by David Burn | Dec 26, 2004 | Place
I mentioned the other day how the New York area has too many people and not enough space. I’m not about to back off that assessment, but I am willing to offer some perspective. Parts of Long Island are exceptionally nice, for living and visiting. Where I’m at now, in Smithtown, is one such place. Smithtown is an historic village on the north side (near Stony Brook) about 50 miles east of Manhattan.
Yesterday–Christmas Day–the temperature was in the 30s, but it was sunny and therefore mild. To get some exercise, we drove a short distance through the woods and along the Nisseqougue River to Long Beach on Long Island Sound. Long Beach features five plus miles of rock-strewn beach and stunning views across the sound to Connecticut. The views of the sometimes quaint, sometimes grand and always expensive beachfront homes is also interesting.
by David Burn | Dec 24, 2004 | Food & Beverage, Place
Yesterday was a trip down memory lane for me. We started the morning in Lancaster, PA, where I spent four years pursuing my higher education and a serious beer buzz. Then, we headed to South Street in Philadelphia (I used to live at 6th + Locust) for a cheese steak at Jim’s. The steak was good, but that’s not where I’m going with this.
It took us 5.5 hours to drive from South Street to Smithtown, on Long Island. The drive typically takes 2.5 hours, maybe three. On the way, Darby asked me if I would ever consider living in this region again. Given that I have recently applied for jobs in New Jersey and New York, the inquiry was more than rhetorical.
Early in the journey, I said, “Sure, if the opportunity was right.” A couple hours later, still inching towards New York, I revised my thinking.
by David Burn | Nov 28, 2004 | Place
Florida is a big state with a lot to offer. There’s the spring break rituals in Ft. Lauderdale, Daytona and Panama Beach. The beautiful people and art deco masterpieces in South Beach. Disney’s megaplex in Orlando. The artists and writers of The Conch Republic, also known as Key West.
One often overlooked aspect of the state I make sure to enjoy is the bounty of nature. Bald eagles, egrets, herons, alligators, manatee, dolphins and panthers make Florida their home. For sure, increasing human population is a dangerous threat to pristine nature. Which makes it all the sweeter to visit places in the state that are hard to reach and therefore relatively untouched. The Ten Thousand Islands are such a place, as is Keewaydin, a barrier island between Naples and Marco Island. Keewaydin is accessible only by boat. There are homes, but very few. You can walk the beach and see no one. That’s a true joy in modern times.
by David Burn | Sep 17, 2004 | Place
Wisconsin real estate is still quite affordable, especially when you consider how nice the state is. It’s a beautiful place with rolling hills, lakes big and small, clear blue skies, orchards, native hardwood forests, prairie grasses, wildflowers, wolves, rivers, rocks, mtn. bike trails, and quaint country towns. For instance, here’s an extremely appealing 16-acre parcel in the central part of the state for only 79K:
This listing belongs to Otto Ritt, who reports the price of an acre in WI has shot up 43% since 1999. So, people are catching on, and fast.
by David Burn | Sep 14, 2004 | Place
When you live in Chicago (or Chicage, as it is known to some), getting away to a place where one can breathe fresh air, hear birds chirp, and see stars in the night sky is not a luxury, it is essential to one’s sanity and well being. Thankfully, the Door County peninsula is within reach.
View from our campsite, Peninsula State Park, Door County, WI
This was our first visit to the area and my impression is there’s something for everyone in Door. One might stay in an historic inn on the Green Bay side, where golf, tennis and sailing make for a proper outing. Or more to our liking, one might stay in a yurt on a rainy night, then move to a state park the next, while spending the day hiking, swimming and exploring the woods and coastline via bicycle.
by David Burn | Aug 28, 2004 | Place
Thanks to Kevin Kelly’s Cool Tools blog, I learned of real estate site Bulgarian Properties about six months ago. It’s a site I continue to revisit. Bulgaria is scheduled to join the EU in 2007. This means the time to invest is now. And one can find a home near the Black Sea for the price of a parking space in Chicago.
This traditional Bulgarian home is going for 11K in US currency
by David Burn | Jul 27, 2004 | Place
During the last Ice Age two glaciers came together in what is now southern Wisconsin. The result can be seen today in the uplifted topography known as Kettle Moraine. Much to our delight, the area contains some of the finest mountain bike trails in the Midwest.
by David Burn | May 19, 2004 | Art, Place
One of my favorite things about living in the Midwest (and being a Midwesterner) is the nativist idea I like to harbor about my ability to discern and enjoy true American gems like Saugatuck and Douglas, MI, for instance. One might add Okoboji, Mineral Point, Door County, or the Sandhills to this quick list—all places where the east coast intelligentsia and west coast hipster tribe dare to tread. These communities are that much finer for that fact.
Big Red by James Brandess, a local artist and gallery owner.
by David Burn | Mar 8, 2004 | Place
Darby and I ventured to Mineral Point, WI for the weekend. We were attracted to the area, known as the “Unglaciated Uplands,” due to its proximity to Frank Lloyd Wright’s ancestral country estate, Taliesin. Little did we know how much Mineral Point itself has to offer. We might have had a clue when locating Brewery Creek–a bed-and-brew–on the Web. But not until we arrived in town did we fully grasp the historic significance of this special place. Stone homes and commercial buildings from the 19th century abound. As do friendly residents, many of whom produce and sell art in one of the town’s several galleries .
Enter here for oatmeal stout and a steak.
More photos of the area are available here.
by David Burn | Jul 20, 2003 | Place
I heard the term “Radotude” the other day and it’s now embedded in my personal lexicon. It was actually pronounced “Raditude,” but I prefer the former option, as it conforms to the state’s actual spelling. Either way, it’s a fitting moniker for the “hipper than thou” mentality that permeates Colorado. Clearly, there are a number of factors that have led to this sad state, but I believe we can first thank the omnipresent gear-heads–athletic young men and women who sport this season’s hottest shades, polypro garments (to wick away the moisture…duh!), and of course the requisite “I’m about to go running thru the back county” sandals, a fashion oxymoron, if there ever was one.
A more commonly used term that goes well with this new linguistic discovery is “Rado dude!” As in, “Everything’s kinder in Rado, dude.” And there is some truth in that sentiment, as the mountains are bigger, the rivers do run wilder, and the kids tend to only smoke dank. Dank is the polar opposite of schwag (a brown, seed-riddled, import).
