IMS – IndyScan.com

2025 May Update

Photo of The Month:

I took this after lunch while visiting DC in May. It was a quick trip for work and very rainy, so not a lot of picture opportunities.

What’s Going On:
I’m writing this post in June to recap my month of May & can’t believe how fast it went. Father’s Day is next Sunday & summer officially begins the Friday after on June 20.

I have some summer/fall trips I’m working on scheduling, and have the first camping trip of the year scheduled this month. It’s going to be July before I know it.

What I’m Eating:
Borage (Speedway, IN)
After I raved about my initial visit to Borage, we re-visited mid-week after a brief (rainy) visit to the track. The food was delicious, and the market had all kinds of fun things to explore.

Butler University (Indianapolis, IN)
On Mother’s Day, we picked up some food from Goose the Market and found a nice little shady spot in Holcomb Gardens on the campus of Butler University. A lot of other residents had the same idea as the area was busy with families enjoying the day.

Dairy Cottage (Brookville, IN)
We closed our office this year for Carb Day to celebrate the start of summer. I traveled down to Brookville, Indiana, to play Amateur Radio and put my newly renewed fishing license to the test. The Dairy Cottage has some really good fried chicken, but I was there for the Super G Boy burger, which is one of their top sellers.

Where I’ve Been:
Indianapolis Motor Speedway
Attended several events at the Speedway this last month, all work-related. I always forget how big that place is & how long it takes to walk to the various areas in and around the track.

Washington DC
Took a quick trip to DC to prep for a larger group trip we’re doing for work in the Fall. It rained every day, but the seafood was great!

What I’m Watching:
Clarkson’s Farm (Amazon Prime) has returned for its 4th (and final?) season. It’s one of our favorite shows right now.

Your Friends & Neighbors (Apple TV+), starring Jon Hamm, has been a surprisingly good series.

What I’m Reading:
Mickey7 by Edward Ashton (Kindle)
This 2022 book, now a 2025 movie, exceeded my expectations. I was initially hesitant, fearing it would closely follow the movie script, but having seen the film and started the book, I found it much BETTER!

Everything Is Tuberculous by John Green (Audio Book)
This was a different kind of book than I’m used to from Green. Reminds me of the Typhoid Mary book Anthony Bourdain published. Overall, I thought it was a well-written book & worth checking out.

A Fever in the Heartland by Timothy Egan (Audio Book)
I keep seeing people reference this book, and after a brief wait on Libby, I was able to grab a copy of the audiobook. Wow, this was pretty disturbing, and to think it happened where I live is pretty unreal. If you want to learn more about civil rights in the Midwest (Indiana), this will open your eyes. This should be required reading for everyone.

And Finally…
Did Private Equity Worsen the LA Fires?

2024 May Update

What’s Going On:
WHERE did May go? I’m sitting here today doing my weekly Review, and it finally hit me that it’s JUNE (and halfway through June at that)!

What I’m Buying:
My Everyday Carry (EDC) is pretty standard: wallet, watch, keys, phone, knife, and light. Sometimes, I pocket some pepper spray, depending on the situation. The individual items rotate (like a dive watch vs. an Apple watch or a money clip vs. a wallet), but they’re always consistent and in their respective pockets.

My blade of choice this last year has been the 945 Mini Osborne (in Green Aluminum). It’s a great knife and has held up well for daily carry. But it’s a little on the heavy side when wearing lightweight clothing.

While walking back to the car from the Broad Ripple Art Fair, we stopped at Rusted Moon Outfitters to look around (and to see if they still had their 20% off sale going on). I missed the sale but still walked out with a new (and much lighter) Benchmade. The Mini Bugout (CF-Elite) is a perfect summer pocket carry since it only weighs 1.5oz. The weight saving comes from the Carbon fiber-reinforced scales. Add to that a Cerakote blade & you’re looking at a nice low-profile and versatile slicer.

The Mini Bugout needed to be broken in a bit to get that trademark Benchmade open/close action, but it didn’t take long, and it’s been in my pocket every day since.

What I’m Eating:
Babish Culinary Universe has been posting some interesting “Ranking Every…” videos lately, and one caught my eye: Ranking 46 Kinds of Ramen. If you’ve visited an Asian Speciality store, you have undoubtedly seen the mind-numbing combinations and variety of Ramen. We’re not talking about the standard Top Ramen found at the local Stop-and-Shop for $0.50 a pack.

Spoiler Alert, his favorite turned out to be Buldak Quattro Cheese Ramen Hot Chicken Flavor. I turned to Amazon to help me find it.

Spotted when I visited Thailand in February 2024

This stuff is GOOD! It’s like Kraft Mac & Cheese powder meets ramen noodles, but it also has another pouch of flavor that brings the heat. I must warn you, this stuff is HOT! I used half the hot packet on my first bowl and regretted it immediately. I backed off quite a bit the next time I fixed it, and it was a delicious bowl of instant spicy cheesy ramen!

I thought the packaging looked familiar, and I went back and looked through my Thailand Trip photos from earlier this year. Sure enough, I had sent the picture above to my son while I was there.

If you’re into Instant Ramen, I recommend checking out the Buldak Quattro Cheese Ramen Hot Chicken Flavor. If you do, let me know what you think!

If you’re looking for a good quality lunch, I recommend you check out Slapfish in the Fishers District. I’ve gone there for lunch the past couple of Fridays (working from home) and had some really good fish and chips! Lunch out for under $20? I’ll take it.

Lastly, the old O’Charley’s in Fishers has been turned into a Sports Bar called Walk-Ons. We visited a few weeks ago to try out the Shrimp PoBoys. They were pretty tasty. We were looking for a substitute for B’s Po Boy, who used to be in Fountain Square Pre-COVID. These were very close with the bread (from New Orleans) being the missing ingredient (although the hoagie roll at Walk-ons is decent). For a basic Po Boy, they scratch that itch. In fact, I went back the following week and got another one for lunch! The sleeper item on the menu at Walk-Ons is the HUSH PUPPIES! Get them as an app or a side & thank me later.

Where I’ve Been:
The first weekend in May found me in Marion, IN, attending a small regional Amateur Radio swap meet. I didn’t have very high expectations, but it turned out to be a nice show with a few radio guys I’ve talked to on the air and was able to meet for the first time. I also got a good deal on some antennas to use with my receiving equipment (scanners and stuff).

Of course, in May, you go out to the track! I was out there for some work events & didn’t go to the race. It ended up raining & delaying everything anyway, so that would have been an awful time at IMS this year. I ended up watching it on TV like everyone else when they lifted the blackout. Indy Car will be on Fox next year & I’m hearing people say the Indy 500 will be televised live. I’ll believe it when I watch it.

At the end of May I went camping with a good friend of mine down at Hardin Ridge. We had a good time catching up and playing around with some Amateur Radio equipment once the sun went down.

Lastly, I checked out the Fishers Farmers Market a few Saturdays ago. The markets keep getting better! I walked away with a package of pepperoni Rolls from one of the Amish vendors. They were really good!

What I’m Reading:
Jenny Lawson is back with another introspective into her life called Broken (in the best way possible). It’s been a great read so far. I got about 25% through it in the first sitting. It can be a little dark as she walks you through her mental and physical disorders, but she has a lot of laugh-out-loud moments that make the book a must-read. Her previous books have been just as enjoyable to read as well. If you’re looking for a light-hearted look at life from someone with a very active imagination, Jenny might be an author you’d like to read!

What Else:
That’s about it for May. It went WAY too fast & June is already half over. The weather is finally catching up to us, with 90+ degree days in the forecast for the next couple of weeks. A group of us are going over to Lucas Oil Stadium to watch the Olympic Swim Trials. We were able to get suite tickets, so that should be enjoyable. We also arranged a behind-the-scenes tour to see how they pulled this event off. I should have some pictures in the next blog post.

And Finally…
The maddening mess of airport codes.

2023 Week 20 – The Asian Invasion

I ended up out at the track twice last week for work events. Tuesday was wet, and there were no cars on the track, so I ducked out after the event. Thursday was beautiful; the cars were out, turning laps and dialing things in. I always end up at the track every year for a vendor event or an event tied to work. Kind of a nice way to spend an afternoon!

Cheeky Bastards, a newish British restaurant on Fall Creek in Geist, is now open for dinner. I’ve yet to make it over there, but I’m hoping to check out their Fish and Chips (or Bangers and Mash) for lunch very soon.

The Hustle had a great long-form piece titled “The $40m bet that made South Korea a food and cultural power” that explained how Korean food has taken off, similar to what Thai food did in the U.S. from 2022-2018 with help from the mother country.

Gastrodiplomacy, a term first coined by The Economist in 2002, happens when governments try to increase the value and knowledge of their nation through food.
https://media.hubspot.com/south-korea-mightve-picked-up-your-dinner-tab-2

I used to work with a guy that left his job to go work for the State Department doing something very similar. Bringing countries together with food and culture. Interesting stuff!

Following up from Week 17, where we referenced the disappearance of AM radios in new automobiles, The IBJ reports on a “Bipartisan bill aims to require AM radio in new cars.” The comments don’t disappoint, either…

It’s usually nice to see news coverage of your hometown, and then there are times it’s not… “Fishers Council approves $50 parking fee for nonresidents for Geist Waterfront Park.” The backlash on this decision is all over social media and has been brought up in several of the conversations I’ve been a part of this last week. I understand the need for crowd control, but this is just a bad look for an otherwise great project. I, for one, look forward to trying out the new kayak launch. It has to be better than the alternative we have at the Geist Park upstream.

And finally… The Deal Guy discusses “NEW Amazon Prime Benefits You SHOULD Know in 2023!”