Wisconsin Winter

I've been home in Wisconsin for about a week now!  Going home for the holiday season is so great.  I drove overnight after finishing my last final and attempting to leave my apartment spotless for my return (Coming home to a messy apartment after a holiday is the worst).  This year our main family time together is happening before Christmas - Trish and Justin flew in from Egypt for a visit the same day I arrived, and my older sister came into town shortly afterward.  It was so amazing having everyone together because it so rarely happens!  We took pictures with Justin's camera so I'm going to try and get my hands on some of them.  We had very mild weather, until, in typical Wisconsin weather fashion, things changed suddenly today, and a blizzard hit (It's named!).  It wasn't as bad in La Crosse as it was in the southern part of the state (some of the pictures my friends have posted are crazy), but it will be enough for us to have a white Christmas :)  Hope everyone is safe, and good luck for those who have major shoveling to do!

ps:  Whenever I use a lot of commas in a sentence, I think of this article.

Sipping and Stamping

Today was ideal weather for coffee-drinking and letter-writing outside, and a handful of envelopes were dropped in the post this afternoon :)  A tip for anyone visiting La Crosse:  Bean Juice has the best dry cappuccino around.  Seriously, check out that foam!

"Road Trip"

Well, I've moved - again!  This past week my cousin and I rented a car, left Worcester, and drove back to my homeland, where I'll be living for the spring and summer.  Unfortunately it couldn't have the classic road trip vibe, as we just needed to reach our destination as quickly as possible.  We went straight from Worcester to Chicago in one day, whew.  Here's a tip for long drives:  it turns out that they don't feel that bad if you leave practically in the middle of the night.  My alarm went off at 3:20 and we were on the road by 4 am, ha.  We made really good time to Chicago and were able to go for a long walk around the city to admire the buildings and parks (Trish has never been there) before dinner, beers, and much needed sleep.  We also made a quick stop in Madison on the second day for caffeine.  I wanted her to experience Bradbury's, one of my favorite coffee and breakfast places, and it turns out they are giving away free espresso all through April.  Really good, you should probably stop by if you're in the area.  She's staying for a short visit in the midwest, so I'm showing her some of my favorite places in La Crosse, unpacking, and starting to look for a job.  Wisconsin continues to be one of the best states ever, and I'm looking forward to enjoying this time here.  Hopefully some exploring will reveal new sides of my hometown :)  


ps:  The picture of us at the bottom is, of course, at the Chicago bean.

Winter Hike

Well, it doesn't feel like winter at all, so this morning my friend and I drove out to Trempealeau to go hiking.  It's so gorgeous there!  Today was sunny and breezy, and seemed almost like spring.  I keep wondering when we'll get hit with real winter.  It's definitely going to feel like a shock.

Midwestern Bound

Tomorrow I leave to spend the Christmas season in the land of cows, beer, and cheese.  Oh, and family, too.  Hooray!  ps:  This is a cow toy that my friend sent in a letter from WI.

Madison

Next quick stop on the way home was the beloved city of Madison!  I cheered as I crossed the state line, and felt nostalgic getting off the bus in the heart of the campus.  We spent the afternoon food carting, sitting by the lake, visiting the arboretum, which is such an awesome place, and then cooking dinner and watching a movie (a surprisingly good French film) at home.  The next morning we had breakfast at one of my favorite places (pictures to come), and tried out the new public bike system being implemented in Madison by riding down the lake shore path.  Ahh, I loved the 4 years I spent in Madison, and sometimes I daydream about just subletting a place to hang out there one summer.