Our internet got hooked up yesterday afternoon! A lot has happened since last Saturday, but I haven't had the ability to post about it.

Last Saturday and Sunday, I had end-of-the-year concerts at Ohio State, so my time available for packing over the weekend was quite restricted. However, between Katy's work during the weekend and my time Sunday evening and Monday, we got everything into boxes. My aunt Patty and uncle Del had saved all the boxes from their old move and donated them to us, so for the first time, we actually had enough boxes to fit all our stuff!

Monday was the first day of our new lease, so I went and got the keys in the morning to take a look at the new apartment. We had seen models of other floor plans and had been inside the building, but for policy reasons, we had not been able to get inside our actual unit while the previous tenant was still in there. So, Monday morning was my first opportunity to see our new home, and I was kind of nervous. However, Katy and I both agreed that the floorplan was a more intelligent design, and that we'd be happy to move in.

Tuesday was the day of the move. We showed up on time at Uhaul for our 9am reservation, and the kid behind the counter literally took twenty minutes before he even started to help us. No harm done, I guess, since we were only moving a few miles up the road and didn't really need that time. I had recruited one of the trombone students at Ohio State to help us lift the heavy stuff, and he was great. In addition, Andy and Heather Scheurer showed up to help us move too! It was a very pleasant surprise, and with all five of us, it took relatively little time to load everything into the truck.

We still had one more day left on our lease of the old apartment, so we left just a couple of items to be moved separately, and then on Wednesday I went back to clean and finish moving. I didn't get too much unpacking done, but it felt great to leave the old apartment in good shape for the next tenant.

Thursday was supposed to be my first big unpacking day, but our CSA farm, Wayward Seed, had experienced severe flooding from about 20 inches of rain in the first half of the week. They sent out an SOS to members begging anyone with the time to come help weed the fields. Since I was off of work anyway, I decided to delay unpacking one more day and go help out. I joined a few other volunteers and we unleashed our wrath against the mass of weeds that had overtaken the leeks and summer squashes. It was really quite satisfying at the end of the day to look back at the clean rows of plants compared to the green carpet of weeds that used to be there.

Yesterday, we finally got around to unpacking. Katy worked on the bedroom and living room boxes while I worked on the kitchen and the electronics. By the end of the day, our (walk-in!) closet, bedroom, kitchen, and internet were all semi-usable.

We still have a long way to go, but our apartment is slowly becoming a home.

Sweet Home Chicago

So Chicago was fantastic. It felt like coming home, and I think, since it's where I met Ben and grew up in so many ways, that city will always feel like home to me. The minute we got off the highway, it just felt like we never left. Like we could drive right up to Glenwood and park outside of the first place we ever lived together. Or like we could head down to Z&H in Hyde Park and we might walk in the door and the owner might recognize us.

But, we are definitely tourists now. Taking-photos-of-our-food, silly-grinning-about-riding-the-el, balking-at-the-prices tourists. And we embraced our tourist role with much picture-taking, eating, and walking till we had blisters.

We arrived to a wet, grey, disgusting snowstorm. Both Ben and I were trying not to let it get to us, but we were a bit disappointed to be running around in the cold and wet, after looking so forward to the weekend. But, we ran around anyway. First, to lunch at Penny's, one of our favorite noodle shops.

Then, we did a little shopping and ended up meeting our friends Audra and Paul for dinner. We went to Hopleaf first (right around the corner from our old place in Andersonville) and I had a delicious, amazing, perfection-of-a-beer, a luscious Matilda. Then, we went to the neighborhood tapas place and feasted. I can't decide which was better that night, the food or the company, but both were such a breath of fresh air after a long and lonely winter.

All day Saturday I had been on the fence about running the race on Sunday. I will be the first to admit that I am a fair-weathered runner. I like to run when it's fun (therefore, not too far and in not-too-inclement weather). I was sort of dreading running three steps in sleet-y, yucky, weather, let alone 5 miles.

But, sheer pride and a desire to get what I paid for got me out of bed on Sunday morning and into my running clothes. We got ourselves downtown, and to the starting line. Well...close-ish to the starting line..

In front of me (if you squint you can see the red-banner start line)

Behind me...as far as the eye could see

It sort of reminded me of Election NIght 2008 in Grant Park...except still not as crowded as that night.

I have never been so cold as I was waiting for that race to start. It got to the point where I was thinking to myself "please let me start running, please let me start running, please let me start running" just so I could get warm. Once we started, it was just a ton of fun. Winding through the streets of Chicago, listening to my music and running along was worth standing in the freezing starting corral for an hour. Just barely.

Sunday was another day of shopping (new clothes for Ben! I don't know what got into him but I went with it!), and more friends. I had brunch with my ladies (SO very needed and enjoyed...I am so happy for all the good things going on for them right now), and Ben and I had dinner with one of our favorite sets of friends, Chris and Rita. I went to grad school with Chris, and the four of us used to have dinner together semi-regularly, so that was great to revisit. The visit was made all the sweeter by how good they are doing too--a new beautiful condo that we got to tour and a baby on the way! We ended the evening with a drink at Jeffrey and Josh's place...it was so good to see them too. All in all, a wonderful, wonderful visit with our friends and our city.

Bongo Room brunch. Does not mess around.

Monday morning was one more breakfast with another set of ladies who are about to be the latest DePaul Arts Leadership alumnae (so excited for them!), and a quick trip to Taste of Heaven before we were on the road again. One of the best things about Monday morning was just cruising Lakeshore drive in the sunshine. I've told Ben before that I never even realized how calming the lake was, and how much more open it made the city feel. Columbus sometimes feels downright claustrophobic; I often fidget and look over my shoulder and wonder where the buildings will stop and the beach will start.

We had a wonderful time in our city...here's hoping it won't be another 9 months before we return!

So Katy mentioned our dinner party. Most of the food came out mostly ok. We think most of the guests had a pretty good time. All of that is overshadowed by The Monsoon.

We were in the process of welcoming everyone into our home when one of the women pointed at our floor and said "Water!" We opened the door to our laundry room and found gallons and gallons of water springing forth from the wall behind our washing machine. No, we weren't doing laundry at the time. In a matter of minutes, we had standing water on the floor throughout our living room, dining room, and kitchen.

The guests were great - they grabbed towels and started soaking everything up. We can't thank them enough.

Our landlord was less great. He didn't answer his phone. Admittedly, he was out of town. But, we had no other emergency number to call, which we quickly found out is an unacceptable situation. Plumbers came today and were unable to find any problem. Apparently people will be back out next week to redo some of the plumbing in our walls to try and make a reoccurrence less likely, but I'm skeptical of pretty much anything they do at this point. We'll see how things turn out.

We are busy bees.

Work. Lots of work. School. So much school.

And this: a birthday dinner for one of my oldest friends that is easily our biggest undertaking to date. We are serving a 4-course dinner to 10 people tonight. We are sort of terrified, in a fun way.

We don't have enough dishes for 12 people to eat dinner (10 plus us). We don't have a big enough table for 12 people to sit at. So. There will be some concessions.

(Fancy) plastic plates.

Food on laps.

We're going for the "shabby chic" vibe. But whatever...these are med students and college students. I don't think they will be picky about how their foodie food is served to them.

The menu:

appetizers: Ben's delicious cheesy poofs, and grilled raddichio with mozzarella and prosciutto, served with parsnip and parmesan risotto.

salad: baby greens with candied pecans, blue cheese and pear.

dinner: pork roulade (sauteed kale and bacon) with redskin potatoes tossed in butter and green onion.

dessert: triple layer caramel-chocolate cake with vanilla and dulce de leche ice cream.

The party is BYO, so no wine pairings to speak of.

We have sort of planned this on the fly, and I commend us on two areas of that:

1. This is actually a relatively inexpensive meal. Yes, it's a lot of food, but it's amazing how one or two really pricey, gourmet ingredients will go a long way.

2. We actually have some cooking skills! These recipes are more or less pulled from our existing repertoire, amped up a little bit to make them "party-ready."

We are excited. Penny is excited too. She's been waiting for the guests all day:

Ben has started the cheesy poofs:

And the cake is almost done, I did the lion's share of that work this morning. Here it is, unfrosted but assembled:

And as a bonus, some of my valentines flowers are still looking good! A centerpiece for the cake table:

We'll be sure to report back on how well this gets pulled off! After pictures may or may not come, depending on the level of success :)

2009 in review

Top 3 moments of 2009

Ben:

1. The Cedar Rapids Symphony / Orchestra Iowa has been a source of great moments for me for the last two years; accordingly, my last concert with them stands out in my mind. It wasn't the most artistically fulfilling concert ever, but it was a lot of fun, and to me, it was a celebration of everything I had accomplished musically that far in my life.

2. The Columbus Half Marathon was another event that had multiple levels of meaning for me. I spent everything I had out on the course and crossed the line faster than I ever really believed I could. That alone was one of the wildest emotional rides ever, but to me, that race was a metaphor for everything that Katy and I had been working toward for the past six months - the struggle to run 13 miles was representative of Katy's struggle to find a good job, my struggle to redefine my artistic life in a completely new light, and our struggle to establish a home in an unfamiliar city.

3. Before we left Chicago, we hosted a going-away party for all our friends. Not everybody could make it, of course, but the people who attended were a good representation of our life in Chicago. I had been living in Chicago for nine years, and Katy had been there for five - enough time to start to establish some roots. Pulling up those roots and leaving was not easy, but the party made it easier.

Katy:

1. Finishing the half-marathon: After I had pretty much decided not to even try to run it, I couldn't help giving in a little bit to the huge swell of pride I had after finishing, and not even dead last! 13.1 miles--even though I'm not where I want to be health and fitness-wise, how far I've come from the days of sleep apnea and staircase avoidance.

2. Penny's arrival: after a long month of yuck (not only was it March, but work was quite literally falling apart), Penny was the perfect antidote. Really dirty, but also very pretty, she stole our hearts and has made the perfect addition to our little family this year.

3. Last brunch with the ladies: Audra, Heather and I gathered one last time in May at M. Henry to say a definitive goodbye to our brunches, which quite literally carried me through one of the hardest years of my life so far. I miss them both and think of them often. Ladies, next time I am in the city, there is a brunch table somewhere with our names on it!

Top 3 meals of 2009

Ben:

1. Sometimes the best food comes from unexpected sources. I think the best food I consumed in 2009 was at a little cafe in a strip mall in Cedar Rapids, IA. I've been eating there on and off since I started playing with the symphony, and every time I visit, my respect for it rises. Croissant du Jour is a quiet, unassuming French bistro. The chef, originally from outside Chicago, trained in France where he met his wife, who runs the front of house. Very little on the menu is fancy or even fashionable, but the quality of the food is astounding. They have served me the best sandwich of my life, the best cheesecake of my life, and the best iced mocha of my life.

2. A lot of the excellent food we experienced in Chicago was consumed in the company of our friends Chris and Rita, who enjoy a good meal at least as much as we do. The last time we had dinner with them, the restaurant we intended to visit was closed, so we walked up Clark St until we got to Anteprima. We didn't have a reservation, and there was nothing available - but the host told us to get some wine at the bar while they made some room for us. A half hour later, we were sitting at a table by the window receiving more excellent service and an outstanding four-course meal.

3. Few places in the world have as rich of a food culture as Chicago does, so finding places we like to eat has been something of a preoccupation for me in Columbus. Recently, we had brunch at Skillet, and the chef there is willing to step slightly outside the box to deliver excellent breakfast and lunch with flavor concepts more often found on upscale dinner menus. I was very impressed.

Katy:

1. Job celebration dinner at G. Michael's: I had a big old glass of red and a steak to celebrate my re-entry into the working world. It was a delicious meal, and a sweet celebration of finally feeling at home in my new city. 

2. Our final La Donna dinner: We loved LaDonna. And the last time we ate there , we learned they would be closing in just a few short weeks. It was so bittersweet to know that all good things, be it living in the best city in the world, or running a neighborhood restaurant with the most amazing pasta ever, must come to an end. 

3.  My 27th birthday dinner: Ben made a feast of homemade spinach and bacon pizza, bellinis, and carrot cake. Simple, delicious birthday food consumed on the couch at our little, perfect Hyde Park apartment. It was a wonderful birthday.

Top 3 cultural events of 2009

Ben:

1. Great art is everywhere. Stefan Schulz, bass trombonist with the Berlin Philharmonic, stopped in Columbus on a solo tour. I may not like the piece he performed, but he could have played "Mary Had A Little Lamb" and it would have been awe-inspiring. Hearing him play live was a truly great moment, both artistically and educationally.

2. For Katy's birthday, her parents gave us tickets to see Steppenwolf's production of Shakespeare's The Tempest. I don't know theater the way I know music, so I don't really have the vocabulary to talk about it in detail - but, really great art reaches beyond that lack of education and affects an audience on a very fundamental level. This production was special in a lot of ways I can't even begin to explain.

3. For the annual Valentine's Day concert at the Cedar Rapids Symphony / Orchestra Iowa, we performed a collection of light classics. Miko, our pianist, played Gershwin's Concerto in F, and we played movie music from Korngold's Sea Hawk and Bernstein's On the Waterfront scores. The crowd reaction was incredible, and we ended up repeating the entire Sea Hawk overture in response to their enthusiasm. There's no feeling on earth that compares to seeing the results of your hard work and artistry affect an audience.

Katy:

1. Slumdog Millionaire: a great movie, and our first date in Columbus.

2. The Tempest: my mom and dad got us tickets to Steppenwolf's first Shakespeare production ever for my birthday. Shakespeare + quintessential Chicago theater company = awesome night out at the theater.

3. Ben's December 6 recital: Not only did I enjoy the music, but I was really proud of Ben for finishing his first quarter of school. The recital was well-attended and received, and featured an encore that was arranged just for me (which he knows I am a sucker for!).

Top 3 achievements of 2009

Ben:

1. I guess I should start with the obvious one here. I successfully auditioned for the Teaching Associate position at Ohio State University. In some ways, it doesn't look like much of an accomplishment - it involves moving back to my home town and studying with my old teacher. But, there's only one position, and it's only open every three years. Because of the bad economy, more people auditioned for it than ever before, including several other former Ohio State students. I feel that I won this job over some fairly stiff competition, and I'm proud to have it.

2. Training for the half marathon was a huge achievement. I'm not repeating myself; this is different from my "top moment." I've never been athletic in the least, and self-discipline is a constant struggle for me. To follow a rigorous physical training schedule for six months is remarkable for me on both fronts. Moreover, being successful only inspired me to strive for even higher goals, so it has long-lasting effects that will hopefully lay the groundwork for a similar post in 2010!

3. My mother makes the best pie crust in the world. I'm not just saying that because she's my mom; her pie crust is the lightest and the flakiest, and nothing else satisfies. This is a problem when I don't live with my parents, because I simply don't eat pie, which is one of my favorite desserts. Thankfully, with her help, I've been mastering the technique. For dessert after Easter dinner this year, I made a lemon-meringue pie, and the crust was actually good. Maybe it's a small thing, but it certainly ranks highly in my book!

Katy:

1. Landing a new, awesome job when the odds were against me in doing so.

2. Moving (yet again) to a new city, pretty much sight-unseen, and making my garden grow.

3. Stepping up to the plate in a multitude of ways professionally in March-April, 2009.

Top 3 lessons learned in 2009

Ben:

1. Being married makes major life changes much more complicated. Moving to Columbus would have been much easier to accomplish if I was single. But, being married is the only thing that makes major life changes bearable. Change is hard, and having the love of my life next to me the whole time was about the only thing I could rely on. The corollary to that is engraved on the inside of our wedding bands, quoted from Euripides: "Love is all we have."

2. When life gets really hard, sometimes peace and perspective can be found in a kitten. I'm not sure why Penny chose our doorstep to call home, but she's definitely part of the family now. She took the move to Ohio pretty gracefully, and seems pretty content with her new life. We're certainly happy she's here.

3. When opportunity doesn't knock, go pay it a visit, and knock on its door. While Katy was working at the University of Chicago, I didn't have a whole lot going on in town. I had the symphony in Iowa, but that was about it. However, I started attending Roger Moseley's historically-informed improvisation seminar at the University, and it turned into one of the most educational years of my life. There's no such thing as a lack of opportunity. You can always make something happen if you just make good use of the resources around you.

Katy:

1. When the going gets rough on the marital front, a bottle of wine and a good, long, enjoyable conversation do wonders. 

2. I don't know if this is a lesson learned, but in 2009 I really learned a lot of new things about myself. For instance: I like (sweet) mustard, I can't tolerate high heat and humidity as well as I used to, and I really miss being creative. 

3. Even if I think I'm ready for a huge life change, and I've done the best I can at preparing, life will still feel like the inside of a snow globe for a while. Preparing for it all is just as important as preparing for the fact that it still takes time.