Yesterday afternoon I boarded a plane and headed off to exotic Cleveland. I was headed there for a press check for our holiday cards for work. I'm very important. I was joined in my adventures by one of the designers for the project (I spent several days worrying about which of three designers would be joining me for the trip. Two of the three would have made for some awkward travel partners. I lucked out and they ended up sending the one I would have also chosen to take the trip. I know him the best, he's absolutely hysterical and he's kind of cute). We hopped on our Southwest flight (where they still give you peanuts) and were headed into the wild blue yonder.
Before I left for the trip I was told to be sure to do something fun that I wouldn't normally get to do. It was hard to come up with a list of options in Cleveland that were even close to being exciting and that could be done in the 20 hours that we were going to be there.
We arrived and were instantly picked up by our tour guide/chauffure/and sales rep and whisked off to enjoy the nightlife of downtown Cleveland. It was in the midst of the one block of nice area where we actually managed to do something exciting. For dinner we dined at
Lola Bistro which is owned by Chef Michael Symon. He's an Iron Chef! To someone who is completely addicted to the Food Network, this was very exciting. He was not there that evening but we stuffed ourselves on decedent hanger steaks, pork chops, bacon maple ice cream and pear and oregonzola (that is not a typo) basked alaska. I also had a fig and pomegrante martini that was lovely.
After we had stuffed ourselves we checked into the brand new Hilton Garden Inn where I enjoyed some free cable before a restless night's sleep. Our driver picked us up again in the morning and we were off to check on some presses. The giant man that owned the press had done a great job so we didn't have to spend much time there and were taken back to the offices to meet all the other people that we work with all the time but never actually get to see. I met a woman who had pink streaks in her hair and a woman who looked like Pat Benatar (spelling?).
Since we hadn't eaten enough the night before we decided that getting gigantic burgers for lunch would be a good idea before getting on another airplane. The flight home was uneventful, involved more peanuts and only took 2 minutes (took off at 1:55 and landed at 1:57). With a quick stop at the currency exchange to turn in our last remaining Cleveland dollars for US dollars (the Cleveland dollar isn't very strong right now) we boarded our train back to reality.
My grand adventures and globetrotting left me a bit fatigued so it was home for a quiet night at home. The pajamas were on early and I decided to indulge in this for dinner to slowly bring my strength back up.
The extent of my decorating for Christmas so far is a poinsettia plant and a Christmas tree. But in my cozy little place, those go a long way to get into the Holiday spirit. While at home in Wisconsin this weekend my parents found a little tree that I could borrow. It's perfect. Add some lights and shiny Christmas balls and you have a Christmas tree! If I can find a little star for the top, I will be all set. I thought for a minute about getting a real tree but decided that wasn't the best idea in the world. Since I won't get the fragrance from the tree, I got this little candle to help out.
Victorian Christmas. Fantastic. I'm sure that you can find these in other places, but it's even better when it comes from the Christmas Barn.
