January 2, 2009
I likes to go swimmin...
... with bowlegged women -- I'm Popeye the Sailor Man! Toot toot! Sorry, I do like to go swimming though. Well, if I'm being honest, I like the idea of swimming as a workout. I don't actually do it. But after we watched the OSU Men's and Women's swimming teams this morning, I'm inspired to give it a shot. These athletes are proof that swimming does a body good. Most impressive -- how the teams train with different resistance tools like a parachute they trail behind them in the water -- or the power tower: a barrel filled with water attached to a pulley and then cabled to a swimmer who lifts it as he or she swims the length of the pool. Whoof, it looked tough.

December 31, 2008
New Year's Eve Recipes by Kim...
Kim Dell, Pataskala resident and passionate foodie, shared some of her New Year's Eve party recipes with us this morning. The following are incredibly simple -- anyone can make these! Just try 'em...

Prosciutto-wrapped spears of Asparagus
1 tablespoon olive oil
16 spears fresh asparagus
16 pieces Prosciutto
Preheat oven to 450. Line baking pan with foil and coat with oil. Wrap Prosciutto around asparagus, starting at the bottom and spiraling up to the tip. Place the wrapped spears on the baking sheet. Bake for 5 minutes. Remove and shake the pan back and forth to roll the spears over. Return to oven for another 5 minutes or until crisp.

Sweet Chicken Wraps
1 pound bacon
1 1/4 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast (about 4)
2/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons chili powder
Cut chicken into 1" cubes. Slice bacon into 1/3 pieces. Wrap each cube of chicken with bacon a secure with toothpick.
Combine brown sugar and chili powder. Dredge chicken wraps in mixture and place in greased baking dish. Bake at 360 for 30-35 minutes.

Tortellini Skewers with Garlic Mayo Pesto
4 garlic cloves, peeled
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1-10 oz. pkg. tortellini
1 cup mayo
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup prepared pesto
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1 pint grape tomatoes
frilled toothpicks

Place garlic cloves on a double thickness of foil. Drizzle with 1
tablespoon olive oil. Wrap foil around garlic. Bake at 425 for 20-25
minutes.

Meanwhile, cook tortellini according to package directions; drain and rinse in cold water. Toss with remaining oil; set aside. In a small bowl, combine mayo, cheese, milk, pesto and pepper. Mash garlic into pesto mixture; stir until combined.
Alternately thread tortellini and tomatoes onto toothpicks. Serve with pesto dip.

Cherry Cheese Cups
1-15 count pkg. frozen "Fillo" cups (in freezer section)
Brie, cut into chunks
Cherry pie filling/or fruit preserves
Place Brie chunk into pastry cups. Top with filling choice. Bake at 350 for 4-5 minutes.

December 30, 2008
Pop-N-Drop
Yes, Marion is known for their popcorn and their popcorn festival which is the largest festival of its kind in the world. But they also are home to the Wyandot Popcorn Museum which is technically a museum in a larger museum called Heritage Hall, but we're focusing on popcorn here. Popcorn makers must have taken their craft seriously in the past because they fashioned some incredibly beautiful and beautifully complicated pieces of machinery with which to pop their corn. While you're there step into Heritage Hall to check out the stuffed horse with the world's longest mane...

December 29, 2008
Wholly Craft
Here's a place, again, that dabbles in the unique, one-of-a-kind. Of the hundred and fifty or so crafters that provide this place with its goods, 50 of them live right here in Columbus. And you can sell your own creations here on consignment. If you have the funky touch drop by Wholly Craft in Clintonville to see if you can turn a crafty buck or two.

December 24, 2008
Last Minute, Locally Made Christmas Gifts
Over the course of the holiday season we encountered all kindsa great gift ideas, many of them made right here in town: The design-them-yourself tees at Skreened, the felt coffee jackets at AmyD's, handmade wooden toys by Little Alouette, the funky nostalgic treasures at Flower Child, and P.U. the game of smells invented in Columbus and sold in area Meijer stores. I could go and the best part is that behind every one of these cool ideas we met an incredible person. Merry Christmas to all -- it was great getting to know you.

December 17, 2008
Franklin Park Conservatory
A 15-foot poinsettia tree, model trains, gingerbread houses, and the usual assortment of flora decked out for the holidays set the conservatory apart when you're talking about things to do this season. There's a real sense of warmth walking through the collections and taking part in the activities here not only because they're centered around the holidays but because it's actually warm in there! After all, it is a giant greenhouse...

December 16, 2008
Roscoe Village

The people are so warm and friendly at Roscoe, an historic canal town in Coshocton, that you can't help but feel all Christmassy when you're there. It's a bonus that they have a holiday-themed candlelight ceremony this Saturday. I like this place because it has a lived-in feel (that's probably because people live there) in addition to the period homes and hands-on historical tourism. One of the only places you'll find fresh roasted chestnuts. Yeah, over an open fire...

December 15, 2008
Timbuk Farms
This is your last week to get a tree. If you're after that "let's take the family out, hunt down our own living evergreen, and strap it to the car roof like a trophy deer" experience then Timbuk's a cool place to do it. This place has a hundred thousand trees or so, so you should be able to find the "right" one. I've seen a lot of these places -- this one's nice. Rolling hills, pine-dotted meadows, and hot chocolate to warm up your saw-weary hands.

December 11, 2008
Open Door Art Studio
Open Door instructs people with disabilities how to create works of saleable art. The participants are encouraged to find their voice in any number of media and then fine-tune their styles until the finished works are marketable. I've never been able to afford to "collect" artworks, but here's one way to get started and jump start someone's career in the bargain. They also have some cute art and crafts on consignment from locals too you might want to eyeball.

December 10, 2008
Holidays with History
The Ohio Historical Society has a few things going-on including their annual Dickens of a Christmas stuff, which is always edifying. But the Rockwell's America exhibit they have going on is unlike any kind of exhibit I've seen, art, history or otherwise. Essentially, you walk into real-life replications of Rockwell's Saturday Evening Post covers inhabited by interpreters who interact with you. Seriously lively stuff. And the colors and props pop off the walls. Check this out.

December 9, 2008
Christmas in Cambridge
This is worth a road trip. Now through Jan. 10, the good people of Cambridge have turned their town into a Dickensian dream of Victorian-era Christmas. More than 160 life-size paper-mache figures in some 60 different tableaux bring a sense of holiday whimsy to the streets. You can spot Bob Cratchit and the ghost of Marley, even Scrooge himself among others like a sot being carried off in a wheelbarrow and a bucket brigade ready to douse an unseen fire.

December 8, 2008
Wright Patterson Air Force Base
We shot this one a month ago but my visit is still fresh in my mind. What a spectacular place -- and HUGE. Don't worry if you miss the exit -- there are three or four more. Wright Pat actually employs one of every 12 people living in the greater Dayton area, but apart from that it's a mighty cool place to get a backstage pass. We saw some of their simulators and research labs and learned they're working on improving the physical capabilities of our fighting men and women; which I take, of course, to be code for "secretly developing Captain America."

December 4, 2008
Christmas in Granville
Beginning to see a pattern here? Yeah, it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas everywhere you go, and I do mean everywhere. The lovely town of Granville brought out an ice sculptor for us and some kids to carol and even warmed us up with a tremendous fresh-made batch of warm, sweet kettle corn. If you're looking for some holiday cheer outside of the city take a drive through downtown Granville.

December 2, 2008
Christmas at the Post Office

This morning the post office opened their doors to us to unveil their new Nutcracker stamp and to show us how to make our own holiday stamps. It's easy -- you go to www.photostamps.com and it'll walk you through the process. Imagine sending your cards out with the envelope gracing your very own mug. Or better yet, the mugs of everyone in your family. And they are legitimate 42 cent stamps.

December 1, 2008
Christmas in London
London Ohio natch. We spent the morning with the mayor and his friends ringing in the Christmas season. London's middle schoolers turned up to carol the fastest, tongue-twistiest version of Rudolph I've ever heard and we diddy-bopped into a couple of the town's retail shops. Nice stuff if you happen by. We ended our morning with a carriage ride, me and the mayor. Turns out we bonded over Westerns. His favorite is "The Outlaw Josey Wales" too!