important life skills

i learned how to drive stick shift last weekend. {yes, that is said with a ridiculous amount of excitement. i am very proud.} i think it's one of those life skills that everyone should learn at some point, like changing a tire, which i can also do. you never know when those skills will come in handy.

my friends and i were recently talking about this more. so, other necessary life skills {that i may or may not have mastered yet}:

pitch a tent

mow the lawn

read a map

build a fire

make good coffee {yes, it is that important}

balance a checkbook

check the car's oil

cook from scratch

know how to perform CPR

sew or hem, at least

do laundry {i know people who still cannot do this}

iron clothes

replace light bulbs

change a diaper

swim

parallel park

select good produce

basic computer skills

jump start a car

unclogging a sink

use power tools

there are a ton more too but these are just a few i could think of off the top of my head. {wow, so most of these involve cars. hmm.} looks like i have a lot to learn.

{image via 1.gravitysmiles 2.weheartit}

book review: The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and

her niece Annie Barrows is a great, light summer read.

I really appreciate the different and original approach to a story of German occupation during WWII. I had never heard anything about the Occupation of the Channel Islands either. Shaffer researched the area and history well to make the story and characters realistic and likable. It's definitely a love story, but Shaffer and Barrows do a great job folding that into an interesting, even if predictable at times, story. I also love that it's written in correspondence form. I can actually picture the characters sitting down at their desks writing. Very refreshing.

When I checked it out from the library, the librarian said many women her age {I'd guess about 50} were borrowing it lately. I can see that. If you're looking for an easy book to read while sitting outside on a sunny afternoon, I definitely recommend The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society.

happy long weekend

i'm heading up to my old college town {arguably the best college town in the country}, madison, wisc., for the long weekend. plans so far include watching the madison marathon {watching, definitely not running}, grabbing lunch at my favorite restaurant in madison: mediterranean cafe, sitting on the terrace with friends and a pitcher of spotted cow, memorial day picnics and going to brat fest {yes, brat fest. delicious}. and my "cousin" is back from south carolina for the weekend so it'll be great to see him. such a busy weekend, i'm loving it already!

have a great memorial day weekend!

{image via weheartit}

navigation challenge

you know when you're on vacation in a new city and you don't know your way around and you're nervous you're going to get lost in a bad neighborhood because you have no idea where you're going? i love that.

it's actually my favorite part of any trip {beside time at the airport, which i know is weird but i enjoy}. i really love exploring new cities and enjoy the challenge of finding my way around, especially without gps security. i think it's the only way to really experience a new city. i have a friend that likes to make itineraries for every trip she goes on, but then i think she misses so much character of the city that she can't find on google.

my friend and i drove to the twin cities with no more navigation than "take I-94." the cities were a little confusing at first, but after one weekend, we figured out how to get quite a few places. {there was only one minor mishap. that's bound to happen on any trip though.} it's actually not a difficult area to learn, but we're still proud that we did.

we did the same thing on the subways in new york and boston. it was fantastic. now that we know the are a little better, we have to go back. my friend and i are also talking about taking a trip to san fransisco. i think that may be a little more difficult to navigate though. but i enjoy a good challenge.

twins at target field

i knew i would love target field before i even walked through the gates. i could already see the field. it's truly the most amazing ballpark i've been to {but i've only been to about six so take that as you will}. the park was so open, i loved it. it's just a shame that they've already had to cancel a game for rain. i guess they should have built a roof, but then again, that would ruin the charm of the place. baseball is truly meant to be played outside. also, i don't care if you sat directly behind home plate or thirty rows up in left field, there are no bad seats. sure you're far away, but it's a great view. and the jumbo tron, woah, jumbo.

another observation: if you want to hear some nasty trash talking among fans, don't go to a twins/brewers game. from what i could see, all fans were incredibly friendly. everyone who worked there was also. i must have had a five minute conversation with a lady at the hot dog stand about the park and that was when i was fully decked out in brewers gear. i guesswisconsinites and minnesotans are just nice.

it would have been nicer if the brewers won though.

amazing opportunities on craigslist

i have a friend from college that we used to make fun of all the time because he was constantly searching craigslist.org. {well, we made fun of him for other things too. one time, at a friend's wedding, he was nervous that the good beer was going to run out so he collected every pitcher, wine glass and coffee mug he could find to fill with spotted cow. our table was covered with dozens of cups of beer, just in case. funny twist: they had a second keg in back}

but back to craigslist, this guy was crazy about it. he would peruse the local sites for hours, for everything. once, we had to wait at his house to exchange a canoe for a hunting rifle from someone he met on the site. {not sure how legal that one was.}

he has a job starting in the fall as an accountant so, in the meantime, he needed a job. where did he look? craigslist. and you know what he's doing? sailing the greek islands with a turkish family. what a fantastic summer! {but it's zach, he's had a lot of those. one summer, he sailed from miami to boston, alone. another summer, he sailed with the kennedys.} i'm so jealous.

{image via anatoliansky}

it's geometrically progressive

i was reading a book the other day (the guernsey literary and potato peel pie society) and one line really stuck out to me.

"that's what i really love about reading: one tiny thing will interest you in a book, and that tiny thing will lead you onto another book, and another bit there will lead you onto a third book. it's geometrically progressive- all with no end in sight, and for no other reason than sheer enjoyment."

so true. so, so true. there have been so many times when a friend recommended a book or the cover catches my eye and i'm interested. a few pages in, and i already love it and have decided that i will read any other book that is associated with it in some way {topic, author, etc.}. i've also loved a book so much that i decided to read all books written by reviewers on the back cover. i love finding one that i'm excited enough in that i just have to find another to take its place. i can only hope that it's as good as the original.

i haven't read one of those books in a while. how sad. {the last time i got that excited was probably kite runner years ago, but i actually liked a thousand splendid suns more.}

happy friday

the weekend is finally here. thank god.

it took so long i wasn't sure i was going to make it. so now it's time to relax, enjoy the break, sleep in... oh wait, i have to wake up at 4am tomorrow. {so much for sleeping in.} my friends and i are meeting a little after 5am to drive to minnesota for a baseball game {against the brewers}, though we also plan on soaking in all things minnesota. i'm thinking maybe a trip to the mall of america, the zoo, canterbury park race track or maybe a cute restaurant features on diners, drive-ins and dives. i suppose we'll figure that out when we get to it. i'm just hoping for beautiful weather since the twins finally have a real outdoor baseball diamond and not a dome.

tonight, i'm going to try to go to bed early and get a few hours of sleep in before the trip.

happy weekend to all!

{image via weheartit}

a day with the animals

my friends and i are planning a zoo trip soon and i couldn't be happier. i absolutely love the zoo. when i was young, my parents would buy family zoo pass every year to the milwaukee zoo.

we loved spending the day with the animals. we always fought over which animals to see first, though that never mattered because my mom always had a planned route. we would take turns pushing each other in a cart but as soon as we hit the hills, my sisters and i would all jump in and let my dad push {downhill was always the best}. when we got hungry, we'd unpack the amazing lunch my mom made. but for desert my dad always bought us our favorite ice cream treats. i loved sitting by the pond, feeding popcorn to the ducks, always for over an hour {a long time for tykes}. we loved watching the little ducks fight swans for a kernel.

we always stayed a little longer at the favorite exhibits: penguins for my mom, fish for my dad, monkeys for my older sister, tigers for my younger sister and giraffes for me.

dilemma: should i buy a zoo pass for this year? hmm...

fans not felons

have you seen habs fans? wow, they're intense. i mean, don't get me wrong, i am a huge blackhawks fan, and i'd love to see them win the stanley cup, but some people just take sports a little too seriously. {like felony, serious} why would you destroy your own city during a celebration? geez, can you imagine if they make it to the stanley cup series and lose??

maybe it's just the cubs fan in me, but there's always next year.

i get really into games, so much so that i sometimes actually lose myself in it, but at the end of the day, it's just a game and my life with carry on just the same regardless of the outcome. but with that said- i'm a huge blackhawks fan, i root for the bucks, i'm a die hard packer fan, i love the cubs and i bleed badger red and white. {so don't mess with any of my teams.}

i can understand a celebration. hell, i'd go crazy myself. but there's a limit.

i know it YOUR team and YOUR hometown. PRIDE is on the line, but really, relax.