Some Days

Some days it is 92, then the next day... it is 45. If I could drop weight like temp drops...

So yesterday I had an odd thing happen to me. I had already had words with a juvenile coworker by 8:30 in the morning (it ended with me asking her to stop interrupting and listen to me and she put her fingers in her ears to block out my sound... no really.) I was understandably upset by her actions and lack of respect. Usually when I am that upset I crave something chocolate, but yesterday I really was craving a good run on the treadmill. Never in my life did I think I would crave exercise instead of chocolate. FG is growing as a person!

Tomorrow is the last day to submit fish recipes, btw. If you have not already done so. I have had some really really good fish the last 2 weeks! Thanks! Once I have graded all of the recipes I will announce the winner and get you something something... and you too Courtney! Thanks for the reminder of the Cancer Sucks contest. You are right, I had forgotten!

Ta-dah... today

This is my new niece, Kelsey McKinley who came out to play today (finally!!) She was born this morning at 12:16 and weighed in at 7 lb, 13 oz; she is 21 inches long. Sister and baby are fine. Last night I got to have a sleep over with LoMo. When I would ask her "Who is getting a new sister today?" She would say "Yottie!" Yottie is what Sissy and she call each other but I thought it was pretty funny!

For those who come here often, I will be referring to this new little one as Mac. Why? Well I do believe that it is safer to refer to children by nicknames on a public site like this... so I have Sissy, LoMo, LB, and now Mac!

Recipe Contest

So here is the deal, I need to start eating more fish. And I really like fish, but am kind of limited to grilling salmon... which can get old. I was driving home yesterday when I thought it would be fun to have a fish recipe contest with a prize here on my very own blog!!

If you want to participate please either send me a link, leave a comment, or send an email to sassyjose at gmail dot com with your favorite fish recipes. I am not always a fan of the really really fishy flavors, but I like shrimp, salmon and cod a lot. Really there is not a fish I will not try. These recipes can be as easy as just your favorite mixture of herbs to rub on fish, or as elaborate as something you saw Paula Deen do on the Food Network. However, that being said I would like to avoid the amount of butter that Paula likes to cook with!! LOL

One thing to remember, however, is I am allergic to pork... so please leave pork out of the recipe!

What will you win? Well here is what I was thinking I would do. Once I try the recipes I will pick the one I think had the best flavor, was the most creative, or easy to prepare... alright the one I liked the best; the person who sent in that recipe will get a $20 gift card to a restaurant of his or her choice. Odds of winning with of course be based on the number of people and recipes that are submitted. There is no limit to the number of recipes one can submit. I will take recipes as long as you want to send them my way, but will close this contest in 10 days (October 1). I will send the gift card any where you might live (for those who are not in Utah) however, your choice restaurant needs to be a place I can buy a gift card from here in Utah!

Ready, set, go!!

Next to Normal

I have been listening to the soundtrack for the Broadway musical Next to Normal… pretty much all day every day for the last few days. It is very beautiful, although very much Rent-esque. What does that mean? Well if you are offended by the language in the soundtrack to Rent, you might want to not listen to this one. It also is very much a rock opera like Rent is. The music ranges from rock to beautiful ballads, almost a lullaby.

The story of Next to Normal is about mental health issues that a family deals with because of some mental health issues of the mom, Diana. While to story is a deep one, and the characters are rich, the lyrics to this musical are some of the most beautiful I have heard in a long time. My favorite line is “Valium is my favorite color, how did you know?”

The kids in the show, Natalie and Gabe, kind of fight for the attention of Diana. Natalie feels neglected by her mom because she focuses so much on Gabriel. At the same time the husband, Dan, tries to help Diana through her treatment and suggests radical treatment to “get them back to better than before.” The only other characters in the show are Diana’s therapist and Natalie’s boyfriend.

After electroshock treatment Diana loses 19 years of memory which includes the wedding and births of her children. Dan tries to rebuild her memory without letting her hear about the bad bits of their history. Slowly she starts to get her memory back, even the bad things. However, the biggest memory dealing with her mental issues is just out of reach and she cannot remember all of the pieces.

There are aspects of this story that are very touching. For example when Natalie sings the song about Superboy (Gabe) and the Invisible Girl (herself) Diana tells Natalie that she loves her; she tell Natalie that she loves her as much as she can.

This line hit me today as I was listening to it “I love you as much as I can.” We all show love in different levels and different degrees. There will be some people in our lives who are able to openly and freely give us all of their heart and show immense love to us. Others can only show a little, or are not able to express love in ways we may consider socially acceptable. It is interesting to me to see the different levels of love that we show through our lives. For example a little child learns early to love everyone. They have to learn stranger danger.

As teenagers I think we become scared of showing love, or of showing public love to our family. We are exploring new kinds of love with the opposite sex… or not. Then as young adults we once again start expressing love more openly to our families and friends. I hear there is no love to compare to the love of a new parent (although as an aunt I think I can come close to imagining it.) Once again we show unconditional love to another, it becomes all about another person.

Another aspect of this show is how our lives do not need to be perfect and try as we might we often fall short of that perfect dream. But as long as we try and do the best we can we can be normal, or sometimes we get close… we get next to normal. We get close to good. I think when we stop trying to be perfect and just try our best life becomes a little easier and a lot less stressful! When we can find our own version of normal, we have succeeded in this life and then it becomes our task to help others find their normal.

“Let go of what’s past, and maybe I’ll see you at last. We tried to give you a normal life. I realize now I have no clue what that means. I don’t need a life that is normal. That’s way too far away. But something next to normal would be okay. Yes, something next to normal, that is the thing I would like to try. Close enough to normal, to get by. We’ll get by.” Next to Normal

At the end of this musical, after all of the crazy and darkness of their trials, they sing a song about finding light.

“We need some light; first of all we need some light. You can’t sit here in the dark all alone, it is a sorry sight. It is just you and me. We’ll live you’ll see!”

Find some way to survive this life and be happy to live next to normal!

My Fav Blog Today

My sister's sister-in-law (confusing much) had the best post today on her blog. I loved this story and thought I would pass it on ... and I guess it does deserve a pink link!! I hope one day to be this kind of mom ... or if not to have Alisha adopt me too ... btw Alisha and Matt my favorite band is the Barenaked Ladies in case you ever want to surprise me with a night out too!! LOL Loves me some Molen's!!

On a side note, by this time next week we should have one more little Molen in our lives. If Sister does not go into labor this week, they will help her along with that starting next Wednesday.

Progress

This is what I saw when I pulled up to work today. There is one swear that is 1/2 covered up... now only 3-1/2 to go! It seems that the media has great power even in just phone calls. KSL News reporter Nicole Gonzales called me yesterday to see if we could do an interview, however my day would not allow it. She said she had called UTA to see what was going on with the graffiti. This is a step in the right direction... now if the rest of the graffiti can be covered up soon! Hopefully the rain will allow this to happen. The Mayor of South Salt Lake also sent a reply to my email. He said that his staff has all taken the safety class offered by UTA in order to clean up the city. Every time, however, that the staff tries to cover graffiti UTA stops them too.

For now, just for now, the petition is on hold. Hopefully soon there will not be a need for it. Thanks to all who said they would sign it. If the rest of the graffiti is not gone soon I will take it back up.

Fitness Challenge

My personal trainer has challenged me to work up to 100 push-ups and 200 sit-ups (crunches) in 6 weeks. We found this challenge online and I am actually really excited for it. I already did the initial test and I have some improvements to make!! That is an understatement!

I wanted to pass on the word in case anyone wanted to join me in this challenge!! One important aspect is making sure you take rest days and follow the training guidelines!

The push-up challnge link is http://www.hundredpushups.com/

The crunches challange link is http://www.twohundredsitups.com/

I am not ashamed of how few I can do now: my initial test I was only able to do 9 push-ups! I have been doing a lot of core work lately, so I did manage to do 100 crunches, however. In 6 weeks I fully expect to be able to do more!!

Are you with me?!

Respect. Patriotism. Remembering.

Every day at work I look out my window and this is what I see…

A few years ago the cities in the Salt Lake valley commissioned various artists to paint the sides of the buildings by the Trax line in an effort to beautify the city and as a way to hopefully curb graffiti and vandalism. I work in South Salt Lake and this used to be a beautiful mural that we all were very proud of. Many of my coworkers volunteered with this mural and with the one on the back of our building. The mural went untouched for years, it was beautiful and pristine; shining as a symbol of freedom and pride. Then one day someone, who was obviously disgruntled with something about the United States, crossed out the work ‘Free’ and put ‘Slaves.’ Further this person defaced the picture of The Statue of Liberty and made disparaging remarks about America and the police department. These remarks are no longer visible because other graffiti has covered them.

I look at this every work day. Every day, this is what I have to see.

For your sake I have blurred the profanity, mostly because it makes me heart sick to see such words and would not want to pass them on to you.

We have asked the city to repaint the wall. We have asked the building owner if we can help cover up this offense. We have been turned down because, in fact, the property to get to this mural is owned by Utah Transit Authority. We have been told that UTA will fine anyone on their property $10,000. It would cost me $10,000 and possibly an arrest to cover up this disgusting display of disrespect. We have petitioned the mayor of South Salt Lake more than once to fix it; we have talked to UTA; we have invited news channels out to portray this story. Want to know the result? Nothing… but more graffiti. The funny thing is that more graffiti appears at alarming rates with no fines; yet for me to fix it would result in a fine.

I am fired up now, mostly because of my political tirade this week and I am tired of inaction. What would you do if you were me? I would love some more ideas.

I was watching the Today Show this morning and Matt Lauer and David Gregory were talking about President Obama’s recent address to Congress where he was heckled by Congressman Joe Wilson. Gregory said something that I really liked, mostly because it has been something I have been thinking of recently. He said:

“There are a growing number of people who somehow think the President is illegitimate. And that it is okay to treat the President this way or to question the President this way. And I think that has taken shape. It certainly took shape during the administration of President Bush and now we are seeing it with President Obama. A lack of civility. Questions about the legitimacy of the President and a lack of respect for the Presidency. And we’re seeing that infused in this debate [health care].”

While I know he was talking about specifically the lack of respect for the President of the United States (both Presidents Bush and Obama), I feel this applies to respect for the ideals that the United States was founded on, for the United States itself. Especially on days like today, Patriot Day, September 11, when we remember where we were when we first heard about the planes hitting the Twin Towers, and how we felt when they fell, and the increase of pride in what the USA is and what we stood for in the days after 9/11… today especially we need to remember this and fight for the rights of patriotism. We can be a nation of volunteers, a nation of respecters, a nation of civility, a nation of patriots.

I know this mural was nothing sacred, but it was a symbol of something I love, something I revere, something I honor, something I respect just as if the Statue of Liberty herself were outside my window. It is a symbol, an emblem, a way for the artist to show his pride in America; I felt that pride daily when I looked at this mural.

The overwhelming lack of respect for this pride is what I fight against today. This lack of deference to a land I love and esteem is what I wage a war against today. This lack of civility is what breaks my heart today, and every day I have to look out my window at work and see it.

When it rains really hard there is a drain right under the right eye on this painting that makes it look like this depiction of the Statue of Liberty is crying.

So for those of you who are patriots and love this country, thank you. Thank you for your example and your strength. For all of those who volunteer in your communities and congregations, thank you. For those who stand tall when the flag is flown, who sing as loud as you can during The National Anthem THANKS. For you who tear up with pride when a flag walks past you during a parade or woke up really early this morning to put a flag in my yard (along with my neighbors) thank you! For the men and women who now fight or have fought for this pride and freedom I love, I owe you much.

For those who do not, I now vocally fight against you. I will stand and defend this American pride until the day I die. I will no longer sit by and watch while punky vandals defile the beauty that is the United States of America. I wage a fight against those who have a lack of respect, a lack of civility, a lack of pride, and a lack of patriotism.

We can agree to disagree on issues or if we like our leaders, but pride and respect are not issues to disagree on… they are the backbone of a civil union.

God Bless the United States of America!

UPDATE: 2:43 p.m. 9/11/09

Obviously someone else was sick of the graffiti too and started to paint over the wall in white. UTA came and stopped their efforts. I have just sent an email to a local TV station and the Mayor of South Salt Lake. Additionally I tried to call UTA 5 times and was never connected to any person who could help me; I sent a comment to them via their website. I just finished drafting a petition that I will deliver to UTA after I get some signatures on it. If you are interested in signing this petition please let me know.

I am sure...

I am sure I said "We probably could be adding more weight when working my arms."

I think she heard "We should double the weight Stephanie uses when working her arms."

I have learned that if you do not hurt the next day after a workout you did not work hard enough... we worked hard enough yesterday!!

You know in A Christmas Story when Randy says "I can't put my arms down!"? Well "I can't raise my arms up!"

AND I LOVE IT!!

(btw T it was good to see you and some of your kids at the Center!)

Frivolity

After my heavy post yesterday I figured I should lighten things up around here… mostly because there is another heavy post coming once I get the pics off my camera.

Random #1
We were hoping my sister’s in-utero baby ‘The Twins’ would have been born today because the little girls in our family to this point have been born on numerically cool days: Sissy (what I will now be calling Ains) was born 12-12; LoMo was born 5-5; so if The Twins came today 9-9 that would have been cool… but alas. LB, a boy, was born 5-21. The Twins are not really twin babies, but rather there is one girl. Sister was so convinced she was having twins that we started calling her baby The Twins. Then of course since I make up names for the trimesters she was Cain & Abel, Pam & Jim, and Laverne & Shirley. What does this have to do with anything? It doesn’t other than I think The Twins need to come out and play very soon (like today) so Sister can be a little less miserable. However I must say that Sister is a pretty awesome pregnant woman who fought for the right to wear non-dress code shoes to work since she only has one pair of shoes that will fit her feet. Bless her!

Random #2
I am getting pretty excited for the new fall television season to start. Glee is scheduled for tonight. Most of the rest of the shows will start after The Emmy’s on the 20th. Now I need to set my bicycle back up on my indoor trainer so I am allowed to watch some shows.

Random #3
Besty and I have our own version of the Bro Code now… the FF Code. I would like to tell you what it is, but you will just have to wait for the book! LOL

Random #4
I got this email yesterday with a bunch of random thoughts for the day that made me laugh. Here is one of those thoughts: “There is a great need for sarcasm font.”

Random #5
My new favorite tool in my Google toolkit is Google Reader. I have been able to plug all of my favorite blogs I like to follow into my reader list and now am able to catch up in less time. When I first started using it I was about a month behind on my blog reading (there were about 300 unread posts listed.) Today I was able to get on for the first time since Friday and was pleased to see only 45 new posts. It made my reading very easy!

Random #6
I am a big fan of sunflowers.

Random #7
Tonight I workout with Katie again. I am determined to push myself harder than I have yet been able to do so. The DTC will not win tonight!

Random #8
When California is on fire, Utah air quality is not so good for the asthmatics.

Random #9
What are triglycerides?

Well I think that is all...

WARNING: Political tirade to follow

It is said “For it must needs be, that there is an opposition in all things;” if we did not have opposites we would not know good from bad, right from wrong, happy from sad, light and dark chocolate, etc. Opposition does not, however, constitute conflict. I fully agree and support every American citizen’s right to voice an opinion even if I do not agree with it. That being said, I have a few political beefs to vent about. Feel free to agree or disagree. Voice away in the comments or on your own blog; however what I express is done now with much respect and fueled by frustration. And to answer anyone who says “If you do not like it, change it.” I promise what I say here has been emailed to my Congressman and my Senator.

-An address by the President of the United States to school children is not liberal propaganda. There is no need to boycott such an address. The President, be he (or she) Republican, Independent or Democrat, is the President and should be given our utmost level of respect. If President Obama wants to encourage all school aged children to stay in school and seek a higher education, good for him. I do not see this as political propaganda for him. He is not kicking off his reelection campaign; he is encouraging children to stay in school.

-By the same token when President Obama and his Cabinet encourage all adults to seek additional education I do not feel it is fueled by any special interest; rather it is fueled by an interest in the future of America.

-I heard my Senator in an interview claim that now Senator Kennedy has died that there is no one who can step across the aisle to get things done in the Senate. REALLY? There is no one else who can step across the aisle? Senator Hatch, how about you step across the aisle? I am a Democrat who voted for you, a Republican. I put good faith in what you can do in the Senate because of your seniority. Senator Kennedy was a good politician with many friends on both sides; do not insult his honor or my vote with your defeatist attitude.

-Governor Huntsman, and now Governor Herbert, thank you for standing up and voicing the opinion that so many share that there truly has been enough conflict concerning gay marriage. Whatever ones opinion is on the matter, I agree that there is too much hate and conflict.

-Health care reform… where to begin? My brother recently had to make the choice to insure only his wife OR his son because of the rising health care costs of his company offered health insurance. No one, no one, no one should ever have to make such a choice. We should never have to choose between high quality and low cost insurance plans. There has to be an option that BOTH sides can agree on. Do I want socialized health care? Not really, but if it meant that my family would never have to choose who can and cannot be covered then I am all for it. Do not get me started on preexisting conditions!

-Do I want socialized health care in America? No not really. However if there is an option of a government health care why is it a bad thing? My parents have government health care because my dad is retired Navy. Did you know that all of the cancer treatment that my mother received last year cost her out of pocket around $2,000? That is right, all of her chemo, a stem cell transplant, all medication and office visits, just under a month living in the hospital… $2,000. Then she did not have an out of pocket co-pay for anything for her or Dad. She goes to get a prescription filled now and it is free. I paid $2,000 out of pocket for a co-pay this year for a surgery and still have to pay 20% of all visits and not all of my meds are covered by my insurance. The key word in all of this is OPTION. I am up for health care options!

-As previously stated, I am a Democrat. However just because I choose to affiliate with one party does not mean I do not see the good opinions of the other side. Liberal and conservative opinions are both good and I, frankly, am tired of the political blame game. While we do need to have opposing views there is no reason to be so finger-pointy (yes it is a word!)

-If I hear one more person claim that President Obama is not a citizen of the United States I might scream!! Verified, thank you.

-If the city down south elects “SuperDell” as their mayor, they deserve what happens.

Venting rambling for the day, OVER! I might have just exploded a little, I know. Thanks for reading, or not… and for the record, I prefer milk chocolate... not dark!

I Sumbit to You...

I know that God has created many wonderful things of beauty on this earth; things for our betterment and ease. I submit that the devil has invented one thing for our torture and ultimate discomfort while here on earth. Behold the devil's torture chamber ...

Once upon a time there was a fat girl named ... well names are unimportant; we will just use the term FG. One day FG decided she was tired of being fat and so hired a wonderful personal trainer (PT). PT and FG were pretty good friends and FG trusted PT very much and could really relate to her, so far FG has lost 15 pounds with the help of PT. FG loved working out with PT ... That was until PT made FG get up on the devil's torture chamber (DTC). After only 5 minutes FG felt like her legs were going to fall off. Like really fall off. FG could not walk right for days and days (good story so far, huh?) Well a few weeks went by without PT making FG get back on DTC and FG was really enjoying her sessions with PT. That was until yesterday when PT made her get back on DTC for 1 minute sprints. 1 minute as fast as FG could go on DTC and then a short walk around the track. Then back on for a minute, then a walk; then back on for 30 seconds backwards... twice! All I am saying is that FG has pretty strong legs … she can leg press some impressive weight … but the DTC hurts FG’s legs every time she even looks at it. What the heck?

Boulder - The Sights

These are in no particular order.

The State Capitol Dome

The Cathedral Basilica of the Immaculate Conception
The Denver State Capitol

Boulder Creek

Boulder Canyon

Boulder Creek ... again

This is Sue... my horse for a day

Just up from Boulder Falls

Boulder Farmer's Market

This is Conor O'Neills... yum!

This beautiful church was in Denver but I did not see the name of it, I just thought it was so pretty with the sun behind it.

The Angel Moroni on the Denver Temple

I was trying to take a pic of the pretty sunflowers outside the temple and this bee just had to get in my shot.

The flowers outside the temple were so pretty. They were redoing the fountain, but I hear it is amazing when it is going.

The plane ride home was so bad. I am such a nervous flier lately. However when I got on the plane the first person I saw was Sheri Dew, LDS author and (I believe) CEO of Deseret Book. I told her I loved her work and thanked her for what she does. So in the middle of the flight when I felt the plane was going to drop out of the sky all I could think was "God would not let Sheri Dew die yet, right?" Hee hee. Then I thought "But if we do fall out of the sky maybe I can sneak into heaven right behind her" I need help...

Thus ends the photo and story telling portion of my stay in Boulder/Denver. I had a really nice weekend and was equally busy and relaxed. I did enough to make it worth it and relaxed enough to come home ready for life. Of course now I cannot wait to start planning my next vacation! I am thinking Mount Rushmore in 2010 and the Oregon Coast in 2011

Boulder - The Activities

When I polled my friends here on what they would do in Boulder (see post Would You Rather?) I had a basic plan of what I wanted to do in Boulder. I already had bought my tickets for the Bronco/Bears game and was thinking of booking a fly fishing day. I found out that two of my coworkers fly fish so I decided I would much rather go with someone I know instead of a stranger. Fly fishing went out the window... Since the voters were split down the middle on the drag show and pool...

Here is what actually happened on my big weekend away from reality:

I had decided to go to the Denver Temple a while ago. I had called to make reservations for baptisms because I have not done them is way too long. It was a beautiful temple with wonderful grounds. I will have pics of some flowers later.

I had bought tickets for the concert Friday night, however when I went to pick up the ticket I found that the concert was started way later than the website said. I decided that since I was parked in a rather less than wonderful part of town, I called it a night. Passed the Cheesecake Factory and grabbed a slice and went back my hotel room.

Saturday I slept in LATE!! After a breakfast at almost noon (see previous post about the Eggs Benedict!) I headed up Boulder Canyon. I wanted to see the Creek and relax. On the side of the road I saw a sign for horseback trail rides. I have never been on a horse in my memory, and since my mom cannot remember me being on one, I guess it was a first. Her name is Sue and she was very gentle. However, it will probably be the last time I am on a horse. The brusies I cannot show you because my mom raised me better... however it was tempting to take a photo!

After this I went down the Creek a little and waded in. It was just cold enough to be nice! I felt like I smelled bad, so I went back to the hotel, took a short shower, and got in the hot tub. I finished the book I was reading (The Secret Life of CeeCee Wilkes) and relaxed for the rest of the late afternoon. Then I got cleaned up for the fun activity of the night: The Drag Show!

Boulder County AIDS Project (BCAP) put on the 4th Annual Absolute! Fabulous! Gorgeous! and I had a ball! The host, pictured below, changed his outfit during each song performance. He was amazing!! Oh and his legs! Mary, what talent! He did a rendition of Dying Swan that almost made me pee my pants!! He was in full ballerina costume AND up on point! There were feathers tucked in tutu so every time he moved one or two would fall out (the dying swan.) It was an amazing show. All of the proceeds went to help programs to teach AIDS awareness and prevention. The party favors were condoms... oh bless their hearts! I had a ball!

Then I decided to go to the oposite end of the spectrum and went to the Bronco's/Bears game (Da Bears!!) Again, I had a ball! The fans were not fans of the Bears QB Cutler, who was with the Broncos for a while. I figured if I was going to root for the Bears I better get a jersey, I thought Payton was a safe bet... because who can hate on The Sweetness?

My seats were in between the 30-40 yard line, row 11!! I was close to the action. The pic below is a view of the Bronco's bench from my seat (cell phone pic...)

My Bears were victorious 27-17.

Sunday night came my only really scary moment since I was travelling alone. I had gone to bed and was pretty asleep when I heard someone trying to get into my room. I bolted out of bed (I think I might have pulled a muscle in my back) and was searching for my glasses so I could call the operator for help. I heard one voice say "It wont work, I can't get in!" when the other voice said "Because it is the wrong room, dumb ass." (oops there is a swear in this post) and they left. My heart was racing for a long time after that and I could not get back to sleep for almost 3 more hours.

After the night scare, I went to the Denver Mint. It was a 30 minute tour of how they make money. 9/1 is the Denver Mint's 105 birthday. So each of us got a Lincoln penny and a blank wrapped in plastic. Did you know they have redesigned the penny? There are now 4 new designs that are released this year. It was very cool.

Last... well here is the food in Denver story. I went to Disneyland in January with a group of friends. We had a GPS with us that helped find food locations and it worked so well. We were never disappointed with what we found. So I thought I would try it in Denver. I found a listing for an Etheopian place that sounded interesting. When I arrived the place was a dive and I could not bring myself to eat there... however I had passed a movie theater on my way and felt like a flick! So I turned around and headed for the theater. I arrived just in time to catch Julie and Julia. Can I just say that Maryl Streep can do no wrong! So for lunch I had popcorn and relaxed in a nice movie!

Boulder - The Food

I just got back from my long weekend in Boulder and have much to show and tell. However I figured one long post would even bore me, so I am breaking it up into at least 3 parts: Food, activities, and scenery.

Since I am sure the food post will be the shortest, and I have a lot to do to catch up from being gone, it is what I shall start with.

There is an Irish Pub called Connor O'Neill's on 13th Street in downtown Boulder that was my first food stop. Basically my plan was to eat at places I only could in Boulder ... to be adventurous! At Connor O'Neill's I had an Irish Soda and Shepherd’s Pie. Oh my heaven in my mouth! It was so good! It looked so good I could not wait to taste it, which is why a bite is missing in the shot!

One morning I ate at The Boulder Cafe on the corner of 13th and Pearl. I had my first ever Eggs Benedict. I have never had Eggs Benedict because I am allergic to pork; but these were veggie! Instead of ham they had tomato and avocado! It was very good and now I know why Besty loves them so much!

I had heard from the locals that Sushi Zanmai on 12th and Spruce was very good for both food and atmosphere. Right next to it was Sushi Amu, they share the sushi chefs, but it is a sit down-much more quiet-place. I chose to sit at the sushi counter at Zanmai and watch the action. What great sushi! I tried rolls I had never had before with the exception of the roe, and I just love it, so I got it! The Boulder Roll was very good; it had yellow tail and tuna with a few vegs. The fish egg (on the right of this pic) I think was tuna egg and frankly they were a little too big for my liking. But the roe on the left was as good as I remember roe to be!

I did not each much on Sunday or Monday that was picture worthy, but for reasons all too long to go into right now... did that wet your appetite for more?