She Likes Purple

The Great Gatsby Book & Movie Review

*Spoilers about both ahead...

The Book

I hated The Great Gatsby in high school. In hindsight, I can't really pin-point why because I remembered almost nothing about it, but I do remember we had to examine the book first to last page and it just wore me out. All that symbolism is a lot for a 15 year old to truck through, especially when some of that symbolism (while no doubt intentional and important) annoyed me more than intrigued me. Okay, okay, I'm sure Gatsby dropped the clock in Nick's house because it symbolized the passage of time and not because he's just rather klutzy. Can we move on please?

Anyway, I did get to re-read it kind of wonderfully with a fresh slate. I remembered bits and pieces but not the twists and turns, and certainly not the ending, so it was like I was reading it for the first time.

One chapter in, and I have to hilariously say that it kind of reminded me of an episode of the Real Housewives. So much wealth and mid-afternoon cocktails while lazily spread out on a couch, complaining about privileged lives. But, even then, you can't deny this book is beautifully, nearly perfectly written. It's the kind of book you highlight passage after passage in because words are woven together the way words were meant to be woven together. 

So, ultimately, I liked it a helluva lot more than I did in high school. Perhaps you can just appreciate such a well-written book at my age more than you can as a teenager and perhaps because there was no homework that came after reading it (thank everything), I could just...read it. Whatever the reason, I'm glad I re-read it.

But, oh man, did I hate nearly every single character in this book. These were terrible people, just terrible, and not terrible in the way I usually like my characters--terribly flawed but so terribly human that you relate to them and end up incredibly fond of them. Terrible as in, YOU ARE TERRIBLE, JUMP OFF A CLIFF. 

All of them! Even Gatsby, who I suspect you aren't supposed to find terrible, I found terrible because he thought that a woman who couldn't love him penniless was worth all he went through to win her back. He was in love with a coward and he wasn't even in love with her despite that, he was in love with her without realizing it, and that made him infuriating to me.

Most of the characters were disgustingly rich and disgustingly terrible and disgustingly lazy and also disgustingly drunk most of the book, and I would have hated almost all of them if I had somehow turned up at a party with them. In short, it was a beautiful book about truly terrible people. I have been known to like a sad ending, though, and this book certainly had that. 

Still, let's talk about some of my favorite lines in it:

"There are only the pursued, the pursuing, the busy, and the tired." 

"It occurred to me that there was no difference between men, in intelligence or race, so profound as the difference between the sick and the well."

The last, perfect line: "So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past."

The movie

Well, the movie stayed pretty damn true to the book, didn't it? The words literally appeared on the screen and entire scenes were played out exactly as written. For that, I liked it. It came to life as I had read it, quite honestly, and I only had very small issues with it, including:

1. Leo did a great job, honestly. To me, he's far more attractive in movies than in pictures, and I almost always buy him in a role more than I think I will because he's just better on the screen. (Hello, The Departed, one of my favorite movies of all time.) But he still felt a litttttle old for this role. He's not that much older than the character (6 years), but he felt much older, for some reason. 
2. Speaking of, Daisy was dark-haired in the book (right?) and I think Carey would have looked even better dark-haired in the movie, so why the blonde choice, producers?
3. The ending! One of my favorite parts of the book was how Nick tried desparately to get people to attend the funeral (going into the city to visit Winebrenner, even) and everyone disregarded him. Then, Gatsby's father showed up, and it was this sadly poetic look at how Gatsby built his life around people who didn't matter and abandoned the people who did. I wish they would have showed that scene as written.

At the end of the movie, though, I thought the same things I thought at the end of the book. Such terrible, selfish, bored people. 

I don't know if all this means I ultimately loved it or still hated it.

Probably a little of both.

Cookbook Recommendation: Joy the Baker Cookbook

In the past, I'd write this kind of thing over at Food Lush (I miss that place) but this is my only space to ramble these days, so lucky you.

I made a goal this year to cook one recipe a week from all the cookbooks I currently own, and let me just say that was a stupid goal. I edited the goal (my goals, my rules) to cook 30 recipes from my cookbooks anytime over the year. Just whenever. At my owwwwwn pace. I love making my own rules.

(I'll make a 10-recipe feast in December, for sure.)

Anyway, I'm seven recipes down. (You are BLOWN away by the time I spend in my own kitchen, aren't you?) And I noticed five of those recipes are from the Joy the Baker Cookbook. Guys, you really need this cookbook in your life. 

Every single thing I've made has been delicious and that's a pretty good track record. Mike raves! Mike is kind of picky and hates about 50% of the things I make. (He eats them all! He just requests I don't add any of those things to the regular rotation.) (I glare at him a lot.)

I made this goal to see what cookbooks I really love (since I paid money for all of them) and this is one I'm so glad I own. 

It's also like 75% chocolate, which is an excellent percentage in my book. 

New Places on My "Must Visit" List, Part Two

Here's my last list, a list I've since crossed two places off (+ one more this fall!). And here's my latest list.

1. Round Top, TX

2. Monument Valley, UT

3. Galapagos Island

4. Turks & Caicos

5. Destin, FL

6. Big Bend, TX

7. Vermont 

8. Broken Bow, OK

9. Columbus, OH

10. Mexico City

11. Eureka Springs, AR

12. Palm Springs, CA

Where do you want to go?

Sixth Anniversary

(The iron and candy anniversary! Or, as I'm calling it, a nice excuse to eat a lot of Almond Joys.)

You know what they didn't tell me at my bridal shower? That some time over the course of our marriage, Mike would upset me or that on more than one occassion we'd fight our way past midnight and that, also, I wouldn't fit into my wedding dress beyond my wedding night. 

I understand why we played shower games and toasted champagne and ate cupcakes (of course my shower had cupcakes) instead of talking about the nitty-gritty. Those parties are about the fun stuff, the cupcakes and the champagne.

Marriage isn't a wedding or a shower or a party or a bunch of cupcakes, though. It's different and harder and better and more important. 

What they also didn't tell me at my shower, though, is that Mike would turn out to be the kind of man who apologizes with real grace after those midnight fights, who shows up to talk about the tough stuff even though talking about the tough stuff is like his 1576th favorite thing, if he's rating his favorite things. He turned out to be the guy who hears me when I really need to be heard. He is the man who has never said no when I tell him I need a big hug or an afternoon to myself or for him to sacrifice something he wants for something I need. 

Life is weird, isn't it? Six years ago, I was in a lovely wedding dress and last night I was in yoga pants, and both days, both places, were beautiful. 

You know what my favorite thing is, if I am rating my own favorite things? Mike's laugh. When he laughs, I swear the world brightens. I would rate it top of the list because he gave that same laugh to Kyle, so Kyle's laugh is my second favorite thing. I'd say it feels extra awesome if I'm the one who has made either of them laugh, but I'll take the sound however I can get it. Mike's laugh, man. It's the best. That's not a catchphrase. It really is the best.

That's one thing I could have told you at my bridal shower. That Mike's laugh starts in his eyes, and it's the best sound I've ever heard. 

There have been fights, oh have there been (and there will be more) and Mike will upset me many more times in our lifetime and who the hell knows if I'll ever fit in that wedding dress again, but every single day I've gotten to hear Mike laugh has been a good day. I've never stopped loving that sound, that guy, nine years after meeting him, six years after marrying him. He didn't give Kyle his hair, but he gave him that laugh. It starts in both their eyes.

I loved Mike so much on our wedding day, I couldn't even stand it.

I love him even more today. 

(One of my favorite wedding pictures, of us listening to my SIL give a beautiful toast.)

Six years! Pass the candy.

Pinterest Challenge #2

We've already established that I'm lame enough to love stuff like this. So, let's just embrace the lameness.

Here are a handful of pins I'd like to tackle before July 1st.

1. I saw this awesome idea in a recent issue of Martha Stewart Living, and I loved it for remembering trips. I also like the idea of actually printing vacation photos (instead of having them live and die on a computer) and slipping them inside.

2. Roasted Red Pepper Quinoa + White Bean Burgers. I'm always looking for a delicious veggie burger and not a "grill a portobello mushroom and slap it between a couple buns and call it a day" burger. This looks unique and delicious.

3. I like adding things to my Pinterest Challenge lists that are basically just me buying things. I need a new iPhone case, and this one is pretty fantastic, right? 

4. I think this spruced-up tote bag might be a big ole recipe for disaster but it is cute and looks relatively easy and canvas tote bags are cheap at Hobby Lobby. We'll see how this goes.

5. Glazed Chocolate Muffins. Need I say more.

6. Pomegranate & Lime White Wine Spritzer. This looks like summer in a glass, I'd say. I should have my girls over and serve these in pitchers.

Washington, DC: Part Two

After spending a couple days in Dupont Circle, exploring the city, oohing and ahhing at every building along the mall, figuring out the Metro, and drinking wine in our hotel bed at 8pm, it was time to head out of town.

Mike likes exploring cities, but I knew he'd love the drive through Virginia (26th state for me!), to Shenandoah National Park where we spent the night in a hilltop B&B in Luray. I surprised him with this night away, and it was such a wonderful way to break up our trip.

Before we headed out of town, though, we stopped for lunch at Ben's Chili Bowl. 

What a place! You have to go here when/if you visit DC, for the history, the pictures lining the walls, the wait staff, the food. I had a veggie hot dog (just okay, but that's to be expected) but the veggie chili was good and Mike said the non-veggie hot dog and chili was some of the best he's ever had. 

Oh, and we also stopped at the Air & Space Museum at Dulles on our way out of town. It was here I missed Kyle so terribly because I knew he would have loved the hell out of that place. It was very cool and any person who has ever loved an airplane should stop here. (It's free!) 

Then we officially hit the road. 

Some of my favorite memories with Mike are memories in a car, on a long stretch of road between a great place we're leaving and a great place we're heading to. We talk, sometimes we don't, we sing to the radio (listening to Mike jam to Taylor Swift AND the Spice Girls was a highlight of this particular trip), we swap favorite Kyle stories, we stop for stupid pictures along the way. Oh, Mike, thanks for always taking the wheel when we hit the road. For letting me put my feet on the dash and read magazines and take pictures out the passenger window while forgetting to tell you where to turn next, so we always have to turn around once during a trip. You gently roll your eyes at me, and I fall in love with you all over again. You are a wonderful travel partner, and I really don't thank you enough for that. 

Once in Luray, we stayed at Once Upon a Mountain, a three-bedroom hilltop B&B and it was such a charming place. I picked this place through Google, Yelp!, and Trip Advisor alone. It didn't disappoint (except for one teeny thing I'll mention below).

I picked the best-rated room (the Queen's Suite), and it turned out the innkeeper was out of town during our visit and the other rooms were vacant, so we basically had the entire place to ourselves. That was a treat. 

The non-treat and one downside of the place was that stinkbugs are apparently very popular in Virginia, and especially in the more naturey parts of Virginia, and extra especially inside our B&B. This didn't bother Mike at all. He scooped them up as he found them and tossed them outside. THIS BOTHERED ME QUITE A LOT. At one point, I thought I saw one flying toward my head and when I told Mike this (LOUDLY), he said, "Oh no, they don't fly. Must have been a moth." Then he went to get a drink refill, and I Googled the hell out of "stink bugs fly" and when he got back 15 seconds later I said (AGAIN, LOUDLY) "They do TOO fly! Google says they can totally fly!"

"Yeah, I know they can, I just didn't think you'd Google it that quickly."

He both lies about bugs and underestimates my Google skills. 

We still had a great night, and I'd stay there again (stink bugs and all) but perhaps armed with some very strong bug spray of some kind next time around.

The next day, before heading out of town to stay with Caitlin (!!!!) for the night, we stopped at the Luray Caverns (very cool, although very similar to some caverns we've been to a few times before near San Antonio) and drove about 30 miles of Skyline Drive. 

(There was still snow on the ground!)

Virginia, you weren't too shabby at all. Other than your stink bugs but we have cockroaches, so I'm not talking too badly about you behind your back or anything.  

Next up: A few days/nights in Alexandria, a day trip to Annapolis, more monuments, and a lot of champagne with one of my favorite bloggers.

May Goals + April Goals Revisited

April was INSANE, guys. Like the insanest. May is shaping up to be more of the same, seeing as it's nearly mid-May and I'm just now posting this.

Anyway, this list is much sadder than March's. Let's hope for better things in May. And June. And other months too.

April Goals Revisited

1. Start my 30-Day Shred Challenge (I did start it and then immediately abandoned it; need to rethink this one)
2. Let's ease back into yoga and say: just get your butt to yoga at least once (I'm so red)
3. Finish at least one book (I finished four! I feel like that should earn me a trophy or something)
4. Buy a pair of eyeglasses (maybe even two) (BUT THEY HAVEN'T ARRIVED YET)
5. Go to the dermatologist
6. Send a bottle of champagne to someone
7. Leave the state!
8. Finish up the Pinterest challenge (just one left!) 
9. Make baked ziti
10. Set a date for my champagne dinner
11. Lose 5 lbs
12. Send those thank-you notes! (I sent some!)
13. Re-hang our photos over the couch
14. Take two neighborhood walks
15. Eat/make five vegan dishes/meals (One!)
16. No snacking after 9:30pm

May Goals 

1. Yoga. Seriously.
2. Finish The Great Gatsby
3. Eat a cupcake in New York
4. Make baked ziti
5. Lose 5 lbs
6. Start the Couch to 5K 
7. Finish Kyle's thank-you notes (a mere THREE MONTHS late)
8. Send off two thank-you packages
9. Make my vacation box
10. Dance to our song for our wedding anniversary
11. Eat at one new restaurant (this is quite an easy one, but done!) 
12. Start the research on hiring the right person to turn some of Kyle's best baby clothes into a quilt. (Could that be you?)
13. Make vegan strawberry cupcakes

I'm heading to New York this month for a work trip, a work trip that has required months and months of preparing for, and will be one of those go-go-go trips. A few fun meals, but mostly exhaustion and meetings and signings and more meetings and panels and walking and more signings. I'm tired already. 

So, I made my goals nice and easy this month. 

Patience with myself until at least mid-June is necessary.

Setting Expectations

Last weekend, A'Dell and I took our kids to the zoo, and as we were leaving the house, Kyle said with glee, "I AM SO EXCITED TO RIDE A GIRAFFE."

Uh. What?

Thankfully he had a great time at the zoo despite giraffe rides being unavailable, but why on earth would he THINK he could ride giraffes at the zoo? WHO IS TELLING HIM THESE THINGS? I blame George. That damn monkey is always doing ridiculous things that no child will ever get to do. 

Then this past weekend, we took Kyle to his first Ranger's game. He had a great time, and it was fun to introduce him to baseball. The kid's got soccer and football down, but baseball was new. 

We were having a great time, eating nachos and getting a little sun, when Kyle turned to me and said, "When do I get to go on the field and play with those guys?" 

Kid, your imagination is impressive! Our job of setting realistic expecations for you is not. 

Age four is something else, though. I feel like I've become that mom, that mom who we all roll our eyes at a little bit. That mom who WILL NOT STOP TALKING ABOUT HER CHILD. Usually that kid is a baby and that woman is a new mom, but I dodged (I think?) most of those new mom bullets. I could hold a conversation about other things with my friends when Kyle was wee. I could go out with Mike and talk about many other things (usually taking naps) before coming round to gush about our cool kid, but something has happened since Kyle turned four. I CANNOT STOP TALKING ABOUT HIM. 

I called Natalie the other day and basically wanted to talk about nothing except the funny things he's recently said. In the office kitchen the other day, a co-worker who I am friendly with, but who I am certainly not friends with, asked how my weekend was and I used that as an opening to tell her a hilarious story about Kyle. She looked...eager to get back to work.

I don't know, it's just a really fun age. Four year olds! They're awesome.

I taught four year olds when I was in college (FOUR YEAR OLDS WHO ARE NOW THIRTEEN YEAR OLDS OMG). Well, assistant taught, I should clarify. The real teaching was left to the person with an actual college degree at the time, but I was there to assist her from 8am-12pm every single week day. (EXHAUSTING.) I loved it so much. If I could have made an actual living teaching four year olds at that school, I would have. I would come home most days and tell Mike the hilarious things my kids would say to me. Four year olds, I used to say, they are the best. So sweet! So smart! So funny! 

It's kind of weird raising a four year old vs teaching one. I am that mom bringing him into his classroom vs the teacher taking his hand to lead him to arts and crafts. I am the stressed, (sometimes) unshowered mom instead of the young teacher who somehow finds the energy to hang out with wild, dirty kids all day.

It's a weird full-circle moment having a four year old. I loved this age as a 22-year-old college student, assistant teacher. I love it just as much now. 

I sometimes look at my life and wonder how on earth I got here. I was just 22, teaching kids as a part-time job. I was going to class, I was falling in love, I was broke. I was not an adult, no way, and I could hardly imagine becoming one. But I am now. No doubt. Mortgage, career, debt, husband, kid, and on and on. 

Back then, I could only imagine I'd have my own adorable, hilarious four year old one day. I could only hope. 

Exceeded all my expectations.

Pins of the Month: March & April

A while back, I posted about a Pinterest challenge I was doing, inspired by Janssen. (I live such a wild life, I'm aware.) Anyway, I totally owned five of the six pins I picked. 

I'm choosing two to spotlight as my Pins of the Month.

March: Beer Biscuits with Spicy Lemon Meyer Butter. Confession: I used regular butter because I was tired. I cut a lot of corners in life because I'm tired. No shame. 

These biscuits were so delicious. Seriously, I won't be offended if you immediately stop reading this to go make them. In fact, Mike declared these the "Best biscuits you've ever made!" Granted, I don't make biscuits that often, but still. Many other people complimented them, too. I even think my father-in-law complimented them and that's a ringing endorsement, trust me. 

April: Technically, I bought a personalized viewfinder in March, but the glorious thing about my own weird, made-up things like Pins of the Month is that I get to bend my own rules. 

I was glad to find the company, as this is something I've been wanting to do for ages, but I was (sadly) a little disappointed with the overall experience. The website was a little difficult to use, and you can only choose six photos per viewfinder. The photos each repeat twice and...call me crazy but wouldn't it be fabulous if you got twelve photos instead? (I probably just don't understand how viewfinders work.) 

Also, I planned to buy a reel for each huge event or family vacation, so Kyle could have this cool viewfinder and a bunch of vacation reels one day but the reels are a mere $5 cheaper than a reel and viewfinder. That was a little disappointing. 

Still, he thought it was very cool, and I'm always a sucker for things my son finds very cool. 

Coming soon, my next Pinterest Challenge with a whole new set of pins I want to tackle. Edge of your seats, all of you, right?

What To Do in New Orleans: Eat at Commander's Palace

In April, a cowoker got married in Lafayette, Louisiana so another coworker and I made a weekend of it by spending a couple days in New Orleans beforehand. I had been to New Orleans before (here, here, and here), but she had not. Oh, we had such a wonderful time. We mixed the local traditions (drinking a lot) with our particular personalities (enjoying naps and relaxing in bed with a book). Example: We shared a bottle of champagne for breakfast one day (WITH ORANGE JUICE, OF COURSE) but were reading in bed by 10pm. 

Anyway, one thing I love about Adrienne (the lady I traveled with) is that really all we both care about when traveling (or just plain living) is where we're going to eat our next best meal. We had both wanted to try Commander's Palace and thought lunch might be the best way to do it.

We were both right.

The meal wasn't just incredible, the entire dining experience was. We expected this meal would be a splurge, but for a cocktail, a split appetizer, an full entree, and a split dessert, we each paid $50. That's not exactly affordable to do too often, but it was more than worth it for the meal we had.

I had:

A French 75 (probably the BEST French 75 I've ever had)
Spicy Shrimp Remoulade
Crawfish Grilled Cheese 
Strawberry Shortcake

Everything was delicious (the soup that accompanied the grilled cheese wasn't life-changing, I feel I should admit), but I do want to spotlight two particular things. The French 75 really was the most delicious cocktail I've ever had. It's how cocktails are supposed to taste, I'd say. Also, the strawberry shortcake was so good, it actually became one of my new favorite desserts right on the spot.

Honestly, if you're going to New Orleans without an agenda and with any meals free to fill, you need to head to Commander's Palace. You won't regret it.

(Adrienne and me in the French Quarter!)

Watching Them Grow

One thing they don't tell you, at least one thing they didn't tell me, is that watching your kids grow up with other great kids is one of the most adorable things around. A'Dell, how did this happen, anyway?

(March 2010; April 2013)

Washington, DC: Part One

Our DC trip snuck up on us (as you might remember, we quickly went from a June Alaskan trip to an April DC one), and as we rode the shuttle from the parking lot to the terminal at DFW, I snapped a picture of us that kind of hiliariously summed up our preparedness for the trip.

We look so confused! And tired! Are we...going on vacation or are we going into a stressful work meeting? No one can be sure.

Anyway, the flight itself was thankfully uneventful. We got into DC, grabbed a Super Shuttle, and finally arrived at our hotel. (Quick travel math: Dulles arrival + Super Shuttle ride + Dupont Circle hotel = A MILLION TOTAL TRAVELING HOURS.) We booked our hotel room at the Topaz Hotel through Kristin, a blog friend who does travel advising, and when I mentioned to a few people that it was a Kimpton property, they told me you could request a goldfish be delivered to your room. 

A goldfish! 

I was quite excited by this because I think what our travels have really been missing is pets. I did have a brief panicked moment right before I got to the counter to request the goldfish because what if my friends had steered me wrong? What if they DIDN'T offer free goldfish and I requested one and things got awkward?

Thankfully, there was no issue and Spike (what I named him) was delivered to our room without incident.

(From top to bottom, left to right: Mike and me at Good Stuff Eatery, us in front of the beautiful Capitol building; Spike, our fish!; the Library of Congress)

After we welcomed Spike to our room, we headed out for another Spike. Spike's Good Stuff Eatery! The burgers and fries were just so-so, sadly, but the milkshakes. Guys, THE MILKSHAKES ARE GAME CHANGERS. 

Mike and I split a mini-toasted marshmallow shake and then went back two more times on our trip to enjoy our own, non-mini-sized ones.  

(MINI IS TOO SMALL)

After dinner, we walked around the mall, catching our breath at every turn. To see this place come alive in front of us, a place we see in movies and in pictures and in textbooks was just incredible, I nearly cried a dozen times. Maybe it was the history major in me, or the eternal sap, or both, but what a breathtaking part of our country. I felt really lucky to be there.

We stopped in the Air & Space Museum before it closed that day and then we headed back to our hotel room. 

We made it back that night to enjoy the complimentary happy hour in our hotel lobby (ANOTHER reason to only stay at Kimpton properties from now until forever), and I requested one glass of wine to enjoy in the lobby and one to enjoy in our hotel room. Yes, I requested two glasses in one hour's time, and I was a little hesitant to do this. Was that...overstepping the complimentary happy hour boundaries? When I went up to ask for the second glass, I said, "I'd like to take this glass to our room. Is that...can I...IS THAT ALLOWED? SHOULD I PAY FOR THE SECOND GLASS." The happy hour bartender got a glimpse into why I rarely drank in high school. I am very much a rule follower and I have a deep fear of authority. I didn't want to break any rules! HAPPY HOUR RULES! LIKE THERE IS SUCH A THING!

Anyway, I think I took a long bath and then crawled into bed at 7:30pm that night, where we watched a movie, ordered room service dessert, and remembered why vacations are so lovely. 

(When I told Mike that a book, a bed, and a glass of wine is basically my favorite scenario, he said, "You know, you could read and drink wine in bed at home ANY TIME YOU WANT." I hate when he makes so much sense. STOP MAKING SENSE, MIKE.)

The next day, we slept in and met Caitlin (!!) for lunch at Sweetgreen, which was absolutely delicious. Texas, go ahead and open a handful of these. We also got a tour of Caitlin's office. She works at National Geographic and Mike suggested I apply. If he thought my commute NOW makes me bitchy!

(Us, at National Geographic! This was just the hallway. We're very bad at choosing photo backgrounds.) 

After lunch, we headed back to the mall and walked around a lot. We had dinner reservations, so I told Mike that the one thing I absolutely had to do before dinner was see the White House. 

Guys.

We saw the freaking White House, and I had to AGAIN stop myself from tearing up. The White House! (I'm like the most cliche tourist there ever was.) President Obama was sadly out of town this day, which explains why he didn't come out and invite us in for dinner. 

Two little boys were standing beside us as we snapped pictures, and one said to the other, "What do you think is INSIDE there?" The other, "Probably a really big tennis court." 

From there we walked to dinner at Zaytinya with Mike's uncle, aunt, and cousin. (Seems like we had JUST eaten lunch, I know, but I swear there were MILES of walking between lunch and dinner. So many miles. We were so tired and hungry by the time dinner rolled around.)

Dinner was fantastic, and I recommend this place to anyone who is looking for a meal in DC. Favorite dishes: hummus, the crispy Brussel sprouts (OMG, these were amazing), and the crab cakes.

When we got back to the hotel, we headed next door for a drink at the Tabard Inn where we saw Janet Napolitano, although we only KNEW it was her after asking the waitress who the Secret Service dudes were with. Still, DC, you are so charming with all your politicians, just having drinks in the same bar as us. In Dallas, I've seen David Archuleta and Jake Pavelka. NOT THE SAME.

(At Tabard Inn, cocktails and flash photography)

The next day we headed out of town, and Mike had no idea where we were going. I TOTALLY surprised him. That's part two, my friends. Check back sometime in August for that recap.