Trick or Treat?

Halloween 2013. Can't say it was a big one this year. No parties this year... though there wasn't one last year, either. But that's no big deal to me. It just causes me to stress about a costume. But I love getting trick-or-treaters! After living in Fishers for a decade, in a neighborhood full of kids, I started looking forward to handing out candy.

Then I moved downtown. The first year, the weather was decent enough that Eric and I sat outside and handed out candy from our porch. I think we had a total of 4 trick-or-treaters. The following year, it was just me, and it was colder, so I just turned the light on. I think I had maybe two that year. Last year, I got a group of kids near the end of the trick-or-treat hours... so maybe 6 kids. This year. One. One little girl dressed as a pirate in the first fifteen minutes. Granted, Eric made us leave a half-hour before it was officially done, and we saw a big group across the street as we left. But he had promised to stop by an open house.

I have to say, it's a total bummer from what I was used to. I'd go through about two bags of candy in Fishers. Is it because no one want to climb our stairs? No... I think it's just because we don't live in a 'family' neighborhood. Oh, well. I have hope. I see more strollers being pushed around... maybe they'll be old enough next year.

Blackhawks Game

Eric has talked about going to a Blackhawks game since we got married.  Actually, probably since before we got married!  He grew up a big Blackhawks fan, and they great success in the past few years has only increased his excitement.  The past two year, in particular, the season would start, and he'd say, "We should really go to a Blackhawks game this year."  But the season would progress and his travels kept him overly busy (or just gone).

I, myself, have never been to a true professional hockey game.  I've been to a minor league game, I guess, and an amateur/feeder league... but I heard that nothing compares to a professional hockey game, especially a home Blackhawks game.  Fane get loud and rowdy... but not in an obnoxious way.  Needless to say, I've been intrigued for a few years now.

So with them coming off of their Stanley Cup win last year, the anticipation was, once again, burning inside of at least me.  We watched pre-season hockey start up, and murmurs of going to a game again this year surfaced.  But this time, I decided to take control.  I jumped online and searched out some tickets, myself.  That would be the most perfect thing I could give Eric.  So, I surprised him with them.  And as much as he hates surprises, he liked this one.

So that was what we did last night.  I know... long story to lead up to the actual event. But I felt the back story was important.  It was a primetime game, which made it nice for us, as we didn't have to rush up to Chicago early in the morning.  So we mosey up to Chicago, and actually go to Ikea first.  Eric needed a few things for his office.  But it was a quick stop and then we headed to the hotel, where we had just enough time to check in and freshen up.

We rode the "Blackhawks Express' bus over there, which really turned out to be the way to go.  Pretty much drop you off and pick you up at the front door!  We get inside the United Center and dirst things first, I had to get a jersey!  Sounds weird, but jerseys at a hockey game are a must!  I kid you not, 90% of the people there have a jersey on... all ages!  Of course, it was crazy in there!  But I found an away (white) jersey I liked (Hossa) and we were on our way to our seats.

Now, due to their popularity, tickets aren't the easiest to come by for games.  And what you do find are usually through broker sites, and can get expensive!  but I felt pretty good about the deal I got on some first row, upper deck seats.  So we grabbed some Italian Beef sandwiches and took our seats, just in time for the pre-game stuff to begin.

First thing I noticed about getting loud... they get loud during the National Anthem!  It's a trip!  Not singing the Anthem, but the roar just starts to get going.  And it flows right into player introductions.  You can't help but get hyped up!  This game was against the Minnesota Wild, which is a decent team.  And they showed that.  But just as is the case with most sports, it is WAY better to see hockey live verses watching it on TV.  It's gotta be the atmosphere you're in.  I loved watching the game and getting into the scores and the power plays.  We were sitting next to a family, and I thought it was interesting that the mom was the one explaining everything to the kids.  Quite well, at that - she was definitely a fan.

So the game was a blast, obviously.  I definitely want to go again.  I could do this every year, just like we do Cubs games every year.  Unfortunately, the Blackhawks lost this one, 5-3.  Wish they could have won this first game for me.  But it doesn't detour me from wanting to go back.

That was pretty much the only reason we had to be in Chicago.  The next morning, we got up and found this French Bakery that Eric had read about, La Fournette .  It was REALLY good!  You could easily over indulge here, though... but worth the ride on the CTA to Old Town to check it out, even if the temp was right at freezing outside!  It actually made for a nice, relaxed morning.  Afterwards, we strolled back to the red line station, and headed back to the hotel to check out.  And that was it.  Our trip to Chicago was short and sweet.

Annual SEND Meeting

With Eric's new job, his past association with the Southeast Neighborhood Development Corporation (SEND) stay intact and may have even become more important for prospective partnerships, since they are a CDC, as well. So he stayed on their board, at least for as long as he could handle both. Not a bad thing - there's a lot of good connections there.

Tonight was their annual fundraiser event. We went last year, too - it's kind of fun to get dressed up a bit for a night out. I had to actually meet Eric there, as I had to be in northern Hamilton County until late afternoon at a site and barely made it home in time to change. But I did, and I made it just in time for the event to begin. Out table had a mix of people I knew and didn't know... Eric was trying to play both the role of board member and of Riley Director. So, needless to say, he was running all around. But I'm used to that.

This year was a big deal, though... 30 years for SEND! They had a fun slide show going showing some 'then and now' type pictures. Plus, the even was in the historic Fountain Square Theatre, which is such a beautiful venue!

The event itself, though, didn't seem to go as smoothly as last year. Or maybe it's just because I felt so rushed in the beginning. Or maybe I just wasn't in the mood? But when the speakers spoke, most of the room continued with their own conversations and it was kind of loud. The food was good, though! Especially the red velvet cake we 'won' with our table donation. mmmMmmm LOVE red velvet cake.

Snow?

Since last week, the weatherman has been saying it might snow this week. The temps were right, and moisture content was forecasted to be there. They weren't saying a snow storm was hitting... but there was a really, really good chance we'd see flurries.

Really, guys? Already? It's only mid-October!

Well, it did snow a bit overnight. The ground was still way too warm for anything to stick, but cars had some accumulation... up in the north suburbs. So I saw no snow! (yay!) But, in all fairness, they were right... for those north of us. We did feel the cold temps, still (obviously), but all that did was reinforce the fact that fall is really here. No more pop-up Indian Summer was going to show it's face. Which is kind of a bummer.

I do like fall once I know there's no hope for anymore warm weather. It's nice to see the last burst of color before the world goes gray for three months (which is completely depressing!). And it is kind of nice to cozy up in a sweater... at least for the first few weeks. If fall/winter only lasted about one month, it would be perfect, as far as I'm concerned. Just enough to jump through the seasons. If spring started on January 1st, that would be fine with me!

That said, this video is of one of my favorite roads to drive in Indy, especially this time of year. But honestly, any time of year it seems to have a calming effect. There are a few roads like that, but this is one of the few I'm near on a regular basis. Enjoy the ride.

 



War of 1812

So there was a little football game in town last night. But don't say that around here... here in Indy, it was the game of the century. It was being called "The War of 1812" because it was Peyton Manning (#18) versus Andrew Luck (#12).

Did the hype expand out of this City? Can anyone tell me?

Can we say "Over Hyped", regardless if it did or not??

You would of have thought it was the coming of Jesus the way people were acting around here. It was stupid insane. And so not warranted. There was even controversy during the week leading up to it when Jim Irsay made some comments that basically was the equivalent of saying, 'he was happy that they let Peyton go since he wasn't needed at his level of play anymore.' Of course, Peyton being the classy guy he is, just let it go. At least publicly.

Over. Hyped.

Don't get me wrong. It actually turned out to be a good game. Any one of normalcy expected a pretty lopsided game in Denver's favor. But apparently, the hype seeped into the Colts players' blood and they came out pretty amped up. And won, surprisingly. Granted, the Broncos kind of beat themselves with some of the stupid mistakes. But regardless, it made for a better game that I thought it would be.

And I'm sure the greedy NFL ate it all up. I'm sure all the hype left them foaming at the mouth for more. Maybe they'll make everyone buy a cheap windbreaker next year, and not let you wear your own jacket to the stadium. I'm sure they'll figure out another way to make fans spend more money.

And Just Like That, It's Done

So my title is a bit of a teaser. You're probably thinking I'm going to write a blog about the end of the government shutdown. Yes... it has come to an end. And somehow, it cost us a lot of money to end. How did having the government closed cost more money than if it stayed open? And it was even less impactful, since they plan on giving all the furloughed employees their back pay - which is a good thing, don't get me wrong. But I know I'm scratching my head trying to figure out what the point really was, other that to thoroughly piss off the American People. Which I must admit, mission accomplished.

I go back to my previous blog... lesson learned - vote every single senator and congressman out of office at the end of their term. I don't care how long they've been in office. Obviously, it's been too long to have something like this drag out.

No... what my blog is really about it the end of our I-65/I-70 South Split road construction! Can you believe that was the top story on our newspaper's website?? Not the government 're-opening' and coming to terms... but about the fact that trucks can drive through downtown again. And I, for one, couldn't be happier! It opened two weeks early!! No more trucks throwing on their engine brakes and they go through my quiet little residential area at 1am. No more lines of traffic out my front door. No more complete lack of preparation from INDOT on a project they already had practice on when they 'fixed it' the first time.

As I sit here tonight, in the normal quietness I've become used to (granted, still not as quiet as the suburbs), it's a nice quiet to listen to. If nothing else, the construction project made me appreciate what silence I do get downtown. Also, next time they plan on shutting the interstate down near my home, you can guarantee I'll be at any public hearing, making sure I see their FULL maintenance of traffic plan.

Pumpkin Spice

Is it just me, or is pumpkin spice flavored EVERYTHING overly abundant this year? Was there an explosion of pumpkin farms in recent years. Or did they come up with the perfect pumpkin spice flavoring in a lab somewhere in the past year?

Seriously. I don't really get it. But I've seen it EVERYWHERE already, and in EVERYTHING!

It starts every fall at Starbucks. Maybe they're the cause of this chaos? They hype up the release of the Pumpkin Spice Latte every year, and the past few years it has seemed to be even more hyped. I think last year they even had a contest for certain cities to have it released there early. The 'big release' came as it usually does this year. But then, shortly after, I stared seeing it in everything. Dunkin Donuts does a donut every year, too... no biggy. But Panera has a bagel, too. And I saw a Pumpkin flavored yogurt at one of those self-serve yogurt shops.

Go to the grocery store and it gets crazier!! Pumpkin Spice flavored English muffins, breads, coffee creamers, coffee syrups, Hershey Kisses, M&M's, cookie dough... the list goes on! And then you get out of the food realm and into the scent realm.. how many things can you make smell like pumpkin?!?

Thankfully, I like pumpkin flavored (and scented) stuff. But this overload might kill it for even me! I do believe there is too much of something good. And what does this lead to next? An overload of peppermint at Christmastime? Let's not kill all of the good flavors and scents out there.

Government Shut Down

Wow.  So our government is shut down now. What exactly is this going to accomplish?

I say nothing. Sure, there will be some debates and eventually it'll re-open. Well, I guess it is just a partial. But then, how much of our government really works anymore, anyway? The part they 'shut down' is solely the part that affects the public. Like websites. For work, I often have to pull up soils maps, something that hasn't changed in CENTURIES! Yet, on Day 2 of the shutdown, when I went to the website, it was down. And right on the page, it said it was because of the shutdown. All because the is a division of the USDA, I couldn't go to the GIS map and find soil types.

The other big component of this shut down? US Parks and Monuments. Again, only affecting the public. I get not being able to go inside something and tour it, but I can't walk up the steps of the Lincoln Memorial? Really??

Now I'm not going to point my finger at one party or another... I still say the whole party system us broke, but no one is will to give up their cush job to do anything about it. It needs to be 100% revamped because these damn politicians no longer know how to be there for the people... they're just puppets for their party. I really despise what our political system has become.  All parties are to blame for this one.

Maybe these politicians will have accomplished something. Maybe they will wake the people of this nation up with this charade and maybe the people will vote out every single congressman and senator at the end of their current terms. Every one of them should be taken out of office after this. Because none of what this shutdown is doing is for the people. It's just the two main parties, of what we call a democracy, too full of themselves to work together on anything that will be good for the people.

The damn system is broke, people. Am I really the only one that sees this so clearly?