memoir update

Damn near forgot I had a blog... 

Update! March Memoir Madness was a success. I wrote for a half hour every day ::cough:: with a few exceptions—staying focused on Fridays is nearly impossible!

The best part about going through that exercise is it's breathed new life into old writing and—frankly—gotten me excited again about a project I'd fallen slightly out of love with: a memoir of the month-long cross-country road trip my brothers and I took in 2009. 

March 1 | 17,800 words
April 24 | 30,100 words 

That's about 115 pages. But in terms of storyline, I'm only this far... 

That puts us at the Grand Canyon, our 5th stop out of 16. So many more stories to tell...

The journey continues! 

march [memoir] madness

I may be mediocre at most things, but I'm spectacular at procrastinating.

The memoir I started writing last January has sat untouched in a Dropbox folder since—June? Pitiful.

As much as I love writing, I'm easily distracted by TV. By instagram. By the two needy puppies who are as annoying as they are cute.

In an effort to get off my lazy lump and make some writing progress, I've instituted #MarchMemoirMadness. 

On March 1, I wrote for 30 minutes. On March 2, I did it again. And today, yet again. 

I'm committing to this for one month, in the hopes that it will turn from a chore into a habit, from a habit into a hobby. 

17,800 words and counting...

P.S. You're welcome to steal this idea and customize, making it March [insert your goal here] Madness. 

the boardwalk

This is the Jersey Shore as I knew it. A far cry from the MTV reality show.

It's where my brothers, cousins and I spent all summer building sandcastles, chasing seagulls, and riding waves on our boogie boards. 

It's where we had to wash every last grain of sand off our bodies before we could set foot in my grandmother's beach house. 

And it's where—if we were very well behaved all week—we'd be rewarded with a night at The Boardwalk. 



Picture all the magnificence of a state fair. Picture a giant pier looming over the dark Atlantic on a warm summer night. Then imagine the two of these things together and you have the Seaside Heights Boardwalk, home of my childhood dreams. 

It's a place where your teeth feel fuzzy from pink cotton candy, and the carousel twirls like a life-size music box, and the lights live incandescent in your memory until well into adulthood.

Seaside Heights Boardwalk, 2008. Photos by my brother, Trey Pasquariello

Dawn, my favorite carousel horse since 1984.

photo credit: BrickPatch

Last week, I saw the above image on the news. The Boardwalk was another victim of Hurricane Sandy. 

So grateful that my relatives in the Jersey/New York area weren't harmed, but this does make my heart ache.

More photos of the hurricane recovery efforts in Seaside Heights and beyond are here.

south haven

In September, we ventured to South Haven, MI, a quaint beach town on the edge of Lake Michigan, to celebrate our one-year wedding anniversary. It's an easy four-hour drive north from Indy.

Too chilly for swimming but perfect for lounging at a bed and breakfast, wandering around shops and bookstores, whiling away the afternoon in a wine bar, and reflecting on what a year it has been.

view from our room

lighthouse on lake michigan

adorable B&B

sunset and storms over the lake

napa recap[a]

our adorable [rented] adobe

...lame rhyme. Couldn't help it.

In April, we made a little getaway to Napa Valley. We flew from Indiana to San Fran on Friday, met up with friends from Georgia, rented a minivan (oh yeah), and traipsed 90 minutes northeast to Napa.


We stayed in this impeccable little bungalow (owned by Bill and Paul, a fab couple with fab taste).


Toured a few wineries—among them, Beringer, Mumm, Joseph Phelps, Louis Martini (favorite), Sterling, and Silver Oak.

We even saw some redwoods and hiked the valley. Wonderful food, wonderful company, and perfect weather made for two very happy travelers.

the view from joseph phelps winery

the mumm sparking wine estate

drip coffee at the oxbow public market

group shot!

the not-so-newlyweds

posing with the iron man and his wheelbarrow 

a game of bocce

the necessary photo op

hiking the valley

fresh off the vine

do yourself a favor and...

• watch the entire first season of Downton Abbey in a weekend
• sleep in (so late that your partner is eating lunch when you wake up)
• open a bottle of Louis Martini cabernet
• read The Descendants
• don't rent The Descendants
• take a nap outside in the sun
• play football in the mud
• hike to the top of a (relatively small) mountain
• laugh at this blog
• laugh at this video

I recommend wasting time on any and all of the above listed tasks. I have for the past month, and I don't regret a minute of it.

In Napa Valley with friends... more photos to follow!

skipping september

60 days ago — the last time I bothered to blog — it was August 20. Sunny, high of 95. A regular Friday.

I go to work, eat lunch, drive home, pack a suitcase. Put the suitcase in Ryan's 4Runner and we head north to Chi City, listening to Kanye's Graduation album on repeat (Chi City, Chi City, do you think about me now and then, do you think about me now and then, cuz I'm coming home again.)

"I was thinking we could walk around downtown when we get there and test out the new camera," he says.
"Cool."

There's a superfine mist blowing through Chicago, the kind that keeps vegetables alive at the grocery store. The sky is dusty mahogany and starless. We click our way through the city like true tourists, stopping to take too many pictures and kissing on street corners.

Down Michigan Ave and through Grant Park until we arrive here, at Buckingham Fountain. The skyline is unreal and we soak it in. The park is filled with spectators and loud parade music, and I'm exceedingly upset by a pack of preteen boys who are chasing down a scared little rabbit. We start back toward the hotel.

I'm still worrying about the "poor bunny" and Ryan keeps trying to change the subject. He's recounting minute details of a long walk we took on a rainy night years ago, asking 'remember this?' and 'remember that?' until I blurt out, "You never remember our dates, why do you remember so much about that night?"

"Because that's when I knew I loved you."

Even though I'd asked for details plenty of times, he's never told me this before — the first time he knew he loved me. Why is he telling me now? I'm wondering, and the pieces come together like a Jenga game in reverse. He's carrying a backpack. He's wearing cargo shorts. That's a lot of storage space. He seems nervous. He's never nervous. He's making me nervous.

The sign in front of Millennium Park says 'closed' but we go in anyway. He sets the camera up to take a picture of us on the park bench. He's fiddling with it, and fiddling and fiddling.

"Why don't you just have someone else take our picture?" I ask. People stream past, a few stragglers like us in the park after hours. And then there were two. The park is empty. My heart is pounding. He hits the camera button and walks toward the bench where I'm sitting. Kneels in front of it. And before he can say anything, at that supposed pinnacle of one's romantic life, what do I say?

"You are not doing this right now!"
"Yes, I am." He says. And he says much more, words that I will always remember and rarely share.

We're wrapped up and talking and I'm on the verge of tears, and don't even notice the security guard until he shouts, "The park is CLOSED. Ya gotta get out."

So we relocate. We drink a glass of champagne at an overpriced bar. We stare at my hand and hold each others. We can't stop smiling and our faces ache, in a good way. A very good way.

aaaaaria

Everything you need to know about Aria Resort & Casino can be summed up in three words: heated. toilet. seats.

It was that kind of place. When I woke up the first morning (to the soft clicking sound of the curtains automatically opening at 9:45 am, just as programmed) I had to pinch myself. This was the view from our room.

Ah, Vegas, City of Perpetual Overindulgence. We ate at one buffet a day, and I've completely ruined my appetite. Everything in my refrigerator now tastes bland in comparison. But really what we did the most was lounge at the pool, moving as little as possible except to get in the water because it was 108 degrees. Hot, but heavenly.

where i wish i was today

the woods are lovely, dark and deep

Random Thing #25
Friends, we have reached the end: the last random thing about me, at least for now.

For the next five days, I will freeze my ass off, and I will complain that I can't feel my feet or fingers — and I will crave boiled peanuts, grits and sweet tea for the sole reason that they are unavailable — but I will love every second of it. I'm flying to Boston tonight, and Ryan and I are going skiing in New Hampshire over the weekend. We're staying at the Colonel Spencer Inn, in Campton (hometown of my heart, population 2,900, which I've written about before).

I grew up skiing, but last February was the first time in 10 years that I attempted it. I started out shaky, but 30 minutes later I was dragging poor Ryan (who had only been once before) to the top of the mountain.

It's a massive adrenaline rush, but at the same time it can be amazingly peaceful. There is something about being at the top of a mountain covered in snow — the complete stillness and silence of it — that just makes you think... this is Winter as God intended.

Be back in March! Until then, I'll leave you with a few pictures of last year's trip: our B&B, a frozen tree branch, ski lifts at Tenney Mt., me in front of our old house.

on the 12th day of nothing...

I readily admit, I have been remiss in my blog-writing. In an effort to make up for lost time, here are 12 things I am grateful for — one item for each day I've missed.

1) A good haircut: I finally got much-needed haircut. I went to a friend of a friend, who works out of her amazing studio. If anyone needs a stylist, I would recommend her: Tammi Ferrell, #404.771.7660
2) The shore: I was lucky enough to spend a few days up at the Jersey shore with my aunts, uncles, cousins and Ryan (who drove down from Boston). They were renting an amazing ocean front house, with an amazing view, and the weather was perfect. I spent just about every summer of my childhood at the Jersey shore. I hadn't been in years though, and it was so nice to be there again.
3) Luke Mclean Mattocks: My youngest cousin, who just turned 1. The last time I saw him was Christmas... needless to say he has grown a lot. He crawls around a lot but doesn't walk yet, is perfectly content to play with his toys, likes to cuddle, and is about the happiest little boy I've ever seen.
4) Philly: On my way home from Jersey, I had to fly out of Philadelphia. Ryan was taking me to the airport but we had a few hours to kill, and decided to do a speed tour through the city of brotherly love. We made a quick loop through downtown (in the rain), then parked and looked at the liberty bell through a very thick window and scarfed a cheesesteak before heading out.
5) National Geographic Adventure magazine: Recently fell in love with this magazine. I've added it to my list of [wildly optimistic] aspirations to become one of their staff writers.
6) Cheap cable: After months of damning the man, I broke down and signed up for cable. The good news is while I'm paying for basic cable ($18/month for about 20 channels), they accidentally hooked me up with full cable (60 channels). I win.
7) Michael Phelps: The man is a golden god. I didn't think he was anything special before, but since I've been glued to the Olympics, I can't help but think he is incredibly cute. Sorry Ry.8) Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble: I bought McMurtry's "Terms of Endearment" for one penny. And found a hardcover Paul Auster book for $4.98. How amazing is that? (I love a bargain.)
9) NPR: My new morning companion. It's interesting and educational. Not always as entertaining as Q100, but also not nearly as depressing as the local news.

10) Two Urban Licks: A fantastic dining experience, both for the food and the company.

11) D. Lo's safe return: One of my best friends, Danna, was frolicking through Europe for the past month or so. I'm glad she had fun, but for my own selfish reasons, I'm very glad to have her back.

12) The Classic City: Even though I have been out of college for two years, there is a part of me that aches to go back to Athens around this time of year. When the humidity starts to relent, just the slightest bit, and everyone starts talking about football season again, it only seems natural to return to the classic city. Which is why my former roomies [featured below] and I are making a road trip up there next Saturday. Yes, it is only one day. But what a glorious day it will be.