Mike's Hot Honey {New York City}

A souvenir from my NYC travels...

My daughter lives in the hipster Williamsburg neighborhood of Brooklyn, which also happens to be one of the foodiest neighborhoods in Brooklyn. She loves to share her food findings with me so one of our walks took us to the Bedford Cheese Shop (229 Bedford Ave at N. 4th Street).

And while it’s easy to drool over the cheese, bread and charcuterie selections, she took me into this shop for one reason: Mike’s Hot Honey. 

Mike’s Hot Honey is honey infused with chili peppers, locally made in Brooklyn. So when in Brooklyn...

What to do with this funky honey when I get back to Ohio? When my kids were little, they liked to dip their chicken nuggets in honey, so why not?  Fried chicken with a little sweet and heat...thank you very much.

Chicken Nuggets

Ingredients

Vegetable oil, for frying

8 boneless skinless chicken thighs

2 eggs 

2 teaspoons cayenne pepper 

Salt and freshly ground black pepper 

1 cup all-purpose flour 

1/4 cup cornstarch

Directions

Line a sheet tray with a wire cooling rack. Slice chicken into 2-inch pieces. In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, cayenne, salt and black pepper to taste. In a paper bag, shake together salt, pepper, flour and cornstarch. Dip the chicken in batches, first in egg mixture, then in the flour mixture and shake to coat. Set on a wire rack and let sit 10 minutes.

Carefully place chicken in hot oil and fry until golden and crispy, 5 to 8 minutes. 

Williamsburg Bridge {New York City}

 

It may not be as famous or as picturesque as the Brooklyn Bridge, but the Williamsburg Bridge is a nice alternative trip to the now-crowded Brooklyn Bridge. Walking the Williamsburg Bridge takes you from South Williamsburg to Manhattan’s Lower East Side.

On the Brooklyn side, the Williamsburg Bridge has two separate entrances to the bridge: one for pedestrians and one for bike riders. The lanes aren’t side by side like they are on the Brooklyn Bridge. Word of advice, and this is mainly to the pedestrians, make sure you’re on the correct side. The cyclists travel fast, it’s dangerous to be in their lane, and they will let you know that you are an idiot (that's putting it mildly...usually f***ing idiot or something involving the f-bomb is more like it) for walking on their side.

Other suggestions:

• Be sure to wear comfortable walking shoes. The incline to get on the Williamsburg Bridge is steep, the walkway is made of concrete, and you are most likely walking to a destination. Make sure your feet feel good. High heels aren't a smart choice. Cute, yes; smart, no.

• Remember to bring your camera. Looking downtown, you will see the Brooklyn Bridge. Looking uptown, you’ll see all of midtown and the magnificent Manhattan skyline. Look back and you’ll see Williamsburg and the graffitied buildings next to the bridge. And be sure to look at the bridge. The graffiti artists are quite bold in the placement of their art. It is everywhere!

Nice to know...

Graffiti spanning the bridge

I took a big risk taking a pic at the end of the bike lane.
This guy almost ran me over!

Brooklyn Bridge {New York City}

The Brooklyn Bridge is one of the most famous and magnificent landmarks in New York City. It spans the East River and connects the boroughs of Manhattan and Brooklyn.

Traffic going to Brooklyn

The Brooklyn Bridge walk is about 1.3 miles long so use some common sense as you take this memorable stroll.

It has designated pedestrian and bicycle lanes. If you are a pedestrian, STAY IN THE PEDESTRIAN LANE. Most of the bicyclists are not leisurely riding. They are on a mission to get to the other side and if you are in their lane, they will yell and cuss at you. The bicyclists are not nice if you’re in their space.  

Everyone's staying on their side

Since it is a long walk, wear comfortable walking shoes. High heels are always cute but they don’t work on this walk. Small heels get caught in the planks of wood.

Beautiful views are everywhere so DON’T FORGET YOUR CAMERA! Take time to admire the Brooklyn and Manhattan skylines, the Statue of Liberty, and New York Harbor. Notice the massive cables that hold this bridge up, look up at the tower to see the American flag blowing in the breeze, be amazed where graffiti artists have tagged the bridge, smile at the love locks along the way, and just be glad that you are walking rather than being in the traffic madness below you.

The cables and Old Glory

The love locks

Brooklyn, traffic and love locks

The beautiful Manhattan skyline

Daffodilmania

This past winter was long and brutally cold. The dogs did not want to go out and romp in the snow. Ice crystals decorated the windows in the house. I lost count of the number of times the driveway had to be shoveled and I thought my ugly UGGS would be permanently molded to my feet.

"No matter how long the winter, spring is sure to follow."  

The earliest burst of spring color, daffodil yellow, trumpets spring's arrival. This is no caution light; spring is here...good bye winter. And in beautiful Oakwood, 1 1/2 acres filled with over 160,000 daffodils scream, "Hello Spring!" to the winter-weary.

What a beautiful sight this is for tired-of-looking-at-winter-grays eyes! It's a sea of sunshine. Cars drive by slowly to catch this happy yellow moment, walkers stand at the curb and take in the dramatic yellow landscape.

But spring in Ohio means one day it can be 80 degrees, people wear shorts and cut the grass, then it snows the next...

Under the giving snow blossoms a daring spring. ~Terri Guillemets

The snow was short-lived, but here long enough for people to take some beautiful snow photos. After one day of snow, the daffodils popped back up strong as ever to have people once again slow down in their cars and for the walkers to congregate along the curb. As William Shakespeare said, "April hath put a spirit of youth in everything."

Think Pink!

"Pink isn't just a color, it's an attitude." ~ author unknown

Meet a bathroom with some SERIOUS attitude...

Hubs and I went to Findlay to visit his parents. We had half a tank of gas when we left Dayton, which is plenty to make the 100 mile trip. The general rule is that as you travel north, the gas gets a little less expensive, so we watched the gas prices as we drove. 

Just south of Lima on I-75, Exit 120, we saw a sign for gas at $3.21. (It was $3.47 in Dayton). We pulled into the station, I went in to get a cup of coffee and to use the bathroom. 

And my eyes were bombarded with PINK! Did someone paint the bathroom with Pepto-Bismol? That is the color of this bathroom. 

The light switch is pink, the soap is pink, and even the graffiti on the bathroom door is pink.

Just makes me wonder, is the Men's room painted blue? Hubs will have to check that out next time we stop.

Shawnee Fuel Stop

1250 W. Breese Road

Lima, OH

Resolutions

Thanksgiving to New Year's Eve...roughly six weeks of loosening our self-discipline and our belt buckles. From turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy and stuffing, to frequent parties with all kinds of yummy hors d'oeuvres and drinks, to Christmas cookies and egg nog, it's an eating celebration with few regrets.

Until January 1.

It's a new year and time to get back to a more disciplined life. Here come the resolutions: Go on a diet, get organized, quit smoking, start an exercise program, etc., etc., etc....

Been there, done that, too many times, except for the quit smoking. (I've never smoked).

People tend to create resolutions as a punishment for their over-indulgent behavior, but a person can endure punishment for only so long. People also tend to create resolutions that are too big and broad, and those are hard to meet. And then it's February 1 and the resolutions have gone by the wayside.

I have found that taking a closer look into my life and making smaller, more specific resolutions, success comes more easily. My 2014 resolutions:

READ
Five books are on my reading table:

• Quiet by Susan Cain. It's about being an introvert in a world that can't stop talking.
• My Life in France by Julia Child. Julia Child was a woman who dove into an unfamiliar culture, embraced it, and pursued a passion.
• Inferno by Dan Brown. Brown's 4th book with symbology expert Robert Langdon.
• Cooked by Michael Pollan. How food improves health, connects us with others and the natural world, helps us achieve self-sufficiency.
• Jerusalem by Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi. A cookbook with beautiful photos, stories, and recipes. Reading and cooking all in one!

FINISH THE AFGHAN

My nephew graduated from high school in May and is now a freshman at Ohio State. I started a hairpin lace afghan right before he graduated with the goal of completing it for his birthday in July. Didn't happen. So then the date of completion was set for when he left for OSU in September. Nope. Christmas. Not finished. It's going to be a good project for this winter and will be done by the time he completes his freshman year.

CROSS SOMETHING OFF MY BUCKET LIST

Actually, I don't call it my bucket list; it's my living list. On my birthday in September, I resolved to do 56 new things before turning 57. I've done 20 so far.

BE MORE DILIGENT WITH MY BLOG

Last year I made 65 posts in House Dust and Wanderlust. My goal for 2014 is 100.

WEAR MORE COLORFUL CLOTHING

I wear a lot of black. It's a go-to when I can't decide what to wear. Particularly for spring and summer, I want to have bright, fun colors in my wardrobe.

RUN A HALF MARATHON

Last year, one of my resolutions was to participate in an organized athletic event and I ran in the Air Force Marathon's 10K. My daughter wants me to run a half marathon with her. 13 miles seems like a long, long way, but I will do it...I CAN do it. 

LEAVE THE COUNTRY

In 2010, hubs and I went to Italy to celebrate our 30th anniversary and ever since then I have be dying to go back to Europe. I have so many possible itineraries planned! As fate would have it, my sister who travels internationally for her job, called and asked me if I wanted to go to Madrid in March! ¡Sí, sí, sí!

New Year's resolutions offer hopefulness and are about embracing the present, the here and now. 

"Approach the new year with resolve to find the opportunities hidden in each new day."

~ Michael Josephson

Happy 2014!

Smallest Post Office in the U.S. {Ochopee, FL}

On our way to Key West, traveling along U.S. 41 in south Florida, skirting Everglades National Park and hoping to see an alligator, Hubs and I buzzed right past this little building, a U. S. post office. We looked at each other and said, "We gotta go back and check this out!" So we pulled a u-turn down the road and went back to see what this little building in the middle of nowhere was all about.

The historical marker gives the story: The building was an irrigation pipe shed for a tomato farm. In 1953, a fire burned down the general store and post office, so the post master turned this building into the post office and has been in service ever since then.

This post office measure approximately 7 x 8 feet, offers all the postal services, and serves a three-county area with a route 132 miles long.

Small building, big delight...ahhh, roadside America!

Bruce Munro: Light

Bruce Munro is a British artist best known for immersive large scale light-based installations. His Light exhibit opened at the Franklin Park Conservatory in Columbus, OH on September 25 and will be there until February 2014. In the United States, Munro has found that botanical gardens provide the scale that he needs for his outdoor pieces. 

People of all age groups were in attendance. Quite a few children were there because their art teachers at school had told them about Light. Hubs and I got there around 9:00. It was a beautiful, clear, cool night and we were some of the last visitors to leave.

"You need a medium to find yourself and to explain things to other people, and light happens to be mine." ~ Bruce Munro

Light Shower is in in Himalayan Mountain Biome at the Conservatory. As visitors follow a meandering path over a bridge and past a waterfall, over 1000 tear drop lights hang above, creating a mass of raindrops in suspended animation.

"Eden Blooms is a hybrid creation that has evolved from a number of design concepts. But it was during a visit to the Rainforest Biome of Franklin Park Conservatory that the idea of creating an exotic, illuminated bloom was formally sown!" ~ Bruce Munro

Chindi hangs in the spaciously expansive Desert Biome. "Dust devils came into my mind and I decided to give form to these ephemeral vortexes also called Chindi." 

Over 100 individual fluorescent hang above the lush tropical vegetation in the Pacific Island Water Garden Biome. Appropriately named Lightning Storm, these tubes flash and are accompanied by rolls of thunder.

Icos makes its debut at Franklin Park Conservatory. This suspended piece contains 361 glass spheres and two miles of optical fiber.

Beacon is a dome covered in 2730 plastic bottles. Visitors can view the glowing hemisphere up close and in the round. 

A trip to Australia inspired Munro to create Field of Light. This landscape-scale installation is in the Sculpture Garden. 2750 lighted glass spheres on slender stems rise from the ground and softly glow with pulses of colored light. Crickets chirp, colors flow like ocean waves...mesmerizing, peaceful.

Five Giant Snowballs are suspended in the Grand Atrium. Each cluster of 127 glass spheres glows with an ever-changing parade of colored light.

Twelve Water-Towers are connected to light projectors and audio systems which causes them to respond to the music to create an ever-changing rhythm of colorful light. These towers are created from over 3000 one-liter plastic bottles.

In this playful exhibit, Whizz Pops, 45 glowing spheres are situated on the Zen Terrace. They look like they are filled with illuminated bubbles.

 

Sunflowers

Dayton to and from Columbus is an hour and a half drive each way, dealing with traffic and passing through mostly farm land. I don't mind the farm land...it's very pleasant...but the traffic, UGH. Lots of trucks, lots of people who place themselves in the left lane and then refuse to move, lots of incredibly fast drivers, lots of construction. (Orange should be Ohio's state color in honor of the construction barrels that are all over our interstates).

On a return trip from Columbus, rather than taking the usual I-70 to I-675, I took Route 68, a two-lane highway that goes past Young's Jersey Dairy (yummy ice cream) and through the picturesque, artsy town of Yellow Springs. Just north of Yellow Springs is a sunflower farm with the most breath-taking view: an ocean of yellow highlighted by the sun and bright blue Indian summer sky. 

Magnificent...and on the road less taken ~