So this is love?

Ever caught yourself incessantly daydreaming about a special someone? Ever had a hard time concentrating on getting work done because someone else is running through your mind? Well then, my friend, you may be in love.

I thought I knew what it felt like to be in love, but I guess I was wrong. All these years I thought I knew it when I felt it, but I guess I was mistaken. Ever since my trip to Chicago a few weeks ago, I CANNOT stop thinking about Edwardo.

I toss and turn at night. The notion of productivity at the office has vanished.

Edwardo made me a delicious stuffed spinach pizza. And it played the lead role in the food escapades of my weekend away with friends. From the moment it arrived at my friend Christine's door, something in me changed. I took one look at it and am now blind to anything else.

Look at that! The spinach on Edwardo's pizza was crispy with hints of garlic. The cheese was gooey and ooey. The marinara sauce on top was layered with flavor and texture with Parmesan cheese melted about. And the crust. Oh, the crust. It was perfectly crispy, doughy, and buttery.

The pizza was huge. We each had one full slice plus a third of another piece for our dinner Friday night. I was impressed with the restraint shown by each of us, especially myself. But not a second too soon after returning home later that evening, not a word was spoken as we headed towards the fridge. Like robots, we opened the fridge in silence and split another piece.

The next morning, before heading out to brunch, the pizza box emerged yet again. Third of a slice for everyone.

After brunch, since it was raining, windy and cold, we headed back to the apartment and found the box of pizza waiting patiently for our arrival. Out came another piece. Then came a nap. Then out came the box again. Thirds for everyone.

Then as we gussied up for a dinner out at a trendy Mexican restaurant downtown, Christine took out the last piece of pizza and ate it. Part of me cried inside. I wanted to scream. I hadn't wanted this dream to end. But it did. It was over. Done.

And to this day, I can't stop thinking about how good that pizza was. Fresh from Edwardo's oven, it was perfection. Served cold for breakfast, it was divine. And slightly warmed up for snack time, it hit the spot. Buttressed by batch upon batch of homemade chocolate chip and Reese's peanut butter cup cookies, my final winter trip to Chicago was as good as I had imagined it would be.

Now, I think owe it to my yearning heart to host a Chicago pizza night soon at my house so that I can be reunited with my true love and share that goodness with my friends. Luckily, Edwardo's ships to locations outside of Chicago. As does Giordano's and Lou Malnati's. Maybe I will order one of each!

More to come on the rest of the Chicago wintry experience!

All I want for Christmas...

I usually don't ask for much for Christmas and tend to prefer surprises from my family members. But as the years have come and gone, so too has the creativity and the element of surprise. For my older brother Jeff and I, lists have become common place. Although my list is pretty short and unexciting--I requested a small vacuum cleaner this year--it helps save the time spent thinking up good ideas for adults who usually don't "need" much.

When I asked Jeff what he wanted for Christmas this year, he rattled off a small list of options. But, while the vagueness of his list was somewhat surprising, I was moreso surprised at his choice specificity regarding the last list item.

• Mac book accessories
• hockey accessories
• swim accessories
• marriage accessories (ear plugs, "yes dear" recording)

Marriage accessories? Yes. I shall get to work on making that recording. Anyone know where I can get a good set of ear plugs?

Christkindlmarket

According to my friend Lindsey, Germans like to combine words because they don't have enough time to add space between words.

Hence the word "Christkindlmarket." Ever heard of that before? I'll tell you about it shortly.

Next week, Lindsey and I will head out to Chicago to visit our friend Christine. The first time I visited Chitown was early December and I remember being stunned by how cold it was. Despite the weather, I'm heading back because the city is quite breath-taking around the holidays. Just how the city is an explosion of beautiful, colorful tulips in the Spring, it is bedecked with pretty white lights and festive decorations in the Winter.

Here's the weather forecast for the visit. Aside from the frigid temps, I am excited about the prospect of snow! And moreso jazzed up about the Christkindlmarket.

Designed to mimic the Christkindlesmarkt in Nuremberg, Germany, which began in 1545, the Christkindlmarket Chicago brings a German and European tradition with international flair. What that means for us? German beer! German food! German garb! Christmas on crack!

In addition to that, we have some side journeys planned to some new eating spots and some old standbys for deepdish pizza and the like. And if we don't freeze to death, I'll be sure to document my final Winter experience in Chicago.

Christmas Explosion!

Despite the many shortcomings of my current residence, it appears to be perfectly laid out for an explosion of Christmas decorations. Yes, my roommates and I decided to deck the house with all the trimmings of Christmas this evening. And, while some might think it's overkill, I find it to be quite the view.

Last year, we purchased our tree at Home Depot. You can't beat $25 for a seven-foot tree! And this year, we headed back to get another good deal. But we learned our lesson from last year. Instead of picking out the biggest, widest, and tallest tree we could get, we took into consideration the room dimensions. We passed on the rounded, pear-shaped Frasier furs and nabbed a slenderer version. Still seven-feet, but lush and fitting for the room.

While the tree almost slid off the top of my car on the drive back, it made it home safely and into the house with minimal shedding. Since our living room is quite narrow, we decided to place the tree out on our year-round porch. It's much cooler out there, too, which should help prevent it from drying out so fast. After we got home, we lit a fire in the fireplace, warmed up some water for hot chocolate with Khalua, prepared some s'mores, turned on some Christmas tunes from Pandora, and went to work!

Then with the extra lights and extra tree branches, we decorated the mantle. Then the poinsettias were added for some extra color. To finish it off, we hung some stockings and put fake snow under the reindeer sleigh candle contraption.

And then we hung a wreath from the door...

And, last, but not least. We placed a couple poinsettias around the dining room. If only we had an outdoor outlet, we could go crazy with lights on our bushes and trees. Or get a slew of blow up festive lawn ornaments. I think that's where I draw the line :-)

Here's my favorite view where you can see bits of everything. Not sure why the camera is making everything appear fuzzy, either. Not a good sign!

 And one last look at the tree through the closed porch door. I hope everyone enjoys the holiday season!

Thankful

This year's Thanksgiving didn't involve the usual pilgrimage to Williamsburg, Va. Due to an unexpected emergency room visit for my Mom, my immediate family stayed local and threw together a Thanksgiving feast on the fly.

My Aunt Eleanor has been the main chef behind every family Thanksgiving for as long as I can remember. She's perfected the meal and somehow is always able to prepare countless dishes to feed everyone all the while making it appear effortless.

Well, our rendition of the meal wasn't effortless or gourmet. And the kitchen scene unraveled into a circus the hour leading up to eating time. But, the fact that I wore sweatpants all day made everything better. And, the meal turned out to be more than "just OK."

Our appetizers, clockwise from top left: Salmon salad roll; hummus (store-bought!); Jarlsberg cheese and Horseradish cheddar; homemade caramelized onion dip.

And then for the real spread! The only things ready-made here were the chicken and the rolls.  From left, rotisserie chicken; mashed potatoes (I mixed in cream cheese, sour cream and skim milk); chicken gravy with shallots; sourdough bread stuffing; green bean casserole (a recipe from my Aunt that's from scratch); sweet potatoes with marshmallows; cranberries; 7-up salad (a family tradition); rolls.

Let's take a closer look....

And some more...

Big, hefty plate full of goodness.

And lastly some pie! The recipe was taken right off the side of the pumpkin can. Yes. And the crust is a bit lopsided, but it all tastes the same going down!

Food aside, it wasn't the same this year not being in Virginia surrounded by relatives and good cheer. And it definitely wasn't the same this year not having my Mom at the dinner table with us. But we paid many a visit to her in the hospital and learned that things are going to be A-OK! Now that's something for which I am extremely thankful.

I am also mindful of and thankful for all the blessings in life that are often taken for granted: the means to provide the food, a job, supportive friends, a wonderful extended family, and of course a great immediate family! Big thanks to my brothers for the help in putting together this meal at the last minute, and for my parents for being superbly spectacular.

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving!

Almost heaven, West Virginia

I ended up going with the West Virginia Sauce and Slaw Dawg last night at DC-3. I have a new-found respect for the state for producing such a heavenly dog. It made me wonder if the true meaning behind John Denver's "Take Me Home, Country Roads" was not about the rolling hills of West Virginia, but rather for his secret love for chili-slaw dogs.

My friend Patrick decided to go with the Bay Bridge Pretzel Dog. The pretzel bun looked delicious and the simplicity of a dog smothered in crab dip with old bay seasoning seemed to work out well. My Nathan's all-beef hot dog was covered in chili and slaw. I also added some diced raw onion, pickle relish, brown mustard and some ketchup. I think I went overboard with the condiments, though, because the dog was kind of burried in there. Either way, I'm still smiling!

Reject meat scraps? Hardly!

In my lowly world, hot dogs reign supreme. They are the king of all comfort and guilty-pleasure foods. They even trump pepperoni, which pains me to type.

Hot dogs are like a spouse or a long-time significant other. You've seen their ugly side. You've peeked behind the curtain they put up for the rest of the world and know what they're made of...sometimes it's not pretty, but you love them anyways. And no matter what they do to you and your health, you'll always welcome them with a smile. Or maybe that's just me.

But today, I've got a smile on my face already. Tonight, hot dogs are on the menu as I venture to DC-3 in Eastern Market. I hope the place is as good as it looks so I can add it to my repertoire of go-to eateries. It opened at the beginning of November and was launched by the creators of Matchbox (which has some killer sliders and pizza!) so how bad can it be?!

Check out their CRAZY-delicious menu!

Check out their AMAZING hot dog gallery!

I'm having a hard time deciding between the West Virginia Sauce and Slaw Dawg and the Bay Bridge Pretzel Dog. And I refuse to get any more work done at the office until a decision is made.

Now, maybe hot dogs are the reason some people become vegetarian. But everything deserves a second chance, right? Don't hate! Embrace your love for the hot dog!