Saturday, August 22, 2009

Goodbye

This month meant a lot of changes and goodbyes. Sadly, I've had to say goodbye to many of my close friends this summer and now it is Katie's turn to leave. :( I'm going to miss...
...that little gleam in her eye when she wants to have an adventure...
...her incredible cooking skills of fancy things that are "so easy" to make...
...Saturday morning cartoons and Sunday comics...
...her love of crazy roadsigns like this one (CAREFUL CHILDREN BREAKDANCING)...
...her extensive knowledge of movies and art...
...the way she kicks down doors...

...and her love of good lines. ;) Thanks for being such a great roommate Katie! I feel like I learned so much from you and we had so many good times together. Good luck in England!

I am also saying goodbye to the apartment we lived in together. I thought I would finally share pictures of what my room looked like. It is really supposed to be a dining room, so my room had this cool built-in cabinet.It also meant there was not a closet, so I used this wardrobe. That is the color the walls used to be. After painting the whole rest of the house, I was too exhausted to paint the wardrobe too.

So long. Farewell. Auf wiedersehen. Adios. Dos vidanya. Ciao. Goodbye!

Monday, August 17, 2009

The Island

My dear friend Jenny Faith lived on Nantucket for a summer a while ago, so I jumped on the chance to go with her to the island for my first time.
It had rained the night before, so when we got on the ferry, we had to dry off our seats... with these flimsy napkins from the little cafe on board. You know, the kind that disintegrate as soon as they see water? Above are Tristan, Mollie, and Katie, with Jenny below. I found out that Jenny is a talented cartoonist. One really funny thing happened on the ride over. This dude was walking by with orange juice in one hand and apparently didn't realize that boats aren't always steady. It lurched and the orange juice flew allover this poor innocent man sitting there. Sad, but hilarious.

These pictures are for Angie - it's the home of Nantucket Nectars!



Jenny showed us her favorite place for smoothies... ...which we thoroughly enjoyed.


We wandered around and saw this cute little street market. There were so many beautiful things that I wished I had a house to decorate. We tried to see a sand sculpture contest, but there were no sculptures to be found. Just roped off areas with not even a mound of sand. Sad.


We headed off ot the other side of the island next, which has better beaches. I was there to witness the first time that Jenny swam in an ocean. Woot! Katie is such a good motivator at getting us out to endure enjoy the cold Atlantic waves.It was so nice to just have relaxing bask-in-the-sun time.
Love the hydrangeas!
Another beach that was covered in seashells......with this adorable lighthouse.


I love this weathervane, a nod to the whaling that was big in Nantucket.I know this is a horrible picture, but can you see the couple walking behind us? We ran into quite a few wealthy New Englanders in the typical uniform. Tristan wondered if there was a parade. ;)

Mollie and I were the only ones who couldn't seem to fall asleep on the ferry ride home. I entertained us with this drawing. We were so tired that there were plenty of giggles. Don't I look good with green eyes?
Thanks to Jen for being our tour guide. Nantucket is amazingly beautiful and has such a quaint feel to it. Fun, fun day.

On Sunday, there was a big combined meeting at church for an announcement. There were two 25+ (or grad student) singles wards for all of Boston. The small change was realigning the boundaries to match the different stake boundaries. The big change was creating a new ward for everyone in both wards who is 31+. As you may or may not know, I turned 31 on my birthday two weeks ago... just in time, right? I have to admit, I had to talk myself into liking the idea, and may have been close to tears during the meeting. Not only did it make me feel a little old, but I am going to miss my bishop and all the friends staying there. Not that they'll be further away, I just won't get to see them as often.
That night, my new friends Daryl and Jarick invited me (and Katie) over for a late birthday dinner. Daryl found out I love Italian food and Jarick served in Italy. He made some amazing pasta with homemade sauce. It was an amazing meal, food-wise, as well as good company-wise. Afterwards, we sang songs around the piano, which is something I used to do with Joy all the time and miss a lot. Both of these boys are in my new ward, so that made me feel a lot better and even a little excited for the new ward. I also can't complain about getting to extend my birthday celebrations just a little longer. ;)

Tuesday, August 11, 2009

Historic FHE

My friend James lives in the basement (old servant's quarters) of the Historic Shirley-Eustis House and invited us all over for an exclusive tour for FHE. This was the mansion of the Royal Governor (British) William Shirley and the only one left still standing in the U.S.

I'm a fan of winding staircases.

When they were restoring the house, they moved a piece of furniture in this room and could faintly see the original design of the floor. They left that piece untouched. The style of that time period definitely did not shy away from bright colors and loud designs.
This is the view of the front yard.
The ward members who attended in the grand entryway.
One of the bedrooms.
We played a rousing game based on the hymns. You had to sing a line of the song based on a phrase, word, or theme. My team won, of course. ;)

Monday, August 10, 2009

Quincy Revisited

This weekend got off to a great start. Molly, Katie, and I had dinner at Applebee's on Friday night. It was such a lovely evening that we sat outside on the patio. About midway through our meal, we became aware of an altercation in the parking lot, as the lights of several police cars began swirling. A little while later, right after the police let this dude go, he goes up to a guy in his car about 50 feet away and smashes his window. S - m - r - t, smart! About this time we realize we are going to miss the beginning of a movie and head out. Unfortunately, a police car is blocking my escape. I ask the kind sir, if it would be possible for me to leave. He says that they shouldn't be there too much longer. Oh... okay. He then pauses, thinks for a moment, and proceeds to tell me a story about a conversation he had. The punchline being about how a policeman takes out the trash. After he delivered his joke and got my courtesy laugh, he moved his car for me. Very sweet. :)

The movie we saw was Julie & Julia. It was quite delightful and inspired me to learn how to cook better. Does anyone want to give me a good cookbook? ;) Katie observed that it was not a very well-made movie but had a great story about good, inspiring people... as opposed to 500 Days of Summer which was very well-made but about horrible people.

On Saturday, I returned to Quincy, where I lived during my first year in Boston. Somehow, I had never been able to tour the John Adams sites. In my defense, I tried a time or two, but they are only open during the summer. Boston honestly seems to shut down in the winter. Anywho, Katie and I picked up Amy Beth and then met Bethany in Quincy. Here is the first home we visited... ...which is next door to this home. Bethany had a little mishap inside this home, which she will write about for us soon. The homes are very much like pioneer homes on the inside. Basic wood, huge fireplace, simple furniture. They told about political meetings being held inside this home. It is awe-inspiring to stop and think that you are standing in the same place that great men have stood in.
The Adams lived in Europe for awhile and upon looking to move back, found out this mansion was available. They'd never been inside, but agreed to buy it. Isn't it beautiful? When they got here, they found out that inside wasn't much larger than their last home. They ended up adding on two more wings in the back. This was Katie's favorite part - a separate library. It was filled with books from floor to ceiling, with those cool rolling ladders. There was also art by one of Katie's favorite painters from that era. One painting was only half done, because the British men wouldn't pose for the painting. It was of the signing of the treaty that ended the Revolutionary War... which they lost.This is the carriage house. Does that remind anyone else of Clue (Deluxe)?We decided to find a few other things Katie read about online, while down in lovely Quincy. This is a cairn marking the hill where Abigail and John Quincy watched the battle of Bunker Hill in the distance. Next we went to Moswetuset Hummock, an important place for the Native Americans from whom Massachusetts got its name. It was a beautiful, peaceful day, so we sat a enjoyed the water, while Katie did a little reading.That night, Mollie and I went and chose paint colors for my new apartment. Yes, I am moving again. More to come on that later.

This week's Sunday cartoon (oh how I will miss those when Katie leaves) was inspired by the events in Quincy. We got to ride a trolley to the different sites and Katie was sliding about. I mentioned to her that if she just planted her feet, she wouldn't slide (sometimes I can't help but state the obvious). Little did I know that she enjoyed sliding.After church, Katie made a yummy pizza in the barbecue, then we headed off for dinner at one of the bishopric's houses, the Walker's. We hadn't been there before, so we left a little earlier than necessary. That was okay, though, because we passed a little park and decided to stop. Katie and I took one look at the swings and decided to swing as high as we could. I don't remember the last time I swung, but there is something so incredibly liberating about flying through the air on a little rubber seat. You know, sometimes I just have to play like a child. Too bad my nieces and nephews aren't close enough to play with so that I don't look quite as silly. ;)

Tuesday, August 4, 2009

Wilton Falls

This weekend I went on an excursion to New Hampshire, planned by my friend Rob. First, we stopped at Vale Cemetery and found the grave of the Blue Lady. This haunted grave has a blue light that rises from it and then sinks back in.Next, we went to Wilton Falls for a little swimming. I couldn't believe how strong and forceful the water is. We climbed all the way up and around the falls. I had so much fun, although it was a little scary. I made it all the way up though, with just a little urging.We checked out another spot, but didn't jump in there (not quite as exciting as the falls). On the way, we couldn't find the turn-off and kept changing directions. I'm sure it was entertaining for the people we kept passing by. After that stop, we headed out. We were starving, so we had dinner at the first pub that we passed. The marquis stated "bikers welcome" and several Harleys were lined up outside. It was an interesting experience. My burger was burned, but the onion rings were great. Rob then decided that we should head over to Kimball Farm for some ice cream. He also thought it would be a good idea to race... until I smoked him. I should have been a racecar driver. ;) It was a fun, fun day.
On Sunday, I stopped by my friend Natalie's Shark Attack party to start off Shark Week on Discovery Channel.
Do you love her decorations? She also had amazing treats, floaties and visors to wear. She seriously has the best parties. Reminds me of Natalie (Ashby)'s awesome parties we had in college... like the Headless Chicken party or decorating a cake like a British flag. Good times.

Saturday, August 1, 2009

Best Month of the Year II

25th - This was Victoria's last Saturday in Boston, so we decided that we needed a little beach action. We went to Nahant to enjoy the beautiful sunshine. (As an aside... Victoria read out loud from a book for one of her classes. It was called So Sexy, So Soon and talked about the bombardment of images children are exposed to by the media. I would recommend it for all you parents out there.)
We also did a little kite flying. I absolutely love kites! Way too long since I had flown one.As a last effort to enjoy the best of Boston, Victoria and I headed to Cambridge to try a sandwich shop called Darwins and have L. A. Burdick's hot chocolate. Both are excellent, by the way. We then went to our friend Rob's house for campfire fun... guitar playing, singing, smores. He also has a hammock... ah, the joys of a real house and yard.

26th - After church, I felt like being outside, so Victoria joined me for a walk at Arnold Arboretum. We were there for the best of the yummy evening sunlight. Victoria brought along her butterfly net... which can also be used for frogs.
I love this picture! Right as I was clicking this shot, Victoria caught sight of a butterfly overhead. She looks so excited trying to catch it with her net. We also ended that evening playing some card games. It was about this point that I realized that I need more sleep than I have been getting.

27th - Victoria invited me to come to a Red Sox game for her last night in Boston. What a way to end her time here. They won, of course. I already miss Victoria, though.
28th - In honor of the three of us with birthday's that week, my friend Brian organized a group to go to Kimball Farm for a celebration. We enjoyed KFC (perfect for a picnic), a little volleyball, delicious angel food cake with berries, and delicious Kimball Farm's ice cream.
We also got a little crazy on the bumper boats.29th - For my actual birthday, I had thought about having a party, but most of my closest friends decided to either move away from Boston, or be out of town. Luckily, Katie was still in Boston, so she and I went to see 500 Days of Summer. It was actually artistically amazing with some really funny parts. The story made me a little sad, though. For some reason I still expected it to have a happy ending, even though they tell you there won't be from the get-go.

30th - I came home intending to get caught up on stuff, but Katie convinced me that we needed to try a Thai food place recommended by a friend. It is called the Brown Sugar Cafe
and was quite delightful.

31st - Free Friday Dance Lesson learning the Argentine Tango. It was seriously so fun. I need to dance more. A great end to a fantastic month. :)