Hello Seattle...

Last week(ish), bf attended a convention in DC... and I followed him around.  I have been wanting to visit DC for a looooooooong time.  Where have I wanted to visit even more? Seattle, the place I should have/almost went to graduate school but instead landed in a Commonwealth for too long.  OH, lucky me.. this same set of meetings "we" attended, is in Seattle next year.

Hello Seattle!

(the style reminds me a lot of "Boston" by Augustana... what is this genre that I seem to love?)

So, "vacation" last week in DC was superb.  I was given time to experience a city that I fully imagined myself living in since middle school, and a chance to become disenchanted by said city due to its public transportation system.

I do strongly recommend, when visiting a new city, do a little bit of research beforehand and pretend you live there by visiting local, non-touristy places.  I found an amazing little vegan bakery, that happened to be right across the street from a mall which had a Best Buy, Staples and TARGET. What do we call this little mecca?  Oh, the place I would live. Its called Columbia Heights.  Not much of a traveler, I was proud of myself for thinking of doing this.

I tried to take advantage of the free-time I had when not visiting family and friends or participating in convention events. What I learned from the experience? 

-There are probably not pandas at the National Zoo. No one I know has seen them.
-DC weather changes faster than New England's.  (I had to buy an umbrella at the zoo. I was there 10 minutes and it was sunny when I arrived. I left soaking wet.)
-Sticky Fingers is a great bakery.
-DC is in major need of a Wagamama.
-The red line is my NEMESIS.
-Vittoria should move closer to me, wherever it is I end up living.
-People are really friendly... unless you are asking them for help (re: directions, metro machines, etc)
-The Metro really needs to be fixed.  Metro cards can be DEactivated if placed too close to a cellphone?! (I arrived back in MA with FOUR metro cards in my wallet, because they were all broken.)
-There is way too much to do and see in 5 days.
-There are wayyyy too many people in one area.
-Stand to the right, people WILL yell if you stand to the left. (this does not work in MA, unfortunately)
-The escalator at Woodley Park/Adams Morgan is the longest everrrrrrrr.
-Jefferson is cool, but he's really far away.
-Jazz in the garden?! Why does every city not have this magical place?!
-The rumors are true... humidity really is oppressive.
-Orange slices in water makes water taste yummy.
-Underground malls that connect buildings are awesome (oh hello Crystal City).
-Maryland and Virginia are not as close as they look on a map.
-Georgetown looks like a nice place to visit, but it isn't convenient to....anything.
-The Hope Diamond is so much smaller than I imagined.
-Capitol City Brewery gives soft pretzels instead of a bread basket.  Why doesn't every restaurant?
-The FLOOR of the House of Reps is a cool place to be. Yes, I said floor.

And I'm back, and ready to roll.

Hungry Hungry Hippos!

What did I do last weekend?  Well... here goes... complemented with pictures:

Friday:  Work. Home. Sweat in the 100 degree house for 2 hours. Decide to pack. Leave House.  Make it to the mall just before closing (addendum: left house LATE), to pick up dress on hold.

Arrive in NYC at 1AM. Celebrate with cousins for 1 hour, head to NJ. Diner until 3:30 AM  Arrive home and fall asleep at 4:30 AM.

Saturday: 6:30 AM alarm goes off to head to Carlo's in Hoboken!  6:40 AM, alarm goes off again.... 6:50 again.... 7:05 involved in a semi-serious discussion about how stupid it would be to drive to Hoboken... and get made to feel bad about myself because I vetoed the whole "its already 4:30 AM, why not just head to Hoboken now, wait for them to open and then sleep?" idea.  What I did NOT see on Saturday:

Sunday:  Considered setting alarm for 6:30 AM again.... realized next time in NJ might be better.  Fate made up for our massive bakery failure by providing us with:

Look close. You will see a Rabbi, leading a traditional Jewish wedding ceremony... surrounded by the groom and groomsmen wearing kilts.  It was awesome.

So funny!

Don't worry Mary, I'll get you next time....

But then again, the Cake Boss website says they are filming next season in Italy. I could crash their party overseas!

So much to say.. so much to say, CAKE

SO many posts running through my head!  I vow to take the photos off my camera that I would like to post, and actually write things about them.. then maybe even pre-schedule their posting date so you have something to read and I stop feeling bad about myself :)

Do you watch TLC's Cake Boss?  I do.  And you should (although I was told tonight that after mentioning "Say Yes To The Dress" for years, my mother was underwhelmed after her first experience with the show).  But really, Cake Boss is like Ace of Cakes but Jerseyfied... awful accents, overblown Sopranos-like Italian-ness and really yummy looking desserts. 

This show takes place in a bakery in Hoboken, NJ... an area where I might happen to be near this weekend. 

The real question... do I stay or do I go?

I read real live reviews online, not the TV-padded versions.. and apparently the wait to get near the door is outrageous, especially on a weekend when I would be there.  But very few said the desserts weren't worth it.  I'm leaning to yes.

The bakery opens at some scary sounding time, like 7am-ish.  Our plan, legit, is to wake up at 6:30 and go there for when it opens. All to avoid waiting in line. Then go back to sleep.  Crazy?  Yes.

I invited my mother. Who has never, ever seen the show... or even heard of it.

Here's what happened.

"We're thinking of going to a bakery in Hoboken Saturday morning at like 7am, want to come?"

"No."

"Are you sure? Its supposed to be good, its on Cake Boss and everyone seems to lo"

"No."

"But, its a cool place and on T."

"No!"

"But, you like"

"Nope"

"You don't have to drive, just co"

"Absolutely not but thaaaaaaaaaaanks"

"Ok but seriously, its a bakery and their stuff looks incredible, and its not like we're in town that often and"

"Nope"

She WILL get a cannoli.  And she WILL eat it.  And she WILL love it.  Or maybe at a reasonable hour, we will just go to lunch.

What would you do?  Sleep?  Go?  Go and buy a cupcake to throw at Mary, Buddy's sister (who else doesn't want to do this)?  Go and buy pastries that don't make it all the way back home?  Sleep?  Wake up at 6:30, get mad, fall asleep, wake up at 10 and buy cake at Pathmark?  You tell me.