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Saturday, July 31, 2010

Road trip: Jackson Hole

On our way out of Portland, we took a little detour to see Multnomah Falls. Multnomah Falls is the second highest year-round waterfall in the United States and it is such a cool sight. It sits just off the interstate and is quite the tourist destination. There are several nearby hikes and it even has its own visitor's center. After checkin out the falls we headed to Boise, Idaho. When I think of Idaho I can't help but think of two things: the movie Napoleon Dynamite, and the blue artificial turf at Boise State's football stadium. Oh yeah...and potatoes! I was hoping to see something like the world's largest potato, but really I just saw a bunch of fields and wind turbines. There were some beautiful valleys along the Teton Scenic Byway but other than that, Idaho is nothin to get excited about. I can vouch for that fact that people do in fact live there though, in case you were wondering! Now on to the real destination, Jackson Hole! Jackson Hole is a place that I've always wanted to visit and was super excited about this opportunity to check it out, as well as to see the Grand Tetons. One thing you should expect if you ever plan on staying the night in Jackson, is to spend a ridiculous amount of money for a room. Furthermore, lower your expectations regarding the type of room you will get because if I learned one thing in Jackson it's that you don't get even half of what you pay for. Case in point: El Rancho Motel. Now that was quite the experience! It was one of the few rooms left in the entire town and we were told by the lady on the phone prior to arrival that it was a small room but that it is like an actual hotel, so at this point we had no idea what to expect. When we arrived in Jackson we checked in at the Anvil Motel and were told that our room was actually around the corner and down the alley at El Rancho. So with legitimate room key in hand (no plastic key cards here folks!) we found our room at the El Rancho, seriously contemplated buying a tent and camping instead, and then sucked it up and handed over the $80 some odd dollars plus tax for one of the only rooms left in Jackson Hole. The next day, with Colorado callin our names we hit the road and made a detour at the Grand Tetons. They are seriously breathtaking, and well worth the trip. If you ever get a chance, go! I can assure you it will be worth it. Our drive through the rest of Wyoming and back to Colorado was uneventful, but I've included a few pics from the falls, Tetons, etc. Hopefully I can get some more off of Sierra's camera to give you a better idea of the true El Rancho experience! Enjoy!
I had to include a couple professional pics just to show how ridiculously awesome this place is. I didn't get to see this barn but how cool is it?!

Another professional shot...holy cow! So awesome!

At El Rancho "You're a stranger here but once!" And...I'm pretty sure those are bullet holes in that sign. Does it get any more "old west" than that? I'm pretty sure the answer is no, it does not!

Thursday, July 29, 2010

Road trip: Portland

This past weekend I had the opportunity to take a mini-road trip to help a friend move. Starting point: Portland, Oregon. I had never been west of Colorado so I was excited to see what the Pacific Northwest had in store. It's difficult to describe Portland in just one word, but if I had to try, it would be a combination of: colorful, interesting, eccentric, eclectic, and weird. It's a huge city with many different neighborhoods so you never really feel like you're in the same city because everywhere you go is just a little different. We started off with brunch at the Veritable Quandary, which was a super cute restaurant near the Portland Waterfront. We also hit up Nob Hill, Hawthorne, Alberta Street, and a few other neighborhoods. We then went down to the Saturday Market (which also runs on Sunday) and that was quite the experience. There were tons of vendors selling a huge array of different things. Most of it were what I would consider to be quite typical (think hemp necklaces, t-shirts, sunglasses, etc.) but there were also some true artisans selling handmade clothing, artwork, and other goods. We rounded out the day with amazing tacos from a little restaurant called ?Por Que No? If you're ever in Portland, you seriously have to go there. One thing that I loved about that city was the abundance of restaurants and coffee shops, which were just as diverse as the residences of the city. A couple interesting facts about Oregon: First, you can't pump your own gas there. Weird, right? I'm sure that's pretty nice in the winter! Second, Oregon has no sales tax. Don't let this fool you into thinking you're saving money however because you will pay almost $2.50 for a 33 ounce SmartWater...a major bummer for sure considering they can often be found 10 for $10 here in Colorado. Overall, I had a great time exploring the city. The next day our travels led us through Idaho and to the great state of Wyoming. You will learn more about that adventure tomorrow! In the meantime, enjoy so pictures from my time in Portland...

Sierra got this entire bouquet of flowers for only $10. Bomb!

Spare any weed?

This is how most of the guys in Portland were dressed...cutoff man-pris. True hipsters I suppose.

We came across lots of abandoned cardboard signs.

Por que no. So good!

There were gnomes just hangin out on the side of the street. No big deal!

The Bagdad Theater

Thursday, July 22, 2010

Women's Fall 1 At The Crew

Although it is still very much summer outside, in the world of retail, July is the time to bring out the new items for fall (crazy, right?!). Fall 1 (which is retail speak for the first set of items in the new floor set) has arrived at J.Crew and I've picked some of my favorite items to share with you. Although there are a lot of trendy things with each set of new arrivals, I try to stay more on the classic side, with pieces that are both versatile and wearable. There are some great color selections this season and many of these items will work effortlessly with what you already have in your wardrobe. So enjoy fall 1 and be on the lookout for my mens favs, coming soon!





Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Chocomize

If you know me at all you might now that I love chocolate. Seriously, chocolate is one of my favorite things ever...so much so that I don't consider it a "special treat" so much as I consider it a necessary part of a well balanced diet. In my opinion, a day without chocolate is a bummer for sure! I def have a favorite kind of chocolate which you'll surely learn about later. Today is about a cool company that get this...let's you create your very own chocolate bars! It's called Chocomize and the concept is simple: choose from either dark, milk, or white chocolate, then add anything you want, they put it together in a bar, and send it to you. How awesome is that?! And when I say anything, I mean literally almost anything you could think to put in chocolate, they have it! These add-ins range from the usual chocolate additions such as nuts and candy, to the downright crazy such as beef jerky and potato chips. On their website you can make and order your custom chocolate creation as well as learn more about the company and its founders. I've included below some pics of some of their top selling bars...if you're not very good at making decisions that might be the route for you!

Monday, July 19, 2010

Republic Bike

If you're in the market for a new bike but you don't want the same one every other person has, check out this super cool company, Republic Bike. You can choose from either a singlespeed or cruiser type bike and custom select the colors on everything from the frame to the chain. Republic Bike will then build your bike and send it to you, with a small amount of assembly required on your part. Their bikes have been featured for companies like Urban Outfitters and J.Crew and they have even custom built a fleet of bikes for Google, which are used by employees to get from building to building at the "Googleplex" in Mountainview, California. I've included some pics below of a variety of Republic Bikes. If you're wondering what's up with the different colored wheels and tires on the same bike, I consulted a "bike expert" and learned that it is just the trendy thing to do right now!

Friday, July 16, 2010

Etsy Finds

If you haven't yet discovered the wonderful world of Etsy, you're def missin out! Etsy is a humongous online marketplace where you can buy and sell handmade items galore, and it is AWESOME! You wouldn't believe the number of creative people out there who can make just the coolest things. Right now I'm really lovin burlap pillows. Random, I know...but I love the vintage look and the fact that they go well with most color palettes. A DIY burlap pillow project is in the works but for now enjoy the super cute ones I found on Etsy. Also, most of these sellers will make custom items so the possibilities really are endless!