It's probably hard to go to California and not do any shopping. I took full advantage of the stores available to me while I was there. (My eyes and feet got a better workout than my wallet, thankfully.) Shopping in southern California offered some different experiences than I'm used to in central Indiana.
The Island Hotel was a 10-minute walk from a large mall, Fashion Island. The proximity was fantastic, because I ended up with an extra day in limbo between work meetings and vacation, and I was able to spend part of the day at the mall, without need for a vehicle. Anchor stores included Macy's, Nordstrom, Bloomingdale's and Neiman Marcus. Walkways and entries to each store were outdoors, which is one area that differed from many shopping malls in Indiana. In the last ten years, we've actually seen new and renovated malls move toward this outdoor model, but the weather in Newport Beach is definitely more pleasant for outdoor walking year-round.
If I were to pick one scent that best memorialized my trip, it would be that of the plentiful Night-Blooming Jasmine. It was a favorite of landscapers all over Newport Beach and San Diego. Its small, white flowers give off a wonderful perfume each evening, so walks to and from the mall, and dinners on landscaped restaurant patios, were accented by this beautiful scent. I intended to find a candle or lotion in this scent to bring home with me, but didn't find one that hit the mark. I'll have to keep searching from home.
I could get used to malls that came with views like this!
I'm fully willing to attribute it more to the specific areas I was in, but I did notice that national retail chains were much more easy to find than locally owned, artisan shops and boutiques in California. When vacation officially started, we spent a day in La Jolla, and even the main shopping district there catered much more to recognizable retail labels. I missed that personal touch, and it was especially noticeable if you mentally compared it to Asheville, NC or Saugatuck, MI.
One of my favorite aspects of shopping in southern California was this: dogs were everywhere! Man's best friend was the shopper's best friend, and they were welcome inside all stores I saw. Many stores even had water bowls out on the sidewalk or inside the front door for these four-legged friends. Perhaps this openness has to do with the more outdoor-living culture. The terrier in the photo below wouldn't be seen inside a Banana Republic in Indianapolis unless he was wearing a service-dog vest.
The dog-lover in me really enjoyed seeing all these little friends out on the town. It did make me miss Buster, though!
You probably have a travel wish-list: a list of places you want to visit and see for the first time—or maybe a second or fifth time. Mine includes lots of European and Mediterranean destinations, but it also includes dozens of places within North America. (Not the least of which is a goal to visit all 50 states.) California has always held a spot near the top of that must-see list. The stars aligned for me this year, and I got the opportunity to travel to southern California for a business trip, which I extended by a few days and turned into a vacation. I'll share my adventures with you over the next few weeks!
I've wanted to see California for many reasons: various natural landscapes from north to south, including Redwood National Forest and Yosemite National Park in the north and central regions of the state, and Death Valley and the coastal beaches in the south; city landscapes and environments like San Francisco and San Diego; an abundance of fresh, local, and organic food (year-round!); and the promise of daily weather forecasts that rarely stray from sunshine and 70-75°F.
Two of my clients at work have headquarters in San Diego and Brea, CA. We've been working with them for about a year and a half, but with the wonders of telephone + Internet communication, we've never before really had the opportunity to head west and drop by for a face-to-face meeting. That all came together last month, though, so I flew into San Diego with two of my colleagues for a couple whirlwind meetings just after Memorial Day.
Our first night, we stayed in La Jolla, a northern suburb of San Diego, at the Estancia Hotel. This destination hotel and spa had some of the most beautiful landscaping I'd ever seen, which not only gave us a fragrant, gorgeous walk to and from our rooms, but it gave the property a private, quiet, secluded feel. In a testament to the year-round nice weather, all rooms were accessed by outside doors, and to get to our rooms, we had to cross a couple interior courtyards. Wouldn't it be nice if all sidewalks looked like this?
I immediately felt transported to a different lifestyle when we entered the lobby to check in and were offered complimentary water (with cucumber, of course) or champagne. Relaxation and pampering were the name of the game at this hotel.
I was personally more entranced by the flora that I'm not accustomed to seeing in the Midwest. So the first thing I did after dropping off my luggage in my room was grab my camera and wander the grounds of the hotel.
We only got the chance to spend one night in this hotel, because the next day was filled with client meetings and a trip to Brea, a suburb of Los Angeles, about 1.5 hours north of San Diego.
We toured the client campus there, and I particularly loved the fact that they had lemon trees growing all across the grounds. They had a bowl of fresh lemons in the lobby that had just been picked that morning (and were the size of a softball), and employees are welcome to pick their fill any time. How great is that?
More and more companies are embracing things like on-site farmers markets (this company has one weekly in the summer), healthier foods, community-supported agriculture, etc. I'd love to have a company garden that included fresh citrus! What about you?
Happy June to you! If I had to pick a favorite month of the year, June would be it. And not just because I happened to be born in this month. It's the beginning of summer, the longest days of the year, the beautiful weather, the green and bountiful vegetation, the growing garden, the outdoor activities with friends... I could go on and on.
Beginning this month, I've embarked on a new venture in the blog world: I am now a Digital Destination Expert for the Hendricks County Convention and Visitors Bureau. Each month, I'll be writing a handful of blog posts that highlight events, activities, sights, and features of the county I call home. I'm very excited about it! I'll be writing about just about any topic that strikes my fancy, but I'm specifically the go-to person on the team for Arts & Culture and Girlfriend Getaways.
My debut post is now up. Check out the preview below, then click through to read the rest. I hope you'll follow along. And please send me ideas, if you have any!
One of my favorite things to do during the warm-weather months is meet a friend for an evening walk. After a long day of sitting at a desk, I love getting the chance to socialize, breathe some fresh air and exercise at the same time.
Whether you’re looking for an easy stroll, a scenic hike, or a day out with your family, you’ll find hundreds of acres of green space in every corner of Hendricks County. Take a deep breath and stretch your legs at these five must-see spots. Read more...
I'm endlessly fascinated by the range of design or form you can see in flowers.
All flowers—and each part of the flower—serves a purpose. But some blossoms are relatively simple in design and color, like a crocus, poppy, or even dandelion (yes, it's a flower, too), while others, like the bleeding hearts pictured below, or these irises, zinnias, and stargazer lilies have intricate shapes and color variations.
I love how it demonstrates such an intelligence in nature. It's easy to just look at a flower and think, "Pretty!", but when was the last time you really got in close and looked at it? I count at least four different colors in each of these bleeding heart blossoms.
Apples are, hands-down, one of my favorite fruits. I love how versatile they are, whether you want to eat one all by itself, in a salad, in oatmeal, as dessert, with peanut butter, or cooked low and slow into homemade apple butter.
I also love that you can find decent apples in the grocery store during many months of year. Unlike strawberries or tomatoes, which are more delicate and have zero flavor outside their natural growing season, it seems like apples are a little heartier and are still worth eating.
Though nothing is better than fresh apples, grown locally, and picked just hours or days before.
We have another five months to wait in central Indiana before that time comes back around, though, so I'm content to enjoy the blossoms on the tree for now.
When it comes to cherries, my favorite way to eat them is fresh, straight off the tree. The best place to eat cherries is standing next to the tree, so you can eat the fruit within seconds of picking it.
You can't get food much fresher than that!
This small white blossom is only about 1.5" in diameter. It bloomed on my parents' cherry tree, a tree that produces small, tart cherries. When I was growing up, we had a huge cherry tree that was sadly toppled by a strong thunderstorm. This tree is its replacement, and it's doing well, though it's definitely an exercise in patience while we all wait for it to grow. It currently produces enough cherries for only about one cherry crisp each year.
Tart cherries are harder to find in stores than sweet or Bing cherries, because they aren't cultivated as often and tend to be more delicate and not do as well in transit. As a result, many people have probably never had tart cherries—but there's really nothing like them.
In the Midwest, Michigan is known for producing tart cherries. Traverse City, where Mom and I vacationed last summer, has an annual Cherry Festival that attracts thousands of visitors. The cherries were just starting to ripen when we were there (and we specifically skipped town before the festival craziness), so we were a week or two too early to try fresh, local Michigan cherries.
We weren't too early—or too late—for the good wine, though! I'll just have to make a trip back to catch cherry season again in the future.
My dress was this shade of pink. I remember loving that it was different than the prom dresses I usually saw on my classmates. Mine was a two-piece dress with a slim, straight cut, while big, frilly princess-style ball gowns seemed to be more common. I felt beautiful in it.
After a very unusual Indiana winter—which technically doesn't end until later this week—that was filled with warm temperatures and little snow, spring has come a little early! In fact, for the last week, it's felt more like mid-May than anything. High temperatures at or near 80 degrees, sunny skies... I'm the last person you'll find complaining, though it's a bit disconcerting. I hope it doesn't come back around to bite us later.
The crocus and daffodils in my yard are up and brilliantly blooming, and I can't pass them by!
I had my wisdom teeth taken out last Friday, so I spent the weekend recovering at my parents' house. I had some flexibility with scheduling the procedure, and I'd initially thought about choosing a weekend in May or June, so I could lounge on their screened porch and enjoy lots of fresh air. I eventually decided to just get it done and over with—and I never would have thought that St. Patrick's Day weekend would be just as nice as one in May!
When I felt like getting up and strolling around the yard, I visited their magnolia bushes, hyacinths, and an interesting tree stump.
I couldn't have asked for a better weekend to recover from the surgery. I'm now on the mend and am looking forward to eating normally again.
Happy New Year! It's hard to believe that we've begun yet another year on the calendar, and it's time to get back to work after the holidays.
Today I want to share with you one of my favorite go-to meals for this time of year. It's a versatile dish I affectionately call a warm salad.
I started eating these a couple years ago when I found this recipe for a Cous Cous Salad with Winter Squash and Cranberries at TheKitchn. To be honest, I've never actually made the recipe exactly as written (which is not uncommon for me). But it's endlessly variable when you step back and look at the essential ingredients. What you'll need:
A whole grain, to form your base. In the original recipe, it's cous cous. I have brown rice a lot, and I've also had this with quinoa (with great success), buckwheat and millet, to name a few. Pick your favorite and go with it.
A vegetable. Lately I've been using lots of sweet potatoes/yams, but I highly recommend butternut squash and beets, too. I've had it with broccoli, cauliflower, and other squashes, as well.
Protein, usually in the form of nuts or beans. Again, pick your favorite, or what sounds good that day, and go with it.
Fruit, whether dried or fresh.
A little cheese, if you like. Feta is my favorite.
And dressing. The original recipe has a dressing included, but I most often have this with an Italian vinaigrette.
Once you have all those items on hand, you're ready to get to work! Here's my method:
Whole grain: I like to fix a batch of whole grain and have enough on hand for several meals during the week. Try this super-easy baked brown rice from Alton Brown. It's amazing. You'll need a 1/2 cup or so of cooked grain for one serving.
Next, add your vegetable. Sweet potatoes and yams are easily cooked one at a time in the microwave like a baked potato. Depending on the size, I usually use about half of one sweet potato for one serving. Roasted beets are great, too. Whatever you pick, cook it (or warm up your leftovers) and add it to the whole grain.
Next, add your fruit. Apples are readily available right now, and they make a wonderful combination with both sweet potatoes and beets. I'm generous with the apples, so I usually dice one small apple for one serving.
I mentioned that my favorite cheese to use is feta. In the picture above, I've used feta cheese made from goat's milk. For the last year, I've reduced my dairy intake, and in many cases (milk in my tea, little bits of cheese), I reach for goat's milk as an alternative. The nutritionist I worked with last year recommended it for me primarily because you'll find lower levels of hormones in goat's milk as compared to traditional cow's milk. I've gotten used to it and really like this feta, which I get at Whole Foods.
Voila! A versatile, warm, satisfying meal that is easy to throw together on a week night after work. I made this for my mom a couple months ago for the first time, and she's now hooked, too. Enjoy!
Let's start this post with a little two-question poll:
1. Have you ever bought, opened, and eaten a fresh pomegranate? a. Yes b. No c. Maybe, but I'm so consumed with holiday stress that I can't remember what I had for breakfast this morning.
2. If you have at least attempted to open and eat a fresh pomegranate, did you think it was (multiple answers are allowed): a. Interesting, fun, intriguing b. Tasty c. More work than it was worth d. A mess that left me and/or my kitchen covered in red juice e. Too intimidating; it went bad before I got to it
Until last year, I would have answered B to number one and E to number two. Then, after watching an inspiring episode (as I find so many to be!) of Alton Brown's Good Eats, I braved the task of opening this mysterious red fruit and was hooked.
Many people just associate pomegranates with the curvy bottles of juice on the grocery shelf but have never had fresh arils (unless perhaps they came atop a fancy dish at a fancy restaurant). I was talking to a desk-neighbor at work one day last week, and she offhandedly mentioned that she doesn't like fresh pomegranates and finds them to be more work than they're worth.
Here's my trick: I buy multiples at a time (usually about three), spend a few minutes opening all of them up at once, then store the separated arils in the fridge for easy access. Stored in an airtight container with a damp paper towel on top, the arils will keep for several weeks.
You can juice them and make your own fresh pomegranate juice (I haven't taken it that far), cook with them (haven't honestly done that yet, either), or just enjoy them in their delicious fresh state. My favorite ways to use them involve sprinkling handfuls on:
- Salads
- Coleslaw
- Greek yogurt
- Ice cream
If you've never tried a fresh pomegranate before, do it! They're in season now and can be easily found at your neighborhood grocery store.
If you have tried them, what did you think? What are your favorite ways to use or eat them?
Great gifts for the sewing, knitting and crocheting fanatics on your list
It takes a long time for me to get a new item to the point where I'm ready to launch it, because I want to plan everything correctly and make sure it's perfect before the baby bird leaves the nest. Because of that, it's incredibly exciting when I get to the point where it's ready!
The idea for these two new items started more than three years ago. If you've been following this blog for any length of time, you've probably noticed that I have an incredibly talented mom. She sews.She knits.She crochets. She cooks. You name it, the woman can do it—or teach herself how—and it's awe-inspiring.
She's been sewing and crocheting since she was a kid, and she taught herself to knit several years ago. These hobbies aren't just a passing fad in her life, either—they've become ways for her to make unique hand-made gifts for friends and family every year.
That adds up to a lot of projects over time!
Because of that, when everyone's birthdays rolled around, or the holidays approached, she had to spend time racking her brain to remember what she made for them the year before, three years ago, five years ago... not an easy feat by any stretch of the imagination.
So, three years ago for Christmas, I made her a journal that she could use to keep track of her sewing projects. I used one of my photos for the front, created lined pages for project information inside, and bound the journal myself.
She loved it! As soon as all the gifts under the tree had been opened and the bits of flying ribbon and paper settled to the floor, she started logging her recent projects. It's become an invaluable resource for her.
She needed the same thing for her knitting projects, too, so I made a similar journal—but with different, specialized lines inside—for her for Christmas last year.
All her crafty friends started asking for them, and that brings me to today!
Both of which have pages inside with room for 64 different projects. If you (or the sewer, knitter, or crocheter on your list) make one new item a week for a year, there's still some extra room for more!
A journal like this becomes a scrapbook, a resource, and a place to recognize accomplishments. Heck, you could even consider it stress relief!
I'm so excited to have these ready for you now. These two journals have been in development for a long time, and I know they'll be something you or the crafty person on your list will really love.
Visit my Etsy shop to see both the sewing and knitting / crocheting project journals in more detail (with more photos of each).
I went to the Indiana Life Sciences Summit a couple weeks ago for work, and the keynote speaker shared some really interesting stories about what's new and exciting in the industry.
I wrote a blog post about it for the company blog, and you can check it out there. Then come back and let me know what stories you found most intriguing or exciting (or scary or disturbing, if you want to go that route)!
After a big week and bigger weekend, I'm on vacation this week (picture me throwing my hands up in the air with a big grin on my face). This vacation is as much stay-cation as anything, and I love that. Sometimes it's great to just have some extra time to catch up with your to-do list and take it easy!
While I have the chance to sit at home in my cozy wool slippers, I want to share with you some of my favorite websites that in many ways offer a mental vacation of their own.
Let's start with some shopping sites, which is especially relevant now that we've passed Halloween and all the retailers have officially pushed us into the holiday shopping season.
Etsy
Unique. Thoughtful. Inspired. Independent. If these are qualities you like in a gift (whether it's a gift for yourself or for a friend), then you need to be shopping at Etsy. Etsy calls itself "the world's handmade marketplace," and its mission is "to empower people to change the way the global economy works."
Etsy is an online community of independent sellers who make or sell unique handmade or vintage items and supplies. It offers people like me a chance to set up an online shop with very little initial investment but reach a global audience. Not only that, but it's an amazing community, as well—sellers actively discuss business topics and share insight and experience with their fellow Etsians from around the world.
Shop by keyword search, categories, color, curated treasuries of related items, and even by geographic area—so you can find sellers in your own community. And that's the very best way to support your local economy. Shopping on Etsy will remind you of how nice a "personal touch" really is.
Zappos
On the flip side, I also love some big, huge retailers. Call that what you will, but I do believe we can have the best of both worlds!
When it comes to shopping online for shoes, bags, and even clothing, it's hard to beat Zappos. You'll be hard-pressed to find a better selection of brands and products, but even with such a large quantity of items, the site is clean and easy to navigate. My favorite part: free shipping both ways. So forget the challenges of buying shoes online, knowing that you have to try them on. Read the customer reviews, order a couple sizes of the same pair, try them on at home, then return the ones that don't fit.
And if you ever have an issue, Zappos is known for its top-notch customer service, and I can personally attest to it. It won't feel like you're dealing with a faceless monster retailer.
Dropbox
Let's change gears, and I'll share some sites that help with organization and productivity.
Dropbox is a simple site that acts like a virtual USB drive. Create a free account, and you get an online storage space for files, and you don't have to tote around a USB drive or disc. If you're like me, and you have a computer at home and one at work, it makes accessing a file you need in both places very easy.
But that's only the beginning. Say you want to share a file with a friend (or multiple friends), but it's too large to email. Put it in your Dropbox public folder, then send them the link to the file, and they can download it.
If you have a smartphone, it gets even better, because you can download an app and access all your files from your phone, too.
Simple idea, but very handy.
Google Reader
If you follow more than a handful of blogs, then you should check out Google Reader. It makes following blogs easy, simple and organized. It tells you when a new post has been published, and you can keep up with them from one central page. I also love to use it as my own personally curated search engine, which comes in especially handy when I'm looking for a recipe or information on a particular topic.
Hootsuite Hootsuite is great if you have more than one social media account, i.e. Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. You can update your status on each network, read your friends' updates, and schedule posts ahead of time. Since I have a personal Facebook profile, a.e.miller photography Facebook page, Twitter account, LinkedIn account, and staying on top of social media is important for my job, it's been very helpful.
Wikipedia
Anyone who spends time searching for information online knows what Wikipedia is, but it wasn't until I heard founder Jimmy Wales speak at a recent conference that I really started appreciating it.
The site is run by a nonprofit organization, the Wikimedia Foundation, with only 70 employees—but it boasts nearly 20 million articles in 270 different languages (200 of which have at least 1,000 articles in that language). It's the fifth most popular website in the world. Its mission is to provide free access to information for everyone in their own language.
Wikipedia runs on an openly editable model that allows people of all ages, cultures and backgrounds to create and edit content. It relies on the knowledge of the community who are constantly updating it.
Wales spoke passionately about the importance of making sure people around the world, of every nationality and situation, have equal access to information. He shared this video that helps to illustrate the power of their mission.
I now feel like I appreciate the site as more than just a quick resource for information. Very inspiring.
Apple Movie Trailers
And finally, how about some pure entertainment?
I love movie trailers. I love that the best clips from each movie are set to music that often gives me goosebumps. I always make sure I get to the theater in time to catch the previews.
The Apple Movie Trailers site is a great repository of new trailers. Whenever I'm looking to just kill a few minutes of time online, this is where I go. Yes, you can find trailers on YouTube and in other places, but in the characteristic way of everything Apple, this site is cleanly designed and easy to navigate. (Do you see a common thread of organization running through the sites that I like?) It's updated regularly, so it's worth going back again and again... and again...
I'll stop there for now. But I want to hear from you: what are some of your favorite websites?
This past weekend, I officially reached one of my life's milestones: my five-year college reunion. Time for Homecoming at Butler.
I met some girlfriends on campus on Saturday afternoon—a gorgeous October day—and we wandered around outside, checking out the scenery to see what had changed. In many ways, it was like time had frozen and we'd never stepped away. In other ways, things have changed enough that it's evident we've moved on with our lives.
This bulldog statue in front of Atherton Union (the centerpiece of thousands of Butler photos) is exactly as it was when I left. But the dedicated spaces for Zip Cars on the west side of the building were new—and I was glad to see them!
I arrived on campus while the actual football game was happening, so the areas of campus not near the football field were quiet and peaceful.
One thing hasn't changed: the boys of campus love a good game of Campus Golf. I never did get a chance to play, but it always looked fun. The rules, as I understand them, are pretty simple: using a golf club, hit a tennis ball from one end of campus to the other. There are designated "holes" along the way (sorority rocks, statues, etc.) that form the course, and you have to hit them with the tennis ball.
These guys were definitely enjoying themselves. With the Homecoming celebration in progress, they may have been having an extra amount of fun with the help of some adult beverages.
I went back to campus on Sunday afternoon for the conclusion of Butler Creates: An Alumni Art Exhibit. I participated in the inaugural year last year, and this year they selected two of my photos for the show! It's an exhibition open to all alumni, and a panel of faculty and board members chose selections from about 25 alumni to hang in Clowes Memorial Hall throughout the month of October.
On Sunday afternoon, the exhibit's finale included an artists' reception and a gallery tour, during which each artist stood with their work, and visitors were able to speak to them about it.
Mom and Grandma came by to say hello while I was there. (And Mom immediately claimed the framed magnolia photo for her house when the show was over.)
It's the time of year when people from miles away flock to the Midwest to see the leaves turn color in their Autumn glory.
For those of us who live in such an area that cycles through four distinct seasons, it's easy to take the change of seasons—and the arrival of fall colors—for granted. Indiana will be seeing its colors peak over the next couple of weeks.
Brown County, in particular, draws thousands of visitors each year who want to witness the change of seasons and perhaps get a start on their Christmas shopping in Nashville. There's even an online Leafcam where you can check the progress of the fall colors as often as your heart desires, from the comfort of your chair at home. Weather.com also has an ever-changing map of the status of fall colors.
People are a little crazy about their fall colors!
As we approach peak, I'm going to be toting my camera around. In the meantime, I caught these late-blooming flowers—a petunia above, and a rose below—that are sending us out of summer in style.
