Taking Time for Myself

I needed to run some errands after work today. For me, that means hitting up Harvard Square. Errands don't seem so bad when you get to go the square. Earlier today one of my students told me that he was worried about me because I didn't put my jacket on when I went outside and I seemed to be acting like Ms. Frizzle from The Magic School Bus. I thought about what he said and I realized that he was right. I've been moving in fast forward and feeling like I don't even have time to put on my jacket on my way to a meeting. I decided to listen to his warning, slow down, and really take time to enjoy my time in the square. So, I decided to take my camera with me. I love the square in the fall. It's so full of color... and it's still nice enough to enjoy walking around. I love being a tourist in my own city!

Happy Halloween

Earlier this week JO and I had to literally take out our calendars and schedule a time to carve our pumpkin. That's what I've been reduced to :-(

Here's our goofy pumpkin.

Overwhelmed!

I've been feeling pretty overwhelmed these past few weeks. I have literally had 3 or 4 meetings per week. When you're a teacher, these meetings extend your regular working day. I totally understand that most of my friends work a lot more hours than me, so I don't want anyone to think I don't their jobs are hard... but the fact is that if I get home before 5:00 I can enjoy everything around me. If I get home after 5:00 I have to focus on getting ready for the next day.

This has really been stressing me out recently. I haven't been able to walk around the river in forever. I can't even remember when the last time was. Apparently in my meeting craze our neighborhood got a new Asian restaurant. I didn't even know if was done until I had to walk to the bank the other night. I feel like I'm missing so many great opportunities around me because I have so many meetings. I'm missing out on enjoying my city.

No matter what, I am enjoying some sort of city fun this weekend. I am putting my foot down and I mean it! Until then, I'll look at these two pictures and smile... my most favorite place in the city is the Public Gardens and the Skywalk Observatory is fabulous!

Pictures, Pictures, Pictures

On a friend's request, I'll be adding some pictures to my blog!

Unfortunately I don't have anytime to write anything tonight... but enjoy the pictures of some of my favorite pictures of Cambridge in the fall!

There's Only one Place I'd Rather Be...

There's only one place I'd rather be than Cambridge. Well maybe two, but my lack of French language skills makes living in Paris unfortunately a no go. If I wasn't in Cambridge I would hopefully be living in Storrs, CT...the college basketball capital of the country!

I'm a huge UConn Husky fan, and it's just about time for the best season of the year... college basketball! I'm what you might call a fanatic fan.... I have pom poms, game day rituals, a stuffed animal Husky, and a different Husky shirt for every day of the week.

Last night was First Night and JO and I headed down as soon as I was done with work. I wasn't even tired from having gotten up at 5:15 to go to work early. We hit a ton of traffic on the Mass Pike, so I missed the autograph session, but we made it with enough time to catch the pre-event twirling which made me smile. The show itself was great. The highlight video was awesome and the slam dunk contest was a lot of fun. I'm all pumped up for another run to the National Championship.

Once upon a time, I dreamed of moving to UConn and getting my PhD. I came really close a few years ago and was horribly disappointed when that didn't work out. My mind still wanders in that direction every so often, but I can't imagine leaving the city for the small town, albeit college town atmosphere, that is Storrs, CT. Who knows? Maybe I'll retire there :-)

Urban Hiking

One of the things I love about living in Inman Square is that I can walk almost anywhere I want. Who doesn't love a good urban hike? Over the past few years my friend and I have learned that the girl's definition of urban hiking is a lot different then the boy's definition.

The boys think it is perfectly acceptable to walk from our Cambridge neighborhood to Fenway Park. Although this walk is doable it's not much fun... and prevents hikers from wearing cute shoes! I prefer my definition of urban hiking!

If I had my own dictionary the entry for urban hiking would look like this:

1. Walking from Inman to Harvard and then around the Charles River before heading back. This would be the "exercise" form of the word :-)
2. Walking through Cambridge and Boston with multiple and frequent stops for shopping.

This past Saturday, after realizing that the majority of my pants were capris, and with temps dropping, I decided an urban hike of the shopping variety was much needed! I actually did double duty since JO and I hit up the square and the river in an attempt to be a cool Cambridge couple. After returning from our walk I headed out to buy pants, shoes, and anything else that struck my fancy. It was a gorgeous day, and I loved walking down Boylston Street from the Prudential Center to Downtown Crossing (I had no idea there was a DSW warehouse there! Good to know!!!)

Urban hiking is so much more fun than going to the mall. First, it's a great combination of fun and fitness since the stores are a little bit further apart than in a mall. Second, you get great inspiration for your new purchases. You're surrounded by every style possible. Finally, you find yourself walking by tons of great "watering" holes... and really what goes better with some urban hiking than a great cocktail... say at the Marliave for instance?

And speaking of the Marliave... JO and I had dinner at The Grotto on Beacon Hill. Delicious and the perfect ending to a perfect city day.

A Series of Unfortunate Events

Last night JO and I decided to go to the Reel Rock Film Tour in Arlington. It should've been a really fun evening watching some great rock climbing on film. I had a meeting until 6:00 so we decided it would be best to have JO pick me up at my meeting and head over to the movie.

The first unfortunate event occurred when there was a mix up with the address of the school where my meeting was. He ended up on the other side of the city, and I really couldn't help him since my sense of direction relies heavily on big red houses and light displays instead of street signs. JO is really good with directions, and doesn't like being directionally challenged. Needless to say there was a little stress here. Because of the mix up, we ended up being a half hour behind schedule.

The second unfortunate event occurred on our way from Waltham to Arlington. Hmmm... Route 2 at 6:45 p.m. is no one's friend! As a result, we didn't arrive at the theater until 7:00 which didn't leave us much time for dinner. We had two choices...a little Chinese place or Papa Gino's.

The third unfortunate event occurred when we picked the Chinese joint over Papa Gino's. I'm not sure what we were thinking, and why we didn't run when upon entering we were greeted by a table covered in the remnants of the owner's dinner of rancid cantaloupe and coleslaw. Our food didn't come out until 7:35, and the movie stared at 8:00. We took a few bites and ran across the street to try to find seats.

(The movies were great! The climbing was insane and pretty inspiring.)

Flash forward, by the way that's an excellent show, to this morning when I woke up severely dehydrated and dizzy. Ughh! I had to call in sick to work the day before a long weekend which doesn't make you look so good. Plus, I left all of my stuff at one of my schools and so now on Tuesday I have to go to that school to get the stuff before going to my Tuesday school. I'm pretty sure my illness can be traced back to MSG in the Chinese food!

Hopefully I'll feel better tomorrow...I have a full weekend of shopping, dinners, drinks, and festivals to look forward to.

May I Recommend

One of my favorite places to go out for dinner and/or drinks is the Precinct Bar in Union Square in Somerville.

I found the Precinct last spring when I was craving outdoor dining. It's a quick ten minute walk from our apartment so it's very convenient. After our first visit, I was hooked. The food is great, the prices extremely reasonable, and the beverage selection outstanding! I pretty much love any restaurant that serves Prosseco by the glass.

Over the past few months we've been hitting up The Precinct on a pretty regular basis. I was there last night for a Girls Night Out and we had a great time. How can you go wrong with a roasted half chicken, glazed carrots, and risotto for $12?

So if you're in the area check it out.