Friday, November 30, 2012

Friday 5: Click and Clack

Why, Good Evening, my beautiful and lively readers. How have you been? How was your Thanksgiving?Turkey coma, eh? Well, as it should be. I've been remiss in my writing lately, but I can always rely on the Friday Five for a little sweat free inspiration. They may sweat when they try to come up with the questions, but I don't have to and that's always better for everyone involved, because I am a gross and accomplished sweater. That sounds weird.

Anyway, we have a "tired car metaphor" theme for today's questions. I like that. And without a single "Can you drive stick?" or "lube metaphor." Good work, Friday Five! So here we go, my tired car answers....

What area of your life has lately (and pleasantly) been on cruise control?

Probably home life. Everything at home, both my home and my close family's homes seem to be running smooth like butter right now. As soon as I say that something hideous and unfortunate will occur and I'll blame myself, but that's nothing new. No, things are good here. Good, solid, happy in general. Smoothly on cruise control without any slow asshole drivers slamming on the brakes in front of me in the fast lane. I'm smooth on the home front.
Where in your life should you probably hit the brakes? 

Umm. I don't know. I think I need to think about this one. I want to cut down my screen time. TV, phone, iPad, but more like tap the brakes, not hit em' hard. Just a light tapping of stepping away from the Facebook, Twitter, Blog reading, Instagram time suck, very pleasurable time suck, but still. And again, that sounded dirty, damn near like a lube metaphor. I'm digressing all over the place today.

Where do you go when you just need a little tune-up? 

I'm excited about roughly three new things that are going to happen in 2013. They are big and fun, both work and personal (no, I'm not pregnant, Mom) but I can't talk about them yet, for privacy and jinxing it all silly superstitious reasons. But tune-ups, changes are on the horizon, and I'm terrified and excited about them all. Is there a word for that? Terri-cited? Excit-errified? One of those, but mostly excited.

How much junk have you got in the trunk? 

Well, less than I had at the beginning of 2012. I have officially, as of 6:30 am this morning, lost 30 pounds so far in 2012. I'm thrilled. I'm doing my best to stay focused on small goals. Run farther and longer every time I hit the road, and run/walk at least 5 days a week in the morning. And it's working. I feel good. My favorite jeans might need to be replaced soon. But I like some junk in the trunk. But not in my car, I like a clean car. Clean.

My lady friend and I need a car wash. #fmsphotoaday #vehicle

Where is the needle on your fuel gauge pointing today?

I'm about 3/4 full. This weekend I'll fill-er-up. You?

    Wednesday, November 21, 2012

    A Good Pour and a Good Weekend


    I was born and have lived in Missouri most of my life. Yet somehow I completely missed the fact that Missouri has a thriving, beautiful and lush wine country just an hour or so outside of St. Louis. At least, that is until a couple of weekends ago. My charming friend Tara invited Joe and I to join her and her husband, Mike, to help celebrate Mike's 40th birthday this month. And celebrate we did.


    We loaded up in their minivan, minus the kiddos plus enough food and Pinterest recipes for an army, and hit the road toward the quaint and welcoming small town of Hermann, Missouri. Three hours of catching up and talking in the car made the trip whiz by. We don't get the chance to spend as much time with Mike and Tara as we'd all like since they have two little girls under the age of three. Their time is filled with work and making meals and piles of laundry and bedtimes and tiny hugs and less tiny tantrums and next to no sleep. So it was great to have the chance to just talk and spend some adult time together all weekend. Adult time with wine. So much wine. And sleeping in. If 7:30am counts.



    Hermann-027


    Tara rented a beautiful spot, the Spirit Hill Guest House for our weekend and had some surprises up her sleeve for Mike's birthday. In addition to Joe and I, Tara invited Mike's best friend Don and his wife Sara to fly in from their home in Washington, DC for the weekend. Mike had no idea when the four of us arrived that Don and Sara would be joining us later in the evening.


    Hermann-028


    When we arrived at the house we unloaded the car, got a tour of the house from the owners, picked rooms, unpacked a bit and wandered around, rather gobsmacked about how gorgeous the house was. Recently renovated in 2010, every room was filled with bright clean lines, soothing color, bold art and carefully selected accessories. It was a wonderful space and perfect for our group. With a spectacular view from the top of a bluff down over rolling hills and the Missouri River, we walked around the manicured and landscaped grounds, took in the water features in the front and the back of the house and just got acclimated. The four of us scoped out a couple of places for dinner and drove around Hermann a bit, which like most small towns, pretty much closes up by 8:00pm.




    Hermann-031


    Hermann-030

    We ended up at a local wings place called Wings A-Blazin', that was jam packed with people, always a good sign, plus a table full of police officers with sauce all over their faces, another good sign. The food and service were fantastic. We enjoyed some local beers, Tara got tipsy on one lonely strawberry daiquiri, and I fell in love with the Jamaican jerk chicken lips. The jerk sauce was tangy and perfect, all curry, rosemary and spices and the boneless chicken wings (lips) were juicy, frankly the best wings I've ever had. Plus homemade fries.  If you ever find yourself in Hermann, please stop here, and have the jerk sauce. Please.

    As we headed back to the house, Mike was starting to suspect something was going on. Tara kept teasing and taunting him, and by the time we got home, the surprise had arrived. Don and Sara flew in from DC, where Don had just flown in from a work trip to France. Needless to say, the poor guy was dealing with some serious jet-lag. Tara had made a late reservation for a port and chocolate tasting at the historic Alpenhorn Gasthaus just a few minutes away, so we grabbed jackets and drove over, while Don went to bed, hoping to catch up on some sleep before the rest of the weekend festivities.

    Hermann-001

    Alpenhorn Gasthaus, owned and operated by Adrian and his wife Kate, is an historic property, built in the 1800's that has been everything from a brickyard, to a winery and now a Swiss style B&B. We didn't get a tour of the whole property, which includes the main house, two small guest houses, gardens and even goats. But we did spend the evening in their beautiful wine cellar, completely lit with candles and chandeliers. It was romantic and cozy and a perfect place for a port tasting.

    Hermann-002




    Hermann-005


    Hermann-006


    Hermann-012


    Hermann-015


    I've never been much of a port drinker. It always seemed like a stuffy after dinner drink for titans of industry smoking cigars and speculating on gold prices or something. But I've been converted. Adrian was our host for the evening and lead us through the port tasting, which was part stand up comedy, part friendly chit chat and part wine class.  Port is usually a sweeter red wine fortified with a type of brandy, and ranges in flavor. We tried five types of port, starting with ruby to vintage to tawny.

    Hermann-021


    Hermann-020


    Hermann-025


    Starting with lighter ports that tasted more like wine, stronger ports that have a heavier brandy flavor, but the best part were the homemade chocolates that we had paired with the port. Adrian's wife makes the chocolates, which included small dark chocolate raspberry truffles, mini cupcakes and chocolate covered strawberries. They enhanced and complemented the flavors of the port. The atmosphere, the company, the port, it made for a memorable and delectable evening. And tiny sips of port and one glass of port makes for not too bad a hangover actually. No wonder the titans of industry enjoy it.


    Hermann-026


    Hermann-019

    After the port tasting we went back to the house, sated and tired.  Joe and I stayed up late chatting with Sara, who we'd only met once before, and talked about everything from therapy to running to travel. It was great getting to know her better. And then Joe and I finally headed to bed in our pretty little Asian themed room.

    Hermann-034

    Hermann-035


    Hermann-039


    Up early the next morning, we bundled up and sat out on the deck overlooking the river, enjoying tasty french toast that Tara whipped up in the Crockpot (thank you, Pinterest), guzzled cups and cups of hot coffee, while Mike and Don opened their  birthday gifts (wine from the Turning Old winery complete with personalized labels and themes) and we planned out our day. We decided to drive over to Augusta, which is another small winery town close to Hermann. We fell in love with a vintage port from the Augusta Winery the night before and decided we'd drive over and buy some for ourselves. And sample more wines. And then more wines. This is wine country, right?



    Hermann-040



    Augusta Winery was small, but the service was impeccable. We tasted about five different wines, whites and red, and one delicious apple pie mulled wine, warm and spicy for the holidays. The weather was absolutely perfect. After we bought our wine and thanked our hostess at Augusta, we drove over for lunch at the Augusta Brewery. Sitting outside on a bluff overlooking the Katy Trail, we drank local beers, talked, enjoyed the view, ate some yummy food and just relaxed. Just sitting in the sun with nothing to do and nowhere in particular to be. It was perfect.



    Hermann-042


    Hermann-044


    Hermann-045


    Hermann-046


    Hermann-048


    Hermann-049


    Hermann-051


    Hermann-054


    Hermann-057

    After our long lunch, we drove over to a larger winery, Montelle Winery that has an enormous outdoor deck. The wine was good, but I think because of the sheer number of people they deal with everyday, the service was a little brusque and condescending. No descriptions of the wine or smiles. Just, here, drink your free sips of wine, schmucks. We did. Then we bought some snacks, a few bottles, and popped one open on the deck and took in the view. Ignoring the mildly irritated wine lady, Montelle was worth it for the view alone. And the conversation eavesdropping. As we were in line waiting to buy our wine, Mike came up to Joe and told him that a big group of middle aged ladies, all animal prints and bedazzled T-shirts, asked if someone could take their photo. Of course, Mike offered Joe's services. Joe grudgingly went outside and found all twenty ladies ready for their close up. He gathered them together, asked them to smile, to which one of them quipped, "Smile, and say 'climax', ladies!" and her friend protested "Saying 'sex' is easier!"
    Tittering, tipsy laughter ensued. And Joe proceeded to take their photo with five rounds of cameras and shouts of "Climax!"

    Hermann-055




    Hermann-064



    Hermann-071

    After Joe pried himself away from the cougar clutches, we sat on the deck, drank like classy people from real glasses instead of the plastic cups, thanks to Sara's insistence, it really did make the wine taste better. And just enjoyed the fall leaves, the slight buzz, friends and blatant eavesdropping on the racy conversations of Joe's photo ladies.


    Hermann-074


    Hermann-075


    Hermann-073


    Hermann-077

    After a day filled with eating, drinking, lazing about and just general relaxation and indulgence, we were exhausted. I mean, all that takes it out of a girl. A quick trip to the grocery store for provisions for dinner that night, and we drove back to the house, took naps, read, and walked around outside. Then Tara prepared a wonderful dinner of rosemary potato soup, fresh bread, Caesar salad, and about 100 other delicious things. We ate a late dinner, sat outside for a bit, listened to music, watched some sporting event on TV, and then called it an early night.

    Hermann-080

    I got up early the next morning with plans to hit the road and sweat out some of the wine and work off a little potato soup. So I laced up my shoes, tucked my earphones in and ran around Hermann in the bright morning light. The weather was mild, the town was still asleep and I made it about two miles, with stops for photos and taking in the small town sights and beautiful old buildings, and spotted some antique stores for our afternoon plans.

    Hermann-079


    Hermann-082

    I've never run in a new town before, it was wonderful. The time flew by and other than wanting to stop every five seconds to take a picture, it made me want to run every time we travel. It's such a different way to see a place and take in the streets. No traffic, no pedestrians, just me and Hermann, all alone. I loved it.

    Hermann-083

    Hermann-107

    Hermann-081

    I loved it until the massive hill back up to our house tried to kill me. But thankfully I had coffee and vittles to look forward to on my way back.

    Hermann-078

    Tara had breakfast taken care of again, of course, cinnamon rolls, some summer sausage and cheese, orange slices and of course Christmas cookies, courtesy of her mom. Again, we snacked and talked and enjoyed our last morning in Hermann. Our house was right next to an old cemetery, so after breakfast, Joe, Sara and I walked over to take a look at the old headstones, including some unusual wrought iron crosses and luminous white statues, and this stone wall with rounded masonry. I love old headstones and cemeteries, but moved on pretty quickly from one section when we realized it was the children's cemetery.

    Hermann-085


    Hermann-086

    Headstones dating back to the mid-1800's, so worn that you could barely read the names.


    Hermann-089

    Stones made to look like rugged wooden crosses.

    Hermann-090


    Hermann-092


    Hermann-096

    And of course, Mary and baby Jesus, keeping watch over everyone. I loved her beatific face and the white stone of her draped robe against the blue, blue sky.

    Hermann-101

    We showered, packed up the car, cleaned the house a bit, said goodbye to our lovely accommodations and then drove into Hermann for a little shopping.

    Hermann-103

    Hermann has a great collection of little antique shops, art shops and restaurants. One of the strangest was an art co-op with beauties like that painting right up there. I want to hang it over my fireplace. You know you do too. We visited a few spots, while Mike and Don waited patiently outside most of them, but our favorite was The Golden Rhino.

    Hermann-106


    Filled with all the best things, it was as if someone had gone through and carefully curated their own shop, Joe and I could have dropped a chunk of change in that place. Instead we bought a few little pieces and headed over the Hermann Wurst Haus for some sausages and traditional German side dishes for lunch on our way out of town.

    Hermann-108

    Hermann-104


    We also hit a small shop that was actually part firefighter memorabilia museum and part antique shop. I've never seen so much cool firefighter themed stuff in my entire life.

    Hermann-102


    After our shopping, and scrumptious lunch it was time to part ways with Don and Sara. We had a wonderful time getting to know them better, talking about Don's work and international travel, their families and Sara and I nerding out about our mutual love of books. I hope we all have the chance to hang out again soon. They headed to St. Louis to catch their flight and Tara, Mike and Joe and I hit the road back to Kansas City and back to reality.

    Back to a land where drinking wine, laughing with friends on a broad deck under the fall foliage and eating chocolate all day is a rarity. A huge thanks to the lovely Tara for pulling this weekend all together. She is a consummate hostess and made everyone feel welcome, full with both wine and rich meals, and loved. So thanks again, my friend. It was a wonderful trip all around. When can we go back?


    Hermann-066



    All photos by the intoxicating Joe Sands, except for a few I took when I wanted to stop running and catch my breath.