That one time… I got food poisoning
This entire entry will be way too much information. Feel free to skip this one if you want.
As I’ve mentioned, I was in St. Louis, MO for most of last week at a conference. I’ve been to St.Louis a few times now in recent years and it is not a bad little town. Minus the fact that I knew there would be that dreaded white stuff (also known as snow) I knew it would be a fun trip. Got to see some great people and get some great placements done for my students to go out on exchange.
I took one of my GAs (graduate assistants) with me to the conference and it was so helpful to have an extra person with me to do all the placements (it is a super stressful process). What I didn’t count on when planning this trip was BOTH of us coming down with food poisoning. Nothing will help you bond with your staff better than both of you alternating times to run to the bathroom to toss up the contents of your stomach.
While it could be possible that we both got a stomach virus, we really think we have narrowed it down to the dinner we had on Thursday night. A huge group of us went to a pub for dinner and we both got fish and chips. The service was pretty crappy and they were really running behind, we are wondering if the food was just undercooked or something. Either way, I will not be eating fish and chips again for a long long time.
Kate’s stomach started bothering her immediately after breakfast on Friday and she was feeling awful the rest of the day. I started feeling queasy after lunch, but didn’t lose anything until later. And by later, I mean near 5:30/ 5:45pm or so… when we were 35,000 feet up in the air and beverage service was going on. I’ve been flying since I was four or five years old and never once have I gotten sick on a plane… until this week. Ugh. I have never felt so miserable.
Clearly, the flight attendants at Delta have been well-trained on the signs to look for when someone is about to be sick. She took one look at my deathly pale face and the sweat covering my forehead and pushed the beverage cart out the way. I can in fact report that the tiny bathrooms on the plane do give you just enough room to squat and hover over the toilet while throwing up. That whole little vacuum-suck feature to dispose of waste is rather brilliant. Also, those doors are really hard to lock when you are about to lose your stomach… in fact, I didn’t. Sorry to those people in the last row who may have had to hear me. I just didn’t care at that point. Really though, two thumbs up to that flight attendant staff. They were all so kind checking on me, getting me ginger ale and letting me stand in the back as long as I wanted.
But wait, wait, wait… the craziness of my day doesn’t end there. We had a connecting flight in Atlanta and because the Atlanta airport can’t get their act together we almost missed it. So Kate and I, both feeling awful with the potential to get sick at any moment, had to RUN to catch our next flight. Through not ONE, but TWO terminals. It was not a pleasant experience. I nearly lost it in the middle of B terminal in Hotlanta. Luckily, I didn’t and we made our flight with exactly one minute and 25 seconds to spare. I was so over the whole trip by the time we landed… and then we had to drive an hour and a half. We looked pretty pathetic stopping at a gas station to buy Gatorade and saltines. God bless the night manager who went into the back to dig up saltines for us. It was 12:30am by the time I finally got home and was able to brush my teeth. I have never been so happy to get to my toothbrush.
And that my friends, is the story about how I got food poisoning while traveling. And it was miserable. Lesson learned here: don’t get the fish and chips, be nice to flight attendants.
The Gateway to the West
Greetings from St. Louis, Missouri! I’ve been in Saint Louie since early in the week attending a conference.
Back to our regularly scheduled southern ramblings next week!
Winter 2014 Storm #2
As I mentioned in February, we were preparing for more winter weather and boy did we get a storm!
Winter storm Pax (not so sure how I feel about naming winter storms, but we’ll go with it today) was part two of a one two punch we had that week. A smaller storm moved in early in the morning on Tuesday and moved out by 5pm or so, with the major storm beginning to move in early Wednesday morning and stuck with us through Thursday. Seeing all of the pictures today of what winter storm Titan is doing to parts of the country makes me super happy we didn’t get that one too! Here is a brief recap of our Valentine’s Week storm.
- Tuesday: It started out nasty, but I went to work. It was snowing and sleeting at my house in the western suburbs, but it was just rain by the time I made it the 12 miles downtown to campus. Several schools let out early, but my campus was determined to make it the whole day. The temps were dropping and emails went out saying certain streets on campus could be closed because of ice on hills…. my office and garage being on one of those streets. So I left around 3:30 so I wouldn’t get stuck on the interstate. Good call, because the temperature did drop and it was just yucky out. Stopped at the store and stocked up on food, batteries and some bottle water. We tried to be as prepared as we could be for some time without power. Candles and blankets were out, plenty of matches and two propane tanks for the grill to cook with as needed (luckily we only briefly lost power, so we didn’t need them).
The commute into work… wet and full of sleet piled up on the window.
- Wednesday: The storm and how bad it was going to be really had me stressed out. The sleet/ice hitting the window throughout the night didn’t help either and sleep was elusive. I woke up before 8am to a winter wonderland… and it didn’t stop coming down all day. Snow, then sleet, then freezing rain, back to sleet.
The view of the snow on Wednesday morning
- Thursday: It was still coming down in the morning, and it was a mess. It stopped around noon or so and the sun started to come out… but it didn’t go away quickly! It was crazy to be out there in the morning while the snow was still coming down. It was so pretty and quiet… until you heard the sound of trees crashing in the woods from the ice. It was slightly disconcerting and I definitely sent up some prayers to not have fallen trees on power lines around me!
The front yard on a snowy day, look how deep my footprints are!
And more
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Snow falling in the South, on the house
And even more
Frozen pins in the South
More
Frozen garden
And another
Southern Winter Wonderland
Another pretty shot from that Thursday
Downed loquat tree from the storm
The mailbox
Frozen mailbox
The road… this is why I didn’t drive anywhere
Snowy Roads
More
So, I didn’t have a shovel… I had to make do with a canoe shovel. My mom gave me a paddle set a few years ago, in case I was ever up a creek without a paddle. I was in this case! No shovel!
It was pretty
This was close to 5pm on Thursday. The sun had been out for several hours and this is still what it looked like.
- Friday: We were closed for the third day in a row. I was slated to go to San Diego to present at a conference and I had to cancel because there was no way I was going to make it down my driveway and to the airport for a 6am flight. I spent most of Thursday on the phone with the airlines and hotel. Luckily, it all was taken car of pretty easily. According to the great people at the San Diego Hyatt, I wasn’t alone in my cancellations! In fact, my driveway was still a solid sheet of ice at 9:45am. I made it down slowly at 2:30 that afternoon and it was all clear by that evening.
And as an added mother nature bonus, we have an EARTHQUAKE that night! In the south! Nuts! Nuts! Nuts!!!
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Solid sheet of ice on the hilly driveway at 9:45am on Friday
Last pic
30 something hours after the snow stopped, there were still big piles! That never happens here!
Okay, that is my second snow storm of winter 2014 story. Lots of snow, a clean DVR and lots of soup and tea!
Throwback Thursday: Senior Prom, April 2000
Bye Bye Bye from *NSync, Sisqo’s the thong song, crop tops, Y2K meltdown failed to happen, Bush v. Gore, Hanging Chads, the start of reality TV with Survivor, the Elian Gonzalez saga… all things that happened in the first year of the new millennium, and the year I graduated from high school…. 2000.
Senior Prom, April 2000
Front row, Left to Right: Liz, Chrissy, the Bestie, Cam and Me.
Middle four, Left to Right: Erin, Kel, Sara, Gail
Back row, Left to Right: Val, TT, Megs, Stephanie, Meghan, Missy, Katie, Michelle
I think I was actually on crutches at this dance, but it is all a little fuzzy now. I can still remember the theme song though: When You Say Nothing At All by Alison Krauss. The dance was at the Syndicate and I just remember it being a lot of fun. I’m sure there was drama and fights, but I don’t remember any of that now… I just remember having fun with my friends. These ladies above, the majority of which I am actually still friends with. Not bad for 14 years later.
Once again though, what was up with that blonde hair of mine?
Translation Tuesday: Croakies
“What is up with that thing on the back of the guys sunglasses?”I can’t tell you how often I have gotten this from people who are not from the South when they come down to visit.
These are croakies. I have absolutely no idea where the term came from , but they are the epitome of Southerness. They are very popular amongst men in fraternities, but their use is not limited to that group. Lots of people wear them. Heck, I even have some! They are great as a way to not misplace your sunglasses. Better as a safety measure to not lose them really. People often let them (and the glasses attached to them) hang about the neck when not wearing the sunglasses over the eyes. Lots of them come with monograms, the names of organizations or college logos along the back.
Croakies… one of the perfect Southern accessories.
Throwback Thursday: The RLT, 2010
I miss these two people. This is from August 2010 and I was in my last couple weeks working at Country Club College. Actually, this may have even been my going away party!
The RLT, August 2010
I’m in the center. To my left is my dear friend Eddie and to the right my friend Greer. Eddie and I went to grad school together and have known each other for nearly a decade now. He started working at CCC a year before I came on board, Greer came on board at the end of my first year. So the three of us got to work together through some amazing highs and crazy lows over a three year period. Together we formed the RLT: the Res Life Trio. It was so awesome to work with two people I could always count on. These two, along with my awesome boss there- JC, the super cool TP- the best admin assistant ever, and Carol- the adopted mom were the best people ever to work with. It was a huge part of what made Country Club College such a great experience.Oh, and the awesome students!
Miss these folks!
Translation Tuesday: Mind Your Manners
Mind your manners… doesn’t really need much of an explanation, right?
via Southern Living
Makes sense, right? I can say I have definitely heard this more down here than when I lived up North. Not that people didn’t mind their manners up north… that is not the case at all. It is more I often hear this being told to children… or in a group of women who are gossiping just a little too much about someone. Just a quick look and this phrase given with a tone that says “you KNOW you should be doing better.” Mind your manners!
Quick and Easy Baked Chicken Fajitas
This has become the popular dish in my world as an easy option after a long day at work or when wanting something quick in all of these damn snow days. Baked Chicken Fajitas…. good fresh from the oven or as leftovers!
Ready to go into the oven… baked chicken fajitas
Ingredients
- Boneless chicken breasts
- 1 green bell pepper
- 1 red bell pepper
- 1 white onion- medium to large size
- 2 cans Rotel diced tomatoes and green chilies
- 2 Tbsp vegetable oil
- 2 tsp chili powder
- 2 tsp cumin
- 3/4 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp oregano
- 1/4 tsp salt
Add when ready to eat
- Warm tortillas
- sour cream
- shredded chesse
Steps
- Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees, grease a large glass baking dish
- Slice bell peppers and onion, removing seeds from peppers. Place in baking dish.
- Cut chicken into strips/ easy to eat pieces and place in baking dish.
- Add the two cans of Rotel tomatoes and chilies to the dish.
- Mix all spices in the vegetable oil in a measuring cup or bowl… after they are mixed spread evenly over all other items in the baking dish.
- Bake for 20-30 minutes!
I eat on warm tortillas with sour cream and cheese! This is also good for left overs as a part of a salad.
Throwback Thursday: The Annual Conference, Dallas, 2007
Every February I go to a conference. It has an official name, but a number of people call it “Annual” because it happens every year. In my personal opinion it is the best conference in higher ed. I always come back energized and with a lot of new ideas that I try to implement in my work. With the exception of 2009 (hello economy tanking) I have been to this conference every year since 2006. Sadly, because of the crap weather we have right now I may not make it out to sunny San Diego for this one. I’ve already altered part of my hotel reservations and the rest will have to be determined by the weather. Damn winter storm and frozen roads that make it hard to get to the airport. I really want to go to San Diego.
So today’s throwback is to 2007 when the conference was in Dallas. It was the first time I had been to Addison, Texas… which is a northern suburb of Dallas. Apparently, it is a very popular conference area because I have been there at least three times now for other conferences.
Me on the “Grassy Knoll” at Dealey Plaza in Dallas, TX. Feb 2007
My friend Claire and I had an evening flight back to our part of the South, so we took some time to explore downtown Dallas and went to the museum at Texas School Book Depository and Dealey Plaza. It is actually one of the most well done museums I have been too… nicely laying out so many facets of the Kennedy assassination and Kennedy’s life. I recommend a stop if you are ever in Dallas.
Translation Tuesday: Slower Than Molasses
This one is actually a phrase I don’t use that often, but other people around me have used.
“Good Lord, that child is slower than molasses some mornings.”
via Pinterest
Molasses, for those of you that don’t know, is a super thick type of syrup that is used down here a lot. And since it is so thick (and sticky) it pours really slowly. Really, really, really slowly.
So, as slow as molasses just is another fun southern colloquialism to say someone (or something) is moving very slowly. This is often how I describe the morning commute. Or, the reimbursement process at work… slow as molasses!
It’s Coming…
We had Snowmageddon 2014 two weeks ago and now we are preparing for Iciclepalooza 2014 over the next 72 hours.
Sign number one there is a winter storm coming: The Weather Channel’s Jim Cantore is in town. You know the weather is going to be crazy when the national news shows up. I hope that if he is on campus that MY students behave better than some other students at another southern school did two weeks ago.
Sign number two there is a winter storm coming: the local news are hyping everything up. NO ONE wants a repeat of Hotlanta two weeks ago.
Sign number three there is a winter storm coming: there has been another run on bread and milk. Yes, I was one at the store doing it too… but we were completely out.
Sign number four a winter storm is coming… and more importantly an ice storm, which is never fun: I just spent 15 minutes digging through the garage to find some candles. I have a bunch of them on the kitchen table along with a flash light and lighter in case we have a loss of power. Snow is pretty and can be annoying after a while… but always entertaining to watch southerners in. Ice is a whole different kettle of fish that you don’t want to mess with.
Sign number five a winter storm is coming… I am looking up crock pot recipes like crazy.
I hope everyone is safe out there… be aware of black ice! I hope it clears up quickly on Thursday… I have a flight to California on Friday!
The Beatles and my concert bucket list
Today is the 50th anniversary of when the Beatles appeared on the Ed Sullivan show (if you missed this, you may have been living under a rock… it has been all over the news for weeks leading up to tonight). As I’ve mentioned here and here, I love The Beatles (even if I was tricked into liking them). My Dad and I have been talking off and on about them and he can still remember watching the Ed Sullivan show when they performed that night in 1964. The family was living in Wilmette, IL at the time- a northern suburb of Chicago. He must have been 11 or 12 then. He was telling me how is older sister Heidi and her best friend Gail had been so excited all week leading up to the show and they were the ones who introduced him to the Beatles.
The Beatles and what they produced was timeless. I mean, so good… there are not enough words. I love that so many different artists have covered them… that is one of the cool things about the music they created… it sounds great in so many different types of genres (in my opinion). Rubber Soul, Sgt. Peppers and Abbey Road would have to be my favorite Beatles albums… my Dad disagrees and would add Revolver in there a little higher. My favorite all-time song ever is a Beatles song: In My Life. Since I was 15 I’ve had the same favorite song… and I don’t think it will ever be replaced.
The combo of this show tonight and the fact that I just watched the last episode of the Jay Leno show (which was amazing, I totally cried) has lead to a discussion of concerts in my family. The best concert I’ve ever been to in my life was Paul McCartney. He played at Riverfront Stadium in Cincinnati in like 1992 and my Dad scored 4 floor seats. I’ve been to so many great concert since then: Billy Joel, Elton John, Green Day, Nickleback (which I don’t really get why people don’t like them. I do, go ahead and judge) , DMB, Tobey Keith, Counting Crows, Daughtry, Rob Thomas, Barenaked Ladies, OneRepublic, Matchbox 20…. and too many others to list. Music was always encouraged in my family. But the best was still Paul McCartney… which means my concert attendance high came at the age of 11. Hard to top that. I would love to see him perform again. But it still started the convo in this house of concerts I would LOVE to see someday. In no particular order:
- Garth Brooks (he was so good on the last Leno show)
- U2
- Billy Joel (I’ve seen him once, want to do it again)
- Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band (for some reason I am the only person in my entire family that likes him. I think he is great, they think he screams. Ridiculous. Every time they tell me this I want to force them to listen to ICP. THAT is screaming).
- Pearl Jam
- Tim McGraw
- Bon Jovi
- The Eagles (in whatever band form they are in, I saw the coolest documentary on them this summer).
- Madonna ( I mean, she is Madonna)
- Grace Potter and the Nocturnals (I didn’t become obsessed with them until AFTER they toured in my town. So annoyed with myself).
- The Killers
- The Lumineers
- Steely Dan
- Bette Midler (I’ve got a love of Beaches AND she has a lovely version of “In My Life”
- Taylor Swift
- Snow Patrol
- Robbie Williams (this one is strongly influenced by my friend Gail)
- The Dixie Chicks
- Okkervil River
- Dashboard Confessional (granted I’ve not been as in to them the last two years or so… but they are still on the list)
So basically the biggest take away from all of this… I have some seriously eclectic tastes in music. Also, my poor office better hope we get another snow day this week… otherwise all they are going to hear coming from my office is The Beatles.
That is my concert bucket list so far. Who is on yours?
Throwback Thursday, Study Abroad 1999- Nuremberg, Germany
Back the summer before my senior year of high school, I spent the summer in Nuremberg, Germany on a student exchange. It was an AWESOME experience. A group of us from my high school went and we all stayed with host families and got completely immersed in the culture. I can’t say enough good things about this experience. So, this was back in 1999 though, so forgive the super-old scanned pictures!
This picture below is of my group who went over from the states. One of the teachers at the school who taught science and geography took us on a walking tour of the city that day to explain the layout of the city and development over the years. This was 15 years ago, but I do remember detailed conversations about sustainability and recycling.
On a hill in Nuremberg, Germany. Study abroad, summer 1999. I’m in the back row, second in from the left. Oh so blonde. Yes, I do still keep up with some of these people!
You can see the land laying out behind us on from the top of the hill in the above picture. As you can see it is a bit grey… there are a couple rain jackets on… so it had been a bit rainy that morning. But we hiked to the top of the damn hill anyway. Which means, of course, we had to go back down the hill. The muddy hill. I don’t have good luck with hills. I was the last one down and it didn’t go well…
That is me, falling on my ass, coming down the muddy hill in Nuremberg, Germany. Study Abroad, 1999.
Of course, everyone turned around to snap a picture of me on my ass. I was a bit of a little princess back then, so I guess it was fair. Please note the awesome 1999 sandals I’m rocking.
If you ever have the chance to do any sort of cultural immersion, I highly recommend it. This was such a great experience, it helped my German so much (which I still use today) and it was such a great time. I hope I get to go back again some day!
Translation Tuesday: North, South Carolina
Ok, so at this point four separate and unrelated to one another people have sent me this YouTube clip over the past four months. I finally decided that I just had to share it with y’all.
I just can’t stop laughing every time I see it. The whole thing is funny, but if you can’t hold out for the first six and a half minutes at least do the first three and a half! Such a directionally confused conversation with a funny and exasperated Bill Cosby.
This is from the Bill Cosby hosted “You Bet Your Life” that aired in the very early 90s. This clip is of a sweet little old Southern woman with the BEST SOUTHERN DRAW EVER trying to explain her hometown… the city of North in the state of South Carolina and its relation to cities such as Columbia and Due West. Too Funny!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RO1kmfLmGRA
Not only does South Carolina have a North and a Due West… they also have a Denmark, a Bamberg, a York, a Walhalla, a Waterloo, and a Windsor. Clearly, fans of places in Europe. Who knew?
Boycotting Target?
I met up with friends the other night for dinner, but before I headed downtown I had some shopping to do. I’ve been in need of new luggage for a while now and I’ve been researching options for weeks, and I finally settled on Samsonite and picked up a set I liked at TJ Maxx ($200 for a multi-piece set instead of $400-$500 at the department store- yes, please). Anyway, I pulled into the shopping area which has a Kohl’s, Bed Bath and Beyond, Publix, a bunch of other stores along with TJ Maxx and Target. And as I was getting out of my car I realized I haven’t been to a Target in well over a month in a half. Nuts.
via someecards.com
To put this in context: I went to Target at least 3 times over Thanksgiving weekend alone. Several years ago I was offered a job in the mountains and the reason I give people when they ask me why I turned it down: because it is 45 minutes from the nearest Target. Okay, there were plenty of other reasons I didn’t take the job, but that is the easiest way I explain it to people and it was one thing on a long list. Like many people, I liked Target. Good prices, generally have all the items I am searching for and it is always conveniently located. Bonus- it isn’t Wal-mart and I really dislike Wal-mart. I always do after holiday shopping there to get marked down prices on cards, wrapping paper, etc. So to not go there for a month and a half? Especially after Christmas? That’s just odd.
Here is the thing, I know lots of people have been really pissed off at Target because of this data breach. And now we know it is a couple of other stores as well, but nothing the size of Target. I did start getting odd emails and I did replace my debit card- even though I didn’t have any unauthorized transactions (I was lucky). I’ve been annoyed for sure, but I didn’t intentionally plan to stop shopping there… it just happened. At first I just didn’t trust the place and therefore didn’t really want to go. Since then I’ve broken the habit and now I’m in a competition with myself to see how long I can go without going there. So I didn’t plan to stop shopping there, but I have.
What do you think- weird? Anyone else given up on Target?
convertedsoutherner 
