Longboat Key

Last week I was in Orlando for work. I was staying in one of the hotels on Disney property. Now, I haven't been to Disney World in what must be 20 years (boy does that make me sound old), but it sure is different from what I remember. The property is unbelievably large! My hotel was right across the road from Downtown Disney, which is filled with overpriced restaurants and shops selling candy, toys, souvenirs, etc. Next to Downtown Disney is Pleasure Island, a place for adults filled with bars/nightclubs. You have to pay cover at the , but they sell these passes at the entrance that allow you to bar hop for a flat fee (or a tiered pricing structure for 3, 5 or all bars).

One thing that I couldn't help but notice was how expensive everything on the Disney property was. Looking at the menus of the restaurants in Downtown Disney (Fulton's Crab House, Portobello Yacht Club) the prices must have been at least 30-50% more than non-Disney places, for the same food. It makes me kinda sad to think that there are lots of kids that won't ever get to visit Disney World because it's too expensive... Or if they do get to go, they'll just see all these fun things in the stores, at the many kiosks throughout the area, or candy/treats that are out of their family's budget. But then again - this is something that pretty much everyone has to learn at some point in their lives. There are very few people in this world that actually have more money than they can spend in their lifetime. We all need to learn to live within our means.

Since Christopher's parents were renting a condo on Longboat Key for the month of January, we thought it would be nice to visit them for a few days. So after I wrapped things up in Orlando, I drove my little rental Saturn ION towards the Gulf coast to visit them and Christopher flew into Sarasota from Buffalo. Their condo overlooks the beach, so we went for nice walks up and down the beach and enjoyed wonderful sunsets each evening. We also played 27 holes of golf - 18 holes at Oak Ford which was recommended by Golf Digest for its value and we thought it was a great course for the money. In typical Florida-fashion, we also enjoyed a fantastic Early Bird Special at Cafe on the Bay - dinner for 2 (3 course meal) plus a bottle of wine for $42.97 - highly recommended! We also went for a light dinner at Euphemia Haye so we had enough room to enjoy their extensive dessert selection.

Hot Water Woes

Our main bathroom upstairs doesn't get the hottest water. Christopher has turned up the temperature on the hot water heater a couple of times, but we still haven't found the optimal setting.

Generally this isn't a problem for daily showers. The only time it's really an issue is when I want to take a bath. While I do enjoy the odd bubble bath, I rarely have the time for them. When I travel for work I'll often enjoy one - taking advantage of the nice soaps that are supplied in my hotel room :)

At home though, one time when I really need a bath is when I'm sick. I often get the chills and a nice hot bath that just envelopes me in warmth is the best way for me to feel better. On Thursday I started to feel a little achy and had a bit of a fever, so I thought I'd draw a bath for myself.

Since we've moved into this house I've only tried to have one other bath and it was a complete disaster - the water simply wasn't hot enough. Desperate for a decent bath, this time we used the stove to heat water in several of our largest pots and also boiled water in our electric kettle. It was alot of work, but so worth the effort. I felt like a princess in medieval times as Christopher shuttled up and down the stairs to add hot water into my bath - thanks Christopher, you're the best!

When the cat is away...

...the mice will eat mussels?!?

Now don't get me wrong - Christopher is extremely good about eating whatever I prepare for dinner. But there are a few things that he would prefer not to eat. And while he is always telling me that I can make whatever my heart desires for dinner, it just seems much too selfish to go through the trouble of making a meal that only I will enjoy, leaving him to fend for himself.

Now that I have to prepare dinner for one these days, I am taking advantage of this opportunity to make some things that Christopher would rather not eat. Like my dinner last night - a huge bowl of Steamed Mussels with Leeks, Garlic, Thyme, White Wine & Butter. While Christopher will eat a few mussels, there's no way he would be able to eat an entire bowl as his meal. But don't these look good?

Spring Cleaning in January!?!

This past weekend Christopher and I took full advantage of the balmy weather in West Hartford to do some outdoor spring cleaning. Christopher treated our car to a thorough wash and wax while I filled 15 yard waste bags of pine needles and leaves that we had never gotten around to raking up. It was nice to be outside and get these much-needed chores done. There is something immensely satisfying about completing a task that you've procrastinated on for far too long!

On Saturday night we went to see Children of Men. I thought it was really well done. Most science-fiction movies that have been released recently involve aliens that are threatening the earth or some space mission. I really like movies like this that give you a glimpse as to what the future could be like (though depressing and over dramatized it may be).

Sunsay evening I had to take Christopher to the airport :( This semester he has to finish up some mandatory classes at U of T. He has classes Mon-Wed so we have scheduled a few visits for him over the term, using up a bunch of Aeroplan points I had. Combining this with a couple other trips we have planned (Florida at the end of this month & skiing in Vail over President's Day-Week) we should see each other every 2 weeks at a minimum.

Since Christopher won't be here as much and I will still need to travel a fair bit for business, I have been taking my dog to several "interviews" at doggie daycare/boarding facilities for when I am away. Since Tyson is a social dog that likes to play with other dogs when we "board" him we choose to put him in a doggie daycare facility. This way he can have tons of fun during the day with all the other pups and then he's good and tired in the evenings. While this style of care may not be good for all dogs, if you have a dog that is fun-loving and enjoys being around other dogs, I highly recommend it. Most places will ask you to bring your dog for an "interview" to see if they are suitable for the doggy daycare environment - making sure that they aren't a bully nor are they being bullied.

On Saturday I took Tyson for an "interview" at a new place and they said he would be just fine. It's funny checking out these doggie daycares. Some charge alot more than others (over 40% more in some cases!). And as a general rule - the ones that charge more tend to be nicer - but from a human perspective, not necessarily a dog's perspective. For example, will Tyson care/notice that there are colorful murals of dogs having fun on the walls? Does it bother him if there are grammatical errors in their flyer? What about if the person handling them has bad teeth?

As a human inspecting boarding facilities for my pet, I often have to remind myself that what is most important is that Tyson has a good time. Do the other dogs there look like the kind of playmates Tyson would have fun with? Do the other dogs look like they're having a good time/are well taken care of? Is the facility clean and well-kept? Is there a variety of toys/treats available? Does he like the people that work at the place and do they like him?

After introducing Tyson to several doggie daycares (just in case one is booked up) it's nice to find some places that we're both comfortable with. That way I don't have to worry about him while I'm away and he's too busy playing with all the other doggies to worry about where I am!

Christmas Holiday Update

For the Christmas Holidays we packed up the car with the dog, cat, tons of Christmas presents, Christopher & myself and made a run for the border. Over the 10 days we were back in town we ate ourselves silly, catching up with various friends and family over lunches, coffees, dinners and drinks. While we were back we ate at Asian Legend, Congee Wong, Swiss Chalet (twice - we have yet to find a suitable replacement here in CT), and had Dim Sum two times as well. Needless to say, we both have New Year's resolutions to lose the holiday poundage we've packed on :)

As usual - it was great to see everyone again! We haven't made any really close friends down here yet so it's nice to go back home and have a full social calendar.

Over the holidays we split up our stay between Christopher's parents' place and my parents' house, spending time with both our families. But we're super-lucky because our parents get along really well and they often spend the holidays together, never really forcing us to choose between one family and the other. Plus they live close to each other so we don't have to spend alot of time driving between their houses.

Highlights of the trip:

• scoring 2 packages of roasted seaweed hand-imported directly from Korea by my cousin's sister-in-law. So tasty - I ate a whole package in 1 day!
• Kathy's homemade nuts & bolts - she uses corn pops in her secret recipe and they're like little spheres of golden goodness
• playing mah jong for 3 nights in a row with my parents and finally getting a decent understanding of how the game works (Christopher even mentioned that he thinks that he likes mah jong better than POKER!)
• the Rockettes Christmas Spectacular preceded by a wonderful dinner at Jamie Kennedy's Wine Bar
• hosting a New Year's Eve dinner party at Christopher's parents' house (they had left for Florida) with some friends. I tried out all new recipes from the Barefoot Contessa cookbook that I got from my cousin for Christmas and they all turned out great (if I do say so myself!). We also made homemade bellinis and whiskey sours from scratch that were surprisingly tasty!

We wish everyone all the best for 2007 - may the New Year bring you health, wealth & happiness!