Snow Snow

We had snow again this morning - it was so0000 beautiful. Each drop was so big and fluffy.

I was enjoying from the window of my office. Wish I had a camera : ( Wish I could skip work and just hanging by the window and watching the snow dancing.

When I left work, the snow has melted. Next time I will carry camera in my laptop bag.

Change

The change we have collected so far (purpose: to adopt a dog)



We took it to the local bank and since we are the members of the bank, we didn't have to pay for the convenience fee.


Another $100 or another jar of money to go to get my dog : )

St. Patricks Day

This year, I got a chance to celebrate St. Patrick day in Chicago - we had always planned to check out the famous green river during the celebration. It was a last minute plan (I decided to go around 4 PM Friday where we left around 8 PM). The plan was made 2 weeks ago but I canceled it since the Russian won't be able to make it (he is back from Atl Saturday). But couple of my friends decided to go still without us. Friday, they came to my cube and asked me again if I would like to join them (they have a car and hotels, so I just needed to tag along). I called Russian, and told him that I won't be able to pick him up and had hid the key so he can enter the apartment.

The ride to Chicago was quick, we only stopped once where we had to fill up gas - I drove the first part, for around 2 hours, then the rest of the trip I enjoyed my sleep. We arrived around 3 AM, and went to sleep right away.

The next morning we all got ready at 9.30 AM, and walked to the river area - it was crowded and we couldn't decide where to stand, so we walked around for several minutes, and at the time we decided we couldn't find a spot anymore : ( but I was small enough, and was able to squeeze myself between 2 people, and got a front spot.

The color of the water prior to the dyeing ---- Color after the dyeing


They used orange to brighten the color since the river has dark green water


This was how they did it - the boat made 4-5 rounds until the water changed color. There was another small boat, which only drove around to mix up the dye.

After the event, we walked around the Millenium Park and around Michigan Avenue and ended up eating at the Indian Garden restaurant. The food was delicious, I will totally go back there one day. After the lunch, I split up from everyone and decided to go and hang out with my Chicago friend who came to eat lunch with us.

We went to a Japanese market & food court - hung out around the bookstore for 2 hours and ate bento boxes, bought a bunch of Japanese snacks. It was nice to talk and hang out with him all day - I haven't seen him for quite a while. We also went to watch "The Ride to Witch Mountain." I regretted spending 20 bucks to see this movie.



We all left Chicago at 11.30 PM, and drove back to MN with one traffic ticket for following another car too closely.

New Snow ...

Today we got some cold weather and new snow

GT flowers

Dandelion flowers always remind us of Spring time in Georgia Tech where they always bloom near ME building - Now we called them Georgia Tech flowers. Hopefully Spring comes soon so we can hike more and being outside more often.

<--- a gift from the Russian for our 5 years and 4 months dating anniversary : )

<-- my shot target for my new Camera - so far the lighting is not as good as I wanted : (

40 new members

Last Friday, I got a USPS door tag for the package from Daniel - I was so excited since Lani told me that she got a chance to buy me some mangas. So Saturday morning, I woke up early and drove to USPS office (around 10 minutes from our apartment) and was so happy when the USPS lady handed me the box - 40 new mangas (WAOOO that's a lot) THANK YOU LAN!!!!!

This week, Russian is in ATL, so I will have a lot of free time to read those mangas : ) So happy and excited. It seems Lani knew that Russian will be out of state and I will be alone - this package came on the right time (actually mangas ALWAYS come on the right time)

Now I have more than 750 titles and more than 1000 mangas : )
Hopefully we could find a new home for them soon, also for us

Ibuprofen & Tylenol Price

Finally we got the hospital bill for the common cold incident and here is the total for the pair of Ibuprofen and Tylenol pills (AND a bottle of Gatorade! And a relaxing ride to the hospital in the back of an ambulance) .....................

It is 2,232.20 .....

Two THOUSAND, two hundred dollars, and then 32 more bucks, and then 20 cents, too. And that's just the insurance summary -- we haven't received the hospital's bill yet, so we don't know which things cost the most.

"In my defense," said the Russian, as he coughed into a kleenex, "flu symptoms can often be misleading and life-threatening. It really is best to take preventive care, use caution, and let modern medicine do its work." He was unable to comment further, due to swift kick to his ribs, courtesy of the Asian.

He believes THESE links prove stuff:

Athletic Maryland teen dies of the flu
Athletic Pennsylvania teen dies of the flu
Athletic Minnesota FIREFIGHTER dies of the flu

"People should really take care of their health," said the Russian again, recovering from the pain of being swiftly kicked in the ribs by the Asian. "Getting a flu shot is one of the most important things you can do to keep yourself safe during flu season. Talk to your doctor to see if the flu shot is right for you. Side effects may include: pain, swelling, soreness at the injection site, mild dizziness, drowsiness and disorientation. You should not drive after taking Afluvia. Afluvia is not for people who are pregnant, or going to become pr.... OUCH."

At this point, I hit him again. He is being ridiculous.

I should point out -- I did not get the flu shot this season. I have some weird prejudice against it. But even though I didn't get the flu shot, I ALSO DIDN'T GET SICK, whereas the Russian, with his super-immune-system defense shot *still* got the cold and ended up in the hospital.

Easy Paella

I decided to try one of the "Everyday Food" recipes - Easy Paella. I saw how they cooked it on the TV and it looked soooooo good and delicious and sooooo easyyyy. I love to cook meat with rice all in one pot -- fewer pans to wash and very easy to bring to work & reheat.

It took me an hour and turned out so good -- just a bit too salty, maybe because the turkey was already seasoned (we substituted chicken sausage with turkey meatballs).

Click this link for the Easy Paella recipe, try it!


The picture doesn't do justice to the taste of this delicious meal - too lazy to take another shot
My husband said it is pronounced "Paea" (drop the "ll") - that is how they pronounce it in Spanish.