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Monday, April 29, 2013
Beautiful Weekend
Today it's semi cloudy with some showers and the high is only supposed to be 60F (15C). But over the weekend we actually had some pretty nice weather for a change. Sunny both days and almost 70F (21C) so that worked out.
On Saturday we slept in late and then had lunch at 121 in Oxford. Always a fun place with great food, plus it's fun to watch the planes land and take off.
Sunday we got up a little earlier and headed to Fairfield, CT to the CT Audubon Society where they have plenty of trails. Had fun exploring some of the trails. Wasn't even all that busy and it was nice to get outside and soak in the sunshine. It was sad to see all the damage they had from the storms (hurricane & blizzard) this past season though. They are definitely working on restoring everything as best as possible.
After our nature walk we went to lunch at Flipside in Fairfield. Ever since we discovered the place last year we have enjoy going there. Definitely a case of "Groupon gone right". :) If it hadn't been for Groupon we might have never discovered the place. Now we have been back four times I think.
After getting back home we caught up on some of our recorded TV shows with some cheese, crackers & olives. A nice relaxing night. Now it's Monday and back to the regular world. :( I hope this week goes better than last week, or at the very least Friday. Friday was just a horrible day at work. So fingers crossed. :)
Mail Update: A letter went out to Nina/WA on Thursday. Letters going out today to: Jessica/DE and Charles/TN. Owe replies to: Tiffany/OK.
Posted by Hanna at 07:40 AM in Food and Drink, Outdoors | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBack
Tuesday, April 23, 2013
Boston
Been meaning to write a post on this for a week now but somehow just hasn't happened. I don't know if I will be able to write down everything I am thinking and feeling and for it to all make perfect sense but I thought I should at least try.
When the bombings at the Boston Marathon happened last week Monday (15th) it was very surreal. And honestly it's been a roller coaster ride of emotions pretty much all week, seeing all the news reports, all the injuries, reading people's stories, etc. Boston is about 2 1/2 hours away from us and we have been there lots and lots of times. Have always loved Boston, such a great city. We actually have concert tickets for a Paramore concert in Boston in mid May. Got those about a month ago probably. So it was definitely another case of "close to home". Not quite as close as Sandy Hook-Newtown but still. One of my friends who lives in one of the Boston suburbs was posting online about it plus one of my employees is originally from Massachusetts and still has her family there. So it definitely felt close.
Then mid week when the FBI had a lead on the bombers we were pretty much glued to the TV and online media coverage watching what was going on. I am very glad they were able to bring the second bomber in alive. It should help with finding out more on the back story. I hate when suspects kill themselves and you never find out the "why" behind things. I think it helps and gives some sort of closure at the very least.
Watching the lockdown of various towns while the FBI was going door to door, searching neighborhoods, it was so surreal. I was trying to picture if it was our town and how we would feel. And it only being 2 hours away. For a bit there were reports that a suspect had escaped into CT and they were searching for a certain Massachusetts license plate.
And now they have him in custody and I am glad they do. But now the whole media frenzy around that is also making me sick to my stomach. I get he is a very bad person. And I don't disagree with that for a minute, don't get me wrong. He was part of something very, very terrible and he should definitely have to face those charges. BUT he is still an American citizen (the guy in custody came to this country when he was 8 years old), like it or not. And he committed these crimes on American soil. So he should get a trial in an American court just like everyone else. What about this "innocent until proven guilty" thing? What about all those people who love to uphold the constitution and all the rights people have in this country? Apparently that only applies when it's convenient? Like the 2nd amendment, the right to bear arms. Oh how people love to cite that.
Basically what I am trying to say is. Yes, he is a bad guy and I would say there is a 99.9% chance he is guilty and will be convicted. But I believe we still have to go through the motions and give him the benefit of a trial. I have been reading things online where people say things like "Why did they rush him to the ER? They should have just let him bleed out and die." "Why even bother reading him his rights? He has no rights, he is a terrorist." It's just so crazy. Where do we draw the line? How do we decide who is worthy of a trial and might not be guilty? And for that matter, who decides? NO, NO and NO again. None of that.
I also hate how the media is portraying the immigrant angle in all of this. Yes obviously they turned out to be bad people and ended up doing terrible things. But how can you say they shouldn't have been let into the country in the first place? The younger brother was only 8 years old when his family was seeking asylum. And they came here absolutely legally, seeking asylum and eventually becoming naturalized US citizens. You cannot deport an US citizen. I have lived here since 2001, 12 years this coming summer. I was 21 when I moved here. At this point I am still an Austrian citizen but I could have applied for US citizenship years ago, which then would mean I would be a naturalized US citizen and on paper not much different than a regular US citizen. I am obviously not planning on committing any crazy crimes and hate the fact that I am even comparing myself to people like that. But my main point is I am just not happy with the way this country is so anti-immigrant in certain ways nowadays.
Same goes for the gun lobbyists. It's just crazy. CT passed very strong gun laws recently, following the Sandy Hook shooting, but passing federal laws seems like such an uphill battle. It shouldn't be that hard. And it would help all around. Even with things like the recent bombings. If there were laws in place to track gun sales, ammunition, explosives, etc. maybe something would have popped up sooner rather than when it was too late. And no it's not an infringement on your personal rights. But don't even get me started on all of that.
I will stop here or else this post will turn into even more of a rant than it already is. .
Mail Update: Owe replies to: Jessica/DE, Nina/WA and Tiffany/OK.
Posted by Hanna at 10:01 AM in Current Affairs | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Sunday, April 21, 2013
Two Steps Chili Contest, Frost Warning, etc.
And another week and weekend gone by. Why do weekends always go by so fast? It's already 6:30pm on Sunday night again. No fair.
Had a nice relaxed weekend all in all. On Saturday we really didn't do that much. Slept in late and then dropped off some remaining books at the "Friends of the Danbury Library" donation place. Afterwards we went to see "Olympus Has Fallen" at the movies. Not a bad movie, not an Oscar type movie. Mostly a fun guilty pleasure action type movie. For me the redeeming fact was Gerard Butler. I enjoy his Scottish accent. :)
Today I had intended to do some work in the yard but when I checked the weather at 10.45am this morning it was only 41F (7C) and it said it felt like 33F (0.5C) So needless to say I decided to not go outside and made some tea and wrote a letter instead. :) I ended up going outside for a tiny bit later on to cut down a few things that already started growing, before they get too big. But around 2pm we headed to Two Steps for their annual chili contest. Always a fun occasion. Tasted all 11 chilis and voted for who we thought best. Very crowded but since we got there a little early we were able to snag the last available table. :) Our friends John & Jana joined us so it was a fun afternoon out.
Now we are home and are going to catch up on some of our recorded shows. Should be a nice relaxed evening all in all. Tomorrow is Monday and another week ahead. My parents are off to Turkey this coming Saturday. Definitely a little jealous. :)
Mail Update: A letter is going out tomorrow to: Laura/Spain. Owe replies to: Jessica/DE, Nina/WA and Tiffany/OK.
Posted by Hanna at 06:48 PM in Books, Food and Drink | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Sunday, April 14, 2013
Relaxed Weekend - Spring is slowly getting here
Seems like the nicer weather is slowly getting here. We still have some chilly days and today isn't super warm but we are getting there. At the moment it seems like the nicest days are unfortunately happening in the middle of the week and not on the weekends. Saw one of the dogwood trees starting to bloom yesterday which made me happy. :)
Not too much new otherwise really. My parents are spending their weekend in Budapest. Hope they ended up having nice weather. We ended up not doing all that much since it's still pretty chilly. Yesterday we went to see "42" (based on Jackie Robinson's story, a baseball movie). Very good movie. Today we are going to take the train to Darien to go to Darien Social, a place we discovered a few months ago. Later on we will probably watch the MTV Movie Awards and maybe catch up on some other shows beforehand. We will see.
Next week most of the CT schools have their spring break. NY already had it around Easter. So that finally wraps up my work around spring break. Next big thing will be Memorial Day at the end of May. And then the end of the school year. Always something to work on and figure out. :)
Next week I have a check-up appointment at the eye doctor. Looking forward to getting new glasses. The ones I have are just too scratched and the coating is starting to wear off. I don't know if those were just a bad set but I definitely won't be buying glasses at JC Penney again.
Mail Update: Owe replies to: Jessica/DE, Nina/WA, Laura/Spain and Tiffany/OK.
Posted by Hanna at 01:06 PM in Outdoors, Weather | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Sunday, April 07, 2013
Spring ?
So maybe spring is finally around the corner? We are still having some chilly days but there are also a few days with much nicer weather in the forecast so let's hope that comes true. :) This past week on Tuesday I was off from work since I had to work yesterday (Saturday). My original plan was to maybe get a little bit of work in the yard done since I haven't really done anything out there since the late fall. But the weather just did not cooperate. It was only in the low 50ies (9-10C) and super windy so felt really chilly. So instead I did some things inside the house, laundry, put the new spring bedset on, vacuumed, etc. All in all a pretty productive day. In the evening I wrote a couple of letters and read so can't complain. :) Here is a picture of Ollie with the laundry. :)
This weekend I had to work Saturday but the weather wasn't that great anyway. Low 50ies again and windy. Same today. Today it's also kind of cloudy plus windy so really not that pleasant to be outside for long periods of time. Next Tuesday it's supposed to be in the mid 70ies (22-24C) which isn't fair since I will have to be at work. *pout*. Well oh well, there will be other nice days eventually. :)
Got up around 10, lounged around the house for a bit and will probably head for a late lunch at 121 in Oxford. Always fun to watch the planes land and take off plus they have yummy food. :) When we get home we will catch up on some more recorded shows. I feel like we are forever behind on everything we record on TiVo. Maybe that means we watch too many shows. Oh well. :)
Mail Update: Sent a letter on Wednesday to: Lotte/Denmark and Charles/TN. A letter is also going out tomorrow to: Eunice/Malta. Owe replies to: Nina/WA, Laura/Spain and Tiffany/OK.
Posted by Hanna at 11:47 AM in Food and Drink, Outdoors, Weather | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBack