One of my favorite things to do in any free time is to go exploring. All throughout the summer, my best friend and I would find waterfalls and overlooks and ponds and sit and talk for hours. I decided to take this idea and run with it for the ‘Do’ portion of this project. Here is an overlook in Chapin Forest, up in my home, taken during spring break. My sisters and I had heard of this place, and how the city is visible from this vantage point and decided to take a look. We veered off the traditional path, and took the dusty path made from the footprints of those before us and came to this fenced in overlook, where the sky expanded outward and didn’t stop until it met with the ground at a distance we could see, but couldn’t imagine. It was stunning and the exact type of experience I live for.

In an effort to have an experience outside of my usual routine, I took a trip down to the Short North, and found myself among all these records. I found it intriguing being around records, old and new, and felt myself being pulled back into the past and feeling removed – in a good way – from my current present. I was in my own little world at this point, just imaging what it would’ve been like to dance around to records playing, with the familiar scratch of the record players as I have heard in many movies. This particular shop had a plethora of cute objects, old and new, and really had an almost time-warp appeal to it. I actually sent this exact picture to my father as he is a huge Pink Floyd fan, and him and I have gone to see renditions of this exact album performed more than once. It’s the music from the time when I was born, and those songs bring me back to parts of my childhood and cooking and dancing in the kitchen. Again, this prompted me to continue exploring the Short North to find what other interesting pieces I could find.

A few friends and I decided we wanted to experience a different culture’s food, so we headed to North Market downtown to get a taste of something different. At North Market, there is a myriad of stations, many with cultural foods, ranging from Polish to Italian to Indian. My entire life, I’ve always been relatively sheltered when it comes to food, so I decided to step outside of my comfort zone a bit and try Indian food. I got chicken curry, rice, and a mix of potatoes and green beans. Aside from being a bit more spicy than I’d like, it was very good. I was surprised. Although my palate is usually pretty diverse, and I am not a relatively picky eater, I didn’t see myself enjoying this food as much as I did. I was ultimately extremely happy with our decision to undertake this endeavor, and really inspired me to continue trying new foods and experiencing new things.