Passover 2019

Some pictures from Friday, April 19th and Saturday, April 20th.

An awkwardly angled picture of the Sunday table, mid-meal.

On Thursday, there was a party for the girls. No pictures were taken.

Those in attendance know why.

They enjoyed the balloons, though.

Ansley picked out some jewelry for me and Uncle Mark.

Uncle Mark reading.

Saturday night was the girl’s first Seder.

The kids.

Noah showing Uncle Cody his Nintendo Switch. He beat me at Mario Kart.

Uncle Mark and the girls.

Charlotte and Ainsley.

New York & Toronto – Day 7 – April 9th, 2019

A couple of Toronto shots as we drove to the conference center one last time.

Sat and ate some Starbucks while Mark attended one more morning session.

The history of educational research, seen as we walked to the subway.

Some final pictures as we rode to the airport.

Once we checked in, we had dinner at the lounge.

And a drink as well.

Then, through a complicated series of events, we were bumped up to first class!

Let me show you how the other half flies.

First, they give you a water. You have to drink it like this.

I don’t make the rules.

Then you get some headphones.

And next a towel. I’m not sure what this was really for, but I took it.

“Do you want something to drink.”

Mark: “Coke Zero.”

“Ice and lemon.”

Mark: “No and no.”

Me: “I want a Coke Zero with ice and lemon.”

*Big smile*

A bag of chips.

And finally, some peanuts.

Cities are beautiful at night.

And, finally, back at RDU, where it all began.

Chow.

New York & Toronto – Day 6 – April 8th, 2019

This morning was rainy, so I took my time getting ready and had breakfast at the hotel.

They only serve medium sized iced coffee.

I won’t hold that against them.

Too much.

By 10:30 the rain had given way to beautiful skies, so I walked to the convention center.

More pictures of the CN tower.

I arrived at the convention center with about 30 minutes to spare before Mark’s session ended, so I ducked into a Starbucks. It had a nice walkway behind it.

I couldn’t make the whole thing fit into one picture.

We had lunch at Kelly’s Landing with one of Mark’s coworkers, who was also at the conference.

This light fixture hangs above the entrance.

The sat us beside the fireplace, a nice contrast to the windy Toronto streets.

I discovered that the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation is located across the street from  the convention center.

I stopped in the Penguin Shop, a small little shop at the bottom of a hotel.

The very chatty bookseller informed me that it was the only Penguin shop in the world.

I bought this book, by a Canadian author.

I got the tote bag for free.

The reverse side of the bookmark.

I met up with Mark when his session ended, and we walked through the convention center towards the subway.

Pictures from inside the convention center.

Turtle.

His Royal Highness.

The Duke of Edinburgh.

Fancy moose.

Trains.

Riding the subway.

Never my favorite thing.

We had dinner at Dirty Bird Chicken and Waffles.

The first picture is mine, the second is Mark’s. We split the fries.

The food was great, but very spicy.

It’s not soda in Toronto, it’s pop.

A nice window across the street from the restaurant.

I don’t know where it’s from, but it’s not Carolina.

Mark’s response to this poster.

The Comedy Network has played nothing but The Big Bang Theory since we arrived. If we ever move to Canada and need to bring our parents with us this is how I will convince my father.

New York & Toronto – Day 5 – April 7th, 2019

Some pictures taken around Toronto and at the Toronto Convention Center.

My first stop of the day was at !ndigo, which is Canada’s answer to Barnes and Noble.

I bought these books and a Starbucks coffee.

Louise Penny is a Canadian author.

Pro tip: You can get to the Starbucks from inside Indigo, but it is not a part of the store. If you take your unpaid books to the Starbucks counter and try to pay for everything there, the cashier will give you a surprised look and ask you to return to the store and pay for the books first.

Who knew.

After narrowly escaping Canadian prison, I met up with Mark and we ate lunch at Poutini’s House of Poutine.

Poutine, a traditional Canadian cuisine that originated in Quebec, is fries with gravy and cheese curds. The serving on the left has bacon, chives, and sour cream. The serving on the right has smoked meat.

Both were made with gluten-free gravy.

(vegan gravy was also available)

Both were delicious.

Some pictures taken at Poutini’s.

More proof that everything is in English and French.

Afterwards, we walked down the street to Flying Books, a very tiny bookstore.

Then, after a quick nap at the hotel, we walked around the nearby LGBT neighborhood.

We stopped in this LGBT bookstore.

Then had dinner at T-Swirl Crepe.

From left to right: BLT crepe, shrimp and avocado crepe, and a peanut butter, Nutella, and banana crepe.

In case you wondered what Canadian money looks like.

New York & Toronto – Day 4 – April 6th, 2019

Some pictures taken while walking around Toronto.

Playing the drums.

This was some kind of rally/protest.

I couldn’t figure out what kind.

The CN Tower.

I met this gent for lunch.

We ate at this restaurant.

Amazing food.

After lunch, I stopped at this bookstore.

And bought this book.

The reverse side of the bookmark.

We attended the NC State reception at AREA.

Some sights from the Uber as we made our way to dinner.

Dinner.

Very gluten friendly.

Seen after dinner as we made our way to the subway.

New York & Toronto – Day 3 – April 5th, 2019

Today was a day of traveling.

And it started with another hotel breakfast.

The view from LaGuardia airport.

Moving sidewalk.

My engine was running low, so I bought some Tart Fish to regulate.

And I also tried my first Cel-Ray (celery soda) and really enjoyed it.

Apparently, this has the Sambergs stunned.

Rainy weather.

No view.

But you can watch some high quality programing during the flight.

First view of Toronto.

Seen at the airport.

Also seen at the airport.

At the airport, too.

❤

More Toronto.

The view.

Union Station.

More Toronto.

Displayed at most Starbucks I’ve seen.

After checking into the hotel, we had dinner at Bangkok Garden.

It’s got a dragon in it.

It has delicious food, too.

Keep Calm and Curry On.

Blurry lights.

Everything is in English and French. So polite.

Tout est en anglais et en français. Tellement poli.

New York & Toronto – Day 2 – April 4th, 2019

Thursday started with the breakfast buffet (not pictured) at the hotel, of course. Never pass up free hotel breakfast.

Like the buffet, there were choices when it came to news programs.

Then it was off to see New York…

The Empire State building, which is hard to get in one frame.

Hey, NC, do this…

Our first real stop was at the Morgan

Where we saw a Tolkien exhibit, compiled of pieces from various museums and private collections.

Next we went here. It was fine. *Yawn*

And then had lunch here, which was amazing.

A little more sight seeing as we walked back to the hotel for a quick nap.

Bryant Park.

The New Years ball, radiant in green.

A man.

We made our way to Time Square

See, here we are!

We stopped here

And here.

We had dinner at Friedmans

which had a nice dining area

and even nicer food, which was gluten free.

A quick coffee for energy.

Then HAMILTON at the Richard Rodgers theatre!

While waiting in line, I spied this vertical parking garage

and this church of scientology.

Playbill

The stage where it happened.

Nice ceiling.

quick pic of the cast, don’t tell.

The man in blue is Aaron Burr,

Sir.

and we just happen

to be in the greatest city in the world

(WORK!)

It’s a Mario!

More Time Square

Picking out my next play 😉

and…scene.

New York & Toronto – Day 1 – April 3rd, 2019

A 3:15 Am alarm…

…automatically requires Starbucks.

Sleepy, but ready to fly.

The only book I brought.

Not the only one I’ll bring back.

A little de-icing required.

And then we’re off!

Landing at Newark Airport.

That little blob may be the Statue of Liberty

Or maybe not.

The New Jersey Turnpike

When you’re in a rental car, you make do.

Spent some time with Grandma Betty

And had lunch at the Americana.

Crossant

and a crab croque-madame.

Mark’s burger

Betty had the vegetable lasagna (not pictured).

What are you looking at?

A prize Betty won at a social event (tape player not included).

After we said goodbye, we drove to Weehawken.

The Murder House from American Horror Story?

Probably not.

…Right?

We took a walk and found this.

So we climbed it.

And visited Hamilton Park in New Jersey

Everything is legal in New Jersey!

(Accept apparently bicycling, skateboarding, littering, alcohol, ball playing, glass bottles, picnicking, and dogs).

That view.

Dinner was a pizza place in New Jersey that did gluten free.

Real, saucy, New York/New Jersey tasting pizza!

Then we ended at the Embassy Suites in Midtown, NY.

Ready for tomorrow.

Packed

Everything is packed.

I’ve double checked and triple checked.

If it’s not in the bag, it’s not meant to come with us.

Tomorrow it’s off to New Jersey to have lunch with Mark’s grandmother and check into the Air B&B.

Thursday is New York to see Hamilton, and Friday is a flight to Canada.

Saturday through Monday is exploring Toronto.

Tuesday is the flight home.

The alarm is set for 3:30 AM to catch the plane, so if you’ll excuse me…

In Which I Attended a Deliciously Nerdy Wedding

I’ve been a little behind on my blog posts lately.  Turns out this summer was more eventful than I thought.  This wedding was actually held on June 25th in my hometown.  I was honored when two of my favorite people in the world asked me to be a groomsman as they tied the knot.

I really don’t know any non-nerdy people, and they’re wedding was deliciously nerdy…in the most literal way.

Behold: white chocolate Lego bricks!

 

In addition to the edible goodness, the wedding festivities also included a Man of Hornor speech with references to Game of Thrones (and, of course, that wedding), and Funko dolls for each member of the wedding party.  The bride and groom put a lot of thought into each doll, making sure they gave each person a character they would enjoy.  I was given Sam from Halloween, which is one of the few horror movies I can stand to watch.

 

Overall, the day was a great start to what will be a story-book marriage.