Not too much has been going on for me in the month of January, or so it seems. It started with a lame New Year's. Why lame? Knowing you have to work on New Year's Day really brings you down, even if you know that you weren't going to be doing anything anyway. Work did try to help by buying us lunch, but it was sandwiches from Panera. Not one of my favorites: too girly and everything is sneaky not so great for you. And freaking Chipotle wasn't even open!!! bastards.
I did fall for the first time on my bike ride to work. I knew there's a spot where it's always wet, and I knew the temperature was below freezing, I just didn't put it all together until I was already on the ice. Luckily, I slid more than fell with a thud so I just got a little dirty and sore. I didn't tear any clothes and I think my judo training helped me try to fall correctly (not put your hands out to catch you) Some guy in a truck was lucky enough to witness my daring do. I hope he enjoyed the show.
Perhaps the biggest news of the month is that my better half decided not to go to grad school. I have no doubt that she would have done very well there, I just wasn't sure if everything she would have learned was worth the time and money, and a lot of both of those. To celebrate, we enjoyed some fine food at the Melting Pot, the fondue chain that is probably overpriced, but BH enjoys it every time. I think we'd both be miserable if we went to a nice place that she didn't like. Me? I like everything, so that's not a problem.
I've managed to ride my bike about 200 miles this month. I still get people asking how I can do it. I dress in layers and keep moving so that I'm not outside for too long and I stay warm by not standing still. I put on a fender over the front tire to help keep water and gook off my legs and feet and made an attempt to replace my brake pads. Once we get a week with crappy weather, I'll bring in my ride for a tune up and have them make the adjustments, including truing up the wheels.
My parents came to town over MLK weekend. We had a good time, getting dinner at Big Fish Grille in Crofton on Saturday night. The food was pretty good, but a bit pricey. Sunday I took them to Eastern Market in Capitol Hill. I hadn't been there before either, but now I know where to go if I should need pig ears or tails!
That night, I made a roasted/broiled leg of lamb, courtesy of www.FoodNetwork.com. It turned out very well, and I got to eat lamb leftovers at least once a day for the next week and a half. I felt quite accomplished when I polished off the last of it.
This past weekend, we got together with 3 other couples, one of whom recently moved up to Philadelphia. The following morning, we got together at Silver Diner with my friend Jen and her husband Todd. They were in town for the anti-war protest. I had a great time as I had only seen Jen like once in the last 5+ years, at her wedding so I finally got to chat with Todd.
And the food wasn't even that bad!
One thing I've noticed recently is that I'm longing for the days of my middle teen years, when music really meant something to me. Between rock and my friends, I didn't really need anything else. I'm thinking of writing a lenthy blog about it, possibly involving saving drafts and editing and all that crap. I bet you can't wait. Maybe it's some kind of Early-Onset Midlife Crisis...
Oh, and I baked my first ziti last week. I think it was the easiest baked pasta I've made so far (macaroni & cheese, manicotti, & lasagna). I had leftovers today for lunch and dinner, and it was still good, possibly better than it was when I first made it.
Did I mention that I shampooed the carpet in the family room? Here's the before and after pics:
This one is what it looked like before.
Frankly, I'm not sure if you can tell much of a difference in these pics, but it made a HUGE difference.
I wound up having to rent 4 different shampooing machines from two different places because the first three and a half didn't work. After returning the first three, and having the guy at the store prove the fourth one worked, I finally got the thing to work. The only thing different I did was to use a different outlet. Now, I'm not as dumb as that sounds (really!). All four would turn on and make noise, but only with this other outlet did the soapy water start coming out and did the brush start doing stuff. Go figure.
In the "After" pic, it looks like I missed a few spots, but that's only the direct sunlight coming in from the window, the rest of the room is fairly dark.
I'm pretty sure I had some deep thoughts that were worth mentioning, but of course now I can't remember them. Fudge.
Oh well, this should keep you busy for a while.
TTFN
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