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Thursday, May 16, 2013

Lake Weekend 2.0

Thanks to Kat for hosting a fabulous girls' weekend on the shores of Lake Waramaug, Connecticut! And shout out to Gavin for taking photos to document the fun, from our packed Zipcar to our Derby party and lakeside workout.
 
We all took a turn with food. Marianne made the Barefoot Contessa's Fresh Pea Soup for our lakeside lunch, and Kat went all out to prepare a Southern feast for supper. Katie brought afternoon nibbles, I did Saturday breakfast bar (berries, yogurt, granola and English muffins), and Rebecca kept us covered in cookies from Bubby's. Gavin sent us home on Sunday with brunch bellies full of "toad in the hole," grits and fruit.
 
It was a perfect spring weekend. So lucky to have found such a great group of women in NYC!
 
































 























 

Tuesday, May 14, 2013

Sunday Ride

I have the cutest neighbor, Cyrus, who works at a law firm with my friend Jeff. Sunday afternoon, Cyrus texted to see if I wanted to take a bike ride.

Well, hmm...I was supposed to be cleaning my place...but please reference the "Cleaning Lady" post below. I mean, it was Mother's Day, and I couldn't spend it with my mama. Do you think she would want me inside cleaning or outside enjoying the day (with a handsome attorney?!)? Decision made.

Cyrus had rented bikes before, but he'd never gone all the way to the G.W. Bridge...






Halfway home, we stopped and got some chicharrones from one of the Latin vendors in Morningside Park. Yum! Apparently that's Spanish for fried pork belly. They served it with plantains.

Unfortunately, the chicharrones seemed to pull down our pedal power on the way home. We joked a bit about chicharrones being the anti-Wheaties...until we realized we were riding INTO the wind. Holy crap. It was hard!! Thank goodness we both love biking. If I'd been with my sister, she would have killed me!

Cleaning Lady

My mom was tickled when she saw the teeny vacuum I found for my teeny apartment...

It's basically a dust buster on a stick! I love it! I didn't want to have to find the space to store a real vacuum. This one comes apart and fits in my ample kitchen cabinet space. #winner.

Anyway, after six weeks (yikes! really?!) of living in my apartment, I decided it was time for a good cleaning this weekend. So, I hooked up ye olde new vacuum, but I was kinda shocked when I went to empty the filter...
"Really?" I thought. "Hmm. That's weird. I would have thought there would be SOMETHING in that cup! I mean, I did the whole apartment."

Then I took it out...

 
Imagine the filthiest dryer vent cleanout you've ever encountered. THERE WAS A SOLID INCH OF GUNK ON THERE!!!!
 
I was so grossed out, I immediately ordered two replacement filters. It says the filter needs to be changed every six months, but I'm thinking that may not work for a long-haired gal who is admittedly not such a standout in the cleaning department!