October 30, 2024
Still finding my way around the new “DC” apartment, I was delighted to find a great coffee spot a nice walk’s distance away. Vigilante Coffee also has a really good avocado toast. Really this is all I ask for near my place… damn good coffee and something this vegan can Read more…
October 29, 2024
Walks like this invigorate the soul. Every turn–beauty–an escape from the everyday manmade hierarchy of priorities. Every step is just where I ought to be, reinforced by the ease of gratification. Oh, the world can be so simple. Any yet…
Like an obedient consumer, I love a good 2-for. Cheap price for two things I don’t need, yes! But in adventuring, a good 2-for is even more exciting. So when there are ruins of an old amusement park in a gorgeous scenic park in the peak of the foliage season, Read more…
Old military defenses make for good exploration–the cumbersome, concrete, utilitarian. When they are decorated elaborately by taggers, it creates an interesting visual. The ruins are easily accessible, adjacent to the parking lot. But please take note, it is a gay cruising spot. As I drove down to access the isolated Read more…
October 18, 2024
Silver Diner is a bit of a high end chain in the DMV area, boasting a new vibe on old school diner. So with that: vegan options and a significantly higher bill than at the old diner. We hit the booth on an off day so to not have to Read more…
Autumn is a beautiful time to go see covered bridges. So flying my guy to town, we made a day of it because this would be the first of a series of days where I would hold the cards… the birthday cards! Yes, it is birthday week and so I Read more…
October 17, 2024
From my new huge bedroom window in Maryland (Yes, now I am temporarily living in Maryland!) it caught my eye. So I decided I’d go out to shoot it. I mean, it practically invited me. Plus I wanted to see how it was outside. Is this the kind of place Read more…
October 12, 2024
There I am in my current DC apartment… but we are moving in a few days. I always need to have a go-to Thai place and I was happy to find Charm Thai Restaurant in Silver Spring, MD on my walk. I got the usual Pad See Ew with spring Read more…
October 9, 2024
Feeling the urge to see as much as I can before I am no longer living in the DC area, I chased down another place on my list while being on Short Call Reserve. This abandoned church is one of two in the woods–relics of a ghost town. With a Read more…
October 4, 2024
Takoma Park, which is just a short walk away from where I live in Washington DC, has got some great food. This time I walked to Roscoe’s Neapolitan Pizzeria to order from their all-vegan menu. It’s pretty extensive and offers many vegetal dishes and not just meat substitutes. First, an Read more…
September 16, 2024
Four years ago today I had my last contact with my dear friend Ellen. It was the evening she passed away. When you lose someone close to you, you find ways to keep their memory alive. Silly insignificant things hold meaning in the context of loss. So my text strand Read more…
September 8, 2024
I finally got to The Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. Being from New York and dropping in on NYC’s American Museum of Natural History since childhood, this museum has been on the backburner. With time to kill on short call reserve, I finally went. I was impressed, as were Read more…
September 7, 2024
Established in 1834, Green Mount Cemetery in Baltimore is one of the earliest rural cemeteries in the country. And it is breathtaking. After taking the hour drive a few days after learning of it, I was taken by its beauty. Relatively compact, it has so much to see. This was Read more…
August 14, 2024
The summer is moving fast as I traverse about the country. Thai food at some place I don’t recall… It was pretty darn good. But this was the star attraction… the mango and sticky rice with gold leaf garnish. It was absolutely perfect. Mornings at the airport mean I catch Read more…
August 10, 2024
A satisfying vegan breakfast would be just what I needed this morning. And I got it at Gardenia’s Cafe. I am blown away I found a vegan omelette in my path, of all things. This lovely cafe does it right. No bizarre packaged foods–everything from scratch. It was breakfast perfection, Read more…
After storms had passed through the DC area, flooding would impact my expedition to explore the sunflower fields of McKee-Beshers Wildlife Management Area in Poolesville, Maryland. But a benevolent couple from EL Salvador drove me over the larger pools in the road and we spent a short but meaningful mission of finding the Read more…
May 29, 2024
Cielo Rojo came about when two men met while working at Gracias Madre, a well known California vegan eatery. Here in Takoma Park they have created a gorgeous space with a separate vegan menu. I walked the 25 minutes or so from my space in DC to enjoy their offerings. Read more…
July 21, 2020
I am now convinced that Instagram is the best means of finding vegan food options. Because a picture is worth a thousand words. Roland Park Bagels in Baltimore had a bomb-looking vegan fried chicken sandwich that would be a perfect “on the way” bite. Arriving early, it would be my Read more…
August 30, 2019
Day 18 would be my last adventure… the Assateague Island National Seashore, the barrier island shared by Virginia and Maryland where feral horse roam freely. Wild horses. If that is not enough, the beach is beautiful and washes up a slew of shells. I hit the shoreline early as the Read more…
February 24, 2019
What a wonderful coincidence that the day I tripped to Baltimore, Maryland was during the extended Maryland Vegan Restaurant Week! I had a big list of eats and sites to see, starting at SweetSide for a croissant. The SweetSide is a delightful bakery that is pretty much akin to sweets Read more…
August 17, 2017
Spoilet alert: By the end of this blog post, by the end of my day, I end up… in a cabin in the woods in the mountains within rumbling thunder, the lucky pile of wood between two very vocal mocking birds going on and on about something, perhaps the storm Read more…
July 19, 2015
I took several winding mountain roads inside morning’s low-hanging clouds, much to the surprise of feasting deer families, to reach Unger, West Virginia’s Farnham Colossi, the home of George and Pam Farnham… and their collection of colossal lawn ornaments. I had driven the extra mile for roadside attractions before, but I was very eager to Read more…
May 9, 2009
Fellow veghead CandyPenny and I headed south to our nation’s capitol to sample some area eats. First stop after a smooth ride, Great Sage in Clarksville, Maryland. Although I initially hoped to try the Seitan Wellington off their dinner menu, I had to compromise with checking out their lunch… there is only Read more…
January 21, 2009
January 19, 2009, 11:15 p.m. (LaGuardia, picking up the car rental) January 20, 2009, 2:00 a.m. (Maryland rest stop) January 20, 2009, 3:40 a.m. (Greenbelt, MD Metro station) January 20, 2009, 7:15 a.m. (The sun comes out finally!) January 20, 2009, 7:35 a.m. (Walking through a tunnel underneath the National Read more…
