Yard Work is Hard Work

We don't love our yard yet (although we like the view) - it mainly consists of hard clay, tons of rocks and black beetles that hop. How do you like our patio? It's a little small.

Countdown to Extinction

Well, we just returned from a long unproductive day of car shopping. It seems that for the past few weeks, we have spent every minute of our free time -- plus stealing several hours of NON-free time from more important things -- trying to find our first good car. By "good" I mean something with fewer than 160,000 miles on it with an engine that doesn't sound like a boot in a washing machine, all the external mirrors are still atached to the car, the trunk opens, and prayer that it won't explode when you get on the freeway is not absolutely necessary (although its never a bad idea).

In any case, after squandering several weekends already encountering very unreliable cars and even more unreliable car salesmen, after Whitney spent countless hours hunting down leads on the Internet and running loan calculators every night after work, after I went from being a month ahead to being a week behind in my coursework -- we were determined. WE ARE ABSOLUTELY, WITHOUT A DOUBT GOING TO DRIVE HOME IN OUR NEW (TO US) CAR TODAY!!!

So after a loooong morning at a local dealership, we took a 45 minute drive to a dealership in a neighboring city to see a Hyundai that seemed very promising (i.e., not a ticking time-bomb, see above), and we were very hopeful that this would be the car. The manager had called us that morning to tell us that he would be getting it ready for us to look at it and we had reviewed the Carfax, which looked really clean. So when we finally got there and talked to the sales people, we were almost positive that this would be our car, and we were on the verge of celebrating as we drove out to the lot to give it a once-over. The whole thing went over great... except the fact that they had already sold it to someone else 10 minutes before we arrived...

Utterly dejected and forlorn, we did what anyone would do - we bought two rakes and a bottle of wine... oh yeah, and a shovel. Anything to redeem the day.

P.S. The rakes are to prepare our barren yard for some much needed professional aeration and seeding. The shovel is to bury the bodies of a few used car salesmen. If you've read this far with anything like an empathic heart you know very well what the wine is for --- to drown our sorrows.

P.P.S. "What have you been driving if you don't have a car?" you ask? A good friend has been letting us borrow his 1989 Honda... the odometer reads 249,000 and counting and every time I look at another mile roll by on the counter, I think the following:

"Dang, Sameer, remember Megadeath's album Countdown to Extinction? Man, I pray that when this thing finally does explode on the freeway that my brain doesn't start playing "Symphony of Destruction" in my head. I hate it when bad speed metal (forgive the redundancy) gets stuck in my head. Actually, I think I'd rather have *actual* metal stuck in my head, which is I guess what would happen if this thing DID in fact explode right now..."

P.P.P.S. Okay now I'm rambling. And we haven't even popped the cork on that wine yet!!!

Autumn at last

1 point for Durham - good Farmer's Markets!

We should have just left the eggplant on the table;

it was much prettier there.

I'll leave the eggplant recipes to the experts.

New blog

Yay! Catherine has a blog!

My trip

Some people shouldn't drive while talking on a cell phone. Apparently I shouldn't walk while talking on a cell phone. Yesterday morning as I was making the long trek from the parking lot to the Divinity School I was talking to Sameer on the phone. I had just been telling him how tired I was when I started flying forward. I tried to stop and catch myself and figure out what has happening and why my legs were way behind. The next second I was face down a good few feet ahead of my last step. My phone flew out of my hand and broke into 3 pieces and both my shoes were off my feet way behind me. This was quite embarassing - and yet so funny I just had to share it. I really have no idea how it happened.

Hymn

Rejoice, the Lord is King!
Your Lord and King adore;
Rejoice, give thanks and sing,
and triumph evermore;
Lift up your heart, lift up your voice;
Rejoice, again I say, rejoice!

Jesus, the Savior, reigns,
the God of truth and love;
When He had purged our stains
He took His seat above;
Lift up your heart, lift up your voice;
Rejoice, again I say, rejoice!

His kingdom cannot fail,
He rules over earth and heav'n,
The keys of death and hell are to
our Jesus given;
Lift up your heart, lift up your voice;
Rejoice, again I say, rejoice!

He sits at God's right hand
till all His foes submit,
And bow to His command, and fall
beneath His feet:
Lift up your heart, lift up your voice;
Rejoice, again I say, rejoice!

Rejoice in glorious hope!
Our Lord, the Judge shall come,
And take His servants up
to their eternal home.
Lift up your heart, lift up your voice;
Rejoice, again I say, rejoice!

Charles Wesley, 1744

Well - lucky me - I didn't have to choose. I was subjected to both situations at once - inane pseudo-intellectual conversation between two people
who punctuate their sophomoric babbling with inappropriate displays of affection...

Wooja Radder?

Maddy liked to play the game "Would You Rather...." (affectionately known as "Wooja Radder?") with us when we were in Idaho this summer.

Here is a real life "Wooja Radder?" from school today.

While attempting to study, and forced to sit next to a
couple of college freshman -- would you rather:

1) that they are having what they think is a deep
discussion about, like, philosophy, and stuff, where,
like, they are totally thinking about stuff like
whether reality, like, totally, is like *real*, or if it
is just, like, your mind thinking stuff but it really,
like, is just your *MIND* and NOT real... whoa.

OR

2) that they are an ultra cutesy couple
who are talking to each other about how
one thinks the other is really cute, etc. etc.
interspersed with ridiculous displays of affection
that are completely unjustified by the context (e.g.,
I just got back from the bathroom, let's hug, or, I
finished reading this sentence, let's make out)...

We just broke the law

There is a bad drought going on throughout the Southeast. When we were staying with friends who had cable we heard about it on the news a few times and learned that it was illegal to water your lawn more than every other day. Before we moved into our house we did hear that Raleigh was enforcing drastic water restrictions but we still thought it was legal to water every other day in Durham.

We forgot to water all weekend - or maybe we didn't really forget - we just neglected to because it's a muddy inconvenience to water an oddly shaped back yard and "2" front yards with nothing but a hose. (Californians with sprinkler systems have no idea.....)

So when we got home from work tonight Sameer immediately started watering the lawn. I opened the mail and got an advertisement from a lawn care company and called them about aeration of our yard. The salesman asked if we had been watering our yard and I proudly said, "Oh yes, we're watering right now." Pause...Awkward silence.... "Well, I certainly don't want to encourage you to break the law. You really shouldn't be watering today," he said.

We looked it up and sure enough, Durham is on strict water restrictions. We may only water on Wednesdays and Saturdays between 5 and 9. Oops. We also read that all citizens are to report neighbors who are breaking the law by watering. So now we're in trouble. And so is our grass. But at least we don't have to feel guilty when our grass dies. We didn't like watering every other day anyway.

How is one to find out about these new laws when one does not have television? Is it a crime to not waste time in front of the tv?

New Home

Well after quite a tiring summer we closed on our home and moved in the same day - August 31st. It has been a relief to settle down and we are loving our place. It is much bigger and nicer than our last 3 apartments and sometimes we have a hard time believing that we actually get to stay here. I guess it feels like we're house sitting or renting or something. It's just plain luxurious after having lived in grad student housing last year. We really really loved our New Haven apartment but while we thought it was very charming and cozy, it was a bit grimy and it lacked the modern conveniences of a garbage disposal, dishwasher, laundry room etc.

We just got internet access here the other day so I wanted to post some pictures of our place. These are pre-furniture pictures taken the week before we moved in. I took the outside pictures today - as you will see, our backyard grass is not coming in at all like it is in the front yard.

Out of touch

The house where we're currently staying doesn't have internet access so we're at "Coffee World" catching up on email and all things internet. The coffee at this place reminds me of my college days when I would make a pot of cheap coffee and just let it sit there and then microwave it and drink it a few days later even though it was disgusting - I just needed the caffeine and I didn't care how it tasted. Well, the coffee at this place is worse than that. It's like drinking acid with a little cream and sugar. The Starbucks across the street doesn't have wireless so here we are.

We visited our soon to be house yesterday and it is all finished and beautiful. We're still kind of holding our breath about the closing and I won't believe it's ours until we get the key. All this moving and job changing we've done over the past couple of years would make any lender a little skeptical.

Sameer had his orientation at Duke last week and he starts classes on Monday. We've met a bunch of great people here already - in fact, we're staying with a really kind student named Melanie right now. She has very graciously opened her home up to us while the Givens have other guests in town. We still haven't found a church yet and I think we'll take some time visiting different ones before we settle - there are so many choices. So far we've visited a really vibrant Presbyterian church that is closer to the downtown area and then we visited an Episcopal church in Chapel Hill. Chapel Hill is a little too far away for us but the worship service was absolutely breathtaking. I have to say that I just love visiting different churches - it is so moving to see more and more of the body of Christ and to worship together with them. We're looking forward to tomorrow...

3 New Blogs

We've added 3 new blogs under "Friends and Family" - Chris & Heather Pelczar, Phil & Megan Camp, and Liz Ingham. Enjoy.

Our Hymn of the Week

Jesus Cast a Look on Me

Jesus cast a look on me,
Give me sweet simplicity
Make me poor and keep me low,
Seeking only Thee to know

All that feeds my busy pride,
Cast it evermore aside
Bid my will to Thine submit,
Lay me humbly at Thy feet

Make me like a little child,
Of my strength and wisdom spoiled
Seeing only in Thy light,
Walking only in Thy might

Leaning on Thy loving breast,
Where a weary soul can rest
Feeling well the peace of God,
Flowing from His precious blood

In this posture let me live,
And hosannas daily give
In this temper let me die,
And hosannas ever cry!

John Berridge, 1716-1793

A hymn for today...

All praise to God, who reigns above,
The God of all creation,
The God of wonders, power, and love,
The God of our salvation!
With healing balm my soul He fills,
The God who every sorrow stills,--
To God all praise and glory!

What God's almighty power hath made
His gracious mercy keepeth;
By morning dawn or evening shade
His watchful eye ne'er sleepeth;
Within the kingdom of His might
Lo, all is just and all is right,--
To God all praise and glory!

I cried to Him in time of need:
Lord God, oh, hear my calling!
For death He gave me life indeed
And kept my feet from falling.
For this my thanks shall endless be;
Oh, thank Him, thank our God, with me,--
To God all praise and glory!

The Lord forsaketh not His flock,
His chosen generation;
He is their Refuge and their Rock,
Their Peace and their Salvation.
As with a mother's tender hand
He leads His own, His chosen band,--
To God all praise and glory!

Ye who confess Christ's holy name,
To God give praise and glory!
Ye who the Father's power proclaim,
To God give praise and glory!
All idols under foot be trod,
The Lord is God! The Lord is God!
To God all praise and glory!

Then come before His presence now
And banish fear and sadness;
To your Redeemer pay your vow
And sing with joy and gladness:
Though great distress my soul befell,
The Lord, my God, did all things well,--
To God all praise and glory!

Johann J. Schuetz, 1640-1690

My Sameer, isn't he talented?!?

We're sitting here in our Hampton Inn Hotel room that we credit to our 3rd successful Priceline experience. (We credit the above picture to a fun night out with Danny, Lindsay, Tracie & Doug - someone was bragging about being able to hold a spoon on their nose, so Sameer one-upped them, promising he could hold one with his forehead...) We've been living with people since July 2nd - first with Sameer's parents - then with mine and then with the Givens family. We've spent a lot of time with people this summer and it's been absolutely wonderful.

There's something about having our own little space though that is so refreshing and relaxing. This little hotel room has given me the best nights of sleep I've had for months. The free air conditioning probably has something to do with that. (We had a record breaking heat wave here in Durham last week - we almost melted, literally.)

As soon as we got here I started my job and we began looking for a house. We found one quickly and we're supposed to close on August 31st if everything goes smoothly. Somewhere in the middle of that Sameer came down with a really bad inner ear infection that caused severe vertigo. Poor guy! I have never seen him so sick. Needless to say, it was a hard transition to Durham.

However, he is now climbing out of it and starting to be his old self. His verbose old self. So, if you dare, check out his new blog: Theoblogical Investigations It will serve as his ThD journal so if you're curious about what Sameer is doing/thinking about/studying, here you go! Just make sure you've got your thinking cap on and you have a quiet place to read.

Idaho Album

Pictures of our week in Idaho:

Idaho Summer 2007

We're staying in a hotel and Sameer's watching a Jet Li movie (not really my thing) so I suppose I'll organize our pictures and update the blog this afternoon.

Click on the photo if you want to see our "house" album.

THE HOUSE

Transition

6 weeks down, 3 weeks to go.

We've been living out of suitcases for 6 weeks now. If everything goes smoothly we'll be in this house by August 31st.

You know you're in the south

when you hear one syllable words (ex: "hi") lasting over 8 seconds long.

We moved

After a wonderful three weeks between Idaho and California we have arrived in Durham, NC. We got here around midnight on Saturday - as we pulled into the neighborhood where we're staying we saw two deer crossing the street....what a treat. The weather was gorgeous on Sunday and the views of the sky and trees were beautiful. These things ease the pain of leaving New Haven a bit.

I (Whitney) am starting my job at the Divinity School this morning. We are staying with Tommy and Kim Givens until we find a house. We started our search yesterday and looked at several homes - we like a few of them so we have a tough decision to make. Hopefully we'll have a picture of our future home up here soon.

Almost Gone...

Well most of our stuff is packed into the truck thanks to several kind friends. We just have to gather up a few more boxes and clean the apartment now. We're hoping to finish by this evening and then perhaps spend one last fun night in New Haven. Tomorrow we'll savor our last time at Christ Pres and in the evening we'll head off to Hartford. Here we are enjoying some delicious New Haven pizza from "BAR" after the hard work. The pizza here has ruined us - we'll never be able to eat pizza anywhere else again - it's just too good here.

What we'll miss the most: Christ Presbyterian Church

(no, it's not snowing in June - this is a winter picture of where we go to church)

When we arrived here last August we happened upon the best thing that has happened to us this year - Christ Presbyterian Church. We had never been to a Presbyterian church before and we weren't sure what to expect. We wonder if we'll ever find another place like it - the combination of the rich liturgical worship, thought provoking and convicting teaching and amazing fellowship is extremely unique.

There is so much going on at this place and we feel we have just barely seen the tip of the iceberg. First of all, I don't think I've ever seen such a large group of people function so well as a family and yet be so so welcoming to newcomers. We were warmly welcomed immediately and sometimes we can't even believe we've only been here for such a short amount of time. This is the place for us - the worship instructs us and draws our hearts to God. This church cares about the poor and the community and is so generous with what they have. This is a church that is mindful of it's urban location and seeks to be a light in New Haven. And the liturgy -I could write pages and pages on why I love liturgical worship. How it nourishes my soul to weekly read the various responses to "Christians, What do you believe?" or "Christians, what is your only comfort in life and death?" We are always reminded of the whole of our faith - from God to Christ's saving work to the resurrection and to the "world without end" that we long for. I love to see the little ones singing the Doxology and the Gloria Patri - these words are etched into their hearts already at such a young age.

A few weeks ago we were in church and I was just amazed to look around and see us surrounded by friends. We feel like we have been here for much longer than 9 months. Leaving this church is definitely the hardest part about moving. People here have been exceedingly kind to us and we have so enjoyed spending the year getting to know them. We are so challenged by the way everyone serves each other and especially by the way they have served us - meeting various needs we have had, like rides to the store or small group...and yesterday several of them loaded all our heavy furniture onto a moving truck. What a help!

Moving across the country to a state we had never visited, where we knew not a soul and had not one single connection (other than the admissions staff at Yale Divinity...) was the most adventurous move we've ever made. I'm amazed at how the year unfolded - how God put so many of His people in our lives so quickly. We leave behind dear friends and an incredible church body that we will sorely miss.

The year is 1957

So the next Indiana Jones movie (can you believe there's actually going to be another one?)is filming a scene or two in New Haven. It's all anybody has been talking about at work the past few weeks. Several people from the office actually went to the casting call and are determined to be extras. The craziness started the other day and downtown New Haven has been transformed into a town called "Bedford" and the year is 1957. Sameer met me after work on Thursday and we thought we'd go downtown for a last stroll through the green and dinner at Richter's (New Haven's oldest bar - one of our many favorite places here...).


We didn't realize that New Haven wouldn't be quite itself for our last night on the town. The streets were filled with 50's cars and all the store fronts were transformed. It was like walking through a museum - except for when we couldn't cross the street or walk a certain direction because they were filming...

Relief

After 3 awfully hot and humid days the weather has changed and we are actually so cold we're wearing sweaters and socks again. Yesterday was my last day at work so today is the day we need to finish all of our packing. Last night we were so miserable in the apartment (no air conditioner...) we could barely stand it. The oppressive humidity was almost making me sick - I had no idea how we would be able to finish packing. Last night I dreamt that someone gave us an air conditioner and sure enough when we woke up at 6:00 a cold breeze was drifting into our room and we actually needed the sheet and blanket. We are very happy and content now and I think we can handle this move.

The Elm City

I LOVE New Haven. When we first got here we heard so many warnings about the danger and crime and poverty. We were honestly nervous to walk down our own street at night. We were skeptical, suspicious and scared. Now, I feel intimately acquainted with this place and I love that. I love that we don't have a car and that we need to walk everywhere. I love taking the city bus to run errands and I love meeting strangers at the bus stop and hearing all about their day. I've never been good at talking to strangers. Living in Santa Clarita and driving a car everywhere didn't help that. I know plenty of people in suburbia who are outgoing and friendly to strangers but it took a place like New Haven for me to learn that I love to meet people and that it's not that hard.

There is so much diversity here. New Haven is not just a university town. Downtown and Yale are all mixed in together.....it's hard to tell where one ends and the other begins. I love the bustling Green in the middle of town. I love to cross it to run errands and I love that the more I walk around town the more I see some of the same people over and over again. Like the sweet old man who reads the paper at Dunkin' Donuts every morning, or the nice homeless man who sits by the bus stop on Broadway St. and helps lost looking people figure out which bus they need - or Sal, who lives on the bench at the northeast corner of the Green.

I like that I actually know and talk to the owners of a few of the little stores we shop at. I love that on a typical day of walking to and from work and maybe running an errand in the evening I usually see a couple people from church and several people I know from work or from the Div school. I also now have so much admiration for some of the hardest working yet least appreciated people - like the bus driver who picked us up at the train station after we got back from New York at 1:00 in the morning on a Tuesday. He probably had to work all night and didn't have childcare so his two children tried to sleep on the front seats of the bus. We watched people get on and off the bus and accidentally bump into the poor tired kids over and over again. I know of two other bus drivers who have to take their kids to work so unfortunately this situation is not uncommon.

We're moving this week and while I'm excited for what's ahead, I am so so sad to leave New Haven because I adore this place and in a strange way it helps me feel more human. I see more of the raw beauty of life and people here even in the midst of poverty and racial tension and class distinction...I do hope this place has changed us.

Last days in New Haven

So we got together with our small group for ice cream in the courtyard and we ended up spending the evening playing on children's play equipment anywhere we could find it - 5 different locations to be precise. Our only regret is that we never discovered the cool one person "merry-go-round" sooner.

We started with the small stuff and ended up at an elementary school an hour later. Haven't felt that young in years....

It's better on Broadway

The Office, My Office

I never thought that having a "normal" job working with adults could provide as many funny moments as teaching piano lessons did. My students used to say the weirdest things. Sometimes I would write their hilarious quotes in my day planner because certain things should not be forgotten.

Now I work in a large office with dozens of people. We have enough characters for a whole new version of The Office.

There's a nice older man who sits 2 cubicles over from mine. We'll call him Ernie. Ernie is so kind. He was one of the first people to introduce himself to me and he walks by my desk several times a day always saying "Hi Whitney." Last week I was in the lunch room washing my lunch dish and Ernie came up to me and said, "Hi. I'm Ernie. What's your name?" Reminded me of a certain scene involving Creed.

On another office note, we had "Diversity Day" last week.

Lady Liberty

Sameer's mom wanted to take a picture of us in front of the Statue of Liberty, but was unable to fit her in the picture.... Our dismay turned to joy, however, when we noticed that - by pure and blessed coincidence - Lady Liberty sent a stand-in...

Album: Yadavs in Manhattan

NYC with Sameer's parents

Pure Chocolate Whippet

Sameer got these from the store the other day. They were actually quite good...but I think the description on the side of the box is a little over the top:

"Since its creation by the Viau family in 1927, the irresistibly sinful taste of Dare Pure Chocolate Whippet has been Quebec's favorite cookie for generations! Whippet is a heavenly cloud-like marshmallow cookie that is smothered in a pure dark chocolate for a taste that is sure to satisfy your every desire."

Cool and breezy, 50's and 60's

I am loving our weather right now. This is a dream for June!

Commencement Highlights

The rest of the album:

Commencement

Our Vacation Album

More pictures:

Our Vacation

Our Vacation: Boston, Salem, Martha's Vineyard

Busy Busy (a long, boring informative post)

We had an amazing vacation in the middle of May. It was a much needed bit of rest and relaxation before all the craziness that came after it and will continue for several months. (pictures coming soon) When we came home from vacation I went back to work and Sameer began looking for temporary work. We got our humble apartment ready for the arrival of Sameer's parents soon after that. They arrived on Saturday to be here for Commencement. Commencement at Yale is a long noble event. He actually got to don his cap and gown for three separate ceremonies between Sunday and Monday. (pictures of that coming soon too)

The day after Commencement the four of us took the train to Manhattan where we stayed in a fun little hotel on Broadway. On Thursday morning we saw Sameer's parents off at Penn Station where they boarded a train headed for Niagara Falls. We spent the day in Manhattan mostly looking for peaceful places to read. (By our 3rd day in the city we were in desperate need of quietness). We discovered the New York Humanites & Social Sciences Library. It had a huge public reading room and we spent 4 hours there. Then we went to dinner and finished off our last (6th in fact) New York trip of the year by seeing Les Miserables on Broadway.

We arrived home around 2:45am that night (morning) and then 4 hours later I got up to go to work. After work I went to bed early. Then on Saturday we began working on what we had long been putting off....

We're moving. In a few weeks. I don't remember if we've mentioned it specifically, but Sameer is beginning a doctor of theology program at Duke this fall (Th.D.). We're leaving our beloved New Haven and new friends and church to move to the south. We don't know where we're living or when we're going to get there but we do know we're moving out of this apartment sometime between June 29th and June 30th. We hope to squeeze in a trip to Idaho and California at some point but we also want to get to Duke soon so I can start looking for work. In between applying for jobs and writing cover letters we're also looking into buying a home in Durham. We're thinking of renting an apartment for a few months to get to know the area. Things aren't coming together as quickly as I'd like and I find it so difficult to just stop trying to plan things constantly. If you read our very first post of this blog you'll see how wonderfully God provided for us when we moved here. I'm sure He'll take care of us with this move too. I just need to figure out a way to let a few minutes go by without thinking about it.

I look forward to the time when we can get through a whole year without packing up our apartment and moving. We've never stayed in the same place for more than 9 months since we've been married. It must be nice (but maybe boring?) to be settled.

This town loves a parade

Yesterday after church we found ourselves in the middle of yet another boisterous New Haven parade. There have been quite a few since St. Patrick's Day. For some reason people here love to go out to the street and excitedly watch people, dogs, marching bands, trucks, anything. As we ate our lunch at Bruegger's Bagels we got to see Ronald McDonald standing on top of an ambulance waving a Puerto Rican flag. Now that's exciting! Our lunch with friends had just started to wrap up when we saw the commotion. We stared for several minutes trying to understand WHY. We were stunned really and ended up lingering for about 30 minutes because we were just fascinated by the cultural phenomenon that is New Haven and Parades.

Last week during Sameer's graduation his whole class from the Divinity School had to walk together for about a mile to join the rest of the university for the downtown ceremony. He said that pedestrians on the street began stopping and cheering for them as they walked down the hill. To them it was probably just another parade.

More Spring

Spring

I knew that when we moved here I would finally get to "experience seasons" for the first time. I was expecting a brilliant autumn and an exciting snowy winter. That was all great but I never thought twice about spring because I thought we had that in California. Well after the deadness of winter here spring is the most miraculous "new season" of all for me. I had been wondering how it could possibly ever happen and then it finally did. It rains enough here (except in the winter when it snows instead) that no one uses sprinklers. The grass and leaves and flowers grow when they're ready and it's breathtaking to me to watch all this stuff come back to life naturally. How kind of God to create seasons - I love them all but this season of rebirth is especially lovely.


I can't even begin to describe how gorgeous it is here right now. The birds are singing constantly and their song is so sweet and cheerful. There are adorable little robins hopping around everywhere. (I always see groups of birds and squirrels hanging out together on the lawn - it's very cute, like a scene out of Bambi) Daffodils appeared all over the place overnight....and then tulips of every color. The grass has come back to life and the trees finally have their leaves. It is absolutely delightful.


Sameer actually turned in his last paper YESTERDAY so he is done with studying for now. We're taking the day off and going to New York tomorrow to see Conan (a late birthday trip for Sameer). So, if you're up really late on Wednesday turn on NBC and watch the Conan O'Brien Show - maybe you'll see us. Apparently this is our month of fun (or should I say year?). We're going on a little trip to Boston and Martha's Vineyard this weekend! We have to get all the fun in now - we're moving to the South this summer and then maybe we'll become grown-ups.

Romeo & Cesare's

Today after work I walked to Romeo's - the best little corner store in New Haven. They have the most delicious fresh produce, bread and imported Italian groceries. Romeo is always around to give advice or teach people how to pronounce Italian words correctly. Since the weather has been nice I love to walk there after work to buy our fruits and vegetables. I'll miss it a lot when we move - I love little family run establishments.

I heard this from a customer in front of me in line today:

"Hi, I came here yesterday and got some food but I didn't have any money. I don't know if anyone wrote it down or anything but here's the money for yesterday..... thanks a lot!"

One more reason to love Romeo's......you probably don't hear that when you're in line at Albertson's.

Celebrations

On Saturday we went to Pepe's (a famous pizzeria in New Haven's Little Italy) to celebrate Ryan Pue's 30th birthday. Unfortunately Ryan wasn't able to join us. However, he did threaten our lives if we did not eat at Frank Pepe's at least *once* before we left New Haven!



After some amazing New Haven "apizza" we enjoyed a stroll around the lovely Wooster Square park and then had some delicious gelato at Libby's where we also bought some canolis to go (of course). After that we had to walk home again....and while the three miles there was very fun it's not always fun to have to walk another three miles to get home. Especially with a gut full of salami, sausage, pepperoni and bacon.

Time to Brag

I just have to brag about my amazing intelligent diligent husband. He got straight H's on his "report card" for the fall semester. We're definitely putting that one on the fridge. We've known about three of the H's for a while but he finally received his grade for the fourth class just last week. Apparently the professors can grade papers and turn in grades whenever they want. Now we just hope that his professors for SPRING semester turn in his grades in time for him to graduate on May 28th.

In case you're wondering, an H is good - the best, in fact. It was a little confusing at first. His first paper last fall had a big red H on it and we wondered if that was even worse than F but over here the grading scale is Honors, High Pass, Pass, etc......

strange sightings

The other week Sameer and I were walking to an evening lecture when we saw a frantic undergraduate running past us wearing a curly wig and carrying a large plastic cornucopia. A few minutes later we saw another one. Later that night as we were walking home we saw another student standing on the sidewalk blindfolded. We tried not to laugh. It must be that time of year. I think it was actually very fortunate that we didn't see anything worse.

Hey how you doin' ya wanna fried dough?

Boston...what a friendly city. This was only MY second trip to Boston - both have been far too short. I was there for about 3 hours a few years ago with Kasey. This time we were there for about 24 hours but unfortunately my experience was a bit tainted due to a bad throat/sinus infection that led to 9 days of incessant coughing. Thankfully, I am better now. My coworkers no longer sneer at me and suspiciously ask if it's contagious AND I am no longer sleeping on the couch.

So anyway, we had a delightful time once we reached our hotel. (Doubletree in Downtown Boston - my first experience with Priceline proved successful) Reaching it was quite a project though. You see, I had convinced my parents to rent a GPS system with their car. I thought it would be nice for navigating the one way streets in New Haven and it helped me to worry about them a little less when they were driving around without us. It ended up being great. We called her "the lady". In fact, I miss the lady. She guided us all over the place - from Mystic to Newport and home again through the back roads of Rhode Island. She's great for spontaneous excursions when you're already out and can't print up directions. All week she was a tremendous help. Sometimes she got impatient with us when we disobeyed her (every time we missed a turn she let out a half-sarcastic, half-exasperated "Recalculating...") but for the most part we all got along really well. But Boston - (the "walking city") has the most confusing roads ever. Even the lady couldn't figure it out, mostly because a lot of the roads are underground and she gets confused when we go underground. She sent us all over the place and we went through the same tunnel several times, swung around to Logan airport, paid several hefty tolls for roads we never meant to be on and finally found a nice person (who worked in a toll booth) who gave us perfect directions to our hotel. The lady seemed jealous. We put her in the trunk. (Note: I am not endorsing that you always and everywhere put your lady in the trunk whenever she disappoints you).


That night we had the best lobster bisque at a quaint little restaurant. I want to go back just for that bisque. The next day we had a lovely breakfast across the street from Boston Common, went to the JFK library then walked around downtown until it was time to leave. Everyone we came in contact with was SO friendly - at the hotel, at the T stations, on the T, everyone. Our favorite was the man selling fried dough on Boston Common. If you ever have the chance to eat fried dough in Boston do it.

Boston charm. I guess it must be the locals - they convey such warmth and chattiness and it seems to rub off on the tourists so everyone is happy and talkative. (At least it was like that for us) Every time we were on public transportation we were talking to strangers. Two girls on the subway even took our picture. That was a little weird but very funny. What a sharp contrast after having been in Manhattan the day before (there, they are more likely to take your camera). NY is fun but Boston, Boston is charming and lovely and friendly and sweet and I just can't wait to go back. The best part about Boston: the accent. It's amazing. A little of it trickles down to Connecticut so a few of my coworkers have a touch of it but almost everyone has it up there. It's pretty hard for me not to smile upon hearing it. We will be definitely be returning before we move.

Lighthouse Point, New Haven

Manhattan. Highlight of the day: Watching the snow fall gently in Little Italy as we sipped cappuccinos and indulged in decadent canolis.

Can you guess where this was taken?

Last Sunday

Well I thought I might blog everyday that my parents were here to give the family back home a play by play... it was a nice thought. Instead I'll reminisce a bit about the highlights from the week.

Sunday, April 1- we took my parents to our church service. We warned them that our service is a little (okay - a lot) longer than what they're used to at Grace Baptist. The service was great but the sermon seemed to go on and on that day. There actually is a biblical text that captures very well what the experience was like:

"And there was a certain young man named Eutychus sitting on the window sill, sinking into a deep sleep; and as Paul kept on talking, he was overcome by sleep and fell down from the third floor, and was picked up dead" (Acts 20:9)

Just replace "Eutychus" with "Sameer, Whitney, Steve and Sue" and replace "Paul" with "Pastor Graham" and there you have it. After the closing hymn and announcements our pastor came to the front and apologized profusely, explaining that his watch had stopped and he didn't realize it until after the sermon. God had also made the sun stand still for Joshua, but at least they could pass the time by killing some Amorites.

Afterwards we walked downtown for lunch and a beautiful grilled chicken wrap with swiss aroused me out of my theologically-induced coma. By the providence of God, the honey-mustard in my wrap was accidentally replaced with *wasabi* mustard -- God breathed into my nostrils (and sinuses) the breath of life. And it was quite tasty.

We spent much of the remainder of the day at Kohl's and Bob's Discount Store looking for comfortable shoes for my mom. Poor mom - she thought that the nice "comfortable" heels she wears to work would fit in nicely with our pedestrian life. Oops. One day and several miles around Mystic and Newport taught someone a valuable lesson: namely, comfortable heels after a mile feels more like Chinese foot-binding. I actually can't believe I didn't warn her about this. Sorry mom, it's completely my fault!

By the way, here is how we often blog. I (Whitney) write the post and it's really boring. If Sameer is too busy, it stays boring and I publish it. If he has a few minutes, he edits it and gives it his magical Sameer-touch. Given the way our personalities have affected (infected?) one another, it may not be as easy as you think to discern which bits come from whom. But you should still try and guess - it is good practice in redaction criticism, whereby you attempt to use literary criteria to determine layers of editorial activity within texts. Okay that last part was clearly Sameer.

Or was it?

Okay, yeah, it was.