People Knowing My Name...

It's hard for me to pick a place where everyone might know my name. I'll blame my parents and myself for that, because they gave me a hard-to-pronounce name and then I made it worse by hyphenating my last name when I got married.

However, there are a few places that I really love to go, because I am recognized and valued there. Three essential spots:

• The Red Key - Lana knows my name, which is the most important part, because I love Lana. Everyone else is lovely, too, and we always run into friends here.

I like the Red Key so much I bring finger puppets there.

• The Monon Coffee Company, either location - it's kind of funny that someone who seldom drinks coffee (me) would feel so much at home at a coffee shop, but I do. It doesn't hurt that they have Rene's delectable almond croissants and pumpkin bread, as well as a clientele (and staff) that typically includes a friend or two.
• Yats, early crew on College - I love the Yats crew, Joe and all the good guys at the counter. They always welcome me, noticed when I lost weight this year, even though I go there one-tenth of the amount that I used to (it's not close to work any more), are respectfully flirty, and always ask how my husband is.  

It's fun to go places where people know me, but it's even better that I get to go places where I know people - you know what I mean?

This post is a part of #thinkkit11.

Best Event of 2011 (for me)

2011 had a lot of events in it. I saw some exciting speakers, participated in good conversations, laughed, cried, all that, thanks to all the exciting people making cool stuff happen in Indianapolis.

Still, my favorite event was Tonic Indy. The event benefits Second Helpings, where - full disclosure - my guy works. Tons of my friends contribute, in the form of visual artistry, musical stylings and/or cool-kid volunteering. Every planning meeting is fun (I co-chair the Tonic Gallery and provide a lot of social media support to the whole event). Each conversation about Tonic, with artists, musicians, press, friends, anyone, is a pleasure.

Why I loved it even more than usual: This was the 10th Tonic Ball. We raised over $40K - all of which will go to feeding hungry neighbors and providing job training for unemployed and underemployed people. We got Ken Honeywell an amazing custom-designed suit in the style of Nudie, created by the undeniably talented Jerry Lee Atwood, to honor Ken's decade-long contribution as a founder and leader of the event.

And these things happened.

This post is a part of #thinkkit11.

2011 Best Meal: The Mayan Cafe in Louisville

My best meal of 2011 is actually a tie, but because I already mentioned the $5 Slow Food Challenge pitch-in, I'm declaring the meal I had at the Mayan Cafe in Louisville the best meal of 2011.

The Tok-Sel Lima Beans, picture via the Mayan Cafe

The Food
Chef Bruce Ucan knows what he is doing here, combining Yucatan food traditions with local products. The flavor combinations here, which included generous servings of Capriole goat cheese, amazing spice combinations best evidenced by the Tok-Sel Lima Beans and seasonal produce, were surprising in the best possible way. Case in point: Ben's brisket chilaquiles featured sweet potatoes in place of the traditional tortillas. Another case in point: the salbutes (sort of like extra-crispy and flat sopes) are changed up to match what is available each week; ours had a mix of vegetables, cheese and crisp cabbage and came with a firey-fresh dipping sauce.


The Space & Service
The Mayan Cafe is located on Market, a street that is dotted with great places to eat, in a pretty small space that was absolutely full (but not uncomfortably packed) when we ate there. The room is just-barely decorated with photographs, dark walls, and low lighting - it lets the food be the star. Our server was attentive, excited about the food, but appropriately restrained. When I asked him about ingredients in some of the dishes, he was excited to share both what he knew and his own appreciations of the food. Louisville seems to be full of restaurants like this - intimate, special, but not overly fussy, and staffed by people who are genuinely thrilled about the food.


The Occasion
Ben and I like to go on a trip each year around our anniversary; this year we went to Madison, IN and Louisville.
It's usually a long weekend. We tend to eat a lot, spend at least one night at a state park (hiking!), and take it very easy. I love these vacations, especially because we intentionally take at least one night to get a bit gussied up and head out to a great place. 
In Louisville, I'd say that we did that about four times (dinner at the Hillbilly Tea Room, a mid-day stop at Proof on Main, breakfast at Toast on Market & several hours spent in the lobby of the Brown, where we stayed) but the Mayan Cafe was the most surprising and delightful experience for me.


This post is part of @thinkkit11.

Favorite Read of the Year

2011 will go down as the year in which novels and I did not get along. Right around page 42 or 153 or 209, we would split up, or at least separate. But like many exes, they lingered - on my nightstand, in my car, in tote bags and purses.

Seeing that novels and I just couldn't make it work, I turned to short stories.

My favorite read this year came from My Mistress's Sparrow Is Dead, a collection of love stories (and not-quite-love stories) edited by Jeffrey Eugenides. It came out a few years ago, full of really good and not especially new stories.

"What We Talk About When We Talk About Love" by Raymond Carver is three decades old. It's also a canonical story from a very important 20th century writer who also happens to be one of my husband's favorite writers. In other words, I am very late to this game. This story, in addition to having Carver's characteristic inclusion of alcohol consumption, ordinary people and brevity, has searingly realistic but somehow still lyrical dialogue. It's like harsh reality, but upgraded and poetic, with characters who talk about something really important in exquisitely human terms.

It's the kind of story that recognizes what is sad about life while also dousing that sadness with honest beauty. I'm just really glad I read it.

Favorite Album of the Year AKA Cop Out 2

Do you ever find yourself wondering why everyone has to rank things all time? Why everything needs to be a competition? Then, you are like me.

If you also find yourself being overly competitive in games like Big Boggle, Trivial Pursuit, Badminton & who-made-the-best-dish-at-this-pitch-in, you are also like me.

That's what makes me an enigma. Or just contradictory. You pick.

In any case, when asked by SmallBox, "You know SmallBox likes the rock. We can't resist asking about your album of the year. Why did it grab you?" I came up with two answers: (1) the album that was released this year that I consider best and (2) the album that I enjoyed the most this year, regardless of release date. Both are great for party music. The first is good for cocktail time, the second for dance time.

In category one, I offer you the latest TV on the Radio album. They could turn Radiohead and start putting out things that make no sense and I would likely still pick them. However, this is not that moment. This album perfectly combines their booty-motivating beats with an atmospheric 80s feel, for me. And I could listen and chair-dance to "Keep Your Heart" for 24 hours straight. "Will Do" ain't no slouch, either.

In category two, I implore you to listen to the B-52s eponymous release from 1979, the year of my birth. It's got "Rock Lobster", "Dance This Mess Around" (how does one dance the Shy Turnip?) and some of the most outrageously dance-able songs ever recorded, but I'm particularly fond of "52 Girls". Ben and I have listened to this album repeatedly, on vinyl, and it never fails to make me happy, more energetic and generally appreciative of life.