Is it just me, or are the Olympics more hyped than usual this year?
This isn't necessarily a bad thing, but it just seems like they have a greater presence than past Olympics. I read somewhere that this is the first Summer Olympics that will have such a social media presence... that makes sense. After all, I've never blogged about the Olympics before. Yet, here I am, one more person talking about it via social media!
The Opening Ceremony had some firsts, too... actually, all of the Olympics will have some firsts. For example, the broadcasting of some events in 3D! Granted, this doesn't impact too many people, but if you have a 3D TV, it's probably pretty cool to see! But if you don't, there are still some things being broadcast in HD. Even that is an amazing difference! also, they have a constant stream of all the events on the internet. So if you don't see your favorite sport this year, it's you're own fault.
As always, I most look forward to the gymnastics. I seem to be in the majority with this one - everyone seems to love gymnastics. Swimming is second for me. After that, my interest spreads out to some of the major sports, which are actually all over the board. It always amazes me how fast the two weeks goes by. If you're not careful, you'll miss it!
So I hope everyone enjoys this year's games. I look forward to my faves... and who knows, maybe I'll find some new faves.
We actually got a little bit of rain today. Kind of a teaser, but it was nice. For a change.
I was actually working in the backyard when is started to come down. Some big ol' drops, too! It rained a bit earlier, on my way home from work, but I didn't get to enjoy that round. This round, I just got under the back porch roof and sat on the step, watching it come down. I even got a little wet when it would get a little wind blown, but I did not care.
It only lasted about 10 minutes or so. But in that time, it cooled down, and the smell of the rain became very abundant. LOVE that smell! And it made me happy. I almost played in it, but I figured since there was lightning around, it'd probably be better not to. This time.
Too bad we still have something like a 10" deficit of rain for the year. Everything is still SO dry!! And there's no other rain the forecast that can be seen. So the drought will continue. But at least we got a little something, even if it was less than a half-inch.
So yes, we have another venting blog today. I apologize - feel free to skim and/or skip. But I have to get this off my chest...
First thing, the horrible shooting in Aurora, CO. As more comes out, we're learning this guy did nothing illegal leading up to things, though there were some signs that people now realize we 'signs' before the tragedy. But here's the thing that gets me... why in the world are automatic weapons available for sale to the public?? Give me one 'for instance' where any normal citizen needs something like that?? Sure, you could use it for hunting, but doesn't that kind of take the sport out of it?? No one in the general public needs access to these weapons. If I need/want to defend myself, it doesn't need to be with an automatic weapon. They shouldn't be sold at your local sporting goods store.
Next, the NCAA laid down sanctions to Penn State. When did the NCAA become a legal court? When did they gain authority to punish a sports program based off of some non-sports related actions of a school?? What happened at Penn State is awful, and it's being handled in the actual legal system. What happened had nothing to do with the football program, nor did it have anything to do with recruiting practices. Those are the things the NCAA can make rulings on. Not the ethics of how the school's administration handled things. It's complete crap, if you ask me.
Okay... I feel a little better now. That's all I had, at the moment. Some things just get me riled up.
I'm convinced that the media is really the reason society has become what it is today. Coverage of everything and anything is so overkilled and skewed anymore, you can't help but think the worst of whatever the story of the moment is.
What happened to reporting facts, and not reporting until you had ALL the facts?? It seems all it takes is one media source making one assumption, which another one takes as fact, and before you know it, the story is so skewed, one way or another, that the whole country has this image in their mind of whatever the story is, true or not. Not to mention their own skewed opinion.
Plus, these same sources throw around the 'freedom of the press' right to report more about a story than they should. And then they wonder why there are copy cat crimes. I'm all about freedom of the press, but it also goes back to the having all the facts and only reporting what's really necessary. They all want to break this story that really shouldn't even be a story. I don't even want to know what really goes on behind closed doors with some of these media sources - I think some are as dirty as the lobbyist in DC.
Yet, when there's actually something worthwhile out there to report, they often cringe at the idea of not being 'politically correct' about something. They're so scared to do a risky story that would actually accomplish something that they would rather hide in a corner and just sling some mud at someone or just skew something to fit their image.
Eric wonders why I often just watch some 'soft news' programs verses some of the serious stuff. Bottom line... the serious stuff is what seems to get skewed the most. The 'soft news' is presented as an opinion, as it should be. And if there's some impending doom about to come upon me, they'll break in with that story, too. In a cowardly 'run for your life, but don't forget the bread, eggs, and milk' sort of way.
I just get too fired up when I see or hear such one side bull crap stories that are obviously prematurely reported without all the facts. To be honest, I couldn't tell you the last time I heard any news story with all the facts. Something always seems to be left out. Usually something that doesn't make ratings go up.
After Chicago, you'd think things would've slowed down a bit. Yeah... not so much. I guess a little bit, but we still kept busy... all... week... long.
Monday was her first day of the Herron School of Art Youth Art Camp (had to put the full name all in here one). This was the whole reason she came up here. We weren't sure what to expect, but knew it was sure to be a good program because the school itself has a great reputation. Sure enough, when I picked her up that afternoon, Darian was beaming - she had a blast! From everything I heard her saying, it was indeed, an awesome art camp to be going to. It was going to be a great week!
Monday night, we did take it easy after the busy, busy weekend we had. We grilled out some ribs at home and ate on the front porch. We did, eventually, take a walk around the neighborhood, which included a stop at out Dairy Queen. But that was it. I think we were all ready to call it an early night.
After the Art Camp on Tuesday, we met up with Eric's parents for some pizza at Bazbeaux's on Moss Ave. We caught them up on our Chicago adventure and Darian talked about some of her favorite things thus far in her trip. From there, we walked a little further up Mass Ave to the frozen yogurt place, YoguLatte. So still not a crazy night, but still not a lot of down time to take it easy, either.
Wednesday, Eric was out of town, so we did a little shopping for ourselves. Nothing major... just hit a few places to see what was new. We found Darian a new little purse to carry with her so she didn't have to always have her backpack with her. It was purple, of course.
Thursday, things starting ramping up again. After I picked Darian up from her Art Camp, we headed to the Indiana Fever game that night. She'd never seen professional basketball, WNBA of NBA, so this was a fun, new experience for her. I had to laugh because she thought the court was so small... she's just used to her soccer fields. We both had a good time, though, and this is definitely a perk to living downtown - being able to just walk over to an event like this.
Friday was her last day of Art Camp, so they had a little student exhibition at the end of the day, allowing everyone to come it, look at the artwork, and meet some of the teachers. Everyone just LOVED Darian and couldn't say enough good things about her - they were bummed she was from out of state and couldn't come back and visit later in the year! Of course, she made quite a few new friends, too - but that doesn't surprise anyone.
After we went out to grab a bite to eat at one of our new favorite spots, B's PoBoys, it was time to head the the Indy Indian's game (our minor league team). Another sport she hasn't seen professionally. While this is not major league team or park, it still a great place to watch the up and coming pro's. We always try to make a few games every year. While it was a little humid, on top of a very slow paced game, it was still fun and was topped off with some fireworks. Overall, another fun night.
Saturday morning was the annual Walk for Wishes charity event for Make-A-Wish. Since it was actually at a great location, Fort Harrison State Park, it was a good thing to take Darian to - a little charity, a little nature... all good things. Only, it was a wee bit humid. It was quite a way to work up a sweat in the morning. But it was still nice and a fun thing to do. We just had to come home and take showers afterwards!
Then it time for another museum... we went to Indy's art museum, Indianapolis Museum of Art. It a much smaller scale than Chicago's, but it's the right size for our city. And still has a lot of good stuff in AND out of it! Our museum isn't just a building, it's a campus. And it's FREE! So we wander the floors there for a couple of hours, just taking it in. The biggest thing I wanted to show her was the Robert Indiana 'LOVE' sculpture on the front lawn, which we saw coming in. It's a very relaxing place to go, no matter the day or time.
Saturday evening, one of Eric's friend's had a BBQ to host another of his friends that was in from Colorado. Since we don't get to see them too often, we had to go. And I must say, Darian was a trooper, as the one with no kids her age. She finally found her niche with Cartoon Network when one of her favorite shows came on. Then it was trying to get her to leave.
Sunday... finally a day we could sleep in.
Oh, and I forgot to mention, this was an unexpected extra day! Midway through the week, Eric realized he would have to be in FL on Monday, so after some talking to Darian and her parents, she decided to stay the extra day so she didn't have to fly as an 'unaccompanied minor' back to FL. I was excited at this prospect of having an extra day, even if there was nothing major planned!
Anyway... we slowly woke up and had a French Toast breakfast around 11am, finally. Then when I asked Darian what she wanted to do, giver her some option, she threw another on out there - go see a movie. I was game - I don't get to the movies to often. So we took in the 3D version of 'Brave'. Good movie. The 3D was cool, too.
But after the movie, it was time to really get ready to leave. What a week! It's been so much fun! I'll probably pass out early tonight, but it was well worth it. I went to the airport with them and we had some pizza in the common area before they went through security. Turned out their plane was delayed, anyway. But then then finally left me.
*sigh*
The house is just too quiet now...
My niece, Darian, is up to visit... So what do we do? We take her to Chicago! When the plan for her to come to Indy and go to Art Camp, Eric suggested we take her to Chicago one of the weekends and just play tourists for the weekend, hitting some of the museums and seeing the sights. We even went so far as to buy the "City Pass" to cover a lot of our attractions (Karen and I did this for NYC the first time we went. If you ever visit a big city, I highly recommend these!). Of course, all of this came up after I had my Cubs tickets in hand for last weekend. But you know what...? I can take Chicago a few weekends in a row!
Saturday morning, up way too early for a Saturday morning - we were on the road at 7:30am. While I was hating that (as was Darian), it was a must if we were to get everything in the day we wanted to. It was nice to leave the scorching weather behind, too - a forecast of above 100 was not looking pretty in Indy!
With only one stop along the way, we got to our first destination about 9:30am (remember - Chicago is an hour behind Indy). The Museum of Science and Industry. 
This place rocks! Eric and I have come here on our own and loved it! They have a lot of cool exhibits, both classic and newer, rotating exhibits. Since we were there right when they opened, we were able to take our pick of exhibits to see, which was advantageous since there are some that have a timed entry. There were certain ones we wanted to see and with our limited time here (you could easily spend an entire day here), we wanted to be sure to get it all in! I think my favorite this trip was the mock tornado - Darian even got to play in it.
From here, we went to the hotel to check in and after only a brief moment to recuperate, we headed out to Michigan Ave... The Magnificent Mile! We wanted to give Darian a small taste of shopping in a big city, even if we weren't there to shop. We only hit a few stores along the Mile, just where Eric or I wanted to either look for something or show Darian something. But at the end of our tour, we bought very little... well, I bought very little. No one else bought anything.
Finally, dinner time was upon us. But first, we had to go check out The Skydeck on top of Willis (Sears) Tower!
We took a slight detour on the 'L' (Darian's first time on a subway - the Red Line!) down to the old Marshall Field's (now Macy's) to see a true historic department store. She never could get over how big these stores were. Back on the 'L' to head over the the Skydeck! Thankfully, our CityPass allowed us to fly by the lines and head right up to the top. It was right at dusk, so the view was spectacular! If you don't know about this particular scenic perch, you must learn about the glass boxes they built to stick out OVER the edge of the building. It's crazy and it's hilarious to see some of the reaction from people as they step out (or attempt to step out) into the box.
Finally, dinner. We went to one of Eric's and my favorite spots - SushiSamba Rio. I wasn't sure if Darian would be too young for this place (both in the food and atmosphere), but she wasn't, at all! We had fun sampling a few different things on the menu and taking it all in, DJ and all. But it was getting late, and we were all beat from the long day, so back to the hotel we went to crash!
Day Two. 
Another relatively early morning for a weekend - up at 7:30am. Again, we wanted to get to one of the museums right when they opened. Luckily, our hotel fed us a good breakfast and we were on our way! We decided to go to the furthest south point and work our way back north. So we hopped on the 'L' and head down to The Field Museum. We focused on one of their big exhibits - the Evolution of Species, which included the dinosaurs. Even I was pretty blown away by this place! Eric and I may have never gotten here ourselves, so it was fun.
Same goes for the Shedd Aquarium, our next stop. I couldn't recall a time I EVER went to an aquarium like this. Obviously, there were a lot of fish. They also had an exhibit of jellyfish, which was neat to see - I never knew how many there really were! We ended our time there, though, with their aquatic show, which included Beluga Whales and Pacific White Sided Dolphins. It was a short, basic program that was more focused on how they train them verses a show of tricks. Which was nice, actually.
Now it was time to do some walking. We walked up through Grant Park, which is essentially their Central Park if you don't know the area. In the middle of it is Buckingham Fountain, which we had to stop by and check out - not every day you see a fountain of such a massive scale! Plus, the mist from the fountain felt great (even though it wasn't uber hot). But we only stopped briefly and were on our way.
Next stop, The Art Institute of Chicago! This is another museum Eric and I have been to ourselves and love! We didn't have a lot of time since we did have to head back to Indy, so we chose the 'One Hour Must See Tour" they have in their guide. It basically picked out 12 exhibits in the museum that took you to every wing and getting to see some of the most famous pieces they have on display. We stopped at other ones, too, and did actually stay longer than that hour, but it kept us moving. Which was hard, because we were about worn out from the whole weekend, by this point!
The Art Institute is right next to Millennium Park. Which would be our last 'real' stop in Chicago (we drove through a few other areas on the way out of town). We had to go through it to get back to the hotel, anyway. So we picked two of the bigger features of the park to see - The Crown Fountain and the Cloud Gate (aka 'The Bean'). Both always have people swarming around them, and today was no exception! The fountain had so many kids playing it that Eric even got splashed by one of the little ones. 
The Bean is just such a unique sculpture, it always has a draw - I love that they kept it 'interactive' and didn't just fence it off. 
It wouldn't be nearly as cool then.
With that, we were done with Chicago, for the most part. We made a few stops on the way home - one for grilled cheese sandwiches at Fair Oaks Farm and another to see one of the windmills up close and personal. And to see Darian in a corn field. But we had to get the car returned, if nothing else, and mainly, we were all beat and just wanted to get home! It was such a great weekend, though. One of my best Chicago trips, by far!
I know I keep say this, but we've hit yet another holiday that demonstrates how fast this year is flying by!
Eric and I 'celebrated' our Fourth by working on the house. I know - exciting!! But we didn't have any family activities planned (since his sister moved out of the area last month) and decided our best bet was to take advantage of both of us having a day off. We still didn't get as much done as we wanted... but then that has become a common theme. So much left to do, but every little bit is progress!
We did go to our neighbor's place to watch the downtown fireworks - she has a better view from her 2nd floor balcony than we do our front porch (or even yard). So we hung out there for awhile - since it gets dark so late this time of year, it didn't impact our house projects. Besides, we don't want to become 'that couple' who never goes out because of their house projects. So some social time is good time.
Besides that, it was a low key day for us! Not necessarily relaxing, but a good day, none the less!
Hope everyone else had a good 4th of July!
I like to get up to see a Cubs game somewhere around my birthday. Though I haven't made it every year since living in Indy, I have a majority of the time. This weekend was that trip for me. Yes, a little more than 2 weeks from my birthday, but it still counts.
Since it was a late afternoon game, Eric and I were able to take our time getting out the door to head to Chicago. In fact, we didn't leave until about 10:am, which is was late for a roadtrip to Chicago, normally. But we were in no rush. Even with some holiday traffic on the road already, it still wasn't too bad of a drive - really no longer than usual.
We get into Chicago and decide to try to check into our hotel, but it was early, and our room wasn't ready yet, so they kept our bags and we headed for the Red Line. Well, first we had to buy day passes... so we went to what we thought was just a Walgreens. No... this Walgreens has a sushi chef right when you walked in the door. Right next to their FroYo station. Hmmm... not your typical Walgreens. But they still had CTA day passes, so we were happy. Off the to game!
We got there with plenty of time, especially since we were in the stands this year - no fighting for the good seats like we do in the bleachers. We had time to stroll the stadium a bit and grab a hot dog. The Cubs were playing the Astros and after 9 kind of slow innings, they won! Yay!
After the game, we hoped back on the 'L' and headed back downtown. We got checked into our room (finally) at the Wit and were glad we didn't force the issue on getting into a room before the game - they gave us a sweet room, thanks to Eric's status! 
It was on the SW corner on the 20th floor, with SPECTACULAR 270 degree view, including straight down State St. and over Millennium Park to Lake Michigan! It was absolutely amazing! Great place to wind down before going to dinner (and wake up to in the morning!).
Dinner. Yes, we love to try new places and food. This time it was a tapas place recommended by a friend who lives in the area, Cafe Iberico. Very authentic, regional specialties from Spain - it was really good! There was some fun people watching, too... always fun.
We both crashed pretty hard when we got back to the hotel - Cubs games always make for long days when you drive up the day of the game. But at the same time, it was a relaxing day for us - very low key compared to our 'working weekends' lately.
This morning we woke up with the sole intention of going to Ikea and heading home. This was after sleeping in. We headed to the Ikea in Schaumburg and got there before the rush, thankfully. we still walked most of the store, but since we were there for a reason (a new light fixture), we didn't linger anywhere. Good thing, too, because when we came out of the store, it looked like the world was about to end. The pitch black storm was about to engulf the area! We figured we'd outrun the storm. Well, not so much. I think we go south of the worst of it, but it was still pretty bad. But at the end, it was nothing more than a typical sumer storm you'd get in FL. So it didn't impact us, really... we just meandered on our way home.
Is it just me, or are the Olympics more hyped than usual this year?
