I just went back and read the blog I posted last January, when I was thrilled to have the opportunity to walk on the beach and search for sea glass in 17-below-zero-degree weather. Despite the fact that the sea glass was frozen to the beach and that I froze my ass off, I was able to dislodge a few pieces and had a great time doing it.

This year I experienced a completely different story, as I experienced near tropical weather for northeast Ohio, with a balmy 61-degree-high temperature on January 1, 2011. I took a long, leisurely stroll on the beach, enjoyed the intermittent sunshine, found a boatload of sea glass, and this time I didn’t need any special tools to wedge the frozen glass from the sand.

Check out my sea glass finds for the day—quite the haul compared to my 2010 New Year’s Day outing!

I know I was lucky to have such a beautiful day, so I savored every minute of it and again thought to myself, What a great way to start the year! I’m hoping that the freakishly warm weather we experienced was a sign that our winter will be short and sweet, and spring will be here before we know it (yeah, I’m delusional at times).

You can read more about my New Year’s Day experience at the Polar Plunge and my rainbow sighting over Lake Erie on The Daily Downward Dog.

Happy New Year!

I love the colors of the sunset, but I have to admit that this time of year, they have some fierce competition from the beautiful colors of the fall foliage. I live within walking distance to the Cuyahoga Valley National Park, so it’s easy for me to take a break during my day to sneak out and take in the changing colors as they unfold. Like the sunset, there is a new episode every day as the canvas of colors and density of leaves drastically changes.

So, to mix things up today, instead of sunset pictures, I thought I would share some of the pictures I took last fall. Unfortunately, my camera cannot capture the crisp fall air, the smell in the air, and the sound of crunching leaves beneath my feet, but a few cows and a flowing river make up for it (sort of!).

These trees and horses hang out at Hale Farm & Village in Bath, Ohio.

These beauties were taken in Peninsula, along the Ohio and Erie Canal Towpath Trail in the Cuyahoga Valley National Park. Check out the sun glistening through the trees and on the water.

This is my favorite fall foliage scenic view spot for sweeping panoramic views of the Cuyahoga Valley from the Ledges at Virginia Kendall Park.

And then the fat lady sings, and we’re forced to look at naked trees for the next six months. Ugh, this time of year really is bittersweet. It is so beautiful for a few weeks, and then we are robbed of all our green leaves, the green grass turns brown, and the skies in northeast Ohio turn gray! In this case it really isn’t a fat lady, but an obese, ugly, old man winter who is singing the blues. I can only wish for a few more Indian summer days to sustain me through the coming months.

Summer is not over, summer is not over… That is the mantra I keep repeating! If you are a northeast Ohioan desperate to latch on to outdoor activities before we get locked up inside for the winter months, I’ve got a great way to get outdoors, listen to music, try a tasty mojito, and catch the sunset over Lake Erie.

The Third Thursday Music, Flowers & a Sunset event in historic downtown Vermilion, Ohio, has become extremely popular, and the last one of the year is coming up on September 16, from 6:30 p.m. until sunset. Where else can you roam the streets and hear a Goth punk band on one corner, walk a little farther down the street and hear an alternative rock band, and proceed to the downtown square to see G-Force an all-girl pop-rock band singing their hearts out? These gals can rock!

As you stroll around the beautiful sites of downtown Vermilion, the Vermilion River, and Lake Erie, you’ll enjoy a musical mash-up of over 12 different musical groups and solo artists from just about every musical genre and it’s absolutely FREE.

I love the fact that Vermilion has provided a venue for so many young artists to show off their talents.

If you are thirsty, you can turn the evening into a mini pub crawl by popping into Touché at Chez Francois for one of their Thursday-night lime-drink specials—can you say margaritas and mojitos?—or stop into Rudy’s Bar and Grill for a cold draft beer.

Not in the mood to imbibe? The downtown Vermilion restaurants are all open and ready to serve you anything from pizza to perch. Everyone who attends Third Thursday in Vermilion is required to eat at least one ice cream cone, and a great place to get a cone and your very own caricature is at Granny Joe’s Ice Creamatorium.

There is a really cool vibe behind Woodstock, a pizza shop located right downtown. Be sure to walk around back for a band playing Grateful Dead-type music, hula hoop artists, and last month there was a gathering of vintage VW vans.

While you are roaming the streets, you can also shop for chocolate, candles, and surfboards, check out the Great Lakes Maritime Museum (it’s open from 5 to 8 p.m. and is free on Third Thursday), and an art show at the Main Street building. If you have not picked up on this yet, get there early so you don’t miss out on anything. If you look around in the shops, there are schedules and a map to let you know where all the activities are planned.

The grand finale of the evening is the sunset, so be sure to walk down to the Main Street Beach to catch one of my favorite daily outdoor art shows—the sun setting over Lake Erie. It’s even more beautiful to watch while being serenaded by a band playing on the boardwalk at the beach!

Sunset in Vermilion, Ohio

I love finding new, cool outdoor things to do in Ohio, and if you live near the Akron area, you have to check out the new Lock 4. And no, I didn’t get it wrong and mean to say Lock 3. Akron’s popular concert venue, Lock 3, has a new sister venue, that is über trendy, intimate, and complete with waterfront views.

Right across the street from Cascade Plaza and in the place of an old parking lot for the Civic Theatre, downtown Akron has built a new public park. A set of concrete steps takes you down to an urban space with picnic tables and trees that are hugged by cascading waterfalls of the Cuyahoga River and downtown buildings. If you work downtown, this would be a great place to escape for a lunch break while listening to the soothing sounds of the flowing Cuyahoga River.

On Wednesday nights this summer, the park transformed to the Lock Bottom Jazz and Blues Club. The city of Akron, which spent two years constructing the space, was trying an experiment with summertime jazz and blues concerts that started a few weeks ago, and I think they may have started something! The small, intimate venue is the perfect place to sit outside and listen to local jazz and blues musicians on a beautiful summer night.

There’s even a Peroni beer garden that serves up cool, refreshing beverages, the world’s best peanuts from downtown Akron’s Peanut Shoppe, and cool cuisine from Cleveland-based gourmet food truck Dim and den Sum. I was lucky to have someone tell me about the first concert, featuring local jazz quartet the Stingers, and have been back every week since for great blues and cold Peroni.

If you want to check out Lock 4, you’ve got to go this Wednesday, September 1, for the last concert of the series, which will feature Peggy Coyle and her jazz trio. The fun starts at 7:00 p.m. Based on the success of the concerts this year, I have a feeling they’ll be back for a longer run next summer.

Oh, and did I mention the concerts were free?Yeah, a free jazz concert in a cool setting on a summer night…life is good! Thanks, downtown Akron!

Well, I got my bubble burst this past weekend. I’ve been working out a lot lately with a mix of yoga, Zumba®, bike riding, and long walks on the beach. I felt like I was getting in pretty good shape and my body was toning up. That is until I was thrust into the Vermilion Harbour Triathlon, held August 14 and 15, in Vermilion, Ohio.

It all happened when I decided to get up early on Sunday morning to go out for a bike-ride workout before it got too hot. Riding along on one of my back-road jaunts, I started to see flashing lights and flags, and all of a sudden, my chosen route had put me smack-dab on the second leg of the triathlon, the 20k (or 40k, if you really want some fun) bike ride. I actually wanted to turn around, but my co-rider insisted we move forward since we would only be on the trail for a short while before we would turn off (and don’t worry, we got the blessing of the local police as they waved us through).

As soon as we turned onto the street we were instantly transported into the Tour de France Vermilion. There were people on the sides of the streets cheering us on, taking pictures, and offering us water.

We peddled along, hugging the right side of the road so as not to delay the triathlon competitors as they whizzed by us in their skin-tight biking apparel, clip-on bike shoes, and aerodynamic helmets. I swear there was not an ounce of body fat to be seen in a three-mile radius. Not only were these riders kicking our ass, they were doing so after already swimming the first leg of the race in Lake Erie. I’ve never felt so out of shape in my entire life.

At one point a buff athletic woman rode past me and yelled out enthusiastically, “You’re doing great. Keep it up.”

I yelled back to her, “Thanks, but we’re not in the race.”

I could barely hear her reply, as she like all the other triathlon participants had zoomed by me by now, but I think she said, “I know!”

Was it that obvious we weren’t part of the triathlon? I’m suspecting the combination of our Erie Kai Tavern T-shirts, non-aerodynamic baseball caps, mountain bikes, and our exceptionally laggard speed may have clued her in.

We finally made it to our turnoff and had a good laugh about being the most out-of-shape participants in the triathlon. I have to admit, the experience didn’t make me want to train to be a triathlete, but it did motivate me to push myself harder in my yoga practice and workout routines. Perhaps I could get into just a little better shape.

We decided to attend next year’s Vermilion Harbour Triathlon, but this time we’ll be on the shores of Lake Erie at Linwood Park as spectators.

Photo: Paul Chessare

Stop by every weekday for the Daily Downward Dog, my daily journal of cool yoga and meditation experiences!  Check out the Yoga category at the Cool Stuff Shoppe for great books, DVDs and yoga products. Thank you for clicking on the ads when you visit to help fund this site!

Hope you had a wonderful and long holiday weekend! Mine was a blast and, as I predicted, I am sunburned, a tad bit bloated, and very happy. It is going to take me a day or two to get back into the groove after spending all weekend by the water, on the water, in the water, and drinking lots of water…and other adult beverages.

I realized that I have not posted a “Beaches and Beer” photo series installment since back in February, and that is just a sin, so I promise to make up for it with several new installments over the next few months.

This shot was taken at Jimmy Buckkett’s, a tropical tiki bar that you’ll find if you happen to float down the Fremont River. You can pull your boat or Jet Ski right up to the dock, lounge on the man-made beach, enjoy cold beverages and barbecue, and listen to great music (most summer weekends they have live bands).

I was enjoying a Mike’s Hard Margarita…not a beer, but a member of the malt beverage family, so that’s close enough. It’s actually a pretty good-tasting margarita and has a smooth, faintly salty, lightly sweetened taste. The label says it is flavored partly with agave nectar, which, in my book, is a pretty cool way to sweeten a beverage! When served cold this is a refreshing, fruity, lime drink with the added bonus of being 5.5% alcohol by volume. On a hot July afternoon, it tasted amazing.

One last picture because I couldn’t resist. You gotta love a red plastic palm tree with blue coconuts in northeast Ohio.

Is it Friday yet?!

I absolutely love living close to Lake Erie. The waves that roll into the beach remind me of being at the ocean, and one of my favorite things to do is take long walks on the beach, looking for seaglass. Back in May (yeah, I’ve been a bit remiss on getting my beach photos up) I visited Sheldon Marsh for a beach walk and thought you would enjoy seeing some of the things I found washed up on the shore.

Sheldon Marsh State Nature Preserve is in Huron, Ohio, and along the trail you’ll find birds, extremely friendly squirrels, a beautiful marsh, a gorgeous golf fairway (Sawmill Creek is its neighbor), and my favorite part—it spills right onto a long stretch of beautiful Lake Erie shoreline that you can hike for miles. Seriously, if you live in northeast Ohio and are hankering for a walk on the beach, visit Sheldon Marsh (when the waves are kicking up, I swear the rolling surf will make you feel like you are at the ocean).

I had to take a picture of this piece of driftwood. It was so suggestive just laying there on the beach, and I have to admit, it highly amused me.

Spread Eagle on the Beach!

Then I came upon a pair of retro pink aviator sunglasses sans lenses. The eyeglass merchandiser in my past came out, and I quickly constructed this shot of the eyewear on the beach. Pearle Vision, eat your heart out.

I Think I Had A Pair Like This in the 80s

And yet more suggestive wood. What is up with the wood drifting up on this beach? Is it just me or was nature calling out to me in a twisted way that day?

Nature can be naughty and nice

I think my sister is a little yanked that I didn’t mention how cool she is on my About Page. I mean come on; she isn’t even a fan on my facebook page yet!  What up with that! (hint, hint)

She should know how I feel about her, but just in case, in tribute to my siswoomba* I am posting my all time favorite sunset picture!

This one was taken in Vermilion, Ohio, on Lake Erie, after spending a delicious summer day with my sister, nieces and mother at the beach. I don’t get to see them often, so I was really glad my niece captured this special moment and the amazing colors.  I love the way we are holding onto each other.

Yeah, my sis is cool!

*sis-woomba, noun 1. an endearing way to describe a female sibling that comes from the same womb as you, grows up with you, shares a room with you, looks out for you and loves you. 2. an amazing woman 3. a protector against big brothers 4. a life-long mentor 5. a home design and fashion consultant 6. an excellent listener (especially when you need to vent about mom or men). 7. and best of all a friend!

I just love the colors in this picture!  This photo was taken in early May last year on the shores of Lake Erie. I think it looks like a watercolor painting.

This was one of those sunsets that kept getting prettier, and despite the cold I continued to run down to the beach to get more pictures. Earlier in the evening it looked like this…

You can tell it is early Spring because the trees are starting to get buds!

I can’t wait for Spring and the return of the sunset over the shores of Lake Erie!  Well that and warmer weather!

I grew up watching Paige Palmer with my mom and sister on TV and can still remember sitting on my mom’s feet, at Paige’s urging, so my mother could reach her toes as she exercised. Paige was smart, worldly, confident, and invented her own way to be a feminist (no bra burning or hairy legs were involved)!

For those of you who have never heard of Paige Palmer, she was known as “The First Lady of Fitness” and was the star of a daily one-hour fitness show on WEWS in Cleveland, Ohio, where she demonstrated jumping jacks and scissor kicks in black fishnet stockings and pumps! She was responsible for helping most of the stay-at-home moms in Northeast Ohio build their muscles and their confidence. Remember, this was before Jane Fonda, workout videos, and going to the gym for step class.

Here are just a few of the cool things that Paige accomplished:

• At age 16, without her parents’ knowledge, she became an entrepreneur when she rented a house in Akron and started the School of Expression to teach dance and invited her friends to join along in teaching other subjects they knew. Her parents found out when she invited them to the open house. The School of Expression was a huge success!
• When she was 18, she was the physical education director at a private Akron girl’s school.
• She graduated from the University of Akron with a degree in physical fitness (what she loved) and also majored in home economics (because that was what was acceptable for women at the time).
• She parlayed her accomplishments into a highly successful television career in the 1940’s – and for over 25 years, she educated women about the benefits of exercise, nutrition, and fashion.
• She used her position to help women break down traditional barriers at the time by urging them to turn their hobbies into businesses, so they would not be totally dependent on their husbands.
• Taboo topics were not off the table for her as she educated women about the importance of yearly Pap tests.
• She patented exercise equipment and created her own fashion label.

In essence, she was an incredible role model for women and one who lived a full life until she passed away this past November at the age of 93.

Thanks, Paige!