Through Ohio

Ohio started out pretty good... nice blue skies, which in my prior experience of Ohio is "never heard of."

I found a restaurant while perusing Pinterest... Melt: Bar & Grilled. It is located in Cleveland, Ohio and they specialize in grilled cheese sandwiches. I figured if I ended up in Cleveland near lunch time or dinner time, I'd give it a try, so, as it happened I ended up at Melt right at lunch time. I kept it simple and just ordered a "Kindergarten"...

Now THIS... this is what NOT to order when you are in the middle of a 8-day road trip...

After my very yummy lunch, I took a drive along Lake Erie shoreline. It is always amazing to look across a lake and not be able to see land on the other side...

It must be said at this point that the drive along the shore of Lake Erie is NOT scenic... It is an exercise in discontent and a serious seminar on house envy... (and yes, it is scenic...) The houses are insane... Tudor, colonial, really big cape cod, and castles. Yes, CASTLES... big... stone... turrets... everything but the moat.

And then THIS happened... and this is the Ohio that I know and really don't love. In fact, I've never been to Ohio when I haven't had to pull over for some period of time because the floodgates have opened.  This time the floodgates opened and torrential rain and hail reduced visibility to 7 inches (give or take) and delayed  my journey for about 30-45 minutes.

I was able to make it into Indiana before retiring for the evening in Kendallville, IN. But I'm saving the Indiana welcome sign for the next post.

To be continued...

Into Pennsylvania

Okay... so... THIS happened in New Jersey, about an hour into my trip West...

I'm driving down the road, headed to Pennsylvania and I have to stop because there are turkeys in the road. Turkeys. A whole family...Dad, Mom, four chicks and their pet deer. That's right. Their pet deer. Oddest thing... here is this family of turkeys, crossing the road in a straight line, being followed by a deer. Unfortunately, as soon as I brought up the camera, the deer took off in the other direction.

So, I started off my journey west on a scenic road. Not the fastest way to start but I just couldn't stand to start it out on the interstate or the turnpike...

So I drove all the way through Pennsylvania on Route 6...

The sky was full of texture and color but not a single drop of rain all day... And I should take this opportunity to say that many of these pictures were taken from the car... I don't always look at what I'm shooting at since I'm driving and all, so horizons are sometimes skewed and sometimes you can see window reflections (or bugs...)

Many of the barns in Pennsylvania (and some other states as well) have quilt squares painted on them. They are all different in color, size and placement... They are quaint and charming...as if the farms in Pennsylvania need to be any more picturesque.

Then I saw this crazy thing... It was just sitting there on Main Street in Small Town, Pennsylvania...

Azilum, located in Bradford County, Pennsylvania, was a planned settlement for refugees fleeing the French Revolution. Evidently there was a two acre market square and about 30 log houses. In 1793 or so the exiles started to arrive. According to legend, Marie Antoinette and her two children were to settle here. 

Overlooking Azilum

Soon several small shops, a schoolhouse, a chapel and a theater appeared in the market square. A gristmill, blacksmith shop and a distillery were built, cattle and sheep were kept, and fruit trees and gardens were planted.

Now it is just farms, none of the original buildings still stand.

The largest building in the colony was "La Grande Maison", a two-story log structure rumored, but not proven, that it was to be for the Queen.

This makeshift French court did not last and  many of the exiles moved to southern cities including Charleston, Savannah and New Orleans. After Napoleon made it possible for exiles to return to France, some did. A few families remained in Pennsylvania and settled in local communities. By 1803 French Azilum passed into history.

(Some of this I learned from reading historical markers, the rest I researched on Wikipedia...)

Susquehanna River

This is the Allegheny River near the Kinzua Dam.

  

I was hoping to get all the way to Ohio but that didn't happen and I ended up staying in Warren, Pennsylvania... 

To be continued...

The New Jersey Stop

So there was this period of time between when the movers came to get my stuff from Maryland and when I was actually on the road and driving west that I spent with the New Jersey family.

I like New Jersey's welcome sign.

Anyway... I was actually kind of busy while here with last minute details and stuff with banks and insurance and unemployment etc., etc., you know, all the stuff that goes along with moving that ISN'T exciting and adventurous... so, I really didn't take any time to go out and take pictures. I didn't even take pictures of Fargo while I was there.

(I have lots of pictures that were taken from previous visits to New Jersey however, that I will share at some point or other.)


BUT...we did go to a new "World Market" that had opened in the area and I had my camera with me so I was able to get some cool textile shots.

It was really crowded... the aisles were narrow... glass was broken (thankfully not by us) I love the colors and textures that you can find in these kind of stores. They don't always like you to take pictures but I usually take them on the down-low. That way no one is getting upset and it is a surprise as to what I was able to capture. Of course, that can also lead to pictures that NO ONE wants to see...

Glassware always gives you interesting lines...

And patterns...


I had a good time with my brother and sister-in-law...and their dog...and it was really hard to leave knowing that for the first time in twelve and a half years I live more than 5 hours from them.

Chickaboo

I'd like to introduce you to my niece...

 She is a little ham. I don't get to see her very often and probably less now that I've moved back to the Pacific Northwest. She lives in Tennessee.

If I could get Skype to work on my computer I'd be able to talk with her more often... I could also talk to my brother and sister-in-law more often as well.

 **She is trying to imitate "Aunt Jimmet" here.**

She is sweet and funny and really smart.

And like I said...a bit of a ham...as you can see, she is making sure that I am still watching...that the camera is still pointed in her direction...

wait for it, wait for it, and...

**BIG FINISH!!**

Fargo

This is Fargo...

Fargo is a beagle mix and he lives in New Jersey with my brother and sister-in-law. He is the sweetest, most affectionate dog I know.

Mostly he just sleeps but he loves to sleep right up next to me, with his head or paw resting on my leg or shoulder. I have always loved dogs and one of these days I will have my own...

But until then...

...there is Fargo...my dog-nephew.

I also really love my brother and sister-in-law...

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