Every Day

After returning from my northeastern adventure I quickly found myself in the doctor's office with a rash on the back of my legs. Let's just say I learned a good hard lesson about why you shouldn't wear a short skirt while traveling on the metro. One of my coworkers convinced me it was scabies (it wasn't) and my sister had me convinced it was from bedbugs (it wasn't). Turns out it was just an allergic reaction to... [insert something interesting here]. I still don't know what it was from, but while I was sitting in the waiting room for 45 minutes (why do you schedule appointments to see the doctor again?) I came across a fantastic article in WebMD featuring the Elizabeth Gilbert, author of "Eat, Pray, Love" (new Book Club book #1) and I found myself intrigued and making my own list of sorts. Enjoy!

Q: What's your healthy-living philosophy?

A: I have a list of 10 things, which I have found keep me happy and healthy, that I try to do every day. I can't say it's a prescription for everyone, but this is what works for my particular organism - - mind, body, and soul. When I take care of these things, everything else takes care of itself. Here is the list:

1. Take a walk.

2. Write something.

3. Read something.

4. Don't eat too much.

5. Spend some time in silence.

6. Stretch.

7. Send a message of love to somebody.

8. Drink water.

9. Mess around in the garden.

10. Floss.

Get me out of this city.

After our vacay with the fam in the Big Apple, it was time for Nick and I to venture off to Massachusetts for a little R&R. We were sad to part ways, but excited to escape the city. We packed up our suitcases, bid farewell, and hitched a ride to the ferry. In Manhattan we pulled our luggage up and down the city sidewalks until we made it to the rental car place. That is where they told us the fantastic news! Since our car was reserved on a debit card instead of a credit card, we were not eligible to rent a car per the law of the state of New York. And surrounding states, might I add. No credit card? No rental car. No bueno.

Side note: Since becoming "financially responsible" I have not used a credit card in two years and refuse to even carry one around in my wallet for "emergency use only" since my "emergency" of the moment could very well be a new handbag or a pair of expensive jeans. Not worth the risk. Nick doesn't believe in credit cards... so therefore at this moment we are toast.

After what seemed like hours of Nick pleading with me to just call my parents (who were still in Staten Island) so we could get this situation resolved (to which I folded my arms and continued to resist the notion of GASP! asking for help) we grabbed our luggage and started aimlessly wandering around the city. Again. Luckily at this point a light bulb went off in Nick's inventive little mind- other forms of transportation. We headed to Grand Central Station to investigate trains to Boston (which I was secretly stoked about since GCS was on the section of my must-see list that had not yet been explored. Hello- Gossip Girl anyone?) It only took a few minutes to realize that the party was actually at Penn Station, so we raced down the street (luggage in tow) to find the Amtrak. We got there just in time to catch a train to Boston (sigh of relief) and climbed aboard for our new adventurous detour.

I wiped the sweat from my brow (the weather in New York is waaaaay warmer than I thought) and sunk into my seat on the train not knowing what to expect. Once we started moving I couldn't help but feel like I was on the Hogwart's Express. Let me just say that traveling by train was pure loveliness. The seats were huge, the food was delicious, and the service was better than any flight attendant I have ever had. Not bad for accidental transportation.

We got off early at Providence Station so our dear friend Laura could scoop us up and take us to her son's bakery Wholly Canolli in Worcester, Mass. for a quick visit. So delicious that I am STILL dreaming of Dynamite Sticks. A must-visit for anyone visiting the Northeast. MMmmmmmm.

The rest of the weekend was spent in pure relaxation mode. We shopped, barbecued, shopped, boated, and then shopped some more. By the way, thanks to this week of vacay my wallet is now empty but my closet is not. Wink wink.

My one ambitious request was that we tour Harvard. Nick and I strolled through the Square and around the campus, taking in the scenery and chatting about how neat was is that 8 U.S. Presidents, over 50 Nobel Peace Prize winners, and countless political figures walked across those very grounds. Even though I was glad to cross it off my must-see list, I could not help comparing the campus to my Alma mater with a very biased, Hook 'em Horns, my-school-is-better-than-your-school attitude. Sorry Harvard, you've got nothing on Texas.

Razzle Dazzle in the City

Ever since my obsession with the television show "Friends" began circa 1996 I have dreamed of visiting New York City. I always envisioned myself sipping coffee in Greenwich Village, carrying around shopping bags from Bloomie's, and having drinks at the Plaza. And don't EVEN get me started on my love for Kelly Ripa and my dream job on "LIVE with Regis & Roz."

Please note that I did not do a single one of these things this past week on my first trip to The Big Apple, nor did my morning show premiere on networks worldwide. (Sequel trip? Already in the works.)

My cousin Jason picked us up from the airport on Saturday afternoon after a long morning of traveling. As we crossed the Verrazano Bridge I saw... the Statue of Liberty! And literally started tearing up. But hey, it's my vacay and I'll cry if I want to. We settled in to Casa de Jarrell thanks to our fabulous host family then headed out for a city tour. It is widely known that Nick and I insist on doing a bicycle tour in every new city we visit. Instead of doing a group tour per our usual routine, Jason borrowed some Coast Guard bikes and gave us our own guided city tour! From the base... across the harbor via the Staten Island Ferry... and into... THE CITY! We zipped through the Finance District, rode through Battery Park and past Ground Zero then made quick stops in Chinatown and Little Italy. The three of us dodged cabs, ignored red lights, and cruised up the wrong side of the street like true New Yorkers. After my daring escapades in the city, Nick and Jason dared me to jump down some steps close by the house. Easy breezy for a bicycle hot shot like myself. After I successfully cleared the steps I raced past them in all my glory, leaving them in the dust. Then I dared to conquer the impossible. A feat not even a pro like me could manage. I attempted to jump... a 2-inch curb. Needless to say I ended up face first in an iron fence with no skin left on my knee and bruises the size of New Jersey on my forearms. Not exactly what I had in mind for my first day in the city. I spent the entire week cleaning my wounds, changing band aids, and limping through subway terminals. Injury aside, the trip was amazing. What I love about the Northeast (other than the go-go-go-go-go mentality)(and the shopping)(and the amazing accents) is the history. Very rarely do I get to draw upon my Bachelor's in History (and by rarely I mean never) so just being in a place that has so much of it was unbelievable. I think I took pictures of every building, statue, and tree in the city just in case it had a back-story I had not yet heard. Just in case you don't believe me, here is a little taste of how I spent my trip to the NYC...





Speaking of history, Nick and I were able to check out McSorley's Old Ale House which is rumoured to have had every U.S. President since 1854 walk through it's swinging doors. They only have two types of beer- light or dark- which they serve up two at a time. (Apparently a popular concept- it was so packed there was barely a seat in the house.) Even though we didn't stay long, the experience was totally worth the trip. The moment I stepped foot onto those sawdust-covered floors I felt like I was in a time warp. The place definitely doesn't look a day past 1854.

Another interesting place was Dangerfield's, which is the longest running comedy club in the WORLD. It was awesome to be in a place knowing that some of the greatest comedians got their start in that very club. In fact, we met a bartender who began his career there in 1969 when the club first opened... and still works there. Talk about job security! He served us up our drinks ($80 for 4- ouch) and even got up on stage to tell a joke at the end of the show.

Not only did I get to learn some history, I got to create some with my amazing family. We ate pizza at Lombardi's Pizza, which claims to be America's very first pizzeria. I insisted that everyone treck through Central Park to walk through Strawberry Fields and travel almost an hour to get to The Museum of Natural History (complaints about this all around but lots of thank-you's afterwards). We took strollers on the subway, ate cheesecake in Times Square, and never went anywhere without our Globetrotter travel guide in tow. We were total tourists and it was embarrassingly amazing.