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Life in the Time of Corona, Vol. 2
Life in the Time of Corona, Vol. 2
Life is so weird these days, isn’t it? I’m writing this blog post today to talk about two coronavirus-related things: the nasal swab test itself, and the blood draw test for antibodies. I recommend you to get both of these tests if at all possible!
First, I want to talk about how I got tested for COVID-19 antibodies. Erie County, NY’s Department of Health is really doing a great job with their…
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#2020#buffalo#buffalo ny#coronavirus#covid 19#covid19#happiness#health#life#mental health#quarantine diaries#stay home
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Life in the Time of Corona, Vol. 1
What a year this week has been. It’s certainly felt like a year, hasn’t it? These are strange times we’re living in, friends. Every day feels surreal.
This week started out mostly normal. I went to work on Monday like usual, but even then, everything felt so….. tentative, like no one knew exactly what was going to happen next. The last few days at work were filled with proofreading press…
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#2020#buffalo#buffalo ny#coronavirus#covid 19#covid19#happiness#health#life#mental health#quarantine diaries#stay home
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Our Texas Travels: San Antonio, TX
Our Texas Travels: San Antonio, TX
The last leg of our trip was a short time in San Antonio before we headed back toward Austin and eventually, Buffalo. Our hotel in San Antonio was wonderful, and I’m sad that we didn’t get to spend more time there! The Hotel Contessawas such a beautiful place to stay. I especially loved the exposed brick wall in the room, which gave it an eclectic feel! Everything was very comfortable; we paid…
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#austin texas#hotel contessa#hotel contessa san antonio#san antonio riverwalk#san antonio texas#san antonio the alamo#southwest flight#summer#summer vacation#the alamo#things to do in san antonio#things to do in texas#travel#vacation
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Our Texas Travels: Houston, TX
Our Texas Travels: Houston, TX
After some exploring around Rosenberg & Richmond, including getting to see some of the places my husband grew up (super neat!), we headed for Houston. I’m so glad we were able to make it to Space Center Houston, in spite of our stomach troubles earlier in the week. (more…)
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#brenham tx#houston#houston tx#los cabos brenham#space center houston#summer#summer vacation#things to do in texas#travel#vacation
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From Coupland, we continued our Texas travels and really started to get around the state a bit more. On Monday morning, we headed to Dallas. On our way, we stopped at a Buc-ee’s in Temple! What a place. It feels wrong calling it a “gas station,” as it is… so much more than that. Wow.
We did make it to Dallas, where our first stop was a scheduled tour of the American Airlines Center, home of the NHL’s Dallas Stars. As a hockey fan, but also just as a tourist, this was a wonderful tour – and only $5!! It was a great way to see the arena, and get to see areas we wouldn’t normally see if there for a game/concert.
Unfortunately, this was the point in our trip where things got a little topsy-turvy. My husband came down with some sort of stomach bug, and we tried our best not to let it put a damper on things too much. Unfortunately, I got it a few days later, but in both cases, it lasted under a day and thank goodness for that. There’s few things worse than being sick on vacation.
At any rate, after our tour of the AAC, we stopped at the Dallas Grilled Cheese Co., where I ate a grilled cheese sandwich with macaroni & cheese on it. It was delicious! And a super neat place to boot. From there, it was to our AirBnB, the Oak Cliff Tiny House. This was my first time ever booking an AirBnB, and it was fantastic. Such an adorable place, great location and great hosts.
That was pretty much it for our Monday. Ryan tried his best to sleep off the bug; I popped over to CVS and got some health things (thank you, Pedialyte) and ordered Chipotle via DoorDash for dinner. After some sleep, and with Ryan feeling much better, we headed towards Houston the following morning.
Before we left Dallas, we made a quick stop by Dealey Plaza to see the spots where JFK was shot. We didn’t go into the museum, but maybe next time. It was honestly surreal to stand in that space and think about what a pivotal moment in history occurred there. Eerie.
In order to split up the drive to Houston, we elected to spend Tuesday night in Buffalo, TX. Also, being from Buffalo, NY…. how could we not? Before that, however, we headed up to Frisco for a RoughRiders baseball game. We had originally planned to go on Monday evening, but decided Tuesday’s morning game worked out better, especially since Ryan was feeling better! It was fun, hot, rained a little and the best part of all, my husband got to meet one of his public address/music friends!
After a few more stops, we hit the road again and once we made it to Buffalo, it was a low-key day and evening, with dinner with family at The Pharm restaurant. I also picked up some Blue Bell ice cream. (Honestly? I’ll always be partial to Perry’s.)
Wednesday morning, after our night in Buffalo, we began the trek to Houston. Unfortunately, this is where the stomach bug hit me, so our plans were a bit derailed. We did eventually make it to Rosenberg – where my husband used to live, and our hotel for the night. I stayed cooped up in the hotel to recuperate, and Ryan visited some family in the area. Again, a low-key night but it was what we needed at that point!
Once I felt better on Thursday morning, we hit the road to Houston. Stay tuned for more 🙂
Our Texas Travels: Dallas, TX From Coupland, we continued our Texas travels and really started to get around the state a bit more.
#american airlines center#blue bell#buc-ee&039;s#bucees#buffalo#buffalo tx#dallas#dallas grilled cheese co#dallas jfk#dallas stars#dallas texas#dallas tx#dealey plaza#family vacation#frisco#frisco roughriders#frisco tx#NHL#perry&039;s ice cream#silvercar#spring travel#temple#temple tx#texas#the pharm#the pharm buffalo tx#the pharm restaurant#things to do in dallas#things to do in texas#travel
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Hello, Internet! I am back from a recent one-week vacation in Texas and all I can say is…. it’s refreshing. We hadn’t been on a real vacation since our honeymoon back in 2016, when we went up to New England, Boston, New Hampshire, etc. It was long overdue and this was a trip that we’d been planning for probably two years. We’d hoped to make it down south in 2018, but the cards just weren’t in our favor. However, we finally did it!
My husband is actually from Texas; he was born there and lived there when he was younger, then again for a year during high school. He definitely has a special connection to the state, and has a lot of family there on his mom’s side, so I am incredibly grateful that we got to take this trip and that he could share all of these wonderful experiences, places and memories with me.
Our trip began early on Saturday, May 18. A 3:30 a.m. wakeup call allowed us plenty of time to get to the airport before our 5:45 a.m. flight. I’ve never flown before, and Ryan hadn’t flown in many years, so we wanted to give ourselves enough time to get our boarding passes, get through security, etc. without having to rush.
As it turns out, I was somehow…. not nervous at all for the flight! Which makes no sense, because I used to get nervous just going on a bus trip to New York City; but hey, I’m not complaining. Honestly, I think I was more excited than anything. We flew to Chicago (Midway) and had a longer connecting flight there…. and then, before you knew it, we landed in Austin!
We flew through Southwest Airlines and I can’t recommend them enough. I was initially very nervous about the idea of not having assigned seats, so I did fork over the additional money for Early Bird Check-In. In the end, I’m glad I did. We were in the “A” boarding group for every flight and were two of the first 30 people to board every time. That eased my mind a lot, as I knew we’d have a great choice of seats *and* be able to sit next to each other. I know some people say it isn’t worth the extra money, but for me, the peace of mind was worth it and then some.
https://twitter.com/_MelissaBurgess/status/1129733158356832258
Our first stop once we’d gotten through the airport, got our luggage and picked up our rental car (through Silvercar, which I can’t recommend enough!), the priority was food. Naturally, being in Texas, we headed to Whataburger. Yum! I had a chicken finger sandwich with BBQ sauce and cheese, and fries and a drink. This was my first Whataburger experience and I certainly enjoyed it.
From there, it was off to downtown Austin for a tour of the Texas State Capitol. What a great tour – FREE, a little long and slow, but incredibly informative. We got to see both the Senate and House of Representatives, learn about the history of Texas and see some truly wonderful architecture, too. After the tour, we drove through a nearby college campus and stopped at an H-E-B and a Boot Barn before heading to our home for the next two nights, my husband’s grandmother’s farm in Coupland.
I also got to see some of the area where my husband grew up, including the high school where he went for a year. It was so wonderful to be able to see part of his history and learn more about his past.
Dinner was “real” Texas BBQ at Meyer’s Elgin Smokehouse. The turkey was delicious, but I was surprised at how no-frills everything was. Paper plates, paper cups, good portions, plain white bread? and everything just picked up at the counter a la fast food service. The rest of our first day was spent relaxing and sleeping, because apparently the travel had just worn us out!
After Sunday morning church service in Elgin, we headed to Golden Chick for lunch. Other than that, it was another day of relaxing, with a lot of family time with extended family, some of whom I’d never met. We also stopped at Jack In The Box for dinner, another “first” experience!
From Austin/Coupland, it was off to Dallas on Monday morning. Stay tuned for more!
Our Texas Travels: Austin, TX Hello, Internet! I am back from a recent one-week vacation in Texas and all I can say is....
#austin#Austin TX#boot barn#family vacation#first time flying#golden chick#jack in the box#Meyer&039;s Elgin smokehouse#silvercar#southwest airlines#spring travel#texas#Texas state capitol#things to do in austin#things to do in Austin texas#things to do in Austin TX#travel#vacation#whataburger
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Holistic Wellness, Slowing Down & Reflecting
I was fortunate enough to spend a recent day and a half at a holistic wellness retreat. It was exactly what I needed: some “me time,” time out in nature and a chance to slow down, step back from all my stresses, and reflect on my life, present and future.
I won the chance to attend this retreat through Labor-Management Healthcare Fund. They host various retreats annually at Beaver Hollow…
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#beaver hollow#essential oils#healthy sleep#holistic#holistic wellness#mindful mile#natural nutrition#reflexology#yoga
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My Top Ten Books of 2018
My Top Ten Books of 2018
2018 was a hell of a year for me, and in many ways, not in a good way. But that’s for another post and another time; for now, let’s talk about the books I read in 2018. According to my Goodreads, I read 39 books this year. Some I certainly enjoyed more than others, and some I can’t stop thinking about! I’m currently in the middle of Michelle’s Obama’s Becoming, but I haven’t quite finished it…
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My #Last90Days Challenge
We’ve entered the final quarter of the 2018 calendar year. Honestly? Wow. It’s mind-blowing me to how quickly this year has passed, and it undoubtedly has to do with the fact that just four days in, my father died unexpectedly. That threw my entire year, and life, for a loop and in some ways threw me totally off course.
I’ll be honest: the one thing I told myself I was going to do this year –…
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Hey Ladies....
Hey Ladies….
…. also known as, ‘the book that I despised 20 pages in, but forced myself to keep reading, and forced myself to finish, even though it was god-awful.’
When I stumbled upon the book “Hey Ladies!: The Story of 8 Best Friends, 1 Year, and Way, Way Too Many Emails,” by Michelle Markowitz & Caroline Moss, I thought – hey, this sounds like a pretty good read! Sounds fun, flirty, quick, and easy. Plus,…
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#book#book review#hey ladies#hey ladies book review#Hey Ladies!: The Story of 8 Best Friends#reading
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30 Day Poetry Challenge: Day 30
Day 30- Write a poem employing extended metaphor to illustrate the experience of the last thirty days. My writing is like the winter; It is not always present, nor always fair, At times it may seem too extreme, The wind ripping away every fabric of your being, Harsh, aggressive, gritty, tough. At times it may seem pretty, Like the white new snow fallen down, Soft, beautiful, yet cold to the…
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What Grief Looks Like
We’re 17 days into the calendar year, and I’ll be the first to admit: it’s been an awful one so far. I’d give almost anything to go back to the late days of 2017 – even the first few days of 2018. The days when my father was still alive. This has all been incredibly unexpected, heartbreaking and difficult. I didn’t expect to lose my father, just days before his 60th birthday. Isn’t it funny how…
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#dealing with grief#dealing with loss#grief#loss of father#loss of parent#process of grief#stages of grief
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Are You Obsessed With Your Email?
Are You Obsessed With Your Email?
Let me ask you a question. How often do you check your email? If you’re like most people, you’ll probably say “every day.” Honestly, I can’t imagine going a day *without* checking my email. But upon further reflection, I… honestly think I check my email *TOO* much. I’ve been trying to take stock of my little habits, and lately, that’s the one I’ve noticed. Wake up, get ready for work, check my…
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Fifteen Real-Life Wonder Women
Fifteen Real-Life Wonder Women
This slideshow requires JavaScript. Although I’ve yet to actually go see it, I’m thrilled by the hype floating around on social media regarding the new Wonder Woman movie. There’s just something about seeing a film surrounding a strong, powerful woman succeed that sends chills up and down my spine. It’s fantastic – and I wanted to feed off that energy by reminding everyone of some of the…
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#ada lovelace#benazir bhutto#first woman in space#frida#frida kahlo#hedy lamarr#important historical women#important women#inspiration#joan of arc#laverne cox#malala#malala yousafzai#margaret sanger#marie curie#mary anderson#powerful women#real life wonder women#sally ride#shirley chisholm#sirimavo bandaranaike#sor juana#sor juana ines de la cruz#who invented windshield wipers#wilma mankiller#women in art#women in government#women in history#women in science#women in stem
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Book Review: The Beauty Myth
Book Review: The Beauty Myth
“We do not need to change our bodies, we need to change the rules. Beyond the myth, women will still be blamed for our appearances by whomever needs to blame us. So let’s stop blaming ourselves and stop running and stop apologizing, and let’s start to please ourselves once and for all. The ‘beautiful’ woman does not win under the myth, neither does anyone else. The woman who is subjected to the…
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Book Review: "Everyday Sexism" by Laura Bates
Book Review: “Everyday Sexism” by Laura Bates
Perhaps one of the most important, eye-opening books you can read on the topic, I suggest everyone pick up a copy of Laura Bates’ “Everyday Sexism,” which builds off the website and associated social media accounts. Sexism is rampant these days, whether you experience it every day or not. I particularly think this book would be a crucial read for anyone who doesn’t, or thinks they don’t,…
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My Top Ten Books of 2016
My Top Ten Books of 2016
Before we close out the 2016 calendar year, I wanted to be sure and share my list of the top ten books I read in 2016! Reflecting almost entirely nonfiction, this list is some of the most eye-opening, heart-wrenching, thought-provoking literature that my eyes and mind took in this year. (Yes, I did read some fiction, but when compiling this list, all of my choices ended up being nonfiction!)…
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