Show Host | Lifestyle + Fitness Model
North Coast: No Sharks provides a conversation piece in the kitchen. When the space is blank and boring add style to the home in 2016 with this Great Lakes blue print of the glacial water system responsible for dramatic climate. Covering the 216 and 305 area codes, this piece is a first edition created in downtown Cleveland and captures the energy of the area. Designed in ball point pen ink. For the luxury home — with a twist.
“In high school I was the girl who couldn’t run a lap around the track. I think people see on Facebook, ‘Oh, Jessie’s going to yoga?’ So many people have said to me, ‘What’s this Yoga in Woodville’, and a couple of people come once and didn’t come back,” Jessica Cable, a twenty-year veteran middle school art teacher explains candidly.
She’s one of sixteen yogis who have rolled our their mats in at the Legion Hall on Elm Street in the Village of Woodville. Woodville is the Lime Center of the World and is nestled west of the Lake Erie Islands with two-thousand residents, a Subway, McDonald’s community pool and now, two traffic lights and hot yoga on Sunday nights reminding everyone of who they are and the battles they’ll face in the week ahead.
“Sometimes in Yoga people the practice can be difficult to let go of the ego and here in Woodville people are very community oriented and they do that very easily. They come here with an open mind and without preconceived notions,” Yoga Brent acknowledges his observation.
Outfit in non-skid full-toe grip socks, Adidas shorts, and a tribal scarf around his main, Yoga Brent, a Toledo native, is also outfit with a Masters degree in Health Sciences and Health Systems and a resume highlighting a global tour those toes have made.
“I’ve taught in China, Costa Rica, Thailand, Cambodia, and Spain,” Yoga Brent supplies humbly before he delves into why everyone has gathered here on a ho-him Sunday evening to enjoy their breath.
“When we exhale we’re exhaling fifty million cells and when we inhale we then have the opportunity to take in fifty million new molecules of energy.” Ujjayi Breath means victory. We’re bringing in 50 million thoughts and with this you can walk towards miracles in life,” Yoga Brent, who earned his undergrad at the College of William and Mary, shares.
Cable initially tried running and Jazzercise when she decided to paint a new chapter of health and wellness into her already slammed schedule of students, marriage, and taking care of three teenagers. Two of whom are twins! This following a dramatic back surgery just four-years ago. The running stuck. Jazzercise went to the wayside.
“I tried that and could still run afterwards,” she admits of the class,“but with yoga the poses definitely decrease the level of soreness and add flexibility. I think I get more out of it mentally now. A sense of calm has come over me and I feel less guilt about taking this time for myself. All I’ve done for the past 16 years is tend for everybody else, so at first this felt selfish. Now, I’m a better mom and better wife. They don’t want me stressed.”
On any given Sunday, Cable is joined by other former high school classmates and running enthusiasts. Sherri Watson is a devout Christian and hails the Sunday Hot Yoga sessions as her Sunday religion.
“After the first class I had such peace in my head that I’ve been here every Sunday since. “I think being in such a busy, hectic life: running kids, being a mom, and working full-time I’ve really taken to heart what Brent talks about.”
The talk is one directed at the subconscious. Somehow the strategy is this; when yogis such as Cable and Watson are transitioning from airplane to majorette most buried thoughts creep into the conscious mind.
Again Yoga Brent shares his knowledge, “Over time the subconscious is sometimes written in a negative fashion. For some people that’s not the situation. In yoga class it’s a chance for us to observe being very, very conscious of our subconscious. We check in with ourselves and proactively rewrite negative thoughts. There are no real expectations. I notice over time though teaching this changes peoples’ lives.”
Watson, the community’s 1992 Homecoming Queen who now serves Elmore as a physical therapist has found a new pleasure in the Prana breathing, Chaturangas and non-competitive atmosphere.
“I’m a big advocate for this now,” she says. I just think about developing patience my kids and exhaling all of the negative stuff that comes during the week.”
“In here if the person on the mat next to you is 10-years younger it doesn’t matter. They found this new ‘thing’ that’s surprisingly amazing. I’m embarrassed about the past. Why didn’t I get moving sooner? I never pushed myself to do something like this. I thought you had to be born to do sports and be athletic and boy did I change my mind,” Cable solidifies.
In the Village of Woodville, where seemingly nothing changes, suddenly something has.
Sherri (Sorg) Watson and Jessica (Hovis) Cable both today just completed the Glass City Half Marathon along with classmate Nicole (Blake Knepper). All three are moms and Woodmore Alumnae from the 90s. Classes are every Sunday at the American Legion Hall at 5:30 pm. The cost is as tiny as the population. $10 buys a month’s pass. To learn more about Yoga Brent click here.
There isn’t any strategy that thaws out residents in the nation’s Great Lakes Region more than a hot yoga session. Follow-up with a hot shower and sauna session and no one cares where the mercury lands on the thermometer.
That is, if you can make your way to the studio once the snow strikes. This time the flakes came in 1″ size adding up to 8″ in depth overnight and into the morning hours which stuck with wetness perfect for snowmen and stranding unsuspecting drivers, especially those who are partial to tropical islands.
Just making the way out of the garage and out of the driveway isn’t going to happen without first spending some vigorous time with a snow blower or snow shovel and incorporating some sweat.
This means replacing the Vinyasa Flow, mat and towel with a Toro dual auger snow blower, Carlisle 11″ ice shovel and all the gear to keep you comfortable so you can skip the studio sans the stress in the event of a well-predicted spring storm.
Snow shoveling burns three hundred to four hundred calories per hour depending on how much you weigh and how much muscle mass your figure already flaunts. Which means moving the white stuff manually so you can move on with your day is one sure fire way to fire up the metabolism. The outdoor movement reserved for northern climates incorporates all of the muscles in the back, arms, shoulder and legs. Most driveways take longer than sixty minutes. The more you move, the more you can indulge in marshmallows atop hot cocoa once you’re through and doesn’t everyone on the Coastal Ohio Trail just love to warm up to a cup of The Kroger Company’s Private Selection Cocoa when it’s cold.
Shoving the shovel aside for a snow blower still blows out about two hundred and fifty calories for a person weighing in at a buck fifty.
Now for the creme de la creme of a cold blast on the Coastal Ohio Trail in the spring: hiking. Oh what fun the event is when frolicking in all that’s frocked! Lace up your Columbia Bugaboot and head wherever the wonderment takes you on two well-insulated feet with an abominable snow pup in tow. Hikers will melt mega calories traipsing the back country in heavy footwear. The exercise takes more leg and heart work than walking. Talk about toning. This “wintry” activity incorporates the calves, quadriceps, hamstrings, obliques, abs, and the front and back of the thighs, plus glutes. Tack on another four hundred and fifty calories for the hour spent out wondering what exactly Old Man Winter is doing in the springtime on the Coastal Ohio Trail.
He’s supplying us with breathtaking views.
All of this compares to about 585 calories burned in a sweaty session of Vinyasa Flow at your favorite studio.
Stay posted for more on Outfit for a Winter Adventure … in the Spring !
“Last weekend we did a medley at the end. Lady Gaga was sung like Frank Sinatra would. We’re just keeping the bar area chill,” Stella’s manager Ed Lopez shares the low down on the dining room and bar that overlooks Perrysburg’s Louisiana Avenue.
Chill, cozy, and sure to end in culinary contentment is the 2016 Stella’s, a northwest Ohio restaurant showcasing its own rendition of an exotic Italian steakhouse. At Stella’s pasta is made fresh daily, Prosecco is poured freely and the wine list has over fifty bottles to choose from.
“We’re not looking to educate diners on the wine. We want to broaden their perspectives on what wine pairs with which dish. We’re putting Napa Cabs with pastas and bringing in Italian wines and pairing them with French food,” front of the house manager Kurt Schlagheck says triumphantly.
The fact that business casual is now accepted fashion and Schlagheck is visibly sporting socks patterned with pineapples, points to the new movement on the Maumee River where the crew and owner decided to redefine fine casual dining.
“The pace is now fun. This is is the pace we are looking to project into downtown Perrysburg and consistency from here on out after we’ve made these changes will bring every aspect together,” emphasizes Schlagheck. “We do have every base of an Italian steakhouse menu and also french delicacies like mousses.”
Menu items start at just seven dollars and go all the way up to forty-five dollars for the Bone-In Ohio Cab Ribeye with Crimini Mushrooms.
Reds by the glass start at just seven dollars for the Gouguenheim Malbec and move up to ten ten for the Fiorentini Chianti from Tuscany. The dessert and wine lists are forever evolving and the main menu changes with the seasons. Stella’s though almost has exclusivity in the area by going sous vide.
Again, Schlagheck, “We vacuum seal our chicken, pork, duck, and our hanger steaks with butter, thyme and spices and cook them in a circulator bath for three hours. We take a lot of pride from what we’re pushing out of that kitchen.”
Besides having a major cosmetic overhaul that, as Schlagheck describes, has turned the kitchen into an area as organized and clean as a hospital, the man manning the sous vide and changing up the menu is Chef Michael Bulkowski. Bulkowski is determined to use as much local fare as possible and keep the tastings fresh for regulars.
Because of this system, there isn’t a signature dish, per say, to highlight. The bar area begs for couples and friends to order tapas style and share everything from the lamb chops to the fennel cured salmon with creme fraiche and fingerling potatoes.
“The lamb chops were Tony’s idea. Tony (Bilancini) is the owner. He said people around here love lamb chops and he’s right. We sell a lot of them. We prepare them Ras el hanout, which is a Mediterranean seven spice blend. We season them with that and finish with some preserve lemon and parsley and yogurt,” Chef elaborates.
The salmon is sustainably raised in one of the North Sea’s channels between Norway and Iceland. The fast moving and ultra-cold currents make this raw option energetically appetizing. Chef Bulkowski’s long time industry friend, Rachel makes the crackers plated with the dish.
She isn’t the only featured “artist” at Stella’s. Hand-blown glass ornaments drip from the three story foyer. Toledo artist Gwen Smith adds heat to blanks and sculpts the sensations which show off the very essence of the Glass City. Pop into Stella’s and pop some Prosecco within five days of your birthday and one of the Stella’s team members will gift you one to take home and cherish.
Stella’s is located at 104 Louisiana Avenue in Perrysburg. Coming up on Monday, March 14 at 6:30 pm Chef Michael Bulkowski is rolling out a five course wine dinner featuring recipes from First Presbyterian Church in Tiffin Ohio from 1923. This is undoubtedly the perfect opportunity to drop in, taste the new menu concepts, and experience the new energy. Suits and ties are out, funky, patterned socks are in, and Stella’s is anything but “stuffy.”
One little can from the cupboard can inspire a five hour feast.
The Original Sauce Arturo Gourmet Sauce with mushrooms greets everyone within eyesight with as much exuberance as a Maitre D’ from a fine Italian eatery. Peel the label back to reveal the “Arturo Lasagne” ingredient list. Then, improvise for an impeccable meal.
The recipe on the inside calls for an entire list of ingredients many of us just don’t have the palates for; namely, they are sausage, cottage cheese and ground up hamburger. Just use the recipe for a cue and create a dish you can own. To get this Italian partito going light a fire out in your backyard, aerate two bottles of red wine and create an anti pasto platter.
You can find an array of inviting dishes at Pier 1, like this carved fish serving platter, to make your old-world appetizers ultra-appealing. While guests make their way in, assemble the lasagne as you chat them up and they fill their glasses with vino.
Buy the ready to bake Kroger lasagne noodles, and a trio of cheeses as pictured below. We removed the sausage and ground up hamburger. This move makes assembly of this Italian classic as easy to pull off as opening the Sauce Arturo can. Use a lasagne pan or as in this case, a 9″ x5″ x 3″ loaf pan like this one we used for deep dish decadence.
Crack the ends of the noodles off with your hands to make the noodles fit in a shorter and deeper loaf pan, as we did. Three noodles make up each layer. Pour The Original Sauce Arturo Gourmet Sauce with Mushrooms on top, add frozen spinach and then top with your three-cheese mixture forked together with an egg. Eyeball the mixture and add more Ricotta, Mozzarella and Parmesan to fit your taste. Keep going until the concoction reaches the brim.
Then, grab a Swiss Army knife, a bag of marshmallows, vino and go enjoy the company and your fire. We like the Victorinox Swiss Army Camper Knife. This stainless steel contraption retails for about thirty dollars and besides a corkscrew, has a 3.6″ knife perfect for carving a marshmallow stick. After 28 years, as old as the friendships are around the fire, the blade still worked to whittle down the wood with precision.
While you and your guests feast on the bubbled confectioners sugar, flavored with firewood, remember you’ll need about 75 minutes to bake dinner. Preheat the oven before the clock strikes ten pm. At eleven-fifteen, remove the foil, sprinkle more Mozzarella on top and bake for another five minutes.
Pop open a bottle of San Pellegrino, grab a plate and godere!
This is the first and the last post about muah. Me, me, me. Today’s my birthday and I did not conduct an interview for this latest news report. I spent the day, on day three, traveling across the country from the Florida Keys to Ohio’s North Coast.
Today on my birthday, Josie in Paradise was born. An interactive information site about the fabulous lifestyle from Cleveland and the North Coast, where the water is unsalted. Then, to Key West and the Florida Keys where the salt life rages. My plan is about to unfold.
The company bears my name but, after this, the site won’t be about me. I’m just your host.
The stories will either be about you, or effect you.
Two systems of islands. Two bodies of water. Two cultures and two lifestyles. One 90 miles to Cuba, the other 30 miles to Canada.
I could, at any point, settle down on either location. Or, I can keep growing and expanding. There is one more location I do have in mind.
When time is of the essence we all need information that improves quality of life. Words that enlighten, inform, and entertain. Stories about your friends, your family and people you do business with; plus, photographs that inspire and tag lines that light a fire where the energy flow has become static. Video and social media posts to bring every aspect together.
This is where business meets broadcasting, broadcasting meets the beach and entrepreneurialism takes a twist.
Most of us are seeking the same information: how to see any place and situation with the perspective of Paradise, and overcome all of the obstacles we didn’t plan. There certainly have been some wild and fast ones I did not see coming.
I’ll be exercising some patience as I figure out how to work my way around my OWN NEW SITE! Business is person to person. In 2016 be ready to showcase some talents.
Remember…be humble; and at the same time also, use your gifts to shine like the tropical sun!
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