Party At The Columbus Zoo!

One of my favorite places to go is the zoo. When I travel I try to visit the local zoo and I have seen some really wonderful zoos. So it makes sense that one of my favorite fundraisers is ZOOFARI, held every June at the Columbus Zoo. After an all day rain that soaked the entire central Ohio area, Saturday night turned into a beautiful summer evening!

One thing that impresses me about this fundraiser is they try to make it better every year. Last year the crowds were a bit overwhelming - a tribute to how popular this event is. So this year they seemed to have spread everything out a bit more easing the crowding. The food was a usual plenty and delicious.

What is this even you ask? Well the zoo is opened up to adults only for entertainment, animal viewing, area restaurants, beverage, companies, and retail food establishments showcase a dish or two from their menus. A ticket, for general admission, cost $85.00 (included 3 drink tickets) and you can eat till your heart's content. We feasted on Hawaiian tacos, meatballs with a spicy marina sauce, red white and blue pancakes,pepperoni bread,  wings - you name it they had it! The vendors are spread throughout the Zoo so you walk enjoy an adult beverage or 2 eat and listen to the bands.

A big thank you goes to the many people that volunteer to work the event, the vendors - this is a huge undertaking for them and the people that I am certain work hard all year round planning and preparing. It was a great night - for more information check out the Zoo's web page www.columbuszoo.org.

Home Selling Tip - Don't forget to Invite in Buyers!

Buyers Welcome!

Buyer’s interest levels are often determined from the moment they pull up to a home. Does your home say welcome? While the obvious is to have the landscaping well maintained and the area neat and clean, take one step further.  To put into context when the Realtor is unlocking the door, your potential buyers are looking around and passing judgment. What does your front entry say about your house?

Don’t let staging end at the interior front door. Make sure you stage your front porch. Start with the light fixture is is clean? Is it dated – for big paybacks change it if the condition or style warrants it. Make sure you consider your homes style and what finish hardware is on your front door. The fastest way to look like you threw new things in is to have mismatched hardware. Add a new welcome mat, some flowers or tasteful seasonal decoration and don’t forget the door!

What does your door look like? Is it faded and weathered? Does the color complement the other exterior components of your house? If not time to put some thought into your door and make sure buyers are excited to go in and tour your home.

If you‘re thinking of changing the door, consider the style of your home and choose a door that makes sense. Putting a gingerbread door on contemporary home would look out of place. Wild bright colors are great if you want your personality to shine through, but you want the buyer to see themselves in the home so a more neutral color that works with your roof, siding, stone work or brick is in order. Also consider how much sun the door will get – don’t turn off buyers by having a dark color door that absorbs the morning sun making it hot to the touch – the first thought will be “how much will it cost to cool this place?”

Well balanced neutral colors, clean matting, well placed planter with real flowers and foliage can make for a very welcoming front entry. Mulch is a nice finishing touch for your newly trimmed bushes and edged beds. Keep in mind while the agent opens the door the buyers will look around for clues about your home. 

Cityfied Living

Did you know Columbus ranked #15 in the Spring of 2015 Largest U.S. Cities poll? Have you been downtown lately? If not there is an abundance of events to attend, restaurants to dine at, shopping and just a really positive vibe to move to!

Recently I attended Columbus Underground's "Urban Living Tour 2015". This self-guided tour had 30 stops designed around introducing you to all downtown has to offer - rentals, amenities, and condos. What a jewel downtown Columbus is! Easy to walk around and each area has a different flavor - German Village, Victorian Village, Italian Village, Arena District, brewery District, Short North and the middle of it all downtown area.

Columbus Commons is right in the heart of it all - offering free fitness classes on the weekends, movie nights, a merry-go-round for the kids and lots of events. A short walk from there is the Scioto Fountains - a great for cooling off on a warm day and for relaxing in front of in the evenings. A short bus ride away is Short North with shopping, Pubs and galleries.

Some of the hottest properties can be found in downtown, Hip retrofitted buildings offer a variety of space with great city and river views. For condos MyColumbusCondo.com is the premier site to learn about downtown living options. The Columbus Underground Urban Living Tour was a great way to experience the rich lifestyle Columbus has to offer!

Best Burger in Columbus!- Eating My Way Through Columbus

This past week I had the good fortune to attend an event in the Brewery District put on by Columbus Underground. When I saw the advertisement for it I knew it was right up my husbands taste buds! Thursday evening The Best Bites: Burgers was held at the Brewmasters Gate. Great venue, well attended and some really good burgers! We ate our way through with all kinds of burgers – black bean, duck, burgers with jelly and peanut butter, many flavors combinations. The restaurants were very generous with their samples and the people staffing the various tables were upbeat friendly and obviously enjoying the event.

What a great way to sample food from various restaurants and see the creativity the chefs put into what is generally humble fare. They truly raised burgers to an upscale tasty bite. And the winner is ….. Galleria Bar an Bistro with a beautifully crafted burger of Ohio beef topped with mortadella, provolone, pickeled pepperoncini, smoked onion, dijonnaise, a chianti-tomato jam and shredded romains. Each piece of this burger complimented and elevated the other. I definitely would recommend  the “Italian Village” burger.

Eating My Way Through Columbus

Our recent move to Columbus is giving us the opportunity to view daily life from a fresh perspective. There is something to be said about having to start fresh - find the grocery store that fits your needs best, the best restaurants, the dog park, walking paths, etc. So this is me sharing my new environment.

One thing I have always noticed about Columbus is how many restaurants and the wide variety of restaurants. On any given night diners fill eateries to enjoy a meal and lively conversation. So I have decided one of the best ways for me to get to know the real Columbus is to get to know the restaurants. Growing up in the grocery business my taste buds are a bit adventurous, however, my husband, Dino is more meat and potatoes and a very vanilla environment. We’ll work on changing that. Recently we stopped by Holy Smoke Barbeque on Hamilton Rd in Gahanna. They also have a location in the North Market.  Very friendly family atmosphere, full bar and an adequate menu started our dining experience on the plus side!

Our waiter graciously brought us some samples of local crafted beer and we both choose a light crisp beer. We ordered an appetizer of hush puppies – I have not had hush puppies in years. We really enjoyed the deep fried treats with a nice selection of barbeque sauce for dipping. Next I had a trio of slider – chicken, pork and turkey. The chicken was bit spicier than I had anticipated, the turkey was very good but I really could not get enough of the pork. Oddly enough I am not a huge pork eater so it was surprising that the pork slider was the one that really made my taste buds go crazy! It was cooked just right, not too dry and the delicate smoky flavor balanced nicely with the tender pork. Overall we had a great meal at a great price and we can’t wait to stop in again!

White Out

So the inevitable is here - the changing of seasons - the months that we are devoid of color and surrender to neutrals - winter is here. Each year it gets harder for me to trudge through winter. It's the combination of cold, early darkness and grey that cause me to seek a place to hibernate. Studies have shown that month you are born affects your perception of the various seasons - I am a May baby I really, really like the sun and warmth. So I will blame it on my birthday. Maybe this year I will again try to fool myself into embracing the winter months by finding activities that are offered in during the winter months only. Maybe.

What do you want to change?

Waiting On The World To Change – John Mayer

“Waiting on the world to change
It's hard to beat the system
When we're standing at a distance”

Every where I look there are self-proclaimed experts, analysts, activists, politicians the list goes on and on, they all wrap up their words in pretty diction and declare we need change. The masses tune in, show up, tweet, and discuss the need for change. All the while stunting their ability to affect change.

“Now if we had the power
To bring our neighbors home from war
They woulda never missed a Christmas
No more ribbons on the door”

Why not go out and cause change? Everyday each of us has the power to change the world. People do it everyday – the police officer that stops to toss a football with a lone youth on a city street, the man that stops and buys boots for a homeless man, the tireless volunteers feeding the lonely and hungry. All of these individuals and many more take the power, they don’t wait for it to be handed down to them, they don’t wait for a sign from above, they don’t wait for someone to lead and motivate them to change the world.

“Now we see everything is going wrong
With the world and those who lead it
We just feel like we don't have the means
To rise above and beat it”

As we go about our day we all have the ability to cause change. Next time someone inspires you I challenge you to not tuck that inspiration in your heart and pull it out when you feel down – grow that inspiration by sharing it. Take that inspiration go out and make change. We all have the means to rise above the things that we feel are wrong with the world and change them.