I think my last blog entry (or blog post, I don’t know the lingo yet) was a lot of fun. I will do it again soon. I apologize to everyone that has been reading the blog but hasn’t had their comment returned. I will get to all six of you, I promise.

I went to Waconia last Friday to speak with Angela Hoffman and Sherry Murphy about Ridgeview Medical Center’s hospice program. I plan to turn that interview into a story at some point, when I stop blogging and daydreaming about Anderson Cooper. Angela and Sherry were wonderful interviewees and it was a joy speaking to both of them, who are very knowledgeable about hospice care.

I didn’t get lost on my way to Waconia, which would make sense seeing as it is officially my favorite place to go in Minnesota. It is like what I imagined Mackinac Island to be, when I was a kid. (That reference makes more sense if you know that I grew up in Ann Arbor, Michigan.) I had a delicious Coffee-Toffee malt at the Frost & Steam in Waconia before my interview. I had been told by my dining partner-in-crime and Waconia veteran Chelsea that Frost & Steam was such a great place to go, especially if you are ice-cream obsessed (which I definitely am, see my former tenure at Cold Stone Creamery for proof). She speaks the truth. My malt was perfect. I think it’s fair to say that I was in a malt-induced haze during the drive back to Shakopee, because around Chaska I took a wrong turn and drove through a housing development. It was a nice detour, but still, unnecessary.

I got to go shopping at Steve & Barry’s on Tuesday for a story about Sarah Jessica Parker’s new clothing line, Bitten. I am a “Sex and the City” junkie and think Sarah Jessica Parker is the bee’s knees, so I was eager to see what her collection had in store. If you want to know my impressions along with those of my role models, Lisa Steinbauer and Melissa Gilman, you should pick up Southwest Saturday or read your Let’s Go! I will include these little notes from my Bitten experience, since they were left on the cutting room floor. They’re just the laments of a fat girl, but I found them to be fairly entertaining observations, as far as clothing goes.

-“I think it does a disservice to plus-size women to assume that their bodies are just larger scale versions of non-plus-size women. It isn’t as if plus-size just means taller, plus-size often means larger bust, longer legs, wider hips, bigger arms, and so forth…”

-“I tried on a stretchy scoop neck t-shirt with stripes, and it clung to my every curve and roll, making me look like a bunch of potatoes in a party balloon. Yeah, it got everything in the shirt, but it didn’t look so hot once it was in.”

I went to St. Paul yesterday for more hospice-related research, and everyone at Allina could not have been nicer, so they deserve a shout-out. I didn’t get lost on my way there or on my way back to Shakopee. So, for the record, those of you who think I can’t do highways may just have to eat crow soon. I think it might be a few more flawless trips before I can say that for sure.

I have run into two people that I went to high school with in the past few days, and I can’t help but not feel bad for things being awkward. I always used to feel bad about how socially awkward I can be, but I have now realized that if someone else makes it awkward, then it is officially their burden. I can only do so much as one side of the conversation. Just a note for all you fellow neurotics out there.

I am going to take some pictures at the Scott County Fair on Sunday, so if you see me, come say hi! Look for those in some form of media in the near future. And if you’re a Shakopee-an (or a Shakopee-ite), pick up your newest issue of the Shakopee Valley News to see an awesome story about the Red Bulls that returned from Iraq. There are some really great photos taken by Shannon Fiecke to accompany her great story, and some mediocre photos taken by yours truly.

I’ll leave you all with a quick list of my media picks for the rest of the week;

Coldplay, “X & Y”
Janet Jackson, “The Velvet Rope”
Janet Jackson, “janet.”
John Mayer, “Continuum”
Red Hot Chili Peppers, “Blood Sugar Sex Magik”
"Real Time With Bill Maher"(get the podcasts for free on iTunes)
"Anderson Cooper 360"
rollingstone.com's National Affairs Blog
Matt Taibbi’s online-only column The Low Post
Google Maps’ Satellite Tool