Charleston adventures continued

Saturday we continued our adventures in Charleston. We started the day with breakfast at a small restaurant named Toast. Toast had good reviews, including a review by the New York Times. I had some delicious peach french toast and Shawn enjoyed an omelet and biscuits and gravy. Although we had to wait nearly 40 minutes to get in, the bottom-less mimosas I enjoyed and the great food made it worth the wait. Charleston has a number of amazing restaurants, and I only wish we had more meals to eat there!

After breakfast we walked about a mile down to the aquarium. The tour book and online sites had recommended it, but after our trip to the Boston Aquarium, I wasn't expecting much. I would say it was better than the Boston Aquarium, and one of the reasons was because of the amazing view from the upper observation deck that looked out over the harbor. We were able to see a number of dolphins, which was really enjoyable.




We then scheduled an afternoon tour of Fort Sumter. Since we had an hour or so to wait, we grabbed from food from a nearby deli and ate in another garden near the water.


After that it was time for the Fort Sumter tour. We took a boat ride out to Fort Sumter. Fort Sumter is a man-made island that is the location of the first battle of the Civil War. We learned a number of things about the Fort, Charleston, and the Civil War, but I will just share one interesting story here.


As I mentioned, Fort Sumter was the location of the first battle of the Civil War, which is one of the bloodiest battles the United States has experienced. Fort Sumter was a federal fort that the Confederates attacked on April 12, 1861. Anderson, the major overseeing the fort, had only 85 men to defend all of Charleston and limited supplies. A surrender took place about 34 hours after the first shots, and Union forces spent nearly 4  years trying to get it back. As part of the terms of the surrender, Major Anderson requested that his men be able to fire a series of shots acknowledging their surrender of the Fort. During these shots, one solider incorrectly loaded his weapon and accidentally shot off his arm. He died from his injuries. So the first death of one of the bloodiest battles in our country's history was self-inflicted during a surrender.

Below are some pictures from the Fort. The walls used to be more than twice as high in many places.

You were able to see the original cannons and bricks.

You can even see how the cannons were able to be positioned, when you look closely.

After the trip to Fort Sumter, we spent more time walking around Charleston and the outdoor market. Then we headed to a haunted plantation--still not the same as the Haunted Palouse, but they had a number of houses that were entertaining and a fun haunted hayride.

The next morning we got up and headed back to Durham. Overall, Charleston was a nice city with a lot of history and beauty. It made for a great trip.

Exploring the east coast--our trip to Charleston

Shawn and I decided to take a weekend and explore another part of the east coast. I had been wanting to visit Charleston for awhile. It seemed like a town with a lot of history and character, and we weren't disappointed. We headed down a few Fridays ago. I had read that October was a great time to go because the weather was still nice, but it isn't crowded or muggy. We left mid-morning, and arrived mid-afternoon.

We spent Friday just walking around downtown Charleston and enjoying the architecture. Below are a few of our favorite pictures, but every building was uniquely adorned with moldings and carvings and provided a lot for us to enjoy.

We then continued to walk along the Battery and through Battery Park. This is really a landmark promenade in Charleston because of the antebellum homes along the water and because, before it was a public park, it was a place for artillery during the Civil War. According to the tour guides on a trip to a Civil War fort (more on that later), the Battery was really the last line of defense for the city of Charleston.

It provided some lovely views of the water and even had a nice pier where you could sit on a swinging bench and enjoy the view.

We finished off day 1 with a walk through the outdoor marketplace and a trip to Bubba Gump's Seafood for dinner. Although the food wasn't amazing, Shawn enjoyed all the Forrest Gump memorabilia.

Have no fear--the superheroes are here!

Yesterday a friend was having a Halloween-themed birthday party at a downtown bar. Although Shawn and I aren't much for the bar scene, we decided to head out and help her celebrate. Since the bar was also having a Halloween themed event, we of course were expected to wear costumes. One of my classmates keeps up with his superheroes through comics, and my office-mate decided to be a superhero herself, so it all fell into place that we should be superheroes as well.

After thinking through my options and doing some research, I settled on being Wonder Woman. Not only did I have the right hair, but as I read more about Wonder Woman she seemed pretty awesome. As Queen of the Amazons she worked to protect people and bring peace--she also got to have cool bracelets and a Lasso of Truth that helped her fight crime! Shawn decided to take on the persona of Superman, but in his Clark Kent version.

Also with us were Kick Ass, Indiana Jones, and Bat Woman.

Needless to say, the streets of Durham were safe Saturday night.

Getting organized--finally

This summer I didn't really take much of a break--I spent time traveling across North Carolina conducting focus groups with high school students, and when that finished, I spent time traveling around North Carolina conducting focus groups with adults to talk about their knowledge of clinical trials. When I wasn't traveling and discussing topics, I was often reading or writing to finish reports. It was a good summer, but not as relaxed as I might have liked.

At the beginning of the summer, I decided I should get organized. My desk had become a mess throughout spring semester, but I just never had the motivation to tackle the task. I kept saying I would get around to it, and the mess kept piling up. By mid-way through the summer, this is what my desk looked like:

The pile of books to the right came from one attempt to clean the desk that never got completed. Well, this Friday, I decided it was time to finish the project. I spent a few hours going through stacks of papers, creating folders and organizing books.


Shawn wants to know why I need so many books directly on my desk--in part it's because I use them, because a number of them are library books I don't want to tuck away somewhere and lose, and in part because I don't really know where else I would put them. I did manage to take a small stack and put them in a cabinet, but when you have roughly 30 books you want to be able to access kind of easily, storage can be an issue.

Here's the finished product:

It may look more organized, but I am sure it will just be a matter of time before some random papers start to stack up again...You use so much paper in grad school!

Getting ready for Halloween

Halloween seems to be just around the corner--figuratively and literally! Shawn and I can hardly believe it's October already. We remember putting out Halloween decorations last year and enjoying the adorable trick-or-treaters who stopped by Oct. 31. Hopefully some will stop by again.

Our house isn't ready yet for Halloween--we just have a few pumpkins out on the stoop that haven't been carved yet. When I take Bella for her evening walks, though, I noticed some houses in the neighborhood that are really decorated. Maybe Shawn and I will use some of the houses for inspiration. Below are some of the houses in our neighborhood that have really gone all out for Halloween.

Race day

It has been awhile since I have had a "race day" but that is what Saturday morning was. I signed up a few days ago to participate in a 5K. The race was sponsored by my gym and raised funds for Ronald McDonald House charities. I had seen the flyers a few weeks ago and decided to sign up. I didn't choose to run the race for time or a place or anything like that--I chose to run in it as a way to gauge my current running abilities so that I could set goals for a 5K I plan to participate in this October. The fact that the money I spent registering was going to a charity was, of course, a great bonus. I prefer participating in runs that fund a cause.

Overall, the race went well. It was overcast and rainy, and quite humid out, but not a bad day for a run. I didn't break any records, but I survived and had fun doing it. It's been so long since I have had that kind of adrenaline rush. Don't get me wrong--I love writing a good paper or prepping for a presentation, but the adrenaline just isn't quite the same. And I realized I still think the same way when I run (looking for people ahead of me and trying to set goals). Shawn came out and supported me along the way, which was really nice.

(He took this picture a little after mile 2 and climbing a hill--I had passed the woman in purple a little little bit ago, and I managed to pull away by the end, but that girl in the pink did catch and pass me--I need to work on my finish!).

The run took me a little longer than I would have liked, but it gives me an idea of where I am and allows me to set some goals for the Get Heeled 5K I plan to do in October (that one raises funds for an organization that helps breast cancer survivors). It is nice that I have friends and family whose dedication to fitness inspires me (thanks Sam and Sarah for the lovely blogs or your Facebook updates). Maybe I can turn to those for motivation on the upcoming days I just don't feel like running (and would rather bake cookies)!

Stormy afternoon in the Triangle

Yesterday the day started off a bit overcast, but by the afternoon it was pouring! As I walked back to my office from class, the rain got progressively worse, and by the time I headed for the bus a half hour later, some of the streets were flooding. I had to walk through puddles up to a foot deep! I was told that when it rains here, it pours--That certainly seems to be the case.

Across the street from my bus stop (which is uncovered!) a pretty large tree was knocked down.

A nothing kind of weekend

It has been nearly a month since we last posted--I wish this was out of the ordinary, but it's not. School has started up for me, and Shawn is keeping busy with work. We thought we would do something exciting this weekend, but instead, we pretty much did nothing. Although it wasn't "exciting" per say, it was nice! Here's a glimpse of a nothing kind of Sunday in our household.

There was sleeping-in for everyone, including the pets. They continued to nap and sleep throughout the day.

There was cleaning (with Shawn, there is always cleaning! He likes things neat.). We even went as far as cleaning out the fridge and pantry.

There was gaming. I played a new video game with Shawn about worms. You have a little army of worms that competes against another army of worms and tries to destroy them with grenades, dynamite, machine guns and blow torches. It is not excessively violent, so please don't be alarmed. No real worms were injured in the making of the game (at least I hope not since it is a cartoon).

And that's about it. I will try to come up with something more exciting for the next post. Happy Wednesday!

A new look--that's now a bit old

So a few weeks back I had a conference to attend in Georgia. Before I headed to the conference I had a few meetings, and for all these events I wanted to put my best foot forward. I decided one way to do that was to get a hair cut. My hair had been getting pretty long over the last few months, and although I liked it, it took more time in the morning to style it, which led to many braids and pony tails. I felt that cutting it off would help curb that, at least to some extent. It also seemed like a good idea with the crazy heat we have been having this summer. Although I did this in early August, here are some pics of the old and new looks.

Before: 

After:

Papa Spuds

Durham, North Carolina and all the surrounding areas offer a variety of fresh produce. Durham has a farmer's market. Raleigh has multiple farmer's markets. Other towns around the area have them as well. However, Shawn isn't a big fan of farmer's markets. He will go, but he doesn't particularly enjoy weaving through the crowds of people to pick out a loaf of bread or a bunch of grapes. I do like the idea of buying local produce though. So I did a little research and learned about Papa Spuds.

Papa Spuds is an organization in the Triangle that allows you to place an order online for the local and even organic produce you want for the week and then delivers it to your house. They work with a variety of local vendors to provide everything from acorn squash to kale to peaches and zucchini. I decided to try them out a few weeks ago, and have been pleasantly surprised. For about twenty dollars a week I get at least one box of produce, sometimes my order requires two boxes. My typical order consists of green peppers, red peppers, peaches, cucumbers, another thing of peaches (I love the peaches that they offer!), some sort of squash and then at least one, sometimes two, "new" items. These "new" items aren't new to most people, but there are new to me. I am trying to broaden Shawn's and my vegetable knowledge. For example, one week I got kale. Another week I got spaghetti squash. This week I am giving acorn squash and eggplant a try. We will see how I do.

Overall, it's a really convenient system that bring me great, fresh produce every week!

An anniversary in Asheville--or thirty minutes from it!

I wrote this almost a month ago but forgot to add pictures and post. I will try to be a better blogger in the future for the few of you that follow...

Shawn and I planned a weekend away in the mountains for our one year anniversary. I looked at a variety of different locations, and we settled on Asheville when we learned what a dog-friendly town it was. All the better--we could take Bella with us on our little weekend getaway.

So we packed up and headed out for the mountains. Turns out the place we booked was a little further from Asheville than it publicized, about thirty minutes to be more accurate. This wasn't a huge problem. We hadn't really had any big plans for the trip. We wanted to hike and see the mountains, so being further from a major city was only really a problem when we wanted to find some food.

When we got there Friday evening, we checked in to the B&B and headed into the town of Weaverville. A small town with awfully nice people. While waiting to be seated at the little pizza place that was highly recommended we talked to the locals about the area, Durham and all sorts of things. We had a great meal--The Obama, a pizza that included BBQ sauce, chicken, pineapple, red onion and jalapenos and some garlic knots, which the place is "known for." Then we headed back to our little B&B to play with Bella and watch a movie.

Saturday we decided to explore the area. After breakfast (cheese grits with scrambled eggs and tomatillo salsa) we took the advice of our lovely innkeeper and headed out toward a hiking trail. Bella had a great time as the trail was just along the water. It had nice views and was really peaceful.

Then we decided to drive a little further to get to this outlook that supposedly provided spectacular views. An hour later, we were still traveling toward it. We were on what some refer to as "country roads." This means the speed limit sign really has no bearing because no matter what, you aren't going to get above 30 with all the twists, turns and switch-backs. I am not one to get car sick, at least not since I used to read in the back row of an Expedition, but I did not find the drive particularly enjoyable. The view along the way was of course nice, however. And when we did finally get there and hike to the top, the views were pretty amazing.

After that, we were pretty tired, but we wanted to head to Asheville. Of course, the weather in the mountains can be unpredictable, and it seemed ready to pour. We drove around a bit--by the Biltmore and some other attractions--but decided to head back to Weaverville to just get some take out and go back to our room. Of course by the time we hit Weaverville, it really was pouring. We managed to walk over to a restaurant before the sky opened up, so Bella and I sat out in the rain for a bit while Shawn placed a food order.

After that, we called it a night and headed back to our B&B. We were all pretty tired.

The next morning, we pretty much ate breakfast and headed out for the four hour drive home. We had a nice time in the mountains, but next time we will stay in a place that is closer to an actual town--and hope for better weather!

Going on one year

Next weekend will be Shawn's and my one year anniversary. It is a bit strange to think that we have been married for a year. A lot has happened, but time has just flown by. We have been busy working, taking classes, and just acclimating to life in North Carolina.

Thinking back to our wedding day, we have nothing but positive memories and are so thankful to all the wonderful people who came out and shared it with us. My parents helped make everything run smoothly. It was truly a dream day, and I couldn't have asked for anything more.

My brother provided support and humor when it was needed. My bridesmaids, some of the most wonderful women I know, pampered me and made sure the day ran smoothly. I barely had to lift a finger--I had help with everything from having a bath drawn to getting the buttons on my dress undone for a quick dress change at the 9 o'clock hour--and most importantly, they kept me on schedule and calm. Shawn's groomsmen helped make the day memorable by having fun, joking around, and just enjoying time together--they even had enough down time to play some catch!

We had help behind the scenes from aunts, cousins and family friends who made sure place cards got out, centerpieces got created and everything was in place. We had an amazing officiant who spoke from the heart and reminded us to consider the important things in life.

 And of course, we had the most wonderful guests who helped bring the fun to the dinner tables and the dance floor!

Looking back, it was one of the happiest days of my life, and I can't believe it has been a year already! Where does the time go? Thanks again everyone for all the fun and all the great memories.

An exciting weekend--concerts and family!

A few Fridays ago, Shawn and I packed up and headed out of the Triangle area. We were off to Roanoke Rapids, the site of Rapids Jam. Rapids Jam is a three-day country concert series with a number of big-name performers. Over the three days, they had Lady Antebellum, Willie Nelson, Darius Rucker, Sugarland, and a whole lot more. Shawn and I didn't go for the three days, but opted to go on Friday only, which had Craig Morgan, Darius Rucker and Sugarland performing.

We got there around 4 p.m. and  had plenty of time to find somewhere to park (people were selling spots on their lawn), get some food, and find a place to sit. We of course ended up next to some guys who had been drinking all day, one of whom had a bit too much. The guy kept nodding off, and his friends would then take pics of him holding various objects they had or found around the park (or with women who were also a bit tipsy). It was entertaining at least.

The entertainment was great. I really enjoyed all the performers in the Friday lineup! Only downside, the extreme heat. It was about 90 degrees and there was no shade. We just made do and put on lots of sunscreen!

After the concert we headed to our hotel a few miles into Virginia, and the next day we were on our way to Norfolk, VA to see Shawn's brother and family. We had fun jumping on the new trampoline with the kids, eating ice cream, watching movies and just hanging out. It was great to see everyone and we hope to make it up to Virginia more often!

Exploring the east coast--our trip to Boston

As I mentioned, Shawn and I were recently in Boston. Here is a brief recap and some pictures from our time there.

I was there for about 4 days before Shawn arrived, rooming with a friend who was also attending the conference. The conference I was at was a communication conference of the International Communication Association. A paper I had written had been accepted to be presented. I was in what is called a "high density panel," which means I had three minutes to present and then I would stand by a poster to discuss my work with interested people. I didn't present until Sunday, which was toward the end of the conference, but our session had a pretty good turnout. Here is a pic of me next to my poster (that my awesome office-mate Laura helped me create).

Shawn then came to Boston on Monday, and we did a lot of sightseeing in only a few days. The first day we went downtown by our primary mode of transportation for the trip.

Then we went to the Boston Aquarium. I really enjoyed the penguins, but overall, I think the guidebooks over-hyped the aquarium. After that, we walked to Quincy Market and viewed a variety of interesting buildings along the way. We then made our way down to the Boston Common and walked around the theater district.

We got dinner at this great little pub that we had just found but I later realized was listed in some of the guidebooks as a great place to go. After dinner, we went back to the Common and listened to some live music before we went on a Haunted Boston walking tour and learned about a number of ghosts on the Common (and a lot of fun history!)

Day Two started off with an early whale watching trip. We only saw one whale on our way back, so that part wasn't amazing, but the view of the various parts of Boston from the Harbor were pretty cool.

We then went and walked the Freedom Trial. We particularly enjoyed Old North Church. After that, it was time for some lunch. We made sure to get some Italian food in the North End. It was delicious! We ate at a place called Bella Vista. My Chicken Parmesan has to be one of the best I have ever had.

Although we were completely full from the delicious food, we wanted to go to a place called Mike's Pastry. As we had been walking around the city, we had seen a number of white boxes with blue writing that came from Mike's Pastry so we knew it had to be good. We found it without too much trouble, and got ourselves two cannoli--one amaretto and one chocolate Florentine--and some Italian cookies. We were too full to eat it yet though so we headed back to the Theater District because we wanted to get tickets for Blue Man Group.

We were able to get student rush tickets for that night, which saved us about 40 bucks, and went to sit outside and eat our cannoli. It was good, but cannoli is not my favorite dessert. After that, we headed in to watch Blue Man Group. We enjoyed the performance, and since we stuck around for the crowds to clear out, we even got to meet the members. One of them  came and sat on Shawn's lap.

After that it was time to hit the hotel and the next day we headed home. Overall, we enjoyed Boston. We saw a lot of sites, did a lot of walking, and ate a ton of great food!

Visiting Boston

Last week I attended an academic conference. I was presenting a poster at the International Communication Association conference, which was held in Boston. I headed up to the conference early Thursday morning and attended various presentations through Monday morning. I had a lot of fun with the people from my department, but the conference kept me somewhat confined to the area of Boston the conference was in. Luckily, I had already made plans so that I could explore Boston a bit more.

Shawn headed up Monday morning to meet me. We were only there for two fulls days, but we saw a number of the sites. I will put more information and pictures up this weekend, but I thought I would start with just this bit of information and a picture of us sitting in the Boston Common. Check back for some of our Boston adventures!

A backyard with a view

I can't believe it has been over a month since I last blogged--I better get back to work. Today's post will be rather short, but it will help get me back in the habit of blogging and hopefully some of you back in the habit of reading.

The other day while I was upstairs, Bella started barking downstairs. She has taken to barking when she sees people walking through our yard or even out front through a window. Of course the second you let her near the people, she wants to play and lick them, but she sure sounds intimidating. :-)

Anyway, Bella was barking, and I just assumed someone was walking by the water or using our backyard as a walk-through, the usual. However, when I went downstairs to look, it was two guys from the lawn crew that keep the little patch of land along the water looking nice. They had taken a weed whackers and hacked down the bush that sat along our property line. At first I was a bit confused--why were they there? How would this look? Shawn and I had talked about hiring someone to remove it awhile ago. Apparently there had been brush like that all along the property lines but some residents had previously gotten together and paid to have most of it removed. Only the portion by our house had remained.

I had to head out to a dentist appointment, so I didn't have time to wait and see the finished result, but here it is:

At first I was a bit upset, feeling that it now just looked like we had a big hole in the back yard. But as Shawn pointed out, once it starts to green over, it will look like the rest of the area by the water. And we now have a water view from the kitchen sink and a few places we previously couldn't see the water from!

I don't know why the homeowners association decided to remove it, but I am sure glad we didn't have to make the decision, and even more glad we didn't have to hire and pay someone to remove it.

Upstream's new blog

I have some posts I have been meaning to write. We found a new hiking spot we are very fond of. Unfortunately, it will have to wait until after this week. School has just been incredibly busy. As I write this I can feel the guilt starting to build over the fact that these minutes aren't going to writing my history paper. Guess that is where I am off to next.

In the mean time, I wanted to invite you all to take a look at the new Upstream blog and let me know what you think. Upsteam is the health communication blog that I write for and help run. We recently revamped the site (meaning the new look went live yesterday!). Let me know your thoughts. It should look something like the screen shot below. Check it out here: upstreamdownstream.org.