iPhone Pics by David Rheins
While IndySocial normally constrains its editorial coverage to include only reportage of local Indianapolis-based art and cultural happenings, today we make an exception to this rule. This weekend we followed the call of natural law and the warm weather, and took to the highway for a Spring road trip.
Escaping our normal routine of home repair, gardening and lawn maintenance, my lady and I loaded up the Elvis mobile and made our way leisurely down 65 South, past Vernon, where the local liquor store warns thirsty patrons, "One Man's Folly is Another Man's Wife."
We travel 90 miles south of Indianapolis, down State Highway 7 all the way to the border, to the historic banks of the
Ohio River, to
Madison, Indiana.
We take an hour-long detour to get a in quick hike, following a hilly loop-trail along the Muscatatuck River, through the woods of
Muscatatuck County Park. We remount, and stop only long enough to snap the humorous sign in Vernon, before continuing on to the mighty Ohio River.
Despite the fact that, according to family lore, one of my great great relatives was a sheriff in Madison sometime back in the 1800s, I've never been. I've heard a lot of great things about it, and am excited to explore the city's shady blocks of Civil War era homes, mature Indiana growth and a robust local music and arts scene.
We arrive at the Madison town limits, and ease down a windy highway, past mansions on the hill to the historic downtown section. We find free parking in a convenient downtown public lot, and get out to stretch our legs. As we begin our exploration of Main Street, we are greeted by an aging hippie couple, who smile warmly as they stroll by hand-in-hand. We pass a number of whimsical antique shops and cool-looking boutiques. Our hike in the woods has delayed our arrival, and we find that all the shops here close at 6pm -- even on this beautiful Saturday night. Yes, they roll up the idyllic streets early in Madison, so we are forced to limit our shopping to the window variety.
We do make one excellent discovery -- an independent book and art gallery
Village Lights Bookstore, which is not only open for business, but alive with piano music. A local musician in the Mark Twain Room teases the house Steinway grand piano as we enter, welcoming us into the beautifully-restored shop. Owner Nathan, along with his wife and cat Oscar Wilde, man the till. The trio work and live amongst the original art, books and the music, and personify everything we were looking for in Madison.
Not merely a bookstore, but a local community culture center, Village Lights plays host to a wide variety of local art happenings, author readings, poetry recitals, and live music performances. We later learn that the shop is part of the Indie Bound "Love Your Local" network. According the the Indie Bound
website, it is better to buy from independent merchants: that for every $100 a consumer spends at a local business, $68 dollars stays in the community, while that same $100 spent at a national chain recirculates only $43 into the local economy.
Now, IndySocial is all about supporting local and
independent artists, merchants and creative types of all stripes, so we are happy to get behind the "Love Your Local" banner, and to provide this free plug to Village Lights and the other indie merchants on Madison's Main Street.
One example, right next door to Village Lights, is a great all-things-birds shop, Birdhouse, whose mission includes exploring the connections between art and nature. They too support the local arts community, and host the popular
Birdhouse concert series -- where regional artists like
Cara Jean Whalers, Grover Parido, Micheal Kelsey,
Greg Ziesemer, Kriss Luckett, and many others come to perform their original compositions.
We do our part, and load up on a bag full of great used books -- paperbacks of vintage Anne Sexton poetry, and gently used copies of
Waiting for Godot and
Bertolt Brecht at great prices -- and while we're there, pick a copy of Greg and Kriss' latest CD,
Bare Bones. We are well on our way to spending our $100 locally.
We leave Village Lights, and bundle up for a windy three-block walk to the
605 Grille, a Pepto-Bismol pink antique building with no sign. They'll be open, we were assured, their local foods menu features desserts that are to die for. That sounds just right to us.
Once there, we enjoy a great appetizer of humus, topped with red peppers and feta cheese, and served with fresh, hot baked pita triangles. We order the local ribeye, which is served with asparagus and garlic mashed potatoes. Everyone at the friendly eatery knows each other, but we feel quite welcome among the locals as "guests." After dinner we are disappointed to find that they've sold out of the to-die-for desserts, so we skip the coffee course and made our way back to the car. Full-bellied from the Grille's large portions, we decide to walk off supper and meander past an impressive green
bronze fountain on Broadway, to admire some of the restored historical homes.
IndySocial enjoyed our peregrinations this weekend, and are planning to come back down to Madison for the upcoming
Ohio River Valley Folk Festival, to be held May 21-23rd. We'll be sure to time our visit to ensure we arrive before the sun sets.
Celebrating local foods, local art and homegrown music, the Monon Food Company, 6420 Cornell, opens its doors today as the quintessential Broad Ripple hang. Right on the corner of 65th and Cornell, across from the Brew Pub, next to Plumps, the newly-repainted Grey and Red building adds a flair to the already happening corner. Inside, the amble dining room serves double-duty as an art gallery, where the work of local artists hang. The outside of the restaurant has been completely repainted and updated, with beautiful landscaping and a wide old-fashioned Indiana porch outfitted with wrought-iron tables and umbrellas. The location is perfectly situated for enjoying a cool beverage (beer and wine) and watching the beautiful people pass along the adjacent Monon Trail.
