The premise behind this link-up is: "If we were having coffee together, I would tell you..."
Side note: I don't actually drink coffee! Usually water is my beverage of choice, but I wasn't sure about using "Ultimate Water Date" as a blog headline. So we'll just stick with "coffee date" on a colloquial basis.
If we were having [insert beverage of choice here] together, I would tell you:
Tomorrow Adam and I are taking a pasta making class. The students get to dine on their own creations at the end (always my favorite part). I will put forth a valiant attempt to not go overboard and stuff myself into oblivion. It's too bad that Rock N Roll DC is next Saturday instead of this Sunday, otherwise it would have been a perfect way to carb-load.
This Sunday, my friend Katie and I are going to see the Blackhawks play the Rangers at the UC. I could easily write a full separate post (or even a full separate blog) about the Hawks. But in short, I can't wait to see some of the new lineup additions in action. I'm looking forward to the team's momentum swinging heavily in the right direction starting RIGHT NOW (that was an Edzo reference, for all of you diehards). Also, in honor of St. Patrick's Day this month, Katie is going to be wearing her new green Oduya jersey. Rock on!
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| Green warm-ups for St. Patrick's Day in 2014 (Source) I don't think it's a coincidence that the picture includes both Patrick Sharp and Patrick Kane! |
Would you believe that Adam has never seen The Sound of Music? I've been meaning to remedy that for quite some time. When the Oscars were on a few weeks ago, we happened to flip over just in time to see Lady Gaga's amazing tribute. That was the kick in the tush that I needed to spurn myself into action. Thanks to the magic of the Chicago Public Library, I currently have a copy of the movie on hold to be checked out!
On the race front, I am thinking more and more strongly about officially signing up for the Rock N Roll races in Vancouver and Las Vegas. I am really craving a visit to Vancouver and the chance to run along the Pacific Ocean and the mountains. Other than some business trips about ten years ago, I haven't been there since I was a young teenager. Additionally, Rock N Roll Montreal still remains high on the list. It would be nice to take advantage of visiting Canada while the foreign exchange rate is the most favorable it's been in about 10 years. O Canada...
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| I love the RnR Vancouver medal from last year. |
I'm currently experimenting with tweaking my blogging philosophy. In lieu of going long periods of time in blog silence, I am testing out writing shorter but more frequent posts. Blogging is a hobby for me and will always be based on time permitting. However, the shorter posts are less daunting to put together (and I suspect they are easier to read, too). I'm also trying out the strategy of writing up a bunch of posts over the weekend, then scheduling them to publish during the week. We'll see how things go. Any thoughts?
And with that...
Happy Friday, everyone! I'd love to hear your "coffee talk" updates and/or your plans for this weekend!
Rich had never seen the Sound of Music either and during the Oscars we realized he STILL hasn't... only the Carrie Underwood live version and UM that does not count.
ReplyDeleteI was thinking that Lady Gaga's tribute probably sparked up a lot of realizations for those who have never seen it! I have not seen the Carrie Underwood version but I did NOT hear good things about it. What were your thoughts?
DeleteI haven't been to Vancouver in years but it's so gorgeous I NEED to go back! I hope you go too! And Vegas! A pasta making class sounds fun. What's not to love about those green Hawks jerseys?
ReplyDeleteAre you officially registered for Vancouver and Vegas? Assuming we both go through with our plans to run both, it would be SO awesome to catch up with you out west! I am actually more excited about eating the pasta than I am about making it, LOL. And YAY for St. Patrick's Day festivity!!!
DeleteI like your more frequent blogs!! Isn't the scheduling feature nice? I use it quite a bit since I tend to go in fits and spurts where I have lots to say and then nothing to say. Scheduling allows me to ebb the flow when I'm bursting with chatter.
ReplyDeleteMy coffee talk / weekend plans ... more tap room tastings! No surprise there, right? My goal is to wrap up all the major tap rooms before spring hits and racing starts. Then I have no excuse to miss my weekend runs - outside, finally. Man I can't wait for spring.
The hills are aaaaaliiiivveeee .... with the sound of sprrriiiiinnngggg...
Thank you so much, Natalie! Yes - the scheduling feature is fantastic. It's so nice to be able to hit publish days in advance and then be done with things for the week. The next thing I want to try to figure out is how to get the posts to automatically link onto my Facebook page, too. Any ideas?
DeleteOoooh, more tap room tastings!!! Did you plot out a whole schedule again like you have in the past? What a great way to celebrate your tri from last week.
YES ON SPRING!!! I can't believe how excited I am about the forecasted 40s this weekend, LOL. All those pansies living in tropical destinations think we are all nuts, I am sure. =D
I don't know how to automate Facebook posts. Right now I do that manually. :-(
DeleteI wish I had a whole schedule plotted for tap rooms, but alas - I do not have the metabolism (or pocketbook) to manage that many visits in one weekend on a regular basis. We just hit up a random spot here or there on the weekend when we have down time and want something fun to do. Still not a bum deal.
I am equally excited that we are finally above 0 for the foreseeable future. I was just snickering to myself that people down in GA remark on how cold 30 is, and we actually celebrate it. Cheers to hearty Midwest girls!!
I did a quick google search and saw something about how to automate posts to Facebook. Will have to investigate further and will let you know!
DeleteLooking forward to hearing about your latest taproom adventures!!!
SPEAKING of Patrick Sharp....I'm meeting him tomorrow!! I could not be more excited!
ReplyDeleteI LOVE the Sound of Music. It shocks me when people haven't seen it.
I have never been to Canada. Going for a race sounds like a wonderful idea. Vancouver looks beautiful! Do it so I can live vicariously through you.
OH MY GOSH, YOU ARE MEETING SHARPY???!!! AHHHHHHH!!!! SO COOL!!! I did a google search to see what appearances he was making tomorrow - are you attending his autograph signing session at Sideline Sports in Vernon Hills, by chance? (Gotta love the magic of google!)
DeleteThe Sound of Music is one of the most classic of all classics in my opinion! I've seen it easily a dozen times over my lifetime. It is shocking to me too when people haven't seen it!
I think you'd really enjoy visiting Canada whenever the opportunity permits! The country is so beautiful and the people are so incredibly friendly! Lots of great hockey fans, too, of course. I think us Chicago folks are well respected for our Hawks in Canada. =)
I fully admit that I don't think I've ever sat and watched The Sound of Music all the way through. However, combined with the parts I've seen of the movie and the parts I've seen from working on or seeing various high school productions over the years I'm pretty sure I've seen all of it :)
ReplyDeleteI also don't drink coffee (but I LOVE tea) which tends to make me the odd one out, too.
I don't think you've ever told me that you worked on Sound of Music productions in high school! That is VERY cool and must have been such an incredible learning experience. What other productions have you been involved with!?!?!?
DeleteSo when people find out that I don't drink coffee, they frequently look at me like I have three heads. Does that happen to you too?
I've done behind the scenes stuff on a lot of shows! Our Town, 12 Angry Jurors, Guys and Dolls and others that I can't remember off the top of my head. I'll have to check my yearbooks :-)
DeleteAnd, yes, I get lots of comments and looks when I say I don't drink coffee. People legitimately wonder how I function!
SO COOL. I've heard great things about Guys and Dolls - it's actually one I'd be interested in seeing live someday.
DeleteTotally agree with you on people wondering how I function without coffee. Then they usually ask if I drink tea (which I don't either). Yes, folks, believe it or not, it is possible to live a normal, healthy, fully functioning life without caffeine. =)
Have fun at your pasta class! That sounds fab!
ReplyDeleteSteven had not seen the Sound of Music until we were married. He watched it and enjoyed it! Let us know what Adam thinks! I asked for a copy of the DVD for xmas and my in-laws got me the Carrie Underwood version :-o
I definitely think shorter blog posts are easy to read! I am curious to see how it goes prepping them all the weekend before - I used to prep a lot in advance, but like the posts I write more "on the fly" better (for myself, not like I can tell for others).
Thanks, Kim! We watched Sound of Music over the weekend and Adam enjoyed it. The last time I had watched it myself was as a child, so it was much more meaningful to see it again as an adult. As a child, I definitely didn't realize the magnitude of what was going on! What did you think of the Carrie Underwood version?
DeleteI'm liking the on-the-fly posts, too. I'm learning to blog more without second-guessing myself, you know? (I think I've read too much GOMI over the years.)
ooh your pasta class sounds really fun. Wonder what you will make? Good luck with RnR DC next week. Hope all of our snow melts. Thanks so much for joining us for the coffee date today always a fun way to connect with new friends and new blogs. Stay in touch!
ReplyDeleteThe pasta class ended up being really fun! We made papperdelle with roasted tomato vodka sauce; and ricotta-stuffed ravioli with basil pesto sauce. It gave me an appreciation for how much time and effort it takes to make pasta from scratch.
DeleteThanks for hosting the coffee date - I really love reading all of the link-ups! I definitely plan on being a regular participant in the future.
BTW - so bummed to hear that you won't be able to run RnR DC this weekend, but I think you're very smart to rest your PF. It's not worth taking the risk, for sure.
I was truly blown away by Lady Gaga's performance. It was beautiful. My kids, haven't seen it either, I don't think. Maybe years ago. I need to rent it to show them.
ReplyDeleteOh my goodness, Lady Gaga's performance completely changed my perception of her work! I heard someone say that it was funny that all these years Lady Gaga has been wearing eccentric outfits, etc., yet all she needed to do to stand out was to sing! Yes on showing Sound of Music to your kids - it's such a classic!!!
DeleteA pasta making class sounds like so much fun!!! and I agree I can't believe there are people on the planet who have not seen the Sound of Music! My favorite of all time! :) Have a great weekend!
ReplyDeleteThe funny thing is that after I posted this, several other folks mentioned to me that they've never seen the movie, either! I am shocked. Hopefully that will now change with all of the renewed talk about the movie. I hope you had a great weekend, as well, and that you survived the time change with minimal or no issue!!!
DeleteHow was the pasta class?? that sounds like a fun thing to do together! and I love those green hawks jerseys!!
ReplyDeleteThe pasta class was awesome! We made papperdelle with roasted tomato vodka sauce; and ricotta-stuffed ravioli with basil pesto sauce. It gave me an appreciation for how much time and effort it takes to make pasta from scratch.
DeleteI love the green Hawks jerseys, too!!! If the jerseys weren't so expensive, I'd love to get a green one to wear just during the month of March. I was thinking about how Katie's green Oduya jersey could be jokingly changed to O'Duya for St. Patrick's Day. ;-)
Neal has never seen Sound of Music either. I try all of the time to get him to watch. The ironic thing is that his mom is friends with Charmain Carr (Liesl) and she came to our wedding! Have you ever been to the Sing Along?
ReplyDeleteRunning in Vancouver is AMAZING.
Shorter posts are a great way to keep readers engaged. I say go for it!
Oh my goodness!!! Your mom knows Charmain Carr and she came to your wedding!?!?!?!? WHAT A SMALL WORLD!!! What is she like in person??? Does she know that Neal has never seen the movie, too!?!?!? =D
DeleteAh yes, I remember that you've run Sea Wheeze in Vancouver! That must have been the MOST amazing experience.
Thanks for the feedback on the shorter posts - I do think I'm going to stick with it. =)
A pasta making class sounds like so much fun!! I've always wanted to try making it.
ReplyDeleteAnd now I'm wondering if my husband has ever seen the Sound of Music.
The pasta making class was a blast! It gave me a huge appreciation for how much effort really goes into making pasta (I'm so used to just buying the boxes at the store without even thinking about it, you know?) If you get a chance to take a class, DO IT!!!
DeleteYes, find out if your husband has seen the movie! I'm hearing about more and more people who have never seen it, and I am amazed! We must all remedy this. =)
I've never seen The Sound of Music either.
ReplyDeleteDefinitely sign up for the RnR Las Vegas.
Wow, I keep hearing about more and more people who have never seen Sound of Music!!! Definitely check out a copy from the library whenever you get the chance. It's one of the most classic old-Hollywood movies out there!
DeleteThanks for the tip on RnR Las Vegas - it's very, very high on the list!!!
Ha, then I do not feel too bad that I'm not the only one.
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