Top 10 Pics, Part II

… since I had a really hard time picking only 10, and knowing I’m in charge of my blog, I decided to pick ten more.

Themes I have noticed:

- I’ve only picked one image with a person in it (and even that one is sort of stealth). This was not entirely accidental, as I did think about trying to keep anyone from having feelings hurt. I love you all equally.

- I like sunsets (and sunrises were I awake at that time regularly). Does anyone not like them?

- They’re geographically diverse, which reflects my affinity for travel, and to some degree, my professional career as well. 

Generally, I enjoy taking pictures of places, architecture, & nature the most. Not to imply anything about people, but there’s something about the “grandeur of nature”, let’s say. 

The iconic drinking fountain at Jarling's Custard Cup, Champaign, IL

Gleam Art Festival, Madison, WI

6" Banana Slug somewhere in Northern CA (they named a college mascot after these!)

Sunset at Carmel-by-the-Sea, Carmel, CA

Sunset at Excelsior Commons Beach, Excelsior, MN

I-80 Truck Stop, somewhere in east Iowa

Manai Gastronomia stairwell, Sao Paolo, Brazil (this was a tasty lunch!)

UCI World Cup Track Event, London, UK (this was awesome!)

The Well at Winter, south of Minneapolis, MN

State Capitol building at night, Madison, WI

Top 10 Pics, Part I

If I may be so bold, below is a "retrospective" of my Top 10 favorite pics. I've listed the place and event, where able, with each image... though some hopefully speak for themselves. And with at least one caveat, for me to include it here I had to take the pic myself. I didn't grab someone else's amazing photo, and I have received many over the years. This goes back to about 2014/2015.

Let's see if a theme emerges…             

                     

Water Tower at night, Chicago, IL

Golden Gate Bridge from a catamaran below, San Francisco, CA

Garden of the Gods National Park, Colorado Springs, CO

"SkyFlyer" Ride at the MN State Fair, St. Paul, MN

(Pretty sure)... Apostle Island Chain, Madeline Island Sunset, La Pointe, WI

A dry summer ride somewhere in MN ( I miss riding pretty bad)

Puerto Vallarta Boardwalk, Puerto Vallarta, MX

Sunrise over the pasture, prit' near Waterloo, WI

Puerto Vallarta sunset

The newly wed couple, Manitowish Waters, WI

Summer Burnouts, way west of Minneapolis, MN

Themes? I'm def noticing these are some pretty picturesque places in North America. And, I'm noticing I got through 10 images really fast. I'm going to post another 10 choices soon... stay tuned.

Grampa’s Pizzeria, Madison, WI

Despite the somewhat confounding spelling of the word I would presume to be “grandpa”, the pizzas this place is pulling out of their oven are not confusing at all, in fact, it’s crystal clear they’re delicious. On a recent Saturday evening, I spent a lovely couple of hours on their patio enjoying not one, but four of their popular Neapolitan-style preset pizza options. 

We chose to get two pizzas and 1/2 a preset on each  so, 4 x 0.5 = 2. Get it? You may not, but my stomach did. We went with these four - Brassacre (cute name), Carbeniri, Peperoni and classic Cheese. 

Cracker like and slightly charred crust, excellent toppings with some kick (where appropriate), and great cheese - I mean, I'm in Wisconsin after all. I do like a box-cut (yes, that's what that's called) on a thin crust pizza, which makes it easier to fold pieces over on each other and make a little sandwich.

Fair to say, I thought the pizzas were really good, and we even saved a little room for dessert. Hard to pass up Chocolate Mousse…  

It looked really thick, heavy, and rich, but it was light, almost fluffy, chilled and perfect after the pizza.

Service, which is always a bit of a pain in a college town, was excellent. Our waitress, Amy, helped us the whole night, even when I pestered her about free sugar cookies I spied on the kitchen pass through when I put in my name. They came with the check (and I took that and the leftovers home - bam!).

I would like to go back almost as soon as I can. Don’t miss it if you find yourself in the neighborhood. 

Memorial Day 2021, Glenview, IL

I'm not saying my hometown is the best hometown in the US of A, but on this day of remembering I wanted highlight something pretty unique I found in the city of Glenview, Illinois. I will say, I've not seen this anywhere else in the US (and I’ve lived in four states), but let me know if you have.

Here a war memorial in downtown Glenview. But they also have this unique addition just around the corner from this… keep scrolling… 

…well, it looks pretty patriotic from the outset, what could it be?!?!?

…  An American flag recycling drop box!!! How cool is this?!

I don’t think I’d ever given this idea much thought, that of providing a safe place to dispose of old flags (you know the disposal requirements are pretty intense, right?). This seems like a great way to help Joe Bagadounts get rid of worn out flags without having to get your own grill in the backyard set-up as a flag-burning receptacle. 

Nice job, Glenview.

The Garage Food Hall, Indianapolis, IN

It seems like many cities have virtually always had these markets or food halls, with the latter option now becoming more popular. I recall grabbing a cheese steak in Philly's marketplace decades ago. Many large cities in other countries have something like this as well. Well, now Indy has stepped-up to the plate and created their own.

To be clear, I don't think you should be visiting Indy without a stop to this new, refurbished former production space. The food hall is in the former "garage" for a historic Coca-Cola bottling plant. From what I gathered being there, this was the spot in Indy where Coke was bottled and delivered by trucks to the entire metro area for a long, long time. I can imagine back in the day that this was a very busy, bustling plant and area. It's now been renovated inside and out as a mixed-use development. In a ~2-3 block area, it already contains this food hall, a hotel, a day spa, retail shops, a really cool duckpin bowling alley/bar, a very nice new movie theater and more. It also has a second phase for residential development in the works. This is going to be one hip, happening spot in no time (if not already).

Since it has this Coke history behind it, that's what I focused on for this post. In reality, there are so many food options that I wouldn't have been able to to them all justice with only my single stomach to partake. Know that it seemed like anyone in your clan would be covered for food options at this place, including: raw oyster bar, Indian, lobster/seafood, tacos, arepas, fish & chips, pizza/Italian, burgers, plenty of beer/alcohol options, and many more food types and spots I'm sure I'm forgetting. It also seems like more are opening everyday.

Many of the art deco buildings are faced with a wonderfully rich, glazed-white terra cotta tiling, with gilded lettering that makes it almost feel like you're stepping back in time. That's a nice way to invite people in and welcome them to a new space. You can read more about it HERE.

Inside the Food Hall, you find relics of the bottling history of the buildings. You can see pumps, historic workwear, Coca-Cola memorabilia, and more. It was all very fun to run into these things as I wandered around trying to pick my perfect food spot for the day. You certainly get the feel for the history that this area and these buildings contain. Many of us know think of soda/pop as a bad thing, but back then, this was a highly in-demand product and many workers would have been very proud to work there and represent this brand in the community. For me, I can feel that as I walked through the spaces.

This is one quote that stuck with me from my short research - "Over the years, the Massachusetts Avenue plant grew into the world's largest bottling plant, with 260 workers who produced 2.25 million bottles of Coca-Cola a week, he said. It thrived until cans took over the market in the 1960s."

I wonder if these was breathable on a hot day, {gulp}... just grab a cold Coke!

This is their first automated bottle "capper". A person would use this machine to cap the bottles.

See the little red Coke bottlecaps?

I already know that I need to go back - for more history lessons and more food options. Again, I don't think this place should be missed if you're in Indy.

Scratchboard Kitchen, Arlington Heights, IL

Who doesn't love a good brunch - Am I right?! 

Coming out (knock on wood) of the pandemic, this was a unique dining experience, especially since we're all sort of relearning how to dine out over again. I think this also applies to the people working in all the restaurants too.

While we did eat indoors, but I've not gotten used to standing in the restaurant and taking pictures of the space and staff. Hopefully that comes back soon. The space is quite long and welcoming inside, with a number of tables set for outdoor dining (and reservations). As you'll see below, I simply took pics of our dishes as they arrived on our table, and before we dove into them.

I went with a sibling and we split a few plates of food, which were in order - pastry board, citrus toast, and short ribs "hash".

This pastry board was the only "off" item of the trio. We cut them up to share and started with the matcha muffin, then the rhubarb scone, then then the cherry "pop tart". The muffin and scone hit us funny and we realized they both had some sort of pork fat flavor in them (like your nose was over a pot of sausage gravy simmering on the stove). This was not a welcome flavor and we chatted with the staff about it. They assured us the pastries are not made with pork fat in any way. Our only guess what that is was near something else being made or rendered and they absorbed the flavor. BUT, the upscale pop tart was very very good and had no off flavors. (Note: SK took this menu item off our bill - thanks). 

After the pastries, I went for the Citrus Toast and my sib went to the short ribs. I think it's fair to say that neither of us quite knew what a citrus toast would be... and perhaps at first glance it looks kind of odd, but it was delicious. They use four different citrus fruits on top, with a mascarpone base. The flavors are vibrant, refreshing and not odd at all. Even the toast used seemed to add something to the dish. I would order this again any day.

Our final dish was a Short Rib hash. The egg was done well, the short rib fell apart, and they added in some potatoes too. Though very rich, as you'd expect from the ingredients, this was a tasty bit of brunch fare. I would order this one again, but copy my sister's choice of having this 2nd and "cleansing the palate" with the citrus toast after.

With a welcoming staff, highly-competent kitchen, interesting menu items, and a fun, inviting space, I think it's fair to say I would recommend this place to any group, family, or couple. If I get the chance before the next move, I will be back in a blink.

Color Me Mine, Glenview, IL

Well, with the new reality that this year has brought, we have all had to find creative ways to see others and celebrate the holidays. Now, I happen to live above a local Color Me Mine ("CMM”) location in Glenview IL. 

What?! You don't know what CMM is? Well, it's a place for anyone to come and make a ceramic craft. Essentially, you choose your ceramic piece, pick your paint colors, paint the item, then hand it back for glazing & firing. Once it's all completed, you have a one-of-a-kind decorative (e.g. tea candle holder) or practical (e.g. stovetop spoon rest) item for your home or to give as a gift (think of your child giving grandma a cherish, hand-painted serving platter). 

I'd passed this location many times on foot in the previous months and noticed how many different holiday ceramic pieces they now had to choose from, as well as the fact that they were still open for painting in the store, and that they had designed to-go kits for painting the items at home. To get some holiday cheer going, on a small scale, and as a way to gift a sibling a present and an experience, I thought a sister and I could make a night of it. We decided to get together in early December for painting, pizza and beer on a cold rainy night. (Note - gotta love that $10 Costco pizza to-go!)

I picked out and paid for our pieces and to-go kits in advance, then went to collect them at lunchtime on our crafting day. Everything worked out well. And the to-go kits were pretty legit - your ceramic piece, paintbrushes (to keep) and up to six paint colors were all pre-packaged and ready to go (see below). Plus, all the paper it's all wrapped in can be laid out to cover and protect your painting space at home. Tip: save all this paper to wrap your dried pieces back up and safely transport to the store for the finishing process.

We laid everything out that night and got to work on our pieces. A tea candle holder Christmas Tree for me, and a tea candle holder Gingerbread House for my sister. We found it quite easy, enjoyable and relaxing. Like how coloring books for adults are all the rage. We spent about 45 minutes giving our items up to three coats - do follow the CMM Tip sheet included with the to-go kit. Then we had our pizza and liquid cheer. 

The items do dry to a rather dull color and sheen, but that's why you take it back for their finishing steps...

The next day, I hot-tailed it back down to the CMM location and turned over our items for glazing & firing - and yes, this is included in the price of the ceramic you choose. I will note though, because the to-go kit brushes are yours to keep, there is a $12 charge for the brushes and paints for each piece you choose. I thought this was a reasonable expense, and they give you a LOT of paint too.

Around the holidays, you will wait up to ~5 days to get your items back from CMM's finishing process, but I have to say, it's worth the wait. I went back down to pick-up our items 3 business days after I dropped them - easy. Now I suppose I'm biased, as the artist, but I thought our items turned out very nice. See for yourself...

I have not seen my sister's finished piece yet as I've left it wrapped and wrapped that with festive papers and tissue papers to give to her for the holidays.

Well, if you can't tell, I think I'm a CMM convert. If you have one nearby, or need a unique and memorable gift idea, I think this place could be a real fun alternative for your holiday. Make a afternoon or night of it with their to-go kits or schedule an in-store time for yourself. Either way, if your item turns out suckie, I think you only have yourself to blame. I mean, we're not all Picassos.

Happy Hollydays, Everyone.