A Day in Hanna's World

St. Patrick's Day Weekend

What a nice weekend. The weather was really nice all weekend. We were off both Saturday & Sunday so what more can you want? :)

Yesterday, Saturday, I spent some time in the yard, working on an area in the front part of the house where I need to dig up some vines and clear up some old brush and stuff like that. Did that for about 2 1/2 hours and around 3pm we went to Two Steps for St. Patrick's Day. Met up with some friends and stayed there till about 9pm. Had fun hanging out eating (Mike had shepherds pie, I had a corned beef sandwich with swiss cheese and thousand island dressing) and drinking (Mike had Harp & Guiness and I had Magner's Cider) Here is a picture of me if you want to see.

Today we slept in and then went for a 5 mile walk around town. The weather was perfect, not too cold, not too hot. Stopped at TK's for lunch and then continued on home, a little more than a mile. So a little more than 6 miles all in all. Now we are home and will catch up on our recorded TV shows in a bit. I think I will treat myself with a Magnum ice cream in a minute. Yumm. :)

Mail update: No letters have gone out. Still owe replies/received letters from: Jessica/DE, Kimber/Halifax.

Spring is in the air

I know it's not officially spring yet but the weather has definitely been very spring-like, especially yesterday. It's supposed to be nice and warm pretty much all week I think. Can't complain about that. :) 

Saturday I had to work but yesterday, Sunday, I took the opportunity to go out in the yard and work on some things. Dug up a bunch of weeds/vines. It's very slow progress and sometimes I feel like I will never get there but it was nice to be outside anyway. Felt nice to be outside in the sun.  I can definitely feel the after effects of using my arms a lot yesterday though. Maybe I need to get in better shape. :)

Now it's Monday and back to work. In more fun news we just decided to see "Of Monsters and Men" (an Icelandic band we recently discovered) in Rochester, NY on April 9th. It's a Monday so we will probably leave on Sunday and come back Tuesday. (about a 6 hr drive) Will be nice to be away for a couple of days again. 

Mail update: Letters went out last Thursday to: Tiffany/OK and Charles/TN. 

Hello again from Indy

Having a really good time here in Indiana. Yesterday, Sunday, we went on a little scenic drive to Bloomington, Indiana. Walked around Bloomington for a bit and had lunch at the Irish Lion. Hung out there for a bit and then went to the Oliver Winery a bit outside of town. A really neat place. They have huge grounds in the back, a lake, patio, etc. I can see where it would be very pretty in the warmer months, having a picnic lunch out back. We did the wine tasting and really enjoyed all the wines we tasted. I have to say it was one of the better wineries we have been to. Ended up buying a case of wine to bring back to CT. Comes in handy to have a car sometimes. After the winery we went to Nashville, IN, walked around there for a bit and then back to Indianapolis. Had dinner at the Rock Bottom Brewery and some after dinner wine at the Tastings Wine Bar next door.

Today we had breakfast at Einstein Bagels, then walked to the zoo which is just across a bridge from downtown (about a mile and a half). Spent some time at the zoo where we saw a cute tiger and a bunch of hyper meerkats among other things. After the zoo we walked back downtown and had a snack and some drinks at the Hard Rock Cafe.

Now we are back at the hotel for a bit. In a little while we will head back out to walk towards the section of downtown where the theater is where we will see the Kooks later. Going to have dinner at Barcelon Tapas beforehand. 

Tomorrow we are off to Pittsburgh. Going to stop in Dayton, Ohio on the way to see the Airforce Museum. Definitely enjoying our time away from work.

Mail update:  Yesterday letters went out to  Celia/MA, Lotte/Denmark, Jessica/DE and Emilia/Finland. Still owe replies to: Tiffany/OK and Charles/TN.

Hello from Indianapolis

And here we are in Indianapolis. It's been a long day of driving but fun. We set the alarm for 2:45 and left the house about 3:30. Got here right around 4:30pm.  Long  day but at least it's still early enough where we can freshen up in our room and then head out for dinner and get a decent night of sleep afterwards.

Will probably head to the RAM Brewery & Restaurant for dinner. It's just three minutes from the hotel. Maybe we will stop at the Hard Rock Cafe for a drink afterwards. We will see.

Very happy to have today and the next four days off from work although we did already receive three work calls today driving here. But it's still more fun being away from work, makes things easier. :) Tomorrow we will probably take a ride out to Bloomington and Nashville, Indiana. Not sure what we will do Monday yet.

Mail update:  On the way here I wrote letters to:  Celia/MA, Lotte/Denmark, Jessica/DE and Emilia/Finland. Still owe replies to: Tiffany/OK and Charles/TN.

Oscar Weekend

And almost the end of February already again. Time flies. This week was fairly uneventful which was good I guess. I was off on Tuesday, was semi-productive (washed our current bed set and put a different one on) and also finished reading Stephen King's 11-22-63. What a great book. I would recommend that to anyone looking for a good book to read. It's totally different from Stephen King's normal horror books too. Anyway, definitely something I would recommend.

Since I was off on Tuesday I had to work on Saturday. Was a pretty quiet day all in all though. After work we went over to our friend Tim's house to hang out there with a few other friends. Tim made a delicious dinner (bruschetta, steak, pasta & sausage) and we had a good time hanging out eating, drinking and talking.

Today we slept in late, then went grocery shopping and for a late lunch at TKs. In a bit we will catch up on some of our recorded shows and then later we will watch the Oscars of course. Always neat to watch. We bought some cheese and crackers and will enjoy that with some wine.

Next weekend we will be off to Indianapolis. We will leave really early on Saturday as it's a 13 hour drive. We will spend Saturday night, Sunday and Monday in Indianapolis. IN (Monday we have tickets to see The Kooks). Then on Tuesday we will head to Pittsburgh, PA with a stop in Dayton, OH to visit the Airforce Museum. Wednesday it's back home to CT. Should be a fun roadtrip. It's always fun to get away for a few days.

Mail update:  A letter went out to Nina/WA. Received letters from/owe replies to: Celia/MA, Lotte/Denmark, Jessica/DE, Emilia/Finland and Tiffany/OK.

Birthday Weekend - Lots of wings and more

Another week gone by. Actually had the whole weekend off which has been nice.  On Tuesday was Valentine's Day and went to  Della Francesca which was really good.  We had Alaskan king crab with a vodka cocktail sauce as an appetizer. Mike had lobster ravioli and I had the most delicious veal scallopini coated in a parmesan crust with a lemon wine sauce. For dessert we shared tiramisu. Yum. :)

Friday we went to Bluu for the first part of Mike's birthday celebration. Had a coupon for a free bottle of champagne along with free desserts. Had a nice night out with some friends. Then Saturday we went to TK's for Mike's free birthday wings. One good thing about getting older at least - more free wings. :) Had a fun night out eating wings and nachos, hanging out with friends. 

Tonight it's back to TKs as it's our friend Kim's birthday. Will be nice to catch up with her and her husband John. Haven't seen them since September on John's birthday. I am sure their daughter Riley has grown quite a bit too. Will be nice to see them and hang out for a bit. Then tomorrow it's already Monday and back to work again. If all goes well I will be off on Tuesday at least since I am working next Saturday again.

Mail update:  Received letters from/owe replies to: Lotte/Denmark, Jessica/DE, Nina/WA, Emilia/Finland and Tiffany/OK.

Annoying cold, movies, Mexican food & the Grammys

Still fighting that same annoying cold. It's mostly the cough that's super annoying now. Definitely one of the worst coughs I have had in a while. Been living off of these Austrian coughdrops I brought back with me during my last visit. Lots of soup, tea, etc. Tuesday I was home/off from work since I had to work Saturday so I spent Tuesday in my PJs, relaxing, drinking tea and reading. Started reading the new Stephen King book 11-22-63 which I have really enjoyed so far.

Not too much else new otherwise. Friday (2/10) was our wedding anniversary. Eleven years already. Time flies. We didn't do anything too special since I am still fighting this cold. For Tuesday, Valentine's Day, we have a new dinner planned at Della Francesca which should be nice. And then on Saturday, 2/18, is Mike's birthday. So February is always a busy month for us. 

Yesterday I went to the movies with my friend Jana, went to see "The Vow" which was pretty good. Today Mike & I ended up having lunch at this new Mexican place El Cojote. Just opened about a month ago and we wanted to try it out. Then the afternoon was spent grocery shopping, doing laundry, etc. Now we are home and will catch up with our TV shows in a bit, then the Grammys later. Should be fun. 

Mail update: Letters went out to: Nicki/OZ and Charles/TN, Received letters from/owe replies to: Nina/WA, Emilia/Finland and Tiffany/OK.

David Garrett, Rizzuto's & Super Bowl

Fighting an annoying cold at the moment. Ugh. Have had it since Wednesday so I am hoping that it will go away fairly soon. Luckily it wasn't too bad yet on Wednesday so I was able to enjoy the David Garrett concert and our short overnight stay in Morristown, NJ. The show was absolutely incredible as expected. Our seats were third row center so just perfect. The hotel we stayed at was really nice too (got a great deal on Hotwire so worked out). On our way back from NJ on Thursday we stopped in our Newburgh, NY office for a bit and then went back to work in our Danbury office.

The rest of the week was fairly uneventful. Had to work Saturday but luckily it was a pretty quiet day. Today, Sunday, we went to check out the newest location of Rizzuto's in Stamford, CT. We had a Buy 1 Get 1 Free Entree coupon to use so that worked out nicely. Had yummy pizza (mine was topped with prosciutto and arugala) and nutella cheesecake for dessert. Delcious!!

Now we are back home and watching the Super Bowl. Well Mike is watching the game, I am mostly just watching the commercials and drinking tea. :) But that's ok, the commercials are usually pretty entertaining since all the companies put so much money in their special Super Bowl ads. 

Mail update: Letters going out tomorrow to: Celia/MA, Received letters from/owe replies to: Charles/TN, Nina/WA, Emilia/Finland, Nicki/OZ and Tiffany/OK.

Relaxed Weekend

Not too bad of a week and a pretty relaxed Sunday at home.  Yesterday I had a dentist appointment and another one tomorrow but other than that not too much going on. Today we slept in and then had a late breakfast at Elmer's (local diner). Now home catching up with some letters, emails and other stuff around the house.

Also made fried rice (a healthier make-at-home version) this afternoon. Will be good to take to work for lunch during the week. Was pretty happy with the outcome, tastes yummy.  :) Now on the couch drinking tea and surfing the web. The cats are all here too, asleep and curled up next to us. 

Next week Wednesday we have tickets to see David Garrett in New Jersey. Looking forward to the show. We have third row tickets so should be good. :) We are staying overnight in Morristown. It's about a two hour ride so will make it easier to stay overnight and drive to work in the morning. 

Mail update: Letters going out tomorrow to: Lotte/Denmark. Received letters from/owe replies to: Nina/WA, Emilia/Finland, Nicki/OZ and Tiffany/OK.

First real snow of the season

... well not including the massive storm back in October that dumped over a foot of snow on us (but that was technically still in the fall) This storm on Saturday ended up with about six inches of snow, not that bad. Plus tomorrow it's supposed to be pretty warm so I have a feeling that a lot of it is going to melt and turn into a big mess. Oh well, what can you do? Can't control the weather. 

This weekend turned out pretty ok. Had to go into work on Saturday because of the snow but at least we were able to leave by 1:30. Relaxed at home for a bit and then had an early dinner at Rizzuto's where they always seem to have great snow deals (2 for 1 dinner entrees etc.) Had a yummy dinner, then headed home and caught up  on some of our shows. Today was a pretty relaxed day too. Slept in, then had a great breakfast at Elmer's Diner, grocery shopping and now home relaxing, writing letters, answering emails, etc. 

In a little while we will have some dinner (cheese+crackers) and wine and catch up on some more of our shows.  Then tomorrow it's already Monday again. Let's see what this week brings. Hopefully should be fairly uneventful but you never know of course. 

Mail update: Letters going out tomorrow to: Caroline/Scotland, Charles/TN and Carmen/Malta. Received letters from/owe replies to: Emilia/Finland, Nicki/OZ, Lotte/Denmark and Tiffany/OK.