Thursday, September 30

As seen in Music City

The list of things I really, really like about Nashville is short but steadily growing. In the past week or so, I've  discovered that

- late summer squash makes a delicious tart;



- every month Nashville hosts one of the largest flea markets in the country (!);







- sometimes neighbors make strange bedfellows;







- playing the spoons at a full-moon bluegrass pickin' party is a great way to spend a Friday evening (especially when you get a discounted admission for being a "musician"!);



- wearing pink tights and two dresses is a reasonable, rational thing to wear out of the house;






- sometimes winning doesn't necessarily mean you're the tastiest;



- the Country Music Hall of Fame has nice wood floors (more on the CMHF soon);





- and the weather is ideal for hanging out on campus.



 If this keeps up, I think it will be a good two years.

Thursday, September 23

best weekend evah...

So, I got my self together and booked some tix to Nashville for last weekend, not only is my sweetie there but the Depps(!) were there too. So here is the picture tour of the weekend. It's not so great, I know, but it's better than nothin'. 

My pre-flight bus ride through the airport.....




I remembered too late to get a photo of Ben and Alexis and this is THE BEST I could do....


 
 We went to the Tennessee State Fair on Saturday, which was an experience unto itself. Apparently we missed the diving pigs (boo), but managed to soak up the local culture. 

Need I say more? Pay attention to the Farm Bill, it's bigger than you think!



 The result of government subsidies in agriculture: 900+ lb. pumpkins and starving people in Africa/Haiti (kidding, sort of...):


The TN State Fair, where motorcycles jump over (not much) macadam?



Last but not least, just when I was most unsure how God felt about me, this guy shows up:


Well, what can I say? Not much.

Despite the (lack of) photos, it was a great weekend.

Wednesday, September 15

I dream of weekends...

...which for the last few weeks have been filled with art, parks, biking, and excursions to the Tennessee hills. And homework, of course. But stay tuned, 'cause the upcoming weekend's going to be the best yet!        



Sunday, September 12

NYC

In an odd sequence of events I found myself in New York City twice in one week. First on Labor Day I drove my parents to JFK airport so they could catch a flight to ITALY, they've only been talking about this trip for hmmmm 7-8 years at least. My dad had some name trouble on his ticket so he asked that I hang out near the airport in the off chance they couldn't change the ticket and they would need a ride home. So I took the first exit on the way back from the airport and found myself driving towards Rockaway Beach. I thought immediately of the Ramones song with the same name and off I went. Once I navigated the roads I found a parking spot and got out to explore and I of course found:



And....


My parents called after an hour or so and told me they had tickets in hand and were off to Italia, so I said Ciao to Rockaway Beach and NYC and headed back to the 6th borough.

Later in the week on Thursday I enjoyed one of the nice parts about being an intern and they took us on a field trip (I know, I know, I'm 33) so I packed a lunch and put on my nicest pair of holey pants and hopped into the short bus headed for NYC. We headed to the Chelsea district to visit the new-ish High Line Park. The area is hip and cool and surrounded by amazing architecture and the park itself is amazing. It's an old elevated freight line that was abandoned and almost torn down until some folks stepped in and saved it. Now it's this super cool elevated park right through the city, a little piece of paradise in the middle of NYC. Check it out:



You can see how the park just weaves through buildings and under them and over busy roads all while you look at a beautifully landscaped park. You have to check it out next time your are in NYC. After we left the High Line we visited Battery Park and only spent a little bit of time there before we had to leave to beat rush hour.


The only other thing to mention is that I spotted the "Cash Cab" on the side of the road while we were in traffic. They were prepping it for the show (I guess) and the trunk was open with all the electronics there and as we got closer we could see all of the hidden cameras. Pretty funny because on the way up we were joking that it would be funny if we spotted it.

After being there for a few hours it really made me want to go back for a weekend and explore the area more, I think the last time I spent the night in NYC it was with a youth group trip to Hells Kitchen. Maybe Manhattan this time.

Thursday, September 9

One thing led to another...


 Yes we can: quality roommate time. Hello salsa, hello sauce!

Wednesday, September 1

...it's a flava.

I see this sign everyday on my commute to and from work and I've wanted to stop and take this photo for a long time. Well I guess the stars aligned and all of the homeless looking people that are generally "hanging out" at this fine food establishment were absent this morning. Not one bit of this sign makes sense to me. 1. Thirty Plus - is it a Baskin Robbins knock off or a place for us thirty somethings? 2. "Fine food served daily" does anyone believe that? 3. The explanation to #1 with the word flava thrown it which I assume is FLAVOR but I always like to think of it as FLAVAH. So if anyone is up for a fancy dinner some time and want to check this out give me a call.

This is how they do things here.