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Saturday, May 31, 2008
Weekend Walk
Somehow last week really dragged. Can't really explain why. It should have felt shorter since I only worked 1/2 a day on Monday (Memorial Day) but somehow that wasn't the case. Oh well. I am just glad it's finally the weekend.
Didn't do all that much today. Slept in, wrote some letters, watched some shows on the Food Network and then made dinner which turned out pretty yummy. I made a Rachael Ray recipe "Tuna Puttanesca with Penne". Going to catch up on some TV shows in a bit.
There are some thunderstorms in the area right now but tomorrow it's supposed to be pretty nice. We are planning to go for a nice long walk in NYC tomorrow. Since the weather has been nicer I have really been craving to be outside. We are going to drive to Manhattan and walk down Hudson park from 55th Street to somewhere near the Battery. Then we will walk across downtown to the Brooklyn Bridge, cross the bridge and take the subway to Park Slope where we will have dinner at an Austrian cafe and then aftwards take the subway back. All in all it's about 7 miles of walking but it's supposed to be a nice day tomorrow and we will be in no hurry so it should be fun. Exercise and good food - sounds like a nice combo to me. :)
Mail Update: Letters went out last Tuesday (5/27) to: Celia/MA and Liana/NY. So far letters are going out on Monday to: Becki/MI and Charles/TN. Received letters from/still owe replies to: Sarah/Canada, Kimber/Canada, Alex/Germany and Tiffany/OK.
Posted by Hanna at 08:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack
Saturday, May 24, 2008
Memorial Day Weekend
Sorry that it's taken me this long to post but this past week was just really hectic at work. The week before any major holiday is usually a pretty nutty one. Oh well, the worst is over now so that's good.
Last Saturday we went to Baltimore, Maryland to go to the Walters Art Museum where they have an exhibit about old maps that Mike really wanted to see. It was definitely a very neat exhibit and the whole museum was very cool. We stayed overnight in a nice hotel and had a nice little getaway. Also went to the National Aquarium since the weather was a bit shaky. I would definitely recommend that aquarium - some very cool exhibits.
Tuesday we went down to the city to go to my monthly Austrian meet-up. After the meet-up we went to the Food Emporium to shop for some Austrian groceries. They didn't have any of the cheese at the location we went to but I was still able to buy some jam and pickles. I know, odd combination. :)
Today has been errand day so far. Went to the library and the store. Afterwards we had lunch at Elmer's Diner - yum. Now I am trying to catch up on some emails and online stuff. Should write some letters too. We will see how it goes.
Mail Update: Letters went out last Monday (5/19) to: Caroline/Scotland, Lotte/Denmark, Carmen/Malta, Nina/WA and Becki/MI. Received letters from/still owe replies to: Sarah/Canada, Kimber/Canada, Celia/MA, Alex/Germany and Liana/NY.
Posted by Hanna at 03:15 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Thursday, May 15, 2008
Nice day off
Haven't had a day off by myself during the middle of the week in quite some time so have to say it's been nice. Didn't really accomplish all that much but so far it's still been a nice day. Got up around 10am, surfed the web for a while, then had lunch (breaded sauteed chicken breast, topped with ham and cheese and finished off under the broiler). Managed to get a few more things done around the house and then went for a 20-minute power walk. I was originally going to walk to the library but somehow ended up procrastinating too much and never ended up going 'cause it was getting too late. I did enjoy my walk around the neighborhood though. It's nice to be outside and see the trees blooming, smell the fresh grass and so on.
Mike's picking me up around 4:45pm and then we are heading to West Hartford for my bi-weekly German meet-up. Didn't go to the last one as it was just a day or two after we got back from our trip so I am looking forward to going to this one.
This weekend we are off to Baltimore, Maryland to go to the Walters Art Museum where they have an exhibit about old maps that Mike really wants to see. We will leave Saturday afternoon after work and stay overnight. Depending on the weather we might also go to the Maryland zoo or another museum. Either way I am sure it will be fun.
Mail Update: No mail has gone out since the last update. :( Received letters from/still owe replies to:Caroline/Scotland, Carmen/Malta, Sarah/Canada, Kimber/Canada, Nina/WA and Becki/MI.
Posted by Hanna at 03:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Austrian Weeks
I am so excited. Guess what special they are having at a local grocery store chain in Manhattan ? Austrian weeks!!! How cool is that ? I only found out about it because I received an email about the monthly Austrian meet-up in NYC from the guys working at the consulate yesterday and they also included a little blurb about those Austria weeks.
This is what it said: "Hello everyone :) I have excellent news for all gourmands out there... If you ever craved for or wanted to taste Austrian delicacies (from Ottakringer beer to Imperial Torte to pumpkinseed oil and more), then now you can get them at the Food Emporium! The exciting news is that from May 16 - 29 the Food Emporium (different locations in Manhattan - see flyer) are promoting their "Austria Weeks." So pilger to your local Food Emporium (www.thefoodemporium.com) and stock up your favorite cheese, chocolate, vinegar, pickles, mustard, jam and more. The more Austrian products will be bought, the more likely will The Food Emporium include them in their regular program. And pls. pass this flyer on to as many friends and family as you can! Happy Shopping and Eating :) Michaela Laussegger Austrian Trade Commission"
We are definitely making a trip to a Food Emporium while that sale is on so I can stock up on some yummy things. I know I want some Darbo jam, Manner wafers, pickles, cheese and whatever else looks good. :) Definitely made my evening last night getting that email. I am so easily pleased sometimes. ;)
Mail Update: No mail has gone out since the last update. :( Received letters from/still owe replies to:Carmen/Malta, Sarah/Canada, Kimber/Canada, Nina/WA and Becki/MI.
Posted by Hanna at 07:38 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Monday, May 12, 2008
Happy Mother's Day!
Can't seem to post more than once a week these days it seems. I always want to post more but somehow it just doesn't happen. Last week was a busy week at work. Had a new girl starting on Monday so I was pretty much busy training and spending a lot of time on all that. In addition to that we were really short-handed one day and I spent another day preparing a cost study for my boss. Busy week.
The weekend was nice though. Had Saturday and Sunday off which was really nice since we haven't had that in a while. Saturday we didn't really do much. Made lunch, caught up in my emails and spent most of the day reading Sarah Addison Allen's book "Garden Spells" which I really enjoyed. It's been a little while since I read a whole book front to cover in one sitting. Was fun though.
Sunday was Mother's Day so of course I called my mom. :) Love you mom. :) Then we went to a baseball game (NY Mets against Cincinatti Reds) which was fun. They had a pink hat giveaway which was cool. All the players were using pink bats as well. As the game went on it got pretty cloudy and cool so I was freezing but at least the Mets won so that made it okay. After the game we headed to Chevy's for some yummy margaritas and Mexican food.
Mail Update: Mail going out tomorrow to:Jessica/DE and Celia/MA. Received letters from/still owe replies to:Sarah/Canada, Kimber/Canada, Nina/WA and Becki/MI.
Posted by Hanna at 07:51 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Sunday, May 04, 2008
We're back
So we're back. We have been back since really late on Tuesday night but somehow I just haven't been able to post since now. Went to work Wednesday but left a tad early to catch the train down to the city to meet up with my Scottish pal Fiona who was here on vacation. We were pretty jet-lagged but it was still very nice to be able to meet up with her. Went to our favorite pizza place Arturo's.
Thursday, Friday and Saturday were regular days at work. The usual craziness after returning from a trip. It actually wasn't too too bad. I managed to hire somebody new who will start tomorrow. Fingers crossed that all goes well as usual. Saturday we were at work too and then later had dinner at an Austrian restaurant in Cheshire, CT I discovered. Had yummy schnitzel and Sacher schnitte for dessert along with Gruener Veltliner (white wine). The picture shows my beautifully wrapped left-overs.
Today has been spent unpacking and doing laundry. I also changed the bedset and put out our summer-y one. Everything is so much brighter now. :) We will have some cheese+crackers and catch up on our recorded TV shows in a minute.
Mail Update: Mail went out on Wednesday to: Jetta/Finland. Received letters from/still owe replies to: Jessica/DE, Celia/MA, Sarah/Canada and Kimber/Canada.
Posted by Hanna at 07:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack