A Small Town Girl's Guide

For those of you who don’t already know this, I’m a classically trained musician.

Despite my classical training and despite having lived an hour from St. Louis for eighteen years of my life, I had never seen the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra perform in Powell Symphony Hall. There’s a first for everything, and this weekend I experienced the SLSO in Powell Symphony Hall for the first time.

This SLSO pops concert featured movie music by John Williams, not limited to Superman, Harry Potter, JFK, Star Wars, Schindler’s List, Indiana Jones and the Olympic Fanfare.

Perhaps one of the most exciting elements of the performance was the fully-costumed Star Wars characters posed for photos opportunities in the Hall’s main lobby.

I give kudos to the SLSO for engaging all ages in a truly fun and memorable concert experience. And I give kudos to whoever decided to put Darth Vader in the lobby, as well.

Darth and Smalltowngirl, photo by JPD

November 8, 2009 | 2 comments

Ice Cream or Animal Feed? photo by smalltowngirl

Petting zoos are such odd things. Can you imagine trucking your camels and llamas and goats around to fairs and festival and carnivals, charging a nominal feel to let people pet them?

Camels and Mini-Vans, photo by smalltowngirl

This particular mobile petting zoo was set up at – you guessed it – the Kimmswick Apple Butter Festival. Camels and goats and llamas, oh my! I’m not sure how much they were charging kids to go through the petting zoo, but for just $1.00 extra, parents could buy an ice cream cone filled with animal feed. How many kids do you think ate the animal feed that day? Small town Missouri, please continue to delight me with your oddities!

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For more blogs about the Apple Butter Festival:

Kimmswick Apple Butter Festival

Baetje Farms

The Perfect Gift

Apple Butter Festival Train

November 3, 2009 | 1 comment

The Apple Butter Festival is a huge, two-day festival every October in historic Kimmswick, Missouri. This year was my first time attending, and I was impressed by the size of the event. Hundreds of food and craft vendors set up tents, the Blue Owl served food in and outside of the restaurant, Kimmswick’s shops were open for business, and live music was playing all day long.

Apple Butter Fest, photo by smalltowngirl

Of all that the festival had to offer, I think that it’s train was the most unique thing. The train offered rides around the festival to kids and adults.

Apple Butter Train, photo by smalltowngirl

The train engineer was a very friendly older man with an adorable puppy.

“Them’s some fancy boots you’re wearing”, he said to me. I thanked him and asked for permission to photograph him with his dog.

Train Engineer and Dog, photo by smalltowngirl

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For more blogs about the Apple Butter Festival:

Kimmswick Apple Butter Festival

Baetje Farms

The Perfect Gift

November 1, 2009 | No comments

Fish Face, photo by smalltowngirl

Just in case anyone’s wondering what’s on my holiday wish-list, I think it’s safe to say that I need one of these blue-eyed fish-faced things. I don’t know what they are, but if this dude drove all the way to Kimmswick, Missouri from Florida to sell them, I most certainly need one.

Fishin', photo by smalltowngirl

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Check out my last blog on the Kimmswick Apple Butter Festival.

October 28, 2009 | 1 comment

Apple Butter, photo by smalltowngirl

Saturday and Sunday, October 24th and 25th were the annual Kimmswick, Missouri Apple Butter Festival. As a self-proclaimed expert in all things small town Missouri, I put on my rockin’ cowboy boots, grabbed my camera, and made my way to Kimmswick, Missouri.

I parked at Windsor High School and walked the 1.5 miles or so from the high school to the festival. It was a beautiful fall day, and the walk was a welcomed reprieve from the hours each week I spend sitting at my desk and in my car.

Kimmswick, photo by smalltowngirl

I’ve made some pretty corny (get it, hehe) jokes in my blog this fall about corn on the cob, kettle corn, candy corn, and small town fall festivals. Much to my delight, one of the first booths I came across at the Apple Butter Festival was an Old Tyme Kettle Corn booth. I took this next photo with you, my a-maize-ingly dedicated readers, in mind.

Sugared Kettle Corn, photo by smalltowngirl

In case you’ve missed my corny fall festival posts, check out my corn on the cob in the news, and my kettle corn contemplation at Sprottfest.

The Apple Butter Festival was huge by small town standards, and I got a slew of good pictures. Come back later this week for more Apple Butter posts!

October 27, 2009 | 1 comment

Baetje Farms

October 25, 2009 in Eating and Drinking, Missouri | 1 comment

This Ste. Genevieve, Missouri farm produces “Pure Artisan Farmstead” goat cheeses that are – in my small town opinion – amazing.

Baetje Farms Brie, photo by smalltowngirl

I met one of the owners on Saturday at the Apple Butter Festival in Kimmswick, Missouri, and was able to taste several flavors of Baetje brie before deciding to take home dark chocolate brie and brie with cranberry and oranges.

Tasting Baetje Farms Brie, photo by smalltowngirl

The owner of the farm suggested that the cranberry and orange brie would be great used in stuffed pork or chicken, and that the dark chocolate brie would be great with brownies. I spent my Sunday afternoon and evening experimenting on my parents with both suggestions.

The verdict: even my dad, who was raised on a cattle farm and is a good old steak and potato man raved about the chicken. Unfortunately, I was so anxious to eat the chicken that I forgot to photograph it. I’ll definitely be using the recipe again.

Dark Chocolate Brie brownies, photo (and brownies) by smalltowngirl

My mom, who didn’t care for the dark chocolate cheese on crackers, LOVED it in the brownies. I will, without a doubt, purchase more Baetje Farms brie, and it’s my recommendation that you do, too.

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For more information about Baetjie Farms, visit their website at www.baetjefarms.com.

You can find Baetje Farms cheeses at the Soulard Farmers Market, the Clayton Farmers Market, and the Kirkwood Farmers Market. Baetje Farms can also be found at many of Ste. Genevieve’s wineries and restaurants. See their website for a full list of vendors.

Dear FTC: Baetje Farms gives samples to everyone when they’re out at events like the Apple Butter Festival, so I’m pretty sure that doesn’t count as a freebie to get me to blog about them.

Baetje Farms, photo by smalltowngirl

Tags: baetje farms, farms, Food, Fresh Food, local food, Missouri, Missouri Cheeses, small town missouri, smalltowngirl, Ste. Genevieve, Ste. Genevieve Missouri, sustainability

Making St. Louis Home

October 25, 2009 in Embracing Change, Looking Forward, Missouri, St. Louis, my boots | No comments

Today I went to a festival, where I wandered, wearing my red white and black cowboy boots.

I wandered, taking pictures, allowing my mind to wander, too.

I ate festival foods, and I felt the warm sun bring freckles to the surface of my cheeks. I met with old friends, and I paid way too much for the biggest, fanciest candy apple I’ve ever seen.

I bought gourmet cheese from an organic goat farm in Ste. Genevieve County, Missouri, and I took notes as the farmer talked about what recipes I should try using the cheeses in. I’ll spend my day tomorrow cooking. I also went to a coffee shop, where I read the RFT and blogged and drank coffee.

I wandered across town to my favorite record store, where I listened for hours to CDs by bands I’d never heard of while strangers trickled into and out of the store. Somewhere inside the sounds of the music I recovered something of mine that I didn’t quite realize I’d lost in the first place.

I may blog as smalltowngirl, but this small town girl’s heart belongs in a bigger city. Even though I miss Brooklyn more than I thought possible, I know that it’s time that I found ways to make St. Louis my home.

Tags: festivals, Missouri, music, small town missouri, smalltowngirl, St. Louis, Vintage Vinyl

Rainy Days

October 24, 2009 in Missouri, driving to work | No comments

It’s been a cool and rainy fall so far in Southeast Missouri with day after day of 40 degree temperatures and lots of rain. Thank goodness we’ve had some sunshine last weekend and this weekend, but to give those of you who aren’t in rural Missouri an idea of what we’ve been faced with weather-wise this fall…This picture was taken last week in downtown Farmington. Looks like Farmington is melting, doesn’t it?

Rain. photo by smalltowngirl

Tags: fall, Missouri, rain, small town missouri, smalltowngirl

St. Louis-Area Wi-Fi Hotspots

October 22, 2009 in Missouri, St. Louis | 4 comments

Mocha, photo by smalltowngirl

I support local businesses where possible, and I also work remotely from locations around St. Louis regularly. I’m always watching for locally owned wi-fi hotpots where I’m welcome to sit with my laptop for 3-4 hours at a time, working.

I’ve fallen into the St. Louis Bread Company habit, and frankly, that depresses me. I don’t like their coffee that much, and the place just takes a little from my soul each time I work there, not unlike the way shopping in Wal-Mart kills my brain cells.

Exposed Brick, photo by smalltowngirl

Though it may at first seem unrelated, it was the Atomic Cowboy’s exposed brick walls last night at the #SeattleCatTweetup that made me realize just how much I hate working from Bread Company.

Not one to sit in discontent for long, I asked some St. Louis twitter friends today to make their suggestions for great wi-fi/work hotspots in and around St. Louis. As far as I know, all of these businesses are locally owned and have wi-fi. If you see a mistake here or you have additional suggestions, please leave a comment for me.

If you like this list, you should check out the list of St. Louis restaurants and bars twitter friends helped me generate in July.

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Kayak’s Coffee (on Skinker near Washington University)

Park Ave Coffee (Lafayette Square; open fairly late with great patio)

Bauhaus Kaffee (Farmington; serving Kaldi’s coffee)

Mississippi Mud (Cape Girardeau and St. Louis on Cherokee Street)

The Royale (South City)

Hartford Coffee (South of Tower Grove Park on Hartford Street)

Coffee Cartel (Central West End, Open 24 hours!)

Provisions (on Olive – This one was suggested, but I wouldn’t have thought of it as a work/wifi spot. Can anyone confirm or deny this is a potential laptop-friendly wifi spot?)

Murdoch Perk (closed Mondays; on Murdoch btwn S. Kingshighway and Hampton in Southampton)

La Dolce Via (closed Mondays and Tuesdays; on Taylor in the Grove/Forest Park Southeast)

Northwest Coffee (two locations; Central West End and Clayton)

Companion (Central West End, Clayton and Ladue)

Wired Coffee (Sunset Hills)

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(Thanks to @michaeltomko, @poppymom, @Lisa_S_47, @threefourteen, @meporter, @cjonescgp, @elsicomoro, @jrobmartin, @allabuzz and @theroyale for recommendations and more information about these businesses)

Tags: cafes, Coffee, Coffee Shops, Missouri, places to use internet in st. louis, small town missouri, smalltowngirl, st louis wifi hotspots, St. Louis, sustainability, wi-fi, Wifi, wireless, wireless internet st. louis, work spots st. louis

Kettle Corn

Seems all I do these days is go to festivals and contemplate corn.

Last time, it was corn on the cob at the Moses Austin Festival. I was pictured in the newspaper with wannabe Willie Nelson, eating my corn on the cob. This time it was fresh kettle corn (I know you’re jealous) with a real life cowboy in the background at Sprottfest, held on a family’s farm in Sprott, a tiny community in Ste. Genevieve County, Missouri.

I’ve been given the a-maize-ing suggestion that I also contemplate – and blog about – some candy corn this fall, so leave me a comment if you’re aware of any particularly notable Missouri candy corn. I need a Saturday afternoon adventure, and I’d be all for something corny. (Aw, shucks…)

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Note 1: Thank you @teddymexico and @sbolen for the pun, and thanks to @Famous_E for the candy corn recommendation.

Note 2: I happen to know the man in the black cowboy hat, and he’s truly a cowboy. None of that suburban cowboy nonsense at this small town festival.

October 21, 2009 | 1 comment

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A Small Town Girl's Guide

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