My Mini Stay-cation

On Saturday, I started my lovely long weekend off my redeeming my birthday gift certificate from The Writer for a relaxing massage.  I haven't had a massage in so many years and it was so much more wonderful that I could have ever imagined, I didn't want to end.  I was so calmed that I actually took a nice long nap that afternoon.  Its amazing what not having to go work anytime soon with do for you.

What I'm Wearing:

Tee: Target

Scarf: Forever 21

Trouser Jeans: Freestyle Revolution

Sneakers: Converse

Bag: Coach

I woke up in time to get ready to go out to dinner with Ang.  Its never good when the first thing your server says to you is that its her second day on the job. So, naturally, Ang ordered the complicated cocktail that required pouring pink alcohol over a fluff of cotton candy at our table.  Poor woman, it wasn't her night.

Today got off to a slow start too, but hey, I'm practically on vacation.  After a morning with The Writer, I strolled through DSW armed with my Christmas and birthday gift cards.  I found some bright blue pumps that were really cute, but pinched too much.  There were some other cute spring heels, but I'm not ready for the bright neon colors. Target was a bust also and I left empty handed. The Writer and I are going to H&M up around Cleveland tomorrow, so hopefully I'll have better luck then.  I'm not sure how I'd rather spend my staycation than with The Writer, relaxing and sprucing up my wardrobe.

NYC in Photos

Since my camera broke several days into my trip, I was either camera-less or borrowing my boyfriends.  This meant that many of my posts didn't have and snapshots to go with them right away.  I thought, rather than go back and amend all prior NYC posts, why not just post 'em all, album style? Enjoy!

In Central Park: First thing we did together : )

@ The Fireworks: Tired and sweaty from a
long day of travel and walking

By the Jackie O. Resevior on our way to The Gugg

The Guggenheim

Me, in somewhat recycled but favorite outfit

@MoMA's Free Friday Nights

Broadway Boogie Woogie: A favorite

My squirrel friend in Battery Park

@ The Cloisters

Cloisters Garden

Another garden!

Just a little Tiffany (@the Met)

One of my SoHo finds. The light fabric was
great in the heat

Me & Hatshepsut know how to pose!

I love his sense of humor!

Bargains, Bubble Tea, and Boats

Who doesn't like to sleep in on a Monday?  Since The Writer's "weekend" begins on Mondays, that's exactly what we did.  Even though we knew we had a lot to pack into his last two free days of my visit, we still got off to a pretty slow start.

Once we did get moving, we went down to check out Century 21, a store of hugely discounted designer duds.  We'd gotten off the subway right by the World Trade Center site, but like I'd noticed before, there wasn't much to see.  Once we got to Century 21 it was a madhouse.  The deals were certainly good, so I understand the rush.  The Writer found himself a new gray Tommy Hilfiger suit for over half off!  We left the store in search of the tailor shop they'd referred us to (my love has long arms, apparently) and some lunch. What an experience the tailor shop was! The older Italian gentleman running the place shared that he's been working in a tailor shop since he was seven years old.  Now that's a family business!

We got some sandwiche from Pret (baguette!) and started walking towards Battery Park for a picnic.  Along the way, I spotted a bubble tea street vendor.  I hadn't had bubble tea in such a long time. For a while, I was working at a coffee shop that made it and could have it any time I wanted.  Unfortunately, those days were over but I was about to rekindle my love of bubble tea just as I'd reawakened my love of baguette sandwiches.  The Writer was not a fan of my litchi bubble tea.

The Writer being silly

After our little picnic, we decided to investigate Statue of Liberty/Ellis Island ferry passes.  I wasn't initially interested in going out to see the landmarks, but it was something The Writer had really been wanting to do, so we went. I'm so glad we did!  We didn't spend too much time on Liberty Island where the Statue of Liberty is located because we wanted to make sure we had plenty of time in the Ellis Island museum.  We got back on the ferry after snapping some photos and walking a bit on the island.

I had to give it a try

I admit I haven't been much of a museum person in the past. Maybe it's because I'm usually being dragged through them by my parents who are either moving too slow or too quickly, but I really enjoy them with The Writer.  He'd been to the Ellis Island museum before so he knew which parts were absolutely necessary to see before the last ferry left.  Seeing the giant rooms where the incoming immigrants waited and hearing their stories was so interesting.  I wish we'd had a little more time to spend out there.

On Liberty Island with the Manhattan skyline in the background

Tired from our busy day, we had some Asian Fusion cuisine at Alpha around the corner from his residences.  I had the best spicy tuna roll that I've ever eaten there.  It was absolutely delicious.  The Writer had the sesame chicken, which I sampled and found was delectable in its own right.  After dinner, we decided to get some cool treats at Rita's.  Their melon/tropical flavors are just what I want when I'm craving something cold and sweet.  I had the honeydew again, but this time mixed it with cantaloupe and passionfruit as well.  Our night ended with a long, lovely stroll down Broadway in the Upper West Side.

A Saturday in the City

Last Saturday, whilst still in New York City, was a really significant day for me.  I was able to meet up with my second cousin, J, whom I have not seen in ages.  We hadn't seen each other for the better part of 10 or 15 years and we've both changed so much.  Last time I saw her I was still wearing training bras, if that's any indication of how long it's been.

We met up in the lobby of The Writer's residence/hotel and walked down The Highline to The Village.  I wore my teal maxi dress from SoHo because it was very sunny and I knew we'd be walking a lot and I wanted to avoid weird tan/burn lines.  A strapless dress was my best attempt and an even tinge of red.

J took me to her favorite coffee place, which was at the entrance to a theatre space. We sat and continued on our catching up.  During our day-long conversation, I came to a greater knowledge of the history of that side of my family.  So many things make more sense now than they ever did before, since many of the events that shaped the dynamic of that branch of my family tree happened long before I was born or able to understand them.
I'm fairly sure that this coffee shop made some of the most legitimate espresso drinks I've ever had, and, you know what? I don't even think there was a latte on the menu. Flavored syrups? Nadda.  It was absolutely one of the best cappuccinos I've ever had.

After our caffeine, J took me to her studio space.  She went to school for dance and is still really involved in the creative arts.  Let me tell you, this space was amazing.  Five stories up from the street, the massive windows of the corner room looked directly out onto many of the rooflines of the other buildings.  The architecture was breathtaking!  I told The Writer so many times while I was in NYC that the artistry of the buildings is one of my favorite things about the city.  It's inspiring!

(teany)

We then took a cab (my first NYC cab, I admit) over to The Bowery and got out by The New Museum. Before we went in to view the exhibits, we walked over to Teany for lunch.  My turkey, apple, and brie  baguette sandwich was one of my favorite meals of my trip.  It was served with the perfect side of lightly dressed greens...MMmmmm.  I fell in love with the baguette sandwich while traveling in France and haven't really found anything comparable in America until this past week.  Simple French fare is not anywhere close to being popular in the Midwest.

After a chocolate peanut butter brownie to finish off lunch, we headed back to The New Museum.  Several of their floors were closed for installation, but we did get to enjoy the Sky Room.  Since most of the buildings in Bowery and Greenwich Village are shorter by comparison, we were able to see all the way down to Downtown and the Brooklyn Bridge and all the way up to Midtown and the Chrysler Building and Empire State Building.  We decided the view alone was worth the price of admission.

A little rooftop lawn visible from the Sky Room

Incredible view from the Sky Room

J had to take off after a stroll through the surrounding neighborhoods and shops since she was speaking at and writing for a national conference this week and still had prep work to do.  I explored Union Square before meeting up with The Writer somewhat later for dinner.  We had hearty pasta at Don Giovanni's in Hell's Kitchen.  It was delicious and, I have to say, the salad that came before my stuffed shells was really impressive, not wimpy at all!

He and I decided to be a little touristy and walk through Times Square.  It was so jam packed! We finished up the night by taking a walk up 5th Ave. to Central Park before catching the subway "home".  Needless to say, I slept very soundly that night.

Manhattan in Heels

One should never take it to be a good sign when your first stop of the day is at the drug store to buy Band Aids for your feet.  All throughout my trip, I'd been seeing these women walking around in heels.  I'd brought one of my more comfortable pairs to wear with my orange Target dress and figured I'd give them a go on Friday.  I don't know how they do it!  I was silly to think that one or two Band Aids would make traipsing around Manhattan in four inch wedges bearable.  It did make me painfully aware of just how much I walk in a day around here.

After some lunch at Whole Foods with The Writer, I decided to check out Ground Zero.  I'd never seen the  former site of the World Trade Center towers even though I'd had several opportunities.  Truthfully, when I got there, there wasn't much to see except a construction site and part of a new skyscraper. I didn't walk around too much before heading towards the South Street Seaport.  The walk looked like a short distance on the map but it turned out to be quite long and crowded, especially in heels.  Due to the humidity and the threat of rain, I headed back uptown to rest my feet in Border's.

The Writer met me there after he got out of work and we went over to take advantage of Target Free Friday Nights at The Museum of Modern Art.  Still in my devil shoes, I hobbled around the galleries with the help of my love.  He was excited to see several pieces by Roy Lichtenstein, one of his favorite pop artists, and Van Gogh's Starry Night.  I could've spent a good part of forever in a smaller room with walls covered by four magnificent Monet's.  We were running out of time before the museum closed, but managed to see another favorite of mine, Mondrian's Broadway Boogie Woogie, before security herded us from the galleries.

Last on our agenda for the night was a trip to the Upper West Side for some Rita's Water Ice.  I hadn't had water ice in so long and it was just as good as I remembered.  I tried the new flavor, honeydew, and The Writer had raspberry.  I wish Rita's were as common as Starbucks, I would go there everyday.  Thankfully, bed was just a train ride away and I could finally take my shoes off and rest my exhausted feet.

Sugar High

Yesterday, I took a self-guided, judgement free tour of some of the sweetest places in New York.   I went a little further into Times Square to find M&M's World. Yes, it was a touristy thing to do, and I felt conspicuous with my bright yellow M&M's bag for the rest of the day, but how do you turn down an entire wall of multi-colored M&M's? I layered some brightly colored peanut M&M's into a bag and slipped down into the subway, like a little rat escaping the tourists and their cameras.

The Writer and I were planning on going to an outdoor movie in Brooklyn last night and I wanted to get some sweets that The Writer could enjoy, too.  I found Sockerbit pretty easily once I got down to the West Village.  Their bins of sweets make you smile instantly!  I filled up a bag of gummy treats for The Writer and I to share and decided to continue my search for sugars at Magnolia Bakery which was just around the corner and up a few blocks.  Tourists were lined up outside, to my disappointment, but I decided to wait anyways.  I wanted to try those cupcakes! I bought a box with one chocolate and one vanilla cupcake with buttercream frosting and a lightly sweetened coffee. Something told me that the frosting had enough sugar to compensate for my extra Splenda.  I was glad for the park across the corner where I sat to eat my chocolate cupcake and drink some coffee.  The little birds there must be used to Magnolia's customers, because they were quite bold.  I shared some chocolatey crumbs with a few sparrows who hopped up onto my table.

It started to look like rain, so I headed back to Midtown to wait for The Writer to get out of work.  Even though it didn't end up raining, the forecast predicted a 60% chance of rain, so we decided to skip out on the outdoor movie.  We ate dinner at Totto Ramen, a Japanese noodle restaurant.  Yes, it was ramen noodles, but it was so much better than what you'd get for $.50 at the grocery store.

Tired, we headed back to his room to enjoy many of the sweets that I'd picked up throughout the day.  They were so yummy!

I'm sad that I'm not able to post pictures, since I discovered that my digital camera's screen had somehow gotten smashed in my travels a few days ago.  Hopefully, I'll be able to have a few picture posts once I'm back on my Mac (I've been using The Writer's) and can get the cell phone shots edited and whatnot.

New York City Solo

The Writer had to go back to work yesterday, which left me to explore the city on my own.  In all the times I've traveled to NYC, I've never had to navigate on my own.  I wasn't worried. I love subway systems and city grids, they make sense to me, unlike the winding country roads that swirl around until you have no idea who's cornfield you're in.

I hadn't slept especially well, so I spent a few hours in the morning reading in Borders and scouring Sephora's shelves for body care products that line up with my new obsession: paraben, mineral oil, and sodium laureth sulphate free.

Feeling rejuvenated from my lunch with The Writer, I headed down to SoHo for some shopping.  My first destination was Topshop.  I want to say that I loved it and never want to shop anywhere else, but that would be a lie.  I was most impressed by the shoes, however, I found the prices, in general, to be a little outside of my budget.  The clothes were of a higher quality than Forever 21, but had the same hipster shabbiness to them, for the most part. I did find a cute, vintage-inspired red and white polka dot dress that, if it weren't for the price tag, I probably would've bought.  It was 100% silk, and with the heat this week, I'm finding that all I want to wear are lightweight dresses.

I was about to give up on SoHo, but I decided to give a few more stores a try.  Right before a sun shower, I ducked into a little Japanese store with all kinds of interesting things.  It reminded me of a miniature, Asian Ikea.  I wish Ohio'd had one before I came here, because this store was stocked with all kinds of travel accessories.  After the rain, I stopped at another store that reminded me of Ikea.  This one had more furniture and housewares and made me want an apartment that needed decorating.  I then wandered into a little boutique stocked almost entirely of dresses and shoes. Ding, ding, ding!  I found a lightweight, black and white abstract print dress there.  It needs a slip,  but I can probably find one of those today so that I can wear the dress in the next week.

My last purchase of the day came from another boutique a little further down Broadway.  This one was crowded and less classy than I prefer, but I found the perfect maxi dress that I've been searching for.  I deal with a strange phenomenon when maxi dress shopping. Unlike many Americans, I have a waist and that waist needs to be defined by my clothes, otherwise I look like I'm wearing a sack.  Maxi dresses are particularly difficult to shop for, because so many of them feature a gathered empire waist and flow out from under the bust line.  These make me look like arms and a head perched on top of a prairie-like traffic cone. The tiered ones are the worst.  They may flatter thicker girls, but me? I disappear.  This maxi dress was different.  It's a slightly clingy rayon/spandex blend, is strapless, and features a drawstring waistline that falls not too far from my natural waist.  I love the teal color too--I see it being very versatile.  Possibly the best thing about it, it was only $19.99.  If you've shopped for maxi dresses lately, you know its hard to find a nice one on sale for even $30. and that's pushing it.

After that, I thought it best to remove myself from SoHo, lest I be tempted to keep shopping.  I took the train back uptown to meet The Writer for dinner at Otarian, his favorite vegan restaurant.  We had potato and spinach burgers and sweet potato chiplets. Yum!  We did some quick grocery shopping before heading home.

Later on, we took a nighttime stroll along the High Line.  It was every bit as cool as I'd imagined and I really enjoyed the quite walk with my love.  I'm having such a great time on this trip, I don't think I want to leave.

Hot Child in the City

It was HOT in New York today.  To escape the heat, The Writer and I went to the Guggenheim.  We got a late start after a lazy morning and took the subway up to the Upper East Side.  We crossed through Central park, around the reservoir, to get there.  It may not have been the most direct route, but the scenic stroll was well worth it.  Once at the museum, I was surprised by the size of the collection and exhibits.  Most of the art museums I've been too could take days to get through, but we made it through the Guggenheim in practically no time by comparison.  I found the Impressionist exhibit to be my favorite.  I forget how much I like Van Gogh and Seurat until I see their work up close. Fantastic!

After our self-guided tour, we wandered up and down Madison Ave. a bit to find lunch.  The counter girl at Marco Polo's Deli and Pizzeria was a little annoyed at life, it seemed, but our panini and Philly steak sandwich were just what we needed.

Next on our agenda was to go out for ice cream.  This was a first for us, as a couple, since The Writer is lactose intolerant.  We'd had dairy-free ice cream at home, but never been able to go out for a cone together.  In his explorations of the city prior to my arrival, he'd discovered Lula's Sweet Apothecary in the East Village.  We got a little turned around in the Village and my feet started to ache unbearable just as we found the tiny shop.  The guy behind the counter seemed so happy about his work and patiently offered me samples until I made my final selection (strawberry and cookies & cream on a sugar cone).  everything served at Lula's is all natural and vegan, so it's safe for The Writer's tummy.  Did I mention it was delicious?  I'm glad we finally found it.  Now we can go back all the time!

Where I'm Going: NYC part 2

In exactly four days, I will be landing in New York City and free from my awful job.  The Writer's been doing some more exploring and finding lots of great places for us to go.  Have I said I'm excited yet? I told him last night that I'm so excited, I'm about to just start running in that direction.

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One of the first things on our agenda will be the Fourth of July fireworks over the Hudson River.  I've missed out on going to fireworks the past few years and I'm looking forward to what is sure to be a great show with a fantastic view.  Apparently the fireworks show in NYC is one of the largest shows in the nation.  The Writer's dorm is about a 15 minute walk from the river, so we'll be able to trot on down for a front row view of the extravaganza.

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During my last trip to Manhattan, which was a few years ago, my family and I visited the Metropolitan Museum of Art.  While I'm definitely considering going back to see the fashion collections (especially the McQueen exhibit!) and the Egyptian wing, I'm looking forward to going to The Guggenheim.  The building itself is a work of art!  My parents are not modern or contemporary art aficionados, so The Guggenheim was definitely not up their alley, but The Writer? It's on our to-do list!

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I was reading recently that nearly every New York blogger has talked about Sockerbit Sweet & Swedish candy shop.  Maybe it's becoming redundant, but seriously...a candy store! Who doesn't love a candy store? Their sweets look delicious and I'm a weakling when it comes to gummy, fruity treats.  I'm pretty sure I'll be epitomizing the "kid in a candy store" expression!

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The Writer took this photo of the High Line park this past week.  What was once an abandoned railway line in Manhattan's West Side has been converted into a park. I think it's pretty cool: you get a raised view of the city while walking among greenery.  I see a lot of time being spent in parks on this trip.  They're beautiful, inexpensive, and relaxing and I plan on relaxing a lot.

I started to gather some things together last night.  Packing is going to be a challenge, since I'm not checking any luggage.  I'm not going to pay $25 each way.  It will be cheaper to cram everything into a rolling carry-on and a large canvas tote/"purse" than to check bags.  Stay tuned...

Where I'm Going: NYC Part 1

I've been kind of quiet on the blog-front these last few days.  I've missed hitting "Publish Post" and oo-ing and ah-ing over my blog.  Things with work, and consequently, life, have been a little more than complicated lately and I've been really down.  I don't want my blog to be a place where I whine about things that aren't going my way, so I've kept my mouth shut.

If it hasn't become obvious yet, I'm super pumped about my trip to visit The Writer in NYC.  The trip is a bright spot amongst my grey circumstances.  He'll be working six out of the ten days I'll be there, so I'm going to have some time to explore the city on my own.  I've been making a list of places I want to go, many of which we may end up at together.  Planning has had me pouring over maps of Manhattan, so I feel pretty prepared to navigate alone.

1. Rita's Water Ice 

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Water Ice is pretty much an east coast thing. A very good thing, to be exact. Growing up in New Jersey, I can't remember a summer that didn't involve walking to a water ice shop for my favorite flavor: usually mango or mint chocolate chip.  When I came to Ohio to go to college, no one had ever heard of water ice. In fact, they thought I was crazy. I think it's the name that's confusing.  I was beyond excited to find a NYC location for Rita's.  I can't wait to take The Writer there so he can see how it can be water and ice at the same time ;-)

2. Topshop

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When my old roommate and The Writer ventured to London last spring, they came back with such goodies from Topshop that I knew I had to go there, first chance I could.   The Writer, being the sweetie that he is, sent me a text a couple weeks ago during his free week in New York that said, "Need anything from Topshop?" My reply was, "Probably!" I'm so glad he likes shopping!

3.  Mood Fabrics 

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I'm excited to go here, and to many other fabric stores in the garment district, not only because I'm a slight fan of Project Runway, but because I am so tired of JoAnn Fabrics.  There is a world beyond quilting and prom dresses, people!  Why are there seven aisles of fleece?  I have a list of outfits that I want to create for myself, but finding the right fabric around here has been difficult.  I wonder if there's anywhere in NYC to rent a sewing booth, or something like that.  If there was, I wouldn't have to pack as many clothes, since I could just make new ones once I got there!

4. Magnolia Bakery

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CUP. CAKES. I might not be able to eat them, they are so gorgeous!  The Writer told me that they had Magnolia cupcakes at his internship this weekend and they looked divine.  Even though I read someplace recently that Crumb cupcakes are better, I still have to go to Magnolia.  Who knows, maybe I'll go to Crumb, too.  Stay tuned for the post in which I mourn the return of my love handles because I spent days consuming only delicious cupcakes.

5. Central Park

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This is one place that I've been before, but am excited to go back to.  I may spend an afternoon at the Central Park Zoo, or just lounge in the sun with a book.  I may borrow The Writer's bicycle and ride around the whole park for a day.  I'll probably need the extra exercise after indulging in too many Magnolia cupcakes!

There are many more places on my list, but I'm saving them for another day.  If anyone's going to be in the city July 6-10 and wants to join me on my solo adventures, shoot me an email and we can meet up!

Leavin' on a Jet Plane...

It's official! At 6:55am on the Fourth of July, I will be flying to New York City and by 9:30am, hopefully, The Writer and I will be doing this:

I can't actually remember whether or not we were really kissing. We were being goofy, that's for sure. 9:30am is a little early for goofiness, but after being apart for over a month, I don't think it will matter much.

I have so many ideas and things I want to do.  I got an unexpected surprise when I went to purchase my tickets this morning: if I flew there on the Fourth of July, I could have an extra two days more than I'd planned for a lower price than the deal I'd originally found.

I'm so excited!  I had a dream a few nights ago that I became BFF's with Isaac Mizrahi at Starbucks and totally became his muse.  In my dream, he gave me a handbag that looked like a Marc Jacobs design from a few years ago.  Regardless, it was beautiful and we were fabulous. I think it's a good sign.

The Writer & Redhead Take Miami

The Writer and I finally got some good, solid alone time yesterday.  We drove across Alligator Alley to South Beach, Miami.  No alligators were seen on the way there or on the way back.  After all the wildlife we've seen on this vacation, I almost expected a few alligators or, if we were lucky, a panther.

I made the mistake of not eating a good breakfast before we left, so by the time we got there I was a little cranky from being hungry.  We walked our way down the Lincoln Drive Mall, making a few stops before my stomach really started grumbling.  We found a beachfront Italian restaurant for beers and mojitos to go with his steak and my veggie panini, which were absolutely delicious!

Our parking meter was almost up, so we decided to take a spin further down South Beach.  There was a music festival that The Writer was really interested in and wanted to try to sneak in some listening. We had thought about getting tickets, but it was a three-day event and the passes were pricey.  I wanted to check out Dash, since I'm a little bit of a Kardashian fan, but parking was nowhere to be found.  We managed to drive by our points of interest, so at least we can say that we were there.

We parked back at the original lot and hit Starbucks for some caffienation and the use of their bathrooms.  Even though we both try to avoid chain restaurants and such while exploring a new area, Starbucks is somehow different. Maybe it's the air conditioning, but it always seems to be calming when you step into a Starbucks far from home.  After some more shopping and a long walk along the beach (I think The Writer was trying to find UltraFest again) we headed to dinner at The Big Pink.  Thankfully, there was parking closer to the restaurant because my feet were thoroughly worn out.

Dinner was delish! I usually don't go for any kind of cheesesteak, since I'm used to authentic Philly cuisine, but I took the waiters recommendation and tried the chicken cheesesteak with peppers, onions, and mushrooms.  I like to add some spaghetti sauce for a pizza cheesesteak feel. After dinner, we headed back to his parent's house in the dark, not a nerve-wracking experience at all! Well, not for me because I fell asleep, but The Writer had to be sure he didn't hit any alligators or run out of gas. We made it back safely and slept extremely well.

Spring Break 2011

The Writer and I have been in Fort Myers, Florida since last Friday.  His parents moved down here last August and we're spending the week in their gorgeous home.  After this past winter, we definitely needed some sun and we've sure had it.  It's been 85 degrees and and sunny the whole time!

We nearly missed missed our flight down here.  The plane was set to depart at 5:40 am and we didn't get on the airport shuttle until 5:00 because we slept through our alarms.  It's a good thing the front desk called us when we weren't there for the 4:30 shuttle as planned and that an airport employee informed us that there was a completely empty security checkpoint only one terminal down or we would have been making alternate travel plans.

For dinner that night, I tried alligator tail! I can't say its something I'd want to add to my regular diet, since the consistency is a bit tough, but it was tasty and worth the adventure.  I was still trying to stick to my diet as much as possible during those first few days, so I may have been persuaded to eat it by its extremely high protein content.  Needless to say, my diet and exercising effort have diminished considerably as vacation mode has set in.  I still try to load up on salad when I can and we're staying pretty active by biking, kayaking, and walking along the beaches, but I'm definitely letting myself indulge on desserts and carbs way more than I have for the two weeks leading up to vacation.

We've seen lots of interesting wildlife, too.  Almost immediately after arriving at The Writer's parent's house, we saw a bald eagle flying overhead and a manatee down by their dock.  The next day, which we spent on Sanibel Island, we visited a park that had a variety of parrots, ducks, and lemurs.  We saw another manatee and a few dolphins on our boating excursion the next day, although not nearly as many as they usually see, which was a little disappointing. Yesterday, we were back on Sanibel beach, and saw a group of 10 stingrays swimming along the shoreline together.  There have also been numerous turtle and lizard sightings, as well as a trip to the most exotic pet store I've ever been in.  It was so hard to leave without a puppy or a baby hedgehog, but lack of funds and the distance we'd have to transport our new pet deterred us.

I'm not missing work or job hunting at all.  When I first heard that the one business that I work for, a dance studio, was most likely going to be closing and that they could no longer pay me, I felt as if this vacation was coming at a bad time.  I'd started looking for a new and more permanent position immediately and had to postpone an interview until after our return.  I'm glad to have gotten away.  I think that the time I've spent relaxing in the sun and having a more normal schedule instead of having to wake up at 3:45 am for work has made me realize that nothing about my current employment situation is suitable to me.  Granted, it is better that trying to make it on a retail salesperson job, but it isn't the nine-to-five I was hoping it would be.  The Writer's parents have given me some good advice that I'll hopefully be able to use to find something that's a good fit as soon as we get home.