rainy morning walk.

i love the rain.  it's my favorite to be snuggled in my bed when it's raining, with our window wiiiiiide open.  i can smell it now just thinking of it. 

but some days [especially those days we are out of coffee because i forgot to go to the market], it is nice to wake up and go for a walk first thing on our weekend.

i love our south end neighborhood, but i think i might love it the most in this spring rain. 
how lucky am i to live here? 

although i'd consider myself a little luckier if i could live in this house, listed for sale.

the rain started coming down a little harder, so we jogged back to the shelter of our loft and vacation plan... we are thinking the rainy season in thailand :)

happy weekend friends!

boston pride.

so i know it may be boston information overload this week, but that's how it's been in my life, and this blog is a reflection of what's going on in my life, so there you have it.

pi and i decided to get out yesterday and walk around the city yet again.  i don't know if it was being locked down on friday or just the attack in general, but we have been a little stir-crazy in the loft.  so we decided to go out and enjoy the city.

seen on newbury street - words of support + pride

the thing is, boston is an amazing city.  we have only lived here for a few months, but i have been coming here for over a decade during weekends and the summer to visit my dad, who moved out here when i was in high school.  it's never really felt like much to me - maybe like my dad's home, or like a place i was familiar with, but i never really felt like i could really live there.  even when we moved out here, as much as i have loved it, it hasn't really felt like my city.  it's just been where we live, not our home.

but this week has really changed all of that for me.  i feel a very different, very distinct connection with the city of boston now.  it feels like my home, finally.   and i have a sense of pride and feel very protective of my city.  boston has so much to offer, and now that it's springtime here and it's just inexcusable to sit around inside and not enjoy our city. 

washington's statue in the common

graveyard of samuel adams

signer of the declaration of independence, robert paine

original boston city hall

plaque honoring mary chilton

old state house

boston massacure monument

and what a really awesome city that is.  we walked part of the freedom trail, stopping at some historical bars along the way.  now i know this sounds crazy, but when you pop into an old pub off faneuil hall and see a handfull of drunk old men singing 'sweet caroline' between dropkick murphy's songs, there's just a certain affinity it provokes a certain emotion.  because the history and the people are what make this city - my home - so great.

til next time...

locked down.

i did not expect to wake up to this.  but of course, i'm sure no one in our city did. 

we spent the day yesterday walking around our neighborhood, much of which was barricaded off due to president obama's visit.  it was a beautiful spring day, the kind where i went home and baked rhubarb strawberry bars with all the windows open.  it was lovely.  i thought president obama gave a lovely speech.  we don't have cable so after we walked around down tremont, we stopped at our usual hangout parish to have a beer at the bar and listen to it.  i wiped away tears as i sipped my beer.  we tried to get going, running errands out to pick out a new tv stand, and hung out at home the rest of the evening.  we even went to bed kind of early.

site if the interfaith service yesterday

watching the speech at our local bar

and when i woke up, it was at 7am to a phone call from my dad, saying 'please tell me you're at home.'  we immediately got up, brewed a big pot of coffee and tuned into the news on our laptops.  we stayed in bed, watching the news in disbelief yet again.

so what does one do while they are on lock down?

start drinking martinis at 2

snack

take a cat nap

watch mindless netflix - LOVE the new tv stand btw!

it might seem silly to be doing things like drinking martinis while doing my laundry today.  but to be honest, i don't know what else to do with myself.  i have been reading the stories about the victims of the bombings that have been coming out, and i can't stop reading and thinking about them.  the 27-year-old who helped identify one of the suspects, who just had both legs amputated.  the newlyweds who both lost their left legs while cheering on runners.  the 17-year-old who had an artery ruptured, and whose mother lost both her legs.  the 29-year-old who died, whose parents thought was ok after an identity mix-up.  this is all to say nothing of the children, the eight-year-old who perished and the other children that have been severely injured.  it's just too much to handle, to think this all happened a few blocks away from my home, and that one of the men allegedly responsible is still out there, running around our city. 

our city is a ghost town today.  but it still looks like a beautiful spring day.

view into our courtyard today.

til next time...

struggling for normal.

today started out super nice.  PI and i slept in once more, still trying to recover from late nights, stiff drinks and helicopters over our neighborhood.  after a cup of coffee at home, we decided to go for a run.  we don't live far from the masschusetts ave bridge over the charles river the leads into cambridge, which is a very popular running spot around here.  and why not take advantage? 

so we set off, to great sights in our neighborhood such as these signs:

 

it warmed my heart.  but it also really struck a cord with me to jog past boylston street, the sight of the blasts.  it all felt so much more real, as if that hadn't really happened yet, to see one of the streets we walk down on a weekly basis barricaded off by the national guard.

but all the same, jogging felt great.  as we ran, PI was telling me about how he wanted to get out and enjoy our city more, and i agreed.  jogging through the back bay felt like an act of defiance today, as if we were telling the cowards who bombed our neighborhood that they couldn't stop us.  i know it's silly, but it felt really good.  and just as i felt a new connection with my city, as i felt a bit renewed, this happened.

and i remembered that no matter how cool i think i am, i'm still the most clumsy person i've ever met.  i'm still sad, ungraceful alaina. 

i know that some of you may not want to read about the marathon bombings.  but i want you all to know that we are not ready to move on.  some may read about other worldwide events and feel like it's time to get over what's happened here, so in that case you may want to skip over my blog for a bit.  because i feel like we are just now adjusting to the new city we are living in, the one with news crews on our corner by the market, and with helicopters hovering overhead at all hours of the night, and with armed guards outside our T stations.  this is just the beginning for us, and i for one am not ready to move on.

we tried to get back to normal again today, and to go enjoy our city.  it was a gorgeous spring day, and we thought it would be nice to take a walk.  i had to go buy a birthday gift for a very special someone, and as we started walking, without even talking about it we ended up right at the scene of the crime.  and the thing is, it's not that we decided to go check it out.  it's that the bombing was literally that close to us, in our 'backyard' so to speak.  the area that we go when we go out, that we automatically walk to when we want some sunshine and a cocktail on the patio.  i've been walking down boylston and newbury streets for the past fifteen years, when my dad first moved here when i was in eighth grade.  we picked our loft in the south end partially because it was so close to back bay, and it really struck home today when we walked around our usual stomping grounds and saw this.

camera crews on multiple corners.  roads blocked off leading to boylston for bomb investigations.  but it was worth it to us to head out to cafeteria, one of many local restaurants donating all of their proceeds today to marathon bombing victims and their families. 

after some early drinks my brother came over - which was the first time i've actually seen him since the bombings.  i can't tell you how much having that sweaty man on my couch laughing at viral videos with PI meant to me... it brought tears to my eyes, just hanging out with him. 

so we are still struggling to get back to normal here, and we will for a while.  i'll keep you guys posted with all the happenings here, and in the meantime, keep the victims in your prayers please.  i know it's been a few days, but trust me - they still need them.

til next time...

sinking in.

today, while the reality of what happened yesterday sinks in, we are trying to get back to normal.

for us, that meant sleeping in a little later than usual to help our bodies relax.  but we woke up to continued sirens and helicopters hovering overhead.  then i remembered what happened yesterday afternoon, blocks from our home, wasn't a nightmare after all.

we ran out to the market for groceries so we could stay in and cook tonight, but this is what the route to the market looks like today for us.

commonwealth ave

the park in the middle of the street, overflowing with cameras and news vans

it's usually such a beautiful sight, especially in the spring.

i also had to go get blood work done to check that my hcg levels are back at zero from the miscarriage, but this is what it looks like outside of brigham & women's hospital.

one of many reporters, with more news vans in the background

i was hoping my brother would come over for dinner, but with the national guard standing outside T entrances with guns, it's a little hard to take public transportation when you don't have to today. 

what would have been a gorgeous spring day here in boston was just a bit off.  people seemed to be walking around in a daze, and all anyone can ask anyone else is if they knew anyone injured or affected.  the man who took my blood noticed our address and immediately struck up conversation about the bombings, the gentleman who delivered our package let me know that so far all of the residents of our building are accounted for and alive.   

but tonight i am having cocktails with PI and making tikka masala, and we'll put on sunday's episode of mad men.  i feel shaken up, but eager to get back to normal around here.  though i realize that is going to be quite a while...

hope everyone out there is doing well, and staying strong.

no words.

i was planning on blogging this morning about our epically wonderful trip to dc over the weekend.  but then life happened.

it's funny to me that the last time i posted on this blog was about the wolfpack - because today, as PI & i ran through back bay looking for my brother, i was thinking about the wolfpack the whole time.  mostly, about my brother.

my brother was at a bar at the finish line, and PI & i were planning to meet him after lunch.  we had just finished lunch when we heard what happened just a few blocks from us.  i immediately began calling my brother.  but since phone lines were jammed, nothing was getting through.  i told PI to get his shoes, because we were going to look for aj.

so we grabbed our keys and cell phones and ran out the door.  we ran up massachusetts avenue, against the waves of people pouring out of back bay.  some people were yelling, crying, holding on to one another.  some were laughing with their friends, seemingly unaffected.  some just walked silently out of the evacuated area. 

but i was in a panic.  my phone was vibrating in my pocket moment after moment, with warnings from my dad and step-mom [who works at the boston globe] that more explosive devices were found, to get out of back bay, starting group texts to get my brother to answer.  texts starting coming in from family and friends, asking if we were ok, to respond back as soon as we could.  but until i heard from my brother, i felt nothing else.  i posted a frantic message on facebook for my brother to find us since we couldn't use our phones.  and so on we walked, as ambulances raced past us, and police cars zoomed in either direction, lights flashing and sirens blaring.  sirens were blaring everywhere.

within half an hour or so, my phone rang and it was aj.  as soon as i answered we were disconnected - but minutes after a text came in from my dad that he had heard from aj, that he had been evacuated but was fine. 

we walked back to our apartment in a daze, gripping hands.  we went upstairs, grabbed a few essentials, and walked to my dad's loft in southie to be with family and get further away from back bay.  it was there we heard about the fire in the jfk library, and at the time people were saying they were related.  we sat around, hugging, watching the news, and having a few stiff drinks.

it was a scary day, and a tough reminder that everything can change in just one moment.  one moment PI & i are arguing about going out day drinking, the next minute we are searching for my brother after a bomb detonated a block away from where he was.  

boston is a reliant city, and people here are tough.  i'm seeing people pulling together by getting to hospitals to donate blood and offer their home up for stranded runners to stay.  but many of the people affected by this tragedy aren't from boston, and people come from all over the world to participate and watch the race.  my thoughts and prayers are with all of the wounded, physically and emotionally, and first responders and volunteers.

we are home safe now, though the sounds of sirens are still drifting into our open bedroom window.  it's terrifying to me that something like this can happen literally blocks from our house.

thank you so much to everyone who reached out to us today via social media or on the phone to make sure we are ok.  it means a lot to me.

til next time...
be safe and take care of one another.

10 best things about my life right now.

i've had a request for more '10 best' lists.  i've kind of stayed away from those posts for a while.

but, since it was requested, i came up with a new one... 

*not necessarily in order

homemade tartifilette by yours truly.

1.  i never thought i would actually say this, but the first one that comes to mind is cooking.  i've taken to going to the market every week, with at least 4-5 plans for dinners i will make.  shopping is easy, stress free, and much cheaper than it used to be.  i have plenty of time for meal planning, market hunting and experimenting in the kitchen each night, and i love it.  there is a great feeling that comes with making something new when it turns out wonderful and your husband just can't get enough.  i'm also now treating us to what i call 'the sweet of the week,' which is one baked good i try out for desserts and snacks.  it's getting me less afraid of baking, and so far so yummy.

me, while blogging, today!

2.  i'm sure you've noticed this, but another one is blogging constantly.  i'm able to post something new just about every day - whether it's a new tip, idea, some thoughts i have, photos to share, or just my own ramblings... it's nice that this blog doesn't fall to the wayside anymore as an afterthought.

me + aj hanging out on the T

3.  now that i am out east, i get much more time with my brother and dad [and his wife of course].  i haven't lived in the same state as my dad since i was in high school, and i haven't lived in the same state as my brother since before college [i don't count living in dorms - that's like a whole other world].  as much as i miss my mom, it's magnificent to be able to have sunday dinners with my dad, or call my brother up for happy hour just because.  i love it.

my mani 2 weeks ago.

4.  little things such as taking care of myself kind of took a backseat while i was working, schooling and volunteering.  now, i can give myself a mani if i want.  i am cooking a lot but also eating better, because i have time and don't have to grab a handful of potato chips for dinner as i run to a phone bank.  i have time for yoga and for running - which i love. 

tea + book = happiness.

5.  stress free living.  need i say more?

mustaches with mom.

6.  i am spending so much more time enjoying the little things and simple pleasures of my life.  becoming engrossed a great book.  a hot cup of tea.  my new obsession with the west wing.  emails from friends back home telling me how they are doing.  texts from my travel buddy in budapest.  i relish each little thing i do every day [except laundry].

boston.

7.  even though it is freeeezing out, i am loving exploring the city, our new city.  new restaurants to discover, hidden bars to learn of, learning new highways and shortcuts.  i love it.  it will be even better in a few months when we can venture outside without eight layers of clothing on and a backup plan to get home in case it's too cold to walk.

lofty living space!

8.  as much as i miss our denver cottage, our home, i totally love loft living.  it's always fun to decorate a new space and make it your own, but i especially love that our new space is totally different from our old.  it just makes it different and gives us a new experience.  i love our new apartment.

nyc visits more to see this guy! <3

9.  being out on the east coast means traveling ease.  nyc is just three and a half hours south of us, so it's easy to hit the mass pike when i want to see my family down there.  we are driving up to montreal next weekend - something i've never done before - for my birthday trip, which is going to be phenomenal.  another trip for dc is slotted for april, and now that pi is traveling for work, for the cost of just one airline ticket i can go meet him wherever he is and we can have a weekend together - hence my jetting off to los angeles this weekend!  we are so lucky.

my writing setup each day.

10.  of course, possibly the best of all, is writing again.  i feel so happy, so at peace with myself, to be able to be writing again and working on my book once more.  i feel like things have come full circle for me - when i was in such a dark, depressed place in my life all i wanted to do was write.  but i couldn't, having work and school and other involvements.  and gradually i lost interest in school and just couldn't continue anymore, not having the strength to do so.  and now, here i am years later, the happiest i have ever been, and finally able to concentrate on my work.  it's amazing how life works.




one quick note... none of this is to sound gloat-y or anything.  there are many different ways one could look at my life right now - 28 and just graduated college, unemployed, living alone often while my husband is gone... but i don't have that outlook.  i am in love with my life right now and the opportunities it affords me.  i will not always have this luxury of time, so i am enjoying every moment of it and taking advantage to write my book.

digging out

now that nemo has come and gone, we have finally dug out of our place here... kind of.  the blizzard didn't put too much of a damper on our weekend fun with mom, and we were mostly able to do the things we wanted to do [which was mostly taking her to some of our favorite restaurants].  since we were snowed in but never lost power, we were able to have a daniel craig bond marathon, drink bailey's + coffees all day, and fantasize over mom's wedding plans! 

the snow is definitely fading now, and since it rained all day yesterday we are left with heaping piles of snow, along with big puddles of water and slush all around us.  it's not quite as romantic as some of the snowed-in-imagery would have you believe.  but luckily mom and i were able to have the day all to ourselves out of the loft yesterday.  we celebrated our birthdays [hers was on christmas, but i haven't seen her since then and mine is thursday] by shopping and then having champagne and tea at the boston harbor hotel right on the water.  it was so lovely and i can't recommend it enough.

this week is a little low key, but i'm ready for a few boring days because in about a week it looks like we will be heading to cali to visit family, friends, and little baby james... i'm pretty excited! 

here are some of the pics of what nemo did to our neighborhood and a few other highlights from our weekend. 

walking along the south end saturday night

philip's snow art     : ]

dinner at stella!

snow at least two feet up the fence

birthday tea for my mom at the boston harbor hotel

til tomorrow ladies and gents!