Lucky I was an A+ Student!!

So last night I get a call from one of my oldest and dearest friends, Molly Raftery. We met in the 6th grade, when, as the new student, it was discovered she made straight As. So did I, so OBVIOUSLY we must be best friends. She's been a blessing in my life ever since. So anyway, Miss Molly calls and asks me, if, she flys me out to Hawaii and puts me up at the Four Seasons, will I be her wedding photographer!! Can you believe? I am soooo honored and sooo excited and cannot wait to be part of her special day!! I GET TO GO ON A HONEYMOON ANYWAY THIS YEAR!! Thank you my dearest Molly for making my year. I love you so much and am so blessed to have you as a friend!!

Though not nearly as far away, Philadelphia is another a beautiful place. We took a short 3 hour road trip last weekend to visit our friend Shannon who lives in the cutest neighborhood right downtown. It was a whirlwind trip but so much fun and I'm already making plans to go back in June. Here are a few pics of our short weekend....


Posing with Rocky in front of the Philly Art Museum


Coffee Shop Details in Philly


Brancusi Sculpture at the Museum


All the girls!

Anything to Make a Buck

Oh, and I saw this in the Winn Dixie. LSU Water? Is this like Kabbalah water? You can't help but getting caught up in Tiger Spirit however, being down here. I got myself an LSU cap at Walmart for like $3. Does it matter I didn't go there? No. I know about 50 people that did and saw Mike the Tiger (or one of his various versions) on more than one occasion. Drinking the water though? Not so much.

How I Managed to Eat 5 times in 3 Hours. Or Life in the South.

So I think my journey through Mississippi (and a brief trip to Mandeville) via my stomach is finally catching up with me. Last night we had crawfish (YAH!) at a place called the Dock in Biloxi. This morning we woke up, went for a run that burned off the first .25 pounds of my meal from last night, and headed for a quick visit to the Northshore. Sally and I grabbed a salad from Coffee Rani, then managed to squeeze in PJs, Fat Tuesdays, and Walmart and Target (some things never change) in less than 2 hours. Oh and how could I forget Papa Sam's, my favorite snowball stand EN EL MUNDO!!. We also got to swing by the old house in Mandeville which looks exactly the same, although that was about all in Mandeville that did. We then took a drive past SSA and the lake front. It was definitely a whirlwind day. When I met back up with the fam, did the fact that I had consumed 4 different things stop us from going to Morton's for fried oysters, shrimp, catfish and of course, more crawfish? HELL NO. Afterwards we grabbed yet another daiquiri for the road and now I sit in the hotel room feeling more-than-slightly ill and looking forward to a week of Slim Fasts. Mom laughs at me, with a look that says, "You have another 18 hours before the plane takes off, we've got a good 3 more meals left!"


Salad Rani. Lettuce and 8 pounds of cheese. YUM.


So my ever-so-brief high school boyfriend wasn't behind the counter serving like he was circa 1996, but PJ's is still delicious!


Who doesn't follow up ice mochas with White Russians? Besides those who are avoiding a future of diabetes of course...


Half cupcake, half wedding cake, A WHOLE POUND OF SUGAR.


Once my sugar shelf was filled to capacity, we moved on to the fried shelf. It was empty, thank goodness, but not for long!


Me and my beloved mudbug!!

Lin and I were wondering how we ever managed to live in Louisiana for some 18 odd years without weighing 400 pounds. My mom chimed in, "Um you didn't try to eat every single thing Louisiana has to offer during a 3 day weekend." Oh, yeah.

Who Doesn't Love a Beer Called Southern Pecan?

Maybe someone whose taste buds have been permanently removed by too much Bud Light, but as far as I'm concerned, I have one word...YUM. In addition to my Lazy Magnolia Brewery ale (which I have to mention I LOVE SOUTHERN PRICING!! My beer was $1.75!), I also enjoyed a lunch of Crawfish Etouffee followed by delicious bread pudding at Mary Mahoneys, a restaurant on the beach that's been around since the mid 1700s. I had a work teleconference this AM that extended until noon, so my morning run didn't happen, but I think i'd have to run a half marathon anyway to burn off all this food. It's not enough to stop us though; we're about to head off to $20 all-you-can-eat crawfish and some more Southern Pecan. Tomorrow Sally Sinor and Cafe Rani or Semolina's. Plus it's 70 degrees, does life get any better?


A little crawfish etouffee...


Followed by a warm bread pudding...


And the best bargain this side of the Mississippi!

The Gastro Journey Continues

Hey. The only Sonic in Virginia is way out in someplace like Ashburn. Who lives out there?? (Stein!!)

I Left My Heart (and Stomach) in the South

So Lin, Mom and I are taking a trip to visit my MawMaw in Biloxi with a brief day jaunt to Mandeville. Is it such an awful thing that instead of agendas full of museums or jazz bars or any of the numerous cultural experiences the South has to offer, that we've completely and totally planned our trip around eating? Smoothie King for an early lunch, Shrimp Poboys for a late lunch, Daiquris for an early dinner, crawfish etouffee for a late dinner...you get my drift. I cannot begin to describe how much the food of Lousiana and Mississippi are part of my DNA, part of my actual essence of being. So I will show you the pictures. For the next few days, you can go on a visual gastro journey with me. You might not benefit from the delectability, but you won't come home 10 pounds heavier either...


Everything tastes better fried!


58 ounces of fruit is healthy, right?

Oman O MAN

Let me just say, I LOVE living in Washington, DC. (shut up lindsey, it's close enough!) Last night, Lin and I had a sister sister date (because we don't see each other enough and we don't spend every waking second IMing each other) at the Kennedy Center to see Debbie Allen's Oman O Man dance production. It was so cool. The play itself had its cheesier moments (one whole song was dedicated to how much woman in America and Oman LOVED their cultures so much and everyone loved being themselves, and we're all so happy, if you get my drift), but overall, just being at the Kennedy Center, seeing these amazingly talented dancers and singers (one couldn't have been older than 5) was really quite an experience.


Tia and Tamara!


Debbie Allen!!

And because I love my city so much, AND I love agendas, I thought I'd list the other really cool things I was going to do this weekend:

1. Eat Sushi in Gallery place with the girls. Drink wine and badmouth any female we know that's not present. Except Sarah Stein. She knows she's a flake, so there's no use talking about it. :)

2. Go see a Rollerderby game. How cool is this? I hope, however, (as I learned with Sally Sinor, I am TERRIFIED OF ROLLERSKATES) that I am not put into a swim meet frozen state of paranoia and have to be escorted out the stadium.

3. Go Out on the town for a girlfriend's bday party. Probably on U street somewhere where I hope to use my charms to get a free drink or too. Kidding. Referencing another friend. :)

4. Having the girls (including SARAH STEIN!!) over for brunch after a brief slow mostly for purposes of gossip jog.

YAH FOR GREAT WEEKENDS! happy friday to all!

My New Recession Coffee

So Lin came to visit me yesterday after a nearby doctor's appointment and I asked her to bring me a latte. She walked in my office with both my coffee and a dropped jaw. "When did coffee become so friggin expensive?" she said as I handed her over my last $5 bill for the week. I mostly drink the office coffee but sometimes you need to treat yourself. Unfortunately, it's a pricey treat for a 10 minute enjoyment. Anyway, I was on the way to the metro this AM and passed a McD's. Thought I'd give their new upscale coffee line a shot. I have one word---YUMMY. Not only was my sugarfree vanilla skim latte delicioso, it cost me $2.50. For a grande. BUT I GOT TO ORDER IT AS A MEDIUM. Which was awesome because McDonald's still speaks coffee english. No Ventis here! It's a large!! YAH! Anyway, I'll stop sounding like a bad advertisement I was just so excited. Unfortunately, the nearest McDonald's I have to drive to, whereas Starbucks is located on every street corner in the city. What I make up for in coffee savings I spend in gas money. I can't catch a break!!

My Latest Obsession

So I know Etsy.com has been around forever in online terms, but over the past few weeks, as I have mutated from joint money perspectives to "It's all mine and I can buy whatever I want with no thoughts on anyone else!!" (healthy, I know), I have started collecting "favorites" that I name "once a months." If I completely let myself buy into this new mind set, I'd be broke in 3 days. So I've decided once a month, I can buy myself a little something from etsy. If you haven't checked out etsy, DO IT NOW. And I thought Target.com was great. Hah!

Here are some of my "Once a Months." I mean where else can you find a cardboard deer??


Cardboard Buck


Colored Rings (To replace my rainbow ring Deke Shipp broke like 9 years ago)


Chandelier Purse


Piles of Wood Print


French Blue Chandelier


Gold Fiber Chain


Bird Brooch


Bed Head Print

I don't know if my likely 400 square foot new place will accomodate all my "once a months" (i've got PLENTY more), but a woman can dream can't she?

HAPPY FRIDAY!

I Know the Feeling

It's one of those days where I feel like this (above) and just really want to be eating some of this while wearing some of these (below)

And Just Because

As a blogger, I have the great responsibility of contributing to the world wide internets. Not all of it is positive. Some of it just is.

What Happens When A Guy From Chicago Becomes President

He DOES not see the need for Snow Days. It's snowing like a blizzard outside and do we get the day off? Nope. It's one of those liberal leave things. Do I want to stay at home in front of a fireplace curled up with a good book? Yup. Do I want to take a precious vacation day to do it? No thanks. Anyway, it's not bad being in the office I guess. It's super quiet and the snow is actually quite beautiful. But it'd be prettier from my couch. Presidents from Texas close the government every time a single flake fell. It's interesting to see the difference.