happy thursday

I had such a lovely little morning today! Well, first I woke up to Powder vomiting, and by the time I tried to throw her off the bed she was already in progress, so I ended up cleaning cat puke off of five things instead of one. That wasn't the lovely part.

The lovely part was when Brian dropped me off at a train station close to work and we got some delicious Einstein's on the way! Normally my hour between 8-9 a.m. is filled with

1) silence
2) someone breathing against me on the train
3) being slightly motion sick
4) being bored, hungry, and thirsty

But today I got to enjoy some laughter and fresh coffee, and I only had to endure a few minutes on the train. It's amazing what a little change can do to start your day off right! And now instead of worrying about the loads of work I need to get done between now and end of day, I'm trying to carry the momentum from the morning and focus on Free Lunch Thursday at work (always a good time) and then seeing a friend's newborn tonight! And it's a beautiful day (although cold). That never hurt anything.


In other news, I know I owe some updates and there's about to be a post-storm on here once Brian goes to Miami. Buckle your blogbelts!

code talk

I kept hearing a lot of "buzz" about QR codes so today I finally decided to read up on them. Aside from seeing them on boarding passes, I didn't really realize they were making it to the mainstream. If you haven't seen them, they're like new and improved bar codes that you read with a phone app, and retailers are using them to include a lot more information on products than space allows for. I learned today is that these little guys are awesome, and they're probably going to transform the way people quickly share information. (You know how I know? Because Asians are all over it.)

Some examples:

Wine label linking to more information about the vintner and production

Quick link to a test-drive request

And the creepy ones: temporary tattoos that link to a Facebook
profile (above) and contain a V-card (below)

And you can really quickly code one yourself too.

Crazy right?! I can't even imagine all the uses that people will come up for these Pacman-looking squares, but I can believe they're going to rock our world.

spring in my step

Okay so there's no spring to speak of around here (or in my step) just yet, but there are signs of good things to come:

1. Daylight savings time! I can honestly say this is the first time I've looked forward to losing an hour, because I desperately need that extra sun every day. In the two months that I've been working, it has only been light outside when I've left for the night ONE TIME. One. Time. Holy. Crap. A lot of that has to do with the hours we keep around there, but the early sunset time didn't help anything at all. That leads me to point 2.

2. Vitamin D, baby. I haven't taken a multi-vitamin since we were rocking chewable Flinstones, but after a minor episode of self-diagnosed seasonal affective disorder (so aptly acronymed SAD), I decided I should get some of the good stuff back in my system. I'd heard people at work talk about taking it during these long dreary days, and the pharmacist at Walgreens agreed that the Vitamin D should help. I don't expect to be Smiley McSmilerson like, tomorrow, but I'm open to just about anything at this point!

3. Today it was bearable enough for a little outdoor exercise—my first time since November! I even sat on the front porch for a little bit, since it was a balmy 36 degrees. What can I say, it's all relative. I know it's incredibly beautiful in other parts of the world (cough, Austin is in full bloom, kill me) BUT I'm trying to keep my eyes on the prize here and enjoy the ever-so-slight temperature increases. By the time it's actually warm in May, I'm going to be a full-blown Pollyanna mother*&#ers!

4. Biking season is back. I've begrudgingly adjusted my "season" to include anything between 40 and 90 degrees. To kick it off, I wore this under my helmet yesterday for our St. Patty's celebrations and looked like a crazy (but safe) person.

My very own, very tall leprechaun

I can't wait until there's some actual bits of spring to enjoy, as I hear the city explodes in the warmth. Until then, a pill a day and some wishful thinking will have to do!

party gras

Thanks to Katie, I've been celebrating Fat Tuesday since Fat Birthday when this little piece of heaven arrived in the mail! You cannot even imagine my excitement. Or my speed of consumption.

Happy Mardi Gras, y'all!

neighborhood deli

This weekend on the big 2-8, we ventured into the blek weather (snowy, then cold and rainy) for lunch and a special undisclosed birthday errand! The surprise was a visit to the Chopping Block, an adorable cooking store and culinary school of sorts, where I got to choose two classes for my present from Brian! I've never actually taken a cooking class before but we've been watching sooooo much Food Network lately that I'm super excited to be a participant instead of a voyeur.

After the Chopping Block, a sign for a wine tasting caught my lush of an eye, so we wandered into this little gem.

Isn't it so cute? The downstairs contained the meat shop, fresh produce, and some delicious artisan cheeses, and the upstairs featured the wine and vodka tastings. Two comments about this experience.

One: a benefit to living so close to Wisconsin is that cheese is freaking delicious, there are a million varieties, and it doesn't seem ridiculously overpriced. Although I have to say, the Tillamook medium sharp cheddar that I discovered on our honeymoon still reigns as the best cheddar I've had. Perhaps a new taste test is in order?! Just kidding. That made me into a crazy apple lady, hated by checkout cashiers around the world.

Two: I am such a sucker for tastings. I tried a raspberry vodka that ended up in my glass at home a few hours later. I tried a delicious Portugal wine that I would've bought if I could've found it on the shelves. I tried a Jack-with-basil cheese that I absolutely would've bought if we hadn't been heading to lunch, where it would sit unrefrigerated. I tried sushi at the grocery store(!) a few months ago and it has been my go-to quick sushi stop ever since. What is wrong with me??? I definitely feel a little obligated to at least faux-consider the product after I've just helped myself to a mouthful of it, but I know that I don't have to buy it, according to social norm standards. I just have to buy it according to my taste buds' standards. If it doesn't taste like pigs feet, I'm in.

Although it may be a dangerous habit, I want to go back to the deli (maybe after our cooking class tonight?!) and see what deliciousness might be up for grabs. And maybe grab some of that Jack cheese. And by maybe I mean definitely.

more paychecks to come

A week ago I officially got hired on at my job! I'm proud to say I endured a semi-awkward negotiation round that ended with me getting a little more than I was offered, which is always the ultimate goal, right? I’ve been really loving the work, and I’m so grateful I’ve landed a gig with a company that really values its employees (although they’re not afraid to work us hard). I’ve yet to get a massage and people are still warming up to me, but when these things happen, you’ll be the first to know!

Now, onto the important stuff. This also means I’ll get to officially decorate my office, which is unofficially one of the things I’ve been looking forward to the most! I’ve always felt very affected by my environment, which is why I tend to keep a healthy assortment of paint and pictures on the walls. A warm house = a warm heart! My über-white walls at the office are currently defeating my soul, so I’ve spent the last seven weeks fantasizing about brighter days to come.

This leads to a very important question: is it appropriate to go all Martha Stewart on your office décor? Brian says no. Because he’s a boy. (When I described an intricate setup involving a wall sticker, wheatgrass, and a reed diffuser, I might as well have said I was opening a petting zoo in my office). Although I still think my idea would be the perfect way to cheer up my white² walls, I guess there is something to be said for the fact that I’m new, and misdecorating my office could misdecorate my reputation. (Isn't it good to see my professional focus is in the right place?)

I’m going to execute a Phase I upgrade tomorrow by bringing in some bamboo and hanging the oversized Paper Source calendar that Amy got me for my birthday, which I am unreasonably excited about! But seriously, look how vintage-bright-cute it is.

There's plenty of white space left to jazz up, but I’m going to hold off on anything else until I get a little feedback. What’s on your walls at work, and what do you guys think is acceptable décor protocol? Framed pictures? Framed art? Candles? Reed diffusers (say yes)? Nothing at all? Let’s hear it, or it's going to be me versus an Ikea catalog and that's something scary.

it's like china...

...but smaller.

Last weekend we were supposed to go skiing in Colorado with some of our Tejas friends, but we had to cancel because it was going to cost way more than is appropriate for a long weekend. We should've been proud at being responsible adults for five minutes, but instead, mostly just me because I'm a baby we were sort of mopey. Believe it or not, getting home from work on Friday at almost 9 did not help shake the thought that I should be in a hot tub in CO after a long day on the mountain. WAH WAH.

We thought about substituting in a day trip to Michigan or Wisconsin just for fun, and then realized that was dumb too because oh yeah it's freezing there and the only thing to do when it's freezing is go skiing and now we're back at square one. So instead, we opted to stay put and explore our own backyard by going to Chinatown!

In general, I haven't been able to do as much exploring in the city as I'd like, because when we had time we didn't have money and now that we have money we don't have time and/or it's gross weather, so I feel like my explorations are really just beginning. Brian's suggestion for walking around C-town was perfect because despite the below-freezing temps, there were BLUE SKIES for five seconds so hail-mary-mother-of-God I was determined to be outside.

Nǐ hǎo, sunshine!

I've never been to a Chinatown before, and I was surprised to actually feel transported to another country for a few hours! Although it was pretty dirty and the smells may or may not have conveyed rotting fish intestines, it was fun to walk through the shops and pick up some much-needed chopsticks and bamboo (how American am I?).

We learned from some statues/plaques in the square that the boar (me) should avoid the monkey (Brian) at all costs, and that I also should not be put in charge of money. Although my good financial decisions were why we were there in the first place, so take that Chinese zodiac! The candy shops left a lot to be desired, mostly because I'm not interested in bean paste or dried baby fish. Does that make me a bad person?

That's the baby fish. Right there in the sample dish. Riiiight there.

Fortunately I thought our lunch was delish, although again we didn't score too many points on the adventurous scale with our sesame chicken and pot stickers. The restaurant had some killer TV shows playing, so I can officially check "Watch shows with poor singing, awkward costumes, bad sets, and terrible scripts" off my list for the year.


After a few hours in Chicago's China, I wouldn't say I'm jonesing to fly across the world to see the real mccoy, but it was definitely a fun way to spend the afternoon before the clouds rolled back in. Later, China!