...And so, the Adventure Began

Letchworth is one of the many state parks that New York has to offer. Any outdoors type would love this spot. Since I came to New York, every person that finds out I'm new to the state always mentions Letchworth. They also mention Stony Brook Park, (but that's another adventure waiting to be had). New York has so many state parks to offer, and not to mention the Adirondack Mountains, the Thousand Islands, and dozens of lakes. Last week I decided to grab the dog and take off to Letchworth for some much needed alone time and a little re-connecting with nature. The drive was about 30-40 min from here so it was perfect. I put the dog in the truck, packed a couple of hiking items and took off. Letchworth offers a variety of activities like hiking for all levels and distances to tent camping, cabin camping and swimming. If you are on a budget, well, it's only $8 per vehicle. And you can take your four-legged friend as long as they stay on a leash and have up-to-date rabies vac...

Well I meant to post this before the Walking the City post. I was working on it...seriously I was...and didn't get to finish it, so I saved it. Then I got so excited about telling everyone about the "City" that this one went by the waist-side. Anyway, here it is, better late than never, right? My gosh it's almost the end of summer and I haven't posted since May! Obviously I've been busy but also neglectful of my blog. Lots has happened since the snow finally went away in April. Tough winter, who knew it was that long? Well to be truthful I was told it was long but I had no idea. Then the rain came. "not typical to have this much rain" they kept saying. Whew! But I have to say that the thunderstorms here are amazing. The warm humid days are fine as long as the humidity stays med-low. It got pretty high there for a few days and it was tough. We got through it though. This whole year is my learning curve so I'm just going with the flow. No sense ...

Today I had to take my car into the city to get worked on. And since I didn't have a vehicle to get around in,  I decided to walk it. I know there are a lot of great things to see in the city, and since I had all day it was the perfect time to take advantage of it.  My starting point would be Park Ave. Everyone talks about it.  It's kind of the hipster part of Rochester. There are little shops and eateries along the way. But I made a quick stop at Arena's , a nice florist and gift shop. They carry very nice high-end home decor and a few other items like teas. Very nice and worth a walk through. After that, I stepped out on to East Ave and of course went right instead of left. As I walked down the sidewalk I was taken by the smell of food, and having not had breakfast I followed it a few doors down. I came across a place called Orange Glory Cafe . The smells that emanated from this tiny little space were intoxicating, partly because I was so hungry and mostly b...

I just wanted to share some pictures from this amazing place I live in. I've been driving around now that the weather is warmer and spring has come. Every time I go out driving, it's different! The Erie Canal runs through the whole area. This is where I take Foxy for walks. It's in the Village in Pittsford. There is a walkway that goes for miles along the canal and the canal flows through a bunch of towns. I find it relaxing  and I enjoy the ducks swimming, birds flying around, people  walking, running and bicycling   Out in the countryside A house and barn I thought was pretty Here is a picture of Spring and Winter of the same Hwy I took it around the same area. What a difference! Mendon Ponds Bird Sanctuary. Where injured birds live out the rest of there lives. This is a picture of one of two Bald Eagles  (they even have a Bobcat living there) Owls

Last weekend I went to the High Falls Film Festival, "Celebrating Women in Film". Little did I know that Rochester offered its own film fest. Unfortunately, I was able to catch only one movie because of my work schedule. The Film Festival is held in three separate theaters. The one I went to was at the George Eastman house. This includes a museum, George Eastman's house and two theaters. George Eastman happened to be the man that started Kodak. You can read about George Eastman's story and the history of Rochester involving him at this link...  http://www.notablebiographies.com/Du-Fi/Eastman-George.html . And here is the link to the Eastman house if you are in the area or plan to visit  http://www.eastmanhouse.org/  . Back to the film festival. The movie was called "The Day I Saw Your Heart". It was a great little french movie that was not only funny from the first scene but also heartwarming and sad. If you get a chance to rent it or catch it at one of th...

Custard ice cream. This smooth, creamy, delectable cold sweetness is something everyone must try. I've had ice cream many times before, but not like this. It's velvety, its creamy, it's delicious. My "bestie" (best friend) took me to Abbott's not too long ago. She said "you haven't had ice cream until you've had Abbott's custard ice cream". I had no idea. They make only two flavors really, chocolate and vanilla. Although you can get either with almonds. Sometimes they have a special one like black cherry (which is black cherries added to the vanilla ice cream) I found this pleasingly simple. That's not to say that they don't have a variety. They have shakes, sundaes, ice cream sandwiches, etc... If you have the chance to try this cold, creamy little treat, do it! I got vanilla and had the guy put some peanut butter sauce on it. They normally don't put that on but he was nice enough to do it for me.

"You're forty and you're not getting any younger, you know?" said a friend of mine the other day as we discussed me being single. "Yes I'm well aware of my age, it's MINE" I replied. Did she possibly think I lost track of it? They say it like maybe we're not aware of the fact that we've aged while in a relationship. As if love stopped time in our brain and caused arrested development. I get it! I'm not twenty anymore and I'm not in denial about it. There seems to be some weird stigma of how we should act, look or be at certain age groups...especially 30's, 40's, and 50's. Seriously? Why and who made up that rule? I"m guessing some depressed, angry person who didn't age well because of his or her bad DNA! I don't look 41 nor do I feel like it, so if people think I'm in my thirties should I be acting and dressing like a thirty-something? And what would that even be anyway? I say screw that!!!! Do wh...

The beauty that chaos leaves behind? What ever could be beautiful or good about chaos? It's not about being an optimist necessarily, its about looking at things a little closer and differently. Recently, we had a snow storm that dumped so much snow in the north east. Luckily we didn't get the worst part here, but some states were buried. We got a good 10" here and it was hard to drive in (especially for a SoCal girl), but as I drove to work on Saturday morning I saw one of the most beautiful snow covered landscapes I had ever seen in person. Of course I've seen pictures and paintings, but to see it while I drove through it brought to mind that whole cloud and silver lining phrase (not to sound so cliche). It was amazing! And I live in it? Yes I do. So I took some pictures on my way to work and back, then when I got home and yesterday morning I noticed the icicles and I had to take some more to share. And that was my adventure! Beautiful one I might add. Til next ti...

My two "Road Dogs" as we headed down the  PCH  (Pacific Coast Hwy) in Malibu, CA. Left: Scruffy Coco, Right: Foxy Cleopatra As you know I moved across the country. Well I didn't fly, I drove. Myself, my best friend's hubby and his brother all drove across the US. Two cars packed to the nines, four dogs and three humans. I dove my truck with my dog and one of their's and her hubby and brother drove in their car with the other two dogs. Talk about crowded. My little Pomeranian puff ball (Foxy Cleopatra) didn't care where we were going, just that her mommy was there! Now my bf's little Yorkie (Scruffy Coco) had a little bit harder time since her mommy flew there a week earlier and she missed her terribly. But eventually it all worked out and we all made it safe and sound. It took us six days to do it. We drove for eight hours and then arrived at our destinations, ate and went to bed. We were exhausted at the end of each day, but...