Tour de Fatty

The Tour de Fat rolled through Tempe yesterday and it was a blast. Only, we forgot our costumes and it was nearly 110 degrees outside! After a HUGE crowd of bicycles finished parading through the streets of Tempe, home of the Sun Devils, the New Belgium brewing company put on a fantastic day packed full of events at Tempe beach park.

My ride, Ray

Thrifting in Phoenix

I admit, I am a shopaholic. But in my own defense I am somewhat wise about it; I buy second hand clothing.  I get the occasional "shut the hell up-you bought that at Goodwill?!"when in reality thats where all the best finds are. Lucky for me this year I have been fortunate enough to travel around different cities and rummage through their thrift stores having found some of the most amazing things. I stumbled across this article written by blogger Elissa from Dallas. She couldn't have said it better with thrifting tips for the clothing snob like myself. The internet has made it extremely easy to search out the spots if you aren't familiar with an area and one of the first things I start with is figuring out the neighborhoods that are in a higher tax bracket. Goodwill stores are located almost everywhere and on their site is a handy store locater link. The employees are constantly putting new items out and most of the stores are well maintained with clothing organized by size and sometimes even color. Like Goodwill St. Vincent de Paul stores are located in most areas too, often carrying really nice second hand furniture or even floor models from local retail stores. Their clothing sometimes seems out dated though, but I have gotten really nice handbags and shoes moderately priced. Plato's Closet is a super trendy consignment store for the person who is a little shy or uncomfortable about thrift stores for whatever reason. You can even bring your own clothes there and they buy them for store credit or cash right there on the spot. They are super picky, however and only take things that are in season and in stores right now. Prices are fairly decent depending on where you are (Des Moines prices are awesome, Knoxville prices were a little steep for what they had). Their target market are teens and 20 somethings, both men and women clothing, shoes and accessories.

Click the link below to see what I've found this week.

Summer days driftin' away

while Iowans pull their Uggs out of the closet..

The Rockies

It was such an overwhelming feeling standing on the ledge of a massive rock at the top of Juniper pass this last weekend in Idaho Springs. The next town down from Georgetown nestled in the Colorado mountains, these towns began in the 1800's (1859, Georgetown) as mining camps.

Juniper Pass, Colorado.   Sun July 31st.   

Did I mention that I am having a ton of fun?

She'll be comin' down the mountain when she comes

Mountain ranges across the U.S in the past year.

-Take a peek into amazingness-

Arizona

Beach bum

I just got back from a stay on the west coast. While visiting the southern california Los Angeles area I did some amazing things. One of which was the Art in the Streets exhibit at the MOCA in Little Tokyo downtown. The first American street art/graffiti exhibit to date, it featured artists such as Banksy, Shepard Fairey & Swoon. "Tracing the development from the 1970's to the global movement it has become today, concentrating on key cities such as NYC, LA, San Fran, London, and Sao Paulo, where a unique visual language or attitude has evolved"(moca). There, you can see paintings, mixed media sculptures, and interactive installations complete with a comprehensive timeline illustrated with artwork, photos, video, and ephemera which will provide a historical context for the work.

Oh, and every Thursday night between 5-8pm its free--thanks to Banksy who is sponsoring the free admission. He has this to say about it: "I dont think you should have to pay to look at graffiti. You should only pay if you want to get rid of it."

There is never a dull sight at venice beach either. Everything from artists selling their handmade drawings and bracelets to any kind of food you'd ever want to eat.. all the beer and booze you can handle.. skateboarding, surfing, lifting weights at muscle beach.. whatever, its there! One of my favorite spots to visit just for the entertainment value and the ocean breeze.. Venice is a must-see.

Heat Advisory

A life without love is like a year without summer -Swedish Proverb

...and this is only the beginning.

Madison, Wisconsin

.knoxville.

I've been in Knoxville Tennessee  for the past month and have formed quite the liking to this southern 'mountain hipster kid' town. Everywhere I have gone to eat.. drink.. shop.. hike whatever it may be someone has introduced themselves to me and sparked conversation. A whole different world compared to the snooty Scottsdale Arizona where I spent 3 months at the end of last year. Its comforting when people are easy to befriend & makes it a heck of a lot easier to search out the sweet spots in town.  I seem to frequent the same places over.. and over again.. or ordering in shitty chinese food (dont ever wing ordering Chinese food in Madison Wisconsin...), Knoxville pushed me out of my shell.  This town is a place I could relocate to. A few of my favorite spots so far are located downtown (also where the University of Tennessee's campus is): Market Square (preservation pub, La Costa, Soccer Taco, Swagger, etc), Old City (theres a hip hop dance club called Hanna's cafe down here!). I also spent a day down at Norris Dam where the water was freeeeeeeezing but the clearest I've ever seen! Initially I was looking for a swimming hole but there was no possible way anyone could even stand in the water without catching hypothermia 5 minutes later! Its nestled in the Smoky Mountains of Tennessee so the short 25 minute drive was worth getting eaten alive by mosquitos and the vitamin D overload that day.