Weekend begins early

My co-workers & I just got back from St. Paul after attending a great conference. We drove down Thursday afternoon & were pleased to discover our hotel was connected to the Liffey, my favorite (US) Irish bar, and that we had a gorgeous view of the Cathedral. We had dinner at W.A. Frost, a very cool restaurant in a very cool downtown neighborhood. That night after dinner we got a note in our hotel room that they were going to be starting repair work on a pipe at 2:00am. OK, big hotel, shouldn't matter. Um, that wasn't really the case. I think they were RIGHT above our heads. And the banging on the pipes was so loud that maintenance people had to should back & forth to hear one another. Then a very un-sober gentleman next door decided to pay a visit to someone who obviously wasn't there. Maximum caffiene was necessary for the second day of the conference! Saturday my friend Gina & I bought beads & materials so I can make some jewelry for the holidays. Hint: always spend time with people who have talents you admire: they will rub off on you! That night we headed to the Berrisfords for a get-together & several friends of ours were there. I am amazed that any child in their house--let alone the block--could have slept that night. The Guitar Hero my husband purchased was a hit & to say the Catch Phrase tournament was raucous would be the understatement of the year. Thanks for the fun! I know the feeling when your house looks like a tornado the next day.