Pictures from the weekend

The second day they were here, Paul and Ter bought me a bed! Apparently one night on my air mattress was sufficient.

The one we found was a screaming steal from the "As Is" section at Ikea, with the frame, midbeam and slats already marked down 55% due to minor cosmetic damage. The price listed on the sticker said "this combination," so we thought the mattress might be included; when we asked an employee, she went into the back to check, and when she returned, told us that the mattress alone had rung up as more than the price on the bed. "But I don't know anything about that," she said, and wrote in Sharpie on the mattress that it was part of the included price before returning to the back of the store with a smile. Even though the bed was a little bit ugly, and a little bit too big, we really couldn't resist that deal. We managed to get it home in the Bruise, with Ter and I sharing the passenger seat while Paul drove with his knees up to his chest, and they had a much more pleasant sleep that night!

While they were here, we did a lot of eating. We ate Neapolitan pizza with friends of theirs at Punch (wonderfully tasty and fairly authentic-- although there were no French fries on the menu); had soup and fantastic sandwiches in the Old Arizona courtyard; had brunch at the Bad Waitress; made homemade pasta for one meal and Thai peanut curry on basmati for another; and went to Pancho Villa to feed Paul's nacho craving. Ter and I also went out for Indian food Sunday night after Paul left, at a vegetarian place called the Udupi Cafe. I had never been before, but will definitely be going back; it was some of the best Indian I'd ever had. I got the thali plate and Ter got the dosai one, both of which included the freshest, fruitiest mango lassis either of us had tasted. Pretty much everything I tasted reduced to me an, "Oh, wow..."; my only regret was not being able to eat more.

We spent most of Friday afternoon downtown, including the deck at the Guthrie theater, Mill Ruins Park, the new library, and even the downtown Target (two stories, and fancy!) for bedding for the new bed. The weather got rainy and nasty on Saturday and Sunday, but it was absolutely gorgeous Thursday and Friday, and perfect for showing off the city.

It was also good running weather; Ter rode along with me as I did 6 miles Friday morning around Lake of the Isles and 8-ish Saturday around Calhoun. The marathon is this Sunday at 8:00 a.m.! At least two wonderful friends from the department are planning to be at the finish line (and take me for pizza afterward), and another one will be running with me (at least, as long as his knees hold up!), so you, dear readers, can feel slightly less guilty about not being here to support me in person.

This picture shows the comforter, bedskirt, curtain, and flannel sheets Ter and I found (incredibly, at four different stores--and with the exception of the sheets, all on clearance) for my new bedroom.

I've also included a picture of the timeline at full size, which Ter and Paul were kind enough to encourage me to work on in between having way more fun than was good for me. Good times.