This is Little. I have not seen Little since Thanksgiving, but was able to spend the weekend in New York City with he and Stephen. When we opened the door to the good ol' apartment, both Caitlin and I stopped in our tracks when we saw how much weight Little had lost. He is down about 20+ pounds and is workin' it. I guess he got tired of the chunks and has been using the Wii Fit and dieting to make dreams happen.I have many pictures to come from NYC...but I have my first class of the term in a few minutes (database marketing analytics - you know you are jealous), so the NY posts are going to have to wait until tomorrow. Don't expect Caitlin and I to be skinny though...we ate like pigs the entire weekend.
Pork balls and beef balls. We also had shrimp balls, but they are not pictured.
Caitlin was the master at doing the fan fold which we had designated for the beef dumplings.
Patrick's cat, Sterling, (separated by commas because he has two cats) was all depressed because we wouldn't let his kitty paws get involved. He watched angrily from the sidelines. 
Patrick's mom was the master of the dumpling boiling, as seen pictured above. While she had to admit that a few of our dumplings had not been sealed appropriately (flowing meet balls in water), the majority turned out fantastique!
Look how much fun they're having! Please note that diet orange soda was the popular drink of the evening and the Griffiths family strongly suggests you give it a chance (particularly Diet Sunkist).
Seriously, they turned out awesome. I fully enjoyed every morsel. I think pork was my favorite. 
Then we hit Guitar Hero World Tour with fierceness. Patrick was able to beat a few songs on Expert with the drums. The parentals did what parentals do best when they watch their adult children act so serious over video games. They laughed. Hard.
Yeah, we performed Parabola by tool. I would venture to say that that song might be one of the least performed songs on the set, but probably my favorite song. There's a good chance Alex's laughter is one of mockery at me, not enjoyment. I can't verify that.
Central has massive amounts of cuteness within a 3 block radius - some of that cuteness involved us.
Caitlin poses in front of the Spice House where we spent much of our time trying spices and imagining delicious foods that could be cooked with each one.
Caitlin was really excited about anise seeds, but I wasn't....at least until she explained that anise is not pronounced "anus".
We tried at least 20-30 different spices before deciding on Sweet Maple Ginger and Bridgeport. Both will rock our meats and veggies.
I think everyone was expecting a huge barge to die the river green...but no, it was this little guy.
The little boat was up to the task though and the green started quick.
When I said the whole city, I meant the whole city. This town loves Saint Patrick's Day with a fierceness. 
And the river turns green. Real green. The first time I saw it, I couldn't help but go back to Secret of the Ooze. It was like someone urinated green hi-lighter into the water. I have to say, it is pretty awesome and lasts for hours.
Caitlin, Heather, and Jenna - three young ladies and a microphone. Okay, no microphone.
Oh - and last but not least - my boy DAVIS!!! You da man little guy! Puttin' up with three chicks all morning until Chris and I could come rescue you. 
One important part of the celebration is freak watching. While these guys are no where near the extremes, they were the approachable ones.
Then the city headed over to the parade. This is the part where I showed up. I'll be honest, I didn't even go over to the parade (20 feet away from where I was). I kind of hate parades that don't throw out candy, plus everyone said this one was lame. So instead, we walked around and found a place to eat.
I got to see the river for myself.
The Tribune building downtown has a piece of Idaho on it - from Craters of the Moon! We had to represent. 
Scott and I had both had Gino's East 
While we took in the goodness, Caitlin and i snapped the classic requisite photos. Everyone agreed that the pizza was wildly delicious. Both Caitlin and I agreed that we like Giordano's a little bit better. While the corn crust at Gino's is very good and the cheese is probably the best of the two, Gino's was very saucy and sometimes overly so. Plus, you can't deny the garlicky goodness that is Giordano's crust. Next on our list is Carmen's. Any other suggestions?
As Caitlin and I walked back to the El train, we walked past the ridiculously huge McDonalds downtown. When we saw that they were selling Shamrockin' Shakes for St. Patrick's Day, I couldn't help but join the crowds and point in amazement.
It was shamrockalicious. Please note that Caitlin was also a partaker in this shake. Thank you McDonalds.
But that isn't the point. So, this slide is from one of the worst taught classes I have ever had in my life (this includes down to elementary school). I am studying for a ridiculous final right now and this is an example of the 700 hundred slides we have to read. Just look at the graphic and the notes and try and make a connection. Just try.
1) The Presets concert in April. I love the Presets, particularly their most recent album. I can only imagine that this concert will require much booty shaking and fun. Australian + Techno = fantastic.
After Brady left, we went to LAS VEGAS! Okay, we didn't. We actually went to listen to a time share presentation in order to get a free flight and cruise in the Caribbean. I know, I know...they are all a scam. But look where you can go with your time share:
Hawaii - I'm in ecstasy!
Even Australia! Okay, they don't have time shares there...but they had a poster of it. We were able to escape their greedy claws in only 1 1/2 hours and walked away with our trip. Now we just have to go through the 20 hoops to claim our prize. Where most people give up and stop trying, we will succeed and claim the prize! Just you wait.
For dinner we went to Flat Top. Flat Top is like a Mongolian BBQ - but with more sauces, more meats, and more choices. Also - it is BUFFET!
This was my first plate - I included peanut sauce and coconut curry together to create a masterful concoction of joy!
The crew joined us for the goodness. Don't worry - Jason wasn't rockin' stag. Lauren was there, but did not jump into frame when requested. Its cool though, Jason can rock it portrait style when necessary. 
