The Odd Age of 29

I forgot it was my birthday this morning until I saw the messages on Facebook. I think it's the third year in a row that's happened. I must be getting old.

Tommie and I got to see Michelle Obama yesterday (Oct. 16th, the day between our  birthdays), though she didn't give us a b-day shoutout...I guess there were more important matters to discuss. One of the perks of living in a swing state is getting to see people like the First Lady in a small stadium. 

One year before the big 3-0 and I'll be by myself on a plane to Vegas in a few hours to spend my birthday working. Womp. I'll have to have a big party next year, and the Obamas are invited.

Roaming Around Raleigh

It became fall this weekend in North Carolina. There's a noticeable chill in the air and more leaves are falling. It seemed like a good time to venture to the State Farmer's Market in Raleigh, which is full of pumpkins, apples, and other autumnal goods.

It's really an understatement to call the this place a farmer's market...it's open seven days a week and has everything from gardening supplies, to produce, to baked goods, and even shops. We treated ourselves to homemade pumpkin pie fudge and fried seafood at the on-site restaurant.

There were apples to taste, cider to sip, and colorful dahlias to admire. I picked out a few to put on the mantel for my birthday. It might be because I'm an October birthday, but I do love this season. 

On our way home we took a walk around downtown Raleigh and stumbled on the free Museum of Natural Sciences. We only had time to check out the three-story Nature Research Center featuring a theater, critters, fossils, and research labs. Did I mention it's all FREE? A fact that instantly made it ten times more exciting to me. 

In fact, a free museum and a giant full-time farmer's market made the whole trip to Raleigh better than we imagined.

Weekend in Chicago

We didn't run the Chicago marathon this weekend, but I'm pretty sure we did walk a marathon around this city. 

Tommie and I went there to visit my old college roommate who is currently living/working in Illinois, and our other college friend flew in from Boston with her boyfriend. We were there because I had to attend a trade show for my job later that week. We all agreed it was very "grown up" of us to be meeting up in a somewhat random city.

The five of us spent most of our time around Millennium Park and Michigan Ave. We also went to The Art Institute Chicago, but I think there was actually more interesting sculptures and buildings to see just walking around.

Of course there was good food involved, treating ourselves to a nice dinner at Allium, Bandera, and other local finds. We needed to carbo load...it was marathon weekend after all.

It was fun to travel and see friends before heading off to my conference. I wish it could always be like that. Next week I will turn the odd age of 29 sitting on a plane by myself traveling to Las Vegas for another print-related trade show. If only I could find an excuse to treat myself to a birthday showing of The Thunder Down Under, but I don't think that's considered a work expense.