Chicago bound

Posted on April 10, 2014 by Jen @nutcaseinpoint

So, guys. I’m heading to Chicago tomorrow BRIGHT AND EARLY to have a stupid-fun weekend with two of my favorite Boston friends, Athena and Ashley. (Kysha, I still love you and miss you and wish I could see you!). Before I go on, I’d just like to add that if anyone will be in the O’hare airport between the hours of 10:30am-2:30pm and want to say hi, you can find me at one of the airport ~~bars~~ restaurants in either Terminal 1 or 2. Just sayin.

I have been looking forward to this trip since even before I booked it. I need me some Americanness goodness. I just made that up right there, but I’m pretty sure you know what I mean. I exchanged all my Canadian funny money for some good ol’ US Green and I’m ready to go. This is how I’ve been picturing how the weekend will go:

Right now, I’m like, really exciting about typing this:

Tonight, I will get approximately ZERO sleep in anticipation:

Tomorrow morning, I’ll board the plane (with sunglasses in tow. I don’t mess around if I get the sunrise side, knowwhatimsaying)

Then promptly arrive in Chicago and wait for Athena’s plane to arrive.

And yeah, I’ll probably get stuck next to some super sketchy person. yay. And when Athena and Ashley arrive:

REUNION! hoooooo-ray. I’ll whip out my American money and put on a pair of my new jeggings and we’ll go for a drink/dinner and I will sit there is sheer happiness.

And our hotel will make us all feel like we’re college roomies except there won’t be pillow fights but there will be snacks and gossip.

And then I’ll probably have a lot of drinks and still be so happy that I’m having a girls weekend that I’ll JUST DANCE.

Saturday will be fun because we will be taking a bike tour. I’m super jolly about this because it’s a bike tour that not only educates you about the city, but takes you to enjoy some iconic Chicago food staples: pizza, hot dogs and beer. My head is already in the clouds.

Then we’ll glam up and hit the town again

Hopefully there’s not too much alcohol consumption prior to this otherwise I might pull this move:

Sunday, there will be brunch

And more Chicago-ing. And having a gay ol time

And then we’ll have to head back to the airport and when they call my flight to board, I’ll be all

So yup, exactly like that. CAN’T WAIT!!

Winesday Wednesday

Posted on April 9, 2014 by Jen @nutcaseinpoint

**Edited to add some extra goodies to the bottom of the post!**

Funny how now I’m becoming more consistant with Winesday Wednesday posts and nothing else. (Question: what do you like best about this blog? WW posts? Randomness? Should I post more recipes/workouts? WHAT DO YOU WANT, PEOPLE?!!!) Let’s get to it.

So yes, it’s Winesday Wednesday and I have a wonderful vino to share with you:

Finca Decero Cabernet Sauvignon– an Argentinian wine I found to be very smooth and rather sweet. Sweet as in NOT DRY, but not sweet as in Moscato or Boxed Wine or Candy sweet.

I picked this up Saturday night and only had a small glass, so I’m very glad I have the majority of this bottle to enjoy later. I’m also glad Tyler is still on his beer/rum kick so I can have my wine selections all to myself. This wine was priced at $22 (keep in mind, that’s Canadian prices. I guarantee it’s significantly cheaper in the US…as is everything else) and it’s something I wouldn’t mind purchasing again.

Look at my mom getting all crazy and setting out 2 bottles of wine and 2 glasses. I’m guessing these are probably both just for her.

Just kidding. Maybe. The wine on the left is a pinot grigio from Adirondack Winery which is local to my parents. I already made a mental note to head up there next time I visit. And in case you can’t read my mom’s fabulous wine glasses, they read: “Mommy’s Suppy Cup” and “Serving of Fruit”.

Michael sent some more goodies over to share as well! He wrote:

This passed week I had a few old standbys and some new ones that just came to Maryland. First up is the Limbo IPA by Long Trail. Love this beer and love this brewery. Visited it the day after a friends wedding a few years back and the venue was really close to the brewery so I said why the hell not? Fantastic decision on my part. As IPAs go, this one is more floral but not so much in the way of hop bitterness, making it very drinkable. Second is one of my go-to beers from Maine Beer Company called Peeper. It’s an American pale Ale and is one of their best. Fruity, spicy, hoppy, etc. All of those things work perfectly together to make a well balanced beer. No one thing overpowers another which is excellent. Lastly is the picture you already saw from my excursion to a relatively new alehouse near me. It’s a shame I am moving in a few months to another county because this place is good! Pictured is the Stone Enjoy by 4-20-14 IPA in the snifter and an empty sample of Lagunitas Undercover Investigation Shutdown Ale.

Funny story: I used to drive by Long Trail every time I drove to/from my parent’s house to college. Talk about having a brewery in the middle of nowhere! PS: I really want to try that IPA now!

Other things of interest:

Love wine so much, you want to sleep with it? Or at least, sleep in the contraption that houses it? Tray A Wine Barrel Hotel
I forgot to give up anything for lent. This guy didn’t: he gave up everything BUT beer on his Beer Diet for Lent
Summer is right around the corner, so before you slap on the bikini for those sweaty summer months, whip up a batch of Pina Colada Cupcakes.
Want to know where your state ranks in wine consumption? Check it out here. Also, I probably helped NH a bit with all the boxed wine I housed in college.
8 Things Karen Walker Taught Us All. If you don’t know who Karen Walker is…shame. She really educated me on juice boxes.

Recap the Week

Posted on April 6, 2014 by Jen @nutcaseinpoint

How was your week/weekend?

Want to know about mine? Of course you do, that’s why you’re here reading this. WELL- here goes:

Monday: I woke up and attempted to get ready for work. I got halfway through straightening my hair and did a big -ol’

– and got back in bed. My cold really hit hard on my energy level and my head felt like it was struck one too many times by a baseball bat. The only productive thing I did all day was successfully watch the entire second season of Downton Abbey under the covers with a giant roll of tp in lieu of kleenex.

Tuesday: I went to work. BOOOOOO. Attempted a run during my lunch break (managed 2.5ish miles?) and went to the Kings of Leon concert.

Wednesday: Umm… nothing? I don’t remember Wednesday, although I believe I hung around Starbucks during my lunch break and apparently ate a burrito for dinner since it’s the only picture on my phone from Wednesday. I also apparently wrote a Winesday Wednesday post. I worked out too, but of course I forget what I did.

Thursday was nice because I took a bath. Yes, I’m at the point in my life where I remember a day based on bathing technique.

I also did a 5k with a neat push/pull upper body workout (in case you’re wondering how much I’m actually working out while recovering from a cold.)

Friday was fun because I wore stretchy pants to work and ate a salad for lunch and the sun was out and I ate pizza for dinner and went to bed really early because I’m old (read: that doesn’t really make a day fun for me. I’m trying to be sarcastic, but I can’t really tell if it’s working).

Saturday: Tyler went in to work for a few hours, so naturally I napped. Until 2pm. HEY, I’m still in recovery OK?! I also managed to get in a sweaty 60 minute workout, go to Home Depot and buy a sink (hashtag marriedpeopleproblems) and swing buy the ol’ second home (liquor store) for a bottle of wine.

Today (sunday) I ate bacon then went SHOPPING. I haven’t been to the mall in forever, and 3 hours there really did me in. I did manage to find 2 pair of jeans (ok, one might be jeggings), a top, and a workout tank. PS: I bought one pair of jeans from American Eagle— a store I haven’t been in in over 10 years and actually wound up buying a pair that were a size smaller than what I used to get in high school. So that’s cool, right? Also, apparently jean jackets are coming back and now I’m mad at the infinity pairs I’ve given away over the years.

And I ran 5k outside and ate a wiener out of a pie tin.

I’m out.

Pineapple Challenge 2014

Posted on April 3, 2014 by Jen @nutcaseinpoint

Hi friends. Happy Thursday. Boy am I glad it’s near the end of the week! 4 day work weeks fly by..and I have two more in a row! (vacation next weekend and easter the following weekend!)

*Mini rant: Why does Netflix only have seasons 1 & 2 of Downton Abbey?!! (I already know the answer, Tyler said it was something to do with Amazon Prime getting the rights to stream the rest, yadda yadda. Also, what is Amazon Prime? Also, in lieu of DA, I’ve started watching a butt-ton of WWII documentaries. Do you know what that does to your dreams when you fall asleep watching bombs drop and gas chambers? Woof.)

On a lighter note, guess what?! I finally signed up for the Pineapple Challenge!! My friend Susie works for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society of Canada and is planning the event for Calgary to be held on June 14th. “The event” being a crazy/silly obstacle course for teams to get through- while wearing silly costumes. COUNT ME IN. Also- we’re doing this for a great cause, so um…how could I say no?

To give you a few deets on the disease and how fundraising money will be used:

DID YOU KNOW?

There are over 100,000 people living with, or in remission from, a blood cancer in Canada.
Someone will be diagnosed with a blood cancer every 29 minutes in Canada.
And one person every 76 minutes will die.

Funds raised through the Pineapple Challenge support research, patient services, and education in our fight to find a cure for blood cancers.

All dollars raised for this event support The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society of Canada’s (LLSC) vital mission: find a cure for leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin’s disease and myeloma and to improve the quality of life for patients and their families.

Beyond the Pineapple Challenge, The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society of Canada also has various other events which help support the mission.

If you check out the website, there are other events that you can choose to donate to, or even participate.

******

PS: Me, Tyler, Susie, her partner in crime, and a few others have formed a team called the Prancercisers. Yup, because there will most definitely be prancing at some point during this obstacle course. Maybe it’ll only be me.

Here’s where I humbly get on my knees and ask if you’re interested in donating towards my fundraising efforts. I’ve set a goal of raising $250, so please don’t think you have to unload your whole paycheck for me. Unless you want to. Then I’ll bake you cookies or something.

If you click on the link below, it will take you to my fundraising page for the event, where you can choose how much to give. 50 cents? A dolla? A dolla makes me holla.

Pineapple Challenge 2014. <–click here to check out the event and donate towards my fundraising goal!

*pause while I get up off my knees*

I would really really appreciate any/all donations slash good words slash encouragement for the upcoming race. (And if you have costume suggestions, we will definitely take them into consideration)

Thanks!!

Winesday Wednesday

Posted on April 2, 2014 by Jen @nutcaseinpoint

I can’t blog, I’m sick. Boo you whore.

At least, that was my excuse for the past week or so, I promise. Well at least that’s my excuse for Sunday and Monday.

That said, It’s time for Winesday Wednesday!!!

Insert imaginary trumpet playing here.

I tried a couple new beers: Lost Coast Raspberry Brown Ale, Big Rock’s Monk’s Misery, and Laughing Dog Huckleberry Cream Ale. The verdict? #1 was delish (I found it on tap at a restaurant the next day and actually preferred the bottle); #2 was different (in a good way. Think rosemary meets um…other spices without being too spicy. Scratch that, don’t try to imagine that. Regardless, it was good. Per usual); and #3 was meh (I don’t think it was cold enough or I it tasted funny because of something I had just eaten. idk but I will give it a second chance).

Oh right, and I also filled up one of our growler’s with Village Troubadour– a mild brown ale that was SUPER tasty and will definitely get again.

Saturday, Tyler and I went out to dinner to celebrate having signed off on all our major kitchen reno purchases, and I had a Winter Julep. It was something to the extent of Jack Daniels, lime, mint….and I think that’s it?! It was delicious and looked pretty cool when an iceberg is served in the middle of it!

Now you’re all just sitting there like:

I know, right?

Oh, and Michael sent me over some more cool pics! (Fellow beer advocate, yessir!)

Her wrote: Went to Victory Brewing company in Dowingtown, Pennsylvania this past weekend for a tour with a couple buddies. This place is awesome. That beer pictured is their Hop Devil IPA on a nitro tap. Think of the consistency of a Guinness but with an IPA taste. It was quite amazing. Those other pictures are just some Citra hops and mash-tuns that I thought you might want to include. Totally up to you. Happy Winesday Wednesday!