Well-played.

Well, apart from virus outbreaks and 9/11 flashbacks, New York City is a pretty great place to be these days.

This weekend I got to spend some time with the lovely Jill, who was in town for a few days. Jill was my roommate during one of the most fun years I had at BYU, so it was excellent to see her and reminisce and play in the city. Luckily, NYC was experiencing my absolute favorite weather--sunny and warm without being too hot or humid, balmy evenings with a warm breeze--so it worked out wonderfully. Jill and her friend Scott hit up most of the tourist stuff on their own, but I (of course) opted to introduce them to some of my favorite edible delights in the city, including Crepes on Columbus, 16 Handles, and Grimaldi's.


Typical line outside Grimaldi's--it's like trying to get into a club. A club that serves delicious pizza.

After Jill left on Sunday afternoon, I met up with some friends in Central Park for a little picnic and elementary-school-throwback sporting events.

A little kickball.

New obsession: Trader Joe's Kettle Corn. And I don't even LIKE kettle corn.

Wrapping up with a round of four square.

I suppose there are worse ways to spend a weekend. Then on Monday night I went on a 9-mile run, so I'm immensely pleased with myself. The Brooklyn Half Marathon (for which I am now officially registered!) is a little over 4 weeks away, so here's hoping this lovely weather continues to cooperate with my training schedule.

And, let's be honest, my playing schedule.

Ballison.

When I was a sophomore in high school I went to visit my sister Allison at BYU. Back then we weren't all that close, mainly because when she left for college I was still in junior high. Still, we spent the weekend shopping, eating delicious food, watching Drop Dead Gorgeous, making ice cream, playing games with her friends, and laughing a whole lot. When the weekend was over, I spent a decent portion of my flight home crying because I had had such a good time and I didn't want to leave. We hadn't done anything particularly special, but that's the great thing about Allison - she makes anything fun. Whether it's watching a crappy TV movie or getting the latest Harry Potter book at midnight (and then having a sleepover) or just telling a story about dogs, Allison loves to be silly and always finds ways for people to enjoy themselves. Which is probably why we can have phone conversations that start with "I really don't have anything to say" and end almost an hour later. Today she turns 30, and I'm grateful that in the last 10 years she's become one of my best friends. Happy birthday, poopsie!

Plans.

Last weekend: Ate lunch outside in the sunshine. Took a Friday afternoon work break and discovered both the amazing gelato place downstairs (how have I worked here over a year and am just trying it now?) and the cute Italian guy who works there. Saw 17 Again with the girls and was only slightly ashamed that I loved it. Went for a lovely 7-mile run along the Hudson River. Ate taco salad. Spent Sunday evening lounging in the park, reading and enjoying this view:

This weekend: More outdoor lunch-eating. Definitely more gelato (and cute Italian guys). Helping throw a bridal shower. Spending quality time with the always-delightful Jill B., who's in town for a few days. Brooklyn pizzerias. Manhattan burger joints. Possibly some donut-flavored frozen yogurt. And the forecasted days of sunshine and 80 (!) degree weather mean that some serious park-frolicking is gonna go down. I think I speak for everyone here in the Northeast when I say, "Hello, Spring. So nice of you to join us."

What are your plans?

Basketcase.

Dear Mom,

You're now 2 for 2 on recommending books that break my heart (in a good way). Thanks a lot for making me cry on the train.

Love,
L

Joof.

Today marks the birthday of my big brother Jeff. In addition to being 28 years old, he is also a history and geography wizard, a trivia lover (seriously, he TiVos Jeopardy), and possesses a fantastically dry and quick wit. He also enjoys betting you five bucks you can't do something that he can. An important detail about the five-dollar bet is that you will invariably be able to do said task and Jeff will get mad. Once, on a long drive to Utah, he bet me that I couldn't cut a deck of cards exactly in half and I did it. I'm still waiting for my money. Anyway, Jeff also loves kids and they are obsessed with him because he riles them up and plays with them tirelessly. He is always up for new adventures (he's been bungee jumping and he ran with the bulls in Pamplona last summer) and getting people to do fun things. Happy Birthday, Jeffy boons!

Conditions are perfect.

Last night I attended my second Flight of the Conchords concert. While I don't think anything can top the amazing events of last year's show, it was an awesome night and we had a fabulous time.





My date for the night was my friend Greg. Thanks to his Halloween costume, he conveniently had a Bret sweater to wear to the show. Please note that our seats were 5th row center. Radio City is huge, and we kept joking about how we were going to have to get water bottles and take breaks for our hike all the way to the front of the venue. After the show we turned around, and the actors who play Mel's husband and Todd (from the Crazy Dogggz) were about 4 rows behind us. They are on the show, and their seats weren't even as good as ours.



Kristen Schaal opened with some stand-up, and was very weird but funny. She was rocking some sparkly gold shorts that I really want.



During the first song, Bret was playing a red toy piano, and near the end he knocked the stool it was on and it fell and broke. Jemaine started laughing and said, "I guess that's the end of the song." A crew guy ran out to replace it with another one, and Jemaine was like, "Yis, we spared no expense on the budget for tiny pianos." The keys from the first one were all over the stage, and they would periodically pick them up and throw them into the audience.



Their banter between songs was, of course, hilarious. They also had great interaction with the audience. At one point someone shouted out "Where's Murray?" and we got this exchange:

Jemaine: Murray is a fictional character. What you should have asked was something like, "Where is the actor, Rhys Darby, who portrays Murray on your show?" And the answer would be, "In Auckland, New Zealand."

Bret: Maybe you should go and find him. Go stand outside his house and yell "band meeting!" It'll be like a secret joke between you and him. Don't tell anyone else I told you.

Jemaine [after someone yelled out "Where's Dave?"]: Stop asking for the whereabouts of all the people we know! How would you like me to shout at you and be like, "Hey, where is your... niece?"

And then when some guy kept trying to yell stuff to them...

Jemaine: You can't just try to have a conversation with us when we're here on the stage. Have you ever been to a show before?

Bret: Stop shouting at us! Have you any idea how ridiculous your voice sounds? You sound like an angry muppet!



Jemaine playing a little xylophone on "If You're Into It."

Anyway, it was a great night!

EDIT: At the advice of my attorney, I have removed a hilarious video that may or may not have been recorded by someone of the redheaded persuasion at the aforementioned concert. If such a video does, in fact, exist and if a person were at all interested in viewing it, said person would be welcome to contact me and I might be able to provide that person with the means to enjoy such a hypothetical video. In theory.

Eating my feelings.

Well you guys, it's been a day. I won't bore you with the details, but among taxes and other financial drama I managed to make of myself a tightly wound ball of stress. And an unwelcome twist on 24 last night certainly didn't help matters. Since napping wasn't a possibility (my first choice when things aren't going my way), I opted to take comfort in food. I ate most of my coworker David's leftover fries at lunch, and happily accepted the sour candies that Bridget brought around in the afternoon. I had some leftover chocolate cake from Easter waiting at home, and this afternoon I announced to Brian that I was going to eat it for dinner because of my mood. "Weren't you talking about how you were going to do that anyway?" he asked.

Which was technically true. But not the point.

Thankfully, most of the stuff has been resolved. And let me tell you, I have never been so happy to discover my own mistake as when I was staring at those tax forms. Now I can relax a little and look forward to the good things on the horizon. Like the fact that I'll be in the fifth row at the Flight of the Conchords show tomorrow night at Radio City. Or the trip I just booked to visit a crazy blonde child in North Carolina for Memorial Day. Or the fabulous Disney World family vacation my parents are taking us on in August. All of which are even better than chocolate cake.

I still had it for dinner anyway.

Joel.

Man, I didn't know what I was getting myself into with all of these birthday posts. And this is only my immediate family, you guys. Ha, just kidding, I would never begrudge this guy a blog tribute:



Joel was the first outsider to join the Ostler fam, and over the last 10 years he's proved that he fits in nicely. His steady persona is the perfect compliment to my, how you say, "spirited" oldest sister. Frequently, when I call to talk to Sarah, Joel will answer and we'll end up chatting for half an hour or more before he hands over the phone. He does gorgeous work with photography and graphic design, is a worthy ping pong opponent, and is one of my favorite people to swap good music discoveries with. He also can always be counted on to roll a 7 in Settlers of Catan. Happy Birthday, Joel!

Puppies and other things.

Well, so far the beginning of April is outperforming the beginning of March by leaps and bounds. We've had our fair share of rainy days, but a smattering of lovely weather here and there gives me hope that Spring is finally coming. Last week a few work friends and I took a little break for a donut run one afternoon (and I saw Nigel Barker on the way! I tried to smile with my eyes...). Today my delightful roommate and I decided to take a walk in the sunshine across the George Washington Bridge, because who can get enough of New Jersey? On the way home we decided to walk by the pet store that's across from our apartment, as is our wont. We paused at the window and decided that this time we would actually go inside. And the puppies, oh, the puppies. They are unbelievable. The guy working there asked if we wanted to hold any, and it was all I could do not to let out a squeal right there. (I actually might have a little bit.) Melissa selected an adorable Corgi and I went for the little black puff ball that had been laying next to him, which turned out to be a Pomeranian. You guys, this puppy is my soul mate. He is so ridiculously cute, I'm obsessed. After like 15 minutes of holding them, we decided we needed to give them back and walk away before some serious dog-napping took place.

Other than that, things have been pretty uneventful. I'm loving my new apartment and my new running paths nearby. I also signed up for the company softball team, so we'll see how that goes. I was the only girl on my Little League teams back in the day so I'm pretty sure I'll be MVP in no time.

And lest I forget, the most important news of the weekend is the fact that my mom has started her own blog, thus cementing her position as cutest mom in the world. If you put her and my Pomeranian friend in the same room, the universe would probably implode.