All The Grands...

• THE STILLERY - GOODYEAR

• WINCO FOODS - GOODYEAR

• 1,000 (THAT’S A GRAND!) REASONS TO CELEBRATE!

Can I Write A Short Story?

This is going to be my first attempt to write a short story. Wish me luck, because I’m a sucker for the details… It also should be noted that I have never felt the pull to immediately start writing (it’s now 10:17 pm) as soon as I walk in from interviewing… That’s how special this night turned out to be and I am truly excited to share it with you. 

If you want the short, short story, you can stop reading now and go to The Stillery and Winco and your visits to both will be well worth your while.  Visit The Stillery first and grab a bite to eat, so  you don’t go shopping on an empty stomach. 

Let’s begin…

It takes a lot for me to leave my house and even more to get me to leave my desk.

This is now my 7th issue and I learn something - so many things - each week, but one thing is continuing to prove true:  I do not have control of the stories that want to be told here. It has happened every time.  Every story.  Every plan I have for who or what I will write about next, diverted.  

There’s my plan and then there’s something that I have come to call “What the Bee Wants.”  The Bee being the invisible energy force that is guiding my fingers, and orchestrating the perfect people, places and things to appear before me at just the right time.¹  

After many years of doors closing (slamming!!!) in my path, these doors are now swinging open to greet me, often with open arms, and smiling faces, on the other side.

Tonight, I left my house around 5:45 p.m., not wanting to leave my desk but errands and the looming deadline for this story, summoned me…

Luckily, the two places I intended to visit - the “grands” for the grand openings - were near enough each other that I could essentially kill two birds with one stone, or write two stories, with one trip out of the house. I was pleasantly surprised what I found…

Onto The Grands…

THE STILLERY - GOODYEAR

The Stillery in Goodyear, Arizona, actually opened on September 23, 2024, but I didn’t find out about it until 2 weeks ago, so it’s still a Grand Opening for me as far as I’m concerned.

I found out about The Stillery via comments on a post on a local Surprise, AZ Facebook page. I was surprised when I saw it because I live 7.3 miles from The Stillery and had never heard of it until then (3 weeks after they opened!!!).²  

It is located in front of the Goodyear Civic Center and wow, that area has changed since I last visited the library over there! Tons of new shops opening!³  

Here’s the lowdown on The Stillery:

• I arrived on a Monday night at 6:25 p.m., a beautiful evening and a very cool 76 degrees! I requested to be seated on the patio right outside the dining room, with a perfect view of the band! I love that I was able to hear the music and still carry on a conversation. There was no wait and no other people seated near me outside. The dining room and bar inside were busy, but not overly so, and it is my preference to attend places when it’s like this (not busy). I do not like hectic restaurants, so I picked the right time to go.

• I requested to speak with the manager, and the person on duty that night was Ryan Rezac (pictured above). He kindly answered all my questions and provided me with a ton of great information about the place, like the fact that the owners fly in a Nashville artist to perform there every weekend!

• While there are a lot of things on the menu I wish I could eat (like Mac & Cheese & the Rustic Pies), I have several food sensitivities that limit my options. I ordered the Thai Chicken Salad, with no wontons (sad face as I have to try to avoid gluten). The salad dressing - or something - had a kick to it which I really liked! I needed more dressing though (I asked for a side of ranch - I’m saucy 😉 ). I also asked for side of parmesan cheese (they brought me grated, next time I’ll order it with shaved) and I’ll also add onions (hopefully, they have green).

• My delicious salad - the best I’ve had in the 3 years I’ve lived in Arizona - was delivered to me by my sweet waitress, Kailah (pronounced “Kay-La”), who bent over backwards to help me, answer my long list of questions, and keep me filled up on water! Excellent service! 💗 

• The entire time I was there, Trey Fiddle, was performing. Several times I had to look up from my dinner to be sure it was actually him singing. If you haven’t heard of him yet, you will! Music is my oxygen.  Especially live music.  Especially this kind, with heart and soul.  And truth and integrity. It’s what I crave in every area of my life. His music was so soulfully good, I continued to listen to his songs on Spotify in my car on the way home.  He plays a mix of covers and original songs.

• On my way out, I dropped by the hostess station to chat with the girls - Delilah & Kaia. So fun meeting them! Delilah, I especially enjoyed our conversation, we have so much in common! You are a doll!

• Sidenote: Artists at The Stillery have been added to The Buckeye Buzz Music Listings, starting with this issue (#7).

• Great Date Night Idea: Go here for dinner & drinks, and then go across the street to Harkins for a movie! Or, vice versa!

Bottom line: Make plans to visit The Stillery ASAP.

Buzz Rating (5/5): 🐝 🐝 🐝 🐝 🐝 

WINCO FOODS - GOODYEAR

I’ll start by saying…

I do not like grocery shopping or grocery stores, so I was quite surprised how much I enjoyed my trip to WinCo. They just opened this - their 141st Store - on October 14th. WinCo is an employee-owned, privately-held company, founded in 1967 and based in Boise, Idaho.

Here’s the lowdown on WinCo:

• Inside it’s like a cross between Costco and Smart & Final and a regular grocery store.

• I went after dinner at The Stillery, about 7:45 PM - and it wasn’t any more crowded than any other grocery would be at that time of evening.

• I liked that they had signs on some items showing the cost comparison to other stores.

• Twice a week, I buy pineapples for juicing at Aldi. I saw them here so I decided to try. I buy pineapples in sets of 3 (needed for my recipe), and this deal was: The first 2 are .98 cents and any additional are $2.98 each (= $4.94 for 3). The average cost per pineapple at Aldi is $2.05 (= $6.05 for 3), so all-in-all, it ended up costing less to buy them at WinCo this week.

• I love that they have such a large selection of Bulk Foods, including spices and a section with dog-related items (dog food, etc.).

• The price of Halloween candy was pretty good too! $14.98-$19.98 for large bags!

• Also, lots of gift items, Piñatas, and fun Día De Los Muertes gingerbread house kits for $9.99!

• I’m showing you a picture of the groceries I bought that night totaling only $20.85! [Don’t judge my junk food please, I have teenagers… and a chip addiction.]

• I also discovered Nelly’s Organics bars there (in the refrigerator, in the produce section) and have another new addiction to add to my list. That night, I bought 1 peanut butter coconut, but went back the next morning and got the peanut butter (and more pb coconut)!

• When I went back the next morning for more Nelly’s bars, I noticed they were making pizzas. $8! I ordered one to-go! Super fast preparation time of 6 minutes! I prefer Costco’s crust, but try it and let me know what you think.

• Also, they do not take credit cards, only debit, cash, check or EBT. [They save money by not having to pay credit card processing fees.]

• They have both self-checkout and live person check out lines but I’m told you have to bag your own groceries. [Another way they save money.] I always go through the self-checkout, so I always bag my own.

• Warning: Entry into the parking lot is a strange configuration (which seems to be the case with many parking lots here in AZ).

Bottom line: Make plans to visit WinCo! I think shopping there will save a ton of $$$!

Buzz Rating (5/5): 🐝 🐝 🐝 🐝 🐝

1,000 (THAT’S A GRAND!)
REASONS TO CELEBRATE!

On the morning of October 20, 2024, also my & B’s 24th wedding anniversary, I woke up to The Buckeye Buzz’s 1,000th subscriber added to my email list! [And have since surpassed that number…]

I cannot even express to you (and haven’t yet had a chance to write Part 2 of the “I Love Buckeye” post) what this means to me.

I love you (readers), I love Buckeye, and I love writing The Buckeye Buzz so much!

I truly believe that everything I have been through in life, all my professional experience (32 loooonng years), and the past 8 years of learning and trying (and failing) in all this “online” stuff, was preparing me to DO THIS!

I have never been so happy and never felt more aligned with my purpose in life. Fulfilling what I was born to do has been all I have every wanted in life, especially professionally. But, until September 12, 2024 (the launch date of The Buckeye Buzz), I could never figure out what that was… I have kissed a lot of poison frogs to find you!

So, thank you from the bottom of my heart! For being here, for taking time out of your busy lives to read this, for all the kind words you send me in emails, DMs and post comments. Many of those comments have already been added to the testimonial section on the signup page, but there are more that I haven’t yet had time to add.

None of this would be possible without all of you!

I have so many big plans, big dreams, and huge goals for The Buckeye Buzz! So much to look forward to doing TOGETHER! I cannot wait!!! I’m trying hard to be patient…

But first, I have to go get a new computer - like right now - because this one is about to blow. For reals. So I have to cut this short.

But one last thing before I go …

🌸 Backyard Blooms 🌸 

I want to leave you with these beautiful flowers that I bought for our anniversary from Backyard Blooms & Co. Her flower arrangements popped up for sale in my Facebook feed on October 19th at 9pm, and I immediately messaged her & rushed over to pickup, so we could enjoy them all week!

Turns out she lives right around the corner from me and grows these beautiful flowers in her garden!!! 🤯 

You can follow her on her Instagram page (linked above) and buy some flowers for yourself, or for a gift, the next time she posts.

Keep your eyes peeled, because I intend to write about her again here in The Buckeye Buzz.

Okay, gotta go get a new computer!

From my heart to yours…

❤️ Vanessa

[2,264 words later… I failed at writing a short story… 😅]

Do you have a favorite person, place or thing you’d like to see featured here? Email me the details @ [email protected]

1  Further evidenced by the incredible local product that was dropped off to me last night and caused me to change up my entire “This & That” section of today’s newsletter (Issue No. 7) so I could share it with you now.

2  Exactly the reason why I started The Buckeye Buzz: To connect people to fun/businesses and businesses to people!

3  Warning: watch the invisible “medians” (I don’t know what to call them) when you enter the area. Dear City of Goodyear: Please paint those things will ya? Luckily I have an SUV, so accidentally driving over them - because they are INVISIBLE - didn’t harm my car. I thought it was just me, but as I ate my dinner on the patio, I watched many other people do the same thing.