Sometimes weekends are for fun, sometimes they are for work, and occasionally those two things happen to be the same thing. Such was the case last weekend when I was…

….for a graduate conference and also got to spend the weekend with some of my favorite people.

You will notice that there are no pictures on here of the actual conference, but let’s be honest – who actually wants to see me reading a paper on post-colonial identity and intertextuality in a mostly empty room? This is not to say that the paper was not deeply appreciated by the nine people who heard it, but still – not what you care about seeing on a blog.  Although I did look pretty professional and snazzy…. except for the big bandaid on my knee where I had obviously cut myself shaving and then forgot to remove the bandaid.

Rachel moved to Nashville this summer and the conference’s location near one of my absent besties was indeed an encouragement to submit a paper. When Sarah heard that I was going to Nashville she decided to come too.

When I was a freshman in college I decided to go and visit Rachel at her college. Two weeks before I went, I got a big envelope with a menu from their local ice cream shop. This meant that I spent the next two weeks planning my ice cream sundae. It also shows that Rachel is a) a planner and b) a foodie like me. I give this story as explanation for the expectations I had in coming to Nashville, expectations that were totally met, as you shall see in the photos below.Rachel works for a fancy-pants talent agency and upon seeing her office, Sarah and I collapsed despondently and moaned over how much we want to work in the private sector. (Yes, that is me reposing on the swank staff lounge settee. And yes, I am drinking a juice box, because when offered anything from the crazy stocked kitchen, I decided I wanted a juice box.)

I should also say that Rachel is an awesome tour guide, with comments like “That boutique doubles as a cat adoption center” to spice up our Nashville experience.  She also managed to swing us free tickets to the symphony because she knows people. The fact that I have a friend who “knows people” does serious good to my reputation, I’m sure.

When in Nashville, buying cowboy boots seemed like a good idea moral imperative.  I wore them, with a little black dress, to the aforementioned symphony. This too seemed like a good idea.

Nashville, we loved you. 

*Nashville just seemed like one of those words for which the caps lock key was invented.

PS: Rachel made those awesome pumpkin cinnamon rolls from this recipe, and added chocolate chips, which was another very good idea. The coffee is from Crema, and I did actually drink that whole cup — without any chocolate. I am quite proud.