It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas... Maybe Too Far??

Well they weren't lying -- all those Christmas movies that portray NYC as being beautiful and magical during this season. EVERYTHING is decorated! Each neighborhood has its own lights throughout the streets and ALL the storefronts are decorated elaborately. So it wasn't too much of a shock that PriceWise (picture a trashier CVS/Walgreens) wanted to join in on the fun and display its products in a festive fashion. But I'm not sure that this was the best plan...

Really?? Of ALL the products... you decide that stack the Tampax boxes and decorate them as a Christmas tree?? I'd venture to say almost any other product would have been a better choice. Wheat thins perhaps? They're nice and rectangular. How about oreo packages? They have seasonal colors. ANYTHING really. But thank you for the laugh, PriceWise. I salute your window dressers for their bold choice. I mean really, I think they're on to something here. I can't think of a more practical stocking stuffer!

I finally got to go see the tree all lit up and beautiful! It really is huge. Although, I do think it looked bigger on Home Alone 2.... just sayin'. Maybe cause Kevin was short. Anywho-- what you DON'T see is the four previous photos that were taken of me and Angie because I asked like four old women in a row to take our picture with my iPhone. Disaster. This was literally the FIFTH take.. in a crowd of like 8 million. Whatever-- I needed that pic!

(Don't judge the hats-- it's so COLD!)

It's so BIG!!

And now I'd like to make a special bday shout-out to my roomie, Leticia! Love you roomie!

We took this little pic before we headed out with friends for a birthday dinner in the city. I know, I know- you don't even need to say it- we should make this into a Christmas card. Too bad I just spent my pay check on a high dollar burger and dessert! I'm not sure when my brain morphed to the point where I believe $25 is an appropriate amount of money to spend on dinner. But hey-- it was a HOLIDAY! Doesn't count :)

On an entirely separate note... there are only TWO WEEKS until Christmas and more importantly, only two weeks until I'm back in TEXAS!!! It'll be short... but I couldn't be more excited. Don't get me wrong... this city is festive, but there's no place I'd rather be than HOME for Christmas! (Please excuse the excessive capitalization in this paragraph-- there are only so many ways to express my excitement in written form.)

So let the countdown begin!

"What's with all this walking??"

Well I definitely had one of the best Thanksgivings EVER. Don't get me wrong-- I love family Thanksgivings in Temple complete with watching the parade in front of dad's fire while Mom slaves away in the kitchen-- nothing can ever replace that for sure. However, what I experienced last week was probably the closest second there could be!

It all started last Monday when my favorite sister arrived after I got off work. She arrived in a cab and I had a gourmet tortellini dinner waiting with a lovely Thanksgiving bouquet I had just purchased from the local florist. Who am I?? Those flowers are awesome though... I'm just sayin'.

So Stacy arrived and it was a beautiful sisterly reunion. We went to bed and then she promptly left me to go on a five hour (one-way) bus ride to Washington DC -- the place she has always wanted to visit-- while I slaved away at work. Stacy spent a full three hours in DC and then headed back to the ole city. We ate some fabulous thai food and headed to bed. I forced her up the next morning to go stand in a freezing line to get us tickets to the Broadway show "Memphis", again while I slaved away at the office. She endured the cold and got us front row ("partial view") tickets to the show. Lemme tell ya-- it was AMAZING. Definitely my favorite show I've ever seen. I also introduced Stacy to the beauty of Shake Shack that evening and her life will never be the same.

The next morning we left bright and early (slash an hour and a half later than planned due to the excessive "five more minutes" we alternately plead) and settled into our spots for the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade at 42nd St. and 6th Ave. The spots were perfect and we were prepared to strong-arm the crowd when Meme and Aunt Janet arrived from the airport so that we could all enjoy these coveted standing spots. So I went to go meet the Meme and Aunt Janet while Stacy guarded the spots. As I promptly left the street to find them, a cop puts up a barrier and yells after me "You know you can't get back in here now, right?" Of course I didn't know that. We had a short discussion (my sassy attitude repressed since he was an officer of the law) and I made the call that Stacy would need to be meeting me and the fam at our new not-so-incredible-but-still-good standing spots. All in all the parade was a lot of fun! Chilly and crowded, yes-- but I'd definitely do it again!

On to Thanksgiving dinner-- which I thought I was thoroughly prepared for due to the success of the dry run! After we get home, I put on my apron with confidence and go to start stuffing the turkey. Only one problem... the turkey that I had been thawing for over a day was still FROZEN in the legs! I started to sweat a bit but Meme came to the rescue and did some magic with hot water and years of turkey-experience. I couldn't have done it without her. She also displayed some impressive gravy skills. The turkey ended up coming out fine and everything else tasted delish-- so I consider it to have been a success. Stacy and Aunt Janet did some helping as well-- generally in the form of "sampling" and "testing" for the "sake of the group"... something along those lines :)

After dinner we had to take a little nap in preparation for our midnight shopping extravaganza at the Queens Mall! (Don't judge- it's not ghetto! I promise!) We went to sleep around 7:30pm and planned to wake up around 11:00pm to head out with our cab. I was put in charge of the alarm. Mistake #1. The next thing I know, I roll over and it's 12:30am. Oops! Did I rush out of bed and sound the alarm? Nope-- I continued sleeping! Stacy and I can really convince one another we need five more minutes for a WHILE! We finally got up around 1:00am and headed out with our driver. Yep, I have a driver, no big deal. Sure, he's different every time and charges me different amounts but I think I'll continue to say I have a driver. We found some fabulous sales at the mall and decided to celebrate with an IHOP breakfast. (Feel free to judge-- cause that IS ghetto!). We took a car there too. And then one home. And then this conversation ensued:

AJ - "Sara, these cars are expensive!"

Me- "Yep."

AJ- "I mean is there any other way we can get around?"

Me- "Well yeah- we could take the bus home- it will take about an hour, but that's pretty normal"

AJ- "Hm.. I guess I don't need souvenirs-- call that car!"

Alright-- car was called. But after that day, we calmed down with the taxis and Meme, Aunt Janet, and Stacy learned to love the Subway. I'm going to continue this blog via pictures with captions-- I feel like the pictures really capture the experiences more! So I present to you-- the rest of our adventure, in pictures... Are some of them awkwardly tiny? Yes. Are they in any particular order? No. Should I be spending my time reading "Blogging for Dummies"? Yes. But since I'm not-- you're just gonna have to take it as it is!

Pop-Tarts World-- Nuff said.

Just some sisterly engagement photos

Stacy was throwing leaves on my face for effect... she's such an artist.

We conquered Alice AND her wonderland.

And then we brunched at Alice's Tea Cup. And took awkwardly small photos.

Not the bouquet. It's lovely, right??

This one's for you mom. We wanted to buy them so you could have them all on the tree but with these NYC prices, I was only able to afford the Middle Child one-- hope that's okay! :)

SANTA!!!

So ominous!

Rockin' the mitten-gloves-- it was so CHILLY!

Meme enjoyed every minute of the subway rides-- it's written all over her face.

Only the Southerners can truly appreciate the euphoria experienced when we spotted the "Daisy's Grits" kiosk. Brilliant-- educated them Yanks, Daisy! Grits are so TASTY.

Lego Santa!

Tiffany's!

At the parade in Times Square

BEST SISTER EVER! Thanks for coming to visit me!!!

I love my family and am SO thankful they were here - can't wait for the epic Christmas fun to come in less than three weeks!

Once Upon A Time... We Carried A Christmas Tree To Queens From Manhattan

Okay so I know I was supposed to blog each day about Thanksgiving this week to share all the awesomeness that was had ... but I had to insert the experience I had this evening with Leticia and Angie. We first went and had some awesome Indian food at the place with the crazy lights ...

Then we had some amazing cheesecake at this Italian bakery. On the way to the bakery, we spotted the Christmas trees outside of a little grocery store. I have been telling Leticia for weeks that I was determined to get a real Christmas tree this year. She always responded with looks of doubt and a slight smirk, as if to say "Okay, that's a cute idea... I'm not carrying a tree up those stairs!"

So as we passed by the trees I stopped to assess the prices and sturdiness of the little guys. I consulted the salesman and a conversation somewhat like this transpired...

Me: "How much is the tree?"

Salesman: "Tree?"

Me: "Yeah, these trees, how much are they?"

Salesman: (Funny look... then proceeds to flip over the pricetag that's in front of my face)

Me: "Oh okay, great. Then what happens? Do I need a stand?"

Salesman: "Stand?"

Me: (Excessive hand gestures) "Yeah, a stand? Right?"

Salesman: "Stand?"

Me: (Realizing I may need an interpreter... good thing Leticia speaks fluent Spanish)

Leticia: ammused silence

Me: (Continued gestures) "A stand- like to hold it?"

Salesman: (Grabs the stand) "Oh yes- $15"

Me: "Okay... I'll take it. Angie- hold this tree. Come inside the store and hold the tree- it's fine!"

Angie: (Look of hatred) "For real? We're taking the tree in the store? Is that allowed?"

Me: "It's fine! I'm a customer! Bring the tree!"

Angie: (Holds the tree inside with continued look of hatred)

Me: (Excessive happiness)

We then proceed to carry the tree seven blocks and stop at the CVS (naturally) to pick up some decorations. They didn't make the cut for the big move!

Me: "Angie- hold the tree inside, we have to get decorations!"

Angie: (Same look- I'm sure you're getting the picture now) "We are NOT taking the tree into CVS!"

Me: "It's fine- it has an automatic door- let's go!"

Angie: (Holding the tree in CVS- in disbelief)

Woman in Wheelchair: (As she rolls by Angie) "If only I had a camera"

We purchased our festive decorations and proceeded on home. Did we shove the tree in the back of our suburban and turn the radio and heat on as we journeyed back to the apt? NOPE-- we surely did head on down to the L train with tree in hand. Were people a bit surprised? Perhaps. Annoyed? Probably. Was the train completely packed? Of COURSE. Here's a little idea of how cool we looked:

There was a lovely man (slightly intoxicated) who helped us brace the tree for the ride and informed us that we should add aspirin to the water for the tree. I think maybe he just had a headache. Who knows? I didn't add any aspirin-- cause really, who owns aspirin??

Anyway- we trekked the half mile home after the subway ride, mounted the three flights of stairs, and finally got back to our humble abode. We proceeded to decorate to the crooning of ole Frank, Dean, and Sammy on the Rat Pack Christmas CD. Does it get better than that? Nope- don't think so!

All in all-- one of my favorite nights in the city! I promise to tell about Thanksgiving soon-- this just had to be shared!

Hooray for the Christmas season!!!

Thanksgiving Blogging BLITZ!

Alright folks, prepare yourselves for a little Thanksgiving blogging BLITZ to catch up on the past two weeks of blog barrenness. (There were way too many double letters in that guy for it to be correct-- no time to check now!)

I've known for awhile that Stacy, Aunt Janet, and Meme were going to be comin' on up to the Big Apple for Thanksgiving and I was going to be prepared to set out a feast for my personal favorite holiday. I decided the only way to ensure that those sweet potatoes tasted just right was to do a full-on Thanksgiving dry-run. Turkey and everything. A little excessive? Probably. Tasty fun for everyone? YEP! So I feel like the pictures tell the story... so without further adieu.. the dry run..

I decided to cook the pies the night before... cause I was already stretching things by starting to cook a turkey AFTER I got home from work. So in go the pies...

Aren't they pretty? And for those of you who are curling up your nose right now saying "Where is the pumpkin pie?"-- to you, I say, quiet down. The pecan pie is truly the unsung hero of the thanksgiving meal. Who wants to eat orange gel? Not I. Thank you Sue Beth for the scrumptious recipe and patience as I called frequently for step-by-step assistance. No shame.

Out came the turkey... in its bag.. and I had no idea how to know if it was good or not...

NO IDEA!

But my guests were present and it was about 9:00 by this time... so I made the executive decision that the turkey was eatable. So we sat down to a lovely meal...

Andrew insisted on including me in the pic. He's such a peach.

So that, in a nutshell, was the dry-run Thanksgiving dinner. In the end, it was delicious and things went a lot smoother than I expected! Who said cooking a turkey is hard?? I mean it only took me 24 years of observing to try it out on my own. And I've decided that anyone can make perfect sweet potatoes if you have enough brown sugar and butter on hand. However... I did forget the cranberry sauce in the fridge... rookie mistake. All in all, it was a great night and a fabulous pre-Thanksgiving celebration in ole Glendale!

Stay tuned for more Thanksgiving updates to come...

And Then There Were Two

MEET LETICIA!

Leticia is my latest addition to my humble abode in good ole Glendale, Queens. Once upon a time I had a two bedroom apartment with no other occupant. While I thoroughly enjoyed paying the full rent myself, I was thinking it might be nice to have another member of the 71-10 household. Enter Leticia. She moved up here in September from Austin and we had a mutual friend from there who told us we should get together for coffee/dinner/whatever it is New Yorkers do fun. So we met on the top of the Empire State Building... okay I'm kidding, but we did meet at this burger place that has iPads you order from and subsequently play with.. what?? So we get together for dinner, within 20 minutes I've assessed that she's a true Texas and has a deep love/respect for good food, so I know that we are going to be friends. She begins to tell me here saga of relocating to the Big Apple and explains her current living situation which includes living in a tiny box in Manhattan with four other people and a cat. Ew. So I take the opportunity to look like a real freak and inform the stranger who I just met that I have an extra bedroom and she's welcome to move in if she wants! Yep, after 20 minutes. Haha-- guess it's good that my intuition was right this time! A month later, she moved in and it's been so much fun! So I thought I should give her a shout out and also inform all of you readers so that when you picture yourself here with me in my New York life, you can know who's sleeping in the next room.

Apparently today is National Running Day... Leticia informed me of this when she returned home from her five mile run. I'm sitting on the couch and have no intention of going for a run... but it did take me back to two years ago at this time when preparation for the Bearathon began. Ohhh the memories. I think I'll stick to the couch and hope that my extensive commute each morning/evening will excuse my intake of sweet treats in this glorious city!

'Tis the Season... To Attend Mysterious Political Rallies

I'm not even going to apologize this time for the tardiness of this blog post. By this time, if you're still checking for updates, you know I'm lazy and scattered and blog randomly. So on that note...

A few weeks ago I decided to go visit my dear friend and former roommate Christy, who is in grad school in Washington D.C. I've never been to D.C. so I thought it would be a grand opportunity to have a personal guide around our nation's great capital. I had recently discovered that you can take a bus round trip for $35.00, so I was all about that road trip! I took my time to buy my ticket (I mean how many people are randomly headed to D.C. for the weekend??) so last Tuesday when I got around to searching online for bus trips, I was a bit baffled when I saw that they were all SOLD OUT. I had no idea what this was all about. I was later informed that John Stewart and Stephen Colbert were having a "Rally for Sanity or Fear" ... which apparently means "Everyone from the ages of 19-25, come to D.C. for the weekend".

I finally found a ticket on a ghetto-fabulous website for Washington Deluxe Buses. I quickly bought the ticket and wiped the sweat from my brow... only to have the sweat reform as I read some reviews of the bus company. Why I didn't think of this before I put in my credit card information, I'm not sure-- but most of the reviews consisted of phrases such as "three hours longer" and "disgusting" and "credit card fraud". Awesome. At this point, there was nothing I could do.. so I clung to the two positive reviews (out of like 50) and remained positive! Luckily, the Washington Deluxe people must have consulted their negative reviews and made some changes, because my trip was absolutely delightful! I'm gonna have to write a Yelp review to help redeem the company. But let's be real- I'm too lazy to update my blog, I doubt that review is gonna happen!

On the way there, we stopped midway at the Delaware Welcome Center. My memories of welcome centers on family road trips include brochures about state parks, vending machines behind bars, and large trucks. Now don't get me wrong.. I love the South... but I have never felt more welcomed to a state than I did entering that tiny (mostly forgotten) state. I walked into this beautiful marble building that had a full food court including a Starbucks and a full organic market... what?! No Doritos behind bars or shady puddles of water in an outdoor bathroom (Mississippi- take notes). It was incredible. I didn't want to leave. My D.C. trip was already worth it. Low standards? Perhaps. But I'm telling you-- go to the Delaware Welcome Center and you won't regret it.

I got to D.C. and Christy was the perfect hostess. We went to the rally (along with over 200,000 other people who didn't know what they were going to!) and saw secret guest stars: John Legend, Cat Stevens, Ozzy Ozbourne, Kid Rock, Sheryl Crow... and some others I don't remember. It was pretty cool! They did some funny stuff and John Stewart gave a little speech at the end-- it was definitely the best political rally I've ever been to. I also got a sunburn... in 40 degree weather in October. That was great too. Christy and I both walked around like raccoons for the rest of the weekend, but we just called it our Halloween costumes, so I think we pulled it off.

t

This is the only historical-ish D.C.-ey picture I took. I'm a bad citizen, I know. Cupcakes were more imporant.

If you've seen the TLC show DC Cupcakes (I haven't) this is the cupcake shop they follow. I didn't expect to be impressed... I mean I've had a lot of good cupcakes in my day. But the salted caramel cupcake I had here was hands down the best cupcake of all time. No question. That alone made the ten hour round trip in the bus totally worth it!

THANKS CHRISTY!!!

All in all, my trip to D.C. was fabulous! I didn't even mention the Holocaust Museum which I could have spent all day in. It was incredible-- definitely go there and give yourself a good chunk of time to spend, because it's fascinating. I love NYC... but a weekend getaway to ole D.C. was a lovely little vaca! Hooray for living in a place where I can drive through four states and still have half the day left :)

My Life As A Mobster's Wife

I work in what you might call a "challenging" neighborhood. You know it's rough when your lunch options are Dunkin' Donuts or the creepy Mr. Softee ice cream truck that drives by on the half hour. But so far my work has been good and I've enjoyed working with my clients in the area-- so no major complaints. We start work promptly at 9:00am... we are expected to be there on time without being late, but the doors open right at 9:00, so you can't really be early either. Well, my schedule relies on Mr. M Train and Ms. L Train, so sometimes I don't arrive exactly at 9:00am and encounter some issues. This was my situation last Wednesday. I got off the train like 15 minutes early, so I stopped in at the local deli/convenient store/99 cent store/laundromat (they're really into multi-tasking) and got my 50 cent hot tea and waltzed on to work. I get there and the doors are locked and the bars are chained (I said it was "challenging") and I just have to wait for a supervisor to get there, since I am but a lowly entry-level social worker. I notice just down the sidewalk a bit a man with a shopping cart filled to the brim with stuff who is talking to himself. I don't think much of it and continue to enjoy my earl gray. My friend with the cart then decides to wheel over to approach me. The following is the conversation that took place... I will refer to the man as SCM (shopping cart man)...

SCM: You work here??

Me: Yes I do- can I help you?

SCM: No you don't-- you're LYIN'! This place has been closed for YEARS!

Me: (Confused) Um, well, we were open yesterday.

SCM: No you WEREN'T... you're LYIN'! (slight pause) You smoke crack?

Me: (Even more confused-- and slightly alarmed) Um, nope. Nope, I don't.

SCM: Ah, you're LYIN'. You don't gotta worry, I ain't gonna tell the cops! I got a kilo o'crack-- you wanna buy a kilo o'crack?

Me: (Wishing desperately for my supervisor to arrive) Um, no I'm good thanks.

SCM: You smoke weed? You smoke anything?

Me: No- I really don't. I don't smoke anything. (Kind of thinking I should have just said yes so we'd have something to relate about!)

SCM: You LYIN'!

(At this point I'm convinced he's just NEVER going to believe what I say)

SCM: (creepily and slowly looks me up and down) You look like a mobster's wife!

Me: (I had no words... what the HECK do you say to that? What does that even mean? I don't look Italian!)

SCM: (spots my tea) You know, someone's gonna throw that tea in your face and then put a jinx on you and then say have a nice day!

Me: (Still no words... at all.)

.... then SCM walks away with his cart. Cursing about his kilo o'crack.

My supervisor arrives about two minutes later and as she's unlocking the door I tell her a summary of the interaction I just had, to which she responds "Sara, why are you talking to these men?? Do not talk to these men!!"

... At what point in that conversation did I INVITE any of those comments? What exactly was I supposed to do? Guess I'll have a chat with Mr. M and Ms. L and make sure that they deliver me to my work no earlier and no later than 9:00am. MY BAD.

I mean I guess the only thing to do at this point is look for one of those long skinny cigarette holders and some fur to complete my mobster's wife costume for Halloween. Thank you for the brilliant idea SCM. I'm sure we will meet again...