My Great Deer Hunt starts now

Camouflage tip: You can't see me.

Camouflage tip: Here I am!

This Northeastern liberal elitist is on his way into the Kentucky woods to go deer hunting for the first time (at Licking River Outfitters in Cynthiana to be exact). My funeral will be Thursday. As one last jab at my friends, this non-observer’s memorial service will be full Catholic mass. It Latin.

I’ll be on assignment for Louisville Magazine; a 1,500 to 2,000-word first-person account of my two days in the tree stand should run in the January issue. The plan is to focus on the trauma of trying to kill an animal for the first time (I’m a decent shot at clays) and the tension of loving a good dish of fresh local game but being reluctant to kill it yourself. If you’ve got a good venison recipe, please share it in the comments.

Of course, the piece also might examine how much it hurts to shoot yourself in the backside.

I’m going with Jon Gassett, the commissioner of the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources. Rumor has it the TV show Kentucky Afield will be taping the outing too. If I’m still with us, I’ll let you know when it airs.

Photos: Courtesy John Nation

August 2011 posts for CheapOair and Louisville.com

Check below the jump for my CheapOair and Louisville.com articles from August 2011.

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A Midwestern ‘hello’ from Indianapolis

Throw the ball through the hole and drill Peyton Manning in the head.

Shortly after 10 a.m. today I’ll be hopping on a Greyhound bus for a four-day visit to Indianapolis. Louisville’s been a great jumping-off point for exploring cities in this part of the United States—I’ll be making my third trip down to Nashville in October and, boy, that Chicago city’s something, ain’t it?—and locals here have spoken highly about the Indiana capitol (there’s often envy in their voices).

I’ll be at the Colts-Packers NFL preseason game Friday night and the Red Bull Indianapolis MotoGP Sunday afternoon, visiting breweries, restaurants, and museums throughout my stay. Follow along in real time (Eastern Time Zone, even!) at

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And for a sneak peak, read this article on Indianapolis’s bars I wrote for Gridskipper when the city hosted the Final Four last year.

Thanks to Morgan Greenlee and the Indianapolis Convention and Visitors Association for sponsoring my trip.

Howdy from Dallas

Greetings from the Grassy Knoll.

I’m in Dallas for two days to take the Fairmont Dallas Hotel’s Art Immersion Apprentice Trip. Despite numerous visits to galleries and art fairs with the hope to buy something more original than a classic rock album cover to hang on my walls, I’ve never been able to pull the trigger. This package features an hour session with Bryan Embry, owner of the nearby Ross Akard Gallery, who’ll help me learn how to make a purchase. (It also includes time with the hotel’s artist in residence and a dinner with wine parings at the hotel’s restaurant, Pyramid.) Afterwards, I’m going to hit the local galleries—Dallas has “the largest contiguous urban arts district in the nation”—and buy me some art.

I’ll also be having lunch with a friend of mine who lives in Dallas, aptly nicknamed “Tex.”

Interested in joining the art experience in real time? Mosey on over to the social media accounts:

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Thanks to the Fairmont Hotels & Resorts (specifically Mike Taylor and Katie Norwood) for sponsoring my visit.

Louisville.com wins Louisville Magazine’s Best of Louisville award for local website (Louisville)

Yay us! Louisville.com (me = editor-in-chief) just won the 2011 Louisville Magazine‘s readers’ choice award for best local website.

Rather than rehash them here, if you want the details, head to Louisville.com and read my article, “Louisville.com wins ‘Louisville Magazine’s’ Best of Louisville award in prestigious local website category [Rubbing ourselves against the couch].”

Photo: Courtesy Louisville Magazine