Blooming in Richmond

"Bloom where you are planted." 

St. Francis de Sales, Bishop of Geneva (1567-1622)

The author of Just Pieces, quibbled with the phrase "bloom where you are planted". I too am a quibbler. I am not native to Richmond. I was not born here. It might be better to say "Bloom where you are transplanted" or "Bloom where you consciously choose to bloom", but who am I to argue with saints?

As a child, I never bothered to know the street names or the use of buildings. I didn't know the beautiful upright piano I grew up playing with was made here by the Starr company. I didn't know much really. I only knew that this city seemed small, like myself. It is my most familiar landscape. My brother and I ate clover leafs as babies in our front yard. We splashed in the creeks. All of my siblings have gone to school here, worked here, played here. My children were all born here. I've fallen in and out and in love again here.

For the greater parts of my life, this has been and is my setting. I spent most of my youth unaware, unappreciative of my surroundings. I'm remedying that and looking at my hometown with a renewed lens. The more I explore this setting, the less I feel like I am floating or merely drifting blindly in a current of life, and more and more I own a sense of place.

I am looking at Richmond, Indiana from different angles: visiting neighborhoods and turning down streets I never knew existed. I find myself lingering over new perspectives, underneath bridges, atop tall structures and meandering along outdoor trails, & finding beauty, whether it is as obvious as a rose in the Richmond Rose Garden or an unexpectedly cultivated corner in what I perceived to be a forgotten alley.

A Garden behind the E Street Pub

I am even learning the names and histories of the wild things thriving in my backyard. You may not realize some weeds are native, useful & very interesting... The Compass Plant was used by Native Americans to treat asthma. The dried sap was chewed by natives and pioneers like a gum. The leaves often point North and South allowing travelers to orient themselves.

Compass Plant

It is another summer in Richmond, and the familiar songs of cicadas ringing in the thick air resounds. The same clovers are spreading like green and white and yellow carpets. Honeybees are visiting them, & I hear my own voice calling to the children & sounding just like my mother's "Watch your feet".

Richmond, Indiana, A Place for Everyone

Dear Richmond, my children are learning your street's names. We are blooming.

What's Behind That Window?

A Charming Display

Two Sisters Books & More!

My family has come across a few rather intriguing, unfamiliar places about town. How many times do we pass by a window, wonder what could be inside and yet move on in a hurried fashion? In an effort to slow down and get to know Richmond, the Local-Lady blog will be posting an occasional "What's Behind That Window?" post.

Today's will be the first! We discovered one window in particular that seemed magnetized each time we passed by it: Two Sister's Books & More. Local-Lady is pleased to introduce you to one of the most darling spots to shop in town! I was delighted to chat with the owners! Kate answered all of my questions. Here we go:

How did you come to own a shop in Richmond and what keeps you living and loving this corner of the world?

Kate and Patty are the two sisters.

"My sister Patty and I grew up in Centerville.  It’s a great place in which to grow up, but there wasn’t a whole lot to keep people around who aren’t actively raising families, and when we were young we couldn’t wait to get out of Wayne County and start living.  The Depot District has some amazing buildings and a fascinating history, but when we were in high school and even college the only place to hang out was Charlie’s.  The District is starting to grow and develop now, and we wanted to be on the ground floor.  We believe that our bookstore provides the community with one of those features they’d find in a big city, thus helping attract and keep young talent in the area."

Why is the shop called Two Sisters? 

A Cozy Book Nook

"Well, the slightly sarcastic answer is that there are two of us, and we’re sisters.  More creatively, when designing the store we wanted it to feel like the sort of old bookstore you’d find if you happened to be backpacking through the English countryside.  We’ve done a lot inside the store to convey that, from the bookshelves our father custom-built to the period-accurate paint on the walls.  We thought The Two Sisters sort of sounded like the name of a pub you might frequent if you wore argyle and could pronounce Benedict Cumberbatch's name without snickering."

What's the story behind the book shop? Childhood dream? Spur of the moment decision?


"Like all good things, the bookstore was both a childhood dream and a spur of the moment decision.  I had always wanted to own a bookstore called Ragueneau’s, after the bibliophile baker in Cyrano de Bergerac.  It was one of those things that I’d talk about doing when I had a lot of money, which has never happened.  Last summer, I had quit my job teaching high school English and my sister had graduated from college.  Neither of us were finding work in a timely fashion, and 193 Fort Wayne Avenue happened to have a “For Rent” sign in the window.  It was our father who seriously suggested we open the business and did a lot of the legality and monetary research for us.   Whether we become a fixture in the community or a miserable failure, we can officially cross this one off the bucket list.

Your shop is located in the Historic Depot district. What drew you to this particular area?

Depot Street View in Spring

The Depot District has a great opportunity to quickly become the trendiest place in town.  On several occasions we’ve had customers remark to us that walking through the Depot District reminded them of this little neighborhood they loved in some much larger city.  In addition, the owners of Depot and downtown businesses really work together to develop and support the community.  We’ve felt very welcome here, and we cannot wait to watch the area grow."

You have book clubs! What kind of events are happening in your space?

"Our Solarium is a room in the back of the store that’s free for anyone who wants to reserve it for meetings and/or parties. We currently have two clubs that meet there regularly: Cognoscenti SteamPunk Society and The Not-So-Young-Adult Book Club.  More information about them can be found on our website.

We also frequently have local authors like Steve Martin and David Hughes in to do book signings.  On May 18th, Tom Everhart will be in to talk about his book 0-60 in Five Minutes: My Stroll Through Rock-n-Roll Music.  

In the future we’re looking to have story hours, classes, and many other events.  Sign up for our mailing list on our website or follow us on Facebook to keep in the loop!"

You have tea! Tell me about your special blends, please?

"As stated earlier, we wanted our store to have an English feel, and being tea drinkers with no local tea rooms we started making our own blends for the store with the idea of having each one be in honor of a specific author, character, book, or genre. For example, our Literary Heroes tea is in honor of characters such as Mr. Darcy and Mr. Rochester and is made of Earl Grey plus Vanilla and Cinnamon. This adds a touch of class to an already classy tea. We offer tins of loose-leaf teas for $10, individual cups of tea for $2, and tea accessories such as teapots, teacups, and infusers. We also have a special offer for groups in which they can learn about blending teas and then create their own unique blend."

Darlene Frame, Local Poet

Thank you Kate and Patty! We can't wait to watch your business grow, and we'll be back for books, book club, events, tea and more!

My family had an excellent time browsing the shop Saturday. I was lucky enough to catch a local author, Darlene Frame, doing a promo for her book of poetry I Always Do Laundry on Monday. The book is published through a local publisher, Kids at Heart Publishing, LLC. All proceeds of her book go to help a friend in need of a kidney. I can't wait to snag a copy of her heartwarming poems for myself along with an extra! What a sweet edition of poems (just in time for Mother's Day!).

If you haven't been already, it's about time you step inside their quaint shop chock full of books: old and new, something for everybody, each book is a portal waiting to take you to a new world. 

Car Free in Richmond, Indiana

“Get a bicycle. You will not regret it, if you live.”

~Mark Twain~

My preferred method of travel (ever since I can remember removing the training wheels) has been to bike, at least for short trips. My first "big girl" bicycle was a banana seat Schwinn, a heavy metal yellow bike. It weighed a ton!

 (Thank you Internet! That's the very bike!)

This was before vintage was cool. Yes, I was teased, but that's okay. It made me who I am today! In those days of bicycling, I never registered second glances from passersby. I was just another neighborhood kid on a bike. However, by the time I graduated high school, I had come to realize that a commonly held association between being a young adult on a bicycle, in this area, meant only one thing: a DUI. People of a certain age who rode their bikes did so because their licenses were revoked or it was a hobby- not really a mode of transport. Riding my bike was a recreational choice on a sunny day to get away for awhile and go nowhere in particular.

A decade ago, if my husband and I were to walk to the grocery store on foot (this happened more than several times) a car would stop:

Driver: "Are you kids okay? Do you need a ride? Where are you going?"
Us: "We are fine. We're just walking." 
Driver: "Don't you have a car? Is it broken down?"
Us: "Yeah, no, it's fine. we just like to walk."

The driver would than process this fact with apparent difficulty and would then leave with a quizzical expression.

Things are different now. Cultural changes and habits take some time to alter. Maybe it's the one positive thing coming out of the recession. Maybe it's because of the "obesity crisis" and people want to get healthy. Whatever the reason, I suspect there are several, that scene just doesn't take place anymore. Now I recall it simply as a memory of the ready eagerness of people in my community to help anyone- a stranger on the street, if they need it. Biking is rapidly becoming an acceptable and fun mode of transportation! Nowadays you see a lot more traffic both on foot and on bike.

My husband and I don't like to replace things. When our toaster kicked the bucket, we started putting our bread under the broiler to toast. When I suspected the car might kick the bucket too, I started bike shopping, just in case. We now own a bucket bike from Madsen Cycles.

I am glad I did. Our transmission is just about kaput, so as of the end of March, just as I set out on this blog project to explore my hometown, the car up and effectively dies.

What is cool about this is- we're proving that even in a quasi bicycle friendly town, you can pull it off. It takes a change of habit and a difference in lifestyle, but being car free is doable for us.

It's even given me an advantage. You see so much more from a bike or on foot than you can from a car.

This field and sky would have just been a blur rushing past me in a car.

"It is by riding a bicycle that you learn the contours of a country best, since you have to sweat up the hills and coast down them. Thus you remember them as they actually are, while in a motor car only a high hill impresses you, and you have no such accurate remembrance of country you have driven through as you gain by riding a bicycle."

~Ernest Hemingway~

Besides, if I hadn't ridden my bike to that interview the other day, I may never have found Miller Farm. 

Cute isn't it? They blog sometimes too HERE!

Are you local and into Bikes? Visit Richmond Cycling's Facebook Page.

Like my bicycle quotes? I found them HERE!

I love Pho

When Sub 'n Roll moved into the barn shaped building formerly housing a tool shop turned tanning bed/hair salon, we were not sure what to expect. Just another sandwich place? The sign may not be showy, the interior is a bit plain, but what they lack in jazzed up surroundings they make up for 10+ times in taste and quality! Oh boy! Is the taste what matters? You bet! Say it with me:

Sub 'n Roll bakes their goods fresh, grows many of their own fresh herbs and offers delectable Vietnamese soups, sandwiches and if you request it specifically, real Vietnamese style coffee. I love the Chicken Pho and I like to order my Vietnamese coffee to go in a compost friendly cup. I kicked my coffee habit last year, but when I do indulge in a cup I like it strong! Vietnamese coffee is coarse ground, then drip brewed directly into your cup. It's sweetened with condensed milk, but it's not overly sweetened (although if you are a sweet tooth they are quick to indulge you with extra!). I am looking forward to summer for so many reasons this year. One of those reasons is my strong desire to enjoy this drink iced!

Meal presentation is important, and every time I am lucky enough for my honey to suggest Sub 'n Roll for lunch I take a picture of my soup. This is what I like!

Mmm, pho! Note the lime slices! Make it a meal and have spring rolls !

I absolutely adore fresh culinary herbs, and if you have never smelled Thai Basil then you are missing out! If you dig cilantro, you should definitely order some pho. If you don't that's okay too! One of the things I love best about having pho at our Sub 'n Roll is that it is customizable. They put the condiments, bean sprouts and most of the greens on the side, so if you're fussier about peppers, unfamiliar sauces or such things floating in your soup, you are free to enjoy broth, rice noodles and meat sans the extras!

I prefer pho, partly because I live with wheat allergies. It's lovely to eat out on occasion without fear of repercussions and the pho seems to agree with me! Sub 'n Roll is also the only restaurant in town where I can enjoy spring rolls! I order them wrapped in rice paper.

Follow Sub 'n Roll on facebook here. They recently added new items to the menu, and the Tofu Delight looks delicious!

Nervous about pronouncing things on the menu? You needn't be! The staff are always eager to explain and guide you through their menu items. Wanna brush up on your Vietnamese beforehand? Here's another helpful video:

My husband says to be sure to try the bánh mì! Yum!

Sub 'n Roll is located at 2020 East Main Street in Richmond. They are open Monday-Saturday between 10 AM-9PM.

Read more reviews on our Sun 'n Roll HERE.

Getting to Know You

I grew up in Richmond. My family relocated here when I was an infant. As a youth, I undervalued my hometown and longed to escape it. I could share embarrassing, restless preteen poetry of a midwestern, angst-filled flavour, but we will forego that and spare you the pains! In the last decade I have been blessed to travel to either side of the American coast lines, paying homage to both the Atlantic and the Pacific Oceans. I've seen the Space Needle in the sleek streets of Seattle, Washington, the bucolic beauty in small towns of New York and Connecticut. There was also quite a bit of road in between! Now I feel I have a more balanced view on the best and worst points of our Rose City. I appreciate it more for what its worth. I won't scorn my hometown any longer. I'll claim it. Visiting large cities opened my eyes much like the country mouse in Aesop's tale "The City Mouse and The Country Mouse". My Beach Boy fantasies of a golden California are tempered with real life experience. Like any other geographic locations it is blessed by certain scenery and plagued by its eyesores. There are many cities on the map that lack many of Richmond's assets. The very least compliment I can pay my own hometown is that I can afford to live here. We ARE lucky; we ARE Richmond.

A team of researchers led by Dr. Barabasi of Northeastern University tracked over 100,000 people through their mobile phones to learn about human travel patterns^[1]. It was discovered that most people are creatures of habit, 83% of the people tracked barely diverged more than 22 miles from their homes^[2]. Additionally, people seem to hit the same spots on the map in their set daily routines. Let's set ethical questions concerning mobile phone tracking research aside (their information was scrambled and anonymous, Barabasi assures us), and simply remark that I am certain to be of that majority.  Home, grocery store and an occasional bite out is my personal travel pattern! After living in the Richmond area for more than 20 years, there is much within my town I have not explored. How many other residents are creatures of habit who return to their work, home and favoured haunts over and over again?

Now that I am here for the time being and not romantically fantasizing an escape, I hope to discover more about the city in which I live. According to the Richmond, Indiana wikipedia page, Richmond covers 24.08 square miles^[3]. If I tour every inch of that I will have ventured out just enough from the average bubble to escape being lumped into the majority of people deemed boring by John Schwartz of the NY Times. Along my way I hope to discover and share the riches hiding in the open all around us. Maybe we can inspire each other to be a bit more adventurous. Where is your absolute favourite Richmond spot and why? Be it a bar stool in a local pub, a quiet spot by Clear Creek or a great bench for people watching- do share!

Love,

Your Local Gal 

References

1. Cellphone Tracking Study Shows We’re Creatures of Habit
2. Mobile revealed, People, creatures of habit, confirms a large experiment
3. Richmond, Indiana - From Wikipedia