sample.sale.

I'm so jealous. I just got off the phone with my sister who is at the orla kiely sample sale in london. She's staying with my friends for the month of june, and they went over there to check stuff out. I sent in some requests, and they just called to confirm what I wanted. I'm getting this guy to the left, and the other guy on the right. Such good deals, even with the crappy exchange rate. I wish I had them now since my outfit would coordinate perfectly with the purple and pink bag, but I guess I can be patient and wait until *j* comes home at the end of june. There was apparently a ton of stuff, and it was painful to hear about it but not be there. Next year I'm planning my london trip to overlap with the sample sale.

equal.oppurtunity.

Yesterday I went to the wrentham outlets with *ja*, her brother and their mother to give my opinion on new clothes for a european wedding they're going to in june. Since it's impossible for me to go there without spending any money, I gave myself an allowance. I figured it would be better to go there having decided to spend no more than a certain amount, rather than trying not to spend any, which wouldn't happen anyway. I managed to squeak in at $2 less than my limit. Nice. In one store, I was waiting to try stuff on, and there was a long line with only three fitting rooms. One woman asked an employee to open the handicapped room (which was empty), but she refused, saying if a handicapped person came in, they needed the room available. I found this ridiculous. There were seriously six or seven people waiting for the three rooms, and a perfectly good fitting room was wasted just in case someone in a walker or wheelchair came in. Why couldn't we use it, and if a handicapped person needed it, we could finish up? In fact, why can't handicapped people wait in line too? Shouldn't everyone be treated the same? If I were handicapped, I wouldn't want people babying me. I'd be all for equal opportunity, not reverse discrimination. There were some nice comfy chairs for them to sit in while the waited too. I wanted to kick that power hungry store employee.

freedom.hikers.

I hiked the freedom trail yesterday with *ja* and *ba*. I'd done it before- once as a little kid, and once a few years ago with *ac* and the boy she mentored. I figured it was a good thing to do since we were looking for a free/cheap way to play in boston. Plus, we got some good exercise- especially when climbing the 294 steps of the bunker hill monument. (As a side note for you history fans, the battle of bunker hill took place on my birthday, although several years before I was born.) We visited "old ironsides" and because we didn't take the (free) guided tour, we could only hang out on the top deck. I remember being a kid and visiting the ship with my dad. I thought it was so cool that the men got to sleep in hammocks. I'm sure those guys thought so too. We grabbed some grub in the north end, stopped for the requisite cannoli at mike's pastry, and watched some street performers in faneuil hall while enjoying said cannoli. We finished the day by walking through the common and the gardens before hopping the T back to our vehicles. All in all, the perfect day. Here's a picture of the boston skyline from the top of the bunker hill monument. I like this angle since the zakim bridge is included, up front and center, instead of off in the background or to the left like it usually is.

flip.flops.

I cleaned out my closet the other day, and realized that I have at least as many flip flops/sandals as I do other types of shoes. Probably more, I didn't actually count. I do know that I love sandals. Not only are they comfortable and pretty versatile, but they stand for nice weather. I have the cheap rubber thong style, the slightly nicer reef version, the rugged hiking keens, still nicer leather borns, cushy yet cute doc martens, birkenstocks, and finally the cute little heeled sandals. All in all, probably about fourteen pair. This made me aware of the fact that I never have trouble finding shoes to wear in the summer- I have every possible option of open shoe to choose from. The colder months are a little more stressful. Maybe I should just start wearing them year round.

the.four.of.us.

I finally got my sister to send me some of the pictures from her graduation weekend at villanova. Here's a good one of the four of us (*j*, *k*, *me*, *b*) in her backyard after the ceremony. We killed some time with a cookout before heading out to dinner later on that night. There're more photos at my flickr account. Click here to see them.

i'm.on.the.fence.

earthfest is coming up this saturday. It's from 11:30-6ish on the esplanade. I'm trying to decide whether or not to brave it this year. I love guster, and they're headlining, so that's appealing. However, it doesn't seem like there are a lot of people free to head down with me, and I'm not sure I want to hang out for many hours on a picnic blanket by myself. Oh, and after the seriously overcrowded mess last year, I'm a little scared to get stuck in the middle of a drunken fist fight this year.

flat.tire.

I had to buy a new tire today. It sucked, but was my own fault, so I can't really complain. It had some sort of slow leak since last fall, and while I kept meaning to take it in, the best I apparently could do was to fill it up when it got low. So on monday, when we got back to my parents from pennsylvania, I checked all the tires, added air to the low one, and set off on my way home. I stopped at the new balance outlet since they were having a sale and I needed some running shorts, and when I came out thirty minutes later, I had a flat tire. The amusing part was that it wasn't the slow leak tire, it was the other front one. This is where I'm happy to have aaa. In theory, I could have changed the tire myself. Usually, it's something I would have insisted on doing. But I was tired, and it was darkish, so I decided to get my money's worth out of my annual membership. The guy came within thirty minutes, and put the spare on in less than five, and I was home shorty after. Luckily, I have a full size spare tire, so I didn't have to drive with a donut. Today I zipped over to my tire place to have both tires fixed. The flat one had a rim leak which was fixed with some cleaning, spray stuff, and $15. The slow leak tire was a sadder story. Since it had been leaking for so long, there were apparently times when I drove on a flattish tire. Not so flat that it would be noticeable or cause rim damage, but flat enough that I wore out part of the side- the part that wasn't supposed to be rolling on the road but was. So it was thin and likely to cause bad problems while driving in the future, so I had to shell out the big bucks for a brand-spanking new tire. I guess I learned a valuable lesson today.

per.mile.

During our long drive this past weekend, I was talking to my dad about running shoes. I got some new ones last friday, and mentioned that you're supposed to replace them every 350 to 500 miles since that's when they start to break down and cause problems. My dad asked how much new ones cost, and when I told him mine are usually about $100, he pointed out that I'm paying $0.20 per mile- about the price of gas. Ouch.

pee.

In philadelphia near the restaurant we ate at. I particularly like the fire hydrant in the background. It seems appropriate. For some reason, this little fenced off/no dog peeing area reminds me of something I'd see in london.

driving.

Takin' a road trip to philadelphia tomorrow to see my sister graduate from college. She goes (went) to villanova, and we're having a mini-reunion to celebrate the end of my poor parents financial drain. Even *b's* flying in from austin for the occasion. While it should be a great time, I'm not bringing my computer, so you'll have to wait until monday night to hear about it.

kickball.

Last summer, I developed an interest in kickball. It came out of nowhere. I don't think I've played it since I was a kid, nor do I know anyone who does, but I must have heard about it somewhere. I did a web search, and found that there were several leagues in the boston area. That's as far as it got though. I was too chicken to actually sign up for something like that by myself. This year, I may get a few steps further. At *nn's* bachelorette party, I mentioned my interest in kickball, and several others showed just as much interest. I'm supposed to research it and get back to all of them. I think if I have at least one other person to join with me, I'll be okay with it. The site that I've found the most info on is w.a.k.a. (world adult kickball association). I just wish there was a division closer to me and I'd be all over it. The funny thing is that I'm not quite sure how to play kickball, or even if I'd be any good at it. I don't think I'd be great at fielding, but if my thirteen year old soccer goalie kick is any clue, I'll be super at kicking that red regulation kickball out of the park.

i.heart.orla.kiely.

Many of you may know that I have an unhealthy obsession with orla kiely bags. My favorites are the ones made of oil cloth- they're super easy to wipe clean, plus, they have great patterns and colors. I purchased my first bag about five years ago. It was a steal at $78 (although at the time it was a big splurge for me) and I loved that no one else had her stuff. Five years later, the demand for her stuff has skyrocketed, as have the prices. While I haven't seen people on every street corner carrying one yet, I do come across the occasional orla fan. While in london, I had the dream come true of visiting her flagship store in covent gardens. It was heavenly. The sad news was that with the strong pound and weak dollar, her expensive bags were ridiculous. I could barely afford the zipper clutch I splurged on. Also, since her things are much easier to come across, tons of snazzy londoners carry her bags, thus diminishing the "special" factor I get to experience here when I'm the only one. A few days ago, my london friend e-mailed me telling me about the orla kiely sample sale that's happening there from may 31st to june 3rd. I'm so jealous, but I'm checking out some of her past season patterns and *kb's* going to pick up something for me- at fantastic discounts. I may have to get up super early so she can call and report what they have in stock from the sale. Or maybe I'll have to get a last minute ticket to london. Ha!

comes.standard?

Part of my normal running route involves a street called stratford street. It's .75 miles long, and has several cross streets that I loop through. In january, when I started this route, I noticed that the street sign at one such cross street didn't identify stratford street as stratford street, but as standard street. I'm not sure how long this had been going on, but it confused me. It definitely wasn't a case of the street names changing after a bit, because it was correctly marked as stratford street at both the intersection before and the intersection after. It was just some poor schmuck who messed up on either the printing or the hanging of the sign. In any case, it became part of my routine- I liked heading up kenneth street and snickering at the standard street sign. A couple of days ago, I was on the other side of the street, and noticed that the sign was correct at the intersection in question. I was shocked, and crossed over to see it from my normal vantage point, but it too, read correctly as stratford street. I was rather sad not to have my comforting standard sign, although I'm sure all those confused motorists are much happier.

new.baby.

Our neighbors have two guinea pigs- both female. Yesterday, on mother's day, one of them gave birth to a little guinea pig. Immaculate conception? Perhaps.

inchworm.

This is strange. Since it's spring, there are little inchworms hanging from every branch on every tree. Since I run on sidewalks in my neighborhood- which are lined with trees- it only makes sense that I'd end up with little green inchworms on my hat, shoulders, shirt, etc. The thing that doesn't make sense is that the only place I find them is on my right shoulder. Every time I run, I find one or two of them, but they're always in the same two square inch area on my shoulder. I'm always going from one side of the street to the other, or running in a different direction, so it's not like I only go under trees with my right shoulder. I suppose they could be landing on my hat or left shoulder and just falling off, but why not my right shoulder? Is it less slippery? I really don't understand it.

*nn's*.party.

The bachelorette party was a great success. We started the night off with dinner and some bar time at the living room. We were going to stop at another bar before going to the improv asylum for a 10pm show, but didn't have enough time. We'd given *nn* a list with 60 things she had to do that night, so we started out at the bar with some help from the other male patrons. She managed to kiss the head of a bald man, get five guys to write down their philosophy on marriage, kiss twins, get a piggyback ride, and several others while we were at the living room. She got admirably close to completing the list throughout the night- and it wasn't easy! Luckily, the male population of boston seemed only too willing to help out. The improv show was hilarious- they incorporated her into the show, and brought her up on stage to poke fun. We ended the night at paddy o's, and trudged home via the wonderful boston taxi service. Up top's a picture of us (minus 1) at the beginning of the night. I'm hiding on the right. To see more anytime, click on the flickr link over there on the right, or just click here.

party.night.

Tonight's *nn's* bachelorette party. I met up with her, *sr* and *ds* earlier today for a manicure/pedicure, and now that our feet and hands look pretty, we're set to go. We all went home to change quick, and I'm on my way downtown to meet up with the ten other girls for a fun night out. I'll post pictures asap.

book.buddy.

As mentioned in a previous post, I have a ton of books that I've yet to read. Thirty-nine to be exact. I've been trying to come up with some sort of challenge to encourage myself to read them quickly (we all know how I thrive under competition), but have not done so thus far. I did read two within a week, but I've been stuck on my third (the inheritance of loss) for about ten days, and am only on page 68 of 356ish. It's a book I really feel that I should like, but I haven't formed any sort of attachments yet, and don't see it happening in the near future. Yesterday, at gymnastics, I was trying to read my book instead of running on the treadmill since it was hot and humid. The woman sitting next to me (who is usually running on the treadmill next to me) asked me if I liked it. Turns out that she couldn't get into it either, but felt exactly like me- that she should like it. We talked for the whole hour about books we'd liked/didn't like, and it turns out that we have pretty much the exact same taste in reading. She always seemed really cool, so I guess I couldn't say I was surprised. She dislikes short stories (for the most part) for the exact same reason as I do- it's hard to attach to the character when they're only around for a short time. We can't remember enough about the different stories in order to discuss them when it comes time for discussion. I got several new recommendations for books, along with the permission to throw away (or donate, really) the ones I can't get into. This should really knock down the number of books I'll actually have to read.

it's.hot.out.

I turned on the air conditioning today. It was hot out, almost 90 degrees, but up on my 3rd floor it was probably closer to 110. It's just not something that I can handle- hot humid weather- it makes it hard to breathe. We never had air conditioning growing up, but each had our own large box fan that we shoved in a window. I liked my fan. I still remember where the broken part was, and the vibrating sound it made when it turned on low. I miss it.

told.you.so.

Driving home from ballet, we were three cars behind a big accident. There was an suv in front of me, so I didn't see anything, but from what I gather, a car turned left from a side street onto the main road, and hit a motorcycle. The motorcycle was looking pretty beat up, and was laying in the middle of our lane, while the rider had been thrown about ten feet onto the curb. He (or she) was wearing a helmet (thank God- since in ohio (and probably some other states) this isn't the law) and looked to have probably broken some ribs, legs, arms- take your pick. While he wasn't really moving, he was talking to the good samaratans who stopped, and appeared to be in decent shape, despite the likely broken bones. *e* was in the back seat, and had a field day with this. (Click here for a previous discussion with *e* regarding motorcycles and cigarettes.) She reiterated that he should have known better- motorcycles (or motors, as she calls them) are dangerous, and he knew he'd get hurt riding one. Even when I told her that it was probably the car's fault- that the driver probably had looked quick, and missed the motorcycle, she didn't back off.
"Well. I hope he's okay, but he knew that he'd get hurt or die," she insists
"Let's hope that he gets better, and not focus on being a know-it-all," I tell her.
"What's a know-it-all?" she asks.
I have to bite my tongue to not reply with, "You are, *e*." Instead I explained it the diplomatic way, but even still, all I could picture was myself: Telling her that there are reasons why we tell her not to jump on her bed when she's supposed to be sleeping- after she's fallen off and gotten a big egg on her head. Telling her that I didn't lie when I said vanilla extract doesn't taste as good as it smells- after she's insisted on trying it. Telling her that pulling the string from her shirt will ruin the hem, and then watching her do just that. Apparently, I'm the definition of a know-it-all.

product.review.

Jello sugar-free fat-free pistachio pudding. I figured I'd give it a whirl.
The good: It has the same flavor as the original stuff, and the instant version can be whipped up in seven minutes (2 mins stirring, and 5 in the fridge).
The bad: You really have to beat it for 2 minutes straight, otherwise you end up with clumps of gross, thick pudding. It also leaves my mouth feeling funny- like there's a coating of something artificial all over my tongue, teeth, gums, etc. Finally, the initial calorie count looks good at 30 cal/serving, but when you factor in the milk you mix it with, it's more like 75cals per half cup serving.
Overall: Not bad if you're craving some pudding, and don't want all the calories and sugar in the original. However, I'd recommend splurging on the full sugar version if only to avoid the funny mouth feeling.
Grade: C+

one.year.old.

A year ago today, the first ever post of here.to.here was posted. I'd wanted to start a blog for some time before that, but didn't think I had anything interesting to write..until I experienced something I deemed blog worthy. If you want to reminisce, click here. Over the past year, a lot has happened. I backpacked through europe, two friends had babies, the *b's* moved to london, I built a kick a** tv cabinet from old doors, two friends got engaged, I went to a fancy dinner at the seaport hotel for the blood donor recognition night, my sister and I braved black friday, I had my ten year high school reunion (which I loved, unlike some people), my grandfather passed away which allowed for some quality family bonding in indiana, my sister had emergency gallbladder surgery, I went back to london in march, and there was a bunch of hiking and some camping thrown in there for good measure. Not bad. Hopefully this coming year will be just as full.

lucky.charms.taste.like.camping.

Ever since I was three, my dad's taken me (and my siblings as they've each gotten old enough) on a camping trip. My mom stayed home since she's "allergic" to camping- something I thought was a legitimate allergy until I was old enough to know better. All this exposure worked its magic, and I still love camping to this day. Some of the benefits of camping with my dad are as follows: free roaming in the woods, playing in streams and the occasional waterfall, building and poking around in the fire, eating s'mores, sweeping and organizing the tent daily (believe it or not, this was one of my favorite activities- once I even made a broom out of some grass, a stick, and twine since we'd forgotten ours), using his pocket knife to carve our own cooking sticks, and best of all, picking out our very own box of sugary cereal. Our cupboard at home routinely consisted of kix, cheerios, and wheaties, so we were beside ourselves with glee as we stopped at a grocery store and surveyed the options. I can't remember what my siblings picked out, but I often ended up with lucky charms or cinnamon toast crunch. My current cereal of choice is kashi go lean, but I was craving something tasty, and grabbed a box of lucky charms at the store yesterday. This morning when I sat down to eat them, I was excited. At the first bite, I felt like I was sitting in my pj's on a picnic table, surrounded by banged up metal pans and paper napkins, with the smell of damp forest lingering in the air. I'll have to bring a box of sugary cereal along next time I go camping!

stepford.

Yesterday was *nn's* wedding shower. She was so cute. Her fiance told her she looked preppy, and she was offended. She did look preppy, but not in a bad way. Several people said she belonged with the stepford wives. When she picked up a little china teacup and saucer, she definitely did!

ready.set.

I registered for the 5K today. Now I'm committed. There's no backing out.

i.killed.a.bee.by.drowning.

It was nice out today, so I opened my window about six inches to let in the breeze. I like sitting on my bed and having my curtains blow back and forth while I read- which was what I was doing today. I was under my white blanket, when all of a sudden, a big, no, huge bee flew right in my window. I freaked out. In a split second, I'd flipped my blanket off, ran out of my room, and slammed the door, injuring my heel and shoulder in the process. I caught my heel under the edge of the bed and slammed my shoulder into the door jam on my way out. My heel was bleeding all over the floor, and has a big bruise up the back, and my shoulder will have a bruise in the near future. After bandaging up my foot, I peeked back into my room to see what the bee was up to. There was no movement or buzzing, but I suspected it was under my blanket. I got a stick, and pushed the blanket into a pile. Still nothing. Eventually, I decided that I couldn't just leave it there forever, so I opened the window all the way, and hung the blanket outside. I shook it out, and figured the bee was either gone, or never there to begin with. As I was piling it in the laundry basket, there he was, clinging to the blanket. I flipped it over again, and threw everything in the washer, bee and all. At the end of the cycle, I found him in the washer, dead from drowning. Hey, I gave him the chance to go free. This was his decision.

happy.birthday!

Today is *ba's* birthday. He's the big twenty-ten! *ja* and I sent him a party in two boxes. Mine had the cake, candles, and sparklers, and hers had the hat, banner, etc. I think we made his day. This was the second time I mailed a cake to someone. The first time was a couple of years ago- I mailed an unfrosted cake and a container of frosting to my little brother for his birthday. It got there in good shape, so I decided to give it another go. This time, I wanted to frost it ahead of time, so I made my own from cream and confectionery sugar. It was a similar recipe to that which I use for christmas cookies, so I thought it would harden enough to wrap up and ship. After frosting the whole thing, I realized my mistake. This recipe was largely made of cream, while the cookie recipe uses mostly butter and sugar, with just enough cream to make it smooth. The frosted cake wasn't hardening at all. It was nice and fluffy and whipped, like we'd normally want it. So *ja* scraped the entire thing down while I mixed up another batch of frosting, this time the right kind. We frosted it a second time, then cut ourselves each a piece before wrapping it up and sending it to him. He came home today to find the two boxes sitting on top of each other. Everything arrived in perfect shape, and we all ate some cake tonight- each of us sitting in our own homes. Who's birthday is next?

famous.friend.

My friend *ac* (aka mandy- since you'll hear her name anyway) is famous! Click here to see her on tv. I'm very proud of her, and think that she should come back to boston since this would secure any job she wants!

uneven.

Get this- my right leg is longer than my left. From the knee to the ankle, they're the same size, but from the hip to the knee, they're not. Plus, my spine curves slightly at the base to make up for the differing leg lengths. This is probably a big part of why my left knee is giving me grief.

voice.in.my.ear.

Can't remember if I posted about this, or just e-mailed it around to people, but I'm running a 5K on June 3rd. This will be my first "real" race, and although it's nowhere near as impressive as the marathon's that the evil twins and their clan ran not long ago, it's a good place for me to start. I picked one that's literally in my neighborhood. The start is .69 miles from my front door, so I've been able to try it out- a few times so far. I know where the hilly parts are, and where the parts I can run the fastest are, so now I'm just working on speeding up. Yesterday I ran it with the hope of beating my time for the previous two runs(which were 31 seconds apart), but something went wrong along the way, and I finished 43 seconds behind my slowest time. I was at first discouraged, but when I hit the "end run" heading on my iPod, I heard a little voice in my ear. It was a woman's voice- a british woman's voice, and she said, "Hello, this is paula radcliffe. Congratulations. You've just recorded a new personal best for the mile." (Except when I first heard this, I thought she said polar radcliffe. I actually had to look her up online to figure out who she was.) This made me a lot happier with myself. I figure that since I sped up so much on the first mile and a half, I was more tired when I slowed it down in the middle, and must have gone slower than normal which added on to my overall time. Plus, this leaves me lots of room for improvement. Paula radcliffe though- pretty cool, huh? Apparently there's a lance armstrong voice in there for distance milestones too. That should be interesting to hit.