Movie Destination

Friday night is usually date night which means a light dinner and then a big bag of popcorn as we sit back and enjoy a movie on the big screen--or the little screen at home if the theater offerings are not to our liking. Many times we will choose a movie because of the location it was shot--Rome, Tuscany, Paris, London, etc. Although then it's hard to sit back and keep from saying, "Remember when we were there?"

Once in a while, there is a movie that inspires a just-gotta-see place to visit. Some scenes from Florence will have us wanting to revisit Italy since we've not gotten to that great city yet. Under the Tuscan Sun will have me wanting to revisit Tuscany.

Closer to home there are several movies that come to mind--"hand holders" as I like to call them or "chick flicks" as Bob refers to them. You've Got Mail might whet your appetite for Seattle or New York City or The Bridges of Madison County might send you out to Iowa to take in the covered bridges in Madison County.

There are movies that don't inspire quite as much. I'm not sure I want to see Dracula's castle although I hear the countryside is beautiful. I just wouldn't want to be out after dark.

Have Kids, Will Travel?

We didn't travel with our children a lot but we did take several outstanding vacations that they remember quite vividly. Of course they remember Disney World but the trips to the Smokey Mountains, the North Carolina coast, and Washington, D.C. are also mentioned when we are together reminiscing. We didn't fly often. There were five kids and even back then it was too expensive. Today, I see more and more families traveling with young children and I applaud their sense of adventure in this day and age of airport security lines.

The internet has brought a whole new slant to travel planning in recent years as more and more blogs and sites make themselves available for looking ahead on what to expect at hotels, parks, cruise ships, etc. In surfing around, I found two that are specifically aimed at families traveling together. TravelSavvyMom and Minitime. They feature reviews on kid-friendly places and give lots of tips on traveling with kids of all ages. If you're planning to travel and toting the little ones along, you might want to check them out.

Wordless Wednesday

A Fishy Theme

This week seems to have taken on a fishy theme. Our Perch Fest began the week and I will be ending it with "fishing" for an agent and editor. So keeping all that in mind, here are some tips I found from the Ohio Department of Natural Resources about taking kids fishing.

• Look for a place that offers the best chance for success and be sure to use the proper bait/lures for the fish common to the area.
• Keep the tackle simple and easy to use.
• DON'T FORGET THE CAMERA!
• Remember kids have a short attention span. Be patient-even more with the kids than on waiting for a fish to bite.
• Don't plan a day trip on a boat if you fear the child may be prone to motion sickness.
• And my favorite, "Even the smallest fish or a less desirable species is a 'trophy' to a kid if you make it one!"

Now if I can just get an editor to bite on my "bait."

It's All About The Fish

A few years ago, we discovered a great festival in Fairport Harbor, Ohio. It's called the Great Lakes Perch Festival. While the festival is not large compared to some of the others running this time of year, its main attraction, the perch dinner, is just too good to pass up. The dinners are supplied by Bennett Fish whose sign read something to the effect that their fish were so fresh, they were just sleeping in Lake Erie yesterday.

This weekend marked the only Buckeye game we had tickets to so we couldn't get to the Perch Fest on Saturday. After a quick change into jeans after church, we drove out there on Sunday. Fairport Harbor's Lakeside Park is right on Lake Erie and has a nice sandy beach that I'm sure is wonderful in the summer. Sunday was a bit chilly since our area has cooled down considerably from the 90 degree temps we had this summer. Still, it is fun to sit and munch deep fried perch, french fries and cole slaw on a picnic bench with a view of the lake.

After satisfying our perch craving, we strolled along the beach a ways and then checked out the other booths at the festival. There was a fishing "pond" for kids and several outdoor activity vendors as well as a tent with a big screen TV for watching the weekend's football games. Many were other types of foods: pastry, fresh lemonade, candied apples, funnel cakes, some meaty treats for those who don't like fish, and the wonderful kettle corn booth that filled the air with the delicious smell of fresh popped corn. Yup, we couldn't resist and very little of it made it all the way home.

There is an old lighthouse and museum in Fairport Harbor worth exploring as well and the little town is an interesting place to meander through if you are looking for a little shopping experience. Some day we will have to visit when we have ample time to enjoy it all.

While Oktober Fests seem to be the most popular thing going around here this season, this little festival met our needs. After all, it is all about the fish.

Worth a Thousand Words

If it's true what they say about pictures, then this says it all. BIG game Saturday! Just wondering who our Miami son will be cheering for?

A Grandma By Any Other Name. . .

Take a little side trip to my column at Positively Feminine today. Some of my first travel experiences were on a bus trip into the big city of Cleveland with my "substitute" grandma. It is fitting that it would post on the same day as her birthday.

Wordless Wednesday

Miscellaneous Travel Tips

Booking your hotel online? Be sure to read the fine print about cancellation policies for the online service. You may lose all of the cost of the room and the booking fee if you cancel. Grace periods change and fees change. Be aware of them before you enter your credit card number.

Booking an airline flight? Take a look at some of the travel sites like Travelocity or Expedia but also check out the flights they list with the airline website. You might find a better price. Also, the online sites are good for booking your flights when you are flying to one city but coming back from another.

Doing a lot of walking on your trip? Take along moleskin for those blisters that seem to pop up even when you're not in new shoes.

Packing tip: Hang on to those freebie shower caps and use them to cover your shoes when you pack and keep your clothes cleaner.

And finally, for those who are App addicts here's one for travel: GoTourIt. Buy and download GPS guided audio tours of cities, parks and historic sites. It's available at iTunes App Store.

Lost Not Found

Have you ever lost something while traveling? Most of us have. Thankfully the things we lost were not critical like medications. Bob once left a camera in the glove compartment of a rental car. And on another trip, we lost a pair of trousers. I suspect they were left hanging in the closet.

One of the easiest places to lose something is in that pocket of the airplane seat in front of you. Too often we grab stuff out of our carry on and pack it in there to use during flight. Not a good idea. Not only is there the chance of you leaving stuff behind, do you really want to stick your hand all the way in there and search around for your Ipod, or your phone, or your candy bar that you decided would taste good along the way? Who knows what might be lurking in there?

Here's a suggestion for you to help keep your things together and prevent them from being lost forever to that deep pocket. Get a ziploc gallon plastic bag. Now you can't use this for security but you can use it for those things you want to use while in the air. Before you board the plane, stick the things you want in easy reach in the bag, zip it, and keep it in the top of your carry on or tucked under your arm. When you find your seat, you'll spend less time getting organized and stowing your gear. And everything comes out of and goes back into that plastic bag as you use it. The bag is big enough to see the top of in the pocket to remind you that it's there (as long as you don't fold it over and tuck it down).

From what I understand, you won't be let back onto the airplane if you leave something behind and you'll have to rely on lost and found at the airport to hopefully recover your belongings. Most people don't have the time and/or never find it there.

Hope this has been helpful. Trust me, it only takes one time to leave a camera behind and you'll never put it in the wrong place again.

Buckeye Fans

If you have never traveled to Columbus, Ohio, for an Ohio State Football game you are missing out on a real treat. There are few places that I know of where the whole city is crazy over their football. You may see team colors worn in other cities but in Columbus it is the norm, the expected. If you aren't in red and gray, you will stand out.

While tickets are hard to come by and you may not want to spend the big bucks for a seat in the stadium, you can still soak up the atmosphere and the excitement at the skull session for the bands in St. John's Arena. It starts about 2 hours before the game but you'll want to arrive at least a half-hour before that for a seat. The place reverberates as the OSU Marching Band's percussion section shakes the rafters with its march onto the floor. Though you won't get to see the formations, you will get to hear the half time performance and see the drum majors work out. You'll also get a peek at the team. Tressel makes them march through on their way to the lockerroom and one of them will give a short pep talk. It's a great tradition.

Afterwards, stroll through the parking area where the tailgating is going on. It's an art at OSU. You will even be able to catch the game on the TVs that will be running off of generators for those who are tailgating without a ticket to the game.

Ah, yes. Football season is here. Go Bucks!!

Wordless Wednesday

Memories of Venice

Life is a little crazy here right now with some self-imposed writing deadlines and others imposed by editors. So I thought I would look back on one of my older posts. This one was written back in 2004:

This past summer, we traveled through Europe with Bob’s brother, Dick, and his wife, Polly. Venice was a unique adventure. We arrived amidst gray skies and drizzle. The buildings around St. Mark’s Square looked dirty and dingy. I wondered how anyone could claim this as a beautiful spot. After our dinner, however, the sun broke through the clouds and illuminated the façade of St. Mark’s Basilica bringing the building to life with shimmering golden mosaics.

In the square at the outdoor cafes some musicians were beginning to perform. We were attracted to a café with a stringed ensemble and made ourselves comfortable at a table. When the waiter came three of us ordered cappuccino (Dick was off for gelato). We didn’t pay attention to the menu. We only wanted cappuccino. This was just dessert. Oh what a dessert! The cappuccinos were excellent but the bill was outstanding. When converted to dollars, it was $15 per cup of that delicious brew. By not looking at the menu, we had missed the mention of a cover charge.

Ah, Italy, so crazy, so frantic, so romantic, so expensive! Everyone said it was a once in a lifetime experience. That’s for sure. We’ll never order $15 coffees again.

From Itally's N-West Coast - Ligurian Trofie

When we were in Italy in the Cinque Terre area this past June, we fell in love with a popular local dish, trofie with basil pesto. We found it in every restaurant although there was a little variation in each. One served the pasta and pesto with green beans, another with potatoes, still another with potatoes and green beans. They were all delicious. Being a fan of "traditional" tomato sauce, I was surprised to find that I liked the green basil pesto so much.

At home, I decided to make some for dinner and set out to see what it would take. Keep in mind, my best recipe for chocolate chip cookies comes from the Pillsbury dough boy in a plastic-wrapped package. I was overwhelmed to say the least by the amount of work that goes into the pasta making--and it doesn't use eggs! Any time I mixed water and flour together, it was to make homemade paste for crafts. I ruled out making the pasta and found something in the grocery store that resembled the trofie.

Next I looked up recipes for basil pesto sauce. Perhaps not quite as involved as the pasta but still a lot of work, time, and patience. Back to the grocery store. I found several packaged versions of basil pesto and picked one hoping it would not turn me against it.

To make it more of a dinner than an appetizer, I added mushrooms, onions, snap beans, and some cut up cooked chicken breast. See, I can cook when I really want to. It was almost as good as sitting in an outdoor restaurant looking out over the sea and enjoying the Ligurian creation. Almost.

For you adventuresome cooks, here are a couple of the recipes sites I found:
Trofie al Pesto
Fresh Basil Pesto

For you who are like me, here's a website to order your ready-made ingredients if your grocer doesn't carry them.
Ligurian products

Sunday Worship Thoughts - God's Laughter

This week has been a bottom-in-the-chair-fingers-on-the-keyboard kind of week. While it has been said that you should write the first draft of your novel straight through to the end without looking back and editing, I find that the editor in me keeps wanting to fix what I've just written. I go back and find the -ing words and make them stronger action verbs, eliminate the unnecessary -ly words, and see if there isn't a better way to say something without a "was" or "were" in the sentence. It all takes time and slows the process but it's a tough habit to break.

While I was praying one day this week during devotion time, I found myself editing my words. I wanted to make them just right. Habits tend to invade other areas of life. When I realized what I was doing, I stopped. For just an instant, I thought I heard a chuckle. God must have enjoyed my discovery. After all He is Father, and as children of His, I'm sure we contribute much to his laughter.

Luggage-free Travel

We try to par down our necessities more and more as we travel not only to keep the bags lighter to carry but to avoid those extra luggage fees. I ran across this article of a fellow who has taken it to extremes--twelve days of travel with only what he can stuff in his pockets. Read it and imagine what it must be like going through security at the airport.

LOOK MOM, NO LUGGAGE!

A Mother's Heart

Yesterday, when I finished my morning walk and sat down again at my computer, I noticed the message light flashing on the answering machine. I pushed the button to hear my youngest son, my little one, who had called while I was out tell me of his plans for Sunday. I call him my "little one" although he's turned 32 this year. To me, he'll always be the little guy partly because with his developmental handicap, he is still in many ways a child. But mostly because of where he falls in the family lineup.


When we adopted him, he was five--a little too old to be called a baby for one thing. The other reason we had for labeling him our little one was that his older brother, soon to be the middle child, didn't want to lose his status as "our baby." It was a good compromise and makes them both loved for who they are.


At five our little one couldn't talk. He communicated with sounds, pointed fingers, and lots of smiles. He still smiles a lot today. His smile has endeared him to many hearts. His words, and he has many of them, are endearing as well. His language is simple. His talk often stuttered but his humor and his care for others never faulter.


"Mom," he said on the taped message. " I hate to disappoint you but I cannot go to dinner on Sunday with you and Dad."


I hate to disappoint you. It was a phrase I hadn't heard him use before. A grownup-adult-socially correct phrase. My little one is still growing. Still maturing. Still learning. All of this despite what others consider a handicap.


But then in my mother's heart, I look at my other sons. They too are still growing and maturing. Still learning. The lessons are a little harder now as they have responsibilities of family and work but they all continue to make this mother's heart leap with joy and pride--no matter where in the world she may be traveling.

Wordless Wednesday

Vermilion, Ohio's Lester Allan Pelton

While in Vermilion, Ohio, on Saturday, I picked up a brochure put out by the Vermilion Area Archival Society that featured the inventor, Lester Allan Pelton, who grew up in the area. He is noted for the "Pelton Water-Wheel" which produced the first hydroelectric power in the Sierra Nevada Mountains in Calivornia in 1887.

Pelton was born in Vermilion and lived there until he was twenty and, like so many others of his era, got "gold fever." He and about 20 local boys headed west to find their fortune. Pelton worked as a fish peddler for a time supplying miners with the fresh catch of the day. It appears he didn't really care for mining even though he moved closer to the region where it was going on. Instead, he was more a book worm and a skilled tinsmith, carpenter and millwright.

His idea for the water wheel is said to have come when he chased a stray cow by tossing water at it. He noticed the water split, circled the cow's notstrils and came out at the outer edge. He started drawing a water-wheel with split metal cups. That led to experimenting with it in the mines and eventually to making hydroelectic power efficient.

I was impressed. All that from tossing water at a cow. His birthplace is owned privately by some folks who remodeled it after a major fire destroyed a good part of it. You can also see the "Cuddeback School" where he first learned his ABC's.

Our trip to Vermilion also included a stop at a small park area where there was a festival of sorts going on. Corn roasted on an open grill. Homemade goodies and crafts were for sale and the kids were inventively putting together "corn racers." The Rotary Club was sponsoring a craft where kids could put wheels to an ear of corn and race them down a pine derby track. The rain didn't deter the fun and who knows, maybe the racers will spark an idea for a future inventor in the group.

Step Back in Time

On a quest for some good peaches, we drove about an hour to Vermilion, Ohio, this past weekend. We had an address for a roadside market that sold their own farm produce and we found it easily enough. If anyone is in that area, it's called the Aufdenkampe Farm. There were several other places we saw along the way and really, the area between Vermilion and just west of Port Clinton has tons of peach orchards and markets.

After we bought our bag of peaches and tomatoes and corn and I said, "Stop! We can't eat all this," we decided to head into downtown Vermilion to walk around a bit and maybe get some lunch.

Vermilion is a sweet little town that is right on the shore of Lake Erie between Cleveland and Sandusky. As the sign says, "A Small Town on a Great Lake." When we owned a sailboat, we made a few trips there and moored overnight at the Interlake Yacht Club. We'd walk into town for dinner at McGarvey's which is now a Quaker Steak and Lube or as we did on our anniversary, ate at the little french restaurant, Chez Francois. We've also eaten at the Old Prague Restaurant as well hoping to get a taste of the kind of food my aunt used to make. But this Saturday we walked down Liberty Avenue through the center of town and looked for a place for a light lunch. There were lots of choices but the one that caught our eye was Big Ed's Main Street Soda Grill.

The Soda Grill advertised hot dogs and an old fashioned soda fountain. The menu was delightful and included all sorts of burgers, dogs, and assorted sandwiches. The soda fountain was true to its advertising. Real shakes and malts came the old fashioned way--in the metal mixing container with a glass to pour it in. Other fountain items included Brown Cows, Black Cows, and Boston Coolers and something I'd not heard of before, Egg Creme. It's a mixture of chocolate, milk and soda water or seltzer.

Bob ordered a fried bologna sandwich and I ordered a Smokie, "a smoked sausage smothered in our homemade coney sauce, diced onions, and topped with shredded cheddar cheese." We split each sandwich when it came and sampled both. They were terrific!


And so was the atmosphere of the Soda Grill as we munched our sandwiches and sipped our Cokes. The place used to be an old pharmacy and along one wall still stands the display cabinet of the pharmicist of earlier years. It now holds lots of memorabilia from past eras including a collection of glass milk jugs from several different milk companies.

I wish I could have taken more pictures but I had left my camera at home and the cell phone only works so well especially in the rain which started shortly after our lunch. We dashed back to the car and headed home with our fresh produce which, by the way, was the tastiest we've had in a while. I see a peach pie in the future.