Into the wild

Do not anticipate trouble or worry about what may never happen. Keep in the sunlight. 
—Ben Franklin


Early afternoon, we hit the trail which was lush with dense, green foliage. Our goal was to walk the trail for 4 miles. After an hour, we were sweltering in the heat. I captured these along the way — wild mushroom and poison {don’t touch!} ivy.

Later that day, we took a trip to Fulton and serendipitously ran into Rick, an old colleague and interesting machinist. He gave us a tour of his unique home and creations.

Rick’s lamp made out of an air filter {shade}, electrical bits, and gears. How clever is that?

One of the bikes that Rick built from scratch.

The party bus. Rick converted an old bus into an RV, souped up for road tripping with 19 friends. Wild indeed.
{Ren Reiske © All Rights Reserved} 

The Loop

Pre- and post-concert goodness at the Loop.

When you’re having a bad day. Chew. Thank you, creative Jenn for fun gum, cool cow, awesome bag, and saving me when I’m directionally-challenged.

Pre-concert nosh at Cicero’s. Super Pig pizza, Two Hearted Ale, and the traditional “T” {thanks Ry, for not breaking tradition}

My first time at The Pageant.

Kayak’s serving Kaldi’s turtle latte and Banff sandwich — turkey, proscuitto, gruyere cheese on grilled farmer’s bread. Utterly delicious. {Ren Reiske © All Rights Reserved}

BadA$$

My $12 find at The Candy Factory {why do I love it so?}. The ring was with the other Halloween goodies, but something this cool can be worn every day. I want, I bought.

zoom-zoom

{Ren Reiske © All Rights Reserved}

It started with tires, new battery, one window, then another window, and another, the back door, the fourth window, radiator … and now, quite possibly, the transmission. The Gods were telling me something. It’s time to let go of my JEEP. When I started a new job which required a daily commute, the weekly trips to the gas station put a nice dent in my pocketbook. Another sign. When the transmission began to show signs of trouble, it was time to move on. 

After figuring out our budget, checking reports on gas-efficient cars and loitering through car lots looking for the one, we found it. zoom-zoom. I am admittedly, the least knowledgeable when it comes to cars, but I know what I like when I see it. Not to mention, the Bluetooth which allows me to talk on my phone without the use of my hands is quite NICE. I think I’m in love. Let’s hope this is one, long {low-maintenance} lasting relationship.

hiatus

tshirt: wordboner.com

Twelve under $25

True confession: I have not even started to shop for the holidays. As I browse for ideas, I find items which I am particularly fond of. Finding items I covet under $25 is easy for me because I’m pragmatic when it comes to gifts. If I really want something, I will save up for it. But here are a few finds that I thought were worth sharing (click on item for source) : 

1) 2 carat cup. This caught my eye because that’s exactly how my wedding band looks. 2) Calm bottle and band-aids (Paper Source and Urban Outfitters). We all need a little CALM. 

3) Anthropologie cloth-bound books. Beautiful and classic. 

4) Rock Rebel belt buckle. Just because it’s cool. 5) Acoustic guitar ornament. Every ornament should have a special meaning from that year. This one’s mine. 6) Fandango movie card. 

7) KOL live concert DVD. This one is on MY wish list. It’s a little bit over $25 but they threw in a t-shirt for good measure. A must for Kings of Leon fans. 8) Hugh Grant compilation DVD. I have all four DVDs and nothing gets rid of feeling blue faster than Hugh. 

9) Bjork Voltaic CD. Genius. 10) Henri Bendel candles. Firewood and Amber smell delicious together.

11) American Eagle plaid shirt and 12) Old Navy plaid scarf Everyone’s mad about plaid. What are YOUR favorite finds?

Little O

I received this special gift — I call it my “O” necklace — from a dear friend of mine. I wear it often and recently brought it back to Poppy  for a small repair. To my surprise, the jewelry designer Kelly Baldwin, included these delicate earrings for my trouble. Such a sweet, simple gesture, along with beautiful art, I just had to share! More of her designs here .