Review – Page 2 – IndyScan.com

2023 Week 17 – Buckle Up!

I had a pretty good week last week. I was only in the office for two days as I took advantage of two work-from-home days and attended a conference at the NCAA Hall of Fame. The HoF facility is very nice and full of sports history. I left the conference full of ideas related to my job and look forward to flushing them out to see if they can be implemented in my organization.

I don’t know what it is, but when I work from home on a Friday, Saturday always feels like Sunday for the first few hours of the morning. I know one thing when I work from home, I get SO much done! It’s probably because I rarely have meetings that day, and there are few interruptions.

I usually enter the weekend with a clear inbox and satisfaction that I made progress on my active projects (of which I typically have 25-40 at any time). In true Getting Things Done (GTD) style, I identify a “Project” as anything that takes more than one step to complete. The largest list I keep is my “Waiting For” list!

Try GTD if you…

Feel overwhelmed by the amount of things you need to keep track of

Worry about forgetting small details

Wear lots of hats in your job and life

Starts lots of projects but have trouble finishing them

Have never GTD’d before (everyone should GTD at least once in their lives)

https://todoist.com/productivity-methods/getting-things-done

I’ve preached the gospel about the GTD organizational methodology for 20+ years. It’s what’s helped me succeed in business (and personal life) and sleep well at night, knowing that I didn’t let anything slip through the cracks that day. So if you feel you’re always forgetting things, a quick read of the GTD book might help!

Enough about work, on to my favorite pastime, food! I FINALLY made a takeout order from Futuro Pizza last week. When they first opened (during the Pandemic times), you had to order your pie a day or two in advance & not knowing my schedule (if I’d be working downtown or not), they fell off my radar.

Futuro was born of necessity. During the beginning of the covid19 shutdown, in an effort to find a way to feed our family, we began making and cooking pizza for our family and friends. Word spread like wildfire and before we knew it, we were cooking 50 pizzas a day. So, we decided to make a go of opening a brick and mortar restaurant.
https://futuroindy.com

The owners have years of experience in the service industry & are making it a point to treat their employees fairly. I’ve seen several social media posts about how they care for their employees. I feel guilty that it’s taken me this long to try them!

Our first order was a Detroit Style Futuro Classic (they also have Chicago Tavern style) pizza with Pepperoni, Sausage & Mushrooms, and an order of four breadsticks (the garlic butter sauce is delicious!). Unfortunately, we dove in before snapping any pictures but remembered afterward.

Two people can get two meals out of this pizza. The pictures above show what was left after we were done the first night (I enjoyed the leftovers for dinner the following evening). This is a SOLID pizza. I shied away from “Detroit Style” for years because I thought it was the same as Sicillian (all dough and little sauce/toppings). I learned I was wrong after an order from Jett’s Pizza introduced me to Detroit Style. Now it’s one of my favorites, and Futuro does it justice. The worst part about ordering pizza from Futuro is I have to smell it all the way home to Fishers! Our total order was $33 for pizza, breadsticks, and tip. I think the quality and portion size you get is a bargain, and I look forward to ordering it again soon!

When was the last time you used the AM radio in your car? Me? Maybe twice in the previous year, when I wanted to listen to a Reds game while camping and when I tuned into emergency road information while traveling. The Early Chirp newsletter (worth checking out) had a short piece titled Inside The Fight To Keep AM Radio In Electric Vehicles. According to Safety Experts, AM Radio Waves are still useful in the case of a national emergency. Still, automakers have been slowly removing the AM band from their latest automobiles.

Sticking with the Automotive theme, a Bloomberg article titled “Extreme Acceleration Is the New Traffic Safety Frontier” outlines the dangers of the huge horsepower increases in current vehicles. Electric Vehicles (EVs) can be especially dangerous with sub-4-second 0-60 acceleration times, and don’t get me started on the Clowns driving the overpowered Dodge Chargers.

And finally… If you’ve ever driven to Chicago, you have undoubtedly seen the Oasis rest stops on the toll roads. What makes them unique is the placement upon a bridge-like structure over the highway. But, once a popular place to stop, these days they are disappearing. The It’s History channel on YouTube explains why.

2023 Week 16 – Lookout, Costco!

Ahhh, Indiana. It was 80 degrees the other day & we had a Freeze warning last night. Hopefully, the freeze didn’t kill any of your freshly planted flowers. We haven’t planted yet, so that’s a good thing! I didn’t get around to drafting this week’s post over the weekend, so I’m knocking it out Monday evening. It’s amazing how the weekend can get away from you!

The nicer weather the past two weeks has allowed me to take walks during lunchtime, and one of my destinations recently has been City Market. While it’s nothing like it was pre-Covid, several shops are hanging on, and they are getting a fair amount of lunch business. Cafe Olivia has gotten a lot of love in my office, and after getting a few sandwiches from there, I can see why! I tried a Cuban sandwich a few weeks ago, and although it wasn’t pressed on a Plancha in the traditional way, it had all the flavors and really hit the spot. On the last visit, the Cuban was unavailable, so I asked the lady behind the counter what their best seller was, and she said the Pastrami Reuben was a popular choice.

I’m not a huge sauerkraut fan and asked for a light amount. As you can see from the picture, there still was a considerable amount, but it was really GOOD kraut. Mixed with Thousand Island, it was a perfect complement to the Pastrami and dark Rye bread. Cafe Olivia has a rotating display of “Dirty” Chips next to the checkout. These are some seriously good chips, with the skin on and lots of seasoning. It’s disappointing that the Indianapolis City Market took such a hit during the Pandemic, but I’m glad to see several shops that weathered the storm. My favorite Crepe Shop didn’t make it, though. City Market still has a lot of really good places to eat, from Sandwiches to Pizza to Mexican and Middle Eastern. If you work downtown, it’s a nice walk to the market and still worth visiting!

After watching the construction and receiving about a dozen flyers, we finally ventured to Hamilton Town Center to check out BJ’s Wholesale Club. If you purchase a $55 membership, you get a $40 credit applied to your account, so for a net of $15, it was a good way to get us in the door. If you haven’t been to a BJs Wholesale Club, it’s like a Sam’s Club or Costco but with less “stuff” in the middle (clothing, etc.). It’s more focused on food, and the crowds are a fraction of what they are at Costco. I’ve visited twice, and both times were very nice, with little in the way of crowds or lines at the registers. One of the unique things about BJ’s is they take coupons, and they have digital coupons in their app. I saved a considerable amount from my last purchase by clipping digital coupons. You’re also not restricted on the type of card you use for payment (Costco). As far as alcohol sales go, this BJ’s location is only selling beer and wine at this time.

Similar to Sam’s & Costco, BJ’s sells discounted fuel too. I’m in the Hamilton Town Center area pretty regularly, so topping off the tank will be something I plan on doing. I need to compare the prices with Kroger and the Fual Point Discounts I get to see if it’s worth a special trip up there or not. I just checked, and my Costco membership expires at the end of July; I think BJ’s might be replacing it.

And finally… Robertson, Phillips, and the History of the Screwdriver. Did you know Canada has its own type of screw (and driver) that’s all but unheard of in the US? The History Guy had a video discussing the differences in another fascinating history lesson.

2023 Week 15 -Time for the Fly Swatter

The weather is warming up, and it’s lawn care season yet again! Fortunately, I have a firefighter in my neighborhood with a lawn-mowing business. I’ve been using him for several years, and he does a great job keeping the yard looking tidy, and his prices are very reasonable. Unfortunately, I’ve been a little lax on the weed and feed and decided to hire a local company to treat the lawn. After a bit of Google searching and review reading, I found one in Fishers that claims to be heavy on communication. The initial consultation and application proved them right. I’ll do a more in-depth review later this year once I get a few applications on the lawn.

I just realized the other day I hadn’t had as much food content lately, but I’ve still been eating lots of new things and trying new places, so I will include a lunch/dinner segment in the blog more regularly. I headed to The Garage for lunch last week to check out a Cuban place we spotted on our Birthday tour of Indy a few weeks ago. I’ve been hesitant to visit the Garage for lunch because of the parking prices ($6+ when I went to an after-work event a few months ago), but I just learned that Lot 4 on the West side of The Garage offers parking for $2 from 9-5 and between 11 am and 3 pm, the first hour is FREE.

On my last visit, I checked out Palavana Cubano, “Indy’s newest go-to spot for Cuban-inspired cuisine, specializing in the classic Cubano Sandwich,” according to the Garage Vendor Page. Being my first time visiting this location, I opted for the traditional Cubano Sandwich (they have several varieties) and a mix of regular and sweet potato fries (which are slowly starting to grow on me).

As you can see, this is not a small sandwich. It felt like it had a full pound of roasted pork, and I could have easily shared this (or only eaten half), but it was so good I joined the clean plate club with this one. The sauce on the side was a cumin-based red sauce that went well on the fries. Now that The Garage Food Hall is complete, it houses some excellent lunch/dinner options. I’m planning a return visit to try another new place in the coming weeks. Stay tuned!

Last Friday, the first day of the 2023 NRA Convention in Indianapolis, at least 35 school districts in Indiana received a robotic-sounding voice calling in a bomb threat.

“Out of an abundance of caution, troopers throughout the state have been in communication with their local schools to offer assistance and resources,” the statement continued. “School corporations are working with their local law enforcement to make the best decision about their operations today.”
Indiana State Police

The convention’s timing and threats may be coincidental, but the timing is suspicious. According to Vice magazine, this isn’t an isolated incident, A Computer-Generated Swatting Service Is Causing Havoc Across America, and people can pay as little as $75 to have a school shut down. Of course, schools have to take this seriously, but the amount of resources and time wasted is incredible.

Swatting is when someone calls in a bogus threat in an attempt to direct law enforcement resources to a particular home, school, or other location. Often, swatting calls result in heavily armed police raiding an innocent victim’s home. At least one case has resulted in police killing the unsuspecting occupant.
Vice.com

The Vice article listed above is a really good read and gets into the problem’s details and provides a couple of recordings used in the past. It’s going to be interesting to see how these incidents will be handled as time goes on.

And finally… Speaking of criminals, where do you keep your valuables? If you have a Safe, is it easy for a burglar to locate it? The following video has some great ideas for hiding and protecting your stuff from getting stolen.

2023 Week 13 – Oui Oui!

We had some wild weather come through Indiana Friday night, and as of today, there are at least ten confirmed tornados south of Indianapolis and several deaths. McCormick’s Creek took a hit, and several campers were injured. We didn’t have much going on until after 10 pm, and then the wind picked up and was really blowing things around. We ended up losing power for a few minutes (again). Other than a few branches in the yard, the north side of Indianapolis faired pretty well.

I ended up in Greenwood Friday morning for a work function, and I remembered tagging a French Bakery in Google Maps when I read about it several months ago. I wasn’t sure if I was close because it felt like I had driven halfway to Bloomington to get to this event. Lo and behold, I was less than 5 miles from Le Croissant French Bakery (no website), located at 916 E Main St, Greenwood, IN 46143.

They had a great selection, and it was pretty hard to choose what to get. I ended up with a Ham and Cheese Croissant and a Cheese Danish (made with Croissant dough). I warmed up the Ham and Cheese Croissant with a nice glass of Chardonnay for dinner and the Cheese Danish for breakfast the following day.

Both pastries were quite large, and the toppings/fillings were generous. I could imagine someone with a light appetite only eating half of these. 30-seconds in the microwave brought them both back up to room temp (I had placed them in the fridge when I got home), and I’m just going to say this place is legit. I’m already planning on a return trip in the near future.

Le Croissant French Bakery is open Tue-Sat 8 am-4 pm, and closed on Sunday and Monday.

I’ve had some weird issues with the website and have been making some changes behind the scenes. You might find it offline occasionally as I attempt to rebuild it. Rest assured; we’re not going anywhere 🙂

And finally… Fishers tore down their Town Hall earlier this year because it was sinking, and the repair costs were prohibitive. A new building is currently under construction & will house an art center and other new things. The city just released a timeline of their progress.

2023 Week 12 – Birthday Weekend!

I’m not one to make a fuss about turning a year older, but I know people who are! This year my birthday fell on a Friday & after a super busy first quarter, I decided it was time to take a day off and enjoy a long weekend with family and friends.

We hit up our favorite BBQ place Thursday night to start the long weekend. Traxx BBQ is located n McCordsville. I did a little write-up about it earlier this year. This particular Thursday night the place was packed! I’ve never seen the parking lot so full, but the good thing about BBQ is that it’s already cooked, so you usually get your food quickly after you order. I ordered the Brisket and Smoked Sausage with Baked Beans and Mac-n-Cheese as my sides. My better half ordered pulled pork with Hush Puppies and Potato Salad. Scarlet Lane Brewery is located in the same facility, and it’s 21+, so we found a seat in there. It had less people noise, but the music made up for it. A little loud, but at least it was stuff I enjoyed.

Friday morning started with a tour of the Indiana War Memorial & Museum, something I have meant to do for a while now. The rainy weather was a good excuse to do something inside, and this museum did NOT disappoint!

You’ll need a solid hour to see everything; this free attraction is fantastic. They take donations at the end of the self-guided tour, and I encourage you to donate to keep this place operating. Every war, from. Civil to the Middle East, is covered, and all service branches are represented. The names of fallen Indiana soldiers are framed throughout the facility, and the sheer number is eye-opening.

We worked our way over to Mass Avenue and settled into a booth at Garden Table for lunch. Garden Table is a fun and hip place to have a lunch date or meeting. The menu is eclectic, and the atmosphere is very welcoming. I’ve been there three times in the past two months, and each time was just about perfect, from food to service. After lunch, we made a quick visit to The AMP at 16 Tech, The Garage (just window shopping), and Best Chocolate (can’t visit here without buying Truffles). As you can see, we were making our way around Indy to check out the new venues we hadn’t been to for a while.

I asked a co-worker, who knows her coffee, what a good shop would be for an afternoon treat, and she answered Bovaconti without hesitation. Bova (that’s what the cool kids call it) is in a former jewelry store in Fountain Square. It’s on the smaller side and had a good crowd when we visited mid-afternoon. I had a basic cold brew, but my date ordered the Spanish Latte, and it was one of the best coffee drinks either of us had ever tasted. A Spanish Latte consists of espresso, sweet condensed milk, cinnamon, and steamed milk. The condensed milk and cinnamon are a great combination!

Saturday morning arrived rather quickly and we headed down to Cincinnati for a surprise birthday party in Covington for my Brother-in-Law. Before heading out, we decided to add another stop to Bova before traveling down I-74. I ordered an Iced Spanish Latte with Oat milk this time, and my co-pilot had the same with regular milk. Along with the coffee, we purchased a couple of maple nut pastries which they warmed up for us. The combination of iced coffee and the warm pastry was one of the best things I’ve had for breakfast in a LONG time!

The Cincinnati area has a lot of interesting things to do and see. We stayed across the river in Covington, KY but had lunch with family at The Miamiville Trailyard in Loveland, Ohio. This place reminded me of Four Day Ray in Fishers, except this place was right on the Little Miami Scenic (Rail) Trail.

Back to Cincy and Over the Rhine to do some shopping. There are no public restrooms easily available, so we stopped in at Krueger’s Tavern and enjoyed a glass of while (and used the facilities). I really miss having lunch at Krueger’s when they were in Indy. The Malt Vinegar Aioli paired with their shoestring fries was delicious!

There are murals everywhere around Cincy, and some of them are quite good!

We found a place to stay just 2 blocks from the evening event called Pickle Factory Boutique Hotel. It’s basically an Air B&B with several units on the top two floors. We were emailed the access information the morning of our stay and everything went smoothly.

The rental was spacious with a living area/kitchen and a bedroom. I’d stay here again in a heartbeat. It’s reasonably priced and close to downtown.

Cincinnati is like another world. There aren’t many straight streets anywhere because of the Ohio river and the hills make for some fun driving in and around town. Getting there from Indy couldn’t be easier as I-74 has to be one of the least congested of the Federal Highway System. Rarely do you run into heavy traffic or police running RADAR, it’s always a relaxing drive that goes by pretty fast. As a German settlement, there are hints of the heritage everywhere and the food scene is just as good, or better, than Indy. If you’re looking for a weekend getaway, consider Cincinnati for a change of scenery, I don’t think you’ll regret it!

And finally… New tracking technology developed by StarChase fires a GPS tag that attaches to a car and allows officers to track suspects after the pursuit has been called off. This could have a big impact on vehicle persuites and possibly save some lives in the process

2023 Week 11 – Have a Seat

WEIRD mix of weather this week with a low temp of 19 Saturday morning. We had 2 dustings of snow, and the temps are expected to be in the 60s mid-week. I did a thing Saturday night and bet against Purdue in the first round of the NCAA Championship. I turned $2 into $42. Fairleigh Dickenson, who I have never heard of, made it a great game and ended up winning 63-58.

I’m still battling some lower back pain and narrowed down one of the contributors to my home office chair. I thought it was adequate, but after healing up and sitting it last weekend for a couple of hours, my lower back pain flared up again. After some research, I decided to move to a “Gaming” style chair.

This is an interesting sub-category with various makes and models that appear similar but are priced entirely differently. Color makes a big difference within the same lineup, with some colors being 50 percent less than others in the same line. Take the AKRacing AK-SX-WT Gaming Chair for example. I purchased the black with white trim version for $283. If I wanted all black, it was going to cost $489. SAME chair, just a different color. As I revisited Amazon to get these prices, they have already changed in a week since I ordered. My black and white is now $384, and the purple-trimmed model is now selling for $287. If you’re interested in this chair & can wait, you might save some serious money.

Overall the chair was delivered quickly, and it only took about 20 minutes to assemble. The hardware appears stainless, and the fit/finish is very nice. It sits like a leather automobile seat and has a large, adjustable lumbar and neck pillow. You can even pull a lever and recline the chair to a flat position (not sure WHY you would want to do this, but you CAN), and the armrests are adjustable up/down, left/right, and forward/back. Overall I’m giving this chair a 9/10. It’s supportive and comfortable and has helped elevate my back pain when sitting in the home office for extended periods of time.

And finally… My son wanted a globe when he was younger, and I was surprised at how expensive it could be. I saw one for a reasonable price at an antique store, only to find out it was old enough not to have the correct names for some countries. Lesson learned. The following video shows what it takes to make some of the most expensive globes in the world.

2023 Week 8/9 – Sorry I’m Late

I’m finally getting into a groove with the new job and the ability to work from home some days. I typically get up early on the weekends because they are my days to do what I want, and I want to make the most of it. In January, I started an early Sunday morning routine of going to the grocery store at 8 am, washing the car, and topping off the gas tank. It’s usually a really quiet time of the day, and the store is normally well-stocked. I also try and publish Blog posts on Sunday since it’s the day I’m always online prepping for my upcoming week. Unfortunately, the last post was stuck in the queue and I didn’t have time to post one last weekend, so this one is a double.

I normally do a 1-2 hour Weekly Review on Sunday, but lately, it’s taken longer to get things in good shape for the week. My previous job only involved a few weekly meetings, but the new one has me in several a day, all of which I walk out of with action items. No regrets, though, I love the new job and do not miss the old one at all.

I recently purchased some new toys, one of which is an Elgato Stream Deck MK.2. The Stream Deck is a 15-button controller that’s fully customizable. Each button has its own mini full-color LED display.

You can create pages of icons for various apps and there are a lot of plugins to perform various functions. I’ve been doing some video editing lately and I have a page of commands to help with those tasks. Stream Decks are very popular with content creators because you can perform complex actions with the touch of a button. Besides that, it’s a fun addition to the MacBook Pro I use in my office at home.

While not a comprehensive list the Indy Today newsletter had some fun making a list of Indy restaurants from A-Z. They had to stretch a little for some of the letters (BBQ for the letter Q) but it’s a good read.

If you’re looking for a light morning read the Indy Today newsletter is great. it always has timely information and details about events happening in the city. It’s worth checking out!

If you’re into computers and electronics, you might have heard that Micro Center is FINALLY opening a store in Indianapolis. It’s going into the old Gander Mountain location in Castleton (just east of Ale Emporium). The nearest MicroCenter location currently is on the north side of Cincinnati.

This will help replace the void created when Fry’s electronics closed (when it was good). You can find almost anything computer-related at Micro Center, and their prices are very competitive. This place is going to be PACKED.

And finally… The History Guy had an interesting video about a “Broken Arrow” incident in 1964 at Bunker Hill AFB (not called Grissom ARB).

2023 Week 6 – The Big Game

It’s finally here! After all the hype, today is Super Bowl Sunday! The Chiefs & Eagles kick off at 6:30 pm in what will, hopefully, be a close-fought game decided in the final seconds of regular time. Or it’ll be a blowout, and the only entertainment will be the commercials that cost an estimated $7 million for 30 seconds.

I don’t know what’s happening, but I’m finding a lot of new foods these days. Maybe the boredom of eating the same things over the winter has me unconsciously searching for new things. Sporked had a Cheese Puff Taste Test in October 2022, and I just happened to find one of the top-ranked contenders at Menards last weekend.

Herr’s Jalapeño Popper Cheese Curls tied for first place with Fresh Finds Cheese Puffs in the competition, and as I cruised through the food section, I spotted the bag in all its 17oz glory Of course, 17 ounces of cheese puffs is a BIG bag. We’re still snacking on it two weeks later.

The Herr’s Jalapeño Popper Cheese Curls are mildly spicy and delicious. Be sure to have a few extra napkins handy, as these will get cheese dust on your fingers just by looking at them.

I mentioned previously I’m not much of a breakfast person. We’re called “Intermittent Fasters” by those in the know. Who knew that skipping breakfast would be a trendy thing?

Over the winter, after a riveting episode of Below Deck, we turned on an older episode of Shark Tank that featured a segment on overnight oats from a company called Mush.

I’ve purchased a few containers, and so far, the Apple Cinnamon is my favorite, with blueberry being a close second. The texture is slightly chewy, and the non-dairy milk is refreshing and light. This is something I could see myself eating pretty regularly and breaking my fast well before noon on some days.

My local Kroger only carries a limited selection of flavors. Luckily Whole Foods downtown has all the flavors, including Peach and strawberry. I’m looking forward to picking some of those up when I get my next lunch salad.

And finally… If you still have Netflix, you should check out a 4-part series called “Cunk on Earth,” where Philomena Cunk puts the worlds leading experts on edge with her hilarious questions about historical events. You have to pay attention because the humor can sometimes be subtle, but it’s very funny nonetheless.

2023 Week 5 – Peek-a-Boo!

Pretty quiet week if you don’t count the Chinese “weather” balloon that made its way across the continental U.S. It’s reported that the balloon had some remote control abilities and happened to float over some sensitive military installations. After clearing the eastern seaboard, a U.S. fighter jet shot down the balloon off the coast of Myrtle Beach.

*PoP*

In food news, we made a few discoveries this week. While picking up a salad at Whole Foods, a young lady was at a display stand sampling Soy Sauce, and Chili Crisp made in Cincinnati. After tasting a little of the soy sauce on a veggie sushi roll, I bought a bottle (it’s delicious!).

CinSoy Foods makes several foods, including Tofu, Soy Sauce, Soy Salt, and Make at Home Miso Kits. I’m looking forward to trying their Soy Sauce in a few upcoming recipes.

If you’re craving Lasagna but don’t have the time or energy to make a big batch, I highly recommend the Giovanni Rana brand. It’s located in the refrigerated section at Kroger. The Meat Lasagna I picked up looked and tasted homemade. The package is vacuum sealed and has about a 3-week shelf life in the refrigerator before consuming or freezing it. I can’t see this lasting more than three days in my fridge. Giovanni Rana also has a line of fresh pasta and sauces.

And last but not least, RXBar added a new variation to its line of Protein Bars. The A.M. RXBar mixes in Oats to give the product a little more flavor and soften up the texture of the traditional RXBar. After sampling the Honey, Cinnamon, and Peanut Butter flavor, I immediately ordered a 12-pack from Amazon (for around $20). These have been my go-to light breakfast on mornings when I need something to hold me over until lunch.

And finally… The Economics Of Unused Gift Cards. The Hustle posted a video on YouTube about how companies make money on Gift Cards. I was surprised to learn Indiana is one of the states that allows maintenance fees to be collected after a period of time that will eventually render gift cards worthless.