MLK Day Recap

It's nice to think about the fact that America was progressive enough and respectful of Great Black Leaders at one point in time to declare Martin Luther King's birthday a federal holiday.  Kudos to you, Reagan Administration.

On the flip side, the campaign for the federal holiday began not long after his assassination in 1968, so it's really unfortunate that it took 15 years to actually be recognized.  Also unfortunate is that it seems like our country might take 30 years to recognize something of the same nature in the times we're living in right now.  I'm hopeful that this year or next or maybe some time during the Biden administration, we can get Juneteenth recognized as a federal holiday considering the impact it had on so many lives.  Unfortunately, to my own fault but also history classes' fault, I didn't really know about Juneteenth until this past summer. However, I'm determined to celebrate it in the future with festivals and recognition...you now, once we're all allowed to congregate again. 😊

Speaking of last year, this year's MLK Day looked a lot different than it did in 2020.  For starters, the Coronavirus/Covid-19 was something I was aware of and considered a possible threat (not near the extent it turned out to be), but it was still halfway around the world, and I mainly just joked about not catching it with my coworker Deborah or mentioned it here and there with Nathan.  

Shortly before MLK Day in 2020, I'd had two interviews for my job at the Dallas Doge, and I'd convinced them to hire me. 

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Nathan and I knew we'd need a place to put all of our crap once we'd arrive in Dallas, so we took advantage of the three-day weekend by taking an extra day off (the Tuesday after) to make a weekend trip to find a place to live.  We left New Orleans on Saturday, January 18th to make the 7.5 hour drive and stayed at the DoubleTree Hotel right off of 75.  We had a really great hotel room for the weekend, and we had a great and also surreal time checking out places to live in our future city.  I want to say we looked at 4 or 5 apartments, and it was fairly easy to decide.  We also spent time driving around the city, with Nate showing me where he used to live when he went to school here, as well as where he lived before he moved to those apartments (which were now torn down), and hitting up some yummy eats. 

Sadly, when we arrived back here in February and pulled into the Mockingbird Station to enjoy some Old Chicago Pizza and Taproom again with Burt (in town for the night after helping us move), it was closed down. :( 

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We'd had Old Chicago Pizza & Taproom the first time when we mini-vacationed to Denver in April 2017, and we really enjoyed it, so we had it again.  It did not disappoint again.   

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We also enjoyed this Texan beer for the first time, and fell in love with it after that first pint.  We couldn't wait to get back to Dallas to have it again (and again and again and again...).

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We also enjoyed quite a few Trader Joe's yummies and relaxed in the hotel room with fine hotel room movies on cable like Tremors!

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We also dredged through Bad Boys II, which was really really bad, but it was playing because Bad Boys III was near release in the theaters. 

WhichWich's Courtney Cookie!

Nice view 😉

Apparently good hotel bathroom lighting called for a photosesh

We had a really great time, but the best part was realizing that we had a nice apartment to lay our heads in when we returned in just a month.  We departed Dallas on the morning of Tuesday, January 21st, but not before meeting our landlord Pat at a fun two-story coffee shop to sign our lease and pay the deposit.  

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It's weird to think about going to Toasted now, because it's only a hop, skip, and jump from my beloved Trader Joe's on Greenville Ave, and both are only a 5 minute drive from our place.  A year ago they felt so far/disconnected because all of these streets were foreign and hard to map out in mah tiny little brain.

We rolled into the city again a month later on February 20, 2020, after saying goodbye to NOLA, and here we are 11 months down the road.

This MLK day was still really nice, but there was no traveling involved.  Also, there were no Tremors (sorry, Reba!), and not near the "yummy" intake of alcoholic goodies paired with desserts. ('cause you know, health.) BUT there was still a lot of fun.  There was relaxing and playing on our new Quest2 (mini golf and puzzle games) and also planning and plotting by me to get this place even more decorated.  I'm really excited to pick out some more artwork to frame (eyeing three or so of these, or these, or these to hang above our couch, as well as getting some frames for these that I got at Christmas!  

So yeah, not really any pictures taken, but pictures bought-en.  Except not really yet because I'm waiting on a few of the Etsy joe's to get back with me on customization.

2021!

So this is the new year.     

On Thursday night, we rang in the big 2-0-2-1 with a bang! And by bang, I mean goofing around making pancakes in the shape of 2s and 0s and 1s.

Team work makes the dream work pancakes.

We attempted an "NYE," but that blasted N just didn't want to cooperate and stay n-shaped in the flipping process, so we opted for a smiley sausage to add a little extra pizazz!

Sopping in syrupy goodness.

Mandatory goof-ness

We also watched a few episodes of Taskmaster (the British version, of course), and toasted a little bit of sparkling wine grape juice in celebration. 'Cuz, y'know, this is the year of making it happen.

As I mentioned here, it was a cold, nasty day, so crawling into bed at 12:03am 'twas quite nice.  Also, no nasty hangover the next morning was a win-win-win.  (I feel like I've referenced this Office episode on the ole blogarony before, so if you know, you know.  And if you don't know, then you can get the hell out of here!)

Back to work it was today.  Or back twerk it. --whichever fits your fancy. (I swear I'm stone cold sober.  But it is 8:27pm, and mah brain stops functioning at about 4pm.) I remarked to Nate that this might be one of the hardest Mondays to go back to work since it's following all the many weeks of holiday funtivities coupled with practically no 5-day work weeks, but we survived.  Nay, perhaps even thrived.

Nah, just survived. :)

Sexy Laundry Talk

We share a washer and dryer with our upstairs neighbor and our side neighbor.  That second part only makes sense if you know how people sublet houses in New Orleans, but just trust me on this one.  In an effort to be a courteous, don't-hog-the-machines neighbor, we set a timer whenever we put in a load of laundry, first the washer then the dryer. Naturally.  I guess you could chose to do it the other way around if you'd like, but you're also probably one of those barbarians who pours the milk in the bowl and THEN adds the cereal.  I don't understand you or your heathen ways.

Anyway, we've painstakingly and scientifically narrowed down the fact that a load in each device takes approxmately 58 minutes.  I know you're thinking, "C'mon, you could just say 1 hour."  BUT as mentioned above - I strive with everything in me to be neighbor of the year.  Or really just to not piss someone off who I am guaranteed to encounter weekly, and I already do that awkward "hey" "hey!" "how are you?" "good! how are you?" (dear lord, it's NEVER taken my key this long to unlock the door...hurry....hurry you retarded piece of metal!)

Also sometimes you hate doing laundry on a weeknight or any night, so those extra 4 minutes really help you keep your wits about you when the laundry's keeping you from shuteye or just being a lazy blob on the couch.

Alllllllll that preface-ness to say, Nathan tossed some pants in the machine this afternoon and then proceeded to set the timer for 30 minutes.

Annnnnnnd action:

*Alarm goes off for laundry.*

C:  Wait, it's only been thirty minutes.  It's not done.

N:  I know, but I did a little load, so I put it on a shorter setting.
      I selected 'lightly soiled.'

C:  HAHAHA! So you're saying you only sharted in your pants instead of having full-blown diarrhea?

N:  (laughs, shakes head, rolls eyes, thinks "How did I marry this 14 year old boy?", leaves to go check and see if the pants are ready to be moved to the dryer)
 
N:  (walks back in 20 seconds later)

C:  What was the verdict?

N:  I realized I had to pee.  I haven't checked them yet.

C: HAHAHAHA!

Two peas in a pod.

A love that lasts

The other night....

Courtney:  Man, I'm hungry.

Nathan:  Let's eat something.

C:  I already brushed my teeth.

N:  So, let's get something anyway.

C:  ...no, cause I'm fat.  *pokes thigh to make it shake*

N:  That's okay, we're about to get thin. (implied in tone:  whether we like it or not because college is expensive and we're dwindling down our savings.)

C:  You're supposed to say "You're not fat."

Laughter ensued, but you'd better believe I'm storing this in my back pocket to bust out in a future argument.

Not really.    maybe. 

Happy Memorial Day weekend, folks!

Friday Shenanigans

After work on Friday, I zipped into CVS to pick up a prescription.  I was on the phone with my long-lost distance brother, so I didn't want to cut the conversation short.  We don't talk that much because I'm a horrible sister and not really a phone person.  Anywho, I did what any normal person trying to refrain from eating added sugar does when on the phone in a drug store:  I perused the candy aisle.

I came across these new caramel M&M's and my curiosity was peaked (lover of caramel AND chocolate here).  I decided that I wasn't going to go down that road, and then at one point happened to mention to mi hombre the treasure I had found to which he replied:  "No way! I'm eating those right now! They're SOOOO GOOOOD!" He's pretty enthusiastic about sugar as you can see.

Now what I didn't mention is that the only size bag they had was a decently large one labeled Sharing Size.  Psssh!  Sharing for maybe my big intestine and small intestine.  I scoured the store while we were still chatting away and couldn't find any other size bag.  Eventually I decided to be a good girl and after I got my prescription, I bee-lined it out of there sans caramel&chocolate goodness.

Fast forward about 3.5 hours to about 9:45 p.m.

After mentioning the newfound treasure to Nathan maaayyybbbeee more than once, he decided that we should go get some. So I made myself decent for a public outing aka put on a bra and slipped on some sandals and off we went to the corner gas station to get a small, normal-sized bag of them.

And they didn't have them.

So we zippadeedooda-ed across the street from the gas station to Walgreens.

And they didn't have them.

So then we made the trek in the opposite direction to the CVS where we knew they'd have them in the amazing Sharing Size and all was right in the world again.  But then...when we got to the counter, the angel-from-above CVS rep said "You know these are buy one get on free, right?"

And my face lit up and I almost kissed that man right on the lips.

So that my friends is how this wild and crazy couple spent their Friday night. Go ahead and be jealous.