Constantly fascinated by the world around me. I've got the dreamer's disease... and I believe that a truly happy person is one who can enjoy the scenery on a detour.

I spend most of my time reading, writing, cooking & planning my life on Post-It notes. Music, wine, food, art & travel are my favorite fuel; spending time well wasted.
I began writing this blog because I think that every day we have something to be celebrated, shared, something that sparks creativity, inspiration & ideation.
Although I'm quite optimistic, I'm more judgmental than I'd like to admit. Here's to overturning assumptions.


Wednesday, August 31, 2011

René of the Day // 8.17.11 // Presente dall'Italia


After our trip to England, my mom and my aunt jetted to Italy for the next week to celebrate their 50 birthdays - how fabulous! I certainly envied them. They spent a few days in Rome and a few days in Florence, visiting museums, areas of interest, drinking wine and gorging on pasta, cheese and fresh produce. Surprisingly, they were not overly thrilled with the food. This was sad news to hear, as I think many of us dream of a culinary cruise through Italy, marinating our insides with fine wine and eating until we must be rolled back to our hotels. But it sounded like the trip of a lifetime - of course they saw the Trevi fountain, the Arch of Constantine, the Colosseum and the Leaning Tower of Piza and more...

I visited my mom the week after she came home and she gave me two very sweet gifts - an apron with a really neat illustration of the country of Italy and it's different cities and landmarks painted on the front. And a silver rosary - with little roses for the beads that she bought from a nun at the Vatican. This was such a sweet, thoughtful gift and my mom knows I'm researching the RCIA process and how I admired my grandmother and kept little plastic rosarys in a shoebox at her house as a kid. I have a plastic orange one behind her photo on my desk at home that I got at Gate of Heaven cemetery where she rests.

Below are a few fun photos from their trip and my beloved new rosary.
The rosary - my presente dall'Italia
The vineyard where they enjoyed a wine tasting & dinner
Classic, Kiki!
Arch of Constantine & Colosseum

René of the Day // 8.16.11 // A movie better than the book


This never happens... but I enjoyed a movie better than the book - honest. I'll admit, I tend to be a sucker for the New York Times Best Seller list - aren't we all? You hear the most about them and they're easy to get your hands on - you always know someone who's read them and is happy to hand it off. And so they circulate through your group of friends... and it seems like these days every single hit novel is turned into a movie, so you go to see it with said girlfriends.

I went to see it after work one evening with two gals from the office. I must tell you - I have discovered a great date night - if only MR and I ever spent an entire evening to ourselves in our home town. We're usually rushing from dinner alone or with our families to meeting our friends - it's always exhausting fun and we feel guilty not spending the time with them since he's not home very often. But I digress - one day we will do this! So the new Kenwood movie theatre is across from the mall and right next to Dewey's pizza (my fav & MR has never been!) and Orange Leaf, which is similar to Yagoot but a billion times better. There are 10 flavors of soft serve that change often. You fill your cup, mix and match flavors, then sprinkle on your toppings at the little bar and squirt on a variety of sauces and they weigh your cup. It's fun to build your cool concoction and it's rather inexpensive - and very delicious. Not to mention, the calorie count isn't too bad as far as ice cream goes. So - dinner, ice cream, movie. How perfect? And this theatre is fabulous - they have sushi from Embers, desserts from Frieda's bakery, you can bring anything in and they have a selection of flavored salts to put on your popcorn - caramel, jalapeno, parmesean garlic - I'm generally not a popcorn fan but I had to try a bite of Sid's with that stuff sprinkled on it!

Back to the movie... I read "The Help" a few years ago. It may have been my first year out of college, when I read at least 20+ books at my own leisure. I enjoyed the book but I wasn't rivoted as the people I talked to seemed to be. When I was younger I was always enthralled by the Civil War and the Antebellum south so it was really interesting to see the next generation of culture after chattel slavery was abolished. Even on a Tuesday night, the theatre was full - mostly women - and the entire room laughed, cried and sighed together - which made it a really involved experience. I also loved the involvement of the Junior League since I just joined and to see how it's changed and grown. Also, the product placement was neat to see - all the vintage packaging is pretty cool - and smart of those brands to include themselves.

Another NYT Best Seller that I read a while back and has been turned into a movie is "Water for Elephants." I read it around the same time as "The Help" and if my memory serves me well, I think I liked it a bit more than "The Help." I watched the movie on the plane ride back from Manchester earlier this month and it was very accurate to the book and that made me happy. A good deal of the "The Help" was left out of the movie - like Skeeter's relationship with Stewart - but I liked how it was abbreviated - and the movie was still very long by cinema standards. But Reese Witherspoon is a wonderful actress and it's a close call for another movie that is better than the book.

The bio at the top of my blog says "here's to overturning assumptions." I'm glad I have in the case for books always being better than movies! Right now I'm reading "The Hunger Games" series and I heard they're going to be made into movies too - we'll see if it stands the test.

René of the Day // 8.15.11 // Summer Salad


After a week of gorging and drinking myself 5 pounds heavier in England and a significant decrease in the daily temperature in Cincinnati, I've prepared myself to embrace the late summer loveliness and get "back on track." Yesterday after a 2 mile trail walk with Findlay, I started thinking about how much I miss cooking. Searching for recipes, scanning my pantry ingredients, writing my shopping list and making an adventure for the meal. I love to grocery shop - granted, I go alone, I take my time, I explore new foods and can make all the decisions based on my palate - a small luxury of a young unmarried woman without roommates.

I decided to bring some fresh produce back into this house. After traveling, having MR in town and late nights at the office, I haven't done this in over a month! One of my favorite places to find recipes is Epicurious.com - plus they have a great iPhone app to access when you don't have time to jot down a grocery list. I looked over recipes I'd added to my list to make and found this wonderful summer salad - watermelon, feta & arugula salad with balsamic glaze.

Watermelon is so cheap this time of year! I paid less than $1.50 for half a melon. And I usually modify most recipes I make - so for a little protein and additional sustenance, I grabbed the grilled and diced Tyson chicken packets - I know my mom would scold me for wasting money on these, since boneless skinless breasts are much more cost effective but I couldn't beat the convenience this week, with plans on my calendar every evening. A package of arugula, a package of feta and I was set - I keep whole black pepper to grind, sea salt and balsamic on hand in my pantry.

So simple - chopped everything, threw it in a big red bowl and stirred - absolutely delicious! Crunchy, tangy, sweet, salty, bright... a lovely combination of fresh flavors, beautiful colors and great textures. And as with most foods made with balsamic, I think it will be even better tomorrow after a night marinating in the fridge. And the best part - it includes servings of fruit, veggies, protein & dairy. This has easily become a fast favorite - it would be perfect for a party or BBQ.

View the original recipe here.

René of the Day // 8.14.11 // Reds vs. Pirates with Nashvillians!


Saturday five of our friends visited from Nashville - the Elrod's who just had Baby Ellie Rose in February and were away from her for the first time - and Justin and his girlfriend Haley and Kenny. We met at Vale's and continued to drain his kegerator... then hopped in cabs and headed to Fountain Square to show them a slice of Cincinnati.

We grabbed beers and coneys on the Square - and I'm not sure what the hell they put in the hot sauce at that Skyline stand but it's at least 4 levels hotter than the sauce in the restaurants - God dog, I had tears in my eyes - it was seriously painful sauce! It was fun to see how excited the Elrod's were for a big night out since becoming parents - evidently this was a group of wild ones in college at the University of Tennessee and I really enjoyed hearing all their crazy stories and memories, per usual lol

We spilt up between Vale's seasons ticket seats - we let the out-of-towners take the good Castellini seats behind home plate and we sat in the Kroger bleachers - it was a blast but it's a bummer to miss the scoreboard entertainment since you're sitting right underneath it. The game ended 13-1 - I've never been to a ball game with so many homeruns & fireworks - just amazing! I hadn't been to a game this season since Opening Day in April and another that week so I was stoked. I even brought a pack of Big League Chew bubble gum... MR wore his #11 Barry Larkin tshirt that the boys got him for his birthday - with "Mr. Brunelle" on the back - awesome! Haha I was thrilled that he actually wore it to the game without being coaxed, too cute.

After the game we went the new Holy Grail - oh college memories of the Clifton location with the blueberry beer - which you have to eat because they soak up all the alcohol and you can't let them win! From there we went to Yesterday's in Mt. Adams and the rest of the night was a hot mess. I believe one of the crew was kicked out for falling asleep on the bar - not naming names! - and MR & I stayed a bit later to chat with our recently engaged friends Lori and Andy and also Kelley and Liz who came to meet up with us. Since it was like herding cats by the end of the night, we just grabbed a cab, got McDonald's - where I think MR ordered every chicken item on the menu - and went home to crash... I wish we'd seen everyone more during and after the game but on nights like that, you just have to roll with it. Glad they enjoyed their trip to Cincinnati and had a hell of a good time at the game - go Redlegs!
#11 Barry Larkin-Brunelle jersey - AMAZING :)
Kenny - best birthday gift idea ever!

Check out that Crest Kid smile! And Vale is a creep.
Awesome!
New parents planking at Holy Grail!
Liz & Kelley met us at Yesterday's :)

Monday, August 22, 2011

René of the Day // 8.13.11 // Goin' to the zoo, zoo, zoo!

Continuing in my quest to make the most of summer hours, and taking advantage of MR having a Friday off of work, we spent Friday afternoon at the Cincinnati Zoo! I hadn't been since last summer when my sister took my mom and I to Wild About Wine for our birthdays. I don't think he'd been there since grade school and we doubted there'd be many more opportunities to go without a stroller and we had a great time!

Although the weather was much nicer than it has been lately - it was under 90 and there was a breeze - most of the animals were sleeping - lazy bones. MR's favorite was the white tiger - he had memories of when they used to bring them to the Bengals game in a cage when we were kids. I loved a little baby monkey who kept running up to the glass and entertaining us - so cute! He was trying to interact with a little toddler boy and his stuffed monkey - really neat to watch. Unfortunately we didn't get to see the giraffes, who our friends got to feed when they went on Sunday! - or Gorilla World but it was a really cool way to spend our afternoon together - something we rarely get to experience. He got stuck on a few work calls - typical - so I teased him because he was still pointing out animals to me that I couldn't spot, he was like Crocodile Dundee - and I made a game of our visit - 10 points if you spot an animal sleeping, 50 points if they're doing it, etc. LOL My favorite - the polar bear - was asleep, facing the other way - big ole lug.

After the zoo we went to A Tavola in OTR - a fairly new pizza place with a massive brick oven that was imported from Naples. Loved the bacon and goat cheese bruschetta although I'd expect more than 2 pieces for $8. The fig spread, proscuitto, fontina and arugula pizza was delicious. We'll definitely go back to try the bacon and banana peppers - MR drooled when he saw that one, I'm sure. After dinner we relaxed on our buddys deck and enjoyed his craft beer kegerator... I let the boys chat late and I snuck inside to nap on the couch until we went home. It was nice to have that extra half day together - that must be what it's like to be a "normal" couple ;)
Our baby monkey buddy!
Straight chillin'
MR's favorite

Endangered white lions

René of the Day // 8.12.11 // Muffy

Grandma Brunelle was referred to for quite some time as "Grandma Muffy" because my sister would steal her "ear muffins." Cute huh? And she'd always recite the Little Miss Muffet rhyme to us as little girls. My grandfather, who passed away before I was born, called her the "Mighty Midget." My body built a lot like hers. We lived with her the first few years of my life and we spent every summer with her... She taught me to read at a very young age and fostered my obsession with books; she taught me to swim. She'd scold me for playing in the creek but was always proud of my box of fossils I collected. I love her massive king size bed - we were so little you could roll 5 times without going over the edge, and the two tiger paintings above it. My sister & I would take turns on who got to sleep next to her in the middle. Her house was laid out in a circle and we would run around and around inside... and pretend to swim in her bright blue bath tub.

I kept a shoebox of plastic rosarys and little pamphlets I'd get from her Catholic church, idolizing her faith that I didn't quite understand - but I loved her friends that we would stuff bulletins with every Friday for the church. My heart will forever hurt because I didn't get to stay goodbye - we were so very close but I was spending the summer in Connecticut and didn't know her health was quite as bad as it was - a simple diabetic infection in her leg that she was too stubborn to seek treatment for - which I think happens all too often with the elderly.

I drove home 12+ hours with Pinzi and my mom told me as soon as I got home that she'd passed the day before - they didn't want me driving home with that on my mind. I wrote her letters that summer and was upset to have missed her 80th birthday in June. I remember reading a letter on the dock of the lake one day from my dad and I had a gut feeling she didn't have much time left. I wish I'd had the courage to write something at her service - she always encouraged me to write - but I couldn't compose myself well enough to speak. I visited her at Gate of Heaven on my lunch hour and left these white daisies and baby roses... When I have more time, I like to recite the rosary and spend time looking over at the little lake near the family plots. I miss her.


René of the Day // 8.11.11 // This American Life

Best. Podcast. Ever. Okay - unfair. I don't listen to enough podcasts to be the judge of that, but this is the best background, thought-provoking show I listen to on the regular. Download the iPhone app and just listen to it before bed... or it's really enlightening on long walks. (Perfect for Fin's & my fav 2 mile nature trail.) Produced by NPR in Chicago, Ira Glass always makes me laugh and the show presents stories from different peoples perspectives - it's brought ideas to my attention that I've never considered. Topics range from thugs, true urban legends, America's top party schools to a segment on the history and controversy of the original recipe for Coca-Cola Classic. Whenever I'm bored - which is a rarity - I know where to turn.

The app logs all of the shows back to 1995 and it frustrates me that I can't plow through them fast enough... I would suggest scrolling through the topics and picking and choosing what to listen to that way until you get the feel for the tone and set up of the show. It's a treasure chest of gem-like stories all about, well, This American Life.

Check it out on Facebook or Twitter. Or listen on the radio on Cincinnati's NPR station, WVXU 91.7 on Saturdays at 1:00pm and Sundays at 4:00pm.

René of the Day // 8.10.11 // Kids in the Kitchen

As my involvement in JLC kicks off, I'd love to share some information about my first committee. This year I'll be involved with Kids in the Kitchen, JLC's signature project, an initiative to empower youth to make healthy lifestyle choices and help reverse the growth of childhood obesity and its associated health issues.

I'm thrilled to work with this effort because of my love for food and enjoyment of working with and helping children. This initiative began in 2006 with the goal of engaging kids in the preparation of healthy meals and developing better habits at home. I'm really looking forward to meeting the kids at the schools we sponsor and learning what they think and watch them grow as we interact with them. I think so many people hate vegetables as kids because they're forced to eat them and they never learn ways to love them - how inspiring to show them ways to make better choices and perhaps foster a love for cooking too!

To learn more or find out how you can help, visit http://kidsinthekitchen.ajli.org/.

René of the Day // 8.8.11 // Toodles, Britain!

So our trip to England was rolling towards the end. On the last night, we had dinner at the local pub, The Hartwood, that A&A frequent and brought the whole crew - Ricky, Vicki, Stevie, John & Louise and Pinzi. After dinner we hung out around their kitchen table, drinking and laughing - I wish I could easily pop over to do this with them regularly. I started cooking Cincinnati-style chili before we left for dinner and it just smacked you in the face with delicious wafts when we got home. Our ingredients weren't quite exact to what we would use at home - the cheese was thickly grated white cheddar (but no one can do the amazing finely shredded cheese that Skyline serves), hot dogs came from cans, buns were packaged as "white finger rolls" and Andi insisted that it would be disgusting to use an entire can of tomato puree (paste) and we debated which to use at the store - and it turned out that puree was perfect! We found yellow "American" mustard and chopped a beautiful onion from her garden.

They were all a little miffed by the 3-way chili idea so we passed on that. We were laughing out loud as we explained the coneys, 3-4 & 5-ways and what they included. But they LOVED the coneys! It was so much fun to make them for everyone and see how much they enjoyed it - I left an extra spice packet for them and plan to send more around the holidays so they can have a taste of Cincinnati chili in the cool winter months :) Rick even said, "Why can't you get these all over the world? I'm going to speak to my county about this!" lol Bless his British heart.

It was so fun to have Pinzi stay the night on my last night - I truly appreciate that she & Andi arranged for her to come visit from Scotland while I was there. It reminded me of so many nights in the tens in the woods of Connecticut, catching up and laughing in the dark til we fell asleep. In the morning it was convenient because her flight was around the same time as ours so we hung out in the airport a bit before we separated to go to our respective terminals. The flight home was much more relaxed than the trip there... it went quite fast for a 7 hour jaunt! They fed us lunch, and then pretzels & a drink and then a panini - I was lucky I fit in my jeans when I got home. And our luggage made it just fine :)

These days, we don't cry, Andi, her mum & I. We've grown up and learned that we *will* get to see eachother again and now we can communicate via text, Facebook and more than just the frequent emails we had in the first years of our friendship. It was incredible to finally return, refresh memories and to witness their gorgeous wedding. They're such a wonderful couple and can't wait for Alan to come to Cincinnati. I believe her parents will be staying with mine next summer,  around the time of my sister's wedding... And our story continues. Now I must write a letter and send photos to People to People to tell them "our story."

Cincinnati cheese coneys, English-style!

Cooking coneys with Jenna!

The beautiful onion from Andi's onion - proud gardener!



Vicki & Ricky :)


Saturday, August 20, 2011

René of the Day // 8.9.11 // Enjoy LaCroix!

We are such lucky gals - Julie surprised us with the elusive coconut-flavor La Croix at work! She's been telling us about it for months - and how Target is always out of it when she shops there. Then I got a text with a photo of the store shelf that read "JACKPOT!!!" and insisted that she buy every case in stock - naturally, she obliged. It was a mistake to leave this treasure on my desk - some were stolen, and replaced later in the week. Pete texted his wife to go and stock up after I shared a can out of kindness and advocacy for this refreshing beverage - we have lime, raspberry and lemon in stock at work, so perhaps we can persuade them to add the flavor to the arsenal? We're also game planning to submit an entry to their Enjoy LaCroix contest on Facebook - stay tuned.


Thursday, August 18, 2011

René of the Day // 8.7.11 // Full English Breakfast

When you first hear the term "full English breakfast" it eludes to thoughts of a special occasion - like Easter brunch or Christmas morning. But in England, this proper feast is served quite regularly. Every little restaurant offers these delicacies every day until 4pm and they're cooked at home seemingly at least once a week.

What is served? Bangers (sausage), eggs, bacon (theirs is more like our ham), baked beans, a grilled tomato, a grilled mushroom, toast, potato triangles and HP sauce (almost like a cross between BBQ & A1). It's a gorgeous, salty, delicious spread that will allow you to skip lunch (dinner as they say). I was lucky enough to enjoy this home-cooked meal twice during my 10-day stay - once by Mum and once by Andi.

It's funny, I think I only saw the entire line up once - sometimes places would exclude one of the grilled veggies or potato triangles. But I am determined to cook a full English breakfast soon and see how closely I can replicate it... My mom says you can now find bacon similar to theirs here - everything else is on tap at our local grocery stores. One thing I may add is crumpets - with tea and milk. Crumpets, which sound so absolutely lovely and British, are like our English muffins only thicker and doughier. Almost like a bagel texture inside with the nooks and crannies creating little caverns all the way to the bottom so the butter oozes down and fills it with sweet and salty cream - divine! I brought a 6-pack back in my suitcase.

America doesn't seem to have a standard meal like this - we do pancakes, eggs, waffles, omelets - all of which I enjoy. But it's so interesting how the full English breakfast is a staple in their culture.



René of the Day // 8.6.11 // Fish Pedicure

I'd heard of fish pedicures somewhere, months ago - most likely on Twitter. When we were in Southport we saw one in a spa window and decided we had to try it! I knew I'd never seen it in the States... and now I know why. It's been banned! Evidently they don't find it to be hygienic. So of course I had to get an illegal spa treatment, right? When in Rome...

We went to a little place in Bolton called Funky Fresh. They have a special until the end of August for $5 for 30 minutes so I treated Pinzi (who came all the way from Scotland to spend the day with us & go shopping at Trafford Centre), Andi and myself - Vicki hates feet and was not interested in partaking so she was our fabulous fish foot photographer ;)

The gal examined our feet then we stepped into a tub of fresh water then settled on the cushions above the tanks and let our feet rest on top of the water for a moment. Once we were ready, we submerged them into the lukewarm water and fish began to feast! At first it really freaked me out - such an odd feeling, almost like pins & needles when your foot falls asleep. I was grilling the girl with questions and she was very knowledgable and friendly - she opened the salon with her mom and friend around 8 months ago - we actually found it because we Googled for fish pedicure spas and found their previous Groupon, which did really well.

The fish don't have teeth - they nibble the dead skin which exfoliates, and it goes out through their gills - they don't actually consume it. The tanks have around 150 garra ruffa fish and they constantly filter the water and change 20% of it a day so every week it is completely refreshed. Each night they're given a few blood meal pills for sustenance. After a while you get used to the feeling but we got squirmy when they've dart between our toes. If you stick your legs in a bit further they'll work on those too! It was so hilarious to watch our faces and hear the girls shriek - Andi had a group of bigger fish so I think it was a bit more intense. Afterwards, you rub lotion on them and you're done - no polish or nail maintenance, just fish exfoliation.

Andi is planning to take her Mum and Alan so I'm looking forward to hearing their thoughts. I'm so glad we found this clean, cute little place - I would highly recommend trying it if you find yourself in a place that allows it. It's become a huge trend in Europe. She said like many beauty regimens, the more you go, the better results you'll see.


My view...
Can you believe that little guys gapper?!


René of the Day // 8.5.11 // Ingleton Falls: Yorkshire Dales



Friday was our first day without the group of 11 of us roaming the lands and coordinating our plans. First I ran errands with A&A: B&Q - Home Depot type place - to look at vaccuums with their giftcards, bought a little pink guitar at a music store for their niece who was turning 8 on Sunday, post office and dropped Alan at her parents - Mum made the boys a full english breakfast then they went "bowling" - but it's lawn bowling like bocce ball, which sounded really fun! My mom and Kiki left that day to spend the next week in Italy and Chip and I were staying until our flight back home on Sunday.

Andi and I drove an hour into the windy, hilly gorgeous English countryside and had lunch at an adorable place called Country Harvest and split 2 butties (sandwiches) - one w/ stilton and mushrooms and the other was brie with mango chutney and bacon - their bacon which is more like ham... and an elderflower cordial. Delicious! And it gave us more than enough reason to need a good, hearty hike at Ingleton Falls in the Yorkshire Dales! The 4.5 mile circular trail led us to amazing waterfalls.... There are about 8 along the way with tons of casacades, sheep just wandering and cows inside and out of the stone walls, each marked for their farmers. If you're quiet you can hear all the bahhs & moos, made us giggle. It was so green, with rolling hills as far as you can see. Like something out of a storybook, really. It is known as the most spectacular waterfall and woodland scenery in the north of England. The stone paths and wooden bridges did not make for an easy hike - it was a challenge. It was sunny and warm with a nice breeze which was lovely because it was a difficult hike! We even were brave enough to climb behind the big one, called Thornton Force! Honestly, it was not safe lol We crab-crawled across jagged, smoothed over slippery rocks to get there - a bit scary. I told Andi, our moms would not be impressed! Ha. We have more photos of the falls I'll have to upload later from Andi's iPhone.

It was a really nice day to finally spend time together, just us girls. We got ice cream after the big workout then we went to the grocery store for dinner ingredients and to have a look around... It's so neat to see all their different items. A lot of Indian food and loads of pies - steak and ale, steak and potato, fish pie, etc. I stocked up our "trolly" (shopping cart) on their wonderful types of chocolate bars - they are so creamy and soft - unlike American chocolate which is full of wax because our temperatures get so hot that it would melt without it! And the names used for things is entertaining - ground beef is mince, for example. And I found it interesting that they don't refrigerate their eggs at home. Andi made chicken satay for dinner and we had some beers on the deck while Alan was still out with the guys. Their neighbors John and Louise came by when Alan got home and we just had some wine in the kitchen and chatted... I really enjoyed just relaxing for the night. Hard to believe the week was wrapping up!

We climbed up behind the falls.

This tree was in the woods along the trail. It's said to be
good luck if you shove money in the wood.
Money mushrooms
The boys bowling.
The sheep were *this* close during our hike.

René of the Day // 8.4.11 // Chester

Perhaps one of the most charming towns I've ever visited, Chester is an old walled city (originally a Roman fort; the wall spans 2 miles) on the River Dee on the border of Wales. We took a park and ride bus from the Chester Zoo and spent the day lunching at a local pub - had a delicious gyreurre and leek tart and a local ale - then visited the old amphitheatre where knights jousted, beasts fought and .... We also went into the old cathedral that had numerous tombs and interesting old grave stones, as well as old headstones of people buried right under the stone floors. A bit creepy but quite interesting...

The village is filled with great shopping and adorable black and white Victorian restoration buildings... it actually made me think of what a little German town might look like.


We saw a few gray American squirrels which have made their way to England and have practically diluted the population of smaller red squirrels - unfortunately it's become an epidemic with the American bullies. I remember when we went to Washington, DC ten years ago, Andi was enthused with taking photos of squirrels because they had so few at home and you could go right up to them to take photos LOL

That evening Sue made a fantastic lasagna and chili con carne for diner then we sat in their garden and enjoyed bottle after bottle of great wine… Lovely end to a very nice day.


Proper fish & chips with mushy peas!



Remnants of the amphitheatre

Monday, August 15, 2011

René of the Day // 8.14.11 // Reds vs. Pirates with Nashvillians!

Saturday five of our friends visited from Nashville - the Elrod's who just had Baby Ellie Rose in February and were away from her for the first time - and Justin and his girlfriend Haley and Kenny. We met at Vale's and continued to drain his kegerator... then hopped in cabs and headed to Fountain Square to show them a slice of Cincinnati.

We grabbed beers and coneys on the Square - and I'm not sure what the hell they put in the hot sauce at that Skyline stand but it's at least 4 levels hotter than the sauce in the restaurants - God dog, I had tears in my eyes - it was seriously painful sauce! It was fun to see how excited the Elrod's were for a big night out since becoming parents - evidently this was a group of wild ones in college at the University of Tennessee and I really enjoyed hearing all their crazy stories and memories, per usual lol

We spilt up between Vale's seasons ticket seats - we let the out-of-towners take the good Castellini seats behind home plate and we sat in the Kroger bleachers - it was a blast but it's a bummer to miss the scoreboard entertainment since you're sitting right underneath it. The game ended 13-1 - I've never been to a ball game with so many homeruns & fireworks - just amazing! I hadn't been to a game this season since Opening Day in April and another that week so I was stoked. I even brought a pack of Big League Chew bubble gum... MR wore his #11 Barry Larkin tshirt that the boys got him for his birthday - with "Mr. Brunelle" on the back - awesome! Haha I was thrilled that he actually wore it to the game without being coaxed, too cute.

After the game we went the new Holy Grail - oh college memories of the Clifton location with the blueberry beer - which you have to eat because they soak up all the alcohol and you can't let them win! From there we went to Yesterday's in Mt. Adams and the rest of the night was a hot mess. I believe one of the crew was kicked out for falling asleep on the bar - not naming names! - and MR & I stayed a bit later to chat with our recently engaged friends Lori and Andy and also Kelley and Liz who came to meet up with us. Since it was like herding cats by the end of the night, we just grabbed a cab, got McDonald's - where I think MR ordered every chicken item on the menu - and went home to crash... I wish we'd seen everyone more during and after the game but on nights like that, you just have to roll with it. Glad they enjoyed their trip to Cincinnati and had a hell of a good time at the game - go Redlegs!
#11 Barry Larkin-Brunelle jersey - AMAZING :)
Kenny - best birthday gift idea ever!

Check out that Crest Kid smile! And Vale is a creep.
Awesome!
New parents planking at Holy Grail!
Liz & Kelley met us at Yesterday's :)

René of the Day // 8.3.11 // Liverpool, The Beatles Story & Lambananas!

Although the photos below are out of order - Blogger isn't the best with allowing for well-organized photo uploads - they show our tiring and tremendous day in Liverpool with the "scousers" (a term for Liverpooldians). How lucky that we were there a week before the riots broke out! Alan and Andrea's mum are from Liverpool but they'd never gone around as "tour guides" - it was quite fun - see the photo below lol! First we went to the Everton shop at the football stadium (Alan's team) and then we went into the city center and walked through the mall to go to the Liverpool store (Sue's team). From there we walked to the harbor to The Beatle's Story - a museum that tells the tale of their start at The Cavern on Mathew Street in Liverpool through their short years of success from 1963 to 1970... I learned so many things that I didn't know about the beloved band but we were surprised that there were not more relics and actual items from the Fab4. I suppose they were only together a short time and a lot of things are probably in private collections.

We had lunch at Jamie Carraagher's (Liverpool footballer) Café Sports England and sat ouside - he was actually there but we didn't bother him for autographs. Then we walked to the Church of England cathedral and the Catholic cathedral, which was surprisingly modern. We also saw Super Lambananas - created to call attention to GMO food, the fused animal-fruits are all over Liverpool, decorated in funky artistic ways, just like the flying pig statues in Cincinnati and the cows in Chicago. Andi & Alan bought me a little yellow replica for my desk! Hr has been named Lambert :)

Next was the Bombed Out Church - destroyed during WWII, the walls contain a 'secret' garden where they now host movies, art exhibits, concerts and more. It was actually closed as they prepared for a showing of "The Wizard of Oz" but Alan had the guy let us in... We played on the metal tire "drums" and sat in the Compassion Tepe and tied little wishes to the pole - really neat space. From there we walked to the Mersey (mare-zee) River and saw the building and balcony where they announced to the world that the Titanic had sunk - how incredible. We probably walked 6+ miles that day...

We went back to Dave & Sue's and Andi's friends came around for her wonderful homemade chicken curry (tiki masala), naan, chutneys, samosas and other little Indian bites - quite popular dishes in Britain. We had drinks in the garden until we all practically fell asleep sitting upright! Another successful day of travel in England - and the week was only half spent!

Inside the Bombed Out Church
Bombed Out Church
Our fabulous tour guides! ;)
Super Lambanana!
Church of England cathedral
Birthplace of The Beatles
The Cavern - where The Beatles got started
Chinatown - Liverpool

Catholic cathedral

Tying on a note in the Compassion Tepe in the Bombed Out Church