August 3, 2012 · 3:08 pm

West Des Moines: Olympic gymnastics hotspot thanks to Chow, Gabby, Shawn

We met Liang Chow and his wife about 10 – 15 years ago when our daughter took lessons at his then-fledgling gymnastics studio in West Des Moines.  Who knew that he would become a darling of the 2008 and now 2012 olympics but it couldn’t happen to a nicer guy. Who knows what really goes on between a coach and star pupil but I do know that I’d trust my kid’s fragile body and emotions with him if I had a budding gymnast on my hands. He always seemed a bit unknowable behind his omnipresent smile (a stereotype I know) but he also seemed very calm and kind and dedicated. Just what you want in a coach, I’d think. So happy for him – and his star pupils Gabby Douglas and, in 2008, Shawn Johnson (who I no doubt watched as a kid when I sat through my daughter’s gymnastics classes. She’s a year older than our daughter.) Happy too for my adopted city and state  to catch a little unlikely fame. Wonder who our next Iowa-trained gymnastics superstar will be? (A few contenders can be found on http://www.chowsgym.com.)

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August 2, 2012 · 7:48 pm

Megabus accident – on chicago to st. louis to Kansas City route.

UPDATE ON THE UPDATE: There’s now some question about whether there was a fatality in the Megabus crash, according to the most recent reports.  The bus was apparently headed to St. Louis and then Kansas City. Stay tuned.
UPDATE: Sad and disturbing news that at least one person has been killed and many injured in a Megabus crash today on I-55 in Illinois. I held my breathe as the radio announcer reported the destination city of the bus that left Chicago: Kansas City. (Not Des Moines, where I live.)

AS I WROTE earlier today: (which now seems a trivial matter indeed…)

My son took the Megabus last Friday afternoon from Washington D.C. to NYC and all went well EXCEPT that the ride took longer than expected (over 5 hours) due to traffic AND he’d forgotten to bring any food along, which was a problem because the bus didn’t make a stop for passengers to catch a quick bite. (This stop happens sometimes but not always on the Megabus route between Des Moines and Chicago, which I’ve ridden many times.) Fortunately he did bring water – but when the bus finally arrived in Manhattan at 11 p.m., my son was really hungry.

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August 1, 2012 · 7:04 pm

where to find the New York (food) classics in NYC

Katz’s on the Lower East Side, home to hand-sliced New York pastrami and hot dogs.

Talk about news we can use. Or I can use. The NYTimes has a story with suggestions on where in NYC (generally) to find the best New York classic foods – we’re talking pastrami, bagels, cheesecake, pizza et.al. I was pleased to see Russ and Daughters mentioned – and that my brother’s Park Slope neighborhood is best for bagels. (Also was intrigued by the suggestion in the story that H&H bagels may be reopening. Must investigate that.)

Here’s the list:

If all of this leaves you thirsty, forget bottled water labeled “New York.” Just turn on the tap and let it run cold. It really doesn’t get any better than that.

AQUAGRILL 210 Spring Street (Avenue of the Americas), (212) 274-0505. (Manhattan Clam chowder)

BAGEL HOLE 400 Seventh Avenue (12th Street), Brooklyn, (718) 788-4014. (mini-bagels sold at Russ and Daughters)

FAMOUS ROIO’S PIZZA 465 Avenue of the Americas (West 11th Street), (212) 243-2253.

JOHN’S OF BLEECKER STREET 278 Bleecker Street (Seventh Avenue), (212) 243-1680.

JUNIOR’S 386 Flatbush Avenue (Sterling Place), Brooklyn, (718) 852-5257. CHEESECAKE!

KATZ’S DELICATESSEN 205 East Houston Street (Ludlow Street), (212) 754-2246. HOTDOGS and PASTRAMI

KOSSAR’S BIALYS 367 Grand Street (Essex Street), (212) 473-4810.

NATHAN’S FAMOUS 1310 Surf Avenue (Stillwell Avenue), Brooklyn, (718) 946-2202.

PASTRAMI QUEEN 1125 Lexington Avenue (78th Street), (212) 734-1500.

ORWASHER’S BAKERY 308 East 78th Street, (212) 288-6569. (Rye bread – sold at Citarella and Dean and Deluca)

RANDAZZO’S CLAM BAR AND RESTAURANT 2017 Emmons Avenue (East 21st Street), Brooklyn, (718) 615-0010. CLAM CHOWDER (Manhattan style of course)

RUSS & DAUGHTERS 179 East Houston Street (Allen Street), (212) 475-4888.

ROCK HILL BAKEHOUSE 19 Exchange Street, Glens Falls, N.Y., (518) 615-0777. (Rye bread – sold at Union Square Greenmarket on Saturdays)

S & S CHEESECAKE 222 West 238th Street (Broadway), Bronx, (718) 549-3888. (sold at zabars and dean & deluca)

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July 29, 2012 · 7:06 pm

Leaving wichita

It is really more accurate to say that we are leaving the best western hotel in park city, Kansas, just north of Wichita. We arrived there yesterday at 3pm and didn’t leave until midday today. There was no reason to leave since we came for a family reunion and it was 104 degrees outside. We did make it to Saigon  restaurant on. Broadway  hearty view Vietnamese lunch. (I had the bun as usual, a cold salad of greens, noodles, char broiled pork and egg roll, aka no. 45 on the menu.)

Now we are back in the car driving on interstate 35, another six hours drive north to Wichita. The corn is prematurely brown due to drought..burnt up is the technical term, my husband tells me. Lawns and brown, not their usual green. My brother-in-law, a cowboy in western Kansas report he is running out of pasture for his cattle to graze, it is now 106 on our car thermometer.

Restaurants recommended my various relatives during the reunion:in Kansas city, Lulu’s for Thai.. Chez Elle, crepes;  Amano in New Orleans.

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July 20, 2012 · 2:19 pm

Take me back to Stratford (Ontario) in 2013! (The Who’s Tommy, Othello et. al.)

Looks like we need to make a return visit next year to Stratford Ontario, home of the famous Shakespeare Festival (and yes, Justin Bieber.) We used to go to Stratford a lot when I was growing up in suburban Detroit – which is a few hours drive away – but it’s been at least ten years since we’ve returned. The 2013 season includes a production of the “Merchant of Venice”  (starring veteran Stratford actor Brian Bedford as Shylock) AND “Tommy”, the rock musical based on The Who’s rock opera.   I saw a ballet set to “Tommy” when I was in high school in Detroit – and am pretty sure I can still sing most of the lyrics to the opera. Actor Brian Dennehy will star in Beckett’s “Waiting for Godot” which I haven’t read since high school.  Also on tap: “Romeo and Juliet”  and “Othello.” The NYTimes travel section recently had a story about Stratford and it looks like there’s a lot more there than there was 40-some years ago when I started going to plays there with my parents.

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July 14, 2012 · 6:47 pm

Farm-to-table meal in the Iowa countryside at The Wallace Center in Orient, Iowa

The pretty farmhouse on the grounds of The Henry A. Wallace Country Life Center in Orient, Iowa

We had a lovely meal in a beautiful setting last night at The Gathering Table, a restaurant inside a  white barn (built in 2003 to replicate the original) on the 40-acre farm where Henry A. Wallace, the former U.S. Vice President (1941-45) and founder of the seed corn company Pioneer Hi-Bred, among other things, was born in 1888. The food was prepared with vegetables and fruit grown in The Wallace Country Life Center’s garden and nearby, and the chicken and lamb was also locally sourced. The bread, peach ice cream, strawberry sorbet, crystallized ginger cookies, chocolate almond truffle were all made at the restaurant which is overseen by an Iowa native and well-trained chef  Katie Routh.  There were four of us and we dined on  Bridgewater Farm Roasted Chicken, Cory Family Farm Lamb Meatballs, Early Morning Harvest Polenta Cake, Stuffed Kohlrabi and a Spring Vegetable Platter.

The dinners are available only Thursdays and Fridays – but there is a Tuesday July 31 event that sounds fun, a Quilt show displayed in the Center’s gardens and light summer meal. Thursdays are tapas night. In the restored white clapboard farm house is a gift shop and market with surprisingly good local crafts and produce. You can also wander around seven themed flower gardens, orchard and produce gardens, restored prairie and pod, and a 3/4 mile walking path with five sculptures.  sculpture. Well worth a visit and we’ll be back!

The Gathering Barn where we ate – didn’t feel like a barn inside but charming still.

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July 13, 2012 · 6:46 pm

Whither Shakespeare on the Lawn at the Salisbury House in Des Moines?

During the past few summers, we’ve enjoyed going to see a Shakespeare Play performed by the talented performers involved with the  Repertory Theater of Iowa, staged on the sweeping  lawn of the Salisbury House in Des Moines, with the elegant Tudor mansion as a perfect backdrop.  But this year, it doesn’t appear to be happening. I can’t find any sign of it on the Salisbury House or  Repertory Theater website. Tis a pity.

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July 12, 2012 · 8:10 pm

Bus and trains from Chicago to Northern Michigan

A reader requested ideas on traveling by bus and trains to get from Chicago to Traverse City then  to Mackinac Island  and the Upper Peninsula, Michigan. I’m no expert but when I looked into the Chicago-Traverse City public transportation options a few years ago, renting a car seemed the best bet. A few other things:

– Remember the boat option, but again you’ll need that car. You can take a ferry (see ssbadger.com) from Manitowic, Wisconsin (about 1.5 hours north of  Milwaukee) to Ludington Michigan shore but you’ll land almost two hours south  of Traverse City.

–  When we compared the ferry/boat vs. driving around Lake Michigan option, we stuck with driving because as I recall the ferry/boat was pricey and didn’t save much time.

–  My dentist recently returned from a drive through the Upper Peninsula to Mackinac and then the Detroit area. She does NOT recommend the major road through the center of the UP. Apparently the view is limited to dense forest. She wished she’d taken a road hugging either coast, if there is a viable one.

– When in Mackinac, make sure to venture off the main drag of touristy shops (although you might want to get some Murdick’s fudge first) and wander up the hill to the Grand Hotel and to the wilder areas of the island to enjoy its natural beauty. You can  rent bikes to explore. (see: http://bikemackinac.com/)

– Around Traverse City, don’t miss Sleeping Bear Sand Dunes National Park. We also enjoyed staying in Glen Arbor and visiting Empire, Michigan (go to the Friendly Tavern) and the Cherry Bowl Drive-in Movie Theater in Honor, Michigan.

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July 11, 2012 · 10:17 pm

On the lookout for a lightweight and inexpensive carry-on suitcase

Spectra Global Carry On Black

I thought I found my dream lightweight, inexpensive carry-on suitcase about a year ago and I bought it for about $35. For the most part, it was fine – but I discovered the hard way, when I almost dropped the suitcase on a fellow passenger’s head when trying to stuff it into an overhead luggage compartment, that it was missing a crucial side handle. (I’d never realized just how crucial that side handle is for hoisting up a suitcase.) Not to worry – I went to my favorite shoe/luggage repair store and they managed to find material that almost matched the bag (which has a bright red floral pattern reminiscent of a 1960’s slumber party tote) to fashion into a handle. But during my last plane trip to DC last month, I suddenly found as I was approaching the check-in security area that I couldn’t get my collapsible metal handle to collapse. After wrestling with it for awhile, one side of the handle broke off – making it barely, just barely, functional. Oh well. I did read the other day about my dream suit case – the Spectra Global carry-on suitcase from Victorinox, one of those deceptively heavy-looking hard-sided numbers  made of polycarbonate (vs. soft leather or nylon) that actually weights less than six pounds (notice also in the photo the four wheels vs. the usual two. Apparently this is increasingly popular.) Problem is, it costs about 10 times what my cheapo bag from Target cost.

I do see online that Target is selling some hard-side  suitcases for $75 – $100 but can’t tell how much they weigh. May be worth looking into,.

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July 10, 2012 · 9:17 pm

Scary fall en route to the Neal Smith Trail near Johnston, Iowa

Photo by Dayne Magneson, Park Ranger – Saylorville Lake

Word of warning: be careful if you are riding your bike over the bridge in Johnston (Iowa) just east of NW Beaver Drive (i.e. NW 66th Avenue east of the Johnston soccer fields) crossing the Des Moines River  to get onto the Neal Smith Trail at the Sycamore Access. My husband took a nasty spill thanks to some rough pavement at the southwest end of the bridge, which is narrow to begin with. Fortunately he fell towards the guard rail, away from the traffic. I shudder to think what would have happened if he’d fallen the other way – when the first of two very large and long trucks hauling hay bales passed us. I shared this adventure with another biking friend who said she’s sworn off riding across that bridge after she had a scare on it during rush hour traffic awhile back. Our encounter was on a relatively sleepy Sunday. Or so we thought.

It’s a bummer because we were hoping to do a loop – going north on the Trestle to Trestle trail to Johnston, then winding our way through some quiet residential streets – and one busy street – to get onto the Neal Smith trail heading south. Might not try that again.

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