Life Through the Lens: September 2010

Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Coastal Living

I am so in love with this photo

Peggy's Cove, Nova Scotia

Photo © Christina Saull-All Rights Reserved

list 24 - Things I've Been Doing Instead of Blogging

1. enjoying crisp autumn evenings on our balcony

2. brainstorming new, healthy recipes with the hopes that we can start cooking at home more & eating out less (please pass along your favorites!)

3. planning an event with four NCAA Division I men's basketball coaches, 600 volunteers & leadership from the organization I work for - it went off ~~without a hitch~~ despite some drama yesterday.

4. finishing up editing our summer vacation photos - many more to share

5. plotting out our next steps in this crazy life of ours

6. celebrating our four year anniversary of getting engaged by having dinner at the same restaurant & visiting the spot where it all went down

7. watching Ohio State win their first three football games

8. trying to decide when it is the perfect temperature out to enjoy my first Starbucks Pumpkin Spiced Latte

9. raising money for the Making Strides Against Breast Cancer walk at the end of October (same fabulous day as the Stewart/Colbert rally on the Mall!)

10. trying out a new toe nail polish for the first time in five plus years - good bye "I'm not really a waitress," hello generic, non-$9 bottle of polish that looks almost exactly the same!

Saturday, September 11, 2010

We Remember... We Must Never Forget

Nine years ago (how has it been nine years?), my life, as well as yours, was profoundly changed. None of us will forget where we were (sitting in a political communications class at Florida State University, having just started my sophomore year), how we felt (overwhelmed & angry), or the immediate days afterward (there was also a wild rumor that, because Jeb Bush was governor of Florida at the time, that someone would try to poison Tallahassee's water supply, so we should only drink bottled water).

Ironically, we have never been to the Pentagon memorial here in D.C. On the five year anniversary of the attacks, in 2006, we went & sat on a grassy hill overlooking the Pentagon & watched as they lit up 189 lights (64 for the people on American Airline Flight #77, 125 for the people killed in the Pentagon), shooting into the night sky. Maybe this year is finally the year to face whatever emotions will come of it & visit the Pentagon memorial.

Every time I visit New York City, I make it a point to head down to Ground Zero to check out the progress that has been made. On my last visit, I was glad to see that they were actually making real progress. Below are some photos from Ground Zero over the years:

December 2008

Photo © Christina Saull-All Rights Reserved

same view, July 2010

Photo © Christina Saull-All Rights Reserved

September 11th blog posts from years past:
2007
2008
2009

Friday, September 10, 2010

Five for Friday

1. Holy wowzers, Batman! Autumn has returned to the D.C. area in force today & I couldn't be happier about it. It was a crisp 65 degrees in the house this morning, with the windows wide open & a great breeze moving through the place. These days call for sweatshirts, jeans & mugs of coffee while watching football. Too bad it's a work day :)

2. With the return of fall can only mean one thing: the return of football season! The college games kicked off last week (very proud of OSU so far) & the NFL season kicked off last night. Brad & I are beyond excited & looking forward to a great season for all the teams we cheer for. Additionally, we (I) discovered last night that our TV does picture-in-picture, thus allowing me to watch Ohio State vs. Miami & Florida State vs. Oklahoma at the same time this weekend. All is right in the world.

Photo © Christina Saull-All Rights Reserved

3. Last weekend, we were in Minneapolis visiting my grandparents & other family that lives there. We had a heck of a good time just sitting around & talking, BBQ-ing, & taking my three cousins (ages 12, 11 & 6) to breakfast Monday morning. I'm so lucky to have grandparents that are not only still alive, but relatively young. I am thankful for every minute of quality time I get to spend with them.

4. Even though it was only a four day week, this week has seemed to drag on forever. Why is that?

5. Finally, I have a special September 11th blog post prepared for tomorrow, but I just had to share the email that Brad just forwarded me from his boss:

Subject: Have a good weekend

"All:

"Tomorrow is September 11th. Take a moment as you rush through your Saturday to think about what you are thankful for.

"For me, days like September 11th are important reminders to focus on what is important and not to sweat the small stuff."

Wow. Powerful.

& she's exactly right. Take a moment tomorrow, hang up Old Glory with pride, give the people you love a hug & remember those lost nine years ago.

Thursday, September 9, 2010

Sea Kayaking, Anyone?

We love to do different, adventurous things when we travel. Hiking Mt. Vesuvius in Italy. Sea kayaking in Bar Harbor. Hmmm... doesn't seem quite as adventurous, but it really was. It was also tons & tons of fun!

Being out in a tandem kayak, with just our guide, a few other boats & nature could not be beat. We saw lots of wildlife - osprey, bald eagles, harbor seals, loons & lots of other birds. The water was crystal clear & a crisp 60 degrees. Trees & glacial debris hundreds of years old surrounded us as we paddled through the Atlantic Ocean, with the wind to our backs helping us along. It was an awesome experience! A huge shout out to National Park Sea Kayak & our great guide Elana. Thanks to you, we're hooked!

Brad, ready to go

Photo © Christina Saull-All Rights Reserved

eagle's nest

Photo © Christina Saull-All Rights Reserved

the view from the front seat was just awesome

Photo © Christina Saull-All Rights Reserved

we started at the black dot & paddled all the way to where her pointer is!

Wednesday, September 8, 2010

list 23 - things that kicked butt on our vacation

(a teaser of more blog posts to come!)

1. sea kayaking in the Atlantic Ocean (such an obvious response for #1)
2. being totally unreachable by the outside world for nine days
3. fresh Maine lobster
4. the zoo of towel animals we had going in our stateroom by the end of the cruise (that would be a monkey, elephant, stingray & ram/dog)
5. ordering a sugar-free & regular dessert every night, enjoying a bite of each & comparing the two
6. 65° in August
7. seeing the matching, perfectly lined up graves of the Titanic victims
8. climbing on the rocks in Peggy's Cove
9. awesome cannoli's at Mike's Pastry in Boston
10. holding a live lobster
11. Maine wild berry ice cream in Kennebunkport (I do realize that more than several of these have to do with food...)
12. Captain Espen Been
13. hearing about our waiter's wife & children back in India
14. gorgeous sunsets over the north Atlantic
15. my husband in a tux
16. the beautiful Boston Public Gardens
17. awesome salmon at McKelvies in Halifax
18. how surprisingly nice Halifax was
19. jeans & sweatshirts in August (really, the weather couldn't be beat)
20. quaint architecture in St. John, New Brunswick
21. being called "young person" a lot... made me feel better about getting carded at a restaurant the other day
22. calm seas
23. finishing an entire book
24. taking 1100 pictures
25. some good, quality time with Brad, sans BlackBerry

Tuesday, September 7, 2010

Gilbert's Chowder House. Portland, Maine

Photo © Christina Saull-All Rights Reserved

How do I love thee? Let me count the ways...

1. Amazing outdoor patio

Photo © Christina Saull-All Rights Reserved

2. Really good prices

Photo © Christina Saull-All Rights Reserved

3. Cannot be described in words lobster roll

Photo © Christina Saull-All Rights Reserved

3a. No seriously, I actually dream about this thing...

Photo © Christina Saull-All Rights Reserved

4.Your chowder awesomeness

Friday, September 3, 2010

Portland, Maine

When we pulled into Portland, Maine on a sunny Saturday morning, we weren't too sure what to expect. All we knew was that 1. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow had a home there & 2. there was excellent lobster to be had.

What we found was a quiet, pleasant (surprisingly hilly) place to walk around & explore for a few hours. After walking up to explore a church whose steeple we could see sticking up over the town, we wandered the narrow streets in the port area, just as stores were opening up for the day. We did find Mr. Longfellow's house (that would be it below), as well as some excellent lobster rolls (they deserve their own post). It was a great morning of exploring!

You all know I am a sucker for an awesome public library... Portland's did not disappoint!

While in Portland, we discovered the Maine Red Claws, a minor league NBA team. The best part about the Red Claws? Their motto: "Join the crustacean nation." LOVE. IT.

Thursday, September 2, 2010

Kennebunkport: By Land

Kennebunkport: By Water

Photo © Christina Saull-All Rights Reserved

Photo © Christina Saull-All Rights Reserved

Walker's Point

Photo © Christina Saull-All Rights Reserved

Photo © Christina Saull-All Rights Reserved

Captain John

Photo © Christina Saull-All Rights Reserved

Photo © Christina Saull-All Rights Reserved

Photo © Christina Saull-All Rights Reserved

and finally, one very Jackie-O looking picture of me on the boat... ;)

Kennebunkport, Maine

I forgot to blog yesterday. Oops. How about a double dose today to make up for it?

Kennebunkport, Maine is one of the most charming places on earth. You can just feel the cute, the wealth, the "New England-ness," the love of the sea & the spray of the ocean air.

During our trip last month, we spent on afternoon in Kennebunkport. On the way there, we drove through Kennebunk & Kennebunk Beach (both equally charming).

Once we got there, we hopped on a lobster boat for a sail down the Kennebunkport River & out into the ocean where we got an up close view of Walker's Point, where President George H.W. Bush & the Mrs. reside during the summer months. We also got to see a lobster trap up hauled up & got to hold a live lobster. If that's not living it up on vacation, I'm not sure what is!

Following our little sail, we walked around the Dock Square, popping in & out of quaint shops filled with Christmas ornaments, candles, tee-shirts & kitsch. We stopped by "Maine's smallest ice cream shop" (it was quite tiny, just a small window) & had some fantastic Maine wildberry ice cream, before eventually making our way to the most touristy shop of all, where Brad picked up a "Kennebunkport 41 43" hat (that would be President George H.W. Bush (#41) & President George W. Bush (#43) for you non-politicos).

As we headed out of town back to Portland, we took one last swing by Walker's Point (trivia note: Grandpa Walker purchased the land many years ago for a whopping $20k) & the extravagant country club next door which was hosting a wedding. It's a place we both said we would love to vacation in, but honestly know that we would never be able to afford to do it right. Besides, the thought of Brad walking around with a popped collar on his polo shirt all summer is enough to make me lose my lunch.

Pictures coming in the new few posts....