I just came across this picture of my sisters and had to post it. No particular reason. I just love them and miss them :)
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
September 25, 2007
Happy Birthday, Annie! My super sweet, self-less, awesome baker of a sister-in-law turned 25 on the 25th! Love you, Ann. We had an awesome visit with you last summer, come back to DC!!
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
Practice Kindness, Mercy & Forgiveness
That is the message on my meditative tea this morning, which is quite delicious by the way; it has sage, lavender, and even berries. Mmm.
In the spirit of practicing kindness, I thought I’d share my latest adventure with you. I just learned yesterday about this program fairly close to where I work. It is a reading program where you are paired up with one student and meet with them for half an hour a week as their “reading buddy”. Depending on the student’s reading level, you read to them, you read together, or they read to you. This program just warmed my heart. I love kids and I love reading, and sharing a love and appreciation of reading just sounded perfect. So I immediately submitted the paperwork and they are doing a background check on me right now. I hope to be able to start sometime soon. More on this later.
In other news, I had a spark of creativity in the kitchen and thought I should save my creation somewhere so I can recreate this tasty pasta dish. And, who knows, maybe some else wants to explore this dish.
* Dice about 4 strips of bacon and sauté ‘em up. Set them aside when they are all nice and crispy.
* Drain the grease and heat some olive oil with a few dashes of red pepper flakes, 4 or 5 chopped garlic cloves, and about a Tbsp of chopped fresh rosemary.
* Add a can of white beans to the mixture and about ½ cup of chicken stock. Let it cook up. I also smashed a few Tbsps of beans to make the mixture a little thicker, but add some chicken broth if it gets too thick.
* After the pasta is all cooked and drained, add the bean mixture, the bacon, and a generous palmful of parmegiano reggiano cheese.
* Stir it all up and sprinkle with a little extra cheese and freshly ground black pepper.
If you have left-overs, you might need to add a little extra chicken stock before reheating the pasta.
Monday, September 24, 2007
Where the Weekend Took Us
Last weekend was the first in about two months where we had absolutely nothing planned. Lane called me on Friday night to say he and some guys at work had a happy hour at Champps in Pentagon Row. I went along for the fun, but couldn’t help wondering if Katie and Marc were around. After all, Pentagon Row *is* their favorite hang out joint. Lane even asked if I thought they’d be around. I sent Katie a text message asking if she was in Pentagon Row, but no response. A little while later we went inside to close out our tab and go home, and who do you think we saw across the bar?!?! Our dear friends, Katie and Marc! Needless to say, we didn’t end up going home. It was so fun to run into them! (and I even remember the name of one of the Yankees: Jorge Posada)
Lane and I decided to go on a date on Saturday night. We went up to Thai Place in DC where they have Lane’s absolute favorite green curry. We have sampled green curries all over the DC area, and it wins. I went a little overboard and had a coconut frenzy of a dinner. We’re talking piña colada, coconut soup appetizer, panang curry (with coconut milk) and mango and sticky rice for dessert. I just couldn’t resist. We had a good time despite the abundance of GW students there.
Lane had to go in to work for a few hours on Sunday, and when he got back we went to look at some new condos. This was a on a total whim. We’ve been talking about possibly selling our place in CA and buying one here and then yesterday saw these condos had a weekend special with $50,000 to use for anything – closing costs, buying down points on the loan, toward the sales price, condo fees, whatever.
We looked at the 2 bedroom 2 bath condos and they were super nice – hardwood floors, decent kitchens, walk in closets, etc. We both liked them so much we decided to pay an earnest deposit and see if we could possibly make the numbers work to actually buy something AND hold onto our CA place. Well, after TWO hours of talking to a loan agent last night, we learned that there are some good loans out there through FHA, the Federal Housing Authority, but we’d still have to sell our place in CA. Therefore, instead of stopping by to deliver a check tonight, we are stopping by to say no thanks. It’s kind of funny because this was totally random and quick. I’m a little disappointed. I mean that second bedroom could have lots of possibilities… So, if anyone needs a copy of the condo documents at The Brittany Condos, just let me know.
Lane and I decided to go on a date on Saturday night. We went up to Thai Place in DC where they have Lane’s absolute favorite green curry. We have sampled green curries all over the DC area, and it wins. I went a little overboard and had a coconut frenzy of a dinner. We’re talking piña colada, coconut soup appetizer, panang curry (with coconut milk) and mango and sticky rice for dessert. I just couldn’t resist. We had a good time despite the abundance of GW students there.
Lane had to go in to work for a few hours on Sunday, and when he got back we went to look at some new condos. This was a on a total whim. We’ve been talking about possibly selling our place in CA and buying one here and then yesterday saw these condos had a weekend special with $50,000 to use for anything – closing costs, buying down points on the loan, toward the sales price, condo fees, whatever.
We looked at the 2 bedroom 2 bath condos and they were super nice – hardwood floors, decent kitchens, walk in closets, etc. We both liked them so much we decided to pay an earnest deposit and see if we could possibly make the numbers work to actually buy something AND hold onto our CA place. Well, after TWO hours of talking to a loan agent last night, we learned that there are some good loans out there through FHA, the Federal Housing Authority, but we’d still have to sell our place in CA. Therefore, instead of stopping by to deliver a check tonight, we are stopping by to say no thanks. It’s kind of funny because this was totally random and quick. I’m a little disappointed. I mean that second bedroom could have lots of possibilities… So, if anyone needs a copy of the condo documents at The Brittany Condos, just let me know.
Friday, September 21, 2007
Restoring Family Links
My job is to help reconnect families that have been separated internationally because of armed conflict or natural disaster. Sometimes I spend days sending reminders to chapters, asking them to send more complete information, or asking national societies for updates on cases we haven't heard from in a while. Sometimes the messages break my heart. My day began today with reading one of those messages - here it is:
My Dear Daughter,
Since the Liberia War 1990, I have been with sleepless night worrying about your location. When the sun raises I think about you and when the sun go down I cry for you. Please let me know your whereabouts so I will have piece of mind.
My soul troubles day and night. Even I ask my church to pray for you, here in the United States of America.
I am going through global reach to search you. May God bless you, wherever you are.
This is why I do this work. I can't imagine spending years not knowing where my children are, if they are safe, or even alive. It's just devastating to even imagine... But the good news is that this service exists around the world through Red Cross/Red Crescent societies around the world, and that families do sometimes get the answers they are looking for. Now I have to get busy on this case.
My Dear Daughter,
Since the Liberia War 1990, I have been with sleepless night worrying about your location. When the sun raises I think about you and when the sun go down I cry for you. Please let me know your whereabouts so I will have piece of mind.
My soul troubles day and night. Even I ask my church to pray for you, here in the United States of America.
I am going through global reach to search you. May God bless you, wherever you are.
This is why I do this work. I can't imagine spending years not knowing where my children are, if they are safe, or even alive. It's just devastating to even imagine... But the good news is that this service exists around the world through Red Cross/Red Crescent societies around the world, and that families do sometimes get the answers they are looking for. Now I have to get busy on this case.
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
First Day of School
I went to the first session of my yoga class yesterday. I think I’m really going to enjoy it. The yoga practiced at Unity Woods is Iyengar yoga. They pay precise attention to body alignment in the poses and use props to ensure everyone can do the poses just right, regardless of their flexibility.
So our first class was really focused on the feet and legs. The instructor said as we get more in tune with our posture in our legs and feet we will move on with the rest of the body.
The classes are 1.5 hours and we actually didn’t do too many poses, but rather spent a lot of time getting the poses we did just right. We’d do them against the wall or with a chair to see how our bodies should look and feel in the poses, and then we’d do them again in the center of the room on our mats, using what we learned with the props. I could really feel the difference in doing Triangle or Warrior poses – poses that anyone who has done yoga ever is familiar with. But I can honestly say that this time truly felt different, my body felt more engaged, like it was working much harder.
I’m also excited that it’s a 12 week course. Usually when you just pop in a yoga class they do poses of all different levels, and sometimes you’re just not ready, or you try it but you aren’t familiar and so you don’t quite get it right. Since this is a series of 12 courses, our instructor will know exactly where we are and we focus lots of time learning each one correctly, so we’ll be getting the full benefits.
The only minus – my instructor talks a little like that guy from Office Space. He’ll say something and end with an “mmm-hmmmm” “ooooooookayyyyy” And he does it A LOT! It’s a little humorous, but mostly annoying.
Our homework (yes, people! Homework for yoga!!) is to practice at least 20 to 30 minutes a day.
So our first class was really focused on the feet and legs. The instructor said as we get more in tune with our posture in our legs and feet we will move on with the rest of the body.
The classes are 1.5 hours and we actually didn’t do too many poses, but rather spent a lot of time getting the poses we did just right. We’d do them against the wall or with a chair to see how our bodies should look and feel in the poses, and then we’d do them again in the center of the room on our mats, using what we learned with the props. I could really feel the difference in doing Triangle or Warrior poses – poses that anyone who has done yoga ever is familiar with. But I can honestly say that this time truly felt different, my body felt more engaged, like it was working much harder.
I’m also excited that it’s a 12 week course. Usually when you just pop in a yoga class they do poses of all different levels, and sometimes you’re just not ready, or you try it but you aren’t familiar and so you don’t quite get it right. Since this is a series of 12 courses, our instructor will know exactly where we are and we focus lots of time learning each one correctly, so we’ll be getting the full benefits.
The only minus – my instructor talks a little like that guy from Office Space. He’ll say something and end with an “mmm-hmmmm” “ooooooookayyyyy” And he does it A LOT! It’s a little humorous, but mostly annoying.
Our homework (yes, people! Homework for yoga!!) is to practice at least 20 to 30 minutes a day.
Monday, September 17, 2007
Saturday Success
I got crazy and had TEN people over for dinner on Saturday night. Not only was I nervous about actually fitting twelve people inside our one bedroom apartment, I had never cooked dinner for that many people before! I wasn’t sure how much food to make, and my worst nightmare was that we would run out before everyone had eaten as much as they wanted to.
Here’s what we had:
Marinated mushrooms, olives, Italian meats, goat cheese, fig spread, baked brie and honey, veggies
Pesto
Feta Cheese/Veggie Pasta that Lane is the master at making
Salad with raspberries, pears and candied pecans
Tomato Salad with olive oil and balsamic vinegar
Italian Sausages
Pizza - with sautéed mushrooms, sun-dried tomatoes, and fresh parsley
Pizza bread – no sauce or cheese, just herbs and seasonings
And for dessert, apricot almond squares and crazy cupcakes. Mmmmm.
Lane helped out a lot, of course he made the cupcakes, the frosting, and even came up with the brilliant idea of piping the frosting – something I have never tried before, he made the pasta, and the salad dressing.
We told people if they wanted, they could bring a little booze. Well, we had to bust out the cooler for all the beer. And Torin decided to bring a traveling bar, complete with soda, alcohol for mixing drinks, straws, cups, and fresh mint for garnish. I was very impressed.
No one went hungry, and I think we pleased the vegetarians, meat lovers AND non-dairy eaters alike. We learned that 12 people is a good number of people for a party, just maybe a little too much for playing a game all together.
It was good times, and I’m already brainstorming my next dinner menu!
Here’s what we had:
Marinated mushrooms, olives, Italian meats, goat cheese, fig spread, baked brie and honey, veggies
Pesto
Feta Cheese/Veggie Pasta that Lane is the master at making
Salad with raspberries, pears and candied pecans
Tomato Salad with olive oil and balsamic vinegar
Italian Sausages
Pizza - with sautéed mushrooms, sun-dried tomatoes, and fresh parsley
Pizza bread – no sauce or cheese, just herbs and seasonings
And for dessert, apricot almond squares and crazy cupcakes. Mmmmm.
Lane helped out a lot, of course he made the cupcakes, the frosting, and even came up with the brilliant idea of piping the frosting – something I have never tried before, he made the pasta, and the salad dressing.
We told people if they wanted, they could bring a little booze. Well, we had to bust out the cooler for all the beer. And Torin decided to bring a traveling bar, complete with soda, alcohol for mixing drinks, straws, cups, and fresh mint for garnish. I was very impressed.
No one went hungry, and I think we pleased the vegetarians, meat lovers AND non-dairy eaters alike. We learned that 12 people is a good number of people for a party, just maybe a little too much for playing a game all together.
It was good times, and I’m already brainstorming my next dinner menu!
Thursday, September 13, 2007
Falafel Fluke
My co-worker, Magda, is an amazing cook. She is from the Sudan and makes the *best* Mediterranean food: hummus, baba ganoush, falafel, baklava, everything. Earlier this week, Magda shared her falafels and they were to die for! She told me how she prepared a huge batch of chickpeas and onions for the falafels and froze them, so she can prepare small batches easily, just by adding seasonings and cooking them. Being the sweetheart that she is, Magda brought me a batch the following day.
Katie and I were planning a happy hour and when I heard the falafel news, I completely changed plans. I invited her over for dinner (even though my apartment was a disaster), asked her to bring some hummus and tabbouleh, tasked Lane with going to the store, and I promised to go home early to do some dishes and clean up a little. And all day I daydreamed about how delightful the falafels would taste. Perfect plan, right?
I got on the shuttle and forgot to bring my falafel mix!!! I had to get up and ask the drive to just let me off on the corner. I went back, thinking about how this was cutting down on my dishes time, grabbed the bag out of the fridge, and on my way back down, poked my head in just to make sure and got this horrible whiff of stinky old fish. Not my bag! So I rushed back up and scoured the whole fridge, only to find my falafel mix GONE!
I was completely crushed. Not only had I been looking forward to this all day, I had told my friend all about it, she was buying dinner things specifically to eat with falafels, and now we were going to be eating our non-falafel dinner in a non-cleaned apartment as well, if I didn’t get home asap and figure out what the heck we’d be eating.
So what did I do? I went to farmers market and bought some tomatoes for my dinner on Saturday and some peaches for dessert. Lane got home before I did, luckily, and man, we are the fastest emergency cleaners this side of the Mississippi! It was all cleaned before Katie arrived and we had salmon patties and salad for dinner instead.
So today, as soon as I got to work I looked for my falafel mix hoping some sweet soul realized how important that Ziploc bag full of crushed garbanzo beans was and had thoughtfully returned it. Nope. Even sadder. But somehow, my goods showed up in the fridge around 2 pm. I don’t know how, but I’m happy and I’m going to give this whole falafel thing another whirl sometime this week – tonight, if I’m lucky.
Katie and I were planning a happy hour and when I heard the falafel news, I completely changed plans. I invited her over for dinner (even though my apartment was a disaster), asked her to bring some hummus and tabbouleh, tasked Lane with going to the store, and I promised to go home early to do some dishes and clean up a little. And all day I daydreamed about how delightful the falafels would taste. Perfect plan, right?
I got on the shuttle and forgot to bring my falafel mix!!! I had to get up and ask the drive to just let me off on the corner. I went back, thinking about how this was cutting down on my dishes time, grabbed the bag out of the fridge, and on my way back down, poked my head in just to make sure and got this horrible whiff of stinky old fish. Not my bag! So I rushed back up and scoured the whole fridge, only to find my falafel mix GONE!
I was completely crushed. Not only had I been looking forward to this all day, I had told my friend all about it, she was buying dinner things specifically to eat with falafels, and now we were going to be eating our non-falafel dinner in a non-cleaned apartment as well, if I didn’t get home asap and figure out what the heck we’d be eating.
So what did I do? I went to farmers market and bought some tomatoes for my dinner on Saturday and some peaches for dessert. Lane got home before I did, luckily, and man, we are the fastest emergency cleaners this side of the Mississippi! It was all cleaned before Katie arrived and we had salmon patties and salad for dinner instead.
So today, as soon as I got to work I looked for my falafel mix hoping some sweet soul realized how important that Ziploc bag full of crushed garbanzo beans was and had thoughtfully returned it. Nope. Even sadder. But somehow, my goods showed up in the fridge around 2 pm. I don’t know how, but I’m happy and I’m going to give this whole falafel thing another whirl sometime this week – tonight, if I’m lucky.
Monday, September 10, 2007
La Dominica Republicana
Last night Lane and I booked a November trip to an all-inclusive beach resort in the Dominican Republic. I am so excited! We haven't been on a real vacation in a long time. I am looking forward to relaxing and laying out by the beach for 5 straight days. woo-hoo!
Sunday, September 9, 2007
Weekend Report
Lane and I met up with Torin and friends on Friday around 5:30 at this bar in Dupont called Play Lounge. It was super modern, had a nice sized dance floor (complete with dance pole), awesome DJ and even an open bar for a while. We enjoyed ourselves so much there we didn't end up leaving until 1:30. Uh, that was like a whole work shift. We danced our little booties off all night, and as if ending it with Fuddruckers weren't good enough, we had the awesomest cab driver ever on the ride home. Here's why:
1. He was an Ethiopian refugee, who came to the US 20 years ago.
2. He was BUMPING club music in his cab.
3. He told us how he didn't believe in any religion because they only give you the "password" after you're dead, and that people should focus on living happy good lives while they're alive. His religion is music, he said.
4. As we drove by the white house, he called our lovely presidente the "white-taliban".
5. He randomly started speaking Spanish to us, saying he had just learned it en la calle, or on the street.
We totally laughed and chatted with him the whole way home. Love it.
Saturday afternoon I went to yoga again, people. Here's my new strategy: go to a place where you pay by semester. Having paid in advance for 12 whole classes, I hope I will be much more inclined to stick it out. This place is called Unity Woods and they are really keen on perfecting yoga posture so the poses are much more effective. I don't know if it's a combination of yoga and dancing, but I can already feel it in my legs. Wish me luck!
We got the loveliest invitation after almost a year not seeing eachother to have dinner with our friends, Frank & Darin. Lane and I were in a play with Frank last year, and we started having dinner and game nights until we moved away from Reston. We always have great fun with them. Last night we just caught up, laughed, played Hoopla.
Today has been the laziest day ever. We made our scrumptious weekend breakfast and requisite smoothie and watched some episodes of Weeds, which is a totally hilarious show. We are only on season one. We got a kick out of the special features, which included a Recipes section with some very vague ingredients:2 tsps fresh herbs (your choice), herbed butter, spice. Here's a sample of some recipe titles: Blazing Banana Bread, I'm Baked Ziti, Pot Roast, Hash Browns, you get the picture.
I'm hoping we'll get to the grocery store sometime today and maybe clean up a little bit. I've been busy brainstorming my menu for a dinner and game party we're having next weekend.
1. He was an Ethiopian refugee, who came to the US 20 years ago.
2. He was BUMPING club music in his cab.
3. He told us how he didn't believe in any religion because they only give you the "password" after you're dead, and that people should focus on living happy good lives while they're alive. His religion is music, he said.
4. As we drove by the white house, he called our lovely presidente the "white-taliban".
5. He randomly started speaking Spanish to us, saying he had just learned it en la calle, or on the street.
We totally laughed and chatted with him the whole way home. Love it.
Saturday afternoon I went to yoga again, people. Here's my new strategy: go to a place where you pay by semester. Having paid in advance for 12 whole classes, I hope I will be much more inclined to stick it out. This place is called Unity Woods and they are really keen on perfecting yoga posture so the poses are much more effective. I don't know if it's a combination of yoga and dancing, but I can already feel it in my legs. Wish me luck!
We got the loveliest invitation after almost a year not seeing eachother to have dinner with our friends, Frank & Darin. Lane and I were in a play with Frank last year, and we started having dinner and game nights until we moved away from Reston. We always have great fun with them. Last night we just caught up, laughed, played Hoopla.
Today has been the laziest day ever. We made our scrumptious weekend breakfast and requisite smoothie and watched some episodes of Weeds, which is a totally hilarious show. We are only on season one. We got a kick out of the special features, which included a Recipes section with some very vague ingredients:2 tsps fresh herbs (your choice), herbed butter, spice. Here's a sample of some recipe titles: Blazing Banana Bread, I'm Baked Ziti, Pot Roast, Hash Browns, you get the picture.
I'm hoping we'll get to the grocery store sometime today and maybe clean up a little bit. I've been busy brainstorming my menu for a dinner and game party we're having next weekend.
Happy Birthday, Tim!
Tim, my baby bro celebrates his 22nd b-day today. Tim has the biggest heart, is best buds with Lane, and always knows how to have fun. Tim plays the guitar, teaches his nephew and niece to love music as much as he does, and is always telling people how much he loves them. Tim became a daddy a couple months ago, and this is by far, his greatest accomplishment and joy. Wish we could be there with you to celebrate your big day, bro!!
Tuesday, September 4, 2007
Congratulations, Mr. & Mrs!
So I wasn’t able to call Cynthia or Adie to wish them happy birthday because we were in the car all day Sunday and Monday for a marathon trip to Syracuse, New York. We drove up with our friends, Torin and Raluca, leaving at 6:45 am the day of the wedding. It sounded like a perfectly reasonable plan, until about the night before we were supposed to leave, and I started having visions of four people bumping into each other, running around frantically in a tiny hotel room with an even tinier bathroom to get ready for the wedding.Luckily we had no traffic, we arrived early enough to walk around Syracuse and grab a late lunch. We had plenty of space to get beautified for the wedding, which was absolutely gorgeous. To my pleasant surprise, I learned that Raluca likes to be on time just as much as I do. As a result, we were practically the first guests to arrive at the synagogue. Sean and Jessica shared the most heartwarming vows, tears were streaming down my face for the whole darn ceremony. (I was so disappointed in myself for forgetting to bring tissue.)
At the beginning of the reception Sean and his best man sang a song they had composed for Jessica (I cried for that also). We had an awesome time at the reception and pretty much danced from the first to the last song, and then went to the after party. Sean and Jessica are so in love and incredibly happy with each other. I’m really glad we got to be there to celebrate with them. And that we met them at 2:30 in the morning during a fire alarm. Who would have thought we’d be at their wedding less than a year later?!?
Congratulations, Sean and Jessica!!
Sean and Lane were teaching Jessica's nephew some fancy dance moves:
Our friends with whom we spent 14 hours in the car, over the last two days:
September Babies
September 2: Cynthia, my dear smarty pants east coast baby sister celebrated her B-day on Sunday. This year, we couldn’t be together, but we partied it up last year with a girls trip to New York City. It was a total blast. I love that she’s on the East Coast too!
September 3: Adie, my lovely sister-in-law who lives in beautiful Santa Barbara had her birthday yesterday. I love visiting her, Lane’s bro Ian, and their darling daughters. The girls have huge hearts and are very conscious of being good to the earth and animals and they learn that from their mommy. I can’t wait for her family to come visit us in DC.
September 4: Andrew, my cutie patootie nephew turns two today. He has been talking up a storm for months. And his brain is officially one ginormous sponge. The other day he was singing a song which my sister recognized to be Jingle Bells. The kid was too young to remember Christmas songs from last year. I mean, give me a break, it was August! She later remembered that our 10 year old niece was trying to play Jingle Bells on the piano and singing along when she visited THREE WEEKS AGO. Andrew caught on, apparently. Happy Birthday, Andrew! He’s going to Chuck E Cheese tomorrow because he loves arcade games.
September 3: Adie, my lovely sister-in-law who lives in beautiful Santa Barbara had her birthday yesterday. I love visiting her, Lane’s bro Ian, and their darling daughters. The girls have huge hearts and are very conscious of being good to the earth and animals and they learn that from their mommy. I can’t wait for her family to come visit us in DC.
September 4: Andrew, my cutie patootie nephew turns two today. He has been talking up a storm for months. And his brain is officially one ginormous sponge. The other day he was singing a song which my sister recognized to be Jingle Bells. The kid was too young to remember Christmas songs from last year. I mean, give me a break, it was August! She later remembered that our 10 year old niece was trying to play Jingle Bells on the piano and singing along when she visited THREE WEEKS AGO. Andrew caught on, apparently. Happy Birthday, Andrew! He’s going to Chuck E Cheese tomorrow because he loves arcade games.
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