It all started when Zach told me he had a roller hockey game down in WVC.  We decided to make a date of it:  we went out for some sushi and then made our way south to the rink.  I was reminiscing about my days as a youngster, going to Valley Fair Mall with my mom and aunts.  We would eat at the food court and then see a discount movie at the theater – when the mall was in it’s prime.  This was long before Gateway, by the way.  Zach expressed the desire to see it, out of pure curiosity.  I informed him it was worse [as in more ghetto] than New Gate Mall in Ogden, but he didn’t believe me.  Also, I find that people that are born and bred in Ogden always defend New Gate, like it is some precious landmark in their community.  Every time I criticize that mall he says, “But New Gate used to have a Nordstrom!” ‘Used to’ being the important part of the phrase in my argument.  We had some time to kill, so I drove him to the heart of the mall.  He  L O V E D  it.

Truth be told, it was even worse than I remembered.  Most of the popular retailers have moved out, and in their place are…no words:

By far my favorite was the Latino Bridal Store.  Where you can have a wedding dress that resembles cotton candy for a mere $600.

We also stopped inside an “ALL A BUCK” store, where everything was 50% off.  Zach purchased this gorgeous feather mask for me for a steal of a deal:  53 cents.  I wore it the remainder of our experience through the mall – and to my disbelief nobody even gave me a second look.

Along with our superb shopping experience, we also…

1]  Celebrated my boss’ departure to China with a lunch at the Red Iguana.

2]  Reached my Fuel goal [four times] with my Fuel Band.

3]  Discovered MEGA Stuf Oreos at Walmart.

4]  Watched the guys in the shop set up my completed Health Catalyst booth before the show in New Orleans.  [This is only half of it, technically.  Also, meet Rob and Yubei…two of my coworkers.

5]  Had a date at Market Street Broiler – with too much sourdough bread and clam chowder.

6]  Spent the morning with my grandfather.  We picked out paint colors for his kitchen, discussed cabinet hardware, rearranged furniture, and then had brunch at IHOP.  It wasn’t a prime meal [he took one bite of his sausage and KNEW it wasn’t pork] but we had fun discussing technology, current events, and my grandmother’s biscuit recipe.  I am making an honest effort to spend more time with my grandparents – I promised myself that after my Grandpa Orval passed away.  Besides, I can’t get enough of this sass mouth…I adore him.

7]  Zach cleaned out our entire garage – quite the feat considering how much hockey gear, snowboarding gear, and other garb we have crammed into this joint…

8]  We spent Sunday evening at the Henderson’s eating a delicious dinner and then watched the Oscars.  My favorite moment?  When my lady crush, JL, fell on her way up to accept her award.  This made me liker her even more, to be honest.

9]   The icing on the cake was eating Jeanene’s chocolate cake – Zach’s favorite dessert of all time.

I’m excited to get this upcoming week started:  my Dad finally returns home from Argentina.   We can’t wait to see pictures and stories of his adventures!