Tag: Recreation

Gramwell Trail – Mountain Brook Reservoir – Jaffrey NH

It has come to my attention this entry from last fall was never published so I’ve decided to release it into the world today. Late is better than never! So here we go…

Over the past few years I have had to get more creative in how I find trails, especially ones close to home that no one seems to know about – like this one! Believe it or not I found it while looking at a Redfin map. Whhhy it was on a realtor’s map I couldn’t tell you but I knew I had to swing by and check it out.

I had no idea that I’d be driving down a series of sketchy camp/dirt roads to get here. The Prius LOVES me for these unplanned adventures, especially when fallen leaves obscure the road and make everythign slippery. Nothing like having the fear of God put back into you because you’re driving a Prius.

ANYWAY. This place is near civilization and yet still in the middle of nowhere. It’s odd, but the PERFECT introvert’s trail! Although there was a cute little parking lot which had room for numerous vehicles we were the only ones there on this day and according to reviews online this seems like it is usually the case. Maybe because it’s new? The trail board claimed it was only set up in 2016 and already was faded almost beyond being able to read. A handwritten note to the side pleaded for help to repair the bridges.

The trail itself was a bit wet and slippery under a thick layer of dead leaves but other than that it was an easy trail that ends at a cute little pond view before attaching to a well known snow mobile trail. It made for a really lovely afternoon walk. We didn’t see another soul and it was SO QUIET. A hidden gem indeed.

0

Shadow and Soul Emporium & Tea Lounge

Keene is such an adorable city. Walking down the main street is always a joy but I hadn’t done so in a number of years and a lot of the stores have changed. One of these fresh new faces was this absolutely bonkers tea lounge and emporium. It. Was. Wild.

Straight in the door you see a line of fabulous witches hats along with some greenery, a bunch of separate booths with all sorts of witchy and steam punky things, with sitting spots throughout and a tea lounge at the back with a huge wall of every kind of tea you could ever desire. This place had all the vibes! And I was surprised by all the spell bottles – so precise and so many to choose from! And the delightful hats? Come on. You can’t beat a nice hat. Or a good crystal. Or a ton of politically left leaning stickers.

Well, it’s been a rough few days for me and it doesn’t look like it’s going to return to sanity for a long while so I would just like to thank anyone who is reading this for following along my adventures. This summer has seen Catching Marbles really take off and I am SO grateful and thankful for all of you. Keep joy in your heart and go get some tea! Much love, Theophanes.

0

Beautiful Picnic Spot (video) – Ayer Massachusetts

Today I was doing errands and decided to go on a hike afterwards. I found the Ayer Conservation Trails at 73 Groton-Harvard Road Ayer. It was weird, parking was on the opposite side of the road and the kiosk was behind a guard rail and didn’t look like it’d been replaced in yeeeears. I wandered down the trail and when I saw a VERY decrepit sign readin, “pond” with an arrow I followed.

Turned out this was just a series of viewpoints off the main trail but it was GORGEOUS. I took this short video to show you all and then was called home for an emergency so I didn’t get to complete the hike. But I decided to post this anyway because it was still very cool. Video below!

0

European Country Antiques – Cambridge Massachusetts

It’ not often we get to check out a new antique store! This one just moved to this quiet location in Cambridge. It doesn’t look like much from the outside but it was very decent.

This is one of the few antique stores that have a consistent vision of what they want to sell. Inside we found almost entirely furniture – all of it farmhouse, country chic, or rustic DIY. I loved it but…. I don’t have a house or the budget for this place. I don’t think I saw anything under a couple grand. Well, except for a giant basket out back marked $18. I pondered if there was a missing zero.

Despite the prices I would absolutely recommend this place for anyone looking for that old farmhouse feel. It’s by far the largest collection of rustic and country chic furniture I’ve ever seen in one place so if that’s your style and you’re blessed with more wealth than myself by all means check this place out!

0

Random Sights (and Gargoyles) around New Haven Connecticut

Few things make me happier than finding a gargoyle in the wild. Imagine my pure delight when I noticed the church across the Grove Street Cemetery had several! Even better the whole building was COVERED in faces. Why, I have no idea but I was enamored. I wandered around the perimeter of the whole building learning that this was the Yale law school.

I eventually caught the attention of what I presume was a professor watching me with my camera excitedly pointing out every grotesque. He stopped, stood on his bike and watched, probably trying to figure out what I was up to. Was it something to be concerned about? Was I a student? A robber? A tourist? Hard to say.

There were also several other cool buildings and burials as we wandered. New Haven has a weird European feel to it as it is just so damn pretty! Anyway… for fellow hawkers and photographers I highly suggest giving it a good poke!

0

Grey Matter Books – New Haven CT

Although we hadn’t intended on going to a bookstore we happened by this one between where we parked and where were trying to go and being the nerds we are… in we went!

I cannot tell you how long it has been since I have been in a used bookstore. I am SO happy that some still exist in this eBook world! I was initially struck by the title of the place which seemed to be a pun. Grey matter being the areas of brain where we store information. Plus, the front window had some really odd books in it. Just bizarre.

We walked in and I thought being a college, er university, town this was most likely a textbook swap but alas it seemed to have a bit of everything. It wasn’t enormous but it was lovely! Chairs were randomly dispersed, excited university students prattled in the narrow aisles about buying a book in French for a friend learning French. It was sweet! There was a poster on the wall commemorating Edward Gorey, a rare William Burroughs piece behind glass, and even an old hardcover copy of Poe. And the place smelled of old books. A cart at the front had $1 finds.

I sat at the back of the store cooling off for a bit. That’s where I found a whole section dedicated to gender studies and another on black voices. I skimmed the gender books as it’s interesting to me, giggling at Sapphic Slashers; Sex, Violence, and American Modernity. What a title! I may have bought it but it had no tags, neither did the book my companion picked up. I didn’t see any prices labelled anywhere except for the $1 cart up front and being in a wealthy city but with a modest budget none of us really wanted to ask but we did enjoy the place and I would recommend it if you’re in town and looking for a weirdly specific reference book to something on the unusual side!

0

Hull’s Art Supply and Framing – New Haven CT

This is another odd entry as I don’t do too many stores but there was a sandwich board out front saying it was the only independently owned art supply store in the entire state of Connecticut, so I had to go in and check it out.

This was another modestly sized store but with an eager staff who immediately asked if we needed help with anything. The front was dedicated to little novelty gifts like pencils with funny sayings printed on them relating to astrological signs, funny erasers and whatnot. A bulletin board at the entrance was COVERED in missing cat posters, with a few smatterings of services offered by local artists.

Inside there was a section devoted to every hobby you can imagine – painting, sculpting, model building, framing, diorama and train set building, sketching, wood carving, you name it! And their prices seemed reasonable with a surprisingly large variety of items to choose from. I’d definitely shop here if I lived nearby. I have 300 hobbies and all of them are expensive and time consuming. At least this place made it all look so fun!

So yeah – shop local, support indie, this place is a little gem!

0

Peabody Natural History Museum – New Haven Connecticut

There’s few things more alluring than the chance to see dinosaurs. Add to that the fact this museum was free and we were all on board. To the dinosaurs!!

Of course being a natural history museum there was a lot more than dinosaurs but they were the first thing we saw – specifically a life size triceratops guarding the outside of the building and several pterodactyl fossils just in the lobby. Already I was endeared. From here we wandered into a large room with mostly prehistoric ice age fossils – all the most beloved creatures from the time – a mammoth, a sabre tooth tiger, even a moa which I lovingly call a “12 foot murder bird.” It was a nice display.

This wasn’t the end of the fossils. There was also marine fossils, including a precambrian section with an anomolocarus, a whole dinosaur room, and even a huge sea turtle in a large sitting area near the bathrooms. Also near the bathrooms was a super cool little water bottle refilling station claiming to have saved the world from thousands of plastic bottles. I liked that!

The museum also had a selection of very well done taxidermy of unusual species – my favorite was an aye aye, as well as displays about how taxidermy is done, as well as a living lab with leaf cutter ants and butterflies. For the more technical minds there were displays of the evolution of various technologies, for history buffs there was a very touching display of archeological finds including a Mesopotamian legal document showing a woman selling her own children into slavery to spare them from starvation after losing her husband, and finally there were several rooms dedicated to rocks and minerals that were far more fascinating than I had anticipated. Things I’d never seen – including one that looked like rolls of fabric and another spikey creation that made me itchy looking at it.

All and all we spent a couple hours in this museum and for being free I was quite impressed! I would definitely recommend it to any curious minds looking for something to do in the area.

0

Louis Lunch – Birthplace of the Hamburger – New Haven CT

My usual travel companion is a foodie, history nerd, and unbothered carnivore so when he found out the birthplace of the hamburger was in New Haven we had to go.

We parked in the weird parking lot behind this eatery and paid $2 an hour to stay there as we wandered. It seemed a fair deal, even if it was awkward and I had to back into a space like everyone else. But anyway, onto the hamburgers…

The aesthetics of this place are very European looking, very bright and old fashioned. You can’t miss it. Inside it is TINY. The tiniest restaurant I have ever eaten in, with pew-like booths seemingly fit for a child. Still, a crowd was in here, sitting down in them.

The menu was even tinier. You could order a burger or a cheeseburger with optional tomatoes and onions. They were all to be served medium rare with a soda in a glass bottle and a choice of potato salad or chips. That was the entire menu.

I can only remember eating hamburger once in my life. It was what remained of one of my father’s cows – Holly. Her name was labelled on the package as it came out of the freezer. You can’t really blame me for being put off.

Still, I’m an adult now and in the spirit of trying new things I ambled up to the counter and asked for a cheeseburger with tomato and onions with a side of potato salad just in case. We then sat down and waited the fifteen minutes we were told it’d take. This place was awesome in the sense the cook was right next to the cashier and was making patties to set in a preposterously old cast iron steamer. In all my travels I’d never seen such a thing. They also had an antique toaster just rotating toast the whole time.

By the time the burgers came out I was a bit nervous. They were indeed medium rare, still bleeding, so no need for ketchup, served not on a bun but between two slices of white toast. I took the plunge and took a bite of this thick burger. I think it’s fortunate they were cooked so little – I think that might be why I hated hamburger in the past. By the time it turns grey it’s chewy and gross but this was steaming hot, pink, and just dripping. I was shocked how good it was! Which was awesome because the potato salad was intensely bland and would have made for a shit lunch had this whole burger thing not worked. Should we go again I’m getting salt and vinegar chips and enjoying the hell out of the whole thing!

So, is this eatery worth it? YES. It was even worth the drive. Ambiance, staff, history, and great food. This was a win!

0

Transylvania Restaurant & Bar – New Haven Connecticut

The cemetery was a wonderful little place to explore but what tempted us to come to New Haven was a random restaurant review on FaceBook that just looked so intriguing we had to go check it out.

The Transylvania Restaurant and Bar is a Vlad the Impaler themed restaurant in a former grist mill. It has all the charm of an old historic building and all the joy of misplaced vampires! My whimsy meter was already on overload looking at the bathrooms, labelled bat rooms. This was my companion’s idea to come here. Initially I thought it might be kind of… too gimmicky… but I gave it a chance because their menu online screamed European peasant food and you know what I fucking love? That’s right, European peasant food. And I don’t mean to be at all offensive in saying that. I’ve on occasion tried the froufrou rich people food but nothing beats the dishes of the common man. Those dishes have to exist in a space of actually being good and I mean really fucking good.

We showed up a few minutes after they opened and were only one of two (or three?) parties there in the restaurant part, the other one was a large family with lots of exuberant kids. I think it may have been the owner of the restaurant who tended to us and asked how we ended up here. We told her a FaceBook ad and she excitedly exclaimed, in her adorable accent, that the other people here were also showing up because of the same FaceBook post and she asked if she could take our photo. Suuuuure….? We laughed. Funny enough I get asked by strangers for my picture weirdly often on these travels and I don’t mind smiling for the camera.

Anyway, once we settled in we were over the moon with the menu. It wasn’t an extensive menu but it was intense in its options. I could have chowed down on just appetizers and been just fine! But there was more, so much more. Prior to coming here we found a video of someone pulling apart one of their baked cheese wedges, to which my arteries screamed, “NOOO! DON’T DO IT!” Which is why I had no choice but to try it. It was fairly standard to what baked cheese usually is but they served it with slices of granny smith apple that TOOK IT TO THE NEXT LEVEL. I was going to take a photo but we devoured it in a few seconds long before I remembered to do so. We both felt like pigs after that but DAMN was that good!

I was enamored by their selection of soups and salads, including wild mushroom soup and tripe soup, but I had decided before I even came here that I wanted to try the goulash. I didn’t have a firm grasp of what goulash was but it’s such a fun word and sounds so very peasanty. Only problem was it was beef goulash which I’m really not supposed to be eating due to a mild allergy. I went for it anyway, probably much to my companion’s chagrin, as it’s usually his job to chase me around with bottles of water in a usually futile attempt to keep me alive. I went for it anyway and when they served it… it looked like a bowl of wet dog food with a blop of sour cream on the top. I’m not going to lie. But you know what’s great about peasant food? The uglier it is the tastier it usually is. This was no exception! HOLY CRAP was it good! So tender and moist and full of flavor!! With little chunks of potatoes floating in there. You can never go wrong with potatoes. My companion thought something was wrong but I was just making sure to chew really really really well (as to avoid getting it stuck in my throat which is what my mild allergy to beef does.) I was soooo full after the cheese and half a bowl of this goulash. Complete and utter food coma.

Meanwhile my companion had ordered the Hungarian Paprikash which turned out to be an equally flavorful chicken dish. I know because we swapped a few bites. I would have been happy ordering that too! And he ate the whole thing… which was a lot of food! That’s how you know it’s good. When a foodie with nothing to gain says so.

Honestly, I think we would have both really enjoyed trying their desserts, one of which included a flaming pile of impaled doughnuts which was so fitting, but we were both bursting at the seams. We promised to come back… and maybe someday we will. I usually don’t say this of restaurants, but it was worth the two-hour drive to get there. Highly recommend!

0

Proudly powered by WordPress | Theme: Baskerville 2 by Anders Noren.

Up ↑