One of a kind IE

I recently read the Fast Company article titled "2011 City of the Year." The winner was Houston and it was described as "'one of the world's next great cities.'" Some of the reasons they chose it was because it has a vibrant business community, supports cultural diversity and embodies a sense of opportunity. The article also discussed how Houston was trying to fight its "redneck" stereotype. All this reminded me of our beloved IE.

We might not be exactly where Houston is but we're taking the steps to get there. Here is a little of what I have in mind:
- We currently have a population of over 4 million people and it's the 14th largest metropolitan area in the US. In 2015 we will have almost 5 million.
- We have three international airports: Ontario, Palm Springs and San Bernardino.
- The IE has the potential to become the trade gateway of Southern California.
- There are 27 colleges and universities.
These are just a few things but there are a lot more where that came from!
(Sources: IE Wiki page, Inland Empire Outlook)

Despite the fact that we are currently going through an economic struggle the bullet points above inspired me to create a new column for the blog and a new features list for the site that's currently in the works (launch is looking like this summer, folks...eek!): "One of a kind IE." It's an opportunity to point out unique IE spots or events. Something that's entirely our own like Kickback Jack's with two locations only in the IE serving delicious breakfast for over 50 years (no paid endorsement here, just a die-hard fan).

The creative juices are flowing and I'm going to start this list! I've reached out to a few friends for suggestions and going through my own memory bank. If you have any suggestions I would love to hear them.

Till next time...

IE Car Appreciation

While we wait for our next Palm Springs post I want to share something I only discovered by visiting the IE and have come to learn to appreciate. It's the Cruise Nights here. I'm by no means a car fan. Personally, my car just takes me from point A to point B and I have to make sure I keep it maintained. That's pretty much it.

Well, I've gone to a few festivals now in the IE and have found that at many of them there are car shows, parades and exhibitions. I originally went to these events to just check out the people and see if anybody would be interested in a site like the one I'm developing. But over time I've come to appreciate the care, detail and passion some of these artists put into their automobile. SoCal has a passionate cruise night following with lots of meet ups like the ones here.

Not sure if you caught it on my FB or Twitter but I was recently at the Mario Andretti Racing Experience at the Fontana Auto Club Speedway. Friend and I had to wake up pretty early to get out there from LA but it was a lot of fun. I'm a huge daily deals advocate and I purchased an amazing deal for the racing experience. Here are some shots from that day.

As I continue to record my adventures out in the IE, there's a big chance that you'll see a lot more (hopefully better) shots of great vintage cars, cruise nights and SoCal car culture. Glad I can share this with you. Enjoy!






Here are a few more images I've captured on various IE outings. There were so many amazing car photos to choose from it was difficult to choose these. Just a couple warnings - my camera skills don't do these cars justice. Also, apologies for not quoting the car makes, models and owners. I'm definitely going to remember to include these details next time.




*Rockabilly Show at the Claremont Colleges. I love the graphic on the wall*


*2011 Rte. 66 Rendezvous in San Bernardino.*


*More shots from the 2011 Rte. 66 Rendezvous in San Bernardino*


*2010 Pomona Christmas Parade - Just an example of old school transportation. HAHA*

Destination: Palm Springs

So in the spirit of my new direction, I'm dedicating this blog post about my recent trip to Palm Springs. It's been over 15 years since I first went to Palm Springs and I was still in braces and at the mercy of my parents' travel itinerary. I remember the Aerial Tramway and that's about it. I saw a whole different side of Palm Springs when I was there this past February. So much has changed and I was really impressed with all the great attractions, shops, modern sculptures and overall fun factor.

Below is our blog's first attempt at a photo edit/collage (learned from our Blogging Your Way course). Just a mix of what we saw around town and a view from the Mission Hills Westin where we stayed.





** I like this frame treatment better but the caption font is still hard to read **

Some things I was really impressed with:
- all the great antique/vintage shops
- renovated hotels and casinos like Agua Caliente Hotel and Spa
- Most importantly, I was really impressed with all the locals and out of towners who were roaming around. There were lots of out of towners for the bike marathon and lots of locals grabbing a drink Sunday afternoon at the local cantina.

I was gravely mistaken in my initial thought that Palm Springs would be sleepy around February. After speaking with the expert at the Convention Center, I learned that February is actually one of the best months to go to Palm Springs because it's cold everywhere else but Palm Springs is nice, warm and sunny! Perfect for the quick winter getaway.

I specifically wanted to mention Palm Springs because I'll be heading out there again in June. I forgot my nice Nikon at home and only had my point-and-shoot (so frustrating argh!). So, I'll be heading out there again with some friends with a better lay of the land and a better camera. Can't wait to show you even more shots from the next experience (and next time we'll have our pix formatted nice and neatly).

Have a great day!

New Direction

So, after taking the Design*Sponge "Blogging Your Way" course, I've finally found the direction I need for this blog. The course encourages you to ask yourself what interests you're passionate about and then take those passions and craft them into aesthetically pleasing, informative and engaging blog posts.

I am passionate about my business, social media, art, design, cultural events, traveling, music events, outdoor activities, eating anything and everything, artisinal crafts and foods and, of course, the IE. How do I take my passions and the guidelines I learned from my course and translate them to a blog about building an online destination for the IE? Then what started as a small ray of an idea grew into a "whole spread the clouds apart" enlightenment (almost heard angels sing). It just clicked and the ideas just kept flowing after that.

My previous blog posts focused on how I was trying to build my business (social media tips and such) and that direction kept bumping me up against a wall. The wall was the fact that I wasn't confident enough to make recommendations and share how I was doing things. I'm learning as I go and flying by the seat of my pants here. That lack of confidence kept preventing me from blogging...I felt what I had to say wasn't as informative as some of the business blogs out in the blogosphere. But how do I take all my passions and build my online brand? *LIGHTNING*

I currently reside in Los Angeles because of my "9-5" digital brand marketing career. It's a career I've been building for almost ten years, plus it pays my bills and most importantly for the development of my business. So in order to attend cultural events, research and visit my family and friends I need to commute to the IE. I schedule weekend trips (because I can't do anything if it's not in my calendar). I try to catch as many things as possible - car shows, festivals, concerts, local school events, theater productions, art walks, etc. I force some friends to come along and I take field notes, tweet about it, take lots of pictures and observe EVERYTHING. *LIGHTNING TURN INTO CLOUDS ROLLING BACK*

I need to document my adventures in the IE! I like to have a good time and my passions reflect that. The boring, "try to be professional" blog I was shooting for just wasn't a good fit. This way I can write what I know - having a good time - while being reflective of my brand and lending a voice to the site I'm developing. With tips I learned from the Design*Sponge course I finally have something to say and the right way to say it.

Keep your fingers crossed and let's hope this new direction brings even more inspiration!

My promise

Dear Blog,

I promise to do better at maintaining you. I'm currently signing up for a class so I can learn how to better maintain you. I've also enlisted some help - another pair of eyes - that will help us look better, sound better and inform better. Good luck to us. Here we go!