Still Cold

So, I'm making progress here. I braved the snow yesterday for the first time since I arrived in Minneapolis. I had brunch plans with friends in Uptown, and when I woke up and looked out on my "porch" I could see yet another snowstorm in progress. Since the friends I was meeting up with are good friends who I hadn't seen in a while, I decided I would be a trooper and go anyway. It wasn't the best decision I've made in a while, but I did survive. I drove about 10 mph, and ended up getting lost thanks to Mapquest (fyi the folks at Mapquest don't seem to realize that CR20 is actually Hennepin Avenue). I also had a nightmare trying to find street parking during a snowstorm in a city where they don't start plowing the streets until all the snow has finished coming down (yeah - that could be sometime tomorrow). Luckily after the circling the block I found the place - a highly recommended spot called Lucia's - and they had their own parking lot which of course wasn't shoveled (apparently they don't plow those at all...even after the snow stops) but was much better than trying to park on the street. Despite all of that, I was still the first one there, a full 20 minutes late. The place itself was charming. It's been in Minneapolis a long time and the owner is very well known here apparently. As I was waiting, a girl walked in and bought $200 worth of gift certificates. Pretty impressive. The menu changes weekly too, which I would imagine could be a pain if you have something that you really like and want to have it again sometime in the future. But it also means a lot of variety. I had a french style omelette with broccoli and cheddar with a side order of bacon. While the omelette was good, it was typical of Minnesota - cooked to be very healthy - even the bacon was cooked to medium. Afterward, we went to the Northface store down the street (yes, I was really braving the snow - I actually walked somewhere) and looked for winter coats. I found a coat that I think I'm going to buy...just not at full price from the Northface store (sorry, I'm not exactly a "full price" kind of person...all about the discounts!). One of my friends had a $200 gift card from her sister so her coat ended up only costing her $80 out of pocket...very nice. After Northface, they stayed around to shop in the snow around Uptown, and I had to head back to meet up with a friend who is applying to b-school. I was about done with driving in the snow at that point (and yes, it was still coming down...and lasted well into the night). So I drove home and parked my car and had my friend pick me up (yeah, I know, I'm such a baby). We went to Caribou Coffee and I spent a good hour or so mock interviewing him and giving him feedback on his resume. Then we just hung out for a while. By the time I got back home, I was cold and exhausted. I had been invited to another ugly sweater party but I didn't have it in me to go...not in the snow. I felt bad b/c a good friend was hosting it, but there's only so much "ugly sweatering" I can do. Today, I braved the cold yet again...trooping to CVS to get some staples (I would've gone to Target but they charge for parking...see, the things that guide our purchasing decisions). I was pretty disappointed that the roads were not completely clear...it looked like no one had put in any effort to clear them and the CVS parking lot was a joke. I just created myself a spot somewhere within about 8 inches of snow. As if the snow wasn't enough, it was seriously freezing...don't ask me the temperature, I told you I don't check anymore. So that was my only venture outside for the day. I decided to spend the day doing laundry (notice how these updates tend to coincide with laundry days?) and I'm about to go cook dinner. Since I don't have much food in my apartment, it will be interesting to see what I come up with. Anyway, I'm looking forward to seeing those of you in NYC over the holidays. And for the rest of you, have a happy holiday!!! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year...KSM