Cheap Thrills at Old Time Pottery

There are rows and rows of glassware:
Colorful candle holders:

Retro Coca-Cola glasses:

Bargain tea light holders:

We've seen Old Time Pottery's ads for so long in the Sunday paper that we decided to finally go browse at the store. It's a huge, warehouse-like space the runs the gamut from Christmas decorations to sheets. We treated it like a treasure hunt and walked away with a few purchases including a generous wine glass ($1.49), a large glass tea light holder ($1.50) and a smaller red tea light holder ($1.00). They also had a lot of items for outdoor entertaining (we picked up a decorative solar light) and, besides all of the glassware, they had a wide selection of sets of dishes which you might keep in mind as a gift if you have any June brides to buy for this year.

8811 Hardegan St.

Indianapolis, IN 46227

317-888-1810

We passed this Leavell Photography building on our way back north from the south side at the intersection of Madison and Terrace. We thought the faded and crumbling facade looked cool and, luckily, we had a red light and could snap this from the car.

Acropolis Restaurant- Indianapolis, IN

Spanakopita entree:

Gyros Platter:

Mmmmmmmmmmm, Greek Coffee:

Menu (click to enlarge)

We hadn't planned on eating lunch out on Saturday, but the Acropolis was so cute, we had to stop in for a bite. It was really cute on the inside too. We asked the server how long it had been there and she said since 1989. It probably looks about the same as it did 20 years ago but we found that to be what charmed us about it. We had a nice meal with all of the sides that we love. We enjoyed the gyros platter, which came with a generous amount of delicious meat piled high on pita bread with a mound of tzatziki sauce, and the spanakopita entree. The spanakopita was a teensy bit soggy but still good. Both meals came with a salad, a basket of bread, those delicious Greek green beans, and those equally delicious Greek-style potatoes. For lovers of strong coffee, the Greek coffee is a must. You can get it with varying levels of sweetness- we chose mildly sweet and loved it. We were so glad that we let spontaneity rule and walked into the Acropolis.

1625 E. Southport Rd.

Indianapolis, IN

Cool Indianapolis Neighborhoods- Woodruff Place

A cobblestone alley:

Stand on Cross Street and you can see all 3 fountains:

Our postcards of the neighborhood. The only one that has a date we can make out shows it was sent on 12/31/1909. The message is from a girl who "had the misfortune to lose my muff either at the Interurban Station on the car between there and Bunker Hill". She telephoned the interurban station in Peru and wrote to the company at the Indianapolis Terminal Station. She was also planning on sending an ad to the "Star" the day she wrote the postcard.

We are just unabashed about our love for Woodruff Place and all of the people who own and take care of these grand old houses. What excites us about a place is when we can look at a picture of it from a century ago and still recognize it now. We love that sense of history and Woodruff Place neighborhood has it big time. After all it was the inspiration for the setting of Booth Tarkington's The Magnificent Ambersons. We had a lovely Sunday morning stroll through Middle Drive, East Drive, and West Drive; it was so quiet and peaceful. There were just busy squirrels and residents on their enviable porches enjoying the Sunday paper. We read in this article that, at one point in the early 1800s-late 1900s to keep their enclave separate from the sprawling city, the residents built a dry moat and a high wall that the locals called a "spite wall". The suburbs have their McMansions, Meridian Street has its austere homes, but Woodruff Place has soul.

Rocky & Bullwinkle!

It is hard to find anyone who airs The Bullwinkle Show so we were so excited to discover that WGN America does (even if it is at midnight). If you are a fan of Moose and Squirrel along with Fractured Fairy Tales, set your DVR or VCR for midnight tonight.

The Strand's full May movie schedule has been posted.

All of that skin care that you've been neglecting is going to start haunting you as the temperatures rise and the clothes get skimpier. It's a good time to check out Heartstrings newly updated website.

Yay- it's Stutz Open House time today and tomorrow. It's as casual and unintimidating as an outdoor art fair but inside the very cool and historic Stutz Building.

DonorsChoose.org

Awhile back, reader Erin told us about DonorsChoose.org, a website where there is a listing of financial needs for schools for all kinds of projects ranging from fitness to science and the arts. They have a specific dollar amount that they are trying to raise for their project and you can donate however much you want towards that. After Erin mentioned it, we kept meaning to check it out and then, last week, Crate and Barrel emailed a Giving Card for DonorsChoose.org (kudos to Crate and Barrel because we aren't even big shoppers there). It was fun picking out which project to donate to and we look forward to doing some more giving via this site.

We LOVED Dave Ramsey's Town Hall for Hope last night and hope you watched it too. If you missed it, Fox Business Channel will re-air it this weekend.

April in Indiana

Sure, Billie Holiday never sang about April in Indiana but it is getting inspiring and gorgeous here in our state. We love red bud trees and there is even a street named Red Bud Lane off of 82nd St. The last 2 pictures are from there. It's looking good but maybe not quite at its peak yet.

While browsing through the Indiana artists on Zazzle the other day, we came across many talented people. We LOVE the poster of The State theatre in South Bend by Michael Sriver.

Scenes from... the IMA grounds

We've loved roaming the grounds at the Indianapolis Museum of Art for many years. We like to imagine what it would have been like to live at Lilly house back in the day and throw parties that F. Scott Fitzgerald would have written about. We visited the grounds this past weekend and, as usual, found all kinds of beauty. The pink flowers were on a Rose Tree of China (prunus triloba multiplex) which was not only gorgeous but smelled amazing (as absolutely everyone who passed it said). We might have to buy one of those.

We always admire the architecture of the Naval Armory when we visit White River Architectural Salvage and Antiques.

White River Architectural Salvage & Antiques

We don't have an old house so we don't need to find rare replacements for fixtures nor do we have a good place to put an old discount store coin operated merry-go-round but, we love to browse at White River Architectural Salvage and Antiques store. We actually have purchased little things in the past like framed art and a couple of tin ceiling pieces (which we made into a clock and a picture frame). This time though, we didn't buy anything but just enjoyed exploring the place and taking some pictures to tell you about it in case you haven't been there. They make us want to buy a huge barn or an old church to live in so we can have room for the great old bars and old church doors and confessionals that they have. Pictured here are some cool stained glass pieces, a gorgeous art deco bar, and some great old signs that they have out front. The place is sprawling and there are treasures inside and outside. Plus, whether we buy something or not, the employees are always very friendly to us. Be sure to carve some time out one afternoon and visit this great place.