Greece & Turkey

I depart in the morning for my two week trip. Business or Pleasure? Business. Happily.

Here is where I am traveling to:

Wednesday, August 18 - Depart Gateway City

Thursday, August 19 - Athens, Greece

Friday, August 20 - Athens

Saturday, August 21 - Athens (Boarding above ship!)

Sunday, August 22 - Mykonos

Monday, August 23 - Santorini

Tuesday, August 24 - Rhodes

Wednesday, August 25 - Bodrum, Turkey

Thursday, August 26 - Kusadasi

Friday, August 27 - At Sea

Saturday, August 28 - Istanbul (Back on land.)

Sunday, August 29 - Istanbul

Monday, August 30 - Return to Gateway City

I am most excited about visiting Santorini, Greece -

And Istanbul, Turkey -

"Marvellous things happen to one in Greece - marvellous good things which can happen to one nowhere else on earth."

- Henry Miller, American Novelist, 1891-1980, The Colossus of Maroussi, 1942

Lovely Morning

Hank and I had a fun little Saturday morning this past weekend. We had brunch at Mint on the west end of Franklin Street in Chapel Hill. It's really great Indian food. Added bonus... Their $12 weekend brunch includes all-you-care-to-drink mimosas. Delicious.

We stopped into Hank's favorite local beverage company, and I spotted this little guy:

Then we went to the bike shop for Hank to try out some road bikes:

UNC has the most beautiful college campus. We worked off all of our Indian food by walking through the Arboretum.

I love this part:

Pretty sunshine for a lovely morning.

Croakies

I see an opportunity present to push a Croakies cart through Chapel Hill. I called every store imaginable in this area to find the original neoprene Croakies for my trip. I have the regular brown ones, but I need the XL Croakies so they fit over my shades. Of the limited number of stores that do have them, they only have them in black. If you are looking for XL.... Forget about it! Think of all the students that would go crazy over this color:

Or this color:

I wish I would have thought about this earlier, and I would have ordered them online here. I guess I will be wearing my glasses on my head, hoping no locals do a grab by!

It's Princess Silly

My friend Cara received the silliness I mailed to her. Love that she arranged them just so and posted this picture on Facebook:

"I got a birthday surprise in the mail from Andrea!! Disney Princess Silly Bandz to accompany my fabulous UNC Silly Bandz! Thanks, Andrea - I love them!!" - Cara

I also sent my bridesmaids each their Disney Princess Silly Band(z). I may have matched them up with a Princess - just for fun. There were just the right number and too many similarities not too.

Did I mention I love Disney?

Pack It Up

Packing for two weeks is intense. Especially when you need a day outfit and a night outfit, for each day, times fourteen. I really tried for a carry-on only, but once I got to the shoes, there was no way it was happening.

Here I am in the midst of it all:

P.S. I am happily wearing my pearl earrings in this photo!!

Earlier in the day, I knocked them both into the sink drain. I was in shock. Luckily, they went no further than the "u" in the piping right under the bathroom sink. Hank retrieved them for me.

Thank goodness. Lesson learned.

EAT PRAY LOVE

This book did not hold my attention. I made it halfway through, and then I walked out on it.

Since Julia Roberts was cast as the lead in this movie, I of course had to see it. While it was long in some parts, I overall really, really enjoyed it. It made me laugh, and it made me cry. When I got home, I flipped through my copy of the book, and I noticed of what I did read, I highlighted a lot of it. I plan to give the book a try again.

"Happiness is the consequence of personal effort. You fight for it, strive for it, insist upon it, and sometimes even travel around the world looking for it. You have to participate relentlessly in the manifestations of your own blessings. And once you have achieved a state of happiness, you must never become lax about maintaining it. You must make a mighty effort to keep swimming upward into that happiness forever, to stay afloat on top of it."

On another note, this song is always played during Zumba:

I was so happy when I heard it in Eat, Love, Pray - It made it too easy for me to find the name of the song and the artist,

Samba da Bencao - Bebel Gilberto (it's on itunes)

I love how this song makes me feel. Here is the translation of the first three lines (to get the gist of the theme of this song):

It's better to be happy than sad

Happiness is the best thing there is

It is like a light in the heart

William Feather

He said it best...

No man is a failure who is enjoying life.

Shampoo Blues

It happened again!

We stayed at a friend's house while in Philly, and they had the most amazing shampoo in their guest bath... Aveda's Sap Moss.

It did unthinkably wonderful things to my hair. I was so excited once I got home to go pick this up. Then I find out... IT HAS BEEN DISCONTINUED. I am too late. Now it's going for an arm and a leg on eBay. I've got the shampoo blues.

Drink? Drink!

Hank let me know that Men's Health had an article on the worst drinks for you. Wouldn't you know it... The top three are my top favorites (Long Island Iced Tea, Margarita, Pina Colada)!

"A study from the University of North Carolina found that we consume 450 calories a day from beverages, nearly twice as many as 30 years ago! This increase amounts to an extra 23 pounds a year that we're forced to work off—or carry around with us."

Ding, Ding! This explains so much.

The best light beer for you is Beck's Light.

Need an energy drink? Choose Monster Lo-Carb Energy.

I don't eat at Red Lobster, but if I did, I would head in the opposite direction of the Lobsterita... 890 calories!!

Bottom line... Choose water.

Luckily, I just won six personal training sessions at my gym to combat all of my previously calorific drink choices.

Paperless Post

I have received a few invites and a thank you note via Paperless Post. I thought they were super cute, but I didn't have a visual on seeing myself really use this site... I love snail mail too much. Well, now I may be hooked. Last night, I needed to write a couple thank yous and some congrats, and I didn't have any stamps.... What to do? I turned to Paperless Post.

They have invites, thank yous, monogrammed notecards, birthday cards, save-the-dates and all other things stationary. They offer great fonts, various envelope liners and the list goes on. Paperless Post is very user-friendly and all about the experience. Your recipient receives an e-mail. They go to this e-mail to find a classy envelope. They click to open this envelope and out slides your beautiful card with note. If your skeptical, the card is printable, and once you have your own account, it will store all that you have sent and received. You can also track who has opened your card and in the case of an invite, who has RSVPed. It's truly perfect and practical.

You should try it out for yourself... You'll love it. Just for creating an account, you receive 24 stamps and 10 coins - free of charge. This allows you to create and send 24 pieces of Paperless Post with 10 credits for add-ons like the envelope liners. Paperless Post has many applications in life, but think about when you were interviewing for jobs. Sometimes, there is not enough time to mail a hand written thank you note, and an e-mail is too easy. Send them Paperless Post. I love.

Jorts

I have been around some really cute girls lately who were wearing their even cuter jean shorts.

At the Lake:

At the Phillies Tailgate:

I started having the jean short itch on Sunday night. It started to itch worse throughout the week. I needed a remedy. The only place to go to get this fix was back to my old stomping grounds - Abercrombie & Fitch. I worked there for a semester during college, and I vowed to never return. Yet I did return, and I was greeted with the same loud music and cologne tainted air. Positive - All the jean shorts are currently $20 off! Perfect. If you're going to go, you have to go all out with the distressed and cuffed jean shorts. I did, and here I am:

I may be just slightly obsessed with this denim delight.

Love The Way You Lie - Video

I hope Chris Brown watches this. Love that Megan Fox and Dominic Monaghan (from Flash Forward) are in this video. I read that Fox is giving her paycheck from her work on this to a woman's shelter. Great decision, especially with the media controversy this video is brewing.

Hump Day Hottie

Shaun White.

For some people, it's not all about the looks. A great personality defines you, and it's what can make you an HDH.

This guy is one cool dude.

GPOYW

Loving my new polka dot pumps edition.

Cute and comfy - a rare pump combination.

*Gratuitous Picture of Yourself Wednesday

Back!!

Philly was fun. While I've learned that I much prefer flying, there were a few things we would have missed out on had we not drove:

1. Being in the bathroom when a Wendy's employee did not wash her hands. Another customer saw this too and went irate. She told the manager, "I am so disgusted, I will vomit all of my food back up on your counter." We left and went to McDonald's.

2. Seeing the "I drive like a Cullen" bumper sticker in action.

3. How do you become sixteen and pregnant? Have parents that ignore the fact that you are rounding the bases in the back seat. The parents stared straight ahead while their son and his girlfriend were getting wild in their car. Really weird.

4. Loved the views on the drive into the city. You can't replace the excitement of finally getting somewhere - especially after lots of traffic.



One of the guy's houses we stayed at was beyond beautiful. Five floors up was his gorgeous rooftop patio with great views of the city.



Ah, the Pat's & Geno's debate. We ordered the 'cheesesteak wit' at both. The bread and cheese were similar, but Pat's had their meat seasoned and cooked to perfection. Nothing tastes better than a cheesesteak at 2 AM. All the locals agree... It was packed!



I enjoyed seeing all things Philly is known for. The LOVE statue was precious, someone even gave me a silly band to match it.



Cupcakes are my favorite. The interior of Philly Cupcake was decorated quite well, but their taste was nothing compared to our very own, The Cupcake Shoppe. I'm definitely a buttercream frosting fan, not so much a fan of the whip cream frosting that was on this vanilla treat.



Liberty Bell!! I was most excited about seeing this : )



Running up the steps of the art museum, just like Rocky, was much anticipated as well. It did not disappoint. I loved seeing all of the bridal parties taking their pictures here too.



Phillies Mets game was a blast! There was a huge tailgate beforehand. Plus we had great seats, and it was a beautiful day - even though I got burnt. P.S. Me with my very own Phanatic (their mascot).



We tried The Schmitter Sandwich at the game. It was definitely my favorite thing I had to eat while in Philly. It's Philly Goodness on a Roll.

We hung out in the parking lot for a bit after the game. We ate brownies (random) and laughed times a million. Some people are just born comedians. My favorite thing to do in life is laugh, and I did it here so much both my stomach and face hurt.



I love that the restaurants in Philly let you BYOB and will even provide glasses and/or uncorking for you - free of charge. On the other hand, you have to pay a daily fee per person to be on the beach. Pros and Cons : ) This vacation ended with some much needed relaxation and beach time at the Jersey Shore. "Take it eaze."

Philadelphia & Jersey Shore Bound!!

For vacation with these three!! Until we meet again.

Lunch Bunch

Friend Cara

Plus fun sushi lunch together at Shiki

Plus Cara trading her PINK Carolina Silly Bandz to me

Plus getting an amazing e-mail from my favorite blogger ever (that is no longer blogging... still so sad)

= A perfect start to my weekend!!

Lady Tailgate

She's sportier than Sporty Spice. She's cooler than ice. She's the perfect date. Especially to a Phillies-Mets tailgate!

Lady Tailgate shows her spirit in a jersey with matching tube socks. She battles the sun with her wayfarers and a nice cold brew. She eats her freshly grilled cheesesteak from the seat of her hot pink chair. When she's ready to have some fun, she cruises around Lot K in her Cruzin' Cooler before heading into the game.

Take me out to the ball game!

Lemonade Cookies

Filing these away in things that make me smile.

You can find the how-to here.

The Road Not Taken

Speaking of poems, I love this one too. I remember having to memorize and recite it in middle school. It has stuck with me ever since:

The Road Not Taken

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,

And sorry I could not travel both

And be one traveler, long I stood

And looked down one as far as I could

To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,

And having perhaps the better claim,

Because it was grassy and wanted wear;

Though as for that the passing there

Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay

In leaves no step had trodden black.

Oh, I kept the first for another day!

Yet knowing how way leads on to way,

I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh

Somewhere ages and ages hence:

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I -

I took the one less traveled by,

And that has made all the difference.

- Robert Frost

Invictus

I watched the movie Invictus last night. I had a tear - it was very well done. The poem from that movie is one of my favorites:

Invictus

Out of the night that covers me,

Black as the Pit from pole to pole,

I thank whatever gods may be

For my unconquerable soul.

In the fell clutch of circumstance

I have not winced nor cried aloud.

Under the bludgeonings of chance

My head is bloody, but unbowed.

Beyond this place of wrath and tears

Looms but the Horror of the shade,

And yet the menace of the years

Finds, and shall find, me unafraid.

It matters not how strait the gate,

How charged with punishments the scroll.

I am the master of my fate:

I am the captain of my soul.

- William Ernest Henley

Jungle Blooms

Trina Turk Jungle Blooms Belted Bonita Dress in Glo

One of my least favorite things is when you see someone wearing something beautiful, and they tell you they purchased it last year. Sometimes, I can get lucky on eBay. Then there are other times where dresses, like this amazing one, just cannot be found! It's fabulous and flattering in all the right places. I saw someone wearing this in a store the other day, and I could have cared less about anything in that store. I could not stop staring at this dress! If you spot it... Do tell.

HDH

Obi! He stopped by my office for a bit... Lucky me!

Pack Your Bags, Mom!

We're heading to The Running of the Brides.

You camp-out. You dash inside. Grab handfuls upon handfuls of dresses.

According to the website, "when the crowd is let loose, it takes less than 60 seconds for the racks to be stripped bare."

Your friends guard your mound of dresses. People try to steal your dresses. You trade dresses. You could end up with a $9,000 Vera Wang dress for $699.

What was the most expensive wedding gown ever sold at the sale?
One was originally priced at $10,000. At the time, the price for gowns at the Filene’s Basement sale was $199, so some lucky bride got the bargain of a lifetime. Recently a bride-to-be found the original price tag of $12,000 on the gown she got for just $699.

This sounds so crazy - utter mayhem. Yet so fun, because if you find the one, you are getting an unbelievable deal on it!

Eminem

Favorite rapper. He is fabulous. Crafty with his words. I love this lyric from his song, Love The Way You Lie:

"Now you get to watch her leave out the window,

Guest that's why they call it window pane."

Hmm... Now I want to go watch the movie 8 Mile.

Tuesday

"It's just another day between episodes of Jersey Shore."

- A Facebook Friend's Status Update

Fortune?

We got chinese take-out for lunch on Sunday. This was Hank's fortune:

WHAT!?! We're still not sure where to even begin on deciphering this.

Turtle Turtle

While a tad bit of a sugar overload, these little guys - spotted in Harris Teeter - are the cutest of friends: