Dad

My dad is the best. He’s probably one of the most resilient, smart, godly, hard-working and sweet people on the planet.

Bringing my twin sister and me home from the hospital as my older sister (right, a toddler at the time) named us "Booboo" and "More Booboo" to tell us apart.

Definitely one of my favorites. Are you having trouble telling Guinevere and me apart yet!?

The whole crew. He was busy with five kids and running a business, but was always there all of the things we needed.

He taught us how to work hard, earn money and take care of it. Here he is the day after a weekend at the market in NYC letting us "count" fistfuls of money. He instilled in us the value of hard-earned money enough to trust us as little kiddos to be respectful of thousands of dollars laying on the floor while he slept. Maybe he was sleeping with one eye open. Too funny...

He and my mom took us on lots of wonderful family trips over the summers and many trips to Florida in the winter to escape the long New York winter. Here we are at the Grand Canyon on our multi-week "out West" road trip. I will never forget that trip!

One of the Florida trips, playing in the ocean.

As we got older, Dad attended probably thousands of sporting events, concerts, birthday parties…everything. He helped us build about 10 tree houses, loaned us his power tools, helped us take care of all kinds of pets – dogs, cats, horses, chickens, etc.

I was a gymnast for much of my childhood and teenage years and he even built me a balance beam to practice with at home.

He built our home with his own two hands and let us "help" him build on an addition to that house when we were young.

We had a lot of crazy friends and sleepovers that I’m sure he and my mom just loved…we were quite a handful, all five of us! We usually could be found running around the woods around our house, sneak attacking his greenhouse employees with water balloons or super soakers and bringing tree branches (probably full of bugs) into the house to put on “shows.” There were lots of trips to Long Lake when we were little to stay at Papa’s cabin. Dad always went up with us when he could but usually couldn’t get away from the business, Northern Borne Greenhouses.

Many summers with cousins and friends in Long Lake, NY.

During those years there were hundreds of trips with dad to New York City to the Union Square Greenmarket, restaurant deliveries, all kinds of business with the hydroponic greenhouse my parents owned and operated. Dad always tried to get in at least one fun thing after a long day of work at the market, whether it was a trip to the many sights in NYC, Broadway shows, shopping, everything, we did it!

Dad had so many regular customers at the market that loved the produce so much. It really was the best and to this day I'm extremely picky about my produce!!! We learned how to work hard, handle money, have great customer service and how to run a business.

High School graduation from Argyle Central School. Can you tell us apart?!

When we all got to college (at one point there were four of us in college at once, yikes!) Mom and dad never had a lot of money but always did what they could to help us through school. But the strong work ethic he taught us early on is what really made it work.

There were MANY, MANY long drives to Florida, Boston, North Carolina..etc...we all went to school in far away places. My parents never complained and enjoyed the little trips with us. Lots of airport pickups, road trips and fun family trips along the way as we all went through college.

After a hard time that led to leaving the business behind to move onto a teaching career, we still made trips to the city. Dad was even so brave to don his "Bush/Cheney" hat in NYC. In the picture with him is "Doogie," our best family dog ever. Dad's best buddy, especially when we had all moved out.

One of the many trips heading to Florida for school. A stop at Josh's golf course in NC.

I spent some time in Colorado in college and came home with a special surprise for my parents, hehe.

This handsome young gentleman from Kentucky. I can't say that dad was immediately a fan, but it did not take long.

Dads just want to protect their daughters, but Jeff passed the dad test with flying colors.

About to walk down the aisle to Jeff. If it weren't for having such an awesome dad I don't think I ever would have found such an awesome husband! Thanks, dad, love you!

Happy Father’s Day!!!!

I guess Lexington is growing on me…

I’ve lived here almost six years now. I moved here from Florida to be closer to Jeff and shortly after that we got engaged. Before that I had bounced around a lot, growing up in New York (upstate in the southern Adirondack region, about 3 and change from the city), and eventually landing in Florida, then London and Colorado and back to Florida. I had never been to Kentucky, really, ever at all. I didn’t know anything about it, just knew there were horses there and it was in “the South” and the love of my life lived there.

First I lived in Louisville for three months and enjoyed the change of pace, dating Jeff and not yet working a full time job other than odd jobs and applying for dozens of jobs around the country. We moved to Lexington when he got a job there at Southland and shortly after we got engaged. Then, I got a job as Sports Editor at The Jessamine Journal just outside of Lex that allowed me to do a lot of exploring outside of Lexington in many of the surrounding counties covering games and such. After that it was onto my Editor/Project Manager job at IMG College (Host Communications) in the rougher part of downtown Lex. I was chained to my desk job and hating life since my independent, creative, enterprising side was not able to be cut loose in that very negative environment.

During that time I was absolutely loving newlywed life and having tons of fun with Jeff but hating where we lived. We both just wanted to move back to Colorado where we met and applied for multiple jobs there. It clearly was not God’s plan for us to move so I just decided to be bitter and take as many trips OUT of Kentucky as possible. I just tried to get back to the mountains, lakes, oceans, cities and cultures I was used to and loved way more than horse racing, bourbon and hot summers. Sure, the people here were great but bottom line I was just BORED.

Take me back to the mountains, please.

Or anywhere up north will do...the lake anytime of year will make me happy. And no, not the manmade kind!!

It really wasn’t until I left my full time job and started to pursue my freelance and self-employed career that Lexington and Kentucky in general started to grow on me. I started to cover more and more stories which led to seeing more interesting things outside of my busy little bubble. I allowed myself to let opportunities happen here as opposed to looking for work in other cities and states and lost the grass is always greener mentality I often succumbed to. Part of it was the fact that I was no longer MISERABLE in my professional life. No more feelings of panic as I walked in the door to a dead end job with employers who didn’t know what compliment was.

Now I work with a whole slew of interesting people who care and are invested in what they are doing. And if it’s not working out I can alter my course because I’m working for myself and allowing God to open new doors without offering my little “suggestions.” Ultimately it has been my work with J.A. Laub Photography and Abby Laub Media that has really led me to like it here. Jeff and I have great friends and through so many writing and photo and other miscellaneous projects I have learned to appreciate what Lexington and its people have to offer. Sure, I can’t change the geography and I will probably never learn to enjoy summers here (ha!) but all in all the job searches outside of here have stopped for now.

This weekend brought fun at the Gallery Hop (something I have always wanted to do and never seemed to be able to or get around to doing before). And then Jeff and I headed to Ichthus to see Chris Tomlin perform. The great weekend was topped off by a long run and a great message from Donald Miller (author of NYTimes bestsellers Blue Like Jazz and A Million Miles in a Thousand Years) at Southland.

Backstage. Awesome sky.

The last time I was at Ichthus it was for work at The Jessamine Journal, doing some photography. It was fun to just be in the crowd this time and hang out with some of Jeff's production buddies backstage.

My honey.

And for a much different crowd…the Gallery Hop.

Lexington has such a fun artsy, eclectic side that doesn't show itself all that much, it seems. The Gallery Hop was GREAT!

We sipped wine, ate yummy snacks and enjoyed the artworks. Great time out with some of my girlfriends. We got done just in time for a huge downpour. Speaking of wine, we were leaving one of the galleries still with wine in our hand when it occurred to us that we probably shouldn’t take to the streets with our open containers… then, get this, we were assured by a woman with an infant in a stroller, “Oh, it’s fine, I was carrying my wine around earlier, too. Everyone is.” Hm….

Inside ArtsPlace Gallery. Half of the fun of the hop was going into all of these neat buildings in Lexington that you don't normally go in or that are usually closed to the public.

ArtsPlace

Bluegrass Printmakers Cooperative was really neat. Made me want to create some prints of my own!

Christ Church Cathedral. Poor Jonah got swallowed by a whale!

Christ Church Cathedral is absolutely gorgeous.

It was a beautiful night and tons of people were out.

Welcome to my home.

I love when work and pleasure collide

One of the great things about being a freelance writer is that I get to meet a lot of really neat people and do some cool things along the way to writing my stories. This morning I headed up to the Lexington Farmers Market at Cheapside Park, a normal outing me, but this time I also had to do a few interviews for a story I’m working on for Business Lexington Magazine.

 

I spoke with Russ Madison, one of the market's founding members about how shopping habits have changed and how people are again beginning to crave a real connection to their food. The gruff old man in overalls reminded me of my late hard-working farmer Grandpa McWhorter.

I shopped with some friends and just enjoyed the vibe. Growing up on a farmers market of a much larger scale in NYC but also of impeccable quality and dedication to authentic farming and diverse products, I really enjoy just perusing the market, shopping for some tasty local produce and relishing the sights, sounds and smells of all things fresh and earthy. It’s no wonder my husband likes to call me a hippy…guess he’s right. I have many of the qualities, minus the dreads and Grateful Dead T-shirt.

Bike your way to a smoothie, let's call that a win-win!!

 

And I spoke with Bill Best, another founding member. One of the sweetest old men I have ever met. He was saving two beautifully ripe tomatoes for one of his most loyal customers. They were gorgeous. I bought a few for myself. My garden is not quite producing tomatoes yet!

Busy Shoppers in the pavilion. Gets packed in there by 10:00. I like to go early for a more peaceful shopping experience!

Love how the market is tucked neatly right into the heart of downtown. These farmers are hoping people will continue to have a renewed interest in where their food comes. Every single farmer I talked to invited me out to the farm!

After leaving LFM, I headed south (toward home) to stop by the Azur Farmers Bazaar in Beaumont Centre. I wrote a story about this new market recently, opened by the chef of Azur, Jeremy Ashby. He really wanted to get a quality market on the south end and is starting this one, right on his restaurant patio! It’s amazing! And he bases his menu off of what the farmers are selling week to week. 70 percent of his menu in the summer is Kentucky Proud. He’s doing amazing things for Lexington!

You can read my original article here:

http://www.smileypete.com/Articles-c-2011-06-02-97928.113117-Azur-Farmers-Bazaar-Opening-in-Beaumont.html#123

Art or food?

One of the farmers was selling duck eggs. Can't wait to try them! She had her "babies" with her just hanging out. They were so cute!

So, heading home I listened to Ashby’s radio show called Sunnyside Up on AM radio. My head was swirling with more story ideas relating to farming, sustainable living, aquaculture — (there is a really big aquaculture movement in Kentucky right now. Ashby uses freshwater shrimp on his menu, raised right here in Kentucky..who would have thought!? — and so many more fascinating topics about the innovation and hard work of farmers. They are creating little mini economies in these hard times and at the same time helping people eat GOOD food. It’s all so, so fascinating especially for someone like me who grew up on a specialized hydroponic farm. I can’t wait to get cracking on some more articles!

I came home with a little spread, including fresh Lexington Pasta – YUMMMM. I got tomato/basil and spinach. I also got some peas, tomatoes, melt-in-your-mouth, juice-running-down-my-hand peaches and a spicy banana pepper plant for Jeff. Delish…

I came home and grabbed my Moroccan olive oil brought straight to me from twin sister who lives in Casablanca. I could drink this stuff, it is SO, SO good. I knew it would be just what the doctor ordered, along with some fresh herbs from my garden, to dress up this tasty pasta. I didn't need much since the pasta already tasted fabulous!

Fresh basil, oregano and thyme.

My fresh peaches, so good. Herbs ready for the pasta and a tasty snack of sugar snap peas before lunch. Only a Moroccan bowl can appropriately hold such deliciousness.

Steamed my green beans and grabbed some sugar snaps from the garden to snack on in the process and before long Jeff and I were feasting on some amazingly delicious and healthy food for a late lunch. Can’t beat that!

Yumm. Jeff and I loved it. Get to your local farmers market!

When my story publishes I’ll be sure to post it on here.

 

Also, follow me on facebook at Abby Laub Media!

What kind of a generation of women are we raising?

Magazines that plaster half-naked and totally airbrushed images of celebrities on their cover do nothing to impact our culture in a meaningful way.

I rarely ever watch morning television. I’m talking once a week at the absolute most. But now that I’m working from home I’ll flip it on while I’m drinking coffee, reading the morning news and eating breakfast. I sure was glad I tuned in the other day because CBS had this great segment about women and their obsession with everything celebrity.

You can read the story here: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2011/06/01/earlyshow/main20067933.shtml

In a nutshell women are losing their grip on reality more quickly than ever thanks to reality TV, celebrity websites, celeb tweets and facebook pages and tabloid magazines. We are becoming a generation of dumbed down people.

I think one way to counter this is to give women something “fun” yet interesting and engaging to read. I think women need to get excited about their OWN lives and stop fantasizing about the lives of the rich and famous! I think a lot of factors play into this obsession, whether it’s lack of self-confidence, good education, strict rules and boundaries growing up or if it’s simply peer pressure. Maybe people nowadays thanks to things like social media and texting have are bombarded more than ever before in the history of humankind by peer pressure, and if your peers look, act, smell, behave and a certain way, so should you. Celebrities are like the ultimate peers and women just crave the attention they get and want it, too.

I think this generation of women needs to be challenged in new ways and realize there is more to who they are than looks and sex appeal and financial status.

 

 

 

testing, testing..

Let's see if I can get my posts to link to my facebook page.... a 4-year-old could probably figure this out, but like I mentioned before I am blog-retarded.

These girls rock.

Had a great time out at a 1780s era farm in Harrodsburg with the lovely ladies of my group, Click-ish Photographers. So talented and so diverse, for real. I encourage every photographer to just go "play" once in a while! See previous post. More to come!

Click-ish Photographers Kentucky style

A couple of weeks ago…

…my friends and I with Click-ish had the incredible opportunity to visit April and Holly’s farm. These sisters are just fabulous and are restoring this farm along with Holly’s husband. The home was built in the late 1700s by Daniel Boone’s friend and it has all kinds of history. It still has its original hard work flooring, woodwork, fireplaces and all kinds of interesting features that can only be found in something built in the 1780s! It truly was a magnificent place to visit and hang out with the sisters and their horses. Here are some snapshots from our day. It was extra fun for me because my sister was also in town visiting that weekend from NYC!

I’m still trying to figure out how to blog, I’m sort of blog retarded, so bear with me! Guess this is good practice.

 

 

It's old, folks. And could not be more beautiful. Why can't they make homes like this today?

 

Nothing says welcome like this entrance way

 

It even has its own spring-fed well house next to the stream.

 

It also provides a great place for the farm dogs to get a drink. This black mix is hilarious. He was always WATCHING us, you'll notice how many photos he discreetly shows up in.

I was thirsty too so I climbed in the window to take a look.

April's horse posing for the camera. The farm had a handful of fillies and stallions and such. So beautiful.

Seriously these fillies loved to pose. This one will eventually turn into a beautiful white horse when her "baby hair" falls out.

And they had chickens. Eventually they want to be very self-sustaining and already had a colorful collection of beautiful, fresh eggs from the hens outside.

Spring flowers were starting to bloom

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ellis says hello to Jack

 

That's better

One of my favorites. I love soft, horse noses.

And their thoughtful eyes

Time for a trim!

She was a little skittish around me at first. Lucky for her, black dog kept a watchful eye on my every move!

Katie snapped this one of April's stallion smelling the air before he ventured out to show off in front of the ladies.

Bringing out Mr. Big Stallion with puppy fanfare.

Peaceful.

Katie checking out the daffodils. They were everywhere, I mean everywhere. So beautiful.

I always feel like somebody's watching me.

Could you ever get enough of this? And this is BEFORE there are leaves on the trees. Imagine a summer night by the stream or soaking up the leaves in the fall? Wow.

A photographer's dream.

More to come in my next post!