...and I was in a hurry to finish school!

Due to Friday's ice storm, Worcester has no school for the rest of the week!

Can you imagine if you were in elementary school -- no school this week, and no school for December vacation next week and the following week? 

That's a whole lot of cartoons you could watch and games you could play!!! (Saved by the Bell reruns! Read: Huge crush on Zack Morris and his cellphone. So cool for 1992.) 

I'm a bit jealous!   I haven't had that much time on my hands since my bout with unemployment.  (...but that got me a chopped-up thumb, and is a story for another day.)

One morning without power was enough...

...but, apparently there are still 12,000  people without power in Worcester (yea, that's twelve THOUSAND, not a typo).

I "Rip van Winkle'd" it, and slept through this "ice storm" we had Thursday night and woke up Friday morning to the precious sound of my boss' voice, "RISE AND SHINE SWEETHEART! WE DONT HAVE POWER SO WE'RE GOING TO PLAY IT BY EAR...MAYBE YOU CAN WORK AT NOON. MAYBE NOT UNTIL THREE.  I JUST DON'T KNOW, LIZZY, EVERYTHINGS A MESS. I'LL KEEP YOU POSTED."  (yea, he really talks in all caps.)

(Whhhaat? No "power?" Thank God I straightened my hair the night before. First things first, right?)

Happy to get an extra hour to sleep, since I wasn't quite prepared to "Little House on the Prairie" it and begin studying by candlelight, I didn't realize how bad our precious city was until I went to Starbucks:  that little side street that connects Flagg and Pleasant was completely blocked off by an enormous tree...so much for my shortcut!  I had to navigate and weave in and out of fallen branches all along the West Side, careful to avoid fallen down power-lines.  (Must.Get.Espresso.)

For our out-of-city readers, here's a picture of the aftermath, courtesy of the Boston Globe:

Read the accompanying article, too, from December 13, "Ice Storm Paralyzes Parts of New England." 

The city is still being cleaned up and I was back to work bronzing Worcester's finest today.  Schools are closed again tomorrow:  Four day weekend for the kiddies (and Momma P)!

Question of the Day

Question:  Is it a prerequisite to be a twenty-something guido to work at the Verizon kiosk in the mall?

I went to the Auburn Mall today and stopped in my hurried tracks when I saw it:  three guidos working the Verizon kiosk.  It's been a while (maybe a year?) since I've been to the Auburn Mall, I mean, why go there when in just a short ride there's the Mecca that is the Natick Mall Collection.  There, at the Collection, ok:  the North Shore Fist Pumpers can commute in to hustle at the kiosk, but in Auburn, really? 

You can't tell me you haven't noticed all the guys in their borrowed-from-Sonic-the-Hedgehog style blowouts and chinstraps working the Verizon kiosks at the mall, whistling at you as you walk by, "Honey! What cell phone do you have?" (Umm.. a razr and it sucks, thankyouverymuch. Please tell me you did not just come from shooting 100cc's of testosterone in your buddy's ass.)

 

But this observation brings me to my other questions:  Why aren't guidos employed for T-Mobile, AT&T, or Sprint? Do they guido discriminate? Does their orange skin clash with the AT&T logo?*

*Note:  In Jersey, which may or not be a little dirtier than the North Shore (it's debatable) who works at T-Mobile, AT&T, and Sprint? It might be time for a road trip to the Palisades Mall. 

Funniest.Thing.Ever.

Thursday's are trash collection days here at LP's house.

It's now a rare occasion that I'm home at this time (9 a.m.) since I have fancied myself a new job-- however! Someone knew I must have needed a good laugh.

Setting: LP, stirring around the kitchen, barely able to function, waiting for the coffee to brew. "Hurry up and trickle down faster, I have to finish my research assignment!!¹" She hears the sound of the garbage truck finishing up it's trash collection business on her street.

Garbage men:  [Load up the family's garbage]

Garbage truck: [Starts to speed away]

Garbage man: YAAAAAAHHHHHHOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!

....what the?  I kid you not. A loud, boisterous, YAHOO came from the man on the back. Apparently picking up the trash gives you the same rush as lassoing wild hog. 

In either event, coffee's done. 

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1. Internal monologue.  It's known that I can't function before the ten o'clock hour without coffee running through my veins.  Or a good green tea.  Or even a Chai tea latte...it is Chai season now, too. 

Aside:  It was too much energy to run to the window to check them out...too bad for them, they could have potentially made the Hottie Watch! 

Time to Break out the North Face and Uggs: Fall in Worcester

It's officially my favorite time of year!¹

And, to help everyone get in the fall spirit, here's a WORCESTERistas Top 5 compilation of what to look forward to:

1. The pumpkin spice latte has made its annual arrival at Starbucks. 

2. Pumpkin Spice beer at Armsby Abbey, the hot new bar on Main Street, featuring over 100 beers on tap, an an alleged hot spot for young professionals, at least on "Friday nights."²

3. Pumpkin bagels at Bagel Time on Park Ave.

4. Apple cider from the cute farm stand on Pleasant Street, just inches into Paxton.

5.  Apple picking from any one of the neighboring towns³ -- and all the yummy desserts that go with it! 

Of course we want to know what your favorite thing is, too! Let us know! 



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1. Although I do love a good beach day, they're few and far between here in the Northeast! And I do love the many sweater options: I get cozy just thinking about a cardigan, chunky turtleneck, cable-knit crew...And, no, I won't stop wearing Uggs. I don't care if Vogue says they're "Out."

2. Review (and coordinating story) coming soon!

3. Read: cute.date.

Tom's Gourmet Marketplace

I was trying to hold off on posting. After all, who wants to cover that lovely photo!

Today I found myself in Northboro right around lunch time. Well, maybe not lunch time exactly, but I was completely ready to sneak in what could be my third lunch NOT in front of the computer in months.


I'd fallen into a habit of stopping to visit my buddy Tom for coffee/guilty pastry binges whenever I'm in the area for work. This is once or twice a week. That's a lot of German Chocolate bars.

Tom's store is located in downtown Northboro. The decor inside is very trendy and very homey at the same time. Exposed duct work (one of my personal favorite interior decorating motifs), and exposed beams (also classy) are the main interior focus, and there are several tables inside and outside of the main store. There is a wide selection of gourmet foods including oils, spreads, spices, and some other things I did not recognize. They also have a full deli, pre-made meals, bar, and coffee shop. In the basement, they host cooking classes that can be put together for fun or corporate teambuilding. The only thing missing is..oh wait. Nothing. I don't even have to BMOB.

I had grabbed a few sandwiches to go before, but today I wanted to be a little more daring. In a giant glass case, they have ~20 pre-made entrees including chicken, seafood, beef, and vegetarian options. Today's options included grilled Italian farmhouse chicken, chicken cordon blue, Jamaican ribs, shrimp marinara, and (3) kinds of lasagna. And the best part? The menu actually changes every week! Prices for the entrees hover around $6, and for around $9 you get a full meal including (2) sides. I ordered the chicken stuffed with spinach and mushrooms. I was thinking that a serving would be 1/2 of the massive chicken boobie I saw. Nope. The whole boob. They heated it all up, topped it with a little sauce, and brought it out to me on the deck. Delicious! When I came in to ask for a to go box, Tom looked at me knowingly and said "I wouldn't have known what to do if you put that whole thing down." Well put Tom, well put. I'll think of you later tonight when I DO put the rest of it down.

The website is www.tomsgourmetmarketplace.com. They have the menu, the hours, and all sorts of neat little things they sell.

Happy Labor Day from Worcesteristas!

(Although I'm not sure I should really be celebrating, being sans job and all! Oh well, a little eye candy never hurt anyone!)

Is it hot in here?

And, yes, it is ok to still wear white after Monday!

It's that time of year again...

...back to school!

Which really only means one thing around the Tatnuck area: new, fine college specimens to check out on my daily workout¹!

Things haven't been all that interesting on my three mile strut jog, now that Little League is over and the DILFs aren't out. (When does Little League start up again anyways? Answer: not soon enough.) We just get the occasional honk from the teenage admirers, the exaggerated stares from the brothers rollin' by, and, of course, the thumbs up from Wheelchair Guy who's always scootin' around Mill Street².

But, now, school's back in session (or soon will be for others!) and the eye candy will be plentiful.




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1. Some call me Mrs. Robinson. I kid, I kid. And, it's not like they're all under 21. For instance, KG and I's new favorite bartender for martinis: self-described as on the "ten year plan at Worcester State." Not overly ambitious, but good to look at, and he makes one fine Cosmo.
2. All of these: always appreciated.

Worcester Tornados

Last night, I went to a Worcester Tornados game at Hanover Insurance Field, at Holy Cross. This is one of my favorite summertime activities, as both the tickets at the beer are cheap. The stadium is pretty small and the seats are better than I would get at a Sox game, so I usually pay attention a little more. AAA Ball tends to have better action, because these guys are still gunning to make it to the big leagues and if their visas expire they turn into pumpkins (aka shipped back to Cuba). Plus, there is the added thrill of a foul ball at any time. I have an irrational fear of foul balls. And 35 year old men who still bring their baseball gloves to the game.¹

Last night's game was special in a few ways. This was the first game I've attended where the actual seats sold out. There was also a grey haired fellow who sky-dove into the outfield (don't worry, this was planned) while a woman who spoke very slowly with a mid-western accent welcomed us to Worcester Stadium, and spoke of the self-esteem boost that skydiving provided. She invited us all to try skydiving at her place of business, and also told us that women make better skydivers then men. The second skydiver was an "accuracy specialist." Both missed the GIANT X on the field.

We were seated in the bleachers, behind the Holy Cross Women's Field Hocky team. Holy Cross is interesting because while it is Division 1, I feel like none of their teams are all that good.² Or, I might just be being a snob because I went to WPI. Who knows. At least we didn't have to wear purple EVERYTHING.

As usual, we left at the seventh, as this is when they stop serving beers.



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¹I also enjoy people watching at these events. Thanks to the guy I reamed out for grabbing my ass in the beer line, the "Dippen Dots" vendor in the stands, and the numerous fanny pack wearers for adding free entertainment for the evening.

²The only sport that I have any factual basis for this conclusion is rowing, and I'll admit that secretly I was a little jealous of their purple hair ribbons. But definitely NOT their purple crocs.