Out of Town

I've been back in NY for a few weeks now. From the day I got back it has been nonstop. Good things are happening but first, a recap.

I was in Florida singing in St. Petersburg Opera's production of Elixir. It was a glorious month of singing and running along the beach. I was preparing for my first 30k and my first trail run that followed on the heals of my gig.

But first, Christopher and I went to DISNEY WORLD! He has a lot of out of town gigs coming up this spring and we desperately needed a break from the house. Reality got a bit unbearable, so we went full on Disney. We spent a week on property and ate our selves silly. We tried to hit up a bunch of restaurants and dining experiences we'd never tried before and likewise, tried something new at the parks and resorts each day. I typically don't seek out anything golfing related but we tried the Winter Summerland putt-putt courses and I had a great time. It was easy enough that I didn't feel like I was struggling all the time. I suppose it was designed to make it more kid friendly; they succeeded.

After our week of gluttony, we headed to Steamboat Springs, CO for snow shoeing then to Moab, UT for the Moab Red Hot run. Dude. I am hooked. It was the most single physically demanding event I've ever taken part of and the most scenically spectacular. I found myself turning off my music and enjoying the land as I ran, climbed, walked, struggled, across the rocks and sand. I even managed to beat my expectations of finish time. I can't wait to try something like it again. I am currently on the hunt for my next trail run. Suggestions are welcome.

The day after the run we spent oogling at and hiking around (I did a little limping) Arches National Park. 

 Then, home again home again, jiggety-jig. Back to resubmitting paperwork, lost AGAIN by the DOB. Shame on them. I can't even begin to wrap my head around how they are allowed to get away with continually screwing up with no repercussions. They are being careless not only with buildings and projects in the community but with people's lives. I'm beyond disgusted but onward. And onward. Fingers crossed good news is just around the corner.

Until then, I have started working on our interior doors and will be working on restoring our front door and surround once the weather warms up a bit. I'm now working for a door restoration company in the area and learning a lot of fun things like reveneering, glazing, etc. I'll be paid to work on our doors too. Not a bad set up, plus I'm enjoying the work.

I'm headed into tech week with Loft Opera here in the city but hope to be digging into tiling BOTH kitchen back splashes and reglazing some interior doors in the next several weeks. Until then here are some photos of the progress at my folks' Bed-Stuy reno.

bathroom tiling progress, new trim work, new flooring

Taking a Break

I discovered number one rule to home renovations these past few weeks. It isn't planning, budgeting, scheduling, etc. Nope. What is the number one rule you ask?

Take A Break.

Do it. Your body, mind and soul will thank you.

Step away from the full immersion in dust, debris and general upheaval.

It took traveling half way around the world to Botswana to realize I hadn't been sleeping. We went on a 10 day safari after spending a night in Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe. Only when surrounded by wild animals in the pitch dark did I come to terms with the horrible lack of sleep I have experienced over the last two years.

Elephants fighting, not a problem. Territorial lion calls, no biggie. Chatty hippos, bring it on. Screaming prey and hungry predators, these were the lullaby I never knew I needed.

Granted, I am a light sleeper and towards the beginning of our adventure, woke up many times over the course of the night. However, I didn't lay awake spiraling into a tizzy of worry over finances, design errors, measurements, part ordering, etc. Nope. Those were things that had very little to do with the life and death struggle of the African landscape that I found myself thrust into. Best experience of my life.

Plus, we had hot water.

Oh heavens, and the lodgings were SO much fancier than I'd anticipated. We'd brought headlamps and snacks expecting to be camping. Instead we found running water, electricity, solid floors and in most places solid walls, windows, doors and the decks with the views! I've included a selection of photos from our safari lodgings, in chronological order,  while in Botswana. If you're interested in animals and nature photos, feel free to check out my instagram. Once I get the house under control again ... hahahahaha ... I'll put together a more comprehensive post on our full experience. Best. Trip. Ever.

Chobe Game Lodge 
1. Bedroom 2. Private Bath
3. Public open air lounge space 4. Plunge pool

Savute Safari Lodge
1. Viewing deck and plunge pool 2. Room
3. Dining
4. Private deck 5. Private bathroom

Moremi Wildlife Reserve
1. Bedroom 2. Private viewing deck
3. Private bathroom

Camp Okavango
1. View entering lodge via boat 2. Private Room
3. Bedroom 4. Private viewing deck
5. Bathroom 6. Public open area lounge

Leroo La Tau
1. Room 2. Bathroom
3. View from bathroom
4. Dining area 5. Bar

Post Christmas Wrap Up; A Christmas to Remember

As of last night, all but three of us have been hit with the norovirus (thus far)... what is affectionately being referred to as the "winter vomiting disease" by some creative news sources. 

Here we are before the accident: 

With only a few hundred square feet minimally touched by construction, we tried to get out about as much as possible.

We went to Rockefeller Center on Christmas Eve. 

We were lucky to have unseasonably warm weather, keeping us warm in our unheated house. So the lack of snow on the ground was more of a Christmas miracle for us than anything else. 

A few of us also made it to the New York Holiday Train Show at the New York Botanical Garden. It was spectacular to see the beautiful historic homes, buildings, and sites of New York rendered and sculpted using plant materials surrounded by tons of model trains. My favorite was this block of row homes of course.

And my husband; He looks so dapper. 

I also spent some time preparing 2 holiday dinners for 8 people using only our Cuisinart Crockpot. I have to pat myself on the back. I was worried that Christmas Eve and Christmas dinner wouldn't feel right, but it ended up being easier than if I had had a stove/oven/microwave. I streamlined my expectations and simplified the meal. I think this is a good analogy for how I will approach January 2016. Keep it simple and expect great things.

The electrician starts Monday morning!

Preservation League of New York

The night before Christopher left town for his Mobile Opera gig, we rubbed elbows with some pretty swanky folks.

We were invited to the Preservation League of New York Gala, Pillars of New York. We spent the evening in the Rainbow Room of Rockefeller Center dining on some damned good food, drinking some damned good adult beverages and listening to some damned good people get awards for their contribution and hard work supporting NY preservation.

We are incredibly grateful and thankful to be invited as their guests for the evening. It was a relief to be out of my serving uniform or demo scrubs. On our way to the gala I did find some white paint under a fingernail and a smear of something on the back of my elbow from lord knows when. You can take us out on the town for a few hours but the renovation made sure we didn't forget what we were going home to.

And of course, I can't forget to mention we were featured in this schnazzy little article as part of the Preservation League's Annual Report. We're looking pretty dapper if I do say so.

Thanks to Liz for the tremendous photo