Holy Care Bears, Batman!

So the nicest thing about living downtown Pittsburgh is being able to pop in to businesses, restaurants and galleries without taking up so much time that you worry about having "enough" time to enjoy things you want to see. Today after working a student matinee at the Pittsburgh Public Theater, my lovely friend Kait and I decided to go on a little day-date, or adventure if you will.

The front of ToonSeum - Picture from The Pittsburgh Tote Bag Project

This is just to talk about part one of our adventure and either later tonight or tomorrow you can read about part two! Which involves food and was super fabulous...and new! Anyway, for part one, Kait and I ventured to ToonSeum, "a museum with character." Now I must admit, I always look past this place because I thought it was just for kids. So I have been a little skeptical about going in, until I saw that they were showing a Care Bears and a Batman exhibit. Score! So I had planned to make it over there at some point and was glad to have the company.

The sign said 'Hug Me' - I was just following the rules!

I have to admit, I was wrong about this cute little museum and I am sure I will be returning at least to check out more of the gift shop! I loved the space though, very bright and animated, for lack of a better term, but also interactive and welcoming. The staff also seemed very engaging and knowledgeable about the exhibits. Like I said, the two exhibits featured today were "Care Bears: 30 Years of Caring & Hugs" and "Pittsburgh as Gotham." Both made me feel very nostalgic. The Care Bears exhibit was in the Main Gallery and reminded me of little loves from my childhood. Various Care Bear merchandise was on display as well as many, many, many different art pieces and drawings along the walls, this room just instantly made me happy.

Mayor Luke Ravenstahl's uniform from the Dark Knight Rises.

As for Pittsburgh as Gotham, this gallery reminded me of when I first moved in to my current apartment downtown a little over a year ago. As many of you know, the most recent Batman movie, The Dark Night Rises, was shot in Pittsburgh during the summer and fall of 2011. It was great to see the city turn into the backdrop for such a major film, during the same time that I was moving in, so I especially loved seeing the ToonSeum bring this time to life again through this exhibit. This exhibit, brought many different elements of Batman and his history to the same space in the Lou Shiemer Gallery in ToonSeum. The very detailed drawings and the more cartooned pictures were all great pieces and I loved all the memorbilia from the movie. I especially loved seeing the pictures from the set and during filming, even though I saw a lot of the action first hand, you could only get so many little glimpses of what was going on, so it was great to see those spaces in detail.

So, I was wrong, this is not just for the kiddos, though I'm sure they would enjoy it! However, unlike most of the other galleries downtown, ToonSeum does charge, but for five dollars, it was great to be able to look around for as long as we pleased. I would recommend checking out what this gallery has to offer and not think that it is just a place for the kids. Also stay tuned for part two of our adventure today in a later post...I promise it is mouth watering!

Pumpkin-Spiced Post

Hmmm...hello October! I am sure I am not alone when I say that October is quite possibly my favorite month, especially right here in Pennsylvania. The crisp air, the smell of summer fading out, leaves changing colors, sweaters, boots and scarves, the color orange, harvesting (whatever that means), and everything pumpkin flavored! Yum. I could just eat up October.

Photo by: Darrell Sapp / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (10/29/2004)

While I love all of the things I mentioned above, I also love to hate the scary stuff that October likes to bring out too. Halloween is that holiday that I love to celebrate because of the candy and dress-up factor but the haunted houses and scary movies are the little things that I always want to avoid, but just cannot do so because I love October and want to be fully immersed in it all. So just for you beautiful readers, I have compiled a list of must do's in and around Pittsburgh during my favorite month. These events are not the only ones that are going on, but are the ones that most sparked my interest based on what I know you all seem to be drawn to most, and of course things I wouldn't mind going to myself. Enjoy the month, the beautiful, the yummy and the scary...Happy October!

Ongoing – Haunted Pittsburgh Ghost Tours, Various locations

These folks know what they're doing when it comes to the scary. Tours run throughout the year, not just Halloween time, and are taking on the incline, downtown and Oakland. Learn a little Pittsburgh history and take a thrilling tour.

Ongoing – Phantom Fright Nights, at Kennywood

Kennywood is a go-to during any Pittsburgh tour, but during this time Fright Nights continues the summer fun of an amusement park, adds in some haunted houses and allows visitors to roam the park at night, with all the critters and creeps that lurk there in the dark.

Oct 4^th – The Scarehouse Opens, in Etna, Pa

The Travel Channel said that this place is "One of America's Scariest Halloween Attractions." I think that's enough to say about this place.

Oct 5^th – Pumpkin Patch Trolley Starts, in Washington, Pa

These trolley rides are the ultimate fall family fun event. Take the whole gang!

Oct 6^th – Dogtober Fest, at Southside Works

In the spirit of pet adoption, either bring along your own dog or come out to meet with some in need of a good home. Includes music, food and prizes will be given out for the pooches who come out in costume!

Oct 7^th – Fourth Annual Paws for the Cure DogWalk, at Hartwood Acres

October is also Breast Cancer Awareness Month. One way to help the cause is to bring your dog out for a one-mile walk, even if you don't have a dog, you are welcome to come out to support the Pittsburgh branch of Komen for the Cure.

Oct 12^th – Beginning of Phipps Conservatory Fall Events

No better way to enjoy the beauty of fall than at a huge flower garden. Hope you don't have allergies!

Oct 13^th – Beginning of Gateway Clipper Fleet Fall Cruises

The GCF loves sailing along the three rivers during the fall. Enjoy the sites on a sightseeing tour, fall foliage tour, Halloween dance cruise, and many others that will make you take a ridiculous amount of pictures of changing leaves.

Oct 13^th – German “Oktoberfest” Celebration, at OldEconomy Village

German beer and traditional food. Enough said! Please take me with you!

Oct 19^th – Make-It-Now Pumpkin, at Pittsburgh GlassCenter

Bonus points to whoever goes with me to this too! Put on your artsy pants and make your own glass pumpkin. Do you know the history of Pittsburgh and glass making? Make your own piece of history this fall!

Oct 20^th – Bowling for Breast Cancer, at Amf BowlingCenter

Again, support the cause, wear your pink and throw some strikes.

Oct 27^th & 28^th – Experimental CostumeDesign, at Children’s Museum Pittsburgh

This one's especially for the kiddos! I know some super loyal readers have little cuties that would love to show off their creativity by "editing" an old Halloween costume and this would be a great way to do it together.

Oct 27th - Big Chemistry Halloween Party, hosted by Big Brothers Big Sisters, at Altar Bar

One of the biggest and best adult Halloween parties in the 'burgh going on their 4th year. This party raises thousands of dollars for the organization, so party on for another good cause.

More than anything...enjoy the month. Enjoy the weather, the smells, tastes and sights, the crunchy leaves. Just enjoy the city and be jealous of this cutie who I get to spend all my months with, but especially my favorite month...and obviously her's too.

Nothing says October like Steelers and cute little black kitten!

Fashion Forward Fridays: Meet Trent!

Well Pittsburgh, we have our third male to grace the space of Fashion Forward Fridays here on Chels & the City. And yes, he is the third person that I met before asking them to be on the blog. The other two being our other two men, MJ and my brother, Eric. So Pittsburgh men, here is your call to action: shape up your style so I can awkwardly stop one of you in the street and ask you to be on my blog.

Trent in his "stuffy" work clothes.

So, on to Trent. Well, he is my boss at the Pittsburgh Public Theater, which I've mentioned before, and even though I briefly went out in search of a fashionista/o I kept thinking that today was the first day back to work at the theater after a summer off and Trent always dresses well, so I waited until I got to work to "find" my fashionisto. Granted, I also considered texting him prior to getting there, to make sure he was at his prime, but I thought that would really be cheating.

Trent says that while his work and play styles differ, his work clothes being "safer" and his play clothes not being so stuffy, the one thing that is always on point, are his socks. Which from my point of view, is the one place where men have the upper hand in the fashion world compared to women and Trent takes full advantage of that. Trent is also a fan of stores like Marshall's, T.J. Maxx, Zappos and Rue La La.

The red shoes and fancy socks.

As for that unfortunate mention in GQ, Trent thinks that Pittsburgh has earned this poor reputation because the bad outfit choices in this city are the ones that stick out the most and are really bad. But that most people do not dress in that way; however, those poorly dressed people are the ones who are making the biggest impression overall. And for those of you looking to amp up your style, but might not know where to start, Trent says to make smart, bold choices. But he also encourages everyone, not just men, to own their style and their fashion choices, noting that nothing looks worse than someone who is obviously uncomfortable in their outfit choice.

So men, let's step up your game so I can stop featuring men I already know. But to be honest, who else has a boss this cool? Above all, let's keep it classy, Pittsburgh - this past week was Pittsburgh Fashion Week and we should be more than inspired by the looks that were presented all week. So let's continue to show GQ that we are not the third-worst-dressed city.

I dream of...{my first link up}

For this post, I am linking up with one of my favorite blogs, Coming Unstitched, and sharing with you guys some of my dreams and aspirations for my future. So I hope you all enjoy a little inside look into the bigger picture of my life goals and be sure to look at the other blogs in this link-up too!

1...learning everything! (Okay, not everything, not even close, but a lot of things.) Education is so important to me and quite frankly, has up to this point defined me. While I am currently in the process of earning my master's degree at Point Park, I would also someday like to earn my PhD. I don't see doing that in the near future, but I do see finishing my master's very soon and knowing that eventually, the PhD will find it's way into the plans.

Glad this cutie is on board for all of these dreams too!

2...marrying my best friend. This person is MJ. And I do not imagine that will ever change, but he is already so much a part of me that I cannot wait to eventually call him husband. Though that seems too adult for us now, he is so much more than just my boyfriend. He's my support, my inspiration, just everything I could ever need or want in a man and more. He has his own list of dreams too and thankfully, they align with mine! I have prayed my whole life for a love like this and I truly believe God has provided it to me through MJ. And he's cute, so that's a plus!

3....building my career. I have so many ideas and lists of things I want to do for a "job." And thankfully, I am glad that I live in this time where women are free to take on all sorts of jobs, just like the guys AND in a time where jumping from place to place or job to job is not frowned upon, but shows growth in a career path. I want experience. I want to do all kinds of things. I want my resume to be as thick as the September issue of Vogue when I'm ready to retire. Jobs I would like to include in this are anything in non-profits, magazine editing, event/wedding planning, my own fashion line, being in PR and advertising, finish writing a novel (or two), working in higher education, becoming a professor, the list goes on...

4....traveling around the world! Whether it means living in different places or just visiting, I just want to see the world. Specifically, I want to be able to spend at least one night in every state, and go to Australia, London, Greece, France and Ireland. Really, I'd visit anywhere. I just want to soak up other cultures, it goes along with the education aspect because I want to be able to learn about people and the places they love.

5....doing something that matters. I believe that we are all on this Earth to do something that glorifies and brings someone to God. I want to be able to do that in some way, some how...I'll let Him take the lead on this one but I pray that I will be able to make this a part of my career path too so that I can be involved in it daily.

6....being a fabulous mommy to beautiful babes. Yep. Simply put.

7....enjoying life. So far I think I've been doing this one pretty well. But in the future I want it to include building a beautiful home with my husband, creating a career I love, helping my babes learn to love life and love God, loving my friends and family with every fiber of my being, not worrying about debt (but not over-spending) and just above all, creating memories and leading a life worthy of living.

8....making it to Heaven. I'm sure this life will be great and so much is ahead of me that I look forward to, but I know it's not promised to me either. I'm excited to soak up every worthy experience but I'm more excited to eventually be able to just stand in awe and personally thank Jesus for his sacrifice. I just cannot even imagine how awesome it will be.

I'm sure I am forgetting something, but I don't have a set "bucket list" because I do not think it's fair to yourself to live off of a  list, hoping the check everything off at some point. We have too many "to do" lists, putting the fate of our lives on a limiting list seems ridiculous to me. I would rather just live, just do, and just enjoy life and its experiences as they come to me and as I create them. That might be why this list of my dreams isn't really too specific either, but that's alright with me. So, what are some of your dreams?

Peace'burgh: End the Violence

I am sure by now, most if not all of you reading this have heard about the hostage situation that went on pretty much all day last Friday in downtown Pittsburgh. If you have not, the basic rundown is that a young man randomly went into Gateway Center, building three, and decided to hold a manager of one of the offices in that building hostage. These men did not know each other, and the police continue to say that this entire event was random and only happened because the suspect woke up early that morning in a bad mood, wanting to do something bad.

It's been the most recent "talk of the town." But as I mentioned in my post about the Mysteries of Pittsburgh, there are people living in this area that hate it here and the violence is one of the reasons that they will list to you as to why they do not want to be here. Although this incident was the most recent and maybe the biggest that Pittsburgh has seen for awhile, it is not the first and it is probably not the last either. But, in defense of Pittsburgh, it's not the only place where this is going on either.

Taken while walking through Point State Park.

It breaks my heart that the city that I love is tainted by acts of violence, hunger and homelessness. I wish so badly that what Pittsburgh is to me, a place of opportunity and growth, could be that kind of place for everyone who is living here or will eventually live here. Pittsburgh itself has grown so much and has so much inspiring and unique history behind it, that it is hard for me to imagine ever hating it or the people who inhabit it. But again, not everyone here feels that way. So for those of us that do, here is your call to action.

Love. That's all. Just love.

I know that seems like a dumb thing to say at times but there is nothing else for us to do right now. And really what do you want to do? Run in like Gang Busters trying to end violence in the city dressed like the Ninja Turtles? Though that does seem interesting and probably more appealing to most people, all we can really do is show the people and the city itself that it is loved and appreciated. Look for the good in the people you come across here. Look for the good even on the dirty streets! Pittsburgh has it and without us taking advantage of its opportunities and realizing all of the great things the city has to offer, we have missed the whole point of even being here to begin with.

This city has great things in store for each of us, we just need to be open to realizing those things and then maybe in return it will be a safer place in the future. A place that is more accepting and more caring of the people it holds. There are greater things to come to this city, we just have to help them along sometimes.

For those of you who are into it, please pray for Pittsburgh. If that's not your thing, at least send out some good vibes and thoughts about how the city needs more love in it to grow and be a better place for all who visit and all who inhabit it. Because if there is one thing that we can all agree on, regardless of our beliefs, it is that love always makes a difference. Also, I am considering making "Peace'burgh" another little series in this blog, hoping that it is just as important to my readers as "Fashion Forward Fridays" has become. To love Pittsburgh is to love it all, so I hope you all feel the same way about this blog.

And since the song is currently stuck in my head and I am one of those praying types, here are some relevant lyrics from Robin Mark's song, Revival...

"Sure as gold is precious and the honey sweet,

so You love this city and you love these streets.

Every child out playing by its own front door,

every baby laying on the bedroom floor.

Every dreamer dreaming in her dead end job,

every driver driving through the rush hour mob.

I feel it in my spirit, feel it in my bones,

You're gonna send revival, bring 'em all back home.

I can hear that thunder in the distance,

like a train on the edge of the town,

I can feel the brooding of Your Spirit,

saying lay your burdens down.

Lay your burdens down...."