Fun Times

I've been a little busy the past couple of weeks hanging out with friends, traveling to Tennessee, and getting ready for my upcoming trip to Uganda.

A few Saturday's ago Alexandra and Mary Beth came over to cook and fix jewelry. However, before we could cook we had to go to Costco so that Mary Beth could buy two, yes TWO, of my favorite trash cans. Then, we came back to my place and made Spinach and Artichoke dip and my favorite Japanese dish 'Okonomiyaki'. Here's a picture of the dip:

I just got back from a long weekend in Tennessee where I was visiting my friend Amber and her family. I love going to visit them because they are fun to hang out with and I'm able to relax and just 'chill' when I'm with them. It doesn't hurt that they spoil me rotten. :-) This year, my birthday present was a quilt and 2 pillow cases handmade by Amber. These were her first attempt at quilting and I have to say that she's quite good. I definitely appreciate being the recipient of her first quilt!

Getting ready for a trip can take just a couple of hours or months depending on the type of trip. While I know I can be ready to leave on the 6pm flight ... I definitely prefer the month long planning time line! As I prepare for my trip to Uganda I'm trying to figure out some protein rich snacks to bring with me since I don't eat meat anymore - right now I have almonds and peanut butter. Any suggestions for an easy to pack and healthy snack?

I also had to get my shots updated and order anti-malaria medications, luckily I only needed to get the Typhoid shot and was able to get it yesterday. In case you're interested ... this is what a typhoid organism looks like:

Well, that's it for now .. all my updates in one easy to read location! One more busy weekend and a bunch of happy hours to go before I leave next Thursday.

Stay tuned for more updates!

Political Choices

Politics .. why do they cause such heartache? I'm torn between candidates. I'm watching the Super Tuesday returns and wonder .. who do I choose?

I lean toward one based on issues and experience but lean toward the other because of potential and planned direction for the country. Do I go with the person who I think can beat the Republican candidate? Or, do I go with the person who I think has a better chance of being able to make the changes that need to be made in our political, social, and economic systems?

How do I choose?

How do you choose?

Help ... comments please.

Friends and Sports

Movie and Hockey

Saturday was my movie and hockey day. After going to see the movie 'Atonement' (I'm not sure why this movie is getting so many rave reviews .. it was good but not 'amazing') with Angela and Stephanie, we met up with Kerri, Engie, and Pat to have drinks and a snack before the Caps played the Atlanta Thrashers. After our snack, we said goodbye to Stephanie and headed over to the Verizon Center. We were able to go through security but couldn't get into the game because the tickets had the wrong date on them. The woman who sold Pat the tickets had given him the wrong game! Luckily, after talking with the manager and standing around a while, we were able to get tickets and we headed up to the very last row in the nose bleed section. We were actually quite happy about being in the last row because we could stand up and didn't have to worry about bothering people behind us. It was a pretty good game and although the Caps lost we all had a great time!

(From the back ... Kerri, Angela, Pat, Engie, me!)

Super Bowl!

What an amazing Super Bowl game! I don't watch football during the regular season but have always loved watching the Super Bowl. This year I watched with friends who are Giant's fans. I didn't go into the game favoring either team but did want to see a balanced game without either team totally ruling the game. I soon found myself cheering for the Giants ... they played so well and totally deserved this win. At one point David Tyree caught what I said was the play of the game .. with a number of Patriots surrounding him and pulling on his jersey, he jumped up and as he was falling backwards caught the ball, pressed it against his helmet, and then was able to hold it with two hands as he landed on his back. It really was amazing and will be a highlight play in any Super Bowl highlights show from this point forward!

Thanks Danielle and Oscar for letting me invite myself over! :-)