parents on bikes!

you know things are good when you are riding bikes with your parents.

what more could a girl ask for?

single speed bike tour

"Yes, you might have to get off and walk up a few hills, but that's hardly a tragedy, in fact sometimes it can be a nice change of pace! If you are in a hurry, why are you on a bicycle?" ~Sheldon Brown

This quote helped to inspire our single speed bike journey from Philly to Easton, PA last weekend.

There were frustrations at first with the heat, the hills, the uncertainty of where we would end up (we were trying to make it to the Delaware Water Gap by nightfall).

But then!

We couldn't escape the beauty all around. The rolling country hills, the rhythm we fell into and the simple freedom of relying on nothing but our legs and these amazing, quiet, lovely bicycles.

.

Can't wait to go from coast to coast!

To get your "tour" on check out Adventure Cycling for great maps and tips!

bike-in movie

went to a roof top bike-in movie sponsored by the Philly Bike Coalition last week - the movie of the evening? Breaking Away!

If you haven't seen it, Breaking Away is pretty great. Enjoy the trailer!

barney car

What does the beloved purple dinosaur Barney have in common with Miami Beach's "Hip Hop Weekend" (or as some call it Urban Beach Weekend)?

Just this sweet ride - or as I like to refer to it, the 8th wonder of the world.

amazing.

happy holiday!

spring summary

busy busy busy spring. here is a quick recap.

hanging with miss america, teresa scanlan at City Hall for a "Keep Philadelphia Beautiful Award"

ate delicious soup and tested our soil (which turned out to be pretty grimy) at the Soil Kitchen

promoted Clemente Fest at the Fairmount Arts Crawl

enjoyed one of the pretty days in a park.

Participated in a Dance Flash Mob at Pifa's Street Fair with Amanda (this picture is of a rehearsal in a parking garage...yes even Flash Mobs have rehearsals sometimes)

With Petra on the Highline for a quick trek.

post-Clemente Fest glow.

best of the northwest awards, 2011

Best driftwood: South Beach at San Juan Island, WA

Best indoor attraction: Seattle Public Library

Best Patagonia brand ambassador: Jonathan Purtle

Best "Portlandia" moment:

Best nature walks: San Juan Island

Best bus: "Mean Recess" in Wallingford Neighborhood of Seattle

best trip!

my new favorite band

I recently had the pleasure of experiencing the band 'Assateague' live and direct at an intimate show in Philly's "Dream Oven" music venue (aka someone's moist basement - complete with an old punching bag and random stuff strewn about).

it's hard to describe Assateague's beautiful sound, so I recommend you take a few minutes out of your day to really give them a listen on their website.

I also recommend you invest $7 into purchasing their digital album - because every single song is a work of art. jon and I only caught the tail end of their set at the show, but could not stop listening to the album the rest of the weekend!

all hail Assateague! http://assateague.bandcamp.com/

truffle dog vs truffle hog

haven't you always been curious how they match up? which is superior?

wiki leeks

wiki leeks:

get it?

valentine's sunrise

I did happen to notice that this morning, the sunrise was particularly pink....for Valentine's Day, of course!

happy valentine's day everyone - whether you're in love or looking for love...it's all around, it really is!

tax season, giraffe season

perpetuum mobile

penguin cafe orchestra

wow.

Michelangelo Pistoletto!

Michelangelo Pistoletto is an Italian artist with a phenomenal set of talents and a passion for expressing his creativity in various forms.

there is an exhibition of his work currently on display at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, but for just ONE MORE WEEK!

(note the tea kettles in the middle -- are actually on a low setting during the exhibition, producing condensation on the glass table bottom)

definitely one of my favorite artists of all time!

merry bikesmas!

and a helmety new year!

penguin surprise

we took some extra tree branches from the tree place this year--trying to maximize the christmas smell of our abode.

we decorated the mantle with this little christmas scene; tree branches, buttons (affixed with metal hooks), pinecones and of course, penguins!

hooray for that lovely, lovely christmas smell!

philadelphia tubachristmas

tubachristmas is a concert in cities worldwide that celebrates tuba lovers!

we went to the tubachristmas at the Kimmel Center, and got to watch from the magical balcony as the tubaholics got set up

there was even a surprise visit from..

the PA Ballet's RAT KING who was in the audience!

delicious gratitude

thanksgiving was absolutely delicious thanks to the culinary wizardry of the one, the only, petra tanos!

she started us off with a cheese plate featuring major deliciousness including a "Mt Tam" cheese by cowgirl creamery.

then we graduated to this insanely delicious fennel soup topped with a medley of olives and capers

the main course was pappardelle pasta topped with sage, walnuts and butternut squash--an absolutely unforgettable combination--mmmmm, still thinking about it!

then we had this amazing radicchio, endive, blue cheese, pear salad to round things out. holy freshness.

i am so thankful for petra, for my mom, my dad, for jonny, for all of my friends and frienemies, for the delicious foods of the world, for being alive!

thanks, world!

creative recycling machine

a few weeks ago we went to see a steel chamber designed to make recycling cathartic...and fun.

the idea is; someone stands on one end behind bullet proof glass - they are the "target" (or there is no target) and the person on the "throwing" end, throws glass into the chamber to break it down and prep it for more efficient recycling. win win situation whereby aggression is released via broken glass in a contained vessel.

I really didn't have it in me to throw glass and break it...

but it was neat to watch, never the less.

want more? peep this .