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they are so cool

the end

how sweet it was

It's Wednesday morning and it's already been a very busy week. Monday night, I had a big event to manage at work. It went off without a hitch and everyone associated with it were pleased. Last night Greg and I joined our friends David and Marc at Blossom Music Center to see James Taylor in concert. David is a big fan, and Marc won the tickets plus VIP passes. And trust me, VIP status makes concerts much more enjoyable. We had close parking, special lounge and restrooms with no lines. The concert was great. J.T. put on a wonderful show and had a lot of energy for a fella his age. He's got a great voice.

Tonight we have David Giffels speaking at the Library. He just published a book about his renovation of a house in Highland Square. It's one of those book I couldn't put down, once I started it. It's rare that I can start and finish a book in one weekend. Funny, touching and wonderful.

a memorable weekend

Enjoyed an unexpected four-day weekend. Friday was the bonus day. Our clothes dryer has been on the fritz lately, making a horrifyingly loud metal on metal screeching noise. The repairman arrived late that morning and took the machine apart. Our dryer requires a pricey new ball bearing. And of course, he didn't have one with him, it needs to be ordered. The good news, we can still use the dryer until the part arrives this Friday. The bad news, the screeching is even worse. Our new laundry plan is to throw the wet clothes in the dryer, start it, and then leave the house for a couple of hours.

Saturday we spent the day in amish country with our friends Tom, Brett, Al and Keith. Al and Keith were in town from Chicago for the weekend. We began the afternoon at the Simply Smuckers Store in Orville. It was my first visit there. Was a cute store. Greg and I picked up some apple butter and ice cream toppings. Next it was off to Lehman's in Kidron. What a large store. We picked up a new cast iron skillet there. Lunch was next at one of the areas big amish-style restaurants. The portions were quite large, and we left uncomfortably full. More shopping at an area market then off to the Breitenbach Winery. I tasted a very sweet Riesling wine. It was quite nice.

On Sunday morning Greg and I had breakfast at Wally Waffle with Megan and Michele. It was omelets for everyone! Afterwards Greg and i did a little shopping. Sunday night was a big Memorial Day party & picnic at Tom and Brett's. We had a great time playing corn hole and socializing with everyone. Brett makes a great cherry martini. I'm afraid that I may have enjoyed too many of them.

Monday was for resting up. We watched quite a few episodes from the Gilmore Girls Season 2. Spent some time at Borders reading magazines. And of course, spent some quality time with the Wii. I bowled a new personal best of 238!

Wii likey

Greg's been saving his money for some time. Today he spent it, on a Wii. It's the best thing since our iPhone. We've bowled, golfed and played MarioKart tonight. I've never really been into video games, but the Wii is so easy to use.

a sweet saturday

Today Greg and I travelled to Hudson for lunch. Greg starts work in Hudson on Monday. He's so relieved to put that long commute to his previous job behind him. We had lunch at Hattie's Cafe then walked down the street to Main Street Cupcakes. According to their web site, they are Ohio's first cupcake only bake shop serving a delicious variety of gourmet cupcakes. We purchased six different flavors to take home. That, of course, means we each picked three. That's them up in the picture. Let me take you on a tour. There in the front is Vanilla Berry, going clockwise, next we have Pink Lemonade, Classic Chocolate, Wedding Day White, Cookies n Cream, and finally, Lemon Drop. So far we have shared and tasted the Wedding Day White and Lemon Drop. Both were delicious. I'm just saying, now that Greg will be working down the street in Hudson, he doesn't need to bring me home flowers, a box of cupcakes would be just fine.
Also today we rented Cloverfield and 27 Dresses. I'll let you guess which I hated and which I liked. Shouldn't be too hard to figure that one out.

mr. derr goes to washington

Here are a few pictures from yesterday's dizzying trip to Washington D.C. with the City of Akron Holocaust Writing and Arts Contest winners.

that kind of day

Came back from lunch and had to park on the very top level of the parking deck at work. This is the first time I've had to do that since we moved the library back downtown.

a weekend off

Had my first full weekend off work in a while. It was delightful. Saturday Greg and I ran errands and did some shopping. I got a new pair of shades. Saturday night we joined a bunch of friends at Tom & Brett's for dinner. They won a catered dinner at the recent Pride Center Annual Dinner and Auction. The dinner was unbelievable. An eight courses italian feast, nearly each course served with an accompanying wine. We were told to pace ourselves, and that was tough with such delicious food. More details from the dinner can be found here on Tom's blog, with a picture of my place setting and menu.
On Sunday we hung out with Michele on the last day of her break between spring and summer classes at the university. We had lunch at the new Bravo restaurant in Fairlawn. Yes, more italian food. More wonderful and tasty italian food. The we caught a screening of Iron Man. It was pretty good. I had my doubts with Robert Downey, Jr. playing an action hero. He was, in fact, very good.
I've got a busy week at work coming up. Thursday, I'll be in Washington D.C. for the day. Be sure to check back here for twitter updates all that day.

breaking news...the greg edition

Greg was offered and accepted a new job in Hudson this morning. His hour drive to work will now be only about 20 minutes. The $300 per month in gas will decrease now also.  The new company sounds great and Greg is very excited. He begins his new adventure on May 19th.  

Had a nice weekend. I worked a bit both days, but I still got to sleep in. Saturday night we went up to Mongolian BBQ in Coventry with Megan, Paula and Ryan. We had a nice dinner and then dodged raindrops. Greg was his normal sweetheart self and went to get the car while we stayed mostly dry. Michele couldn't join us (HI MICHELE!) because she was busy with this year's Induction Ceremony at the National Inventor's Hall of Fame. I'm off today and Tuesday. I went to work for lunch today, we were having a Cinco De Mayo day party. Funny, there was no Miracle Whip.... Tomorrow night, I have some of my co-workers and cooking school buddies coming over for a little get together. That should be fun.

on the 10th day I rested

After nine straight days of work I turned a half day off into a full day. And boy did I need it. Greg needed it too. I was getting a little cranky around the house. So how did I spend my day so far? Here are the bullet points:
+ Woke up around my regular time. Why didn't I sleep in? Well because I just had to know, where in the world was Matt Lauer. He was in Laos, by the way.
+ Walked the Tuckster around the block, took a shower, had a bowl of Lucky Grahams cereal, watched some Regis and Kelly.
+ Car danced to Madonna's new CD on the way to Target. It's an incredible album, her best in many many years. Would make a great work out soundtrack if I could ever find my way back to the gym.
+ Did a spot of shopping at Target and then went to Border's to pick up Augusten Burroughs' new book. It's not received kind reviews, but I'll still read it. He's been one of my favorite authors. I got to take him to the airport when he was at our library several years ago.
+ Chicken burrito bowl at Chipotle for lunch. Don't worry, I didn't go to the one in Kent. Followed by a passion tea lemonade from Starbucks.
+ Swung by Pettiti's Garden Center to pick up some purple pansies to fill some holes in the front flower bed. Came home, planted the pansies, deadheaded the daffodils, and transplanted a day lily from the back bed to the front bed.
+ Watched Martha that was recorded from earlier in the day.
+ Ran to the grocery to pick up ingredients for tonight's dinner of Penne and Chicken Rustica. It's a recipe from the cooking classes I went to this Spring. I've made it once before, Greg's a big fan.
+ Prepped some of the ingredients for tonight, then spent some time on the patio reading magazines. That's a picture, up there, of our new patio cushions. They do a nice job of bringing the color pallete of our living room outside to the patio.
+ It has been a super terrific day. I've not even checked email from work. That's a major accomplishment for me.
+ Greg will be home soon, time to get dinner rolling.

rant of the day

I despise Dr. Phil. That's it.

mmmmpppphhhhh

It's been a long week. Today is day 7 in a row at work. Just 7 more to go. That's right kids, 14 straight days of work. Last week was fairly uneventful. The weather was beautiful. I probably should have done some clean up work in the flower beds, but I came home Tuesday and all the beds had been edged and the backyard bed had been cleaned up. Finally, my procrastination has paid off. Wednesday I was re-elected to our Condo Association Board. I ran unopposed. Friday, I had a late night at work. Greg is on-call all weekend and next week. He's been busy watching the NFL draft this weekend while I'm at work.

happy belated earth day

saturday color

Silk scarves at the City Buddha on Conventry.


Bedazzled purses at the City Buddha.


Colorful house in Cleveland Heights.


The forsythia bushes in the neighborhood are in bloom.


Pansies in front of our house.

say cheese

This is where $20 of my weekly allowance will be going for the next 5 or so months. I'm saving up for a new camera. It officially is available in mid-May. So that will give me plenty of time to read reviews and see if this is the actual camera I want to drop that type of change on. Looks like I will be brown-bagging my lunch this spring and summer.

another weekend

Another weekend is finally upon us. And I still haven't recapped last week's very busy weekend. So here goes. I'm sure I'll leave some details out.
Friday I had lunch with my friend Sarah at Chrissie Hynde's restaurant Vegiterranean. It was my first time there since it opened last fall. The decor was nice. We sat at a high-top table. The stool was kind of uncomfortable. But I suppose that If I were the size of most non-meat eaters, it would have been a more comfortable fit. Sarah and I shared a pizza (see photo) and each got a salad. The crust of the pizza was fantastic. The fake non-melty cheese not so much. But it wasn't awful. I wasn't brave enough to try the garden "chicken" or "steak." On the way out I stopped by the bakery and picked up a beautiful chocolate cupcake to take home to Greg. And, as I've often heard, and know from experience, beauty comes with a price. $6 to be exact! That's right, a $6 cupcake in Akron. It was tasty, but really...$6? I always enjoy my lunches with Sarah, we need to have them more often.
Saturday we had the Akron Pride Center's Annual Dinner at the Greek Community Center. The dinner was good and the group at our table was a lot of fun. We were seated with our friends Tom & Brett,their friends Mike & Mike, and the DJ and his wife. We had lots of laughs and Tom won the centerpiece at the table. Funny how he organized the event and won the centerpiece? Just kidding. Tom and his committee put together a great event. This event officially kicked off the building campaign for the new Pride Center in Firestone Park. The group hopes to raise around $100,000 in the next three years to renovate the building they purchased for the new center.
Sunday we had dinner at Chris and Shannah's. They live on the street behind us and Shannah serves on the condo association board with me. Dinner was fabulous and it was good to hang out with neighbors close to our age. Most people in the neighborhood are older and retired.
Well that was last weekend. Not too much to report from this past week. On Wednesday night I helped to judge a United Way children's art contest. And there have been lots of wildlife around our house. Several days we had several deer in the backyard. There's also a cute mallard duck couple that must have a nest nearby. They are frequently waddling down the street and into our yard.

more daffodils

Another of my daffodil varietis has begun blooming. It sports the white petals and vibrant yellow cup. My last variety, the all white daffodils, are close to blooming and will hopefully open this weekend. I'd like to be able to cut some of all of the varieties for a mixed bouquet. In addition, my allium have begun to sprout from the ground. I believe this is the earliest start they have had since i planted the bulbs three years ago.

bye bye rye rye

Our good friend Ryan just got a new job in Detroit and will be leaving the Akron area in the next couple of weeks. (If you are looking to purchase a condo in Stow, drop me a line and I'll send you a link to Ryan's listing.) We are going to miss Ryan and his enthusiasm for all things Big Brother, Amazing Race and American Idol related. He has some strong opinions and is very passionate about his like or dislike of the contestants. In addition to being a great friend, he's also a good tennis player, and it's too bad that he and Greg didn't get enough of a chance to whack the ball back and forth. Last night we went to Crave for a "See You Later" dinner, because there are no goodbyes, just see you laters.
Michele, Ryan and Megan at Crave

Greg and me

in bloom

My first spring flower bloomed this afternoon. A simple but proud daffodil. I planted three varieties of daffodils two autumns ago. They are poking through the ground with full force this year. Last year they were tormented with a snowy and icy spring. While tulips are my spring flower of choice, I just don't have much luck getting them to bloom from year to year. I'm impatient when it comes to cutting the spent blooms and leaves back as summer approaches. At that point I want to clean up the beds and move on to summer annuals. The daffodils, on the other hand, are very low maintenance and seem to come back year-after-year stronger and with more blooms.

it's been a while

I received a gentle email reminder from Michele this morning that I have not posted anything on the blog in a while. Sorry for the lapse. I was getting back into the swing of things at work again after my vacation, and I guess I just didn't have much to say.
So where did I leave off...well I finished cookie week. Sent Martha an email about it with a link to my blog. Haven't heard back from her. Greg was on-call for work last week. That's always fun with the middle-of-the-night phone calls. Two Sunday's ago I went to my sister's for Macy's 6th birthday party. She was joined by 9 other six year olds with big bouncy balloons that were careening all around the living room. Rebecca's birthday is a few days later. My dad, who was visiting, got both girls a set of roller skates.
After the party, I brought dad up to our place. On the way we stopped off to visit my grandmother. She is my mother's mother and my only grandparent still living. This last visit was difficult. She's having a hard time concentrating and there were very long lulls in conversation. I remember how she helped my dad after my mother died. She lived in an apartment behind our house and made dinner and took great care of us.
Last Monday, I took my dad back to the airport and ran errands. Our friend Brett came over and installed the new ceiling fan in our master bedroom. He's quite a handy guy. He had it up and whirling in under an hour.
Tuesday it was back to work. Pretty uneventful. Saturday was a long day at work. We had our annual gardening symposium. There were many great programs. Ian Adams, an area photographer, took us on a photographic journey of many lovely parks and garden in Ohio. I've made a list of several that I would like to visit this spring and summer. Greg got a new haircut and now sports a part. Sunday was for relaxing...and that brings us to today. I'm sure that I missed stuff, and I will try to do a better job of updating the blog this week.
Below are some pictures from the last couple of weeks.

Dad at the girl's party


Macy and Becca with their stacks of presents


Macy and Dora skates


Becca speeding by on her new rollerblades


An old picture of me and my grandmother

friday's cookie of the day

Today's cookie is absolutely amazing. I think it will quickly become my go-to cookie of choice. It is the Butterscotch-Cashew Blondie. Chock full of butterscotch morsels, toffee bits and cashew chunks. It was the perfect cookie to end my week of baking. Our friends Tom and Brett are coming over for dinner tomorrow. Tom thought that the Cream Cheese Swirled Blondies of earlier this week looked good. I think he will really enjoy the Butterscotch-Cashew Blondie as an end to dinner.
Well, my vacation is almost over. In honor of that, I finally shaved off my vacation beard this morning. It's like I'm a new man. I ran a few more errands this morning. I had to pick up a few gifts for our nieces birthday parties this weekend. My father is in town from Florida this weekend. We'll pick him up at the birthday party on Sunday, and then take him to the airport Monday morning. Greg's on-call for work this weekend, so that should keep him pretty busy. The last weekend he was on-call he logged about 40 phone calls from clients at all hours of the day and night. I really appreciate that he's sticking with this new job and the excruciatingly long commute to Lakewood. Hopefully something closer to home will materialize soon.

gallery hopping

Well not really hopping, I guess. I spent a while at the Akron Art Museum early this afternoon before meeting a former co-worker for lunch today. You can't take photographs in the galleries, just in the lobby. This is photo of the fun furniture in the lobby. It's actually quite comfortable. The sculpture in the background is Claes Oldenburg's pink Inverted Q. I took the photo with my iPhone. It's really handy for that sort of thing.

thursday's cookie of the day

This is my favorite cookie of the week, so far. It is the Pine Nut Cookie. An Italian classic. My dough was a little stickier than I expected so added a couple more table spoons of flour. The flour, along with wet hands, made rolling them quite a bit easier. I have quite a few errands to run, so this is my first morning baking expedition this week. And that mug in the picture above is one of my favorites. I like the stripes.
I'm off to have lunch with a former co-worker, do a little shopping, then later tonight we're off to celebrate Jennie and Hannah's birthdays.

wednesday's cookie of the day

The Peanut Butter and Jelly Bar. I remember making a version similar to this when I was in high school. Martha's recipe is just as good. Tomorrow's cookie, an italian classic, involves pine nuts and almond paste. Stay tuned.

soaking up the sun

Tucker enjoys when either of us is off work during the week. On bright and sunny mornings, the front door opens and Tucker gets an opportunity to bask in the warn rays.

it's two for tuesday

Made another quick batch of cookies this afternoon. Martha's Soft and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies. They took a little more time in the oven than directed, but they sure look tasty. I'm waiting for them to cool a little bit more. Those chocolate morsells are molten hot. I also had some time to package up the cookies that I made earlier today. Tomorrow's cookie...Peanut Butter and Jelly Bars.

tuesday's cookie of the day

Ladies and gentlemen...the Cream-Filled Chocolate Sandwich Cookie. Today's cookie of the day. These took quite awhile to make, but they were fun to put together. They're probably better for you than a real oreo. Tomorrow's cooking school. That should be fun.