Author Archives: yearoffunsarah

Oct 23 2012
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Food/Drink Fun, Friends and Family, Nightlife

Day 29: A Drink

An impromptu drink and food with a friend concluded my day. Spontaneous plans can be the best! You just have to be open to them.

Now these days, I don’t drink more than one drink per week (or less) due to the medications I take and to how tired I usually feel the next day. But my friend had reason to celebrate (new job) so we each had a beer and toasted to his success! Consequently I feel a little tipsy as I write this. It has been a while. I say once a week but really I don’t imbibe unless there is some occasion like a wedding or anniversary and sometimes even then I refrain. The potential liver damage just doesn’t seem worth a few extra giggles. I’m learning to have that carefree, drunk if you will, feeling in lots of situations without the help of alcohol. But that doesn’t mean it isn’t still fun once and while.

Oct 22 2012
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Guilty Pleasures, Online Fun, Pamper/Beautify, Solitary Fun

Day 28: Shopping

I started this Guilty Pleasure Monday off right, with an hour of online shopping in bed.

I’m in desperate need of winter work pants. This summer I bought a few pairs of those trendy colored pants (that I totally love and will wear again when the weather is warm and bright and screams,”put on your coral pants!”) but now I don’t have anything for fall/winter that isn’t at least two years old. Pants are the trickiest item to shop for, for me at least, so while I enjoyed perusing the pages of Loft and Gap from the comfort of my warm bed, I decided I needed to actually go out to accomplish this task with any kind of success. Luckily I already had an appointment in the Loop, right down the block from a Loft store.

Recently, actual shopping trips have been tricky for me as I can never be certain how long I will last on my feet. And I am a shopper who likes to do several laps around a store before making any final purchasing decisions. If I have to rush because my feet hurt or my husband is bored, I usually make ill-advised or no purchases. Today was pretty good though. I sat a lot in the dressing room and really took my pants mission seriously.

Before today, I had no idea Loft had four different fits. The pants all have women’s names, Zoe, Julie, Kate, and Marisa. After trying on each fit in multiple styles-I was literally walking around with one of every kind of pant in the store-I decided Marisa modern is my gal. I also learned that I am too short for ankle pants and too tall for petite pants. I ended up buying modern Marisa in black boot cut and a charcoal grey skinny, both of which will be great with any number of different shirts for work. I really wanted to get like 5 sweaters as well but I practiced restraint. Except just now I got an email from them offering 50% off if I buy 5 items online tonight. I mean it is Guilty Pleasure Monday…

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Oct 21 2012
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Chicago Specific Fun, Food/Drink Fun, Fun for Couples

Day 27: Andersonville Adventure

After a short shift at work, I decided I wanted to enjoy the gorgeous weather by wandering around one of my favorite Chicago neighborhoods, Andersonville. My husband and I moseyed down Clark (around Foster), checked out a few new shops and wondered over where to eat.

Our first stop was at a new dog store and groomers called Jameson loves Danger where we looked for a sweater and/or witch costume for Elphie. Among their selection, which was mostly for smaller dogs, was mobster, shark and beer wench but no witch. The sweaters also looked too small, but we did end up buying her a thunder shirt (for her separation and doorbell anxiety) and some cheese flavored treats.

Next we popped in to a farm fresh grocery called Urban Orchard. We were looking for some food and had already struck out at Ann Sather (who knew they closed at 4 on Sunday?). Their chalkboard claimed they had a cafe but it was not really what I expected. Nothing prepared to order, just some pre-boxed food. They did have some great looking pumpkins though!

Then, we admired some reclaimed wood furniture outside of an antique-y store. A barn wood table caught my eye, so gorgeous but $300 and not really big enough to replace our current table.

By this point, we were pretty hungry so decided on our old stand by, Lady Gregory’s. Named after an Irish author, Lady G’s is a total pub with delicious food. Over dinner, we had a shared fantasy about moving to a farmhouse near the lake in Michigan, eating at that barn table every night and living out of our vegetable garden. I would cook fresh every day, bake bread, can vegetables and make jam and pies. He would work in the nearest big city and BBQ and brew beer on the weekends. We’d have kids, dogs and a fireplace and basically always look like we stepped out of the J Crew catalogue.

After we’d had our fill of deviled eggs and dreams, we planned to stop by the furniture place to admire the table one more time but the shop was closed up and the table moved back inside, so we decided to end our Andersonville adventure there. I wish I had a picture of this table! But you will have to settle for this one of me admiring the local fall decor.

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Oct 20 2012
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Fun for Couples, Solitary Fun

Day 26: Hocus Pocus

I had planned to go out for a drink after a two-show day at work. But, as is wont to happen, I was extremely tired when I got home and not interested in going anywhere. The plan was for my husband and I to go meet one of his friends in from L.A. so he just went without me and I decided to watch a Halloween movie from my childhood: Hocus Pocus.

This 1993 classic stars Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker and Kathy Najimy as the Sanderson sisters, three witches who were hung during the Salem witch trials when they were discovered sucking the life out of children to remain young themselves. However upon their death, they vowed to return and seek their revenge upon Salem when a virgin lights the candle in their old house, which is, in the present, a museum. The candle gets lit by a California cool guy new to Salem trying to impress the pretty girl. The sisters come back and are perplexed by modern life, things like the city bus, television and Halloween costumes. Meanwhile, with the help of a 300 year old talking cat (he is really a boy who tried to rescue his sister from the witches) California guy, his little sister and pretty girl fight to get rid of the sisters once and for all.

What I like about watching movies from childhood is that I can both remember how the movie made me feel when I first watched it (terrified) and how it makes me feel now (silly, delighted). I can also appreciate some of the elements in a whole new way. For example, Winifred’s (Bette Midler) Emperor-like ability to manipulate people with lightning that shoots out of her hands, the cat/boy getting totally flattened by a bus and then re-inflating, er, coming back to life, and the rousing musical number that leaves all the parents totally incapable of helping in this crisis (I Put a Spell on You).

Whether its Hocus Pocus or some other gem, I highly recommend revisiting a favorite childhood movie if only to laugh in wonder at how you could fall for such childish foolishness. And then maybe do it again.

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Oct 19 2012
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Food/Drink Fun, Fun for Couples, Guilty Pleasures

Day 25: Home Baked

Sometimes, after a long week, all you need is a warm chocolate chip cookie. Normally I like to bake cookies from scratch but I don’t always have the luxury of time. Tonight, store bought dough (all natural) did so much better than expected.

Out of the oven, they were gooey in the middle but nice and crunchy around the edges. Topped it off with nice tall glass of ice cold milk and Project Runway. Ah. Life is good.

And using store bought dough allowed us to make just enough for two people and save the rest for another night.

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