The Chevalier Chronicles: 112712

Wanted to upload pics before I forgot again! Post to come tomorrow before we head to Pennsylvania!

11/27/2012: Update

So..... Yeah it's been awhile. I posted the pics to write a description... and then I didn't write anything. then we got back and.... I didn't write anything. Still.

But here we are! I have a few minutes to spare that I can use finishing this up so I'm not ashamed when I look back (if I ever reflect on my time in Boston when I am old).

Last update was 11/15- a lot has happened since! Chronologically, here we go.

Friday was my 2nd day of work, and it was Casino Night! Sara got off a bit early, we got ready and headed out to the Long Wharf Marriott. The Casino Night was for "Friends of Christopher Columbus Park" which is right next to the hotel and right by Sara's office. They were raising money to keep the trellis at the park lit up for the winter. Sara took a picture of it on her Instagram, it's pretty. Anyway, we got there pretty much right at 8 when it started, there was a cocktail hour with snacks and a lot of old rich people. Drinks were $10, ouch. We loaded up on hummus, cheese, and pita bread while we waited for some of Sara's co-workers to show up (we got there first). They came, I met most of them (very nice people, btw) and then it was time to gamble! We got a $1000.00 bill when we first walked in, and were able to exchange that for chips. We didn't gamble right away, we actually went and walked around. We took some pictures in the photobooth (see Facebook for those, can't upload them on here) and ate some more. There were actual mini- dishes instead of just snacks, the best was a short rib and a spoonful of garlic potato puree (too fancy for simple mashed potatoes). We ended up at the Craps table, which I don't fully understand, but was a lot of fun. We lasted awhile! I didn't lose all my money right away, which was nice. I mean, I did lose it all, but still. The chips could be turned in for raffle tickets, and they were raffling off some baskets that had been donated. They also had a silent auction, but the cheapest bid was $200.00 so we looked but didn't touch. We ended up going out to a nearby bar with one of Sara's co-workers and his girlfriend. It was fun while they were there, but once they left it got weird. I hate talking to guys at bars that are douchefaces and total assholes. We left, but had to take a cab since the T had stopped (lame that it stops so early). Sara got mad at the cabbie because he took the long way and it cost $32.00.

Saturday we lounged, I can't really remember anything special we did during the day. That night though, we went to the House Of Blues and saw a concert, Taking Back Sunday and Bayside! I know I've talked about it on the blog before, but it was so much fun. Took me all the way back to high school when "Cute without the E" first came out. We went to Mexican after (eh, not that great) and then home for the night. Sunday we were supposed to go to Jessi's but she had a mouse situation so we had to reschedule. We lazed about and that was our weekend!

The rest of the week passed like normal, I stayed until 5 at work Monday and Tuesday to make up for Friday that I was going to miss. Wednesday I got off at 1:15 since the office closed early and I was able to go back to the apt before leaving for PA. I met Sara at the bus terminal and it was kind of a mess. There were people everywhere, and we couldn't find anything with our bus information on it. Sara talked to someone that said since there are so many buses going out, we just kind of get on one to NY. So we did. I busted out my Kindle with the Mindy Kaling book, and 3 hours later we were in NYC. We had to wait an hour for the next bus to PA, but it wasn't so bad once we got something to drink. I didn't get anything when in Boston because I didn't want to have to pee on the bus, but I was SO THIRSTY on that trip that I could not stop thinking about Coke Slurpees. Anyway, on the bus to PA Sara and I took shots of Zzzquil, put on our headphones and neck pillows, and zonked out. Only woke up a few times so it wasn't as bad as I was thinking! We got in at 5:40 am, and Brian was awake and picked us up pronto. As soon as we got to his house we jumped into the guest bed and took a "nap." I woke up at 1030ish, we hung out with Brian and James for a bit, and then went over to Dave & Jackie's!

Thanksgiving was really nice, it was good to be in a family environment since I couldn't be at home. Dave, Jackie, and Jennifer were really nice and welcoming, and I didn't feel totally out of place like I normally would have in an unfamiliar situation! There was a lot of food, we had banana bread and coffee to start, then appetizers (a lot of them) and later down the line was dinner. Brian made olive cheese balls and onion puffs, there was also baked Brie, cream cheese & salsa, french onion dip and chips, rum soaked pineapple, mouse cookies (which I think were also out during the dessert portion of the day).... and more that I can't think of right now. We talked a lot; I got to hear a lot of stories about Dad and the family growing up from Dave, which was nice because Dad never talks about that kind of stuff.

For dinner we had Turkey (duh), pea salad (a Cinqmars family tradition), mashed potatoes and gravy, green bean casserole, corn pudding (my favorite), stuffing, sweet potatoes, and salad. I took a picture of my plate, find it below!

After dinner we played some games, a trivia game that was fun and an Awkward Family Photo game which was funny. We left and went home to watch Glee and then it was bedtime! A long day, but a good one.

Black Friday! I didn't wake up until like 10:30 again, James had already left for work (he had to work 12 hour shifts both Friday and Saturday). We took our time getting ready, eating breakfast. Brian had made banana bread with ginger and chocolate chips that was really good. We went out to Target, Best Buy and Half Price Books. I got some DVDS and some books (I can't resist a good deal, or a good book!). We had the Pittsburgh staple of Primanti Brothers for lunch (see pics below), then went back to the house and played trivia (Brian has a PS3 trivia game called Buzz! that we played a bunch of times. It was really cool, and we didn't get any repeat questions. Also I online shopped and bought some work clothes from Express.com (50% off EVERYTHING! Can't beat that, and I love their Editor pants). We ordered a you bake pizza that was delish and watched Happy Endings and Friends and other random TV shows. Did you know there is a show called Killer Karaoke? Hosted by Steve-O, we only caught the end but it was ridiculous.

Saturday I woke up again too late to see James before he left. Brian made Tortilla, which is something with potatoes and eggs that I have never had before that I really liked. We went to Salvation Army (or was it Goodwill?) to get ugly sweaters for a party that we are going to go to in December. We both found sweatshirts that are not cute, and they kind of match so we snagged those (mine was only $1.99). We walked around the craft store until Brian broke a candle and we left. We stopped at the grocery store, bought some items for dinner (Brian made Sara's favorite: Chicken Devan) and then hung out a lot more, lol. Brian gave us a lot to take home: a bunch of Partylite candles, a bunch of yarn (and some knitting needles and a knitting for dummies booklet), some books and he even made us brown bag lunches for the trip! James got off work with just enough time to come back to the house, change, play a round of trivia, and then go with us back to the Bus Station.

There was drama at the bus station, we almost didn't make our bus. Apparently we were supposed to 'check' our bags and get special tags. No one told us, and we didn't have to on the way to PA so it was a rush when we were boarding and realized we couldn't get on. We had togo wait in another line, get tags, and then make it back. Luckily there were 3 buses, and we made it on the tail end of the 3rd bus. Sara called Brian when we were panicked we wouldn't make it, but we didn't have to call him to come pick us up which was awesome. We were seriously freaking out that we wouldn't make it.

I slept on the bus to NYC this time, and we got there early so we waited in line for the Boston bus for awhile. We had our lunches this time, so we didn't have to stop for refreshments. I slept on the bus to Boston as well, and woke up only for the required stops. We were so bedraggled, we took the T back to the apartment to see our lonely kitten and just slumped on the couch. We caught up on TV and took a nap and got our butts ready for work on Monday!

Monday at work was good, same with today. It's kind of slow right now because I'm still learning, but it should be picking up soon which will be nice. I like my 9-3 schedule, I always get in a bit early so I can stop and get coffee. Au Bon Pain is right underneath the office, so I normally stop in there for a pastry and a coffee.

We want to take pictures for Christmas Cards, but we need someone to take them for us! We've been trying to hang out with a few of our Boston friends to kind of ask them. Also we are looking into boarding/cat visits for Christmas. Boarding would be the best option, so she won't be so lonely, but most places are booked. The cat visits for Thanksgiving ended up being $$ and I think she was sad being alone most of the day. So I would like to find something else. I would love someone in Boston, a friend of ours, to keep her for a week, but we don't really know anyone well enough. The few that we do we are going to slyly ask, but I have a feeling it will be a no go. That would be ideal, and because of that it's not going to happen, lol.

Anyway, that's pretty much everything. If I missed anything, well oops. I will try to not be lazy about this anymore, this update was a doozy. Took almost an hour!