Peeps and Passover

Being sort of lazy, not living by my parents and not having kids are the 3 main reasons why it is hard for me to celebrate holidays. But, a really crappy Christmas this year, without a tree or presents, taught me that celebrating holidays is fun and I really miss it when I don't make the effort. I don't like the religious aspect of most holidays, but I do love family get-togethers and I love tradition, so I figure I can celebrate the holiday and just keep the religion to a minimum (are deviled eggs religious?).
This year, we will be cooking Easter dinner at our apartment in Brooklyn. We will try to cram 8 people in our non-existent living room around a folding table and kitchen table. We will be serving the traditional Nielson-Family Easter dinner of:
1. spiral cut ham
2. au gratin potatoes (AKA "funeral potatoes")
3. green beans
4. deviled eggs
5. some sort of jell-o salad
6. peeps-galore (my friend John sends me a giant box of peeps every year)

I think I might even plan an egg hunt for the adults! My friend Scott told me that he would show-up in a bunny suit. I think he is kidding, but really hope he isn't.

On another holiday note, Dan and I will be attending our final 2009 Passover dinner tonight. We had a wonderful dinner with Dan's family on Wednesday and will be joining Dan's friend's at their home in Connecticut for another sure-to-be amazing dinner tonight. Dan's mom made the best mashed potatoes for her dinner. When I asked her how much butter she put in them to make them taste so good, she replied "I only put 2 tablespoons of butter in them, but I put 8 ounces of sour cream and 8 ounces of cream cheese." 'Nuff said!

Happy Holidays to everyone and may the power of the peeps be with you!
p.s. The pic below is of Dan at Passover dinner with his matzoh bib.

I ran, I finished....I didn't pee

Here's a high quality picture of me finishing the Cherry Blossom 10 Miler in Washington DC. I didn't want to pay for the picture, so I did some fancy cutting and pasting into Microsoft Paint. If you look past the "proof" stamp, you will notice that I am not finishing with any elite-looking runners. I am not an elite runner! Also notice how exhausted I look. I was exhausted! I ran really fast for the last 50 yards because I noticed the time and I wasn't about to come in over 2 hours. I came in at 1:59:59. Close call! Actually, I came in more around 1:45 because it took us about 15 minutes to get to even cross the start line because there were so many people running this race (about 20,000).

The weather was amazing for race day and it was so much fun to run around the historical sites of DC and to see the beautiful cherry blossoms. I haven't been able to walk for the past 2 days, but it was worth it! Key successes were:

1. I was able to run with a great friend
2. I ran the entire time (slow but steady wins the race?)
3. I didn't pee! I have a little bit of a weak bladder problem, and usually pee a little bit around mile #6. The not peeing thing was big for me! (Teri will sympathize with me on this one)

Celebrity Collage

I found this site a few years back, which led to me and my co-workers wasting hours and hours of work time, plugging co-workers faces into this database. The bummer is that their program has gotten better over the years because last time I did this, I matched-up with several male and asian celebrities! I really appreciate that they try to only match you with good-looking celebrities, it's good for the self-esteem, but it was much funnier when they matched you to Queen Elizabeth, Jay Leno and some celebrity's dog.

MyHeritage: Celebrity Collage - Genealogy software - Old photos

Rat on the Platform....AGAIN!

There's one thing about our neighborhood in Brooklyn that is less than satisfactory. We have a rat problem in our subway station! I am not talking rats on the tracks because that is a problem in all the stations. In fact, I wouldn't really consider it a problem because those little guys are sort of entertaining to watch as you are waiting for the train. The MAJOR problem with our station is the rats on the platform! I was waiting for the train this morning and heard screaming from the group of people standing on the opposite platform, then I saw running...then I saw the culprit, a giant rat. One guy tried to be a hero and was chasing after the rat trying to squish it (which I just thought made it scary and GROSS, I mean....what if he would have killed it with his shoe, then what?) as it ran back into a drainage hole. Then, the little guy wouldn't let up and kept peeking his head out of the hole and then back in again! I think he wanted to catch the train so he could make it to an Upper East Side rat party.

This is not the first time I have seen a rat on the platform at our station. For a while there, I was seeing rats each time I got off the train on my way home from work. I told Dan and he was certain I was exaggerating as he said that he had NEVER in his life in NY seen a rat on the platform. I told him that I don't exaggerate (I do, but that's beside the point) and that I would be comfortable placing a wager on our next subway ride. Rat on the platform = dinner on him. No rat on the platform = dinner on me. We jumped off the train at around 8:00 p.m. (prime rat time) and walked down the platform. We were getting near the end when he looked at me and said,
"looks like I won"
I said, "it's not over yet"
And, just as we approached the garbage can next to the exit gate, a giant rat ran right out in front of us! The timing was perfect, the rat was giant and fast and I think we both screamed. I am not a gracious loser and I am an even worse winner....so I spent the rest of the walk home punching his arm and smiling at him and reminding him that I WON! I WON! And then we went to dinner...on Dan.

Behold!

Behold...the new addition to the Nielson-Steinberg household. This amazing piece of tech genius was given to us by my soon-to-be brother and sister-in-law, Michael and Erika, as an engagement present. Best engagement present EVER! Dan and I are both voracious readers, so this was the perfect gift, except for now we have to decide who gets dibs on the gadget, as we can't very well use it at the same time! After much flirting and eye batting and then some crying, I won! This thing is light and so much easier to carry around in my bag than a giant paperback or a hardback book. Plus, you can download the newspaper and blogs and they are waiting there for you when you wake up in the morning.
In other news on the literary front. I am still reeling from an amazing evening at Spoken Interludes. Spoken Interludes is this great literary salon (a.k.a. Book Reading), hosted by DeLaune Michel, that is held once a month at a restaurant in Westchester. They always have a delicious buffet dinner and then you get to hear authors read excerpts from their most recent work. I have heard amazing writers that I am already a big fan of (Julie Powell, Aurthur Phillips, Alice Sebold and Michael Gross) and have been introduced to a whole pile of new writers. It is always an evening that sparks your creative side. I have been known to stalk the writers on their train ride back to the city to chat with them about their writing and their personal lives (sorry Arthur Phillips!). If you are in the area, you should check out the website at www.spokeninterludes.com. Please note that I am in a photo on the website with the host! Also note that this is not because I am special, but because my cousin Amy, who is also in the photo, is the morning news anchor for the Westchester News. I am the Robin to her Batman.
I know I sound like a broken record on this blog sometimes, but I just can't believe I live in this amazing city and have the opportunity to do all these amazing things! Life is sweet.