Work Remotely

One of the things I most coveted in finding a job was the ability to work from home. As most northerners know, this snow is no joke and I remember the frustration I felt when I experienced my first winter. I would try fruitlessly to dig my car out of the snow. Living in an apartment building, the plows lovingly piled the snow up against the cars making it impossible to move if you didn't have a shovel. When I was finally able to move my car, the first thing I did was buy a shovel and keep it in my trunk.

On those morning when my car was snowed in and had no idea of moving, I would spent the rest of the day pouting as I couldn't get to work and 'earn money' while Kunal was busy working away. Major downside of having a lab job, let me tell you. After that winter, I made every effort possible to get to work, even if the weather was absolute crap. I hated letting the weather affect my job.

With my new job, I get a handy dandy laptop to carry around which lets me work from anywhere I want. This has been SO awesome since this winter is particularly nasty. I don't think I've gone to the office for a full week since my first week here! It snows weekly and when it's still snowing in the morning and throughout the day, getting to work is tough. I"m so thankful that I can log on from home and still get things completed on time.

I planned a trip to Chicago for a week since I thought I was going to be unemployed after the holidays. My manager was extremely flexible and let me work remotely so I didn't have to take a week off unnecessarily. As much as I can't stand the snow, I will miss working from home. It felt so productive because I can do so much while I work. Working 8 hours straight is difficult and breaks are necessary so you stay alert. Instead of getting tea or water, I can go put in a load of laundry or vacuum when I need a quick break from work. And since I don't have to worry about traffic, I can work later than usual since I'm already home. And I mean, when you're snowed in alone, what else is there to do other than work? It's a win-win all around in my book!

Hawaii is for Honeymooners

I wanted to backtrack and talk about our trip to Hawaii. We went in November and it was amazing. We were extra spontaneous and decided to change our tickets and fly out a day early! We literally jumped out of bed, threw clothes in our suitcase and drove to the airport. Thanks to the many, many miles Kunal has flown, we booked our first-class tickets (is there any other way for honeymooners to travel) on miles and we were able to enjoy the perks of traveling in style.

Being on East Coast time, we woke up way too early the next morning. We decided to go on a early morning hike up Diamond Head. It was a bit tiring but the views were absolutely amazing and worth the trek. Below is a view of Waikiki Beach from the top of Diamond Head. We also went to the zoo, it was just a typical zoo. I feel that I've been to better ones before.

We went out for a fancy dinner where the food was AMAZING. Top of Waikiki is similar to some the Marriott hotel restaurants that revolve ever so slightly so you get 360 views of the city.

We also took a booze cruise which was super fun but slightly exhausting. Being in the hot sun and drinking on a boat was the perfect recipe for called it an early night that evening.

One of the coolest things we did was underwater scuba scoots. We went out to Hanauma Bay and we rode this scooters with a scuba helmet on top in the water. We saw turtle and so many fish. For those who know my fear of putting my head under water; it was a bit of a ordeal but once I was calm, it was a very cool experience. 

We wanted to experience a Luau so after much research, we picked Germaine's Luau to attend. It was lots of fun but a bit tiring. Dinner was amazing and definitely induced a food coma which made watching the show a bit tiring and long. 

We always wanted to ride around Hawaii in a red mustang and I'm happy to say that it can be crossed off our bucket list! We drove literally all over the island and had a blast with the top down. 

We always enjoy local breweries and wineries so we decided to check out Kona Brewing Company. The actually brewery isn't on Oahu but one of their amazing restaurants is there and both the beer and the food were great. If you ever make it out that way, get the roasted garlic and bread. One of my favorite dishes.

Who doesn't love pineapples and we knew we had to go to the Dole Plantation. While I wouldn't recommend  the gardens, the train ride and the pineapple maze were educational and entertaining. I clearly do not have a good sense of direction so Kunal was in charge of leading us through a giant maze in the shape of a pineapple. It was really fun even though it was super hot. Below is a picture of the Dole Whip that is very very tasty.

Our last stop was Pearl Harbor. I really regret not doing this earlier in the week because we got there too late to actually make it to see the Arizona. It was very peaceful serene memorial and I'm glad we went even though it was late in the late. 

I'm Back!

For doing so well the first year I had this blog, I have severely slacked this past year. I am going to try to make at least one entry a month to get back on track. I'll try to back post so I can talk about my travels. To sum up the rest of my 2013, it was fun and flew by rather quickly. We had many weddings and trips to keep ourselves busy. We celebrated many engagements and weddings of our nearest and dearest and were so thrilled that we could be a part of such a special moment in their lives.

Our summer was relatively low key with just a few weekend trips here and there as Kunal was working from home. He started traveling again late summer but unfortunately, I couldn't make any trips out to California. His new project takes him to Chicago and started around Labor Day. I've visited twice so far and hoping to make it out once more before his project ends.

I started a Master's program for Regulatory Affairs for Drugs, Biologics, and Medical Devices in the fall. It is an online program through Northeastern University in Boston. It takes up a good chunk of my free time but I am really enjoying it and hope it will open up the right doors for me career wise.

Speaking of career, I no longer 'playing with makeup' as of January. It was a bittersweet three years at L'Oreal but I am glad for the change. I currently work at Johnson & Johnson and I'm very excited for my new role. It gives me insight on the RA world and challenges me daily which I love. I'm glad to say that I am one step closer to having a "grown up" job since I get a company laptop and I'm able to work from home every now and then. This has been a lifesaver with this awful weather we've been having. Snow, sleet, freezing rain, you name it, it's hit us.

Juggling my busy work schedule, online classes, the house, and trying to make time for friends is proving to be a little difficult. I'm start combining socializing with another aspect, such as now I get to see one of my friends on a regular basis because we work out together. It's nice to have someone to huff and puff with and to be held accountable since it will prevent us from succumbing to our willpower and not working out.

The Wedding!

After years of being together, we finally tied the knot on March 30, 2013. It was one of the best weekends ever and I loved basically every minute of it. I think that my family along with myself did an incredible job planning the weekend of celebrations which resulted in everyone having a wonderful time and talking about for months and months. Considering I'm posting this almost 5 months later and my aunt and uncle were still raving about how much fun they had, I'd say it was a huge success!

I came home the Saturday before the wedding. Since my sister was also home, it was nice to get family time before all the family came to town. We had appointments to finalize details, itineraries to sort and of course, get pampered, etc so there was lots to do each other. Wednesday officially kicked off festivities as I got my mendhi done. It was a super long process and so glad I don't have to sit there for 8 hours ever again. Thursday, we had mendhi night at my house and it was a fun party and great way to hang out with family and get even more excited for the remaining events. Highlights from this included my Dad's amazing pav bhaji which every loved and ran out quickly.

 

Friday morning was my pithi, grah shanti, vidhi. I can't believe how super traditional I looked in my sari. It was a fun time and luckily my family is quite nice and didn't turn me into a jaundiced looking bride (unlike Kunal's side where he resembled Homer Simpson by the end of it).

After the vidhi, it was all about hanging out as we waited for Kunal's family to arrived to the hotel. Once the bus arrived, it was party time! I found a fun idea on Pinterest and proceeded to make a beer cake with the help of a friend.

We had garba-raas that evening to kick off the weekend now that everyone was in one place.

 

Saturday was the big day! It didn't start as smoothly as I would have wanted due to the fact that I woke up when my hair stylist was knocking on my door! Eeks!!! But luckily everything went pretty smoothly after that. My amazing foi dressed me and make sure I looked as fabulous as possible.

 

 

After the ceremony was over, we celebrated in the hotel bar until it was time for us to get ready for the reception. 

 

After taking pictures with our families and bridal party it was time to party!! After the reception  it was the after party in the presidential suite. Such an amazing ending to the day. 

 

On Sunday, I was going to go back to Myrtle Beach with Kunal's family. After many late nights, early mornings, and continuous partying, we were exhausted and a three hour bus ride was just what we needed. 

Once we arrived, it was time for 'new bride' traditions such as smashing clay pots, putting hand prints on the wall, tipping over a pot of rice, leaving red footsteps as I first enter the house. 

 

This was followed by playing games..I won, therefore, proving what I knew all along. I will rule. Haha

All in all, I couldn't have asked for a better weekend to celebrate. It was so fun yet went by so quickly. I'm glad I can relive it through pictures and video though =)

 

Napa Valley

It has been quite some time since I last posted. A lot has happened since the end of February. This post will be all about my fun trip to Napa!

Since Kunal has been in California for work, it has given me a great excuse to fly there! I love wine so of course I had to go to Napa Valley. This trip coincided with my birthday week so it was a wonderful treat. We went to 7 wineries and 3 restaurants to really make this trip worth it since we weren't sure when we'd be coming back. I'll highlight my favorites (aka the place where we bought bottles). As usual, I flew in Thursday evening so I can rest for my intense wine-filled weekend. Friday was spent hanging out with my cousin and nieces in Golden Gate Park. It was fun excursion even thought the weather was a bit cool.

Saturday we left my uncle's place bright and early for our drive up to Napa. We had a packed schedule as we wanted to make the most of our time there. The first stop at was Ehler's Estate which was recommended by my cousin and it definitely topped our list of favorites. We ended up buying 3 bottles because we loved the wine so much.

After 2 wine tastings, it was definitely time to eat! What place could be better for lunch than Gott's Roadside which is knows for their burgers, fries and shakes. It was just what we needed to ensure we can continue with the wine tastings for the rest of the afternoon. The second highlight winery of the day was Duckhorn which specializes in Merlot. It was a wonderful day so it was nice to have our tasting on the patio with my favorite accompaniment, a cheese plate!

We went to a couple other places but nothing was amazing so what's the point in writing about them? For dinner we went to a place in downtown Napa called Celadon that was also recommended to us. It was extremely delicious as everything else we had in Napa was. Let's just say the wine tastings from the day had definitely caught up to me by that point!

Sunday was our last day and we were determined to make it worthwhile. If you know us, you know we enjoy being lazy and lounging around while on vacation. Instead of the usual hotel breakfast, we went to another place that was recommended to us called Oxbow Public Market that is full of local places. We had amazing crepes and fun cupcakes.

After a hearty breakfast we were ready to tackle the wineries! We had seen a sign for a small winery called Ballentine Vineyards and Kunal decided we had to stop since it reminded him of the neighborhood he used to live in while in Charlotte. The wine was good, very light so we decided to purchase a bottle. We of course had to stop by Chandon because who doesn't love bubbly? They were having St. Patrick's Day festivities and we had some green champagne. Reminded me of that whole colored ketchup phase in the 90s but at least it tasted delicious. We walked away with 2 bottles and 4 souvenir glasses.

We decided to end our stay in Napa at Silverado Vineyards because it's up on a mountain. It was great to enjoy wine on the patio and looking at the beautiful scenery.

We drove back to San Francisco and had dinner locally at Straits which served phenomenal Singaporean food. What a great trip it was, though whirlwind at times. Wonderful end to my birthday and great way to start off celebrations leading up to our wedding a couple of weeks after!

Realty..

Today I booked a plane ticket. I didn't consult my bank account. I didn't bother to look at the balance on my credit cards. I just booked a ticket. That really made me think about my life. All my life, I have always been concerned with money, having enough, saving enough, earning enough. And today  I realized that I am so blessed to no longer have to constantly worry about money.
I have the ability to buy obscenely expensive shoes, book flights on a whim and still come home to a house that I own...all at the young age of 25.

Way to have life put into perspective...  

The Best Place to Ride out a Blizzard

This last Friday, Winterstorm Nemo paid the Northeast a visit. Lucky for me I had planned a trip to sunny Myrtle Beach for that same weekend. I was a little worried that my flight would be canceled. Luckily I made it out of NJ with only a little delay. I was going to Myrtle Beach without Kunal since he books his tickets pretty far in advance. But thanks to Nemo, Kunal was able to rebook his flight to come to Myrtle Beach.

We both arrived around the same time which was nice. We got some drinks while we waited for his mom to pick us up. Considering I only had a fruit and yogurt parfait in EWR, the mimosa and double tequila at MYR wasn't the best idea but oh well. Of course, we stopped by Bojangle's on the way to the beach. I haven't had Bojangles since November so it was the perfect first meal, especially after the drinking!

Saturday, my parents came down to visit. I'm glad they did because while my dad came up to NJ over the holidays, I hadn't seen my mom since Thanksgiving. We went over things for the wedding, which was the main purpose for this trip. We got the guys fitted for the reception since they are all wearing tuxedos, and then the girls hit the mall. While I had no luck finding anything, Rochani found a super cute pair of heels. We had a family dinner and then the "kids" went bowling. I was really good 2 weeks ago when I finally broke 100 and got a score of 126..I suppose this make me too cocky and I really sucked that night. Guess that's that happens when you don't bowl regularly.

Sunday was the day of departures. Kunal and I had afternoon flights and my parents were leaving to drive back to Raleigh. Kunal and I both had a layover in Charlotte but because of our flight times, we wouldn't be able to see one another. But my flight to EWR was delayed so I was able to see him again and bring him some Bojangle's before we had to part ways again. =)