Obama and tea

So, apparently it is a negative thing that Obama likes to drink organic iced tea.
http://www.thedailygreen.com/environmental-news/latest/obama-organic-tea-44080108
How desperate is McCain? Now, I will admit that I have not really enjoyed any of the Honest Tea flavors that I've tried, but I have not tasted the one in question.

C'mon people.

fancy weekend

What a relaxing weekend! Mark sent me (and his friend Micah sent his wife Jennifer) to this super-fancy Inn and spa in Connecticut called the Mayflower. The Spa was so gorgeous that I thought I was part of a movie set. Every last detail was beautiful, and perfect. The artwork was lovely, and had a very meditative feel. Among a few wonderful treatments, I had a hot stone massage, which was definitely the best massage I've ever had!!! I loved the heat and intensity of the stones. The entire place was so peaceful and quiet. I felt like I was one of the only people there, when there must have been quite a few. The amenities were gorgeous, including a beautiful indoor heated pool and a separate whirlpool room, both of which I had all to myself one morning. There was also a 'thermal room' that was basically like a steam room, without the steam. the heat came from the floor and walls, and made everything radiant and warm. it was very comforting. The staff there was pleasant and completely friendly. not stuffy as you would expect for such an exclusive spa. The grounds around the Spa (and the Inn) were perfectly manicured. I don't know too much about flower species, but apparently there were a few special types, and some rare ones as well. I wish my phone took better pictures of everything, but I'm glad I was able to get any at all. These pictures do not do any justice to the beauty of this place.

The Inn (which is next to the Spa, and has the same owner- but you'd never know it), which I did not take any pictures of, is a typical fancy New England Inn. There was art and antiques everywhere. Loads of chintz on the linens and curtains (not really my thing), and everything had that snooty old-fashioned feel. But the room was very clean and pretty, and the bed was comfortable and had very soft linens. The towels were a bit scratchy though, which made no sense to me. There were fresh flowers in the bathroom, and even a gas fireplace, which was fun. The only problem...there was something wrong with an 'actuator' that was above my room, and the first night there it made this horrible high-pitched noise. It was so annoying, that I slept with earplugs and a pillow over my head, and I still heard it. I hardly slept that first night. I complained like crazy, and it was fixed, and my night comped, of course. Service at the Inn was very good, and friendly. But the food in the main dining room was horrible. Lots of flash, and hardly any taste. They tried so hard to make things look fancy, and it just did not work. Sauces had no flavor, and nothing was seasoned properly, which is a shame because they did have quality ingredients. You just could not really taste them. But the fancy people dining there did not seem to have any issues with it. Jennifer and I still had a fabulous time at dinner, especially making fun of the 'upper-crust' types that frequent the place. Breakfast was fine, I ended up having a lovely time sitting on the patio that overlooks a beautiful Shakespeare garden.

I don't feel worthy of such a special weekend. But I do truly appreciate it! I did miss Mark and Hana, but it was wonderful to have some quiet time to sleep (the second night anyway) and relax. I'm trying to retain this peaceful state of mind. It's not easy, since Hana has just developed an awful cold, and her coughs are heart-breaking. She didn't get much sleep last night because she was coughing constantly. But she was so good- She'd wake up, cough, fuss a couple of times, and then go right back to sleep. In exciting Hana news, she is really starting to put words together! This morning when I was mixing her bottle she said BA-BA! and when she sees our cat misha, she says aahh-hhaa, with the right syllables. We have this little baby colors book, and she doesn't recognize the color purple, but whenever you turn to the purple page (there is a baby wearing purple, sitting in a a purple room) she says 'po-po' quite triumphantly. She clearly is doing it because she gets a reaction out of us, but I choose to think that she is brilliant, and can recognize the color :). She's also starting to take her first tentative steps, which is very exciting. I cannot wait to see what the next few days bring!

food cart song

This is basically an ad for alka seltzer, but it's very cute! and who doesn't love food carts? one of the featured vendors is the Jamaican Dutchy cart. It is near my office, and I've been meaning to try it. The food is supposed to be pretty good. I love the look on the vendors' faces when they have to hug the guys.

also just to point out- when they sing about jerk chicken, they are actually holding up meat patties, not jerk chicken. bad editing!

food and Paris Hilton respect

Last night I went to Shake Shack with my friend Ritvik. We've been friends since high school. I don't have too many friends that have lasted that long, and I value our friendship. We arrived early, around 5:30 in order to beat the crazy lines. I think we were only on line for about 10 minutes, which was great. I don't have any pics (i had left my phone in the office), but the burger is definitely one of the best (if not the best) that I've had. I hadn't been to Shake Shack for at least a year, and it was just as good as I remembered. The meat is very well seasoned (I like salty burgers), and the 'sauce' that they add to the 'shack Burger' is a little smoky, and a little creamy. yum! Of course, the plain old patty alone would probably be just as good, if not better. They use a mix of sirloin and brisket for the patty, which is much tastier than the typical ground chuck. I don't tend to get cheese on my burger, because I like to taste the meat on its own. i also like the bun they use, which is very soft, and a little bit sweet. it reminds me of a potato roll. I was tempted to get a shake, but I abstained, since I can never say no to french fries. Theirs are not the best, and I'm really not sure why. They are crinkle cut, which I like, but I think i prefer thin fries. They also just don't taste that great. Some of my fries had that 'dirty' potato taste, like they weren't properly cleaned before cutting. They were super crispy, which I like, but just not that flavorful. It was fun to sit outside and enjoy our food, and catch up.

When I got home last night, Mark played this video for me. Ok, so maybe Paris Hilton isn't so bad after all. I think her performance is really good!

See more funny videos at Funny or Die

The video doesn't seem to be working, so here is the link:
http://www.funnyordie.com/videos/64ad536a6d

weekend and pics

We had a lovely weekend 'upstate' visiting our friends Jana and Paul, and their adorable 2 year old daughter, Elie. Jana is a close college friend of mine, and it was nice to have a little time to relax and catch up with her. Hana had a great time playing with Elie, and watching her run around. Hana even took her first step! she hasn't done it since, and of course didn't realize at the time that she was doing it. But it was amazing!! The weekend seemed to really have an effect on her, because now she's starting to make rudimentary words. She says da-da all the time, but now seems to link it with Mark (and myself too). She says Ma-Ma when prompted, but when i ask her what my name is, she says Da-Da 98% of the time. Still, so very cute. She has started to make a 'c' sound when she's eating chicken, so we think she's trying to say it. She also makes this hilarious grunting noise when she wants something. it is very deliberate, and she knows exactly how to get what she wants.
She had fun on the beach, and of course kept trying to eat the sand. I had finally let her try the sand, hoping that she would then realize it was disgusting. but she still kept trying to eat it. not a shock with the child that eats just about anything you put in front of her! heh.

Last night after Hana went to sleep Mark and I had fun playing Guitar Hero. He had bought it for me as a surprise! We rocked out, and had way too much fun with it. I also tried to take pictures of the clouds as the sun was setting, because it looked really pretty. But the pics didn't come out very well, as you can see by the pic below.

dance!

I have not watched So You Think You Can Dance yet this week, but I have this song stuck in my head. I have to admit I really like it (yes I am embarrassed), and like it even more when Katee and Joshua dance to it!