More park, more rain, more red boots

Okay people, okay. I know. I KNOW. I have posted about the same thing over and over lately.

"So the other morning I was walking through the park and it was rainy and my, look at those flowers and blossoms! Yay, spring! Here are some pictures!"

But this is my life, people! I do the same things every day. This is all I've got to show! What do you want from me?!

I haven't posted for a few days so here you go. More iPhone pictures. More spring in the park. New blossoms. GIANT puddles. And heck, until something thrilling happens around here, I guess this is what you get. Welcome to my life. Yippee!!!

Date night in NoHo

Last weekend we got all fancied up and went out for a date in NoHo. This is us on the train. I even wore lipstick. (I know. It was a big deal.) We went to Great Jones Cafe and stuffed ourselves with delicious cajun hot wings and burgers. Then we came home and watched a netflix rental. Okay, we're not that fancy. But we sure have fun.

Before I die...

Check out this great project by artist/photographer Nicole Kenney. I think it's inspiring.

Nicole also has another cool site, where she takes a photo every day to document the last year of her 20s. It's called Diary29, and I think it's worth checking out. It gives a real look into everyday life in New York.

I made my own "before I die" polaroid using this fun application, Poladroid. Polas are so trendy, I resisted jumping on the bandwagon and getting this application for months. But tonight I finally downloaded it, and it is actually a lot of fun. Who cares if everyone is doing it?

Genius.

Why didn't someone think of this sooner? Purse meets camera bag. I think I need one. I might actually take my camera with me if I had one of these handbags. I want one!

Rainy days and Mondays

They don't get me down.
This rainy Monday started out with a misty walk in the park.




Friendly new buds on the trees.




Spotted some happy tulips (yes, these really were tulips... I think) just off 5th Avenue.




And how could a day not be great when it ends with a Shack burger and an Upper West Slide? The secret to no line at the Shack is going in the middle of a downpour. It was a fun FHE date.



Happy Monday!

First day of Spring

What a beautiful day it was! The high was 73. We started out with a 4 mile run through Central Park (training for the Half in Boston is on!). Afterward, we set out for a hard-earned Shack burger, only to discover what should've been obvious:


Of course the line was horrendously long. Everyone in New York seemed to be out today, and the Shack seems like the perfect place to grab some food to take to the park.

We skipped the 45 minute wait, grabbed take-out at Harry's Burritos and headed to the park.


There were so. many. people. in the park today! It was nuts! We found a semi-secluded spot in the Ramble to enjoy our lunch in the sun.













Loving the flowers and blue skies. I could get used to this.

Lunch in the park

Each day I can't wait for 1:00 to roll around. I grab my lunch and head for the park to enjoy the sunshine. It has been just gorgeous. 70 degrees and sunny! Today I found a nice spot on a hill with a good view. I soaked up some Vitamin D while listening to live jazz being played by some street performers below. It was perfect!

This week I started running home from work to train for our race. It's about 3.2 miles door to door, and running home ends up taking the same amount of time as riding the subway! It's perfect. And I've run new paths I've never been on before. So between walks in the morning, lunch in the park and running home, I've been spending a lot of time outside in the park. It is definitely my favorite place in the city.

Crocuses

You were right! They are indeed crocuses. It's quite obvious now. Aren't they pretty?

Another sign of spring: March Madness is in full swing. I entered an office pool and am currently in first place, thankyouverymuch! Don't worry, I will go down in the second or third round. This always happens to me. Gotta love March Madness! This afternoon everyone in the clinic was glued to the TV's, jumping around and cheering. So fun.

Look what I found...

in the park this morning:



TULIPS! YES!!!!!!!!!!!!! Are you as excited as I am?!
(post edit: I acknowledge my horticultural ignorance. They are, in fact, crocuses.)

These are the first flowers I've seen this spring. In fact, aside from a few buds on the trees, I think these flowers are the first signs of life I've seen this spring. Real live green growing plants! Hurray!!! Spring is here! And if the buds and flowers weren't evidence enough, the weather has been absolutely gorgeous the last two days. 60 degrees, people. Sunny. Perfect for strolling through the park and soaking up a healthy dose of Vitamin D. Ahhh, spring. This is heaven.

Speaking of green, I strolled over to 5th Avenue today to take a peek at the big St. Patty's Day Parade. Big crowds of people, lots of green. Marching bands and marching police officers. That's about it. It was fun to peek at. But super crowded.

Looking down 5th (see the Empire State?)


A lone man in a funny hat. It had a giant clover on the front. I hope he found a friend.


You can hear me talking to my mom on the phone in this video. A daily lunchtime ritual.

Appreciate the little things. Like singing in the car.

Today I am a little bored and a little lonely and missing Utah a little. One little thing I really miss a lot is driving my car with music blasting, singing at the top of my lungs. You just can't do that while listening to an iPod on the subway.

Well, you could. In fact, some people do. But it is generally frowned upon.

When I got to a stoplight I would always pretend I hadn't just been belting my lungs out to Rascal Flatts. Then when it turned green I'd continue on like I was in my own personal music video. Like if the car is in motion, suddenly I become invisible? I wonder how many people got a good laugh watching me singing in my car.

We are finally selling the Corolla. I am a little sad. I loved that car. One of my favorite features was the custom stereo and speakers Klane installed for me (with love). It has an iPod cord in the glove compartment so you can control your iPod through the stereo. Perfect for personal jam-sessions on my way to work. ;)



With the help of my parents I got the car all clean and fixed up and ready for sale. I took some product shots while I was in Utah. And Klane wrote an awesome KSL ad. It made me laugh:

0-60? Yes.

With most Corollas in this model year being posted with nearly double the mileage, at under 71,000 she's just getting warmed up... But if it gets too warm you can hit the a/c.

This 5 seater can go from A to B while you're controlling your iPod/iPhone from it's Alpine/Pioneer custom stereo system. Its brand new battery has less than 4 miles on it. I've tracked the gas mileage for the last 3 years at an average of over 30 mpg. It's taken a move to NYC to pry my wife's fingers from the steering wheel.

Finding flaws in this economical marvel isn't easy — a defunct rear defroster says, "I always look ahead," and a mini-compartment with a loose door on the center console gives instant access to coupon books and your Cafe Rio punch card.

Other than that, a flawless title, well kept interior, clean mechanical record and a model year pre-dating the Toyota quality control melt-down lets you drive this beauty away worry-free.

Yep, my husband works at an advertising agency. Oh man, I love that guy. Maybe he should've been a copy-writer.

Rainy weekend

These are the flowers Klane gave me at the airport last week.
They have found their home on our windowsill, and I think they're quite pretty.

Unfortunately I seem to bring bad weather with me wherever I go. Manhattan finally had a week of beautiful weather on the exact days I was in Utah, then as soon as I got home it started raining!

The pouring rain and gale-force winds made for a cosy weekend spent mostly indoors. We watched movies and snuggled and drank hot chocolate and ate Costco frozen food like potstickers and chicken bakes. (I am going grocery shopping today.) The only time either of us left the apartment was on Saturday when I ran outside to take out the trash. I was pretty much soaked in a matter of seconds, and any plans I'd previously had of a Saturday night out quickly vanished.

Now it is Monday, my beloved day off. I have successfully wasted the first half of my day iChatting with my parents, surfing blogs and sweeping my floors. I think I'm going to get down to business now and hopefully do the laundry, clean the house, go grocery shopping, take Klane lunch, and go running. Today is supposed to be day one of my half-marathon training schedule. We'll see how that goes... I am a fairweather runner and I'm just beginning to realize that training in New York in the Spring will involve a lot of running in the rain. Yikes. Can I do this?

Utah Highlights

Being at this house. Waking up to mom's whole wheat banana pancakes.


Morning runs with mom; breathtaking mountain views.


Preparations for the shower, hanging out with the girls being creative and chatting






Oh and watching Brandon pipe frosting. That part was awesome.



BYU Volleyball Game - beating #1 Pepperdine


Jazz Game with Dad, Mom and Brandon





Catching up with family (WHY didn't I take more pictures of people?)



Lunch with the girls at the office (no pictures...)

Shopping and just hanging out with mom


It was such a perfect trip. I was able to see all the people I wanted to see and do everything on my list. It was really great. I loved every moment spent with family and attempted to get my fill of niece/nephew hugs (could I ever really get enough?).

This was the first trip to Utah since we moved that I haven't cried when I went home to New York. This time I was excited to go back! Coming home to Klane was really wonderful. He really missed me, and I think the effects of malnutrition and lack of sleep were really starting to set in. He needs a wife. ;) I missed him too. Things just aren't the same without him by my side. He met me at the airport with flowers. I loved the gorgeous view of the city skyline on our bus ride across the Triboro Bridge. It's good to be back!