and our winter is over!

this morning i got up way too early, and headed out to the grocery store- no milk for my coffee! i was expecting it to be chillers out, but lo and behold, i think our winter has ended. the sun is shining, the sky is blue, and i wished instantly i was not in leggings and a light sweater. (yes, sick, i know. thats winter for us). 

thursday night was jazz~ !! ashley & anton (her husband) and i met for dinner in downtown miami, which is usually a total ghost town. there is literally nothing that stays open there past 4pm. i cant quite find a similar analogy in new york... wall street? but even there, people live there. here, its just like, business ends, and you realize that the area is desolate, and potentially dangerous, full of sketchy-unknowns. anyway, they happened to know of a little italian place, so we split a bottle of wine, a thin crust pizza, antipasto, and a pasta. surprisingly delicious, i have to admit. as we were heading out to go to our cars to drive over to the performing arts center, ashley began to waiver: you know the drill, do i have to go? do you mind if i go home? is that okay with you guys? i just dont feel good? i just dont like jazz? at first, i was like- she has to be kidding. you're leaving me here with your husband who ive met on two occassions, but never spoke to for more than like,  5 minutes at a time? then again- you know when you really want to go do something, and you've got a little hanger-back, someone you can tell is just not that into it, and you increasingly find yourself annoyed at them- as if that was their plan all along? anton and i both bade her faretheewell and headed to the show together. and--- it was really, really fun. we were bopping in our seats; the older couple next to us was totally eavesdropping before the show started, and you could just tell they were getting a kick out of us; that same older woman kept snapping her fingers to the jazz- it was such a moment.  

wynton & the lincoln center jazz orchestra-- about 12 guys in all -- were totally jamming out- the first half was very much glenn-miller-type, orchestrated, like swing or big band jazz. during intermission, we ran down the stairs from our post way up above to the lobby- where one of the concession stand areas was candy. i dont mean like, fancy candy. i mean, like, when you go into a candy store and they have a row of candy, with little shovels in them, the kind you snack on in the supermarket. anton bought us both the requisite plastic cups and we filled up on red licorice bites, reeces peeces, gummy bears, sour patch kids. what a brilliant idea! did they just assume everyone going to see jazz would be so young at heart?  the second half of the show was even better- it was much more improvisational, and we continued to bop along in our seats. i drove anton home, and said goodnight, and was genuinely glad that we had been able to hang out. 

as expected, the last day in the office before we leave town- it was hectic to say the least. i was working like a maniac trying to finish up a last minute memo, with the distinct knowledge that it was never going to be read, or at least, that i would have to repeat a similar situation all over again monday in atlanta...  the good news, though, is that i am flying in earlier than my coworker nick & the boss- which means that i wont have to endure a mostly-awkward plane ride involving discussion about whatever. instead, i can read in peace, arrive in the cold north (ha) and then work again like a maniac until tuesday morning. we have a bunch of dinners planned while we are there, and i get to hang with blake again, which im looking forward to. 

after the crazy day yesterday, we headed out to a happy hour- the girls from my office, as well as ashley & anna & justin from down the hall, and some assorted husbands, and we went to montys. (incidentally patty, there are *two* montys- one of which is in coral gables, the other in south beach- which is the one i go to- it overlooks the water & boats, although i think the montys in coral gables is an experience i will have to take advantage of soon!) . i was oddly proud that i had arranged this happy hour, actually, as we were all smooshed around a table outside, drinking pitchers of beer, eating assorted fish tacos, nachos & wings, and everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves. what a good idea, (pat on back). then most of us headed over to see a comedy show- darryl philbin from the office, also known as (in real life), craig robinson. now, while i enjoy the office, i do not watch it enough to know all the funny quips or things he does, but let me tell you. he was hilarious. it was him & his band, called something like "the funk nasty", which involved him on a keyboard, and assorted other musicians playing an electric-guitar-keyboard-thing, drums, guitar, sax, trumpet... assortedly random and amazing. i cant really explain what he does, or why he is funny- but he would sing these songs and then just interject humor into them, saying things that were random or inappropriate, and i barely stopped laughing to catch my breath. the only thing i can liken it to, is, if you were hanging out with your most funny friend in college, in their house, and they were just on a total roll and you couldnt take how funny they were, and it was just kind of amazing that he exists, and that it went on for two hours of him just being ridiculous, absurd, singing, random, throw in any other adjective you can think of. it wasnt stand-up, thank god, it was a whole new level. fin. 

the morning after, im in the midst of doing laundry, but ive got to head out shortly to grab my bib & racing chip for the run tomorrow. i am feeling like such lazy bones but i figure its justified. i have reached that adult point in time where i wake up by 9am no matter what i do. its kind of sick, and definitely annoying, no matter how late i stay up the night before, or the fact that i have not slept late in like 7 days. no use crying over split milk and all that. i figure it will prime me to wake up at like, 4am tomorrow. gross, gross gross. thankfully i know some other kids who are running the race as well, although the probability that i will find and/or see them in a crowd of 15,000 after not much sleep is relatively low. either way, ive got a few post-race-brunch invites to choose from, assuming i can stand up after 9am, which is an entirely different story. they've opened a "russian & turkish bath house" down here in one of the hotels not far from me, over on like 55th street and collins- run by the same people as the one in the east village, so im thinking i should just buy a day pass and slink into a bath & sauna infused day tomorrow. sounds delicious.

xo