I dont like jumping on the bandwagon. I really don't. When the next big movie or must-read book comes out, I usually avoid it. I'm sure they're great, I just like to think I'm more of an individual and don't need to read/watch the same thing as 10 million other people. Anyway, while flipping through Nexflix one night, Hunger Games popped up. It was the most appealing movie available so I said sure, why not. I think the premise is absolutely stupid. I find it hard to believe that society offers up 24 young people to watch all but one die as a way to pay tribute and thank the government for their freedom. On the other hand, some people believe in abortions so maybe that's not too far fetched. That being said, the movie was very interesting and entertaining. I have no plans of reading the books or running out to the theater to see the next one, but I'm sure if it pops up on Netflix, I'll say yes. What little I've seen of Jennifer Lawrence on talk shows and awards shows, she seems quite the same personality as her character Katniss. That reminds me of Kristen Stewart who is the same person as her famed character Bella Swan. I have higher hopes fro
If you're a Drake University student, the Drake Relays is a big deal. If you're not affiliated with the university, like myself, you probably think it's a cool event but won't do much partaking. Well, my lovely friend twisted my arm (aka invited me) to hang out in celebration of the track and field event that brings in athletes from across the country (and probably internationally too). After grilling at her place, we went to the only place to be, Peggy's. I've been there once for a quick drink, but this night they were ready for the thousand person crowd with tents covering the parking lot. After mingling with other D+ students and alumni and becoming an honorary Bulldog, we got some pizza from Paul Revere's pizza next door. The pizza wasn't amazing, but oh my goodness, the breadsticks were incredible.
Just another piece of evidence of how domestic I've become in my three short weeks of marriage: baking cookies. I haven't baked cookies from scratch since.. umm... ever. The only time cookies get baked from scratch are with my grandma. These peanut butter chocolate chip cookies turned out pretty good. I may have a future as a trophy wife.
Today was my first day behind a computer editing video in nearly a month. When you're used to editing 5 days a week, it's a little hard to let it go. In just one evening I created a 9.5 minute wedding highlight reel. However, once I watched it full screen and put my glasses on (and Lucas pointed out) it was very grainy. Since I'm editing in iMovie, I had to convert the files to work in the program causing the video to lose a LOT of quality. That sucks. iMovie also sucks in general. It's not a very intuitive program and all the auto settings made no sense. Took me a while to figure it out and get the hang of it. What I'll probably do is download a free 30-day trial for Adobe Premiere or Final Cut to make sure the video is the highest quality possible. I'll keep you posted.
The moment Lucas woke up today he wanted to know what was for breakfast. When I said pancakes, he replied banana pancakes. I've never had banana pancakes before. He couldn't believe this and insisted he cook me some. I tried a bite and decided they're not for me. I like bananas, but the consistency and texture some times gets to me. So putting them in pancake form didn't have much of a shot to win me over, but as you might have guessed by now, I'm always up for trying something new.
We needed to run to Hobby Lobby and living in the Ingersoll district we're pretty much right in between Merle Hay and Southridge. We decided to head down to Southridge just to find Hobby Lobby is closed on Sundays. Oh well, we decided to check out the mall. Neither of us had been there since the major renovation turned it into more of a strip mall. It's got some new stores and looks much better. Unfortunately, it still wasn't busy. Maybe once Marshall's opens and the faux-ice skating rink open up more people will head that way.
Slowly but surely I am eating my way around the metro. After shopping we decided on sushi. I'd never been to Sakura Sushi in West Des Moines on Grand and Railroad and figured now's a good time. Bam! Awesome sushi. My former boss said how much he loved it there, and I concur. This is a picture of the Dynamite. The Cruncy 2-1, Philadelphia and Spicy Tuna all get our seal of approval. The fried calamari is great too, but you only get 6 pieces for $6. Not sure that was worth it. I'll be back to try more!
Who needs to see the first movie in order to watch the sequel? Not me. While that is clearly the preferred way to go about things, but that was not an option Friday night. Lucas' friends already had this movie picked out. They gave us a quick three sentence recap of the first movie and let us fend for ourselves. I was able to follow for the most part. I didn't exactly know the relationship between Lisbeth and Micke. So in one question, they were able to clear that up for me.
As for the actual movie, poor Lisbeth. What a sad, violent, lonely life she's had. On the other hand, I wish I was a computer-hacking, kick-boxing bad ass with a photographic memory. I thought it was really well done and don't know why some director in America re-did it. Doubt I'll get around to watching that one to compare it to, but watching it once was probably enough for me.
After two wonderful years living in Des Moines, Lucas and I are packing up to move to far away Urbandale. Well, Lucas has only been in Des Moines for about 3 weeks, and he's itchin to get back to U'dale. When I first moved to the metro, I got an apartment in Urbandale. Once my lease was up there, I wanted to be closer to downtown. I've loved living in the Ingersoll neighborhood and am sad to go. However, based on work, life, and play, this condo on Merle Hay is in the best location we can ask for. Tonight we signed the lease for this third floor, two bed, two bath condo. Let us know if you want to help us move...
On our quest to find a new place to call home, I found a great listing on Craigslist for a condo for rent off Merle Hay and 80/35. I sent the link to Lucas over lunch and he really liked it too. It had our needs: rent less than $900/mo, two bedrooms, central heating/air, and not too far west. It also had some wants: big kitchen, garage, two bathrooms, in-unit washer/dryer. We called the guy that night and he told us he already had three showings set up. We didn't want to lose it without even seeing it. He asked if we could meet tonight and we could. We went over and really, really liked it. The two downsides: third floor and no dining room. Those are by no means deal breakers though. We gave him our information to run a credit check.
I've been meeting all school year with a very witty, smart, tooth-less kindergarten. I randomly found the program Everybody Wins! Iowa while working on a news story one day last summer. The organization pairs up mentors with elementary students to spend one hour each week reading at their school. It's been amazing to see my reading buddy grow and learn so much this year. When we started in September, he needed help writing letters. A few weeks ago, he was telling me how to write letters. I give his teacher big props for teaching him. I just hope I'm encouraging him to enjoy reading during our time together. I know his family situation isn't the best, and I want to be there for him.
Tonight was the Everybody Wins! Iowa Read to Lead Gala at the Salisbury House in Des Moines. The Salisbury House has one of the most extensive private library collections in the country. The original owner/builder of the home, Carl Weeks, tried to collect an edition of every Bible. He didn't quite reach that goal but he has a page of the Gutenburg Bible. It was a nice event to raise money for the organization and to meet other people passionate about reading, whether volunteers, board members or local authors.
Goodbye Jessica Daley and hello Jessica Wardenburg. Picked up our marriage certificate today from the Polk County administration building downtown. We are officially married and my name is officially changed. Now I get to go through the super fun process of changing my name on EVERYTHING. Maybe I should have kept Daley forever...
I love me a loaded baked potato so when I saw a recipe for loaded tomatoes, I had to try it. These are prep-intensive. You have to core the tomatoes, cook up the rice, bacon, mushrooms, spinach, and then add parmesan cheese and broil them for 30 seconds. It took nearly an hour in total. I knew I had the time tonight so figured it was as good a night as any. Lucas came home after working out with dinner hot out of the oven. He gave the meal an A+. While that's super great, I'm now worried I'm setting very high expectations for myself in the coming years together.
Lucas and I are on the hunt for a new place to rent. My (our) current apartment is just too small. It's only a one bedroom and the kitchen's max capacity is one. Today I checked out The Cortez on my lunch break. It's just two buildings away on Grand Avenue. I (not Lucas) really like my current location so The Cortez would be great. The listing on Craigslist looked amazing. However, there was no picture of the kitchen which is always a reason for concern. It was a long process with the manager, Taylor, to get a time set up to meet. When we did meet today, she rushed me through the tour in 5 minutes. She didn't show me the laundry facilities or tell me what a great place this is to live. My guess is she had a lunch date with friends and I was getting in her way. That's NOT someone who I want to be my landlord. The apartment was less than perfect, but even if it was perfect, Taylor ruined it for me. My current manager, Michele with Elevate Properties, is extremely professional, timely, and accommodating.