the wonderful world of veena.: 42 of 52: all the little things add up.

27 October 2014

42 of 52: all the little things add up.

This was one of those weeks where there were a whole lot of little things that added up to make it a great week. Mostly it was a few great nights with awesome friends that reminded me what wonderful people I have in my life.

On Monday night Christina invited me to join her and few other friends to have dinner with her father and brother at Local on the Square. It's always fun and exciting when friends' parents come to visit, and this was no exception. Both her father and brother were delights, and we had a blast shooting the shit and stuffing our faces [that chicken and waffles is some serious stuff].

On Thursday Christina asked for my help packing in return for a free dinner. She wanted to pack for a weeklong trip to Richmond, VA, and San Diego, CA, in a carry-on, so we went through her outfits for every possible scenario and managed to pare it down enough that everything fit. And I got a free dinner out of it and a chilled out night, so it was a win-win.

My parents and I resurrected Friday lunches with a trip to Babalu, and it was delicious. We got the table-side guacamole, which was fantastic, and we also got a free plate of lamb tacos because the kitchen had made extra. My parents liked it as well, and it was nice to bring back our tradition.

I had no plans for Friday night, but around mid-afternoon I got a message from Walshie asking if I wanted her extra ticket for the final Grizz preseason basketball game, and obviously I said yes. We got there just as the game was getting underway, and we were joined just after the 1st quarter by Bev, Dan, Chrystal, Meg, and Jane. After the game ended we decided to head over to Hard Rock's new location on Beale St to check it out. We enjoyed some hooch [delicious!] and some live music before venturing upstairs and outside onto the rooftop dance floor. It was a blast dancing in the fresh air, and since it wasn't crowded, we had lots of space to enjoy ourselves. Following a quick run to Silky's and a pit stop at Krystal [because Chrystal had never before been to Krystal], I dropped everyone home and was back in the dirty 'Dova by 12.30. Awesome night all around.

[feels good to be back in this place again. can't wait for the regular season to start this week!]

[loving the stage and dance floor inside the new hard rock]

[the view from our rooftop dance party]

On Saturday morning a group of us made our way to Collierville for the Mid-South Race for the Cure; we had decided kind of last-minute to participate in celebration of a friend of ours who just began treatment for Stage 2 breast cancer. We walked for a bit, but it was way too crowded, so we split off a little ways into the race and camped out by the finish line to cheer on others who were finishing before heading to brunch at Russo's.

Saturday night found us convening at Side Street Grill to celebrate Chrystal's birthday. I had never been before, and I really liked the place, and we had a great group together for the festivities. Dinner was a blast, the cupcakes Meg made were delicious, and to wrap up the night Walshie and I headed back to Jane's house to chill for a while before going home.

[birthday cupcakes courtesy of meg]

I made beef stew for our Sunday afternoon lunch, after which Walshie and I made our way downtown for the River Arts Fest on South Main. We wandered through the booths, got some soda, and listened to DeltaCappella sing a few songs before picking up Mulan and watching football on her couch.

[i don't know which i want more, the print or all of the books in it. probably both]

[pop-up shop for the new soda shop opening on south main]

[amtrak's central station on south main]

[hey! i know these guys!]

[loving this building on south main. i want to be friends with whomever lives there]

[gorgeous sunset on my way home]

other highlights included: a long but fun day with the Carlson boys; cleaned out the corner in my room in preparation for a new bookshelf and made some nostalgic discoveries [hello, Christopher Pike books from middle school]; easing my way back into the running groove.