Identity Crisis

With less than 15 weekends left (18 weeks left of work - 2-3 weekends in Indy - 1 weekend in Washington D.C. for work - the weekend I move home), I decided that I have got to step up my exploration efforts. There are still a number of things I want to see and/or do in the area before I leave, and I'm running out of time. On top of that, some of the places are best appreciated during warmer weather- Cape Cod and Block Island. (I was updating my travel binder the other day, and Block Island was on Real Simple's list of the 10 Best Hidden Gems in the U.S.)

Today I tackled the Boston Museum of Science (BMOS). I became a member of the North Smithfield Public Library about a month ago (I know, it took me a good 6 months to get a membership- their hours aren't the greatest, and I used to sleep in most Saturdays past noon), and they have passes to several local museums and attractions that let you get in for free or at a very reduced price. I woke up around 10:00 AM and decided that if they had any passes left for today, I was going. Instead of paying $20 for adult admission, I got into the regular exhibit halls for $5! I did have to pay extra to see an IMAX movie, but the total was still less than I would have paid for my total admission.

Like most museums, the BMOS has both regular and special exhibits (with the special exhibits being extra, of course). They were featuring a Harry Potter exhibit that was filled with costumes and props from the Harry Potter movies. Since I have not read any of the books or seen any of the movies, I did not have any interest in this matter. However, thousands of other people did (it felt like that many!) and were rushing to see the exhibit before it closes tomorrow. The BMOS is very kid-friendly, so I had to remember not to be such an uptight adult. (Ill-behaved children drive me up the wall.)

I started with the exhibit "Identity," which discusses the environmental, genetic, and social factors that make us individuals. I examined my fingerprint patterns, found people across the globe with the same skin tone as me, and tried to match pictures of children with their parents (much harder than you think!). Part of the exhibit looked at the range of five basic traits that some psychologists use to categorize individuals- organized vs. impulsive, wired vs. relaxed, traditional vs. something, . You could then find out what type of music and smell fit your personality based on where you selected your trait to be in a continuum. My music was a mix of classical and a bright beat. (I decided not to do the smell portion- people were saying that they couldn't get the smells off of their hands.) Another part of the Identity exhibit explained the differences between male and female brains, which apparently are different even in the womb. (Even though I did not know the difference started so early, I am not surprised.)

Two of my favorite parts of the exhibit were even more interactive. The first exercise allowed you to change your face into a different gender, race, or both. You first took a picture of your face lined up with marks on the screen. Then, you moved shapes to fit your mouth, eyes, nose, eyebrows, etc. Thirty seconds later- voila! A new you.

Here is my face before the transformation...

This is me as a black male. (I think the hair just throws everything off.)

The second exercise used similar technology to the previous tool I described, but this would show the effects of healthy aging or poor choices- smoking, not using sunscreen, or unhealthy eating. Even though I regularly wear sunscreen on my face, I thought a refresher of what *could* happen would make me even more faithful to sunscreen. The results speak for themselves.

My face after healthy aging... (Someone please tell me that this is not in the near future.)

Wow- so thankful that science has showed us how UV rays can be dangerous. This is awful!

While at the museum I also learned about wind and solar power, saw a woman give birth underwater (don't get excited, it was just a video), witnessed a chick hatch, and attempted to solve visual puzzles. I really enjoyed the visual puzzles. Most of you may have seen the black and white picture that shows both an old woman and a beautiful young girl- one of the two jumps out at you depending on your personality.

A view of the Charles River from the museum

Nothing like being in two places at once!

I had really wanted to see the planetarium, but it is closed for renovation until 2011. Instead, I decided to learn about "The Greatest Places." The Greatest Places is an IMAX film that featured six of the most amazing landscapes on Earth- Madagascar, Tibet, the Amazon River, Iguazu Falls, Greenland, the Namib desert, and the Okavango River Basin in Botswana. I love learning about the landscape of the other parts of the world and have always wanted to do lots of traveling (I have two life to-do lists, one of which features places I want to see before I die), and this movie definitely spurred the little travel bug I've been experiencing lately. I can't go anywhere abroad until this fall/winter, so for now I will set my sights on exploring New England.

In an effort to save money (and avoid a multi-car crash), I decided to take the commuter rail into Boston. There's a line that takes you straight into the city, and it's only $7.75 each way. I parked my car at the Providence Place Mall parking garage, which ended up costing me $20 (I just missed the 10 hour mark- I think it would have been $8-10 instead.) However, parking alone for 8 hours in Boston would have *easily* cost me over $35 (If I had to bet, I would say it would have been even more than $40). Plus, the gas alone would have cost $11. (Triple A has a calculator that takes the make, model, and year of your car into account.) It was nice not to have to worry about driving in the city, especially on my way home- I was exhausted!

After I finished at the museum, I went to Copley Plaza and did a little shopping. Lord and Taylor was having an *amazing* sale on winter coats, but I was strong and was able to convince myself that I could wait until next year. I did, however, find something I couldn't pass up- Footzy Rolls. Footzy Rolls are rollable shoes designed to be small enough to fit inside your purse. This allows you to wear the slippers/shoes while you are on your way to go out and have to walk, change into your heels when you arrive at your destination, and change back into your slippers for the walk home. I am going to Washington D.C. in a couple of weeks, and these will be perfect!

The how-to's of wearing the Footzy-Rolls...

The newest edition to my footwear wardrobe

Who knows where I will go next! Hope everyone is having a great weekend!

O, Canada

Is anyone else enjoying the Olympics lately? Unfortunately, I've been sick since Thursday (yuck) with a bad cold. I've slept more than an entire day this weekend (yes, that's more than 24 hours), but I'm starting to feel much better today. During my waking hours, I've had a chance to watch some events, including ski jumping, the men's super g, ice dancing (are they serious? I didn't know this was a real sport, and even though I tease about it, I'd love to be able to do it), and hockey. I normally wouldn't watch so much t.v., but I have had zero energy. What normally would have been an energizing, fun shopping trip to Target left me exhausted.

So instead of adventuring out this weekend (sigh, so frustrating...), I've been catching up on the Winter Olympics (and doing some work on my research project). The question that has been on my mind the entire weekend is, "What Olympic sport would I be able to compete in?" (The real answer is none at all, but let me dream!) After last weekend's stunts, I'd say I have a chance in the super g slalom race.

My next question is how some people get into these various sports. For example, the luge. Where is the closest luge track? Can you rent a luge? This isn't something you can practice in your backyard. And ski jumping. When did jumping four stories in the air to twist and turn sound like a good idea? I mean, the landing is considered decent if you can just manage to land on your feet and not tumble over. I do admire the athletes that are competing. They train extensively, most of them without financial support, and put it all on the line during the games.

I just finished watching the U.S. versus Canada hockey game- so intense! I posted this picture in July, but hockey always reminds me of it, which reminds me of my Dad. :)

Guess I've liked hockey since a young age.

I'll try to do better on writing this week- hopefully I'll be able to stay healthy!

A Weekend With My Valentine

This past weekend I had a very special visitor! Nick flew into Boston on Thursday afternoon (he will do anything to avoid connections, and there is not a direct flight from Indianapolis to Providence) and I picked him up after work. In order to avoid rush hour traffic, we decided to eat dinner in the city. I took Nick to Newbury St, a popular shopping area in Boston. I was starting to get a little hypoglycemic, so we ate an early, casual dinner at Upper Crust (*love* their calzones!), followed by some window shopping in some ridiculously expensive stores.

I ended up going into work on Friday after much debate between the two of us about the underlying meaning and implications of me not taking a day off. From my point of view, why wouldn't I take the day off, and why didn't Nick want me to? His argument was that we would still be able to spend time together and that I'd have an extra vacation day to visit him for a 3-day weekend. In the end, I didn't take the day off for 2 reasons: 1. I had a lot of work to do in the office 2. I started to agree with Nick's point. He is going to China in April (*so* jealous!), so I won't be able to visit when I originally planned (he will be gone on his birthday, April 4). At least now I'll have the option of taking a 3-day weekend in March. (I hate it when he's right!)

When I had gotten home from work, Nick had flowers and chocolates waiting for me.

They smell wonderful! Fresh flowers are one of my favorite gifts.

As a combination Valentine's Day and birthday gift, I got Nick a new iPod nano! Apple offers free engraving (he wanted his full name and new e-mail address) and free shipping. The new nano shoots video, which will be nice for his trip this spring.

On Friday night, we went into downtown Providence. My co-worker, Alan, had given me a free pair of tickets to see the Providence Bruins game at the Dunkin' Donuts Center. Our tickets were in the luxury suite, which was more relaxing, and there were 5 other people from work watching the game. It wasn't anything fancy, but we had a nice time. Nick had never been to any type of professional hockey game (his last one was a high school game), so the opportunity for free tickets couldn't be passed up. After the game, we went out to The Cheesecake Factory for dinner. (I know, I didn't take him to any local restaurants, but it was what sounded best to both of us at the time.)

Alan and his son, Daniel, who was so well-behaved for a two year-old

So upset that we forgot to take a picture of ourselves!

On Saturday, Nick and I made one of our wonderful homemade breakfasts. We had blueberry pancakes, fresh orange juice, turkey bacon (for me- it's not really my favorite, but I need the protein), and an omelet for Nick (complete with tomatoes, goat cheese, peppers, and onions- this guy doesn't mess around in the kitchen!) Nick and I make a good team- my pancake batter is better than his, but I always end up burning them, while he seems to cook them just right. We lazed around and watched some of season five of The Office that Nick had brought with him from Indy. Nick had never really seen the show when we started dating, so we began watching the seasons on DVD. When the fifth season came out, we vowed not to watch the new episodes until we could watch them together (Awww, how cute).

On Saturday afternoon, Nick and I drove to Princeton, Massachusetts to go skiing on Wachusett Mountain. This area is only an hour from my apartment and had night skiing available (we aren't always morning people on the weekends). There are 22 trails with a peak elevation of 2,006 feet. The weather turned out to cooperate, too- it was just above freezing and not too windy. I had not been skiing in seven years, so I guess I was what you call "rusty." However, for whatever reason, I didn't think I'd have that many problems, but I struggled a little more than I thought I would.

A picture of Wachusett Mountain at night

The trails at Wachusett Mountain

Nick had skied much more than I have, and I didn't want him to be bored by going on all of the easy trails. (He was such a good sport the entire time- it was so nice to ski together.) We started off on a blue square trail (medium difficulty), which didn't seem all that bad until about a third of the way down the mountain. I managed to have two major falls with my feet over my head both times. (At this point, I am laughing hysterically after my falls- I am sure that I looked like some sort of cartoon character tumbling down the snow.) After a couple of runs, I started to get the hang of it with the help of my ski instructor (that would be Nick). He was very patient with me, even when I got frosty with him (no pun intended) a couple of times. (I can take one piece of advice per run... e.g. I will focus on keeping my skis together this time, but I can't keep my skis together, keep my back straight, and look for soft spots in the snow to turn.)

Before our skiing adventure

On one of the lifts... we look like we are going to rob a bank!

Nick and I went inside the lodge at the base of the mountain to get a drink of water and find the bathroom. I went into the restroom and looked into the mirror to pull off my hat, gloves, and scarf. There was a woman who was cleaning up around the sinks.

The cleaning woman: "Is it raining outside?"

Me: "No, I just fell a couple of times."

The cleaning woman: "On your face?"

Me (laughing so hard that I could barely answer her): "Twice!"

I had gotten so much snow underneath my hat during my falls that my hair had become so wet that it looked like a bucket of water was dumped on me.

After our quick rest, Nick and I decided to try to find Bullock Lodge. Bullock Lodge is a small cabin about halfway down the mountain in between two black diamond trails (aka difficult) that serves hot cider and doughnuts, so you know that it was a high priority stop for me! We started down one difficult trail but not the right one- the trail that the cabin was located off of was closed shortly for grooming. I fell on the trail after about 200 yards, but after regaining composure, I did well going down the rest of the trail, well enough for me to even give a "woo-hoo!" scream. When we returned to the top, the trail to the cider house had been opened (another difficult trail). There is a split halfway down the mountain, and instead of going left, Nick and I went right. We spotted the lodge through the woods, and Nick quickly yelled that there was a path through the woods that we could use to reach it. I was in front of him (going way too fast, I might add), so I didn't have much time to cut over. I made it onto the trail, but because I was out of control, took a serious tumble about 50 yards later (It was more of a face-plant that a tumble). This fall hurt the worst of all... I felt my chest and face hit the hard, icy ground, and my left leg had a sharp pain. Nick helped me get up- no broken bones, but I was definitely banged up.

We made it into the cider house for our respite, and I was so glad to be there. Not only were the homemade cider and doughnuts amazing, the lodge was warm and inviting. A local farm, Red Apple Farm, makes both the doughnuts and cider- just thinking about them makes me hungry!

Not the greatest picture (my camera kept fogging up!), but here's a view of the inside of the lodge

We went down several more trails, and after one more serious head-over-heels fall, I was done for the day. I went inside to the lodge at the base of the mountain to warm up, while Nick did one more run on his own. All in all, it was a very successful (and fun!) day on the slopes.

Nick and I made dinner at my apartment on Saturday night- tacos, Spanish rice, and frozen margaritas (well, for me... Nick stuck to his wheat beer). We were thinking about enchiladas, but I had forgotten to pick up the sauce and chiles. I can only make a few meals that both of us like, and this happens to be one of them. Sometimes it is more relaxing to eat at home than to try to go out to eat, especially on holiday weekends. (Growing up, we would always try to eat at home for Mother's Day and Father's Day- it can be too crazy to even make the trip worth it.)

Nick had to be at the airport by 1:00 PM today (Sunday), so we took it easy in the morning (more pancakes!) since we had to leave by noon. I still get sad every time he or I leave one another (well, I get sad when anyone leaves after visiting me here, for that matter), but for Nick, it usually doesn't hit me until I get back to my apartment. All of the little things around my place start to have memories connected with them (why else would I have olives, Dr. Pepper, or Franziskaner in my refrigerator?). I've been doing really well the past couple of months as am working to "embrace" my experience here in Rhode Island, but there is a part of me that will always miss my valentines at home.

Happy Birthday, Kyle!

Hope you are having a great start to the new semester! Miss you and the wifie!

Happy Birthday, Izzie!

"I hope to be the kind of person my dog thinks I am."

-unknown

For those of you that know Izzie, you'll be surprised to know that she is turning nine years old today! (Unless you really paid close attention to the lighter spots around her eyes, you'd have no idea... she still acts like a toddler!) I still remember going to the breeder's house when we first picked her out... she was such a cute little puppy and a character from the very beginning. She had a propensity for licking, sitting on your lap, and sucking on her blanket. Nine years later, nothing has changed! I have lots of great memories from our adventures together, but I'll just share a couple.

As I was leaving the house early one morning, I realized that I had forgotten something for my rotation in my bedroom upstairs. I pulled back into the driveway, opened the garage door, and ran inside. Izzie has a few favorite spots in the house- one of which is in the corner of the kitchen by the table. When I got into the kitchen, I was surprised that I didn't see her. As I rounded the corner from the dining room into the living room, I saw Izzie with her front paws on our blue sofa (one of the few places she is *not* supposed to sit). She turned her head towards me and looked like she had been caught red-handed! She slowly took her paws off of the couch and ran over to me, wagging her tail, as if to beg for forgiveness.

Some of my other favorite memories are from waking up in the morning to a giant golden retriever sitting on top of me! Izzie loves to jump up on the bed (she has no sense of personal space- she always has to be touching you if she is near you) and wake anyone up with a big kiss on the cheek. (I've even taught her what "give them kisses!" means!) She would sometimes wait outside my door until my mom would let her in to visit me.

Other favorite memories (in no particular order)

• Playing hide-and-go seek in the park with Izzie and my Dad
• Izzie jumping through the stream of water from the hose as I tried to water the plants in the backyard
• Her pet rock- this is the only thing Izzie will bark at! She'll pick it up, drop it on the ground, and start to attack it!
• Running errands (especially going to get take-out) with Izzie in the car
• Izzie's blankets... she sucks on the blanket like a toddler sucks on their thumb
• Catching Izzie after she dug up a small bush from the backyard
• Raking leaves into a pile for her to play in- she loves the fall
• Having someone to snuggle with when I was sad, cold, or sleepy

I wish I had more pictures from when she was a puppy, but I have yet to take them from home and scan them onto my (relatively) new computer. Here are some of my favorites I had on file...

Isn't this a sweet picture of her as a puppy?

I got a Mr. Mucus stuffed doll from a drug rep for Izzie to play with (she loves stuffed toys, especially ones with squeakers that sound like real animals)- I don't think it lasted more than 3 minutes

Ryan and I with Izzie in front of the Christmas tree

Izzie and I outside in our backyard

Izzie is one of two family members that has a designated spot in the family room. My Dad has a brown leather chair, and Izzie always sits in the corner of the green leather couch. If you are in her seat, you'll know it- she will sit right on top of you.

She looks so sad!

Izzie had a special visitor a couple of years ago for New Year's Eve. Kyle and Chelsea brought their dog Jackson (on the left with me) to visit Izzie (on the right with Chelsea) for the night! They had so much fun playing together!

Seems like Izzie has a lot of photo ops in front of the Christmas trees...

Some things never change...

Hope you have a golden birthday! Love you, Izzle!

My Favorite Squeeze

Every once in a while, I get a craving to have breakfast for dinner. It wasn't a regular event at my house growing up because my Dad isn't a huge fan. Instead, when he would go out of town, we would feast on pancakes and bacon. Pancakes are by far my favorite breakfast food (when they are done right, of course), but I also enjoy French toast. I found the following recipe in Good Housekeeping magazine. (I am not a regular reader of this publication, but it was the only decent reading available at my doctor's office. And yes, I am that person that tears things out of the community magazines.)

French Toast

-2 large egg whites

-1 large egg

-3/4 cup low-fat milk

-1/4 tsp vanilla

-1/8 teaspoon salt

-butter or butter spray

-8 slices whole wheat bread

In a pie plate, use a whisk to beat the egg whites, egg, milk, vanilla, and salt until blended. Dip bread slices into egg mixture, and press the bread lightly to coat both sides well. Place 3-4 slices in a skillet, and cook 6-8 minutes or until lightly browned on both sides. Top with fresh berries and maple syrup.

Nutrition info (per 2 slices): 300 calories, 12 gm protein, 46 carbohydrates, 9 gm fat, 6 gm fiber, 56 mg cholesterol.

Now, I know that I'm no cooking genius, but how hard can this recipe be? This is the second time I've made this recipe, and both times I have ended up with bread that is too burnt on the outside and still soggy on the inside. The first time I blamed my pan/skillet (it does the job 95% of the time, but how good can a $5 pan from IKEA be? It serves my current purposes, but I would eventually like to upgrade.), but now I'm starting to think I don't have the heat set correctly. Any tips?

To go along with my breakfast for dinner, I made fresh orange juice- YUM!

FLASHBACK: (Since I did such a poor job of updating during the holidays, I am going to be using these "flashbacks" to bring everyone up to speed.)

On Christmas Eve, I got a call from Nick, who had just finished opening up some of his Christmas presents. When I asked him what he received, he immediately said, "My mom got me a juicer!" to which I replied, "Really?!" He was excited (by his standards) and went on about how he couldn't wait to use it. I would have been more excited for him, but I got him a juicer, too!!

During our Europe trip, Nick raved about the fresh juice we would have in the mornings at our breakfast spots, so I made a mental note (along with a note in my Blackberry) to get him one later. (Note to self: write blog posts about the trip to Europe in the near future.) We imposed a $20 spending limit on Christmas presents this year (a chance to save money and be creative), which was perfect- I had seen a Black and Decker juicer at Target for $19.99.

It turned out that Nick got a much fancier juicer-a Jack LaLanne juicer. (I'm sure you've seen his commercials on T.V.) His Mom got a good deal on one at a garage sale, so it couldn't be returned. However, I'm not sure Nick would have wanted my wimpy juicer. During my Christmas vacation, he made me several good juice combinations, including grapefruit, oranges, apples, and carrots. I liked the juice, but I have 3 qualms with the juicer:

1. It is *huge.* Unless you have a lot of storage space in the kitchen (or can hide it someplace else), it stays on the counter.

2. The parts can't be put into the dishwasher. I mean, I don't mind hand washing some dishes when it's absolutely necessary, but I can't see myself cleaning this thing by hand every morning (or see myself making juice every morning).

3. The pulp is separated from the juice- this can be both a pro and con. It allows you to put fruits and vegetables you might not otherwise consume (I don't know whether to say eat or drink here), and you can use the pulp in muffins and other recipes (but how many people really do this? Seriously, fresh juice and muffins every morning? Who is this person? Betty Crocker?). I personally love the orange juice with 'lots of pulp."

Here is where my juicer comes into play...

1. All of the parts (except the base with the power cord) can be put into the dishwasher!

2. It is small enough to fit under the kitchen counter.

3. You have the option of having high or low pulp juice.

But, at the same time, you can only use it for citrus fruits. I guess it depends on what qualities you are looking for in a juicer. :)

My new favorite kitchen appliance...

For those of you who are wondering, I ended up getting Nick a combination Christmas and anniversary gift (We were at Pat and Sarah's wedding on December 27 when I just started introducing myself as his girlfriend). I didn't stay under my $20 limit, but Nick got me a coral-colored cashmere scarf and glove set (love it! It's the very first things I've ever owned made of cashmere), so we were even in the end. At Details, one of my favorite gift stores in Indy, you can buy pictures of letters from around the state, including IU, PU, and Indy. I used pictures taken from downtown Indy to spell his last name.

Here is the full picture.

The first 3 letters- the "K" is from the construction of Lucas Oil Stadium. The "L" is from the top of the Indianapolis Museum of Art building. The "E" comes from the of Conseco Fieldhouse, where the Pacers schedule is posted.

The last 3 letters- The "M" is from the Indiana State Museum, which is just a short walk down the canal from Nick's apartment. The "E" is from part of a building downtown that houses Hard Rock Cafe. I think the "N" is from a random parking sign, but I'd have to look at the back of the picture to be sure.

As for this year, there might not be any holidays on the near horizon, but I'm going to call Julie soon to start planning birthday and Christmas presents.