Food & Friends... and more food...

To say we ate our way from one end of town to the other this past weekend is definitely NOT an understatement.

 

Rachel, Kimhead, and Lisa all came to town this past weekend for a long overdue reunion of sorts. We've known each other since our junior year of college (all those years ago) and finally were able to work it out to get all of us together in the same town. And it was fantastic!

 

 

 

Our weekend started off with a cookout at The Bungalow, complete with a homemade butterscotch cake. (Those of you who know me personally know that if I actually make anything from scratch in the kitchen, I expect a gold star.) Saturday took us to the mountains for stops at two historical bridges and a roadside apple stand. And then highlight #1 of the weekend... a festival. A festival full of FOOD. Harkening back to the line that started this blog, we literally ate from one end of Main Street to the other. And it took us several good hours to do so. Myself alone gorged on baked ziti, a Bavarian pretzel with spicy mustard, stuffed shrimp, and the best red velvet cupcake EVER. Oh, and strawberry cheesecake gelato to seal the deal. Others chowed on Indian food, chicken teriyaki, BBQ sandwiches, beef tips, cookies, funnel cake, lobster cigars, she crab soup, and fried green tomatoes. (Ready to barf yet???)

 

Following the glutony, we headed back to The Bungalow for highlight #2... watching a super exciting college football game. Our alma mater spanked their opponent, and we relished in our beer and company and thankfully didn't break anything. 3 1/2 hours later, we decided we needed more. A failed attempt to get a table at Outback lead us to Chili's where we each ordered a fried appetizer and mixed drinks and chatted and laughed and drank some more and embarrassed Puff and just had a grand ol' time! I am literally so blessed to have great friends like these, even if we live hours apart and see each other much less often than I would like!

 

It wouldn't have been the end of a weekend with us, apparently, without breakfast at IHOP on Sunday morning. Giggling and laughing and telling stories and jokes, we devoured our french toast, pancakes, and omelets before they had to get on the road. Hugs all around sent them on their way. Here's hoping it's sooner, rather than later, that we get to eat together again.

The Romance is Alive

Puff and I have made it a habit in the 2+ years that we've been together to get out and experience as much of the world as possible. We've been everywhere from Ireland to New York City to Mexico in that short time and we've got a big trip to Scandinavia on the books for next year. I've said for years that if there wasn't travel, I'd be lost. And I will always choose to fund a trip versus funding anything else. With my insane work schedule, we always have to plan well in advance. Our spring is already jam-packed of visits from Puff's family, a Hilton Head trip with my parents, and getaways with friends for birthday celebrations. So, when I put the pressure on for a trip just the two of us, Puff hit the jackpot.

 

 

 

 

This winter, we get to spend a romantic weekend away together at the Old Edwards Inn & Spa in Highlands, North Carolina. It's an adorable, yet swanky, small town and it was recently ranked by Conde Nast Traveler as one of the best hotel spas in the country! Sure, it won't probably be warm enough to go out hiking in the surrounding mountains and I'm betting a lot of the shops will be boarded up in anticipation of the spring tourist season, but I am out of my mind excited about the prospect of it all.

 

Curling up with my husband in a ritzy room with a jacuzzi and splurging on a massage and a fancy dinner sounds perfect to me. Now we've just got to get through these coming months in between. Thankfully, having something like this to look forward to, makes those months that much easier to bear.

Flashbulb Friday

Puff's birthday is in early November, and it always seems to coincide with a trip to the mountains to look at the leaves. This was from Fall 2009 and was taken from a bridge on a 2-lane road in the rural upstate of SC looking out onto what I think is Table Rock Mountain. Life's too short not to pull off on the side of the road to capture something beautiful.

Zoom, Zoom

To say my husband likes cars is a bit like saying fish like water or that I like cake. I've been to more car shows in our 2+ years together than I ever thought existed and without fail, every time I ask Puff what he's looking at online, he tells me he's shopping for our next vehicle. I want to fault him for it, but the reality is that I'd much rather hear about the newest BMW innovation than The Ex's babbling about comic books and his collection of action figures. Ahh... the joys of being in a grown-up relationship.

 

I digress. This love of cars does NOT, however, extend into NASCAR racing. Yet, lucky for us, there is the Le Mans series. Puff isn't an avid fan, nor did he ever watch any races until recently. But there is a Petit Le Mans race that happens every year on a track between his mom's house in Atlanta and our house here in SC. And during a routine drive past the exit several months ago, he mentioned that "no one loves him enough" to buy him tickets to a race. Basically, that's code for "Be a good wife and take me there." So, I did just that. While his birthday isn't until November, I got him tickets for the occasion and this past Saturday, we buckled down and headed to Georgia for the race. Both of us knew little to nothing about what we were about to experience.

 

 

 

All I can say is that it was totally, 100% BADASS. There was an energy, yet the crowds were so spread out over the gigantic, meandering track, that it wasn't overwhelming. We got there about 10 minutes before the race started, so we got to see them tell the drivers to get into their cars and start their engines. We were overlooking the pit as they started the race... which was to go 10 hours or 10,000 miles, whichever came first. We were informed that during time trials earlier in the week, one of the cars had topped 204 mph. Not too shabby. We checked out everything from the pit crews (whom you could stand right behind) and then sought out the best place to watch the race and get photos. It seemed like I wanted to stop at every vantage point to play with my camera to catch the cars speeding past. I was definitely so happy to be using my zoom lens and the "continuous shooting" mode on my camera. You don't get to use that very often.

 

 

 

After about 5 hours, we'd checked out every spectator hill or camping area with an overlook. We had scarfed down grilled burgers that a high school was preparing as a fundraiser. We signed up for free information on car oil made from beef scraps. We oohed and aahed at the Audi display. We bought Puff a new t-shirt. We peed in 2 porta-potties.

 

And didn't get syphilis from it! Not that we know of yet anyway...

 

Gimme the Money!

Oh, newbies, you're in for a treat. This is my first big violent rant for you! It's being written with such rage in my heart that I am struggling to concentrate on anything else. And let me just be clear, that while I am engulfed in hatred of stupidity right now, I fully understand that it's ridiculous and stupid and petty. We all get that way sometimes and some of us, more often than others. My latest issues?

 

The ATM.

 

Without FAIL I will always end up getting the shit end of the stick when it comes to trying to get out some cash. Which, is probably the greatest reason that I barely carry 30 cents in my purse on a regular basis. Oh, those people at the Wendy's drive-thru love it when I hand them my debit card for my $2.89 meal. In the past, I have come across such gems as a hoodlum that I'm pretty sure was trying to somehow scam the system and perhaps, break into the machine or the little old lady who wants to prove to herself that she can see (and reach) the buttons from her giant Buick. I've timed people who appear to be punching all the normal buttons and it's taken them 4 minutes or more to get some cash, while it takes me all of 30 seconds. And my all-time favorite was the college-aged girl who got out of the car with a stack of at least 5 checks and proceeded to learn, most likely for the first time, how to deposit them into the machine.

 

BITCH... the bank is OPEN. WALK YOUR LAZY ASS INSIDE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

::sigh:: It's always pathetic when the quickest route to take would've been to write myself a check and have the teller at the window cash it for me. I'm all for advancing technology, but isn't the ATM supposed to be a convenience tool, made to speed up life? If you can refinance your entire house on the damn thing, maybe it's time to back it up a bit. Today's rage is fueled by the fact that I honestly needed cash for an excursion to a place we weren't sure would take any credit cards. It wasn't convenient to stop en route to work, so I tried on my lunch break. Oh, but there were 6 cars in the drive-thru. No luck. Off to The Bungalow for lunch. On the way back to work, I tried another bank. There was only one car! Yay! And they were actively pressing buttons! Super yay!

 

It's never that easy. Oh no... when the guy was finished, his 2 ratty-ass buddies jumped out of the passenger side of the car and walked over to make their own withdrawls! SERIOUSLY?!?!? No luck there either... I sped away before I was tempted to ram my SUV into the back of their beat-up Toyota with its garbage-bag-window. I had been gone from work for well over an hour at this point and was giving up. Oh, but there was another bank on the way back to work. Should I give it one more try? I definitely didn't have much faith. And that was probably a good thing to not get my hopes up... as I pulled up, there were 2 cars in line, behind the armored car, which had the entire machine in pieces on the ground. Probably because some hoodlum was trying to break into it. Maybe it's time to find a bank that's not located in the ghetto?

 

And I still don't have any frickin' cash! GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Topless Tidbits

Remember when I mentioned that I wouldn't tell you where I lived because you might stumble across me naked in the window? Well, I was up before 8am yesterday and was in the spare bedroom drying my hair... not wearing a shirt. The window that faces the street had the blinds partially closed, but there weren't any lights on inside the house, so I figured I was safe. Well, at one point, I flipped my head up from being upside-down and there was a woman standing in our front yard (granted, she had her dog) squared to the window, staring straight at me. Now, I'm not sure what (if anything) she saw, but I definitely freaked.

I hope that made your day, lady, I hope it made your day.

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Friday night, Puff and I were heading downtown in the convertible. It was a gorgeous evening, perfectly fall-ish, and of course we had the top down. Then this conversation occurred:

Puff: I hate when people own convertibles and don't have the top down.

Me: Ehh...

Puff: Although, this top isn't down (points to sky) when that top is down! (points to my chest)

Me: Since I ride around topless?

Puff: You would if you knew how to drive stick.

Two minutes later...

Me: I really should write that conversation down.

Puff: Because this top's not down when you're showing your boobies??

Sometimes, that man just doesn't make any sense to me....

Flashbulb Friday!

Other, more legit, blogs usually have something special they post either weekly or daily... "Wordless Wednesdays" or "Flashback Fridays" or "The Daily Photo." Well, this is my variant. Each Friday I will try to post a photo I've taken, with a brief description of the meaning behind it. In no way, shape, or form do I claim to be a great photographer. I've got great friends who are professionals! But anyway... I stumble into a great shot every now and again. Just don't ask me to explain to you about the apature or shutter speed!

With it being the beginning of October, I wanted to flash back to this moment, just over 2 years ago, when Puff took me to do a 3 hour hike to Falls Creek Falls. I'm not sure if it was in SC or NC, and I don't really care. As you can see, the sky was a perfect blue and the trees were amazing. That whole day turned out amazing... at the top of the mountain, sitting on a rock at the bottom of the beautiful waterfall, Puff told me he loved me for the first time. (Awwww....)

Don't worry, he told me he hated me first :)