Milwaukee

so i'm a little behind on posts. sorry! it's been a busy wk buried in budgets, and i'm a bit worn. still, here's a quick update on last wknd's adventure to the land of cheese, beer, and brats...

visited friend and former coworker lisa, who transfered to WI almost a year ago. the weather was CRAPPY: rainy, cold, and maybe 30F. she insisted that i come visit her for once, even tho it was 75F and sunny that same wknd in atlanta. is that luv or is that luv???

despite having to do some work while i was there, i had a really good time. dinner my 1st night was at de rango's, where we ordered half the menu (cuz when you're on a pseudo-vaca, it's justified, right?). in addition to the fresh loaf of bread you're greeted with at the table, we ordered a large pizza, fish and chips, tortellini, side salads, garlic bread, and potato skins. should i mention that we also had a beer and noshed on chips and salsa before leaving her house? or that i had a lara bar in the car on the way from the airport to her place?

yes, you should be disgusted by the amount of food. and that was only fri night.

and yes, you should expect that the rest of the wknd revolved around food too. after all, i am a foodie.

on sat i got a tour of racine, kenosha, and the shores of lake michigan. among other things, we took a field trip to the original O&H bakery where they make the BEST kringle. we brought 3 home, where i proceeded to nosh on my new found friends. it took me til sun afternoon to eat about half of one, which in itself is ridiculous (trust me). would've thot that was the end of it, but lisa's mother sent me home w/another half, forcing me to officially OD on kringle. i didn't think it was possible, but now i don't want to see any kringle ever again (or at least for the next 6 mos).

we also took a field trip to tenuta's, an adorable little italian grocery shop in kenosha (i had no idea that many italians lived in kenosha, wi). this thing is practically a historical landmark; it's been around FOREVER. they have cigars, booze, a huge deli, the most ridiculous pasta selection, and of course, an elvis wine collection...
upon entering you're greeted by a wall of pictures, and it's hard to tell if it's suppose to be a wall of shame or pride. either way, it was quite educational. this whole time i thot rocky was the first...

no pics of our time in milwaukee, but we did wander around historic third ward, where i had the best veggie burger, the worst french wine, and lots of yummy beer.

and needless to say, i had such a good time running around w/lisa and her sister that i came home 3lbs heavier. so unlike last wknd, this wknd will be spent detoxing - i need to stop eating altogether! i also need to finish preparing for mtgs in NY next wk and a family visit next wknd. thurs-sun w/a crowd of little asian people and a blonde. can you imagine the scene?! (and it will be a scene.) LOL!