Wednesday, February 27, 2019

Wednesday, February 27, 2019

Tonight's picture was taken in March of 2006. Mattie was attending preschool at that time and there was a tradition at school, that all the children in the classroom would exchange Valentine's day cards with each other. Certainly I could have bought cards for Mattie to scribble on, but I figured a real art project would be right up his alley. So we worked on the cards together with cutting out heart and using glue and glitter. Mattie loved creating and setting up his work station all over our dining room floor. Needless to say, I think the cards were unique and beautiful. 




Quote of the day: Each meeting occurs at the precise moment for which it was meant. Usually, when it will have the greatest impact on our lives. ~ Nadia Scrieva

We have safely arrived in Atlanta. The plane trip was fine and the day went smoothly until checking into the hotel. The conference hotel is a Sheraton. I had better hopes for it, since it is now run by Marriott. But the Marriott should be ashamed of itself. This hotel is truly old, tired and in need of an overhaul. I am stunned that anyone would select this hotel for a conference. 

It lacks eating and snacking options, the area surrounding the hotel is questionable, and overall, the rooms are hysterical. 

This nightmare is our hallway. They had a pharmaceutical career day today, and literally every room on the floor was used for interviews. Chairs lined the hallways and I have to tell you it was disorienting as you aren't expecting lines of people sitting in a hotel hallway like this. 

This is a close up of the hallway rug. I entitle it Angry Goldfish. The color is horrifically depressing and all I can think about is how dirty it looks. 

I am very sensitive to my environment, and this place set me off. If we were going to be here long, I honestly would move out of this hotel. 

Welcome to the rug in our hotel room. If you have issues with dizziness, this is NOT the place for you. Just looking at this pattern makes me crazy!

The overall theme of the room! Various shades of Brown. I happen to like the color brown, but not all over a room. 

But the icing on the cake is the bathroom. It is made for a person the size of a toddler. I went on line today, and trip advisor had a field day with this hotel, especially the bathrooms! Honestly I have seen cruise ships with larger cabin bathrooms than this.

In the middle of the hotel is an enclosed pool. But with all the wrought iron railings, I thought I was in New Orleans! 

The highlight of the day was dinner. We ate at a restaurant called Canoe. Before I left DC, I investigated restaurants and made reservations ahead of time. Food is important to me, and thankfully dinner made up for the hotel. 

We took a car ride, about 20 minutes from the hotel to an area of Atlanta called Buckhead. Apparently this is a very upscale area and literally we passed estate after estate. Our Uber driver told us that these estates are worth close to $30 million dollars. In any case, tonight was like the United Nations. Our Uber driver was from Trinidad and Tobago, our waiter was from Columbia, and our driver on the way home was from Haiti. All of whom told us their life story, all about their children, and why it was important for them to come to America. 

I love hearing people's life stories, but hearing about one child after another tonight, was a bit much to handle. 

Atlanta is in the 60's. Much warmer than DC. No coat is necessary, especially with the humidity. Humidity in February is an interesting concept. This is what Canoe, looks like in the spring. Unfortunately I did not get to see it this way, as the patio was closed and we ate inside. But the restaurant sits along the Chattahoochee River. 

We had a wonderful waiter, who was a foodie. He made recommendations to us based on our food preferences and he did a stellar job. He recommended starting with their smoked salmon and an arugula salad. They were both wonderful.  The restaurant specializes in fish and game, the chef is from Australia and apparently is known for his dishes like rabbit and venison. I stuck with trout and Peter had venison. 

The signature dessert at the restaurant is popcorn ice cream. That may not sound good, but it was delicious. They apparently soak popcorn in cream and then turn it into ice cream. It was an absolutely sinful dessert.

Back in the brown room again and hoping the first day of the conference goes well tomorrow.