The Archives

  • Woman and a man in renaissance garb. The man is holding up a live rat, and the woman has her hand over her mouth in surprise

    Our Annual Trip in the Time Machine

    As you know, we love to trot the globe and see new places. But did you know that sometimes we stay right here in Michigan and still find fun things to do? For instance, every fall we don medieval garb and head to Holly for our annual trip in the time machine. Join us as we share one helluva huzzah at the Michigan Renaissance Festival. The Big Kick Off After making our way past “Ye Olde Porta-Potties” we entered the festival just after they opened at 10am and received a copy of the day’s itinerary and a cartoonish map. To our great delight, bag pipe band Tartanic would be kicking…

  • Band on stage at the House of Blues. Behind them is a large graphic that reads "The Boxmasters"

    The Front Row Blues in the Big Easy

    After the long epic day of art, pride and jazz, we decided to just stay in bed and take it easy. Just kidding. Of COURSE we didn’t stay in. I mean, we only had one day left in New Orleans, and you can sleep on the plane. Probably. Anyway, join us as we unpack our last day where we visit the blacksmith shop, eat oysters and get the front row blues in the Big Easy. First…Coffee, please I won’t lie. When I woke up on Sunday I was feeling a tad “under the weather”. But I’m not one to let how I’m feeling impact what I’m doing so I ordered…

  • Image of a woman with her arms held up under the chrome statue known as the Bean

    The Best of the Windy City

    Whether you’re heading to Chicago to run the marathon or you’re planning to do a little shopping on the Magnificent Mile, our recommendations for the best of the Windy City will help you know where to go, what to do, and even better…what to avoid while you’re there! First up…let’s talk food Where to go Il Culaccino Walking distance from McCormick Place, Il Culaccino is a great escape from the pace of the Convention area. Not only is the food is excellent, they have a great patio to enjoy on a warm day AND it is decorated with pictures from mob movies! Who wouldn’t like a little al dente pasta…

  • Colorful float with many riders

    Pride, Jazz, and Art in the Big Easy

    Looking back, it’s hard to believe that a person could do SO MUCH in just one day. You may remember that it started off with a tour of St. Louis Cemetery, the home of the Voodoo Queen and the future home of actor, Nicholas Cage. We ended the day walking two miles back to our hotel sometime just after 3am. In between, we experienced pride, jazz, and art in the Big Easy! Join us as we unpack one helluva day in New Orleans. Trolley Ride and Lunch Though it was barely 11, the temperature was hovering right around 10,000,000 degrees. Thankfully, the street car had air conditioning and we were…

  • Picture of actor Nicholas Cage, holding a goblet of red wine. He's wearing all back clothing, red sun glasses and red beads.

    Visiting the Voodoo Queen and Nick Cage in the Big Easy

    Ah, New Orleans: The great melting pot of the South. Years ahead of the rest of the country, people from all different backgrounds came together to make one community. Nowhere is that more apparent than the day we went visiting the Voodoo Queen and Nick Cage in the Big Easy! If you’re a taphophile, like me, or someone who just likes to share an adventure, get comfy, grab a beverage and join us for some fun stories while walk among the tombstones. First thing you should know…you have to go with a tour Thanks to the abuse the cemeteries have endured over the years, the arch-diocese of New Orleans no…

  • Yellow two story building with a balconly

    Chasing Ghosts (among other things) in the Big Easy

    I don’t know about you but sometimes I feel like life can be…a lot. You feel me? And last month was extra much. Though I tried to compartmentalize and take things as they came, Stephen could see I was carrying a lot of stress on my shoulders. Knowing me like he does, he planned a curated weekend around all the things I love…history, ghost stories, folk lore, live music, great food, art, and alcohol. If that sounds like fun to you too…join us as we unpack our first day in New Orleans and go chasing ghosts (among other things) in the Big Easy. First, let’s talk about where we stayed…

  • Woman standing in a red telephone booth

    London – the Rest of the Story

    Though we were in London for the marathon, we did make time to see a few fun sites about town before we had to skip back across the pond. Of course, we did manage the secret bar crawl in the evenings during the week, but we took advantage of THE WHOLE day Saturday and we want to share the highlights with you. So grab a cup of your favorite beverage and join us for a look at London – the Rest of the Story. First…Finally saw Ben in ALL his glory So this wasn’t our first time in London. In fact, this was third time I attempted to see Big…

  • Man running in a road race. Lifting his arms in victory

    The London Marathon – The Last of the World Majors

    It’s been over nine weeks since I completed the London Marathon, becoming the first kidney donor to earn the coveted Six Star Finisher medal for completing all of the Abbott World Marathon Majors. We finally had a little down time for me to get around to writing a recap of the historic race. Before we get into all that, I’ll provide a little background info on what happened leading up to the race. So grab a cold one, kick back, and relax. Here is the recap of the London Marathon – the last of the World Majors! The Pre-Race Injury As many of you already know I injured my back four…

  • Crowded bar in room with a low ceiling that has old wooden beams.

    Checking Out The Hidden Bars of London

    The Boston Marathon was behind us and we hopped the pond to jolly old England. Though the main purpose of our trip was to have Stephen run the London Marathon and earn the Abbot Six Star Medal, we had one other important mission in our minds – checking out the hidden bars of London! The Inspiration Since we’d been to London before, we wanted to find some new things to experience. We looked into some museums and shopping areas. And since we were near Whitechapel, I even looked into some “Ripper-themed” excursions. But then I found it, an article on The 15 Best Speakeasy Bars in London*. With this itinerary…

  • Image of a pint of light beer with a Tokyo Marathon Finishers medal on it. The bar beneath it is marble.

    How to Celebrate Surviving a Marathon while Concussed

    Our journey through Japan is coming to a close and in case you missed it, last week we shared about the “Great Cookie Toss at the Tokyo Marathon”. This unfortunate incident was caused by a significantly small room and one wrong move. But this week we want to share with you how to celebrate surviving a marathon while concussed. Hopefully you’ll never need to apply this to your life, but just in case, be sure to book mark this page. The Victor Returns Cold, concussed and triumphant, Stephen made it back to the crevice after completing the Tokyo Marathon in 3 hours and 20 minutes. After he unpacked the story…