Sunday, October 30, 2011

Are you talking to me?

For some reason, unknown to me, people think I know stuff. Frequently, I have had perfect strangers ask me for advice, directions, the time of day. I just don't get understand it. Sometimes I know the answer to their questions, but sometime I don't.



29 October, 2011, was like any other Saturday for me and Deirdre. We enjoyed a semi-lazy morning. After some brekkie and outside time with Samson, we headed out to pick up a few things for dinner and Halloween. We were feeling a little spicy, so Chicken Curry was on Saturday night's dinner menu. The recipe can be found here.

We went to our new favorite place to shop, Horrock's in Kentwood. Horrock's has a great selection of fresh vegetables and fruit, and is just a great place to shop. I picked up the ingredients we needed for our Saturday and Sunday dinner. We also purchased a couple of pumpkins for Halloween (Images of our pumpkins to follow, soon). We went back home and decided to walk to Ramona's Table for lunch.

It was a warm, sunny fall day and the walk did both of us good. It also helps that Ramona's Table has great sandwiches and soups. We enjoyed our lunch and over the course of the meal, I remembered that we did not pick up crackers when we stopped at Horrock's. Not a problem, as D&W was across the street from Ramona's. I crossed Wealthy Street and headed towards D&W...

As I was approaching the entrance to D&W, a woman was walking out of the entrance. She locked her eyes on me and said, "Excuse me. Do you know where I can get pumpkins? D&W is out."

I politely said to this person, "Do you know where Horrock's is located? They have pumpkins. We just picked up two pumpkins that were on sale for $4.99."

She said to me, "Yes, I know where Horrock's is located. Thanks!"

At least this time I knew the answer to her question. But it does make me wonder why are you talking to me?


Sunday, October 2, 2011

Art Prize 2011

I am sometimes asked by people, "So why did you end up in Grand Rapids?" Truth be told, of all that places I was stationed and lived when I was in the Navy, Grand Rapids was my favorite place to live. GR, as it is known by the locals, is the second largest city in Michigan and it boasts all kinds of cool things to do. It is a medium sized city with a big city feel. Art Prize is an excellent example of what makes GR a cool place to live.

In 2009, Rick DeVos (grandson of the founder of Amway Richard DeVos) thought that it would be a good idea to create Art Prize, a public art competition where any artist can enter, so long as they find a venue is Grand Rapids that is willing to display their art. Yesterday, Deirdre and I took to the streets of downtown Grand Rapids to take in some art. We were not disappointed.

The following images are bears carved out off wood that are in the fountain pool at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum.






These are some images of art that reminded me of my home state:



We are heading downtown again today to check out a few more venues.