a perfectly balanced weekend

From start to finish, this past weekend was one of simple perfection. It had the semblance of everything you could want in a weekend: lazy mornings, late night chats, lots of yummy food (not an exaggeration), fun outings, & cozying up on the couch. Could you really ask for more?

P.S. ^^ That is a $1 million in tens. No big deal.

Friday started off with a metro ride to take a tour at the Bureau of Engraving & Printing. Fun fact: did you know they print $1 billion in bills a day? Don't get all in a tizzy though, 95% of that goes to replace all the old & worn bills that the Federal Reserve locations collect from banks across the country. But seriously, 1 billion dollars printed every day?? Whoa.

Proof that my husband has a split personality of being a funny kid^^

And what better way to console one's self from seeing literally millions of dollars being printed and stacked than to eat waffles? There is none, I tell ya. So off to try Wicked Waffle, before heading back home to wait on our long-time-coming couch! Wahoo, finally somewhere to sit! And if you think our excitement was overstated, let's just say once we nestled in we didn't leave the apartment or the couch for that matter until noon the next day {Side story: our couch excitement was so severe, we finally acted upon our plan to purchase another chair for our den... less than 30 minutes after our couch was delivered}.

Saturday started and ended much the same way: being lazy, eating, and having lively conversations (mainly technology being released before its time & how to cope with an ever changing world. If you were wondering, we never came up with a solid answer. Anybody have a good solution to this?) But the middle part of the day included mapping out a plan to hang our gallery wall, perusing IKEA for odds & ends, a long & fun trip to REI as we researched/tried out what colorful sleeping bag, day pack, etc. would be suitable for me so that we can get to hiking ASAP once the warmer weather returns, a grocery run to pick up some baked goodies & fruit, and a yummy pizza date at Brixx. 

And Sunday? Sunday was just the cherry on top to our perfect weekend. Husmate & I took a long walk around King Street & the Waterfront, ambled along inside the Torpedo Factory Art Center, & stumbled upon an open house where we fronted as a couple in the market for a 2 bedroom condo with a loft (holy condo association fees, Batman!). About 7 minutes after we got home, husmate suggested we go see a showing of Silver Linings Playbook that started in 5 minutes time, and so off we went! After emerging from the theater we decided to continue our spontaneity streak and go to Whole Foods to try our first pint of Jeni's Ice Cream, as well as a few cookies... you know since we were there and all {If you haven't heard of Jeni's, they're a creamery out of Columbus, Ohio that hand makes every small batch of ice cream from super healthy sources. They have some wacky flavors, as well as some pretty tasty normal ones; we stuck with dark chocolate for our first taste & good golly, it is wonderful.}. We also own Jeni's recipe book & fully plan to start concocting some of our own attempts at her yummy goodness, once the temperature gets above 50 degrees of course. Sunday concluded with watching the Academy Awards, rooting on our favorites (go Argo!), & marveling at just how long that awards show can last. Could you imagine wearing a massive ball gown and sitting in a theatre chair for almost four hours? Especially one that has a tight bodice? And how do you get in/out if you aren't sitting on the front row? Many questions I had time to ponder over the course of the show and concluded with a "thanks, but no thanks."

And now here we are on a Monday. Five more days to another fun weekend!

Random musings for a Friday

- Husband is ironing a shirt for work and the iron is making its typical steamy sounds (as in the H2O variety, and not the promiscuous kind), and I have this automatic need to say "Luke.... I am your father...." to which my husband continues with "Daddy???" We're a funny nerd couple, as if you didn't know.

- If you haven't gone to see Argo yet, GO SEE IT. While yes, I love a good movie, you will not catch me often these days headed to the local theater to shell out $25 dollars for this husband-wife team to see a newly released film (especially when the DVD release is on the verge in 5 months). All that to say, go see Argo in theater. It is incredible, and you won't regret it. Truly one of the best movies I've ever seen. For any who need a refresher on the plot, here you go:

- I read in an article today that 2/3 of all undergrads in American colleges and universities are in some sort of debt, AND that student loan debt will total over a trillion dollars. Wait, what??? You guys, this is a major problem. I also read that around 75% of senior administrators in those institutions think a college degree is worth over $25,000 in student loan debt. While I'm a huge advocate for higher education, if you're not getting a degree that will pay a decent entering salary... $25,000 is a big hole to climb out of. Something's got to give here people. You can read both articles on the subject here and here, and please note the beginning paragraph about the inflation of tuition versus the inflation of milk over the years (Disclaimer: imagine paying $15 for a gallon of milk. Sorry, I think I'm lactose intolerant...).

- So in case you missed the debate this past Tuesday, one of the best one-liners was Romney's "binders full of women." And while I'm not making fun of his intentions, his choice of words have caused a good bit of laughter in all the satire that has ensued since. And for the record, I love a good play on words. I mean let's be honest, one of my favorite movies to this day is Mel Brooks' Young Frankenstein, and my father and I still reenact the "Walk this way" line from the movie. As is the norm, I've digressed... The funniest reactions to Romney's line can be found in the customer reviews on Amazon for their binder selections, and one of my favorites happens to be this one. And the funny thing is... I read that one aloud to husband... and he asked if I wrote it. No, I did not. I'm not clever and gutsy enough to write a witty review on binders. But I did love the reference to Big Bang Theory with the Bazinga username. Kudos to you, fellow satirer (yeah, not a real word.... I know). And in case you were wondering, I already have our DVR set to record SNL just in case a skit comes to life involving binders and women...

- Fingers crossed that this time next week, Mississippi State will be 7-0 going into its game against Alabama (who will undoubtedly be 7-0). Helloooo, how cool would that be??? Hail dear ole State...