Travel | Peaches Prattlings

{April 25, 2021} Another pre-ride, a thing of beauty!

Today started early, about 620am, which is unfortunate for a Sunday, but a necessary evil.

We had a motorcycle ride planned and we had to meet the guys at 930am, we had quite a ride ahead of us. I didn’t intend to get up quite so early but someone invaded my dream and I wanted them out. No, not the wasband, someone else, but I knew I was dreaming and decided if they were not leaving, I was. Go me!

I got up, started piddling around, I knew we had to get up soon to walk the dogs, give them breakfast, and chill with them for a few before we had to put them back in the crate for the day. I will tell you, I am going to see if I can get JS, who stayed with them last weekend, to come and let them out, take them for a walk, maybe hang with them for a bit, when we have these long rides. We were gone about 10 hours today, which is a normal work day, if we went into the office. Not fair to the pups, but they were fine! Here’s hoping! I will need to do the same for the week of the annual motorcycle ride in New Hampshire, but more about then when it happens.

It was supposed to be much warmer than that other ride we took a few weeks ago. Our ride captain said he put in a special request for very little wind, thank you! We got dressed, put on our riding gear and headed out about 9am. We met three of the guys, our ride captain’s wife was going to join us later down the road.

I don’t know if you remember me telling you what a pre-ride is. It is a ride to test the route for an official group ride. This tests the route, for all levels of rider, the distance, and how it will be with a larger group. I think we’re supposed to have about 30-35 bikes next week, that means about 40, maybe 50 people on the ride, since there are some people who are paired up on their bikes. It’s much easier, as you might imagine, with less people, but it will definitely be fun. There are lots of logistics, like stop lights and stop signs. You want to try to ride as if you’re ‘one vehicle’, someone blocks traffic, if possible, you stay on the highway together, on the streets, signals, newer riders in the back, and you always ride in a group for the slowest rider, that way people stay together, as much as they can.

The ride we did today was great, it was about a 3 hour ride, and it’s three hours because we are taking back roads, very little highway. We also stop about every hour, which can be 100 miles, and we stop at gas stations, that allows bikes with smaller tanks, like mine to fill up. I fill up no matter what, since you never know if you will run out before the next stop. It’s also a great opportunity to stretch your legs, have a bio break, and catch up with folks for a few minutes, before the next stretch.

We are heading to, pun intended, now that I write this! Head Motor Company in Columbia, MO, the home of the University of Missouri or Mizzou, as it is affectionally referred to. We are heading there to meet the Kansas City Chapter of the IMRG, Indian Motorcycle Riders Group. While there, Head Motor Company is hosting a BBQ, there might be music, not sure, we will see some new rides, maybe get some new swag, who knows. It’s going to be a good time!

After we got to Head Motor Company, which happened to be closed on Sunday, most Indian Dealerships are, we headed out in search of food. We went to Flat Branch Pub & Brewing, and since I was able to find it on my GPS, after our ride captain got us back to the highway, I took over and led us there. Unfortunately, there was a 40 minute wait, we walked over to the Broadway Diner, which happened to be close, but…right across the street, the Shiloh Bar & Grill with plenty of seating, no wait, food, and alcohol! That last one I don’t care about, but everyone who did was happy.

We grabbed a table, ordered drinks and food, talked about the ride from St Louis, what did people think of it, opinions about next week’s ride, bikes, of course, future trips, raffles, kids, and everyone’s dogs, go figure. There were only 6 of us, so it was nice to sit and chat, and be heard, definitely more intimate than what’s going to happen next weekend!

After food and drink, we headed back to the bikes, rode a short way, stopped for gas, always stop for gas at the start of the ride and the start of the ride home, even though you’ve stopped along the way. Drove an hour, got gas, chatted, shook the legs, drove on. We did this until everyone started going their own way and then it was just PSM and I and we were out like a shot!

Back home the pups were very happy to see us, I would be too, after 10 hours! Walked, fed, loved on, zzzzzzz, that was funny! It’s tough sleeping all day, getting excited for 20 minutes, walk, eat, get loved on…zzzzz

What…a…day! What…a…weekend! Wow! Tomorrow is Monday, it’s a new day and a new week, what adventures does it have in store for us? I know it starts with 6am hot yoga, gotta go!

{April 18, 2021} It’s a beautiful Sunday in Chicago, what should we do first?

Well…not set an alarm for one! That was easy! We got up eventually, took showers and got ourselves ready to greet the day. First…since we didn’t want to have to carry our bags around the city all day, so we arranged with the hotel to keep the room for the day, wahoo!

Eventually, we ventured out in search of breakfast. I was disappointed that the Chicago Diner ‘Meat Free since ’83’, one of my favorite places to eat in Chicago, unfortunately, it wasn’t open until 12p, maybe next time we go to Chicago, we can eat there. We decided on a place that was less than a mile away, Wildberry Pancakes & Cafe. It had a high rating, so we were excited. We put our names on the waitlist, we didn’t actually have to wait too long, it was quite busy. Chicago seems to still be waking up from quarantine.

When we finally got a seat, we waiting for quite a while before anyone came over to the table, our server was nice enough, but frazzled, according to her, it was crazy busy and they were backed up in the kitchen. Not sure if they had enough staff working. We finally got to order, PSM got his decaf coffee pretty quickly, but my chai latte, on the other hand, came just before the food, which was about 20 minutes later, and it came in a to-go cup, that was a first. I watched several drinks come out of the kitchen like that, I have a feeling they were low on kitchen staff. I was watching the people at the table next to ours, who were seated at the same time we were. Their drinks came at the same time mine did, and they still didn’t have food. Our food got there and we started eating.

We had ordered a vegetable skillet, requesting the hash browns be fully cooked, I don’t know if we’ve talked about this, but I don’t like my hash browns white, still looking like it was a just shredded potato. The veggies were good, the eggs as well. I will say the pancakes were good, we hoped they were since the restaurant was called Wildberry Pancakes & Cafe! The toast, on the other hand, was cold. Oh well.

We headed out for a stroll down Michigan Avenue, also known as The Magnificent Mile. You might be wondering why it’s called Michigan Avenue is known as The Magnificent Mile, click the link! It really is a beautiful street, the flowers are in bloom and one thing Chicago is known for, well in my opinion at least! is the artwork that is found on the streets, be it in the floral arrangements, sculpture, graffiti, even, and you know how much I love graffiti! I didn’t take any pictures of it this trip, sorry.

There were also quite a few businesses boarded up along Michigan Avenue, in preparations for the protests that happened on Friday. Many of those businesses were still open, and the foot traffic was lively, but not unreasonable and everyone was respectful of their space. We made our way to the T-Mobile Flagship Store, PSM had some questions, and if you remember my time in Chicago, I love that particular T-Mobile! After T-Mobile, we walked down Michigan Avenue, our end goal was Millennium Park, just looking in windows and watching people, and taking photos of the flowers as we went.

We were about to pass a Starbucks, what we thought was just an ordinary Starbucks, when it turns out to be quite a bit more than that! It was the Starbucks Reserve Roastery. Yeah, try saying that 5 times fast! ha ha. I can’t think of a better way to describe it “If Willy Wonka had built the ultimate coffee shop instead of a chocolate factory, the result may have looked a lot like the 15,000-square-foot Starbucks Reserve Roastery.” That is the description from their website about the first Reserve Roastery that opened in Seattle, of course, where it all began.

The Chicago Reserve Roastery is a five story building and each story houses something different, although, you can get coffee and tee on every floor, although, they don’t have all the same traditional drinks that you would get at your average, on every block, Starbucks. First floor: Coffee, tee, pastry, merchandise. Second floor: dedicated bakery. Third floor: the art, science, and theater of coffee: coffee creations, flights, nitrogen-infused gelato, and more. Fourth floor: Alcohol! A cocktail bar. Fifth floor: Rooftop terrace, reservation required.

It was quite the experience. After we toured each floor, and it really was something to see, and something to see at every turn, we ordered drinks. PSM got an iced decaf something and I didn’t want a hot drink, so I tried to order something similar to the Dragon Drink that I like, which is sweet mango and dragonfruit flavors, with creamy coconut milk, ice and a scoop of real diced dragonfruit. I love it! They didn’t have anything like that so I ordered something the person at the register recommended and I ordered it with oat milk. She looked at me kind of funny, I said I wanted something similar to the dragon drink, here goes. First…they made it incorrectly and while they remade it the way I ordered it, I got to keep the incorrect one. SO glad I did because the one with oat milk…yuck! it was awful! wow!

After Starbucks, we kept walking and eventually ended up in Millennium Park, across from where we had breakfast. We started with The Bean, which is technically Cloud Gate Park, it is a 10-ton elliptical sculpture is forged of a seamless series of highly polished stainless steel plates, which reflect Chicago’s famous skyline and the clouds above. Basically, it looks like a giant bean! It was designed by Anish Kapoor. The cool thing about it is when you get under it, your reflection is inverted and sometimes it’s hard to find yourself in it. It was gated off, which makes sense, since so many people get in there and touch it. Safety first! A cool thing…as we were standing there, we saw a couple just after they got engaged, the eruption of cheers and the now fiancé’s tears were very touching!

Then we walked to the gardens, flowers were in bloom, some just coming to life, some dying. I liked that there was one patch where they left the dying flowers to feed the new growth and the insects who live in it.

After the gardens, we walked to the Crown Fountain, two 50-foot glass block towers at each end of a shallow reflecting pool, designed by Jaume Plensa. They project images of faces which are animated and in the summer, they are true fountains. The fun thing is to sit and watch all the kids, young and old, running and playing in the fountain/water spouts. Right now, not much water happening.

Then there was an installation by a Chicago based artist, Christine Tarkowski. “When we call the Earth by way of distinction a planet and the Moon a satellite, we should consider whether we do not, in a certain sense, mistake the matter. Perhaps- and not unlikely – the Moon is the planet and the Earth the satellite! Are we not a larger moon to the Moon, than she is to us?“

This was the end of our tour of Millennium Park, thoroughly enjoyable! Now, we’re hungry! A few blocks and we are at a place I la la la loved when I was in Chicago, Native Foods. I would not have subjected PSM to an entire weekend of vegan, but I wanted at least one, maybe two meals, and this is the one I got. One of the things I have been thinking about since we planned this trip is their vegan Reuben sandwich, O M G! I lived on it when I was there, introduced so many people to it, who couldn’t believe it wasn’t real and my mouth is watering just thinking about it now! And it was the vegan Reuben I compared all other vegan Reuben’s to.

And guess what they didn’t have… O M G! NOOOOOOOoooo! I was heartbroken, what was I to do?! I ended up with a meatball sub with provolone and sweet potato fries, PSM had a brisket sandwich, remember…all vegan. For dessert, we didn’t care much for the peanut butter parfait, but my other go-to favorite…their oatmeal creme pie! It’s more like an oatmeal whoopee pie, to give you a visual. Oh wow! I was going to say OMG again, but you’re probably tired of it! It is so yummy and good, another thing I got my non-vegan friends hooked on! I still get texts from friends I was on that project with, who will go there on occasion to get just that! Wow, that’s saying something! It’s so tasty, but soo, sooooo, soooo sweet! I couldn’t eat it all in one sitting and it was a little much for PSM, he did try it though, and declared it was all mine! muwahahah. Needless to say, it is going to take me a few days to eat it! Ha ha.

After lunch, back to the hotel to chill for a bit, then head to the airport, we have puppies to see! I can’t wait to find out what they got up to this weekend. First class home, then puppies! What a weekend! What’s our next adventure?!

{April 17, 2021} It’s Saturday in Chicago! Yoga …Brunch … Walking [a lot!]…Food…Speakeasy!

Just your typical Saturday for us, right?!

We woke up before the alarm, that was nice, definitely don’t want to miss this! Got dressed in our yoga gear, put our clothes over it, no changing rooms at the event, yoga mat and yoga towels in the beach bag I brought to carry everything. There was some planning that went into this! Headed out, Dunkin’ Donuts was across the street, let’s wake up! There aren’t any DD’s close to us here, so we stick to Starbucks, which isn’t bad, PSM’s the choosy one when it comes to his morning cup o’ joe! Same in Hawai’i, the DD was not so good there! They got their first DD only a few years ago, they’ll get there. Uber ordered, just waiting.

Uber arrives, takes up the 2.5 miles to the Lighthouse ArtSpace where the Immersive Van Gogh Chicago is being held and where we were taking a yoga class offered by Core Power Yoga IN the Immersive Van Gogh Chicago Exhibit! We actually participated in a yoga class while the exhibit was happening.

The way the exhibit works, from their site: Be immersed in 500,000 cubic feet of stunning projection animating the master’s oeuvre and illuminating the mind of the genius. Wander through giant projections that highlight brushstroke, detail, and colour as you have never experienced them. Visitors will be immersed in Van Gogh’s works from his sunny landscapes and night scenes, to his portraits and still life. All of that, while set to music.

Originally, we were going spend a weekend in Chicago and go to the exhibit, and depending on the weather, we were going to take the bikes. I bought the tickets and we were set. Well…about two or three weeks ago, I got an email, telling me about the yoga classes in the exhibit! How could I resist!? I immediately emailed and asked if I could exchange our tickets so we could do this yoga class. As soon as they said yes, I checked with PSM which weekend would work best. This weekend it was, so exchanged happened, and…included with our tickets…we could spend time in the exhibit, win-win!

We got there early, got our temperatures checked, and waited, there was a class ahead of ours. The music we heard was nothing like any music any of our regular yoga instructors play! The room was dim, there were rings of light on the floor, spaced out. This is where they want people to sit, socially distant to experience the exhibit, but worked out for yoga, everyone just took a circle and put down their mats. There were three triangle or obelisk mirrors in the room, turns out they were for the event, but looked cool! The instructor came in and we got started about 8am.

As we are getting into child’s pose to get started, the exhibit began. That meant the music queued up, the video projectors started going, and we were immersed in the experience. It was a normal yoga class, well, not normal for us, we now know why it’s called Core Yoga! Wow! There were only two negatives to the entire experience…a few times, the instructor’s mic didn’t work, it was a big room, acoustics, and just technical difficulties and because it was moving all around us, sometimes the floor seemed to be moving, not good! Oh, and when you do a tree pose and the instructor tells you to look at something that’s not moving, to work on balance, and the entire place is moving…ha ha ha. Other than that…we moved, we stretched, we balanced, we downward faced our dogs! we sweat! So much fun!

After class, we got into street clothes and hung out in the next room, sitting in one of the circles on the floor, we missed an opportunity for a loveseat, all good. The exhibit began. Every space in the room was filled with images and movement. There wasn’t a nook or cranny the images did not catch. Look up, over, down, you name it, there was movement. The paintings were swaying, moving, morphing into the next painting, breaking down or deconstructing the strokes of the paintings, getting a feel for how he created them, the colors, the sights, the movements, all made sense in this amazing feet of beauty.

We sat through it once on the ground level, then moved up for the second time to watch it from the balcony, a different experience, you catch things from that angle that you didn’t see from the ground. You really paid attention, well, I did. “Oh, look over there!” “Now, look here!” and it went on from there. We essentially participated three times, nothing like it.

When we left, we headed to the gift shop, we picked up a few things, PSM bought me a mask with one of my new favorite paintings, after seeing it in the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, Skull of a Skeleton with Burning Cigarette. I love so much of his work, but his sunflowers series, sigh…you know how I feel about sunflowers! I love this mask!

Everything they did in the space was so clever, they stairs and walls were painted with Van Gogh’s work, the elevator, stairwell, even the signs were clever “Gogh this way” “No Gogh – Do Not Enter” “Goghing Up Elevators”. For one who so loves a funny pup, bad dad joke, I was Goghing Ga Ga over all of it!

After yoga and the experience, it was time for brunch! I was hoping to get to a few of my favorite places in Chicago to eat, but, just like the rest of the country, it was opening back up and things were limited. We ended up going to Kanela’s in Old Town for brunch, it was less than a mile away and had a good rating. We got lucky and didn’t have to wait for a table, wahoo. Our waiter was funny, the place a little kitschy, I absolutely love the signs on the way, berry punny!

I had avocado toast with a fried egg, kale salad, and some seriously crispy potatoes, it was seriously yummy! PSM had an açaí bowl and we shared a plate of challah French toast. Mimosa, decaf coffee, and a masala chai tea for me with oat milk.

Time to walk of brunch! We decide to walk the 3+ miles back to the hotel, it warmed up nicely as we were walking, then got downright toasty! ha ha, go figure! As we came upon Wabash Avenue and State Street, the lights were red and the bell was clanging, there were some sailboats coming and the drawbridge was going up! This is one of my favorite things about Chicago! And they still work!

We watched the drawbridge go up, we loved it, even though we really didn’t have a choice, since we had to cross the bridge when we came to it. Oh, sorry! ha ha. We enjoyed Spring in Chicago, flowers in bloom, all the way back to the hotel. At the hotel, hang up the wet yoga stuff, take our shoes off and relax! Executive decision from someone who is dairy sensitive to someone who’s allergic. Pizza and beer for dinner. How could I say no? We were in Chicago and they have bathrooms! HA HA

We were a few blocks from a Giordano’s, one of the two more famous places for deep dish or Chicago-style pizza in Chicago. There are many fine establishments, but PSM hadn’t been to this one and it was close. We got there, put our names in, ordered our pizza, and waited for a table, ended up walking towards the back of the restaurant and there were two seats available at the bar, sold!

We put in drink and appetizer orders and waited for things to magically appear! We went for the motherland! PSM had an Classic Chicago deep dish pizza and I went for the spinach and added pineapple, and for an appetizer, we ordered the combo, so not right! ha ha. Cheese bread, chicken nugget things, and mozzarella triangles. Hey, if you’re in, you’re all in!

Needless to say, there was more than enough food, for a few people, and we both ordered small pizzas! Normally we would share, but we were in Chicago, home of the deep dish pizza, have to get what you really want! NO, we did not eat it all! Let’s just say, there is a very grateful homeless man in Chicago eating really well tonight!

We didn’t feel like going back to the hotel just yet, so we stopped at Plymouth Pub, Restaurant, and Rooftop Bar. I had been there a few times, with work outings, and friends from work. We weren’t staying, just one beer and we were out. It’s got a nice atmosphere, and a decent view.

We left there, went around the block, because the entrance across the street, really wasn’t an entrance, go figure, to Brando’s Speakeasy! No secret knock, pook! We did have to show our IDs to the guy at the door, I held mine up, he said, “you showed me the back”, but all good. I said “You did say you just wanted to see that we had IDs…” Made him laugh. There was karaoke going on in the front, but no available seating, so we were lead to the back, ended up at the bar, and there was one other person in the room, how exciting…and the music wasn’t our taste.

I went up to the front and asked if there was anything in the front, no dice, I leaned over and said, there’s no one back there, it’s kind of dead, and the music sucks. I can’t believe I said that! So rude! Back to PSM I went. All of a sudden the music changed, it was like 70s and 80s, we were loving it! Then…all of a sudden, the room was filling up and everyone was having a great time, apparently, we made our own karaoke bar! Ha ha! When the guy who sat us came back around, I apologized for saying the music sucked, but thanks for sending folks our way!

The lighting was dim, the front room was washed in red, our room was cozy, with tv’s showing old black and white movies and tv shows. There were classic cartoons, black and white, of course, and old movies with ladies stripping, it was a speakeasy.

After about two hours, there was a two hour limit per table, and we were getting there, we sang our way out of the speakeasy and headed back to the hotel. Shoes off, jammies on, lay down, zzzzzzzz.

More adventure awaits tomorrow…but no alarm!

{April 11, 2021} What a weekend! Another fabulous new adventure!

It’s Sunday, a decent day, let’s see what it has in store for us! Join me, will ya?!

We started off with the pups, of course. Then…breakfast! Let’s go to The Shack! It’s open again and we haven’t been there for a while! We found two seats right away at the bar, our favorite bartender was working, how could we lose! We ordered breakfast, a skillet and…panckes, waffle, or french toast? Well…they are currently Flipping off Cancer! For every pancake you order, they donate $1 to Kids Rock Cancer. It’s an innovative program that helps children successfully cope with the unique emotional challenges that accompany a cancer or blood disorder diagnosis. Through the proven healing power of music therapy, Kids Rock Cancer helps children combat feelings of anxiety, depression, uncertainty, and helplessness. Pancakes it is! All three options are tasty there, but when you can enjoy the cake of pan and help someone out, how can you go wrong! Y U M!

After breakfast, we had some errands to do, so we drove to Lowe’s and weren’t able to do what we needed to, but…I am now the proud owner of this power washer! I cannot wait to get out there and use it! You have no idea! Watch the grime drip down whatever it is you’re cleaning…move away this…clean that, oh yeah!

After Lowe’s, we didn’t feel like going home, we were going to go to the Butterfly House, but there were no tickets available today, oh well, there’s always a next time. But before we made any other decisions, hair cuts were very much in order!

We went to Sports Clips because PSM likes that extra thing they do with neck massages, no thanks I’m good. It felt so good to get a hair cut, it’s been a few months, I honestly can’t remember how long ago, you might, since that post asked if I looked like my bitmoji! HA HA. I did get a nice compliment…I had been talking with the stylist about the different colors we have died our hair, she asked what my natural color was and I told her. She was genuinely surprised that #42 Revlon was not my natural hair color. Thanks! It’s the pasty complexion that makes it work! ha ha! As we walked out, I looked at PSM and thought…”Boy, my hubby sure is cute! I love when he gets his hair cut!” Sigh…

Ok, now what…Looking at my list of Want to go Missouri, I had it! The City Museum! I had heard about it and I was definitely curious!

The City Museum: Explore the unexpected. City Museum is a hundred-year-old warehouse in downtown St. Louis in which artists have repurposed the pieces of old cities to build miles of tunnels, slides, climbers, bridges, and castles. There are secret passages and grand galleries. Playgrounds and ball pits. A circus and a train. A rooftop school bus and a Ferris wheel.

Let me tell you…this was an experience! We climbed, we slid, yes, I said slid! There were a few slides we went down, we crawled, we scooched, you name it, we tried it! There was a 10 story slide, I got half way up the circular staircases and was told the line was ridiculous, so…another time. We lost track of where we were, there were twists and turns, ups and downs, and sideways. Almost every room seemed to be conneted by these structures to climb in, on, through, we weren’t sure where we were half the time!

There was food, but no sit down where they normally have food, but we went into Beatnik Bob’s, which pays tribute to the carnival midway with a collection of items compiled to represent the youthful subculture of the ’50s. they had the world’s LARGEST underpants, yes, you read right! They had games, and old candies, pinball, video games, and so much more in the Odditorium! They had a full bar, aces! We sat with a bowl of vegan chili, PSM had a Gin & Tonic, from a can! and I did something I absolutely la la la love! I played Ms. Pacman! I had SO much fun! $1.50…can’t beat it! I was a little rusty at first, but eventually, the patterns came back and the dots got eaten!

At some point, we went outside and climbed on the amazing structures they had, it was a kids etch-a-sketch or I should say erector set, dream! There were two planes, old tram cars, two pieces of a castle, metal trees and real trees built into the structure. There were screams of joy and screams of terror from some kids, some of the climbing went waaaayyy up! I can’t even begin to tell you how much fun this was for us!

We even met a man who makes shoe laces! This was a branch of The Shoelace Factory. We didn’t get to see him make the shoe laces, that wasn’t happening at the moment, but we watched him cut the spools and finish them off. We talked to him for a bit, he’s been doing this for over 30 years, amazing! They had all sorts of patterns, widths, and colors. He could look at a shoe and tell you what length you need! We each bought two pairs, I might need a few more after looking at this fine pieces of cloth on my feet!

What a treat this place was! It wasn’t expensive and we probably could have spent even more time there! After four hours, it was time to go. I can’t wait for family and friends to come visit so we can take them, so much fun!

We headed back towards home, but we weren’t quite ready to pack it in. Hmmmm. Our favorite nail salon was open, let’s go! Claws and paws please! Part of the reason we both go are the massage chairs and foot rubs, O M G! I was in heaven!

Now…we’re hungry! I know where we should go! Balkan Store & Bakery! This place is owned by our neighbors and we have been wanting to go for some time! It was so worth it! As the name states, a store and bakery and they didn’t disappoint! I couldn’t read the labels on any of the food items for sale, I looked at the pictures and it definitely was fun to look at everything!

I ordered a veggie gyro with grilled eggplant, very tasty! It came with french fries, which I don’t normally order or eat, but they were fabulous! You could really taste the potato! I know french fries are potatos, but there are some fries that lose the potato flavor, I like them when they’re a little thicker, and you can sink your teeth and taste buds into…yup, you guessed it, potato! I also ordered a pear soda, I really liked it, it wasn’t too sweet and smelled and tasted like pears! PSM had a lamb gyro panini, which he enjoyed as well! His came with a side salad, so I shared my fries, I do that with boys I have a crush on! wink wink

We also had a piece of baklava, one of my weaknesses which I don’t normally eat because I can’t have honey, so every once in a while…and we also had a piece of this very sweet donut like thing called a Balkan Tulumbe Pastry, wow, that was something! All in all, a very good meal!

Now…home to hang with the pups. I have to say, all in all…a very good day. Good breakfast, new toys, haircuts, mani/pedis, a new museum, and a new food to try. It’s all in a day’s work! I might need a nap!

{March 13, 2021} It’s chilly…but not too cold for a ride!

The rain was predicted, but held off! It held off for the day, it had been raining the few days before, but not today! So…what should we do?! Go for a ride! It’s chilly, but we’re in riding season!

Now…I’m not a hard core rider, I don’t ride when it’s below 48, I might put the top down on the Beetle-Bug when it’s in the high 30s/low 40s, but the bike, nope. I don’t have the fancy stuff on my bike to keep me toasty, like butt warmers in the car, you’re kind of exposed, so…bundle up. I was fine on the top, but from the thighs to the ankles, a little brrr. Next time, Cuddle Duds under the jeans. Such a chance from last weekend, when I could have gone out in a sweatshirt!

We decided to ride to Grafton, IL, I don’t think I’ve mentioned Grafton yet to you. Its a small town in Illinois on the Missisippi River, turns out it’s the oldest town in Jersey County, IL. It gets crazy crowded in the summer and it’s a known spot for bikes, motorcycles, that is. Someone told me about it as a nice ride and one of the biker bars, the Hawg Pit BBQ, it made it an easy destination to put in the GPS.

It’s about an hour ride from here, so not too bad, and a nice destination, as I mentioned. You can go by the highways, yesterday, PSM took us on some alternate roads and it was nice. We eventually connected with the main drag that takes us over the Clark Bridge to Alton, IL, the middle of the bridge is actually the state line, pretty cool. It really is a pretty bridge, I have yet to take a picture of it, we’re always on the bikes. Alton is a cute town, we haven’t explored much of the town, there is a cobblestone street where they have a few restaurants with tables set up outside, which we’ve eaten at, it’s charming.

It was a bit chilly on the ride, so we decided to stop in Alton, but inside, ha ha. We stopped at The Old Bakery Beer Company, as the name says they have beer, tee hee hee. It’s a certified organic craft brewery with food options. We were going to get lunch in Grafton, so I settled on a cup of tea. I would like to go back, they had a nice looking menu with vegetarian and vegan options. It’s a warehouse-like open space, exposed beams, streams of edison bulbs, with tables, spaced appropriately socially distant, mask mandates, hand sanitzier, just like most places. It had a nice open, welcoming feel. Everyone seemed to be having a good time.

After warming up a little inside, we walked outside to the bikes getting ready to head towards Grafton, it seemed to have warmed up a little, outside. One of the things we love about having Indian Motorcycles are the conversation starters. When we came out, a woman was in her car looking at the bikes and told us she was just sitting there admiring them, which was nice, and a guy came up to us to talk about our bikes, he’s thinking about joining the club! We would welcome him! He was wearing a great utilikilt, we’re getting near St Patrick’s Day, people were out celebrating. A utilikilt is a kilt made for every day work wear.

We got to Grafton and pulled in to the parking lot and walked into the Piasa Winery and Pub, we were there for the view, not the food. It was a seafood restaurant, they had some other things, but it was mostly seafood. PSM had a fried alligator, I tasted it, I was curious. I’ll just say, aside from the spicy batter, which I wasn’t crazy about, it still tastes like salty chicken, didn’t make me change my vegan ways, ha ha. For me, I had the grilled pear salad, it was quite tasty. A variety of greenery, grilled pears, glazed walnuts, and cranberries. We sat on the deck and there were heat lamps warming everything up, we needed it. Even the table was warm, I was happy!

After the winery, we went to the Gold Bar Saloon, there was a bar with a few stools, but the true gem was outside, well, sort of outside. There was a building next door with fire pits, that was fabulous. We took our drinks in, took off our jackets and sat on one of the sofas and just enjoyed ourselves. There were a few other people in there, but they were each at their own set of sofas and firepits, awesome! The music was country, but classic country that everyone seemed to know, Johnny Cash, Loretta Lynn, and Boz Scaggs.

After a while, even though we had just eaten, we were slightly peckish and all I wanted was french fries. No idea why, I haven’t eaten or craved french fries in a long time, they just don’t agree with me, so I try to avoid them, but I was craving them, so off we went. We walked…next door, ha ha, to the Grafton Pub. We ordered fries, when I asked the cut, I was told they were somewhere in between steak fries and Burger King french fry. It was funny, when I asked what the cut was, she looked at me funny, so I explained the different cuts. We also ordered guacamole bites, which are a bit odd, but we were curious. We were told they were like wontons with guacamole in them, and fried. Ok…let’s just say, they were hot as all get out, to me anyway. We’ve had them before I realized, and let’s just say, not ordering them again, not everything tastes better fried…The french fries on the other hand, were tasty, if you could get past the coarse salt and pepper they put on them, seriously?! Just not my cup of tea honestly, I forgot to order them unseasoned, which would have meant fresh out of the frier, nothing extra, which would have made them perfect, they really were good fries, good size, perfect crunch on the outside, texture and taste of potato, I know that sounds weird to some, I’ll explain in a later post.

The Grafton Pub is also on the water, and Grafton itself it really is a pretty place in the Spring and Summer, especially with the trees in bloom and boats on the river.

After our snack, it was time to go. Interesting thing…until we sat at The Gold Bar Saloon, we didn’t see another motorcycle all day, then there were a few, it was nice to see some other cold weather riders like us. We got to the bikes, met another group of admirers, theses folks were slightly closer to inebriated, they were getting into the St Patricks Day mood, but still admirers of our bikes, which we definitely appreciate and welcome the conversation. After that, on the bikes and head back down by the river, over the bridge, on the highway this time and hello puppies.

The sun pretended to try to peek out, but aside from that, a great day overall. What could be bad, motorcycle ride, good company, laughter, the wind in your face, as I’ve told you…wind therapy! Wonder where the road takes us next…

{February 28, 2021} A new resort…to me. Vail!

What a weekend! Friday…Breck. Saturday…Beaver Creek…Today…Vail! I do lead a charmed life, I admit that!

I got up leisurely, no pressure to go out there and ski all day, just when I get there. I got dressed, made myself a sandwich for lunch and headed out the door, about 9am. It was about a 30 minute drive, such a change from yesterday, almost no snow on the roads, it was as if someone had a giant hand dryer and poof! And gorgeous, as always!

I got there and drove around Vail Village looking for parking, finally decided on the parking garage, which, turned out great, covered parking with ski gear! Not freezing sitting on your car trying to get dressed? Possibly no snow under your feet in case you happen to step down before you get your boot on? I’m good with that!

I followed everyone else through the parking lot, out to Vail Village. What a charming place this is. It’s a charming, adorable alpine village, like walking through some of those towns in Europe with PSM. You get that Winter Holiday feel all around. It’s hotels, restaurants, and shops, lost of shops, of course! Not just clothing, but, as you can imagine, ski and snowboard equipment and accessories. It reminded me of Keystone, but the streets were more narrow, like a European town or city, whereas Keystone’s lanes are much wider, just as charming!

Headed through Vail Village to the gondola line. That line…well, that was a long line, but it moved. When it’s your turn to get into one of the gondola cars, you put your skis in one of the holders outside the car and only take your poles in with you. As I’m standing there waiting for my turn, I get to look around. It’s a beautiful place, the slopes coming down to bottom were wide and bright. I could see on one of the slopes that there were a lot of moguls, which I discovered as a kid, were not my thing. Moguls are those bumpy places on a slope, a lot of people enjoy skiing them, I don’t happen to be one of them.

What I did notice throughout Vail, on the runs that I did, a bunch of the blue squares and most of the black diamonds were all moguls. I knew what I would be avoiding! I got out of the gondola and walked over to the first lift line, put on my skis and up, up, up, and away I went! I got off the lift and looked for green dots, which, I believe we talked about, is what I tend to do on mountains I have never been on, just to get a feel for it. And today, I stuck to mostly the green dots, threw in a few of the blue squares, but the green circles were just fine for me!

One thing I found that they had, in abundance, at Vail, were catwalks, which is a narrow trail connecting one slope to another or going all the way down the mountain. What vail has… are flat catwalks! Oh no! I tend to ski with my poles in one hand, but…I am ever so grateful to have ski poles when I end up on a catwalk! Oh my! Now…if you can get enough momentum when you get going, you can sail through a flat catwalk, but…if you stop at the bottom of one hill, to take in the splendor and a picture, and lose your momentum…there is a lot of walking, using the poles to try to push, skating, and a few four letter words. Let’s just say, I know why professional skiers are so skinny! O M G! I was sweating! I wasn’t sure if I had enough layers on when I left the house, since it was -2! Nope, I was fine! I had to unzip my jacket and take off my gloves just to get a breeze going! And…I didn’t make that mistake again!

This is that first time I realize that you cannot lose your momentum!!!

Between the gondola ride up and the catwalks, my first run took me almost an hour to get down! I did learn my lesson though and the rest of the day, there was swooshing and swishing to my hearts content. The cool thing with the catwalks was that if you chose to do a run going down, you could go for a piece, then take a catwalk and start the process over again.

I went up in a chair, then skied a short distance and got on another chair that went up, then skied down, the went up and it was like that for about four hours, at least, non-stop, it was great. I remember going up and up and up on one chair and as I’m looking down, it’s mostly moguls and steep slopes and I’m thinking not my bag, and as we get to the top, I look to my left and see black diamond and double black diamond signs, uh oh, what did I get myself in to? I would go down if that’s the case, it might take me a while, but I’ll do it. Then…a sigh of relief, I looked to the left and there were my green circles and blue dots, whew!

I skied a few more runs, somehow made it to the bottom to where I needed to be and it was like everyone was having the same thought, they were done. So, I kicked off my skis, well, not kicked, and walked through Vail Village a bit, I got a zipper pull, a t-shirt on sale, and a sticker for my helmet, not very exciting, and this was all in one store, I was good to go!

I headed to the parking lot, found the car, got out of my boots and ski pants, and away we went! Headed back to the house for a hot, hot, hot shower, some dinner, work, and chill. Not a bad day. I’ve been to Vail and I really liked it, I know I’ll go back! But I think tomorrow, might be a day off from skiing, we’ll see!

{February 17, 2021} We are the Champions!

O M G! You MUST watch this show! Well, as always, that is just my opinion, but oh my, it was hysterical!

It’s called We are the Champions, it’s on Netflix, narrated by Rainn Wilson. We watched Season 1 and by gawd, I hope there’s a Season 2! This show is fabulous! It’s six episodes, each one documenting and exploring the world of a different competitions. I saw the preview for the first one and it immediately went on my watch list!

The first episode is Cheese Rolling. Yes, I said cheese rolling. The name of the competition is Cooper’s Hill Cheese-Rolling and Wake, it takes place at Cooper’s Hill, near Glouscester in England. This event was traditionally held by and for the people of Brockworth, now, there are competitors from all over the world. The way it works is the competitors line up at the top of Cooper’s Hill, then they roll a Double Gloucester Cheese, they release the cheese roll and then they are off! Running or attempting to run and end up rolling, flopping and flipping, stumbling down the hill. No one actually beats the cheese, the winner is the first person to cross the line after the cheese!

Here’s the crazy part, if this entire thing is not crazy enough! The earliest documentation of cheese rolling is 1826, what?! Yes, I said 1826! You have got to check this out! No one is actually ‘officially’ in charge since it was cancelled in 2009 due to injuries, can you imagine?! Injuries, ha ha.

There is a men’s race and a women’s race, they start at teenager and go up. During the episode, they feature a few key competitors, as well as villagers and the local law. These people are passionate, and funny, and serious, wow are they serious. I SO want to go to see this in action, even though I watched the actual race squinting my eyes, some of the tumbles looked so painful! Some of it was like watching one of those shows like America’s Funniest Home Videos or one that films people doing stupid stuff, I look away most of the time! Bless ’em, they want to do it, more power to ’em!

Each episode is only 30 minutes, but they pack so much into that 30 minutes! I couldn’t look away I was laughing so hard! And intrigued! I wanted more!

Next, Chili Eating. What?! This, my friends, is not for the faint of heart! This episode is about chili pepper eating contest, oh my word! Even PSM thought these people were nuts and he has no taste buds! This competition watches the competitors eat the hottest peppers in the world! The content is sponsored by the Puckerbutt Pepper Company, owned and run by Ed ‘Smokin’ Ed’ Currie, the Willy Wonka of Chili Peppers, who created the hottest pepper in the world, the Carolina Reaper, which was declared the hottest pepper in the world by Guinness World Records in 2017! If you know anything about hot chili peppers, and I know a little, it is measured by the Scoville scale [SHU – Scoville Heat Units], which determines just how hot the sucker is!

The format is similar in each episode that you get to meet a few of the main players, not everyone, and sometimes there is a surprise thrown in. The folks in this episode you get to meet, you start to root for, in the short time you have watching them. There’s a science teacher from the UK, Sid Barber, Johnny ‘the Savage’ Scoville, Dustin ‘Atomik Menace’ Johnson, Bella ‘Heat 101’, just to name a few. These folks, with their fellow competitors have to eat the chili in front of them, round by round, no thank you!

The rules: 1. Eat the pepper. Kind of a no-brainer, you would think. 2. Do not drink the glass of milk. 3. Do not throw up. After Rule 1, if you complete the other two, move on to the next round.

Let’s just say, some of them don’t make it very far, those peppahs are h-o-t hot! Each round, the peppers get hotter and hotter and to watch the contestants, some of them, I cannot believe it! Some of the champions from other contestants make it only so far, fan favorites, disappointment from the crowd and the contestants themselves. They talk about the burning, stomach cramps, so many fun outcomes from this very strange contest. And when I say strange, that is 100% my opinion, if it’s your jam, and I don’t mean pepper jelly, ha ha, then have at it! this is not one of those contests I need to see in person, just watching from the comfort of my couch was painful!

There are six episodes in total, I’ll tell you about two more tomorrow. Enjoy!

{February 12, 2021} Xin nian hao! [Happy Chinese New Year!]

Today is Chinese New Year! It’s the year of the Ox.

I don’t know if you fall into the category of believing in Chinese Zodiac signs, but I do. I enjoy learning about characteristics and traits and see if they match with the person I might know with that sign. I do it with astrological signs. That being said, if you are the year of the ox, and this is your year, let’s see if your personality and characteristics fit:

Oxen are honest and earnest. They are low key and never look for praise or to be the center of attention. This often hides their talent, but they’ll gain recognition through their hard work. They believe that everyone should do what’s asked for them and stay within their bounds. Though they are kind, it’s difficult for them to understand persuasion using pathos. Rarely losing your temper, they think logically and make great leaders.

Is that you?

I remember as a kid, celebrating with with a Pilipino family that lived down the street from us, our families were great friends. Their oldest son and I were the same age and their youngest and my sister were the same age, the middle kid, well, he was in the middle, ha ha, and we all played together. We would play after school, at holidays and over the summer, the family would come and stay at our summer house. AL, the oldest used to drive my mom crazy, he would make that dripping water noise with his mouth and cheek, it drove her insane, mostly because he would do it in the middle of the night. Ha ha.

Back to celebrating…They observed a lot of Chinese traditions, the boys went a Chinese school every Saturday, much to their chagrin, in Chinatown in NYC, how many of you wanted to go to school on Saturday to learn a new language, on top of going to school during the week. The most fun was celebrating Chinese New Year with them. Foods, traditions, stories, the red envelopes. Oh yeah, the red envelopes.

It is tradition to give the gift of a bright, beautiful red envelope (known as 紅包, hóngbāo) to friends and family. It’s not just any old envelope…The red color symbolizes good luck and prosperity in Chinese (and other East Asian) cultures. Here are 8 Things You Should Know about the Lucky Red Envelope.

I was a kid, so of course, I looked forward to getting those red envelopes and they always had money in them, but it was usually $2 bills! I know you won’t be surprised, I probably still have a few of those envelopes, might even have the money in them. But even then, as much as I enjoyed getting money filled envelopes, I knew they were special, not just because of the money, there was history behind them, I knew there was something.

As I mentioned, with the envelopes, there was laughter and joy, their house was always full for the celebration, so many people sharing moments, food, and stories. What more could you want?

I’ve been in different places for Chinese New Year to see the celebrations, including the fireworks, dragons, dancing, parades and so much more. There is nothing like it! I hope to travel the world to see more celebrations! We saw some celebrations in Hawai’i, I remember a celebration inside a mall! I’ve seen them in New York City, and Philadelphia, PA, it’s not something you ever forget and I hope sometime in your life, you get to experience the wonder and splendor and come back and tell me all about it!

I will leave you with a traditional Chinese New Year greeting: I wish you a year of abundance and prosperity. Xin nian hao.

{January 26, 2021} Goodbye Colorado…Missouri…Um, I’m trying to get there!

I really am trying to get home! As much as I didn’t want to leave Colorado, I almost never do when I visit, I did want to get home to my family. Apparently Mother Nature thought it would be funny to make my 12+ hour drive a 14+ hour drive, not funny.

I actually slept later than I had all week, go figure! Every day that I had wanted to sleep past 7/7:30am, no dice, this morning, I got up at almost 8am! And…this is the day I wanted to leave a little earlier, maybe by 8am so I could take advantage of the daylight for driving. I didn’t set an alarm thinking I kept getting up early, but no dice. So…the plan was to leave between 8:30 and 9am, just like I had when I left St Louis for Denver.

I got on the road, no issue, then…apparently it had snowed, and snowed a lot, outside of Denver, the entire state of Colorado, then Kansas, and if you’ve ever made that drive, you know both states seem to go on fore…ever!!! There was snow on the ground, in the fields, it was white, white, white! There were some places I couldn’t see ahead of me or on either side of me, then it would clear, ahhh.

I filled up my gas tank and it was just slushy, but when I pulled into the first rest stop along the highway, not only did I inch my way up to the house, I actually had to put on my waterproof winter boots with the fur because the snow was at least 6 inches in some places and a foot in others. Pretty to look at, not fun to walk in, with Chucks on!

Some of the roads had snow and some ice on both lanes, other areas it was clear on one side, where the trucks had been driving over the road. I loved when cars or trucks would go by and slosh my car with wet, grey snow, thanks a lot! This was a drive that had to be made carefully for a lot of it. There were a lot of electronic warning signs up along the highway.

There were some areas that were absolutely beautiful and some areas, well…even snow couldn’t make it pretty!

I have to say, I’m glad I didn’t wash my car after skiing on Friday or even Sunday. I knew I would be driving and thought about getting her washed before I headed out this morning, really glad I didn’t. Almost every rest stop and gas station, I was getting the packed snow out of the wheel wells, washing the windshield and wiping as much of the ice from the car doors. Fun! Bottom line, she will be getting a bath this week in St Louis!

Now, you’ll love this…or maybe it’s just me. And that was pure sarcasm…At some point during the week, the driver’s side washer fluid nozzle seemed to stop working…the passenger side is fine, driver side, not so much. So…if I crane my head to the right, I can drive looking out the passenger side! HA HA! I did a lot of window washing, let me tell you! Then…somewhere around Topeka, KS, I turned on the wipers, they swished and the driver’s side wiper FLEW OFF! really?! I promptly found an Auto Zone and $70 later, I am now the proud owner of a pair of Rain-X Quantum Wiper Blades, huh? I don’t remember them being so expensive, but they are! And really expensive for something that only lasts about a year and a half! But…I really like the Rain-X brand, and they are on snug as a bug in a rug, so I am quite happy and when I got home…they are still on! HA HA

I was tired of the food I had been munching on for the week and decided to stop for some grub. There aren’t a lot of options for me, but I know I can get a sandwich at Subway, I have always liked their veggie patty, and then I started to want one. I stopped at no less than FIVE Subways along the road, the first…the toaster was out. I would have asked about the patty, but you have to cook it, so no dice. The next location had just closed, and they just started closing earlier the day before. The next two locations didn’t carry the patty and the last location, the girl behind the counter had no idea what I was talking about. Sigh…vegan ham and cheese it is! At least my stomach stopped grumbling!

Back on the road, munching on my sandwich and listening to a podcast or some comedy on Pandora radio, I didn’t get tired until about 11:30p, I had effectively been on the road about 12+ hours at that point and I had about another 2 hours to go. I was doing alright and didn’t start to get tired until about midnight and at that point, I was so close to home, I wasn’t getting a hotel. I did, however, stop at almost every rest stop and every few gas stations on the way!

Best part…pulling into my driveway, walking into the house, peaking in on the fur babies, who had noticed that I was home [I had to ignore the whining! SO hard!], putting on my pjs and crawling into bed, pulling up the covers and…zzzz…

{January 24, 2021} Hello Breck…What a Day!

Today was my last day of skiing and I decided on Breckenridge and I was not disappointed. To be honest, like Keystone, I have never been disappointed in skiing at Breckenridge.

It was 25 when I left Golden and 23 when I got to Breckenridge, but crisp and clear, so not terrible. You can tell that it snowed over the last few days, you could see snow on some of the mountains as I drove. Breckenridge was looking good! I found a parking lot and started to get set up for my day. The nice thing was that there was no snow in the parking lot where I parked, so I could step on the ground to get my boots on without fear of wet feet! Yeah!

I struggled, not as much as yesterday, but struggled buckling my boots. Funny enough, one of the women in the jeep that pulled in next to me was having the same issues. Oh boy, as much as it sucks, it’s nice to know someone else is experiencing the same thing! We chatted for a minute and then I was off and running, well, not running, there is no running in ski boots, at least not for me!

I took the gondola up to the first level and got off and went to stand in the very long lift line. The line went a little up the hill, so I trudged up with everyone else and inched my way down with everyone else, finally deciding to put my skis on when I got to flat land, I watched a lot of people standing sideways inching towards the flat spots. Up and up and up we went.

The slopes were wide open and smooth, there was some ice in a few places, they haven’t had a lot of snow over the past few months, but it didn’t get in the way. The ice wasn’t like East Coast ice, that was a plus. The music was on shuffle, never knowing what was coming up next. I swished and swished and swished, even a few straightaways. One of the runs I even shouted “I’m so happy!” and I was. It was such a great feeling!

I took a video of me swishing and swooshing down the hill, I completely forgot my GoPro, duh. One of these days I’ll get it set up and remember to take it with me, grrr. Let’s just say…my hand was mighty cold after 2 minutes and 33 seconds!

Eventually, I made it to the bottom, I can’t tell you how many runs I completed, but it was great, it even started snowing at some point, from the top of the mountain, it seemed as if there was low visibility, but it cleared up as you make your way down, still snowing, but easy to navigate. At the bottom, I used the facilities, had some lunch and decided it was time to go.

Part of me wanted to keep going because it’s my last day in Denver, but my body was telling me something else. Heart vs body, hmmm…body wins! I picked up my skis and headed to the gondola and headed back down to the bottom and towards the shuttle back to the parking lot.

It seems that a lot of people had the same idea, the same people I was ‘getting ready’ with at the car were at their cars to get disassembled, so to speak, at the same time, what are the odds? Granted, if you live in Denver and know you can ski many, many, many days during the season, even if you have to drive 2 hours, it’s worth it to go for just a few hours. It was the same for us when we lived in Hawai’i and would go snorkeling or to the beach, just to go to the beach, we’d go for one to two hours and go home, fair point.

Got ready to drive, headed out, got on the highway and then…what was supposed to be an hour and a half drive…red lights, no movement. I was already on the road about 45 minutes, maybe an hour and I looked at GPS, because of an accident on the highway, the delay was 1 hour and 4 minutes, really? It took me two solid hours to get back to the hotel. I was done! On with the pj’s! Figure out food and talk to you.

Tomorrow is my 12 hour drive back to PSM and two fur babies! And I’m already trying to figure out when I can come back to Denver to get some more skiing in before the end of the season. Hmmm… Despite the traffic, a great day, thank you Breck! Overall, three great days of skiing, fabulous visits with friends and a fabulous trip. Thank you Keystone, Breckenridge, Denver, and Colorado, I heart you!

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What was I thinking?