After our eventful, but relaxing morning we headed to Holland to one of Shannon’s yarn shops Lizzie Ann’s Wool Co. Shannon had previously been to this shop, but when she walked in, she was reminded why she had forgotten the place. It may well appeal to the locals, but she said, if a store like Thread Bear Fiber Studio in Lansing was closer, they would put Lizzie Ann’s out of business. They were nice “enough,” but the overall substance of the store was lacking. The pricing, in Shannon’s estimation was over-priced. Again, using Shannon’s 5 Point Knitting Needle Scale here’s the low-down…
Yarn Selection = 3
Accessories/Notions = 3
Patterns/Books = 3
Service = 4
Organization = 4
Location = 5
Would Shannon Return = NO
JP’s Coffee and Espresso Bar – Holland, Michigan
While Shannon shopped at Lizzie Ann’s, I strolled over to a local coffee house called JP’s Coffee and Espresso Bar. Based on Shan’s review of Lizzie Ann’s, it appears my trip to JP’s was much more…delightsome shall we say. As I stepped in the place was hopping, even at 3:00 p.m. There were wall-to-wall coffee drinkers, wi-fi scrounges, and baristas everywhere. A very hip and happenin’ place. A very energetic vibe, the kind you’d expect at a successful coffee house. Nothing like the lethargic generics at Starbucks! The baristas were all chatty and helpful. My Vanilla Latte was the best I’ve had in a long time.
While I waited for my drink, there was a video playing of a barista competition where they were literally making art out of the foam and froth atop the various lattes. There were leafy floral patterns, hearts, and swirls of all types. I was fascinated as the barista, like an artist would carefully and cleverly pour the froth, swirl, and voila! A masterpiece in your mug so fantastic one would hesitate to drink it. Surely a snap shot taken by your camera phone, uploaded to Facebook, Twitter, and Flikr would be in order before the sip!
We started our day off with a small breakfast as provided by Bayside Inn. It was comprised of a variey homemade coffee cake, banana bread, a variety of fruit, cereals, and a breakfast quiche. I broke in my antique coffee pot with some coffee I bought the other day from Uncommon Grounds Roasters here in Saugatuck. I would certainly not stay at Bayside Inn for the breakfast.
After breakfast I spent sometime catching up on my blog and Shannon spent time knitting, and re-knitting a shrug she’s making for her sister. I know, not much of an adventure, but when you’re used to going all the time, doing leisurely things like this are a luxury. I’ve kept up with some of my emails, Facebook, Twitter, etc. but being away physically has been just what we’ve needed to re-spark, refresh, and rejuvenate.
The Carol Ann Ice Breaker in Action
Carol Ann Ice Cutter - Holland, MI (CLICK IMAGE TO ENLARGE)
The wasn’t a total wash however, because during our relaxation time a drama on the river outside our suite began to unfold. To our delight and amazement, a couple of ice-cutters were docked just next door to our inn. The Carol Ann (Holland, MI) began cutting through the ice flows like butter until she reached a fairly large flow that required several full-steam stabs to get it to break. Below is a video account of one of the stabs.
Honestly, I can’t think of a cooler (no pun intended) way to spend the morning than watching these guys trudge head long into huge ice flows. Even Shannon was having a blast watching the drama unfold. This may be a common occurance here in Saugatuck, but for us it was a real treat.
As promised here are the details of day number 1 of 4 of our anniversary. Fortunately for me, my work day was cut short so i was able to slip out and get some much needed prep work done on one of my favorite travel tactics called the “boondoggle.” This is my attempt at adding a bonus day to weekend getaways or vacations. Basically, an unexpected bonus day of travel in which to lengthen the experience as much as possible.
Lexington – Lansing
When I found out we were cutting out of work early I began to scour the internet for a cool place to spend the night before our official weekend was to begin. My favorite travel site is Kayak.com the best for comparing prices of various websites – be it for hotels, car rentals, or flights, it saves time, and if you’re saavy money too! Now, don’t be fooled however. There are times, more often than not, if you call the hotels directly you can actually get a better deal – in my case this was a move with exponential benefits. With Lansing being on the way to our final destination of Saugatuck, I searched for hotels in the area and stumbled upon a recently updated hotel Lexington Lansing. Originally, their price was the same as what was listed on the internet. I inquired about an upgrade which would have been one of two suites they have available. The price was $150 without the suite. With the suite, it was $280! I started back-peddling and said I would stick to the $150 room, which was nice enough. It was a king, non-smoking, and included continental breakfast. As the woman starting putting my information in, she asked what my occassion for traveling was. I indicated to her this was for my 20th anniversary and she said there may be a special. Sure enough there was!
For $165/nt. I was upgraded to the Empress Suite. This included a full breakfast voucher, a 2 room/bathroom suite with king-sized bed, 2 flat screen TV’s, cookies and milk before bed, and chocolate covered strawberries, and a bottle of sparkling grape juice! As you can see, calling the hotel directly brought great dividends. See a personalized video tour by Shannon and myself below…
Thread Bear Fiber Studio and Yarn Shop
A passion for Shannon is knitting. A past time for me is finding these knitting and yarn stores. Our weekend getaways often include trips to yarn stores and coffee shops. If the 2 ever meet in the middle, surely the planets must be aligned and a lottery win somewhere in the near future…just kidding. I don’t believe in either! But knowing how much Shannon enjoys knitting, I find it rewarding to locate these shops online and take her to them. Many of the shops are located in the heart of the towns and cities we enjoy traveling in, so in addition to yarn stores, coffee shops surface as do shoe stores (a personal favorite of mine…more like an obsession I guess). Lansing coffee shops and shoe stores didn’t surface this time, but getting around the outskirts of the city was fun especially in this college town.
Thread Bear is located at 319 S. Waverly Rd. in Lansing. Be warned however, if you plug the address into your GPS, you may still have to pay close attention to where the store is located. We drove right past the store without realizing it. The plaza’s sign indicating what stores it contained was missing several panels including Thread Bear’s sign. We did find it, much to Shannon’s delight, and my relief!
Shannon’s Ratings are as follows on 5 Knitting Needle Scale (1 = BAD and 5 = EXCELLENT)
Yarn Selection = 5
Accessories/Notions = 2
Patterns/Books = 5
Service = 5
Organization = 4
Location = 2
Would Shannon Return = YES
Rae’s Yarn Boutique
We should have stopped at Rae’s Yarn Boutique before going to Thread Bear as it was right on the way. This shop is what my Italian friend calls a “patuzzo.” Which being translated is a speck or a small place. We would call it a hole in the wall. While small in size, they did not lack substance.
Shannon was a little shocked that the owner, Renee or Rae was so young and so introverted. Yarn stores are specialty shops by nature and usually the owners typify some flamboyance and are outgoing. Shannon was pleased overall with the store.
Yarn Selection = 3
Accessories/Notions = 4
Patterns/Books = 2
Service = 4
Organization = 2
Location = 4
Would Shannon Return = YES
Rae’s Yarn Boutique is located at 2004 E. Michigan Ave. Lansing. Don’t blink otherwise you’ll miss it.
February 10, 2010 Shannon and I celebrated our 20th Anniversary. I know what you’re all thinking, neither Shannon nor I look old enough to be celebrating such a monumental occasion, but in fact, I was 20 years old and Shannon 19 (she turned 20 March 24th). We were young by today’s standard and even then too. I’ll admit if Nathan or Katelyn came home and told me they were getting married at that age, in today’s lingo I would “freak out!”
As a teenager I was a picture framer (yes this is going somewhere) and one of my clients frequented a little west Michigan town called the funny name of Saugatuck. The pictures Bob Gaunt, my client, would bring back of the town and the art he purchased at the galleries in Saugatuck, fascinated me to no end. I vowed to one day go and see this artsy-fartsy town. Almost 25 years later my long-forgotten goal has come to pass.
As with any of my travels, I do massive amounts of research online and elsewhere. Our travel priorities are as follows…
Comfort and cleanliness
On or near the water
Not too far away (2-4 hrs.)
Local yarn, antiques, and coffee shops
Good eats
Saugatuck fits the bill in every way.
As a bonus, I like to do what I call a boondoggle before we get to our actual destinations – be it weekends or even summer vacations. It’s a way to feel as if you’ve been away for a longer period of time. For us our boondoggle was Lansing, which was right on the way to Saugatuck. In an effort to streamline and simplify the categorizing of subjects, I’m going to break down our travels by days ex. Day 1 of 4. Making these blog entries serves several purposes for me…
A log of cities and towns
A log of shops and businesses
A log of restaurants
And most importantly our experiences at all the above
Our’s is a simple taste, so if extravagance is what you’re looking for this may not be to your liking. However, if realistic, down-to-earth travel is your bag, read on my friend.
Tybee Lighthouse behind the Palms by Rodger Mangold
Savannah, Georgia – Just 80 or so miles from the villa is Savannah, Georgia. My in-laws went there earlier in the week and were very pleased withtheir trip. Shannon and I opted not to go with them, but today, unknowns to me, the Tybee Island Lighthouse is located just outside of Savannah, and we decided to go see it. My in-laws wanted to come along for the ride. On the way we had a lengthy discussion about our GPSwhich helped us navigate to our destination without incident. My in-laws have a Magellan that they are not happy with and I was touting all the features of my Delphi Nav200. Their son, David, has one as well and they were going to look into getting one. I say “were” for a reason…read on!
The Tybee Island Lighthouse – A very picturesque setting plays home to this stripped behemoth of a light. Black and white and almost 200′ tall and Ordered by General James Oglethorpe, Governor of the 13th colony, in 1732, the Tybee Island Light Station has been guiding mariners safe entrance into the Savannah River for over 270 years. The Tybee Island Light Station is one of America’s most intact having all of its historic support buildings on its five-acre site. Rebuilt several times the current light station displays its 1916 day-mark with 178 stairs, and a First Order Fresnel lens (nine feet tall).
Believe it or not, I was able to make it up all 178 steps to the top and what a spectacular view of the ocean, and the surrounding fort. The cost was $6.00 for adults and $5.00 for seniors. Certainly worth it considering how beautifully the grounds and the light are kept up and cared for. I didn’t make it to the houses surrounding the lighthouse (I was taking too many pictures), but Shannon said I should have, she was very intrigued with the history.
Downtown Savannah, River Street – With being so close to downtown Savannah, we had to stop by the River Street Shops. We originally were looking for the Peanut Shop. My in-laws had purchased a huge can of some of the best peanuts I have ever had, WAY better than Planter’s ever dared to be, and we wanted to by some for ourselves. In addition to the large can of peanuts, we bought cashews, mixed nuts, and some New Orleans flavored peanuts. On our way to the Peanut Shop however, we were detoured by the smell of the Savannah Candy Kitchen where they make pecan praline and give out free samples. This was so mouth watering we had to buy some. We also bought several of their other treats including their Divinity, roasted pecans, and salt water taffy. Everything tasted so wonderful! If you are ever in Savannah, this entire strip is an absolute MUST!
Savannah Yarn Store – Wild Fibre Of course no trip would ever be complete unless we plugged in a yarn store. We did just that and using our VZ Navigator located a store called Wild Fibre. If length of visit is any indicator here, Shannon really liked this store. She walked out with a bag chocked full of yarn, and a pattern. She is a woman on a mission now for sure. She spent about $75, and was thrilled with the store. I was content to sit in the car like I almost always do and keep the chariot ready for the Queen of Knitting! Shannon would highly recommend this store for knitters if you are in the area. There website is http://www.wildfibreyarns.com/1.html. It is located at 409 E. Liberty Street in Savannah between Habersham and Price Streets (Map HERE).
GPS Crash – Nicknamed “Betty” my GPScrashed on the way out of Savannah. After all the bragging and promoting I did for this fantastic product, the Delphi Nav200 locked up and would not provide us with directions back to Hilton Head. At one point, I was getting so frustrated (yes me), we were driving over some railroad tracks and I threatened that if she didn’t start working, I was going to toss her onto the tracks! I even went as far as to re-name what GPS stood for…GETTING PRETTY STUPID! Fortunately, I had my VZNavigator for a back-up. I am amazed and ashamed at the same time how dependent we have become on technology. I know I could have broke down and bought a map, but witha $200 unit, and a $200 phone, both with GPS, I couldn’t bring myself to do it. The VZ worked just fine and we made it home, only to have Betty kick back on. The error message I was getting was, “non-sufficient memory to perform this operation.” I think she may have gotten over-heated. We used her for the rest of the our entire vacation without incident.
While Shannon shopped at Lizzie Ann’s, I strolled over to a local coffee house called JP’s Coffee and Espresso Bar. Based on Shan’s review of Lizzie Ann’s, it appears my trip to JP’s was much more…delightsome shall we say. As I stepped in the place was hopping, even at 3:00 p.m. There were wall-to-wall coffee drinkers, wi-fi scrounges, and baristas everywhere. A very hip and happenin’ place. A very energetic vibe, the kind you’d expect at a successful coffee house. Nothing like the lethargic generics at Starbucks! The baristas were all chatty and helpful. My Vanilla Latte was the best I’ve had in a long time.
e foam and froth atop the various lattes. There were leafy floral patterns, hearts, and swirls of all types. I was fascinated as the barista, like an artist would carefully and cleverly pour the froth, swirl, and voila! A masterpiece in your mug so fantastic one would hesitate to drink it. Surely a snap shot taken by your camera phone, uploaded to Facebook, Twitter, and Flikr would be in order before the sip!
Rodger's Rants, Writings, and Rambles 