Paper ballots

I probably shouldn't say anything, but the way the elections are going makes me happy. I really loved the article that Yahoo had up saying who replaced who and listing the reasons why. It was even fun to go last night because we were able to walk over to a school around the corner from our apartment. We ran into our neighbor who I invited to a dinner party we are having Saturday night. S was joking as we left that it would have gone faster if we had a big black magic marker because it took forever to fill in the lines. I feel badly because I meant to look up all of the different judges but I didn't and I didn't know who to vote for so I left it blank.

We then met up with some friends for Chinese and sitting around the table, fighting over crab rangoon, passing all the plates and drinking wine, I had a keen sense of family. Family are the people in your life who love and support you and it does not matter one bit if they aren't related by blood.

As I mentioned I went to Madison over the weekend and it had been a while since I had visited. S and I went up in February of 2005 to take a friend out to dinner at L'Etoile, which is a wonderful restaurant that uses organic, fresh seasonal ingredients. My mom and I try to go every fall antiquing (yes, a word I have made up) in Columbus, WI. This year we managed to leave early and went to the Columbus Antique Mall where I found lots of goodies, including this Herman Miller chair for 20 bucks. I found it on eBay for $125, so I think I got a good deal.



My mom is going to wrap most of my treasures and give them to me as xmas presents! We then stopped for lunch at a local diner. I love diners, but we felt kind of out of place. It is amazing how some places feel like you have stepped back into time. My mom left a $20 tip and when I asked to make sure that is what she meant to leave (our meal cost about $13) she said yes because the waitress looked like she was having a bad day. I hope my mom's kindness made her day better. After refueling ourselves we stopped by a couple of other antique stores. One we had never been in before and I can't remember the name of it, but I know where it is at because I'll definitely be going back. The bottom floor specialized in Victorian antiques, that are completely out of my price range, and truly I don't go for the Victorian stuff, but the very top floor was fashion Mecca. They had hats, gloves, purses, and the clothes, oh the clothes. Plus they had a ton of fabric. I was practically hyperventilating because there was so much old fabric. It was very hard to choose because I had a limited budget. Once I start cutting into them I will share.

I then went to visit my friend Carey and her husband Duane- hi Carey! And we went out to dinner to Sardine, which was delicious. Who knew you could fry fennel and lemon? The mussels were just right because they were succulent and tasty. We had good beer and a rousing conversation about domestic duties ;) It was great fun to see their house and visit. S came to get me on Saturday and we went to Penzeys because I needed spices. I'm sure there is a Penzey like place in the city, but it just wouldn't be the same. Then we swung by Borders because I was desperate for some coffee. I picked up the current issue of Bust and also a copy of Craft magazine which I flipped through but haven't read it yet because I would like to sit down and savor it. Then I went to visit an old friend and her husband and their little girl who is just over a year old. We went out to eat at a restaurant in Sun Prairie that is owned by the same people who own Monty's Blue Plate. It was comfort food in a diner setting and just like Monty's the food was really good. It was nice to be able to walk to the restaurant and bring their little girl with. It was really nice to catch up and play. Sunday my friend made cream cheese and strawberry stuffed croissants, which are then cooked like french toast. It was delicious. Then S and I headed home back to our messy little apartment and a lonely LK. I promise that such a long time won't pass before we go back.