left 3 hours later with 1 less tooth, $100 poorer and orders not to eat anything that wasn't bland and mushy. So much for the pizza (and Chinese ... and crepe-truck ... and waffle-truck) that I had been planning on consuming. Instead, for the past 36 hours, I have been napping, watching hulu and drinking ensure (the excitement is overwhelming).

I did make a fieldtrip today to the UWS to see The A-Team at my favorite theater, the AMC Lincoln Square. I won't lie, it was a fantasic movie, even if I do hate Jessica Biel.

Tomorrow, I pack my bags once again and head for Europe. First up is visiting Ashley in her new hometown of Amsterdam. Since I haven't seen Ash in almost a year, this will be pretty awesome. Plus, it will mark my third first of this trip: first solo flight to Europe.

(The second first was sudden and unintended, as this was the first time I'd had a tooth pulled)

Since I have to post a photo with every entry, I leave you with this (squeamish people turn away):






Until later,


e

Day 3: Surf City, NJ

There are very few people in the world that I will wear fairy wings for. Maria Lisa DeFazio is one of them.




So, today I donned my wings and, after poking the flower girl in the eye, watched as she married her Brad. It was truly a beautiful day, and with the exception of my the bridal party sunburns ... it went off without a hitch.

Maria and Brad, congratulations on getting married. It was a truly momentous occasion. And, while it may be cliche (but entirely true), the best really is yet to come for you two.




Until later,


e

Day 1: ATL to EWR

And so it begins.




This morning marks the beginning of 21 days of travel for me. It's a huge and exciting trip that will not only contain a few firsts, but will also help me check a few things off the old 101 Things list.

First leg: Atlanta to New Jersey for my college roommate's wedding. I'm pretty excited to not only spend a little time at the beach, but also stand up for Maria at her wedding. That's right, someone is trusting me with the responsibility of "bridesmaid-dom" ... What was she thinking?! (This is technically the first first. I have yet to be a bridesmaid in a friend's wedding.)

After the momentous occasion, I will spend the next two-plus weeks bouncing around this plant of ours. As of now, the itinerary is as follows: NJ - NY - CT - Amsterdam - Greece - London - NY - ATL. Oh, and all I packed were two carry-on bags.



Until later,

e

He may not have built it, but Ruth would definitely approve.

This post is being brought to you from 32,000 feet, as I am currently occupying seat 5A on a flight back to Atlanta after a whirlwind trip to New York.

This past weekend I was able to (happily) indulge in a favorite passtime of mine - Yankees baseball. Having grown up in a house with 3 older brothers (and a mom who was born on Yankees opening day 1952), there was rarely a summer afternoon when we weren't listening to a game on News Radio 880. There was also a time in my childhood when we were at games so often, my mom called the stadium our second home. Our seats were rarely great but that wasn't the point. Getting to watch the likes of Paul O'Neill and Don Mattingly play our nations passtime are some of my favorite memories. Plus, cracker jacks are the closest I got to my mom giving me candy.
Two years ago, my brother Sam and his wife Krista started a tradition of purchasing season tickets. Again, the seats weren't great, but who cared? That summer I got to see more baseball than I had in years.
Then I migrated south. Unfortunately, the Braves aren't the Yankees and I only saw 1 game last year. (The result of some serious bar trivia night mastery thankyouverymuch)
Fast forward to a week ago when I got an email from Krista asking me if I wanted to see a game when I was in town for a friends wedding. A game? In the new stadium? My answer was a resouding "hell yes".
On Friday night, I met Krista in midtown near her office and we took the subway to the stadium. Unfortunately for Krista, I was unable to play it New York cool. I was too excited. I had not seen the new stadium since it was completed and I hadn't seen my beloved Yanks in years. To my delight, neither one disappointed me that night. The stadium is a grand, soaring space that makes use of scale and light in an amazing way. It is clean and well laid out and the perfect home for 27 time world champions (The fact that my favorite cheesesteak place had an outpost underneath our section was an obvious bonus). Much to my delight I got to see my team win for the first time in a long time (they always seem to lose when I'm in the building - I don't take it personally). There were definitely a few moments when I didn't think they'd pull it out, but they proved me wrong with a final score of 6-4. Drunk on more than my fair share of miller light and riding high off of the win, I couldn't help but smile the whole way home.













e

SNOWPOCALYPSE

While last year was one of the wettest ever on record in Georgia, this year is shaping up to be the coldest. Since I came back in January, the temperature difference between home and Atlanta hasn't been that great. In fact, we have had TWO snow storms in 2010. This past Friday, we had a storm dubbed by Atlantans to be SNOWPOCALYPSE (all 3 inches of it).



This was the parking lot of my school the morning after. The only problem with getting snow in a city that doesn't own a single plow (or sand/salt truck)? Overnight, it turns to ice. Lots of it. Never have I been so grateful for the Tiptronic feature in my car.


e

10 Happy Things.

I saw this on Krista's blog and thought I'd give it a shot.

10. Showers.
There is nothing more satisfying to me than a shower. Be it hot (in the winter) or ice cold (in the summer), there is no better part of my day. In fact, the saddest part of my day is when I have to turn the water off.

9. School.
At times I hate it. But mostly I love it. School is the most difficult, challenging, pain-in-the-ass thing I have ever done. But the ridiculous people I've met and the things I've done have made it all worthwhile. Almost.

8. Going home.
There's something about getting on that Airtran airways flight to LaGuardia that gets me every time. I'm like a kid on Christmas morning. When I get off the plane, I practically run to the exit, just so I can smell that uniquely New York air. Plus, it means that I get to see all of my favorite people.

7. Spinning.
I'm not very good at it. But riding a stationary bike to absolutely nowhere in a room of other people riding bikes to nowhere, all while listening to pumping music makes me smile.

6. My apartment.
My apartment may not be very big (600sf), but it's all mine. Living alone has made me realize that I will probably never live with another human being ever again. Seriously. I'm just not considerate enough.

5. My friends and family.
There is no cooler (and completely uncool) group of people in the whole world. They let me disappear and completely ignore them for 10 weeks and then give me hugs and high-fives when I resurface. I've slept on almost all of their couches (and guest bedrooms) and given little in return. I owe them all.

4. Bigelow Cinnamon Stick tea.
Want to know the way to my heart? It's this little brown box of tea. No grocery store south of the M-D sells it, so I get it shipped down from home. There's just something about milky, sugary, cinnamony tea.... mmm

3. Winter.
I am always cold. However, that doesn't stop me from loving winter. Extra bonus: the smell of snow. That super crisp smell that always shows up right before a snow storm. Love it.

2. The Farmers Market.
It smells really bad and is always super freezing, but the Dekalb Farmers Market is where it's at. I can buy a whole weeks worth of fruit and vegetables for $10. Plus, they let me choose where my food comes from and if I want it organic or conventional. If you go on weekends, get there early. I'm in line at 9.

1. Traveling.
Be it by car or plane or train or foot, packing a suitcase and getting the heck out of Dodge, makes me happy. I love going to new and exciting places and meeting fun people (even the creepy Italian dude who stared at me from Florence to Rome). I'm currently trying to find a way to get to Amsterdam this summer.


e

#40. It's all Krista's Fault.

For at least a year (maybe more), I have wanted to take a spinning class. Those shiny bikes just looked so interesting to me. However, when I was living in New York (and going to a super swank gym), spinning wasn't so much a class as a secret society. The people that took the class had special clothes and special shoes and knew exactly what they were doing. It scared me.

Flash forward to this past December, my sister-in-law (the aforementioned Krista) asked me if I wanted to take Saturday spin class with her. Since Krista has seen me make an ass out of myself (both in and out of the gym) before, I had nothing to lose. I was in. An hour later, I was hooked. Like, really hooked. I spent the rest of Christmas break going to as many spin classes as I could. Now that I am back in Atlanta, I am a fixture at my gym's Saturday morning class (which you have to sign up in advance for... durrrrr).

Unexpected bonus, now that I am spinning, my running seems to have gotten just a bit easier. Woot.

So, thank you Krista for asking me to go to that class. It's all your fault. In a good way.


e