Things I Wish Connecticut Had...

There are plenty of things that I like about Connecticut:

1) Located in New England, meaning close to some family members

2) Better foliage (let's face it, I'm a sucker for fall leaves)

3) Food (let's face it again, I love food...)

There are things I don't like about Connecticut:

1) Missing The Container Store

2) Missing Qdoba

Two of my favorite things...and they don't exist in Connecticut.

When I lived in Texas, one of my favorite things to do was walk around The Container Store. I was obsessed with organization (though I lacked it in a lot of aspects of my life). I loved the idea of it though. If I had the money, I would buy everything from there and put it all into use. I remember when I would participate in sports and particularly when I was a cheerleader, we would be assigned a teammate to prepare gifts for before a game. The Container Store was where I would find all of my boxes, tins, bags, stickers, etc that I would use to put the gifts in. It was incredible. To this day, it is still one of my favorite places to visit and browse and buy from.

All of my life, Mexican or Tex-Mex food was my favorite to eat. When I lived in North Carolina, I encountered a place that I would fall in love with called Qdoba. It wasn't the first time I had a burrito like this, but it was by far the best (at least to me). I would drive there at least once a week (sometimes more, guilty as charged) to eat the food. I made believers out of classmates and friends. They make a Chicken Queso Burrito that I love and would drive great distances to have.

Because both of these places don't exist in Connecticut, I had to drive to the closest locations: Massachusetts. It's usually about an hour and a half one way....but I guarantee, it is worth it, for both of them.

And on the way, you might see something crazy...(Disclaimer: You shouldn't photograph and drive at the same time. Please don't try this on your next drive.)

So get on the ball Connecticut...you finally got a Sonic (and soon to be two of those), now make it happen for two of my favs!!!

Fair Time

The Fall brings about many things that I enjoy because of this particular time of year: cooler weather, leaves changing colors, Halloween and fairs.

Having grown up in Texas I knew what true State Fairs looked like. The Texas State Fair is, in a small word, huge. For a state that big, it better be, right? I do indeed miss the Texas State Fair, with its food and rides. But I can't miss an opportunity to attend another State Fair, can I?

How about 6 States Fairs...all in one! Too good to be true you say? But halt, no...it is true! Welcome to The Big E, held at the Eastern States Exposition in West Springfield, Massachusetts.

My roommate and myself went to The Big E, as we did last year, and while it was a different experience, it was still a good one. We ate tasty food. I believe the best quote of the night was as follows:

Robyn: I'm hungry!
Me: We'll get you a corn dog to tied you over.

I wasn't lying. We had a plan ahead of us on food to eat. Unfortunately for me, having been in the ER just a few days before, I wasn't in the best of shape to eat a lot of food, but I tried my best.

We started the evening with corn dogs (best fair food anywhere, I believe). As we walked through the fair, we stopped at the craft section. This was for Robyn. She was looking specifically for an ear cuff, something she buys every year, and we found a new one for her.

Next was the baked potatoes. Baked potatoes? At a fair? Why yes, at this fair. At The Big E, there are state halls, one for each of the states represented. You want a great baked potato with all of the fixings?! Go to Maine! Maine is one of the largest producers of potatoes in the country, which I didn't know until last year. So of course, we dined on them!! We walked around the hall for a bit following the starchy goodness and decided, when in Maine, we would split a lobster roll. It was good, though cold and I prefer warm with butter.

Next we moved on through a few more state halls, including Vermont. Robyn was all about this state and saying that if she was going to buy maple syrup, it would come from here (we had a slight disagreement about that). Anyway, we did agree that below was not edible...


My night of food was done, but we still had rides to go on. Well, ride...as my roommate was not a fan of spin-y rides and without an extra person, I didn't want to ride alone. So we rode "Crazy Mouse" and had a good time. We were pretty much the oldest people in line...rather sad, but it didn't stop us. We continued around the Midway looking at all the other rides. We found this one and I couldn't resist photographing it in honor of our current production of Antony & Cleopatra.

We ended our night with purchasing new watches (something we both actually needed), followed by (sadly) a failed attempt to find the Craz-E burger: a bacon cheese burger on a donut. We would have split that too, if we had found it. Robyn wanted to end her night with a caramel apple (for the road) and ice cream as we walked out. I convinced her to try frozen custard, something I like from the boardwalk in New Jersey. Needless to say, she liked it!

So we left The Big E satisfied and tired. I was a little weak due to being up and about so much, but it was worth it. I only wished we had others there with us, like last year.

Well, maybe next year...

Heeeere Fishy Fishy Fishy...

So, roomie and I have been prepping our new fish tank for about 2 weeks and now the day has finally come...WE HAVE FISH!

So with Mini Mount Wanahaukalougi bubbling away, let me introduce you to the newest members of the family...

First up, Tik (pronounced teak). Tik is a Dalmatian Molly and I named her after a former pet of mine, a Dalmatian dog name Batik.

Second is Edward. Edward is a White Sailfin Molly and I named him Edward for multiple reasons: he's pale white, ice cold (well, cold-blooded) and super fast! AND...I do have an obsession with the Twilight books with the pale, cold vampire named Edward...

Next, Mickey! Yes, Mickey...as in Disney's Mickey Mouse. Mickey is a Red Mickey Mouse Platy and is so named for the Mickey Head located towards the tail of his body. This is the first of Robyn's fish!

Last but not least....Minnie, of course! Minnie is Robyn's second fish and she is a Gold Mickey Mouse Platy. You can see she's taken...by Mickey, naturally!

So, these are our babies...and we love them already! Stay tuned for more fishy updates!!!