One Day More

This is for my sis - I'll miss being related to the DCGF, but onwards and upwards with the USO.

Sisters

I've decided to embrace my twenty-sevenness. I've decided that eight days into this milestone year, that it's going to be a great one. In fact, I'm going to will it that way. Twenty-seven will be less anger, less frustration, less disappointment, and less worry. Twenty-seven will be more adventure, more happiness, more work, and more tomfoolery. But I have a feeling...call it a sense...that I won't be alone in having a super fantastic year.

This past weekend I was in DC for a conference of an organization for which I have started doing some fundraising consulting. As I flew into National and hopped the blue line to Metro Center, I was struck with a wave of nostalgia for my time in the nation's capitol. Most people know that I lived there for year, but I also has interned in DC for two summers previous to that, and some of my best memories are from those times: sharing a studio with someone I barely new (but came to be good friends with), working three blocks away from the White House, outdoor Shakespeare performances, hot summer nights at The Trap, going to Arlington Cemetary on Memorial Day, standing in the back of a cold theater watching the dress for Sweeney Todd, and taking my first ever ballroom dance classes.

My year there as a full-time resident was not quite as successful, no matter how much I wanted it to be. Yet, this past weekend made me realize that I've come a long way since then and now remember more of all of the outstanding, bright memories that I have. One reason, however, that I will always be grateful for my time in DC is because I had the chance to live with my older sister. For the first time, I think, we developed a true, grown-up sisterly relationship, for which I'm truly thrilled because what a ride it has been since. All of the inside jokes, cajoling, scarcasm, and celebrity gossip shared has made me appreciate my sis in a way that I might not have had we not shared a house. Not everyone is lucky enough to get the chance to make that discovery.

Especially when those sisters are truly fabulous. Because, well, we are - from the top of our heads to the tips of our fabulous shoes. We've each had some great milestones this past year between the two of us including being featured in print, TV, and online. Alone or together, we've acted onstage, taken NYC by storm and toured Europe. We've created the Snark Sisters and long may they live. My sis is getting ready to start an exciting new job, bringing the Hall sister fabulousness to a whole new audience.

And we're just getting started. Because we're the Hall Sisters, and that's how we roll.

Meet Me at the Auto Show

I could talk about how my parents drove up in crappy weather to meet me in Chicago so we could go to the Auto Show.

I could talk about how we got to McCormick Center in a cab sporting copious amounts of Valentine's Day decorations.

I could talk about how there were a ton of people at the Show and McCormick if frickin' huge.

I could talk about how my Dad continues to only fit in about 14% of the cars he tries to get into.

Or, I could let the Auto Show speak for itself.

Hence, the Chevy Stingray...hotness on wheels and a reason to live.

A Variation of Success

This my friends, is not my first blog. I started my first in 2006, failed again in spring of 2007, and didn't find the wherewithal to stick with writing posts until my third, and current, blog. That's not to say I didn't enjoy the process. I just found myself quite often faced with change and challenge, and my blog did not land high on my "Important Things to Do" list.

However, I have grown quite fond of my current "Katy the Train" blog, and am glad that I have continued to post fairly regularly. So much, in fact, that I have been branching out and now also write two additional blogs...I know, crazy, right?

The first new blog is a team effort with my big sis. While we've, sadly, fallen behind a little lately, these posts are dedicated to what Em and I do best - make fun of things. We're quite good at it and decided to bestow upon the world our opinion of all things ridiculous. Oh yes, we're just getting started with The Snark Sisters.

My second effort is brand spankin' new as of last night. I've decided to channel my love of all things literary into a new blog of book reviews. I've moved my review of Eat Pray Love there as my first entry as this was the blog post that reminded me how much I like to dissect and talk about books. Hence, Tea and a Book, named after a C.S. Lewis quote that I love (you'll have to check out the blog to see the quote!!). I can't guarantee wild success as this is a larger time commitment than the other blogs, but I'm excited to work on the entries and see where it goes!! Books suggestions are very welcome - especially fiction, as I don't seem to read very much of that.

Well, my friends, that's all for now.

Yes, Virginia, there is a Gnome

So, on our NYC Christmas adventure, the Hall fam decided that it would be more fun if we took along a "Hall Gnome" in which to include in our pictures and generally take all over the city. And I have to say, it was quite fun. Although, my sis might disagree - she had to carry him all of the time. I'm pretty sure after she returned home the words, "the Gnome is dead to me," may have come out of her mouth. Anyway, you can relive the moments below:

New York, New York

One: Like all Notre Dame graduates, I have the ability to make a tradition built out of nothing. We love tradition and tradition loves us.

Two: Yet, it seems I was also born with a wandering, vagabond self that dislike repetition, commitment, and sameness.

This year for the holidays, it appears that my second self won. Instead of heading home to Indy to celebrate Christmas as I had the first 25 years of my life, I packed my bag to the City that Never Sleeps. My parents and I took the train east to meet my sis who took the bus north where we all met up in a cute boutique-y just opened Hampton Inn in Soho to celebrate the holidays. And I have to say, it was quite a rockin' time for all. Despite the fact that the train ride took 9 hours longer than it should have and our first day there was wicked cold, I have to say this has been my favorite Christmas so far.

Day one of three was spent on multiple bus tours - we were total champs. We covered downtown to uptown and saw all of the Christmas lights to boot. We took a jaunt out to the Statue of Liberty, shopped at the UN Building, took in the lights of Time Square, judged the various windows of the major department stores, and saw all the major museums in 30 minutes or less. We froze our butts off, bonded with our tour guides, bought hand warmers from a street vendor, and stayed out late.

Day two of three we spent the morning shopping in Soho (where I got the cutest Betsey Johnson jewelry and my sister nabbed a fabulous Marc Jacobs bag), and then headed out take in all the Met Museum of Art has to offer, from beautiful Greek statues to historical musical instruments. We almost made it through a really fun Christmas Eve service until I unfortunately began to suffer from some sort of 24 stomach flu:(

Day three of three was Christmas and we woke up to gifts in the hotel room (sometimes parents are so clever) and my fam enjoyed breakfast while I drank hot tea and continued to try and recover. New York being New York, the city was saturated with activity and people both shopping and just out for the day. We began at Grand Central Station - a mecca for all train buffs such as my Dad - where we enjoyed a light show that was projected across the inside of the station. We then browsed the temporary shops set up in Bryant Park, and then enjoyed a gorgeous carriage ride through Central Park. We dared enter FAO Schwarz which was overrun, and then enjoyed the beauty of the Plaza Hotel. The evening was spent taking in vintage Jim Carrey through his new move Yes Man, followed by Christmas dinner at a true Irish Pub in the East Village.

Could it get any better? Yes it could - thanks to this fun-filled trip, I've also fulfilled two more of my 100/10 goals:

50) Go on a family vacation

89) Visit the UN building

Done and done.

Next post: the introduction of the Hall gnome

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

So maybe Christmas isn't the most wonderful time of the year -but it's got to be close. And call me old-fashioned, but one of my favorite Christmas traditions is sending Christmas cards. Actual cards that require envelopes and stamps. I love it! I started my freshman year in college and have sent them ever since. Some years' cards have been better than others, but it's the thought that counts, right? What I look forward to every year is sending and receivings cards to and from old friends, new friends, and family - across the U.S. Great days include ones where I hear from someone that I haven't talked to in quite a while - but I always know that I will hear from at Christmas.

Sometimes when I'm halfway through the 60 some odd cards I send, I'm cursing the process. But, Christmas is a time to spread joy and reconnect, and this is my favorite way to do so. I can't imagine a holiday season without fun cards and Christmas stamps.

Perhaps starting a new tradition this year, the Hall family is headed to NYC to celebrate, so I won't be blogging next week, but Happy Holidays to everyone and be safe wherever you are!

This ain't your mama's Thanksgiving

Ringing in the season of Thanksgiving means one thing to me...turkey pizza.

Ah yes, the Hall family tradition remains alive and well. In my mother's neverending quest to avoid the kitchen entirely, she remains a spectator with the rest of us as my father creates the glory that is the turkey pizza. And there's no turkey on this pizza kids, it's all in the shape...oh, yeah...totes. See below for the gloriousness:



But, nay, a girl cannot survive Thanksgiving on turkey pizza alone. There must be the shooting of the BB gun and the riding of the tractor.

Like every 17 year old girl, for my birthday, I wanted a Daisy BB gun, and my parents humored me. It still serves me well 9 years later as I wipe the floor with my competition using nothing but a steady hand, six tin cans, one wood sawhorse, and an uncanny sense of the direction that the wind blows. See below for the gloriousness:

Yet, while my mother may not be a deft hand at whipping up the traditional Thanksgiving spread, she is a expert behind the wheel of a tractor, even one that only is sort of still alive and running...nothing like jumping a tractor with a battery, eh? Brought back the good ol' days of jumping my truck...tear. She, being the benevolent maternal figure that she is, chose to pass those mad skills onto me. See below for the gloriousness:

To all of you whose Thanksgiving does not include any sort of pizza-making/gun-shooting/tractor-driving goodness...I pity you, and give thanks for my own good memories.

P.S. - One more down...51) Drive a tractor

I heart Halloween

I mean, who doesn't? Granted, I'm not a dress up in a skanky costume and go partying sort of Halloween girl. I'm more of a "Hey, the History Channel is running a bunch of history of witchcraft specials and I can wear my skull gloves around," sort of Halloween person. I love scary movies even though they scare me to death and the brisk fall weather only adds to the ambience of the holiday. And Halloween deserves to be celebrated - numerous church leaders over hundreds of years have tried to suppress it and still it goes on!!

But the month of October in and of itself is also a wonderful time. I can finally break out the hot spiced cider, hooded sweatshirts, knitted hats, and enjoy the fall leaves. In my youth, the annual trip to the orchard was always hotly anticipated, but sadly most workplaces don't sponsor those kind of trips.

Yet there is another, equally entertaining, October tradition - the Covered Bridge Festival in Parke County, Indiana - home to the world famous grandparents/aunt/great aunt/cousins of yours truly. And it is good. No one can resist the siren song of hot, sugary crullers. This past weekend I hopped the Megabus to Indy and joined the parental units as we journeyed west for crafts, fall foliage, farm country, and great food. What could be better?

But seriously, nothing is better than fried dough covered in sugar...nothing...

Oh yeah...

So, I promise, mes amis, that in the coming days I will post further about my outstanding time on tour with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. However given my current time constraints, jetlag, and the eight million things I need to do this week before leaving to be in my friend's wedding this weekend, I leave you with an image. One that brings tears to my eyes and warmth to my heart. Me, a co-worker, and Tony Blair. Yes, that's right, Tony Blair. I got to have a little chat with him at a post-concert party. Being the British politics junkie that I am, it was definitely a little slice of heaven. And yes, he's very dynamic, funny, and self-efacing in real life - love it!!

State Fair = Fried Something

A few weeks ago (I know, I'm a little behind on blogging), I hopped the train again to voyage to Indy to go, with the fam, to the State Fair. Because, in Indiana, the State Fair is the thing to do during those two weeks. And it's always a good time.

Now, granted, the State Fair doesn't exactly scream "healthy." I usually stop eating a couple days ahead of time in preparation for the gluttony that is bound to ensue. This year was a little different as one of my "100 goals," was to eat two funnel cakes. After accomplishing this, I learned two things: 1) Fried dough is really in fact only good in moderation (who knew?) 2) The "fun" in "funnel" cake only lasts about 1.5 funnel cakes (the last .5 is a doozy). Admittedly, mom and dad had a few bites - one cannot sit next to a funnel cake and not have some!

Even long distance, one cannot resist! My sis wasn't able to to come west and join the fun, but she did tell me "To eat one for me!" Well, my friends, being the outstanding sister that I am, I did in fact dedicate my second funnel cake to my sister. I am just that good.

Now, less you think that all I did was eat during this day, I would like to prove otherwise! We saw all kinds of stuff - tractor ride, donkey racing, cheese sculptures, Indiana's largest pig, lots of tractors, baby animals, um...oh, and we ran into my parents' neighbors there actually - small world.

I did meet one nice sheep. He was very photogenic and agreed to pose for me. I ran into him after I went and saw the little asses, er, I mean miniature donkeys...aww....miniature donkeys.

Pour me a drink, And I'll tell you some lies

Neil. Diamond.

Two little words...one legend...I was lucky enough to see him TWICE this weekend at the United Center.

That's right, folks, this weekend was Neil Diamond Weekend '08.

Saturday, I went with Mom "Biggest Neil Fan Ever" Hall. And the concert definitely lived up to the two expectations I have for a Neil Diamond concert - amazing music and public intoxication. I'm not sure why, but each concert I attend (this weekend was 6 and 7), I always am surrounded by alcohol-loving Neil fans. I never thought my '05 experience could be topped - it's not every year, a 30-something fan stands up and yells, "It's f***in' 'I Am, I Said'." But this year's drunken woman was dancing in the aisles when she grabbed a young bloke returning to his seat and started dancing with him. It didn't end until his furious girlfriend stormed down the stairs to get him - hilarious!

Nothing quite as exciting took place the second night (Sunday), but good times were had nonetheless and I met some very nice Neil-fans from Wisconsin who had driven down for the concert. Plus, it was my friend's first Neil concert - now she has truly lived.

But I know there are those of you out there who haven't had the divine experience that is a Neil Diamond concert. So, being the kind-hearted, generous person I am, I've listed below some choice Neil songs to experience, and the best time in which to listen to them.

Cherry, Cherry - Getting ready for super fun party times...Can't stand still while the music is playin'

I Got the Feelin' - When you're ready to break up with someone...I got the feelin', I'm hearin' goodbye

I Thank the Lord for the Nightime - Monday mornings - all of them...Nine-to-five ain't takin' me where I'm bound

Girl, You'll be a Woman Soon - When you're feelin' a little unsure...I'd die for you girl and all they can say is"He's not your kind"

Red, Red Wine - Bad memories? Rough day? Weird family?...Red, red wine, Go to my head

Brother Love's Travelling Salvation Show - Feelin' the love?...Take my hand in yours, Walk with me this day

Cracklin' Rosie - Awesome song for cross-country roadtrips...Cracklin' Rosie you're a store-bought woman

I Am I Said - Moved to a new city and feelin' lonely...An no one heard at all, Not even the chair

I'm a Believer - Currently in the first bloom of a new relationship? Getting ready to watch Shrek?...Not a trace of doubt in my mind, I'm in love

Play Me - During sweet, sweet seduction (this is hypothetical...if it works, let me know!)...You are the sun, I am the moon, You are the words, I am the tune, Play me

Love on the Rocks - Best. Breakup. Song. Ever. Pour yourself a drink, crank the music, stumble around your apartment singing at the top of your lungs (not hypothetical....definitely works)..First, they say they want you, How they really need you, Suddenly you find you're out there, Walking in a storm

Sweet Caroline - If you've spent anytime in a bar, you'll hear this...Good times never seemed so good

Forever in Blue Jeans - When you can't decide what to wear...I'd much rather be, Forever in blue jeans

Pretty Amazing Grace - When you're thankful...In Your amazing grace I had a vision, From that amazing place I came to be, Into the night I wandered, Wandering aimlessly, Found Your amazing grace to comfort me.


There's many, many more great songs - I mean, the man sells out stadiums without needing any airplay!

For all my fellow fans, which songs do you love????

Tiny Wooden Shoes

So this weekend, my mom and I took advantage of the great weather and roadtripped up to Holland, MI to play tourist on Saturday. The whole fam went here when I was still pretty little - I only vaguely remembered things. Anyway, we started out at the tulip farm and wooden shoe factory that also featured bison (yes, Holland, MI has lots of Dutch touristy things...get it - Holland...). Here we saw pretty flowers and wooden shoes, Dutch art, and yes, a bison.





After the bison, we moved onto a faux-Dutch village complete with staff in more wooden shoes, a carousel, tiny Dutch houses, fudge...mmm, um and a bunch of other stuff. It was funny because one could definitely tell that the area had built up around it - my Dutch village experience was only slightly marred by the highway in the background - very American.



Stained glass window in the church - really beautiful.



Yes, I'm royalty, didn't you know?



Van Gogh - pre-ear cutting incident.



Mom being carried by a stork...the white stork is the symbol of The Hague in the Netherlands.


And post-stork, we got fudge...mmm...this is a pic of other candy choices that we forewent.


Big shoutout to all of the faux-Dutch for showing us such a great time.


And a huge shoutout for Michigan for not having a 10% sales tax. Our post-tiny-wooden-shoe trip included meandering to a local mall where I could buy stuff that didn't bring tears to my eyes when I saw the receipt. Totes awesome.

And this, dear readers, is where the pictures come from (no stork needed):

Choo-choo

According to my mom, I'm not posting often enough...so here goes.

So, for many of you the reason behind the name of my blog is obvious...for others, perhaps not. I am named after a train. The MKT line that used to run through Missouri, Kansas, and Texas (get it? MKT?) was nicknamed the "Katy." The line no longer exists - it is now part of the Union Pacific.

Now, you might be asking yourself - who names their daughter after a train? Well, if your Dad's a train nut - things like that happen. I however, happen to love the story behind my name, so in honor of my Dad, today I'm going to feature some of his stories. He recently wrote up a summary of his experience both of working on the railroad for a couple of summers, and also his hobby of repairing toy trains, as stories for my young cousins, as my aunt is preserving some family history - great idea, eh? So, below, is an excerpt from what my Dad wrote...enjoy:

"For as long as I can remember I have loved trains – the big trains that we see running down the tracks and the small trains (electric trains) that I received for Christmas and which eventually grew into an avocation. I don’t know why I love trains. Maybe it was because my older brothers before me liked them. Maybe because the first small layout we had on a 4 x 8 sheet of plywood was the first real toy I remember seeing. Even though I’m now 56 years old I really can’t get the enough of them...

...At some point when I was in high school I decided I had to work on a real railroad. I just had to find out what it was all about. The chance came between my senior year in high school and my freshman year in college. A couple friends of mine and I went over to Huntington, Indiana and applied for jobs on the track maintenance gang for the Norfolk and Western railroad.

All three of us were hired so we officially became gandy dancers – the railroad slang for track workers. We spent the summer tamping ballast under ties to level the track, replacing old ties and rails, cutting weeds and brush and replacing road crossings. I learned how to spike a rail to a tie using a spike mall. Not an easy thing to learn based on the number of mall handles I broke.

It was a long summer and a lot of hard work. I decided next summer I wanted to work on the trains instead of under them. So, following my freshman year I went over to Peru, Indiana, a division point on the Norfolk and Western and was hired as a brakeman. Up until 1964, this railroad line had been the Wabash railroad, the route of the Cannonball, one of the most famous passenger trains in the US. They were used to running the trains fast and were still doing that when I worked there...

...Sometimes there was danger, something my mother constantly reminded me of. If a person was the second brakeman (or sixth man) on a crew going west that brakeman would get off in Tilton, Illinois. The state of Illinois did not have a full crew law and since the crew’s pay was based on mileage the sixth man got off at Tilton yard instead of going to Decatur so the railroad didn’t have to pay them as much.

I had to do this a number of times. Once I got off the train I would call a taxi which would take me to the Wolford hotel in nearby Danville, Illinois. I could be there an hour or half a day depending on when a train going east needed a second brakeman. Getting back on the train is where the danger came in. If the train didn’t have to set off any cars at Tilton the second brakeman was required to board the train on the “fly” which meant you boarded the train while it was moving. The engineer was supposed to slow the train down to 15 mph or less which someone figured out what the safe speed for boarding a moving train.

One night after a brief stay at the beautiful Wolford (not really) I was back at Tilton waiting for my train which I would be boarding on the fly. As it approached I thought the train was going too fast but in my youthful exuberance decided to board it anyway. Bad decision! As several thousand pounds of moving metal was bearing down on me I grabbed the handrail on the first loco and planted my foot in the corner of the first step as I had done many times before. I instantly knew the train was in fact going too fast. Due to the speed and the momentum of my body I was slammed against the side of the locomotive. For a second, I thought I was a gone for good but gained my composure, slowly pulled myself back around to the steps and climbed up to the cab on the locomotive. It seems the fireman was operating the train that night and the train speed was actually closer to 20 mph. It was a long time before I told my mother about this – several years in fact."

Pretty cool, huh?

**DVD update - I have been a champ - not even tempted even though Borders put all of their single disc DVDS 3 for 2...yes!

**Sugar update - Cats and yoga don't mix. The cobra pose just isn't the same when a cat is rubbing against your arms and purring.

Planes, Trains, and Automobiles

So, as I venture home this weekend, I would like to reflect back on the weekend before and my adventures in Washington, DC. Now, it was a weekend filled with seeing my sister, throwing a party, attending a party, messing with cats, shopping for things I don't need, having lunch with busboys and poets, seeing old friends, watching movies, reading gossip magazines, rolling in the Goodwill van, and finding out that I don't really miss the city aside from the occasional visit.

But what will make me remember this trip a year from now, was the massive effort it took to get from O'Hare airport to my apartment the Sunday I arrived back in Chicago. Let me preface this tale of woe with the fact that it took longer for me to get from the northside of Chicago to the southside, than it did for me to travel from DC back to Chicago in the first place.

Let's start with the ill-begotten notion, when talking to my Dad, that it wouldn't take more than a little over an hour, maybe 1.5 hours to get home from the airport. I hop on the blue line ready to zone out until we hit the loop when suddenly, post-departure, someone from the CTA announces that the blue line is under repair and everyone has to get off at Cumberland (about 2 stops from the airport), board a shuttle bus that will stop at Harlem and then drop us off at Jefferson park (2 stops down) to reboard the train. Fine, whatever - I only had carry-ons with me and was traveling light. Too bad the princess in front of me decided that she had needed two huge suitcases, and a bag, and decided to throw a fit all they way to the bus, on the bus, and during the entire bus ride, and again afterwards. She can't handle all of her crap and halfway back the bus announces that she can't go any farther. She kept going, though. I'm not sure why, maybe in the spirit of goodwill, maybe due to the fact that one should always head towards the back of the bus, maybe because I was right behind her glaring like I was a serial killer - not sure, really.

Anyway, 30 minutes later, we're back at the train station and 20 minutes after that the train actually arrives. I get downtown, go above ground and race towards my bus stop - yes, so close to home, and warmth!

Except for the fact that as I was rounding the corner, my bus flew by and I had to wait another 20 minutes for the next one to come. By this time I was tired and had salt all over my jeans from the various transfers in the snow.

Anyway, my ambitious plans of flying in, making some dinner, cleaning, and doing laundry turned into a $2 slice of pizza, messing with my cat, and going to bed early. I know, you're jealous, right?

In the end it only took my almost 2.5 hours to get home - that's not bad right.

Oh, and to the princess on the bus - one word for you - taxi.

Tiny Dancers

The Nutcracker - who's excited? This girl right here.

Went home to Indy for the aforementioned Christmas tradition of seeing Tchaikovsky's The Nutcracker with my dad. I took the Megabus home on Friday (don't knock it 'til you've tried it). Saturday during the day I just goofed around with my mom - hit up Target, checked out a great new dollar store, saw my grandmother - good times. Laid around on the recliner for a good two hours reading a John Grisham book and discovered that I really like his stuff - The Broker is the first one of his that I've read.

Finally, time for the show. My dad and I set out for Butler University where we were seeing the ballet. Luck would have it that there was a Butler basketball game the same night at the Fieldhouse which is about four blocks away from the theater - eek! Yet, I have to give huge props to BU for making the wickedly brilliant decision to not allow anyone without ballet tickets to park in the lots around the performance hall - we got to park close:)

The performance itself was great - wonderful choreography, orchestra was brilliant, and the costumes had been updated a little bit, but looked great! One little angel (she had to be about 4 or 5) unfortunately wiped out at the beginning of the 2nd act, but she popped back up like a champ and kept dancing.

Post-The Nutcracker, we hit up a White Castle (I know, you wish you were classy like me) for hamburgers and mozzarella sticks - tasted so good!

I have to say, the best part is, though, knowing that my dad and I have this great tradition together and that it's is definitely something to look forward to each year.

Favorite Nutcracker memory # 2: The year that the Nutcracker's head popped off after he was supposed to be fixed, the Nutcracker dropped the Sugar Plum Fairy, a snow angel almost popped out of her costume, and at least 3 other dancers wiped out. Note to self - no more opening nights:)

3 shows, 2 days, 1 mom

So, as I sit here in pain from my free personal training session, I would like to look back to happier times when I could still raise my hands above my head...this weekend. So, you know when you hits your mid-20s and it's absolutely great to have your parents visit - often. Well, I am definitely at that stage. The past few years, I been both in Texas and Washington D.C. which are technically not in the vicinity of Indianapolis, so I've really enjoyed being closer to my family and seeing them more than 2-3 times a year. Especially since I have a wanderlust and 2 years from now could be in Instanbul for all I know. So, let's take advantage of the time we have, shall we??? Anyhoo, onwards and upwards. This past weekend had been planned for awhile, I got comp tickets to see Frederica von Stade in concert a couple of months ago. Then, when my mom said yes to coming with me (von Stade is one of my fave singers), then I got tickets to Wicked for another night. A couple of weeks ago, I found out I had to work this weekend at the CSO children's Halloween concert, Hallowed Haunts - The Composer is Dead. Kind of hectic weekend, but fantabulous nonetheless. Friday night was homemade Mexican and the movie Pan's Labyrinth - super fun night in. Saturday was the Halloween concert, an amazing show that will be published as a book/CD next year - written my Lemony Snicket!! Wicked was great - I had seen the show a couple of years ago in NYC, but wanted to share it with the mother figure, another great lover of musical theatre. Sunday morning was brunch and walking around Hyde Park, and then the von Stade concert. Can I just say how amazing she is? Because she is amazing- amazing voice, great entertainer. Some weekends, I like to play hermit, but it was great to get out these past few days and tread the pavement in the city. Now if I could only feel my legs.

You know you've had a crazy family weekend when...

Usually, when I go home for the weekend, which isn't often, it's fairly relaxing and uneventful. This past weekend, that was totes not the case. So, I bring to you, as I'm tired and feel that listing is currently my bff:

10 signs you've had a crazy family weekend:
1) Your mom cooks - I don't know about you, but my mom only cooks when it's gettin' crazy.
2) You ask your grandmother for any LPs she has - and she breaks out a huge stack of records that cost less than $1 each.
3) You watch your youngers cousins, and then JOIN your younger cousins in doing the "Soulja Boy" dance.
4) Your grandparents are watching during the above said dance...although I'm confident that my grandfather had no idea what he was listening to/watching.
5) You see more than two people you know at Red Lobster.
6) You almost adopt another cat.
7) Your mom is wearing red glitter heels to church.
8) You managed to stop at the Tasty treat before it closed for the season.
9) You hang out with your best girlfriend from junior high who is married, bought a house, and just had a baby (hey, that's mad crazy to me).
10) You are more tired after two days with your parents than you are after an all-nighter of partying.