Big Chill Recap and Sneaky News

Last weekend in Michigan was far too short. Every minute was scheduled to the max! We arrived safe and sound with no flight delays (a miracle in itself given how late we got to the airport; 6:15 for a 6:50 flight!!) and made it to Ann Arbor by 9:30pm. Of course, we got some Jimmy John's delivery for a late dinner. :-) Then Friday morning I was up and at em early. Breakfast tea was had, a visit to the store and bank were made, and then children arrived that needed many, many hugs. I couldn't stay for long though, as I had a lunch date! Kristal and I dined just like the good old days at Sadaku. I even managed to stretch my stomach enough to fit both a shrimp bento box and a spicy tuna roll in! Post lunch there was a haircut with my favorite stylist at Salon Vox, followed by coffee and catching up with the lovely Stephanie. Then I had to hurry home to visit with more kids before they left for the evening to Toledo. After that the Mister was just about at wits end with no computer, so we headed back into town to grab some dinner with Mike and Sarah (woo supper club mini reunion). I was really wanting to try Frita Batidos, Eve Aronoff''s new restaurant, which had just opened. Sarah of course, was game. It was a good thing too, because this meal was FANASTIC. Literally everything we tried was awesome (and we pretty much had the whole menu), despite Mike not being a fan of the citrusy churros. I have seriously no complaints though. From chorizo fritos to sour orange batidos, and from tamarind hot wings to twice-fried plantains, everything was tasty. I'll let some snapshots do the talking!

Post dinner we headed to my brother and sister in law's house for some games. Somehow what was supposed to be a pretty casual night, turned into us not leaving until after 2am! Not ideal for another 'up and at em early' Saturday morning. But I made due. Because I couldn't be late for breakfast with both Kristal and Stephanie at 9am! It was great catching up twice, but I feel a little silly not having taken a single picture with either of my two ladies! After a quick breakfast I headed back to my in-laws to shower & get ready, because it was nearly time to leave for the game! The mister and I met up with Stephanie's mister at a tailgate for an hour or so, and then it was into the big house. What fun! We entered the stadium near the tunnel to get the full marching band experience. Then once seated, even I was surprised how good our seats were. Thanks Gorski!! We were only about 4 rows up from the entire Michigan football team, just left of center ice. It made for good people watching, since everyone seemed to be snapping a million pictures of Shoelace (Denard Robinson). Once the game started, it was even more excellent fun. Not too cold, just the right fan atmosphere, and oh so fun to have that many people in one place breaking a Guinness world record. I'm really glad we traveled back to MI for it.

Go Blue!

Hockey in the Big House

Proudly displaying our Maize and Blue

A great Michigan victory, followed by fireworks!

After the game the Mister and I grabbed a quick dinner at Jerusalem Gardens (my cravings were fierce, falafel places in Brooklyn that I've tried so far are just NOT the same), before I headed off to grab a glass of wine with my college gals Kara and Jamie who were in town for the game. A few hours of catching up ensued, and then I had the Mister pick me up and take me to the Gorski house, where games, drinking, and general nonsense occurred until 4 am! A long day indeed. 

Finally Sunday there was a bit of sleeping in, followed by a really tasty breakfast at my in-laws. I got plenty more hugs from my niece and nephew and all was well in the world. At least, until it came time for our flight at 5pm, which had been slowly getting more and more delayed all day due to the giant snowstorm overnight. We eventually made it to the airport around 9:30pm, only to be delayed a few more hours before we finally got on a plane bound for New York around 2am. Arriving back home to our lonely kitties at 4am was a little less than ideal, but I'm thankful we made it back at all! Getting stuck in an airport overnight is just about my worst nightmare. Given the breakdown, I think you can tell that it was a fun weekend, that just flew by too quickly.
I spent the rest of this week catching up on sleep, and (for the sneaky news part) preparing for a pretty important interview today. Yeah, you heard that right, Interview. I've been keeping hush hush about all things job search related, since it hasn't been so easy to find the type of job I had back at U of M. But since my interview went so well today (all 3+ hours of it!) and I'm already scheduled for a second after the new year, I felt it was time to share. No major reveal of potential employer or details yet, but keep your fingers crossed this pans out. I think it would be a really fun opportunity to learn some new stuff, and I'm excited about the job location being right in Brooklyn (woo small commute). Now that my interview is over, I'll be spending the next few days soaking up all things Holiday in New York before it's back to the mitten for Christmas. I've got plans to check out the shop windows along Fifth Avenue, see the train exhibit at Grand Central Station, finish up my Christmas shopping and bake another batch of cookies for the Mister to take to work. Oh yeah, and finish my Christmas cards and get them mailed out somewhere in all of that too. Whew, deep breath. Happy Holidays!