A Side of Sweet

Weekend in Portland, Part I

Still on the interview trail, I headed to Portland to check out the program at OHSU. I also spent the weekend hitting up some local couch surfers for the local scoop on Portland! Voodoo Donuts Portland | Running Blonde

Heath and I went to the famous Voodoo Doughnuts. We snagged one of the uber-popular Maple Bacon Bars and also an oreo-topped one. So good! I am digging the sweet-salty of maple and bacon and have a couple of recipes that I want to try featuring the combo once life settles down a bit.

In order to take our love of coffee to the next level, we headed to the Stumptown Roasters Annex. They offer free tastings of their premium coffees at 11:00 and 2:00 every day.

The tasting process, also known as “cupping”, was pretty intense – some may say ridiculous. It was five steps and involved sniffing and swirling and slurping. Perhaps if you are a super taster, this process would have been more meaningful. It was funny to watch my fellow participants “ooh” and “aah” over the brews. One girl even used the word “purple” to describe the essence of the coffee she was tasting! Are-you-kidding-me?

Coffee Tasting Stumptown Portland | Running Blonde

There is something I like to call the “Garden State Effect”. Everyone raved about Garden State the movie. I watched it and thought it was strange and didn’t really make much sense. After discussing it with several people who “liked” it, and telling them how I felt, invariably they let out a sigh of relief and sheepishly admitted that they didn’t really get it either but were just going to about it to not seem like dummies!

The last stop was the Southeast Wine Collective. This brand new spot is an Urban Winery (only in Portland, right?) and was awesome! Also ladies, it was home to the cutest bartenders in Portland!

Denver Instagram – Broadway Street {Travel}

Just a few more snaps from wandering around Denver. Denver is really a changing, with many cool restaurants and shops constantly opening. Josh and I wandered down Broadway street. There was so much to do and to buy! It was hard to keep things just to window shopping!

1. Bardo Coffee House – Hipster coffee. Mismatched couches and good coffee. Per Josh’s recommendation, I had my first “dirty chai” – a shot of espresso in a chai tea. The chai was local Bhakti Chai.

2. Home & Again – Awesome thrifted and vintage furniture. Awesome antiques with a not-horrifying price tag.

3-4. Punch Bowl Social – The brand new bowling alley plus bar. With a cotton candy vending machine? How hip.

5. Fancy Tiger Crafts – Right up my DIY alley. Beautiful yarn and fabrics for your next big project. Plus they teach classes and host parties. What an awesome bachelorette or birthday idea! Who needs to take a pole dancing class?

6. Fancy Tiger Clothing – The partner store of #5. Full of awesome label lovely clothing and jewelry items. My one purchase from Denver and such a nice souvenir.

Weekend in Denver, Colorado {Travel}

To keep up with my series of weekend excursions as part of the residency interview process, here are some photos of my recent weekend in Denver, Colorado. I was there to check out the pediatric residency program at Children’s Hospital of Colorado. The hospital and the program are both amazing – top 10 in the country. I felt pretty stoked just to get an interview! The first thing I checked out was City Park. It is in the middle of Denver and is 330 acres! In all of the parks I saw in Denver there were hundreds of Canadian geese. City Park was no exception. It earily reminded me of the old Hitchcock movie, The Birds.

Then I grabbed a cup of tea and cozied up in one of the old overstuffed chairs spread throughout The Tattered Cover bookstore. This gem is full of people who love books and everyone I talked to was so kind – from the baristas to the clerks. All of the books are for sale, but browsing is encouraged. There are even post it notes with staff and customer recommendations to help you find your next favorite book.

After that, it was time to meet up with my Couch Surfing host for the weekend – Josh. Josh was an encyclopedia of all that is awesome about Denver. He knew all the best places to eat, the best places to drink and the best places to shop. He knew stories behind the businesses too. The first place we checked out was Pinche Taco. According to Josh, Pinche Taco started out as a food truck serving cool twists on the old favorite. One time, a customer asked about the tacos and when the owner started describing it, the customer said @$#$%& tacos, I just want to eat! Pinche is the equivalent of @$#$%& in Spanish! 🙂

Pinche Tacos Denver | Running Blonde

We also checked out a brand new brewery, River North Brewery. I had a few samples of their awesome beers and finally settled on a pint of RN^4, a Belgian-style quadrupel. The bartender/brew master that was working was very friendly and knowledgeable I highly recommend checking them out.

River North Brewery Denver | Running Blonde

The other place that we grabbed a beer during the weekend was the Bull & Bush. The brewery was very cozy and manly. Apparently they have great food, but the kitchen was closed so there was a food truck in the parking lot keeping everyone happy. I had a pint of their sweet potato and butternut squash ale. AMAZING. It was so unique and the flavor of the squash and sweet potato made this brew one of the best I’ve ever had.

I also have some Instagram snaps that I will post too!

Weekend in Hawaii – Eating {Travel}

This post is part three of three from my weekend in Hawaii. Check out part I here and part II here.

I had a wide variety of meals during my weekend in Hawaii. Because school was unable to cover our food costs, I packed some snacks from the mainland to try to minimize expenses. Breakfast was provided and I had a few lunches and dinners that consisted of some of my favorite snacks – Trader Joe’s unsulfured unsweetened dried mango, rosemary Triscuits, granola bars and fruit leather.

Eating on the cheap made me feel great about having one great meal out our last evening in Oahu. Brady took us to a little hole-in-the-wall shaved ice shack called KokoNuts that also served Acai Supreme Bowls. These bowls were amazing and consisted of yogurt, acai berry sauce, bananas, strawberries, toasted coconut and granola – all for about $8. You don’t have to take my word for how great the place is, President Obama agrees!

Eating Hawaii | Running Blonde

Even though an Acai Supreme would have been enough for a meal, when Brady found out that I had never had a Poke Bowl, he suggested I check out the nearby Paina Cafe to get one. Roughly, a poke bowl is the fillings of a spicy tuna roll spread over a bowl of rice. For the price of about one roll back at home, we got a huge bowl of fresh tuna. I was over the moon! I love sushi and this was some of the best as well as the most affordable that I have ever eaten.

Hawaii Food Poke Bowl | Running Blonde

The moral of the story for eating Hawaii? Go off the beaten path. Below are some photos of the plastic food on display in the window of one of the restaurants in the Hilton Hawaiian Village complex. Are you for real? Is anything less appetizing than seeing a waxy, lifeless replica of what you could have the opportunity to pay up the whazoo for? Needless to say, we were far happier with our Acai Supremes and Poke Bowls!

Eating Hawaii | Running Blonde

Oh, and this trip wasn’t all fun and games! I also helped make sure elections for the governing body of the American Medical Association Medical Student Section were run fairly and that the people’s voice was heard. And I presented my research.

Poster Presentation AMA | Running Blonde

But mostly, it was fun and games!

Life's a Beach Hawaii | Running Blonde

Photos by Matthew Kutz Photography

Weekend in Hawaii, Part II {Travel}

This post is part two of three from my weekend in Hawaii. Check out part I here.

After our hike on Mariner’s Ridge, we stopped by Halona Blowhole, where there was a small, pretty little alcove, perfect for swimming. The beach got its name because holes in the rocks send up puffs of water when the waves hit them just right – just like a whale’s blowhole.

Hidden Beach Hawaii | Running Blonde Weekend in Hawaii | Running Blonde

We stopped at a China Wall to watch some cliff jumping. I am not afraid of heights, but I have no interest in the whole feet-leaving-the-ground thing. Control freak? I am not denying it! Still, it was fun to watch!

Weekend in Hawaii | Running Blonde

Brady had us over to check out his sweet bachelor pad – complete with an ocean view, hammock and fresh avocados growing on a tree in the front yard!

Hawaii Sunset | Running Blonde

By that time we had worked up an appetite and it was time to get some grub. More on that soon!

Thanksgiving at Dad’s

We made a quick trip to southwestern Wisconsin over the weekend to share the Thanksgiving spirit with my dad. It was much quieter than our time with Pat’s family but it was still special. It was great to catch up with some of Dad’s family. Not everyone made it this year, as two of my little cousins are quite sick. Our thoughts were with them and I’m keeping my fingers crossed that we will all be back together this time next year.

Thanksgiving with Dad | Running Blonde