Monday, October 16, 2017
Fall Weather - warm & cold - up & down
Happy Monday. The weather has been so strange for October. This past weekend it was pretty warm and also weirdly humid. We went for a short walk/hike yesterday and the humidity was really high. So strange for mid October. But then tomorrow morning we are supposed to have a frost warning and only a couple degrees above freezing. But then I think it's supposed to warm up again. So weird.
Had a nice and relaxed weekend all in all. On Saturday we slept in late and then went for lunch at 121 in Oxford. Later met up with our friend John and hung out for a bit longer. And yesterday, Sunday, we went for the walk/hike at Weird Farm (it's a National Historic Site, part of the National Park network) We have been talking about going there for ages and finally did. Looks like they have a few more trails to check out. Might be nice when the humidity is not crazy but hopefully not too cold either. We will see what the rest of the season brings.
In the late afternoon/evening we caught up on some more recorded TV until close to midnight and yeah, now it's Monday again. Nothing much planned for this week besides work. Oh Friday I have an appointment for x-rays for my braces. I am finally going to get started on getting those. We will see how that turns out. I will know more after Friday I suppose. Other than that nothing much else planned for the week.
Well, we will see how it pans out. Have to get through Monday first. :) Been contemplating buying a new bedroom set so that's something on the horizon for the future for the next few weeks. That's the one I have been mainly looking at but there are a few others that are nice too. We will have to measure and figure out how it all would fit. We would probably have to move one of our old dressers upstairs into the attic. The old bedroom furniture is truly old (from Mike's parents) so it's definitely time to upgrade. But it's always nice to have some extra storage space so if we can keep one of the older dressers in the bedroom in addition to the new set I'd prefer to that. I know it won't match but I am always looking for storage space so I'd value that over everything matching. Anyway, just something to ponder. Haven't quite decided what we are doing yet.
Letter/Mail Update: Received a letter from/owe a reply to: Eloine/NY and Eunice/Malta.
Posted by Hanna at 07:39 AM in Nature, Outdoors, Weather | Permalink | Comments (0)
Sunday, October 09, 2016
Ikea/new couch, hiking and Broadway
Ugh. What a miserable, chilly, rainy day. Had originally talked about going to the CT Garlic and Harvest Festival b ut this weather is really not the kind of weather you want for that. Don't want to be walking around in the rain, getting drenched, chilled to the bone. So instead we went to the movies to see "The Girl on the Train". I liked the Don't and thought they did a decent job converting it from the book, even though it's of course not the same.
Yesterday we went to the city to see "Something Rotten" on Broadway. Such a fun show. It was really amusing and well done. Our seats were in row A in the balcony so we had great views. Afterwards we went to Chevy's for dinner and then headed back home.
The weather wasn't too great yesterday either. But it was really nice Wednesday through Friday so we took advantage of that and went on a hike. And on Friday I was able to meet up with my friend Falguni in Scarsdale. Was nice to catch up and hang out for a bit.
And on Tuesday we rented a pick-up truck from U-Haul and went to IKEA to pick out our couch. Had fun checking out all the various options and found one we liked. Brought it home and decided to unpack it in the driveway cause the box weighed 130lb. Then assembled it and now we have a new couch. Yay. :)
So that's all the news at the moment. Still waiting to hear on news from the job. Hopefully next week. Fingers crossed.
Letter/Mail Update: Letters went out on Friday to: Lotte/Denmark, Laura/Spain and Jessica/DE.
Posted by Hanna at 04:40 PM in Home Improvement, Nature, NYC, Outdoors | Permalink | Comments (0)
Sunday, September 04, 2016
Hiking, being outsmarted by a cat and other stuff
Happy Labor Day weekend to all my US friends. It's kind of weird to me because it's really no different to me than any other day at the moment as we aren't working. It's the first major holiday in forever where I wasn't worried about work, arranging all the schedules, figuring out which customers to call when, worrying about staffing and route scheduling and whatnot. It's really kind of weird. Also most of the CT schools have started back up as of last week. Also kind of surreal for me as I used to keep close track of all the school schedules, organize start up milk deliveries and all that.
I guess I will see where I end up in the future and if the holidays will have any kind of bearing on my job or not. At Marcus it definitely always meant a lot of extra work whenever a holiday rolled around. This past week I applied at a bunch of different positions (at a Dutch cheese company, a pet relocation company, a rug importer among others) and also saw a job at a honey importer that I want to apply to. So far no interviews but we will see how things go. Something will happen sooner or later, just have to keep looking and stay confident and positive.
This past Wednesday I had a vet appointment scheduled for Mindy, to update her shots etc. Well that didn't go quite as planned. I should have known that Mindy was not going to be cooperative. I couldn't get her into the carrier. She was so mad, hissing/growling, I was sure I would have ended up scratched to pieces if I continued trying. So I had to call the vet and cancel the appointment. I since ordered a top loading hard shell carrier (the one we had was a soft material with a front loading door) so I am hoping it will be easier to get her into that. Will need to assemble the carrier over the next few days and then make a new appointment for her. Wish me luck!
Yesterday we went for a nice hike at Bear Mountain Reservation. It's right here in Danbury but for some unknown reason we had never been there before. It was a bit more challenging than I thought it would be, especially the part that led down to the lake (quite steep) but all in all we had fun. Nice to be able to spend some time outdoors.
The weather has actually been pretty nice these past few days. It's supposed to rain as the storm makes it way up the coast but so far it's not even cloudy. We are inland so I think we will be lucky and hopefully won't really have too much of an issue. Heading out for lunch in a bit and later will relax at home watching movies or catching up on TiVo. We will probably end up doing the same tomorrow on the holiday. Then back to the job search on Tuesday.
Letter/Mail Update: All caught up with my mail at the moment.
Posted by Hanna at 11:33 AM in Cats, Nature, Outdoors | Permalink | Comments (0)
Sunday, July 31, 2016
Summer Hikes
Finally the weather has cooled down a bit after a whole week of 90+ degree F (33C) temps. It's dreary outside today, cloudy with the occasional rain shower passing through. But I am totally fine with that. It's a nice break from the crazy heat and sun. Nothing against nice summer weather but when it's so hot and sometimes humid on top of it ... yeah no, that's not my kind of weather. Honestly I would be happy with year round mid 70ies F (23C), a nice breeze, no humidity, that's my perfect weather. :)
Well enough complaining. Yesterday, while humid, was still a pretty nice day especially the first part of the day. So we took advantage of it and went to Ossining, NY (about 35 min drive from us) to check out a place called Teatown Lake Reservation. A bunch of neat trails. We only did the Lakeside Trail which as the name suggests circles a lake. About 1.5 miles so not super long but it was really nice with lots of pretty views. There are plenty of other trails we will need to check out when it's less hot and humid. I bet it would be super pretty there in the fall as well. Always excited to find new places.
After our hike/walk we went for lunch at a restaurant nearby called "The Boathouse". It was right near the Hudson and we were able to sit outside in the shade overlooking the river/boats. Had a delicious avocado and crabmeat salad. Yum. Glad to have found a new restaurant that's close to some nice hiking trails. Perfect combo. :)
Today we are going to stay indoors and head to the movies to see the new Bourne film. Looking forward to that. Afterwards we will probably go to lunch somewhere. Should be a relaxed day all in all.
Tomorrow I have my unemployment hearing over the phone at 10.15 am. It's mostly a formality since I was laid off (they have some questions in regards to the vacation pay that was paid out to me etc) So I will need to deal with that tomorrow. Other than that nothing planned for the rest of the week as of yet. Will try and get some more reading in. Applied for a neat sounding job close to home and hoping that I might hear back from them as well. Fingers crossed.
Letter/Mail Update: A letter went out to Celia/MA on Thursday.
Posted by Hanna at 10:54 AM in Film, Food and Drink, Nature, Outdoors | Permalink | Comments (0)
Sunday, March 27, 2016
Easter Update
Happy Easter everyone. :) We really don't celebrate or do anything special for Easter so it's just another Sunday. I did buy some Easter chocolate. I mean come on, chocolate. :) But that was about it.
Was a relatively light week at work due to all NY state school systems being on spring break. CT isn't off until April but NY was off this past week. So that helped with our incoming call work load throught the week.
Worked yesterday, Saturday. Today, Sunday, we went for a walk and explored some nature trails. Wasn't a very long hike, all the trails were pretty short, but it was still nice to be outside. Will need to go back when the trees have leaves and things get to be more green again.
After our walk we headed to Flipside in Fairfield. A yummy burger place that is open regular hours with their regular menu. Enjoying a delicious mango margarita at the moment.
Tomorrow it's back to work. But at least we have a fun trip to look forward to not that far in the distant future. Booked flights to Chicago Sat April 16- Tue April 18. Looking forward to it. There's a really cool VanGogh exhibit at the art museum plus as long as the weather cooperates we want to do some outdoor stuff. Last time we were in Chicago, 2007 I think, it was February and craaaazzzzy cold.
Mail Update: Received a letter from/owe a reply to: Carmen/Malta.
Posted by Hanna at 02:25 PM in Food and Drink, Holidays, Nature | Permalink | Comments (0)
Tuesday, February 23, 2016
Santo Domingo
Hello from the Caribbean. :) Having a great time here in Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic so far. Been meaning to update since we got here on Sunday but time of course just flies by when you're having fun. :)
We left Newark early on Sunday morning and got here a little before 2pm. It's a 4 hour flight from New York so not so bad. They are an hour ahead here so we lost an hour but we will get it back on our way home. :) Anyway, arrived without incident and managed to grab an Uber from the airport to bring us to our hotel. We decided against renting a car and seeing how the people driver here .. yeah that was probably the right decision. lol. It's pretty crazy. There are very few traffic lights and everyone just drives wherever they want, beeping their horns, motorcycles cutting in and out of traffic at random, people darting across the street. Pretty nuts.
Our hotel, the Renaissance, is absolutely gorgeous. It's 4 star hotel that we managed to get through Expedia with a good air+hotel package deal. It was just renovated top to bottom last June and you can really see it. Everything is completely new and great looking. And the staff and service is amazing too.
Sunday after getting settled in a bit we went into the old town and had dinner there at a tapas place. Yummy. Walked around a bit more and then headed back to the hotel. Yesterday, Monday, we went back into the Colonial Zone (old town) to explore some more of the sights. Walked around to see a bunch of the old monuments and streets.
Afterwards we headed back to the hotel and spent some time by the pool. Was nice to go for a swim after the crazy sun and heat and spend some time in the shade with a cocktail. Yummy sangrias here. Very dangerous. :) Later we went for a great dinner at a place close by called El Conuco. So good.
Today we are going to head to a national park (3 Eyes) not that far away. Should be good. I will try and update some more before we leave on Thursday.
Mail Update: Received letters/owe a reply to: Laura/Spain and Nina/WA.
Posted by Hanna at 08:52 AM in Food and Drink, Nature, Outdoors, Travel | Permalink | Comments (0)
Sunday, October 25, 2015
Finger Lakes Birthday Weekend
A quick hello from the Finger Lakes. Already have to check out and leave again today. 3 days/2 nights really is too short. :) But we have had a great stay so far and have a couple more things planned for today before leaving the region and heading back to Connecticut.
Friday we left CT in the morning and headed upstate. Got to Seneca Lake a bit before 1pm and had lunch at Dano's. The only Heurigen in this country that I know of. We discovered the place quite some years ago now but are always happy to visit whenever we are in the area. Such a yummy place. And the location on the lake is great too. If you are curious what a Heuriger is click here.
After lunch we headed over to Cayuga Lake for some wine tasting. One of the wineries also had a neat shop with various sauces, jellies, jams, oils etc. You could taste and try everything which is always fun. We ended up buying jalapeño stuffed olives, a habanero infused olive oil and a jar of cranberry orange marmalade. Yum.
The place we stayed at is just a tad over from Lake Cayuga close to the next lake between Auburn and Skaneateles. Really neat place. Had a yummy dinner at a brewpub in Auburn.
Yesterday, Saturday, we checked out the Montezuma Wildlife Refuge which was really neat. The weather wasn't as nice as on Friday (Fr we had perfect blue skies) but it was fitting somehow for the fall season. Walked about 4 miles.
After that we headed down Cayuga lake for some lunch and more wine tasting. Had a delicious cheese plate and curry pizza at the Copper Oven at Cayuga Ridge Vineyard.
After some more wine tasting headed back and had a delicious dinner at a place called Gilda's. Tapas/small plates, great wine, etc. Small place but really great.
Today we are having breakfast in Skaneateles at the Bluewater Grill before heading down the other side of lake Cayuga for some more wine tasting before driving home to CT.
Mail Update: Received letters from: Carmen/Malta and Nina/WA. Hopefully replies should be going out to both of you Monday.
Posted by Hanna at 11:55 AM in Food and Drink, Nature, Travel, Wine | Permalink | Comments (0)
Sunday, October 11, 2015
Autumn Sunday Fun
It's really fall now. Today was the perfect fall/autumn day. Brisk blue skies, cool in the morning but warmer during the day. Just a bit of a breeze so the leaves blow around. Colors on the trees, some leaves on the ground so they crunch when you step on them. No humidity at all. It's perfect. If I could hold on this weather and keep it 80-90% of the year I would be forever happy!! :)
We went for a walk at one of our usual go-to places here in Connecticut and I have to say it's pretty in all seasons but especially so in fall. Had fun watching birds, chipmunks etc. while walking.
Now we are out at a late lunch and eventually will head home and catch up with some TV shows.
Work has been busy while we are undergoing a bunch of changes and transitions. Trying to make it all work out. Also still training on payroll and some other things. So definitely not a dull moment for me in sight right now.
Mail Update: Received letters from: Carmen/Malta, Lotte/Denmarks, Nina/WA and Charles/TN.
Posted by Hanna at 04:32 PM in Food and Drink, Nature, Outdoors, Work Stories | Permalink | Comments (0)
Sunday, August 30, 2015
Highland Rail Trail
And somehow it is already Sunday again. Had a nice weekend where we mostly had both Saturday and Sunday off. Nice change of pace.
It was a busy and drawn out week at work with schools starting up, training a new employee and other random things going on. Next week is the week before Labor Day so I am pretty sure it won't get any less busy any time soon.
Saturday we slept in and then had lunch in Oxford at 121. Later I was invited to a baby shower for a co-worker and afterwards met back up with Mike at Two Steps before eventually heading back home.
Today we took advantage of being able to sleep in again and then later drove to Poughkeepsie to check out a rail trail that runs through there. Even though it's been getting pretty muggy and humid again it was still nice to be outside for a bit. Had lunch at Blue Collar Brewery.
Later we are going to watch the VMAs or at least some of it. Set it to record so we can fast forward through the parts that don't interest us. Always kind of entertaining to watch these award shows though.
Mail Update: A letter is going tomorrow to: Laura/Spain. Received letters from/owe a reply to: Celia/MA and Charles/TN.
Posted by Hanna at 03:42 PM in Food and Drink, Nature, Outdoors, Television | Permalink | Comments (0)
Sunday, July 05, 2015
4th of July weekend
Happy 4th of July to everyone here in the US. We had to work both Friday and Saturday as work has been super busy and the big switch/transition is just a week away now. Managed to get out of work around 3 on Saturday.
Headed home afterwards and binge watched some of our recorded TiVo stuff. Got through 9 episodes of "Sleepy Hollow", about halfway through last season.
Since we now live on a big hill plus are on the second floor we overlook quite a bit of the town so were able to see a bunch of the fireworks people were setting off. Was fun to see some of the prettier ones. Our cat Mindy was not impressed at all though. She hates all loud sounds like thunder or fireworks and hides in the bathroom (no windows) or in the closet or inside cabinets.
Today we slept in and then went for a walk in Cheshire/Meriden (one of the trails we go to a lot) It was perfect because the trail runs next to the water, is flat and mostly shaded. So the humidity and heat wasn't completely unbearable at least.
Now at a late lunch in Oxford at 121. And tomorrow is already Monday and a new work week. I can only imagine what next week will bring as we will get ready for the transition at the end of the week.
Mail Update: Letters went out last Monday to Celia/MA and Katie/Iowa.
Posted by Hanna at 04:18 PM in Food and Drink, Holidays, Nature, Outdoors, Television | Permalink | Comments (0)