Adventures in Gastronomy

After countless weekends of keeping busy (traveling, entertaining, going ot the beach, etc…) it all caught up to me in the form of a summer cold. I noticed symptoms on Thursday but went to work. By Friday I felt like crap and used one of my 60 accumulated sick days to rest.

I rested again all day Saturday, but Sunday Randy wanted me to join him at a birthday/beach/BBQ that we’d been scheduled to go to so I was guilt-tripped into going. It was fun (we did use the paddle boat briefly) but then I retired to the house and napped.

Oh, the one thing we did do on Saturday was visit two properties. The first one was an unbelievably adorable single family home in Somerville. 4 beds, 2 bath, private back yard and deck. It’s minuses were that it was a bit far from civiliation (public transtion, shops, restaurants), that there was no bathroom on the first floor, and that the master bedroom was oddly shaped. The positives were that it was a single family and we could be as loud as we want. Plus, there was room for a hot tub off the back deck.

On the way back home we stumbled upon an open house. And I think we both fell in love with it. It was the top two foors of a house being completed gut renovated (floors, original trim fixed/stained, brand new kitchen and baths with granite counters, 4 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, central air, 1,800 square feet. It’s also a block and a half to the supermarket, subway, bus lines, gym, shops.

I want it.

July 20th, 2009
Categories: Uncategorized . Author: snarl . Comments: 2 Comments

Everything seemed to work in our favor for our last minute trip to Provincetown this past weekend. First, the weather pattern of gloom and doom lifted and a sunny weekend was predicted. Then we found an amazing deal at a small guesthouse (the Elephant Walk Inn) that I can’t recommend enough for a) the friendly service and b) recession pricing. If you’re heading to Ptown and want a good deal, give them a call. Mike, the owner, was very accomodating and Jared (aka Doris, or by his drag name, Kay Serah), the house boy (or house man as he was many years older than us), was a hoot.

We managed to see a few shows (Dina Martina and Miss Richfield 1981). Both were fun. We managed to make it to the beach every day. We explored two new restaurants. All in all, it was just what the doctor ordered.

Actually, my doctor would order that I be less sedentary and eat healthier. But what’s the point of vacation if those are your plans?

July 15th, 2009
Categories: Uncategorized . Author: snarl . Comments: 1 Comment

In my new office, that is.

The move went pretty smoothly yesterday (aside from the rain that delayed the delivery of a few things.  The new office is laid out much more efficiently than my old on in that it’s long and narrow (versus a big square). This leaves more continuous wall space for bookshelves and file cabinets. And after nearly 4 years of mismatched ghetto furniture from the set of Mary Tyler Moore show, all of my furniture actually matches.

I am storing a bunch of stuff for another one of our department offices, but other than that pile in the corner, it looks pretty darn good in here.

And to celebrate, Randy and I are going to Ptown this weekend! Chris is coming along with us, and our friend, Pete, is already down there. WOO HOO! I’m taking a vacation day tomorrow and we’re driving on down. It looks like the weather will cooperate, too!

I can’t wait to see Miss Richfield 1981 again. Maybe she could give me some advice on decorating my new office. Years ago I used to get her calendar to hang on the wall. Maybe this year she can just come back with me and entertain me?

July 9th, 2009
Categories: Uncategorized . Author: snarl . Comments: 5 Comments

After over 3.5 years in my current office, today is my last day before moving to a new building. I greet this transition with mixed emotions. First, I’m thankful to still have a job here considering the economy and recent lay-off’s. But I’m also saddened that I’m relocating.

My current office is actually a dump. The furniture is almost prehistoric. The desk was built pre-computer and has no grommets for computer wiring. It’s also natural wood that has chipped along the edges so I occasionally get splinters (a problem that I remedied by covering the wood with Scotch tape in dangerous areas).

It’s also got built in drawers on both sides so I my lages have to straddle one set to access my computer. The ceiling also leaks (right over the computer, unfortunately) so I have drip marks on my monitor. It also faces west so it can get incredibly hot in the afternoons.

However, it’s a top floor/corner office that is very quiet and relatively private (located at the end of a deserted corridor). It’s also rather large at nearly 200 square feet with an entire wall of glass. And that glass all overlooks an enormous (1,000 foot or larger) roof deck that only I have access to, with views of Cambridge Common. I love being able to watch storms approaching and even managed to catch a great photo of lightning striking Cambridge last summer using my cell phone.

On the plus side, the new office is much nicer. It’s also located on the top floor, but in a newer building and is a fairly decent size (about 30 squre feet smaller than my current office). It also has new furniture. Nice new furniture, in fact. But it overlooks an apartment building and is a bit isolated from the rest of the campus.

I’m sure I’ll learn to enjoy it.  I just hope I don’t get evicted again once I start loving it!

July 7th, 2009
Categories: Uncategorized . Author: snarl . Comments: 2 Comments

So much (stupid stuff) to write about, but where to begin?

Let’s see, Thursday was like a Friday for me since our office was closed on Friday for the 4th of July. Randy had tentatively notified me that he was going to see if some friends wanted to come over for dinner and games after work. Nothing was official (I never heard back about who, specifically, was coming).

Well, I got home from work and multi-tasked by the TV and computer until about 7:30PM when the doorbell rang. It was our friends, Mark and Kana (and their baby, Kai). I’d begun to think that nobody was coming over since Randy never called, yet now people were arriving. I checked my cell phone and the screen said “SIM card error.” This has happened before so I turned it off and restarted. Nothing. I removed the battery and replaced it. Nothing. I removed the SIM card and replaced it. Nothing.

I was assuming Randy must have been texting or calling and he’d be pissed that I was responding. But then everybody showed up and I was presented with the new iPhone (the 3G S one that has 32g of memory and a video camera). This was my reward for scanning all of Randy’s old family photos. YAY ME!

On Friday, I proposed we go up to Middleton for some Mini-Golf and ice cream at Richardson’s. Afterwards, we went back to the farm (they make their own ice cream with their own milk) and befriended the cows.

On Saturday, Chris, Randy, and I headed up to Crane Beach. Since I never sit out in the sun (I always hide under my big green umbrella) I didn’t put any sunblock on. Apparently, the umbrella doesn’t block all sunlight because I did end up getting a bit of a burn on my face and chest. I think this is the first real burn I’ve had in years. Still, it was nice to finally enjoy a non-dreary day.

Sunday was a completely and fabulously (and I don’t use the f-word lightly) lazy day where I simply recuperating from all of the social activities and excessive sun of the previous few days.

And so I returned to my office this morning and was reminded that I’m moving to a new office in two days after I opened the door to find all of my boxes and crates packed up and ready to go. I’m rather sad about this move. My current office is quite large, has a large deck overlooking Cambridge Common (and a church), and is rather secluded despite being in a main campus building. I also love that it’s contected to almost the entire law school campus by an underground tunnel (meaning no coats needed in the winter and no umbrellas when it rains). I’ve loved this office and have always realized how lucky I am to have it.

My new office is nicer and newer (more freshly painted, new furniture) but it’s not connected by tunnels. And there’s no roof deck with expansive sky views. But what really pisses me off is that the facilities folks were giving a walking tour to the new occupant and after showing him the roof deck and space, the guy complained that he’d “rather have an office overlooking the yard.” WAIT! So I’m giving up my primo office to a guy that doesn’t even want it? Hell, if that’s the case, let me stay!

Anyway, this is the same feeling I’ve always gotten days before renting a new apartment or buying a new condo. That feeling of regret (did I make the right decision)? In this case, I’m wondering if I didn’t protest enough to stay. Sigh. I’m sure the new space will be great. In fact, the desk will be much more comfortable. I will no longer have to stradle my legs around a file cabinet to work on my computer (my current desk is so old it pre-dates computers).

July 6th, 2009
Categories: Uncategorized . Author: snarl . Comments: Comments Off on Surprises, Cows, Burns, and Buyer’s Remorse

I survived Randy’s high school reunion last weekend. I jokingly began to refer to the event as the prom instead of reunion because the main Saturday night event was more prom-like, with a dinner, dancing, and even a photographer to take portraits.

On Friday night we attended a cocktail social and, to be honest, it sucked. We arrived fashionably late to find only about 15 people in a large room. There was a DJ blasting rap and R&B music that was so loud you couldn’t talk to people…severely limiting any ability to reunite at this reunion. Oh, and it was hotter than hell.

Worse, Randy only recognized a handful of people (probably less than five).

We left the reunion (ears ringing, shirts saturated with sweat) and Randy even debated whether he wanted to go to the main event (the prom) the next night.

In fact, he was so reluctant to go that he made us even more fashionably late for this event. But that was a mistake because we arrived only to find everybody else already there, seated, and eating! We squeezed into a table just as the awards portion of the event  was taking place. Randy managed to win an award for being the person who traveled the second farthest (winning a $50 Visa gift card).

After dinner, he finally had the chance to socialize and was able to reunite with quite a few classmates.

All in all, it was fun. Though, Randy doesn’t seem at all interested in attending the next one. Out of a class of over 400 people only 95 people attended the reunion (since some were spouses that meant only about 60-70 classmates attended). And of those 95 people, Randy only knew about 10. The people he was closest to back then didn’t go.

But in 3+ weeks he’ll be attending my reunion, which (so far) has 122 people attending (60-something being classmates).

The rest of the weekend was quite relaxing. Unlike the Boston area, Virginia has had an abundance of sunshine (and heat) so we spent most of our time by the pool (the water was 88 degrees). His family, as always, was incredibly hospitable and sweet and made me feel right at home. Unfortunately, his 90+ grandmother is gravely ill and this will likely have been the last time he saw her alive. It was heartbreaking to see them say their goodbyes. I was even choking up as she was telling him that she loved him (and me!) and that she was sorry we had to see her this way.

Of course, this brought his mom to tears, then his aunt, and so in the end it was a house full of sorrow. But it was “good” sorrow since it was all about love.

July 1st, 2009
Categories: Uncategorized . Author: snarl . Comments: 1 Comment

Will things ever change?

We have Iran ignoring the fact that its citizens believe there was vote tampering in the most recent election. Well, they’re not ignoring it as much as denying it and incorporating violence into citizen protests.

Then there’s North Korea threatening to wipe the US off the face of the earth (charming).

But even here at home there’s chaos. Nationally, we have the governor of South Caroloina disappearing for a number of days without notifying anybody of his whereabouts. The reason for this trip? An affair with a woman in Argentina. Now I could give a shit about the fact that he’s having an affair. That has nothing to do with his ability (inability?) to govern. Whether republican or democrat (Bill Clinton comes to mind), cheating on a spouse is not grounds for losing a job, whether president of a country, CEO of a company, or order-taker at McDonalds.

However, leaving the country without notifying staff about the details of your trip is irresponsible in the highest degree. If there was an emergency of any sort (riot, explosion, death of lieutenant governor, etc…) he needs to be reachable. For that, he should be fired.

And even locally, despite having ALL forms of Massachusetts government controlled by democrats, there are still control issues with how things are done. Most recently, legislative leaders “compromised” on an ethics bill that the governor has been pushing for. I repeat…compromised. Being ethical is being ethical…there’s no compromise about it.

Now, I don’t hate or love Deval Patrick. I’m not a flag waving fan, nor am I a vocal opponent. But the poor guy can’t get a break with the legislature. Everything he’s proposing (most of which I agree with) is being fought by the rest of the government: tax reform (I’m against sales tax increases, though I am for gas tax increases), I’m for complete ethics reform, I’m for complete pension reform), I’m for complete transportation reform. But every step of the way the legislature is watering down his proposals.

I mean, come on, Patrick’s ethics bill would have banned gifts to lawmakers, but legislators changed it to only “most” gifts are banned), and they also changed wording so lobbyists can still make or solicit campaign donations. They also altered the “open meeting” laws so that they aren’t included. How convenient.

Ethics? I give up.

June 25th, 2009
Categories: Uncategorized . Author: snarl . Comments: 2 Comments

I’m not normally a follower, but after three weeks, it’s finally my turn to kvetch:

WTF is up with this weather? The constant drizzle and clouds are driving me insane. Seriously, I think I’m sun deprived. I feel bleah all the time and after being back from Europe for three and a half weeks, I don’t think I can blame it on jetlag anymore.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, I hear that tomorrow will be at least partly sunny (still a 50% chance or rain), but I’m flying down to Virginia in the afternoon so won’t even be able to enjoy it.

If I recall, the news reported that we’ve had only 30% of the possible sunshine for the month of June (and it almost all fell in three days early in the month). I’m sick of potentially breaking records – I just want day light. We’ve already missed the days of the year with the longest light because of this weather, at least let us enjoy a few sunny days. Hell, it’s nearly July and I’m still commuting to work each day in a leather jacket and gloves (it gets chilly and damp going 30MPH while exposed to the elements).

OK – I’m done. No more whining about the weather. How about those North Koreans?

June 24th, 2009
Categories: Uncategorized . Author: snarl . Comments: 5 Comments

At least it seemed that way Friday night. Nothing spectacular happened, but we ended up having a nice little quiet night at home, which is a rare thing for us on a weekend. Despite my doctor’s instructions to reduce carbs and improve cholesterol, Randy made me a delicious beef wrapped in bacon on the grill.

Then we just spread out on the sofa and caught up with the series, True Blood…our latest addiction.

On Saturday, we did a bit of shopping before going for a bike ride (one of our first chances this spring with all of the rain and gloom we’ve been having). That night, we got together with our friends, Chris and Zach, to play board games.

We first played a game Deano got me for my birthday that I can best describe as being a combination of Scrabble and Monopoly. We followed that up with an old 1970’s-era game that Randy played in his childhood and brought back up after one of his visits with family.

It’s called “Gambler” and is for ages 10 and up. But considering the whole game is based on poker, horse racing, and betting, this game would never get made today. Oh, and it’s even got a fabulously ghetto lottery component where you buy lottery tickets. If somebody lands on the lottery square on the board, a maracas shaped dice container gets shaken and if two of your numbers come up, you win the lottery! If you run out of money, you can even take out an IOU from the casino!

Speaking of lotteries, my parents got me a seasons ticket for my birthday and within a week I won $10 (the lottery commision mailed me a check). WOO HOO!

Finally, on Saturday we went to the gym and saw “The Hangover” at the Somerville Theatre. A nice was to close off a good weekend.

June 22nd, 2009
Categories: Uncategorized . Author: snarl . Comments: 1 Comment

You never really notice how much you love/rely/need something until that certain thing is unavailable. I’ve been dealing with such a scenario for a few days, and for another reason, will be living it for the near future, too.

First, Randy and I were have problems with our wireless router at home (or so we thought). My laptop kept disconnecting from the internet and we couldn’t get it to connect again. We replaced the router and it kept happening. Then Randy took the BIG step and re-installed the entire operating system on my computer (upgrading me to Vista while he was at it…not so sure I like). Anyway, I’ve continued to have the problems…and now so has he.

Ruling out that it’s not my computer or the router, he called our provider (RCN) last night. Unfortunately, he got stuck in a 25 minute phone queue before hanging up, but the recording did say that residents of Massachusetts were experiencing router connection problems and that they were working on it.

Super, so Randy spent two days ‘fixing’ my computer and we spent $40 on a router only to find that the issue is with the provider. Worst, I spent more nearly 48 hours without home internet access!

And now I’m going to have to do without something even more important to me: sweets. I got the bloodwork results back from the doctor yesterday and noticed a disturbing trend. Back in 2006 (just before meeting Randy) all of my blood work was in the “normal” column. At my last physical 1.5 years ago, most items were still in the normal column, but two things (cholesterol and bad cholesterol) were in the abnormal column (good cholesterol was in the good zone, but borderline).

Well, flash forward to June 2009. I now have only two items in the normal category (blood  glucose/sugar and kidney). EVERYTHING else has done from normal or borderline to abnormal.

My doctor is not happy.

I’m not happy.

I pulled up the reports from previous years and could see all of those things gradually getting worse with each physical exam. Once we’re done emptying the house of sweets*, it’s time to change my habits. I’ll stop eating beef again. I’ll stop eating cookies and, gasp, gummies. I’ll decrease portions. I’ll eat dinner earlier in the evening. I might go back to oatmeal (versus cereal) for breakfast.

Basically, I’ll be miserable. But at least I’ll live a long time as a miserable person.

*I know I could start now and just toss the junk food we currently have in the house, but we’re flying to Virginia a week from today and Randy’s mother doesn’t cook any items without lard, sugar, or fat as a key ingredient. There’s no point in starting for 6 days and then blowing it down there.

June 18th, 2009
Categories: Uncategorized . Author: snarl . Comments: 3 Comments