Idyllic weekend in Granville OH

Saturday morning we awoke to another bugless, cool morning requiring slippers and long sleeve shirts or fleece. Another day in paradise. We ate an unheathy breakfast then made the arduous journey (Rich's memory was not in sync with Lyn's Google maps) into Granville. 

Granville is an idyllic town with a New England flair adjacent to Denison  University. The town is about 5 square miles and 3500 people, and the school (founded in 1831) is maybe 1.5 square miles (large nature preserve) and 2300 students. Some of the more well-known Denison alum include Steve Carrell and Jennifer Garner.

The "downtown" was quaint with shops and a street market, and a policeman whistling traffic and pedestrians on main street. We got some BBQ for lunch and then some frozen custard and sat outside waiting for Tom and Becky who were only an hour and a half late (Steve wanted to start drinking but I held him back).

I asked how old the building was at the custard shop, and the shopkeeper said he was not sure but sparked up saying he was only there 2 years, but when they were painting the front, he noticed the painters were spending a lot of time prepping. Turns out the "brick" facade was really carved in wood!

When Tom & Becky arrived, we headed up to the campus and had a look around. During our walk through the campus, one of the Denison deer made an appearance. It was a quick one but we managed to capture it on film before it went off into the trees. The school has no mascot at the moment. They used to have an Indian mascot, but keeping with the politically correct movement, they did away with it. Perhaps they should use Denison Venison as the mascot, but that would probably upset the vegans. 

Idyllic still applies, and a cool August day may be a little different than a cool January day, but that's why they go away to school! Kinda reminded me of where I went to school, only one third the girls, talk about a thin herd. Chris will probably have the situation sized up by Monday noon!

Chris was kept pretty busy by the school, but we did manage to get an audience, which he patiently endured, then we went back and cleaned up for the evenings festivities. Carolyn had found a very nice B&B they were staying at, and they had arranged to have a table of wine and cheese for us on the porch.

Set on 15 acres, the Welch Hills Inn has 6 rooms spread throughout it's 6000 sq ft. Like the countryside, it also had it's ups and downs and was very tastefully done, a repository for the owners collections. (Google it, there wasn't anywhere flat to park the motorhome, so it's not getting any more space in my blog!)

 We then headed back "downtown" to the Granville Inn for dinner, which was very elegant. The inn was opened in 1922 and recently taken over by the university.

After dinner we were standing outside in the chilly evening air, (with no bugs) and Tom disappeared. Soon he returned with a wood crate of Sanders toppings for me!! He felt so bad for not having any beer or wine for us after inviting us over on Saturday, that he must make up for it! You're forgiven Tom!

On the way back the girls took their turn piloting while others may have napped!

Friday morning we pulled in the slides and loaded up with Jim and Jenny for the trip to Granville, Ohio. This was to be 260 miles to meet up with Steve and Carolyn who were dropping their son Christopher at Denison to start school. Tom and Becky would join us Saturday.

This trip was plodding though Detroit, bypassing the part of I-75 where the southbound bridge over the Rouge River was closed (for 2 years!). Toledo was clogged up with construction. But the last half of the ride was 4 laners through nice countryside. Eventually we got to the Lazy River Campground. We had to go down a narrow, overgrown road to get there, but it was a very nice site. 

We got level and hooked up, and feeling pretty special, deployed the steering wheel table and doily, and got our party faces on. Steve and Carolyn had not yet seen the rig and they were going to turn up with meat to BBQ.

We took a walk to work up an appetite. It was a nice family campground, with a little creek (Lazy River) running through. Somehow there were no bugs (YAY!!) There was also a climbing wall and a zip line! Turns out the plumbers and pipe fitters union was going to have their annual picnic at the other end of the campground (expecting 700?!?!)

S&C arrived and we carried on, but the Lord must have thought we were not being humble enough, as in pulls a Entegra Cornerstone (starting MSRP $692K) right next to us, and out comes a young guy maybe 40, and proceeds to set up camp. No I didn't ask him how much it cost, and yes I wiped the drool off before he could see it. I did ask him what motor he had, "I think its a Cummins?". I thought it was mighty nice of him to not rub in that it had 605 HP. They had just bought it in Texas and were working their way back home (Ottawa, Canada). He didn't look like a drug dealer or a musician!

We were able to eat outside and had a great evening until it got too cold. Now I know some of you readers in warmer climes think I am teasing you about 106 degree days, but really I was just pointing out there were no bugs after dark either!

Moonlit (Birthday) Cruise!

Thursday was a clean and prep day for the trip to Ohio. It was Jenny's birthday also, with a steady stream of callers and visitors. That evening we went on a Moonlight cruise, a Parkinsons fundraiser on the Ovation, a 128 foot 3 deck party boat with about 125 other folks, who all enjoyed food and libation, as well as music from 2 bands and an auction. It was a beautiful night but a little chilly depending on which direction the boat was headed. 

The Captain zipped right through a sail boat race, and headed towards the Detroit River. The sun set behind the Detroit skyline, with the band playing at the rear of the top deck. Jenny knocked on the door of the pilot house and the captain invited her in!

Our cousin Jeff owns a few car dealerships in the area and was a sponsor and is the Chairman of the board. We got to talking and he described the trip he had just returned from: 1200 miles in 16 days around to Lake Michigan and back. A 64 foot Hatteras with 2 V12s that can cruise at 37!

Then the Trent-Severn waterway popped up in the conversation about other places to go. Pete and Jim had mentioned it last week. It's a 240 mile system of locks and canals from Lake Huron to Lake Ontario. Clearly a serious boater!

Roadtrip to the People Mugger!!

Of course when you get a new car, you tend to want to use it, and Jenny thought we should go downtown to the RenCen as Lyn missed it on the boat ride. We stopped by the dealer to drop off the old title. Jenny was under specific instruction to not talk about or look at other cars. I still had to retrieve her.

We drove by old stomping grounds and could see changes, in some cases better since previous visits. We stopped at Belle Isle.

Located on an island in the Detroit river it was once a beautiful park with about a 6 mile long loop. It was turned over to the state in '13 and now a state park. They have a Gran Prix race on the wide road, and the fountain is beautiful. There is the Detroit Yacht Club and a museum and all the other sorts of things one would expect,  but few people while we were there.

We continued downtown. We made it to Greektown and the clouds opened up literally. Jim dove into one of those garages with the circular ramps and headed up in case of high water. We also parked there. By the time we got to the street, it had stopped but water everywhere. We found a Greek restaurant to eat some Moussaka.

Jenny's plan all along had been to tour downtown Detroit on the people mover. there are 13 stops on a train that loops around downtown. Fare is 75 cents per entry. We got off at the RenCen and walked around in the 4 story lobby. They were renovating part of it, but still impressive. About three quarters of the towers are occupied by GMs Global Center. Turned out the renovations were for the automobile display area. It's right at the Detroit River so we walked out there and wished we were millennials so we could work down there and live in all some of the condos/old houses that are left and very trendy now!

We drove up Gratiot which looked better, and visited the folks grave sites. Then drove through some neighborhoods. In that area maybe 1 of 10 or less of the houses still existed, and in various condition from burned to good shape! It's something you have to see, to even partially understand what has happened to a city that used to be 1.8 million people and now is under 700,000.

Commemorating the eclipse!

Monday was hot, up to 87! We needed a plan. Let's go back to the Subaru dealer again!! They liked us and put on an air show last time.

This time they had seal coated and striped the parking lot! Eric ran out to meet us, then introduced us to Renee. She and Jenny hit it off. Once they figured out we were actually interested, they called for an eclipse (we'll move heaven and earth to sell you a car!) and the next thing you know we're driving home in a new Outback! (I left out a little here)

It got a little dark during the negotiating but things turned out well! Eyesight, (the Subaru lane warning, brake warning, etc), electric lift gate, nice radio, heated mirrors and seats, and 100,000 mile/7 year  b to b warranty!

We drove home proudly and had steak for dinner! 

Day 24 and 25: A quiet weekend

For a weekend, Saturday and Sunday seemed quieter, perhaps because many boats were down watching the air show. Jim and Jenny drove up to Charlevoix for a wedding. We worked on a few things Saturday and drove to Tom's for dinner. 

He has a nice view from the 23rd floor.

He can keep an eye on the poachers in the community garden. Tom's a Master Gardener and they moved the state fair from 8 mile to Lansing, when they realized he was winning all the awards for his veggies and lived in a condo🍅😉

There wasn't any question about where to go: Buddy's Pizza. They have a deep dish which has a great light crust and you don't have to wait if you order the Antipasto (which is more like a all you can eat salad). If I hit the powerball tonight, I am going to franchise it in CA. 

Tom was worked up, and I had to slap his fingers a few times 'cause he kept grabbing the tongs and Becky scolded  him on his humor. Eventually he calmed down and we rewarded him by ordering a second pizza😋🍺.

Sunday we visited with the locals (from Colorado) and discussed environmental conditions (the neighbor up river that throws his grass clippings in the river), dog poop, sea walls and boaters that come too close. Then we went to the San Souci for some perch on the patio🍺🍷.  one thing lead to another....

about 5, the boaters were streaming back from the airshow

Sheriff wants to know how many life vests