To start off... I did not plan to go home to Ohio to visit my family in case the predictions were true that the so called "last days" were ahead of us. No, it just so happened that back in December Sam got a wedding invite from a friend for a wedding in Northern Ohio. Sam really wanted to go to the wedding, so I thought it was the perfect opportunity to combine that with a visit to the homeland in a time of year that doesn't suck in Ohio (FYI: 2 out of 12 months of the year do not suck in Ohio: May and October. The rest are either too hot or too cold or just plain unattractive.) So, I wrangled down some dates with my folks and coherced my brother David, who lives in Manhattan, to come home that weekend (it was his birthday weekend) too.
I was looking forward to visiting home for several reasons:
- Seeing my mom and dad whom I hadn't seen since Colorado in October
- Going to a Cincinnati Reds game
- Showing Sam the area in which I grew up
- meeting my brothers new beau
- going to the farm
I was also hoping that maybe it'd be warm enough to where the lightning bugs would be out (we interestingly enough, don't have lighting bugs in the PNW) and that I could also experience a classic Midwestern Thunderstorm (which, we don't have in the PNW either. Yes we have rain, but no storms.)
So flash forward to the trip....
We got in early Thursday morning on the 19th, drove all the way from CVG to Hillsboro. Got up early (mind you our bodies are still on West Coast time) and drove all the way back to Cincinnati to catch a nooner with the Reds. Upon getting our tickets, I walked past a reporter and mugged for the camera. Without fail... the reporter stopped me and asked a question regarding my thoughts on a ticket tax to help pay for the Great American Ballpark. Sam and I gave the man a few bites and then we carried on our merry way into the stadium. We got some decent tickets in left-center field where we were privy to a fair amount of home-run action. Sadly though, most of it was not for the Reds; however, Jay Bruce did hit TWO home runs... so I'm not complaining about that. At the end all, the Reds lost the game and moved from first place down into a spot in the rankings that is slightly less desirable. As I speak... it seems to be a steady downward spiral of losses... I guess I have that effect on them.
After the game we head to Fountain Square where we have planned to meet up with my little friend Emily. I say "little friend Emily" to distinguish from my other friends named Emily who are not so little or so young, but I forget that Emily is not so little anymore. It's not that she gained a bunch of weight or anything... but she just finished her Freshman year of college. Regardless, in my mind she will forever always be my little friend Emily... I just won't call her that in public anymore. Anyways, LFE (little friend emily) and I go way back... and it was nice to catch up and talk about her school and everything over some affordably priced apps and horrible beers at McCormick and Schmicks.
Which brings me to something else I hate about the midwest (aside from 10 months out of the year that I mentioned prior)... they have horrible beer selection at most bars and grocery stores. If you want a pint on draft, it's going to be a Budwiser or Miller product. If you want what they consider a "microbrew" you're gonna have to settle for a Sam Adams. Something exotic? Heineken... or perhaps Rolling Rock (because it comes in a green bottle). And yeah... if some place does have a good beer... it comes in a bottle. And, you're gonna have to pay $4 for that bottle, which is about as bad of a rip-off as paying $5 for watered down Budwiser at a Reds game. And, that reminds me of another thing that could use some help in the midwest.... their coffee. Sigh... maybe it's just a user error, but I should teach my dad about water to gind ratio or something. Or, maybe in the future I'll just get them a french press so I can use that when I come to visit? One way or another, before I left Portland I picked up two bags of freshly roasted beans from Stumptown (which, as a traveling tip... not only makes a great hostess gift, but makes your luggage smell like heaven.)
Oh... I degress: upon getting back to Hillsboro after the game and an early dinner, I find a note on my facebook wall from a former classmate of mine who lives in Hillsboro saying "jenn, did I just see you on the local 12 news?" So yes, apparently Sam and I's newsbites made the cut and we appeared on the local 6 o'clock news. How bout that... not even in Ohio for 24 hours and I make the news. Winning.
On Friday we awoke, had breakfast on the back porch (thanks mom for the pancakes and Bob Evans sausage!) and set off for the afternoon to show Sam the farm, lunch at Frisches, and go to the Amish area to gawk at their primitive ways (I kid!). I really enjoyed getting to show Sam the farm and my favorite part about it... the barn. It's so sad how weather and time has taken it's toll on it... what used to be such a majestic aspect of the landscape is now slowly breaking down bit by bit and year by year. Every time I go back home I go pay a visit to the barn and each time it makes me more sad. However, at least it was structurally sound enough to take Sam up into the hay loft and show her the awesome peg construction, beautifully weathered wood, and my great uncles graffiti on the inside of the barn. Mom also showed us all the work that she and dad had been doing to the land and how the blueberries (their new venture) were coming along.
Friday night David and Christopher came into town. We greeted them and had a nice dinner out on the back porch swapping stories and pouring wine.
Saturday Sam and I awoke, got a quick run in, and left for Vermillion Ohio, where the wedding was to be. It was only about a three-so hour long drive, but in that time Sam got to see most of Ohio. From tip to tip, water line to water line. By the time we stopped at a hotel to change clothes and got to the church, we had about five minutes to spare. Sam ran into her friend and our new friends for the weekend and bam... just like that... the wedding started and the wedding was over. Lovely, beautiful, nice flowers, etc. Afterwards we grabbed some food and walked around the lovely hamlet of Vermillion. I am sure I've been to this part of Northern Ohio before... but in my more experienced and well traveled present tense, I'd say that it was a cute little coastal town that reminded me much more of something one would find in Connecticut than in Ohio. Win.
The wedding reception was to start at about the same time as the Rapture... so I figured grabbing wine from the bar at the Yacht club was a good way to start the action and sit back watch the show. Sadly, nothing seemed to be happening, so I started mingling and before you knew it... we had to take our seats, there were toasts, and then dinner was served. After dinner came dancing and after dancing came more dancing. (Speaking of which, did I ever mention how good of a dancer my girlfriend Sam is? Did I mention that the more she drinks the better she is? No? Well then... I guess this will be that moment that I mention it.) All in all, it was a great reception, everyone had a blast and no one disappeared as a part of the rapture.
Sunday it was up early with one slightly hungover companion for the ride back home to Hillsboro. Needless to say, there was not much conversation for the drive. But, I guess that's just what happens when you're as good of a dancer as Sam is. We arrived back home by noon and then were instantaneously whisked away by mom (with David and Christopher) to see some farming action LIVE! Christopher and Sam both got to sit and take a ride around in the large John Deere and learn more about the farming process. Afterwards, we hung around the farm playing on all sorts of outdoor equipment like the deprived city kids we've become. It was a lot of fun and we all really enjoyed ourselves.
Afterwards, we swung through town to pick up some ice cream from UDF and then made our way to Serpent Mound. However, not to long before we reached the great effigy of the prior inhabitants of Southern Ohio, we got stuck in a massive thunderstorm. And when I say massive, I am talking about HUGE ice cube tray sized hail being hurled down from the heavens onto our car. Mom pulled the car off the road and under a tree to try and protect it while Sam had to pretty much restrain me from running outside of the car to examine the approximate size of the hail. I was like a kid in a friggin candy store. SO SO SO excited! (Did I mention that I really wanted to see a classic midwestern thunderstorm?... yeah... I did. :) Anyways, we decided that walking around outside in a storm was nothing we wanted to do, so we aborted the mission and went back home.
Dinner was a great affair that involved the whole family. Sam BBQ'd the chicken, mom made dinner rolls, David and Christopher made guac and asparagus and I sat and drank margaritas, that's called teamwork. It was a feast and afterwards we went for a walk till the rains chased us back indoors. When the rains subsided, we all put on our swim suits and made way for the hot tub. Needless to say, we all slept like babies that night.
Basically, overall, all in all, henceforth, therefore it was a great trip back home. For as much as I make fun of Ohio (and I do), I do love and miss certain things about it. It was so nice to be able to dip into that bag of memories and see the changes and appreciate where you come from and where you're at now. Special thanks to Mom and Dad for housing us and mom for all the tour info, David and Christopher for coming in and being cute and dressing alike, Megan for the great wedding and reception, Meg Berry for being fun, Randy for the John Deere photo ops, and special thanks to Sam for not running away when confronted with a gaggle of Levos. :)
