My milkshake brings all the weather to DC

So in case anyone here in the D.C. Metro Area might have been wondering why it rained like crazy on Sunday, then hour-by-hour dropped some major degrees into Monday while getting more wind gusts than Pooh’s Blustery Day and finally culminating in a few white specs of precipitation this morning, it is because I’ve returned from Chicago. And apparently, the weather followed me.

It was windy in Chicago, but then again it’s always windy in Chicago. But Saturday went from relatively clear skies to briskly accumulating snow flurries to freezing rain and sleet to 50 degree weather to just below freezing in the span of less than 24 hours. Just as the temp in Chi-town was peaking on Sunday, I arrived at DCA to light rain that progressed to, well you know the rest.

To illustrate I snapped this photo off Michigan Avenue just before noon on Saturday:

About an hour or so later, this was the same scene:

I know this is nothing new for those that live in the North and Midwest, but I miss stuff like that so I was feeling pretty self-satisfied with the wind and flurries I brought home with me. You can all thank me later. I like wine, vodka and iTunes.

Busy bee! Busy busy bee!

So yeah. Busy.

And  now “busy” looks like a non-word to me, just a jumble of letters that don’t make much sense.  Isn’t it funny how that happens?

I feel like I was all over the place last week; for it was truly a week of planes, trains and automobiles.  Baltimore, NYC, Chicago and Milwaukee. Two flights, one train, lots of Metro, rental car, MY car, someone else’s car, countless taxis and my good ol’ two feet–all done in five days or less.

Now throw in ridiculously frequent allergy fits, two baseball games, extra innings (sadly ended with a Pujols 3-run jack), a sausage race*, a new (video!) iPod, fund-raising efforts for the Race for Hope team I’ve captained, a newly reinstated date night with the wifey and various attempts to keep fit you can see why I am exhausted, but happy.

*The Chorizo won, by the way.  And if you were wondering it is now available on the menu at Miller Park (just like the other sausages; the Bratwurst, the Polish sausage, the Hot Dog and the Italian sausage) and is served on a tortilla with salsa.  Although my own personal taste tester perferred the Brat over the newly sampled Chorizo. I have to take his word for it though, for I stuck with the house specialty, Miller Lite.

If you ever get the chance or the inkling to go to Miller Park, do it!  It’s a great park, Brewers fans are awesome, the food offerings are fantastic, the tailgating is to die for and you can stay and drink (and eat) and watch the ground crew until 12:00a.m.

See, winter does exist!

A weekend jaunt to the Midwest, complete with snow and freeizng temperatures (it was 11° when I left this morning), assured me that it really is winter right now.

Contrary to popular belief, I am not dead.

Sorry to disappoint. Vacationing in Chicago is lovely. I highly recommend it. If you go this time of year though, bring warm things. Seriously though, it was all so nice and wonderful and not sucky. Well not having internet did suck for my fantasy football standings (Delhomme is hurt! C. Taylor is out!? Shockey caught a TD pass!), but other than that, it was super! Really, really super. I do feel a bit out of it now, being away for two weeks does things to your brain. For example, I’ve forgotten how to do anything that doesn’t involve sitting in a coffee shop for three hours. It’s slipped my mind as to what is necessary to remove oneself from the bed upon awakening in under an hour’s time. I am horribly overdressed for the weather in my thick, tweed skirt and wool tights and a wool sweater over a collared shirt, all wrapped in a pashima and covered with a wool coat. Yeah, Marci, it’s not single digits outside, lose some of the sheep sister. Now that I am home, it’s discerning to see that not everything is coated in a dusting of snow or ice. When I got in my car for the first time in two weeks this past weekend, I mistook the dust and grime covering my vehicle for solidified wintry precipitation–that is until I tried to remove it. I mean, imagine a world where it snows one day and a week later, the snow is still there! Not melted away into the gutters, but still clinging to trees and window sills! It’s amazing. I am finding that my computer screen is far less festive than the countless markets and shops I spent my days in last week…although I’ve tried to remedy that just a bit by changing my wallpaper to this festive photo that I snapped at the Chriskindl Market. Yes, the sign says “Modern Art Balls”. Heh, balls. Soldier field, too, is a magical place. It was my first time visiting the storied stadium two Sunday’s ago and all that talk about how the remodeling it under went stole the spirit of the stadium is crap. It’s a great stadium. Jam packed of people rooting for Da Bears–all with unobstructed seating (unlike some stadiums). Unless, you count shirtless men as obstructions…yes faithful fans, sans tops, were spotted gleefully cheering on Da Bears in 19 degree weather. Not to mention the 3 inches of ice most of us were standing on for the duration of the game, which proved even too much for my toes wrapped in faux fur-lined boots and two pairs of socks. I’d do it all again though, that is how you are supposed to watch football afterall…outdoors and freezing your ass off drinking beer slushies. Yes, even our beers got in on the chilly fun, forming ice crystals after just a few sips. So, I am back. It’s not cold. There are no skyscrapers. It’s two weeks before Christmas and I feel like it was just Thanksgiving…hell it was Thanksgiving when I left…anyone have any turkey or pumpkin pie leftovers?

Bring it!

Oh, I am so excited about my first Chicago snow storm. Snow me in baby, I am on vacation.

Gone fishin’

Or more like, Gone Business Trippin’

Just like last year.

Off to the windy city for loads of work and then loads of vacation. Well, specifically 6.5 days of crazy work followed by 6.5 days of completely non-work related free time…in my favorite city of all time.

Wheeeeee!

And…annnnd! There may or may not be a Bears v. Vikings game in my Chicago future. Ok, I can’t lie to you, there soooo is!

I won’t be back ’til almost mid-December kids. Miss me!

I may be able to blog at ya form the road, we’ll see.

Oh and if anyone named Buggie or Meg decide they need to get the hell out of Dodge (or maybe Alexandria or Jacksonville) and can afford a last minute ticket to Chi-town. You know where I will be, I have the suite from Saturday to Thursday, yo!!!!!!!!!!!111!!!!!!1!

Updates! Get your Updates!

A while back I posted about how I’ve been feeling overwhelmed and suffering though my one-track mind lately (ok, five-track if we are counting…I can’t expand my brain to think and obesses about more than 5 things? And I call myself a girl?!?!).

Specifically, this is what I said back on September 15th:

Thing #1: I have a pace-tastic 17 mile run tomorrow. Whereby “pace-tastic” means I get to try out my projected marathon pace on a portion of the run. Preferrably at the end portion of the run, you know…when you are ready to stop. Preferable to whom, I do not know.
UPDATE: I am officially tapering! This means no runs longer than 14 miles in the next three weeks. In fact my weekly average will go down from 40 miles to about 25! The race itself is still looming, but there I will have adrenaline and cheerleaders to get me through.

Thing #2: Hot damn I want to get myself to Chicago. Hotter damn I want to be entertained while I am there.
UPDATE: Why go to Chicago, when Chicago comes to you?

Thing #3: 5 conferences in 10 weeks. Hence, the “overwhelmed” thing.
UPDATE: Three conferences down, two to go.

Thing #4: One.game.back.
UPDATE: AL Central Title baby! Stolen on the last day of play, or Royally handed over. Who cares how we got it? There is also the AL Batting Title. A possible Cy. There is not, however, the ALCS. Sadness.

Thing #5: A make-shift receiving corps could actually prove to be effective if a certain wide out can learn to actually catch a ball.
UPDATE: Why worry about a certain receiver when you can’t even mount any offense at all? Good thing we get to play teams like Detroit and Green Bay for four games a year.

Don’t Let Me Down

So much going on and nothing going on all at the same time.

I don’t know if I feel like I have nothing to say because I am overwhelmed or if I feel like all I am thinking about are the same three (well, five if we’re counting) things. How can I be overwhlemed if there are only five things going on in my life and two of them really have nothing to do with me (I mean, does the newly surging pennant race really affect me?)?

An example from Thing #1: I have a pace-tastic 17 mile run tomorrow. Whereby “pace-tastic” means I get to try out my projected marathon pace on a portion of the run. Preferrably at the end portion of the run, you know…when you are ready to stop. Preferable to whom, I do not know.

An example from Thing #2: Hot damn I want to get myself to Chicago. Hotter damn I want to be entertained while I am there.

An example from Thing #3: 5 conferences in 10 weeks. Hence, the “overwhelmed” thing.

An example from Thing #4: One.game.back.

An example from Thing #5: A make-shift receiving corps could actually prove to be effective if a certain wide out can learn to actually catch a ball.

…overwhelmed feeling continues…

Watchin’ the clock, it’s four o’clock it’s got to stop

It’s got to stop because it’s almost vacation time people. V-A-C-A-T-I-O-N. A real one. Complete with relaxation! And Buddha bellies hanging out over bikini bottoms and not caring because it’s friggin West Virginia and like who do I know there anyway?

After getting less than 8 hours of sleep, combined, over the last two days I am so ready for some R&R.  Maybe not R&R that starts at 6am…but maybe I can work on the wife about what time we leave tomorrow.

West Virginia here we come!  I will be offline until July 10* (I know! What ever will the eight of you do?), so happy birthday to Canada and America and all you cool Cancers. Party hardy folks. 

*I will not be in WVA for that entire time. I am flying out to Chicago on the 4^th of July for a super quick visit, as I’ll be in town for a measly 12 hours. Then I fly up to Minnesota to meet up with my family for a couple of days…just to turn around and drive back to the DC area with Mom, Dad and little sis.  What was it I was saying about relaxation? Wish me luck.

Wicked awesome

as in, things that are Wicked Awesome (in no particular order)

*12-day vacation from work
What’s Not Wicked Awesome (WNWA)? Coming back and trying to figure out what in the hell you are and/or were doing before you left

*portable music (hear the angel’s singing)
WNWA? Not having a computer at home to charge the damn thing. I know! I know, buy a friggin adapter already. Yeah, see next item

*2 FULL days of squeal-worthy shopping with your best friend in Chicago. Case in point: A $138 blazer from Anthropologie for $31.20 including Chicago’s outrageous 9% sales tax!
WNWA? The ensuing credit card burn. Don’t hate me MaterCard! Er, I guess you love me. Whatevs. Small monthly payments?

*A free airline ticket (thank you United air miles!) and a free place to stay in Chicago that just happened to be STUMBLING distance from many favourite haunts. Including, but not limited to Bistro Zinc, Melvin B’s, Prada, Starbuck’s, Michigan Ave., and The Lodge.
WNWA? Not being able to find the favorite beer of the owner of said free place, so we could stock his fridge with it

*Every single person in Chicago – seriously so great. Everyone was so great!
WNWA? Even the dorks in Chicago were nice, but still dorky. I mean, c’mon…you’re telling me there was only one cute boy in the windy city last week?

*speaking of cute boys…..New Year’s Eve kisses. Yum.
WNWA? Having Google Dater quiz you like a girlfriend to see if he can find out where your lips have been in between dates

*A clean living environment ~ the two extra days I had off after the New Year were spent tidying and scrubbing. All rooms at Condo-Marci are clean as a whistle.
WNWA? Um, cleaning sucks

*Wicked. As in the musical. You know, the sold-out performance at the Kennedy Center? Yeah. I went. Last night. On my second date with Google Dater. Sigh.
WNWA? Nothing. Nothing at all.