It's amazing how seeing an old friend can set things straight and make you feel right again. Even though, things may not have been wrong to begin with, everything just seems a little brighter and nicer and just perfect. That's how it felt when my friend Mary came to visit me this past weekend. I think everyone should have a Mary in his or her life for real. She is one of the best.
I haven't seen Mary since my trip to Chicago last fall. Wow, that's a long time. It makes me sad to think about how little I see or talk to some of my dear old chums these days. But you know what? When I do see them it's that much better and happier.
A while ago, I found out Hanson was playing a free show at the State Fair this year. I will have you know that I am slightly obsessed with Hanson, still, after all these stupid years. Not ashamed. And my friend Mary loves them just as much, so I told her, and the plan unfolded. Needless to say, I was crazy excited for her to visit. I have a new place that I really like, and the future just looks happy and bright ya hear?
Aside from seeing Hanson, our list was fairly straightforward:
Play minigolf at the Walker Art Center
Go climbing at Vertical Endeavors
Brunch
Beach
And everything else was left up to chance.
Mary arrived and our first stop was a little place called Bun MI, which is the best Vietnamese food I've ever had. It's over near the U of M, so it's kind of a pain in the butt to get to but SO worth it. I swear, I would not lead you wrong. After chowing down, I introduced Mary to a show called Bob's Burgers, which is something we watched a lot that weekend because it was so damn hot out. We walked over to the Walker (hah!) and met up with some of Mary's college pals to play a couple rounds of minigolf. If you haven't checked out the courses yet, you should.
After minigolf, we had worked up an appetite, so we cruised over to Rudolph's on Lyndale and Franklin Ave. Now, I've never been here before, and I must say I was impressed. I always thought it was kind of a sketchy place, but the inside is really nice, and the food was great. Super classy friends. We capped the first night off with a visit to Indeed Brewery and the 1029 for some much-needed karaoke. Delaware rocked out to some Lisa Loeb "Stay." Everyone loved it. I sang Empire of the Sun "We Are the People." No one liked it.
The next day started with brunch. Duh. I've been wanting to try and make a delicious vanilla bean glaze, so we made some french bread to go with it. Everything turned out pretty delicious if I do say so myself. The glaze was a little too buttery for me tho.
You can find the recipe here.
The rest of the day was spent like a true Lazy Sunday with cartoons, climbing at Vertical Endeavors, a trip to the Warby Parker bus, a movie and a little night swim at hidden beach. Such an awesome way to end the day, I wish I had spent more time swimming this summer.
Monday was obviously the grand finale: the Minnesota State Fair. Now, I don't love the State Fair like most people do, but it still has a place in my heart. Besides, it was Mary's first trip, so we had to make it special. We spent most of the day at the fair and did a pretty good job keeping cool even though it was hot as hell. The icing on the cake was the free Hanson show that evening, and the entire reason for Mary's trip in the first place. So, we were most excited about that. But, by the end of it, we were completely exhausted. Below are some of the highlights of the trip.
By the time we got back to the car, we had spent about 11 hours at the fair. Little did we know the fun was only starting. I couldn't find my keys (surprise, surprise). Naturally, I assumed I had lost them at the fair and panic ensued. We were tired, sweaty, dirty and in need of a bathroom for many reasons. Thank god for parents, that's all I have to say. My dad was nice enough to drive me out a spare key, which didn't solve the issue of getting into my apartment.
Now for the miracle. We got in the car, and there were my keys in the cup holder. Did you just hear that? I slapped my forehead. We hugged and cried and danced then drove home and passed out.
After very little sleep, I drove Mary to the airport and we said our goodbyes until the next adventure.