One New Thing: Ithaca

We just got back from a mini-road trip to Ithaca. Only four hours from New York, but it felt like another world! It was full of waterfalls and gorges and greenery... and I think it was spring break for the college kids, so it also felt nice and calm and empty. Plus, compared to NYC, all of the people seem astonishingly nice. It was a little like being released from prison. I kept looking for secret killers along the peaceful trails.

Ithaca is the home of world-famous Cornell University, shown here. See the little sign on the empty strip mall that says Cornell? That's how you know! This was actually the first thing we saw as we pulled into town.

We were only there for a couple days, but they were packed with adventure. We got to eat at the Moosewood restaurant... which was really and truly great. Elliot said he thinks it is the best restaurant in the world. Why? They have this special thing on the kid's menu, peanut butter mixed with maple syrup and nuts and tahini, with fruit to dip in it. And ice cream for dessert... kid heaven. The adult food made us just as happy.

We got to see two really impressive waterfalls... Buttermilk Falls and Taughannock Falls (taller than Niagara Falls!). There was lots of hiking. Ben got to visit the Cornell Ornithology Lab (it's this beautiful site surrounded by wetland paths great for bird-gazing) and geek out with other birdos. Over the course of the trip, we saw wild snakes, alligator snapping turtles, a box turtle, a beaver, and lots of birds. At Cayuga Nature Center, we got to climb around in a six-story treehouse.

So to sum it all up: Ithaca, two thumbs up!

-Kristin

One New Thing: Sweetie Pie's

Back when I was working at the Garden one of my co-workers told me there was a great soul food restaurant nearby called Sweetie Pie's. Our plan was to hop over for lunch one day, but it never happened. It sounded so busy we were afraid we'd never make it back in our allotted 30 min break. Now, six years later, I've got no time restrictions on my dining experiences so I've finally been able to mark it off my to-do list.

For some reason I thought Sweetie Pie's was going to be tiny. Maybe because I'm not used to living in a city where everything is tiny. So I was amazed to walk into this restaurant with such a vast seating area with full size tables. Incredible!

Then we headed over to the cafeteria line. The special was gizzards or something gross, so I went with a vegetable plate: mashed potatoes, macaroni, green beans, and a square of cornbread. There was a new lady working the veggie section. A veteran worker came over and gave her a hard time. She slapped her hands, changed all of her spoons around, and yelled at her to hurry up. It was an awful thing to have to witness. I'm thinking of starting a change.org petition to correct the workplace mistreatment of this lady. And she was old, which made it that much worse! Then I got yelled at by another lady to lay my soda bottle down flat on the tray. I thought it was a really weird request, but in the end I decided it was a pretty good idea.

I headed back to the gigantic seating area where I had my pick of tables and chairs. We got a prime window seat and began to eat, eat, eat. The macaroni was good (although probably on par with our recipe from Andrew). I like my dad's mashed potatoes better and the green beans were nothing special. After all the hype I thought it was going to be so amazing! But I guess you're bound to be disappointed when you build things up too much and for too long. So the result? I'm still on the hunt for the perfect soul food restaurant, although Sweetie Pie's was a nice, somewhat terrifying experience.

- Megan Leigh

Read More: Room

When Cat came over for St. Patrick's Day dinner she saw a book on our shelves that I had, up until that point, ignored. "Oh, you've read Room?" She asked, having heard tongues wag about it. My attention was drawn to the bookshelf where an evidently well regarded book by Emma Donoghue had been tucked away for months. "I'll read it for my plane book," I decided.

Room is a story about a mother and son who are confined to a room. I won't tell you why since it took me a little bit to figure it out for sure. That was probably the most fun I had with this book.

The story idea didn't come across as a very novel subject, even though I've never read a similar story before. A pretty amazing feat!

What really drove me crazy was all the baby talk. It is written from the viewpoint of Jack, the five year old boy who grew up in the room. It's noted many times that Jack is very good with words, but his sentence construction and general word usage tells me this is a lie. Having spent a lot of time with a five year old who is good with words, it just really peeved me. Although he would (and still does) get some words wrong, I don't think it was ever as bad as this! Even when he was three he probably had this kid beat. It was painful and aggravating. 

Another thing that kind of annoyed me was for a long time I thought the book took place in England or somewhere that definitely wasn't America. A lot of the phrases used were a bit off. Why???

Overall it was a pretty boring, although quick read. I was ready for it to end a quarter of the way through. 

- Megan Leigh

One New Thing: Pedicure

I've never thought about getting a pedicure. I just don't think about my feet unless I happen to get a splinter or a piece of glass lodged in one. If I don't see a body part on a frequent basis I usually neglect it. That's why I tend to have hairy armpits and three inch long toe talons. I like to pretend I do this on purpose to keep the boys at bay, but really it's just negligence in the first degree and there aren't really any boys to keep away (shh!).

But this week I was out visiting my Aunt for part of my farewell St. Louis tour and she wanted to get a pedicure and offered to pay for mine. At first I wanted to say no. It wasn't that I wanted to keep my disgusting feet disgusting, but I thought it would be super uncomfortable for someone to touch my feet. After a bit more thought I decided to give it a try -- More material for the blog!

It wasn't so bad! I think my calloused heels are smoother and if this nail polish lasts for a longer time than my usual that'll be pretty rad!

- Megan Leigh

Read More: Mockingjay

Update:

Well, it's over. It was very stressful going towards the end there, so I'm glad to be done with it. Did some of the outcomes make my heart ache a little? A lot? Yes. But unhappy endings make the most memorable books and it kept me guessing to the last! Now that it's through I can definitely recommend you read the trilogy. But be careful, there is a chance you'll ignore work in favor of reading the books and get caught by Kenneth Parcell!

Now back to the other 8 books I'm working on. More heartache awaits in Project Nim, I'm sure. 

- Megan Leigh

Mockingjay, the last book in the Hunger Games trilogy, turned up at the library more quickly than I could have hoped! I was snooping through Megan's room one weekend and found it lying on the floor, in her library pile. So exciting! Maybe I look like a dork, reading tween lit on the subway, but I don't care. The Hunger Games are good stuff.

This book didn't disappoint. All the loose ends in the trilogy got tied up. Who does the heroine end up with? Her taciturn, hawkish childhood friend? Or her sunny, gentle Hunger Game-partner? How does she avoid getting co-opted by power hungry warlords? And what happens when the revolution ends? What will she do to the enemy she hates when she suddenly finds herself in charge? It's a timely book, in light of all the revolutions playing out in the Middle East! So many times it seems like you just end up replacing one tyrannical government with another. If only Katniss were in charge.

A fun, quick read!

-Kristin

Read More: Catching Fire

Update:

Book two is done! Catching Fire wasn't as good as The Hunger Games. There's a bit of repetitiveness, which isn't terrible exactly, just not as exciting anymore. Although Kristin saw a certain twist in this book coming, I was taken by surprise! I thought this book was going in a different direction. I Kindle bought the third book this morning! Another late night awaits.

- Megan Leigh

I put in my request at the library for Catching Fire, the second book in the Hunger Games trilogy, what seems like ages ago. Finally, last Friday Megan brought it home. By that point, I'd forgotten I was even waiting for it, so it was a special treat! Saturday morning, the kids woke me up at 7, as usual. I knew I was in for a Backyardigans marathon. So I yawned and cracked open the book, while Poppy got down to the theme song.

Now I'd heard that this book wasn't as good as the first in the series. Or the third. I think Cate told me that nothing much happens in this one. So my expectations were pretty low. I got engrossed right away, though, and I ended up finishing the entire book in one day! I could see where parts of this book were a letdown for fans. I don't want to spill any secrets, but there was a lot that was predictable. Even so, I thought it was a fun read. And it took me away from the Backyardigans for a while!

As with the Hunger Games, and any dystopian future-type book, it made you look at our society in a more jaded than usual way. An elite urban population, living off the misery of most of the world... Said elites sending children off to kill each other for no reason... It's all sadly familiar. And very timely! Although I guess those themes are always timely.

At this point, you may be wondering who these urban elites I am speaking about are. Are they the same as those subway-riding elites who have been in the news of late? No, but speaking of, it you want to see more of them, here is a great video montage of the subway-riding elites of New York City.

-Kristin

One New Thing: Sewing

I can't remember ever having used a sewing machine before. Never had Home EC, always avoided the sewing machine when mom had it out... somehow I just never learned how to sew. It was way too late that I realized that sewing would probably be a really useful skill. And it took even longer for me to think that sewing actually sounded like a lot of fun. But that's the place I found myself in for the last few years! Ben's mom generously bought us a great sewing machine. Which Ben promptly put to use. But I just didn't know where to start.

Then, like so many wondrous things, the answer came to me in my daily Groupon email. A sewing class that promised me the sewing basics in two hours. And I would leave with my very own makeup bag. A bag that I made! All I had to do was show up.

I scooped up two classes for me and Meg. Then Kim bought one too. The fun was about to start! We all registered for a class, and the excitement built. But then, on the morning of the class, disaster struck. Elliot was puking. The plague had passed from little to big sibling. Megan graciously offered to stay home with typhoid Eli so I could go to the class. But the gods were not done with us yet. Over in New Jersey, Kim was scheduled to accept a big delivery. And the delivery people came late. And then she missed her train. And then, when she finally got a train, it was held at the station.

Somehow Kim and I made it to class though. And we sewed our bags, and it was a lot of fun! The class was held at the Sewing Studio, and it was nice and small--just five of us. The teacher was very nice and patient. And best of all, we got to work on the very same kind of sewing machine I have at home. So that was very useful. And I think I picked up most of the basic stuff I need to know to start experimenting--how to thread a bobbin, how to start a simple seam, that kind of thing.

Here's a picture of my bag. I picked a nice bicycle fabric, so I gave it to Ben to keep doctor things in. You can't see in the picture, but I pricked my finger and got blood on the bag. Booo. But he says he likes it anyway. And I think the blood really shows that I put my all into this project.

-Kristin