Mainstrasse Antiques and an Edible Adventure : Otto's

With all we have on our plate this week, it was a bad time to catch a cold.  So I just said no.  I refused to have it. 

And it went away. 

True story. 

This past Sunday D agreed to go with me to 4th Sunday Antiques on Mainstrasse. 


Mainstrasse on a blue-skied Sunday



I always enjoy the graffiti.  Support local artists!



It was another beautiful day, and we kicked the day off with brunch at nearby Otto's.  (I would link directly to the restaurant, but their website is having trouble)

Benedict Otto's (foreground) & Brekkie Casserole (background)

Otto's is right in Mainstrasse.  It has seating outside in front and in back (and inside), and we elected the back patio. The brunch menu is quite enticing, but I chose the Benedict Otto's and potato cake.  Poached eggs are often done poorly and taste like snot.  Otto's does the poached egg proud.  It was served on a hard, herby, crispy thing which became more and more delicious as it soaked up the goo.  D had the Breakfast Casserole (also good) and the goetta (because D always has the goetta, you'd think he was born in Cincinnati he is the most staunch supporter of goetta). 

Sunlit yet shady patio

I really liked our experience here.  The back patio is nice, a bit loud, yes, because of the air conditioning unit, but I only noticed that at first.  The weather was lovely, the waiter was a nice guy who gave us some advice on where else we could look for "previously owned" stuff, and the wait for our food was appropriate.  I'd like to go back soon.  Of course, with the labor day event at the house and the dog adoption, and my birthday and the upcoming renovation projects... I think it won't be soon.  Though if we wait until the end of September for the next 4th Sunday, we'll get to try eating indoors.  Actually, I'm excited to go back, I've got my eye on a few things on the menu.  I didn't order the strawberry cheesecake french toast, but I assure you, I will soon.  On the dinner menu they have something that sounds equally fantastic, "shrimp grits."  My mouth waters with anticipation. 

I've had a lot of mediocre food since we've moved.  It's great to enjoy my food again. 

With full bellies we walked over to the antiques market.  It was lively without being overcrowded. 

4th Sunday Antiques Market

Who wants a monk salt shaker?  Well we all do, obviously. 

I LOVE THESE CHAIRS.  I should have bought these chairs. 

The vendors seemed nice.  I only bought one thing, one thing which I am (quite evilly) contemplating keeping, even though I actually bought it as a gift for a friend. There was old jewelry and clothing, vinyl, furniture, toys (including *the* evil monkey), stained glass windows, just all sorts of things.  I love to peruse the old-style jewelry, knickknacks, and books. Not necessarily to buy. 

My husband forbade me from buying this parrot.



Well gosh, the cats could use a giant carousel...

 

Please, somebody, give an elephant a home. 


I just like old stuff.  And handmade stuff.  And stuff that doesn't look like everyone else's stuff. 

 

I also think looking at these things just naturally makes me look backward in time, something I do on occasion as a swing dancer, but it also makes me look back in life.  All of the elder relations in my family passed away too young, quite a long time ago.  I miss them, and wonder what conversations we might have had if only they had stuck around a few more years.  Certain objects or visuals are indelibly tied to my memories of them.  I always think of Irene when looking at old jewelry and roosters, because of all the roosters made of seashells that roosted in her kitchen.  I think of my Busia when I see old religious art work, or ceramic knicknacks, especially birds.  I feel the same when I sit down to watch Have Gun Will Travel with D.  I think of my dziadzia, a lover of all cowboy serials, and wonder how my grandfather and my husband would have gotten along.  Or maybe they're on my mind lately because of the recent scare with D's grandmother. 

Anyway!  Back on topic.  I had a good time at the antiques market.  I think I'll go in September as well.  We didn't go to the Cleopatra exhibit (yet) because D wanted to attend Aikido practice instead.  So while he was at practice I went to Duck Creek Antiques, something I've wanted to do for ages, but their hours make it impossible to go unless its on a Saturday or Sunday. 

Here it is

"Who da Pole?"  "I am, I am the Polish one." "No, it's a beer... nevermind." 

This place is totally worth a visit.  Even if you don't buy a thing, or if you don't like knicknacks.  It's good for a browse because they have godawfully expensive things that are still fun to look at, like Rookwood Pottery, giant chinese lions, and things that you could conceivably afford, like old Japanese obi fabric from the Showa era, mod furniture, old vintage advertisements, old beer steins, and more.  Some antique places are real junkholes, but this place has some nice stuff. 

I bought some Christmas presents (starting early! mwahahaa!), and I bought a purse for myself for six bucks.  This in itself is almost beyond belief.  I am a nightmare to shop for, as anyone who has tried might attest.  I almost always hate the clothes, shoes, and especially the purses that I'm willing to pay for). 

Have been working around the house, and more to do on the trench and yard before the guests descend en masse for Labor Day.  Even so, I hope to make time for the Cleopatra Exhibit, in this its final days.  And, not to shirk my responsibilities too much, but this Saturday is the City Flea, in downtown Cincy.  It's the last flea for 2011, 10am to 4pm. 

 

This elephant lamp is at Julie's Inspiration Consignment Shoppe in Mainstrasse, the shop the waiter introduced to us. 

Here is some press for the City Flea. 

Nevermind That Whole Death Thing

On Tuesday there was a family emergency.  D's grandmother had been hospitalized and the family had mobilized.  The doctors pronounced that her kidneys were functioning at 5% and gave her the bleak prognosis of 3 to 4 days to live.  We cancelled all of our plans and arranged leave from our respective jobs, and mapped out our drive from Cincy to Kansas City, MO.  It's ten hours by car, but the cheapest flight for the two of us plus taxes/fees/etc. and renta-car would still have been over a thousand dollars.  D's parents left their home at 4am to make the trip.  As I have essentially no vacation time left, we had to plan carefully.  Do you drop everything and rush to be with everyone for her final moments?  Do you wait and arrive into town to pay your respects?  As she was not expected to regain consciousness, D elected to wait until Friday and drive through the night, and we would only miss work on Monday. 

Wednesday afternoon D's mother had informed us that it was all off.  Grandma had awoken, proclaimed herself to be fine and demanded to be released.  (knowing this family, I can totally believe that she did this)  But actually, shortly thereafter the hospital doctors found the problem. 

It turns out that her regular doctor had prescribed her a medication that is well known to interact with the blood pressure meds that she was already on.  He didn't catch the interaction and it caused her kidneys to shut down.  Toxins had built up in her body, she got a kidney infection, and all manner of other badness may lurk around the corner.  What sorts of secondary illnesses?  She's being monitored now, but the good news is that she's not expected to die at any moment. 

So grandma is ok at this point.  We're pleased, of course, but we're going to have to stay tuned.  But no Kansas City for us this weekend.  As you can imagine things were suddenly in an uproar, and then suddenly they weren't, leaving me feeling like I'd blown the whole thing out of proportion.  I was slightly embarrassed when I had to tell my boss nevermind about that whole death thing.  One of my Japanese colleagues told me the whole thing sounded like something you'd see on television (embarassingly close to outright saying "contrived"), and asked me if the family would sue, (because Americans are so often portrayed as litigation-happy).  I told him they could, as they seem to have grounds.  D told me they probably wouldn't, but would likely have have considered it if they'd discovered the prescription mistake too late to save her.     

I am looking forward to the Aglamesis ice cream social outide this evening.  The weather is so mild!  This weekend is Oakley After Hours, which I had thought we might try taking the dog to.  (see that?  I just ended that sentence with a preposition, I hate that)  But with my sudden cancellation of our weekend visit, my just-as-sudden un-cancellation attempt might have come off as flaky as hell.  Or the foster mom may not have gotten my email.  At any rate it's likely that circumstances have dashed our chances to meet Murphy the dog this weekend.

Murphy

 

Hopefully we'll get to meet him, maybe next week.  We still have our other contender in the running, Bob the Prison Dog, who gets out next month with eight weeks of training and a Canine Good Citizen Certificate. 

Bob

(The CGC is not only a real thing, it is also recognized in many communities, and is part this awesome program for dog breeds that formerly made it hard for dog owners to get home insurance!)