A Grand Tour of The Entire Midwest, But Mostly Wisconsin (UPDATE 11/12--BONUS Texas TR NOW COMPLETE)

[Captain_Oblivious]

I'm with julie-----NO ICE!!!

I have never been. DH grew up in Virginia - so trying to balance seeing the big stuff but not spending too much time viewing what he has already seen. I think it would be fun to tour on a Segway - not sure if that will happen or not. We are likely staying near the Inner Harbor. Thanks for the suggestions - anything in Delaware that is a 'not to be missed' or good hiking trails near the border?

D.C. is a great town. If you go on a weekend, you can park at a Metro (subway) station for free. They have day passes for the subway you can get for something like $14 apiece. The Smithsonian museums are all worthwhile, as are the various memorials. The zoo is a good one, also free, and has pandas! We also enjoyed visiting the International Spy Museum.

The big draw in Delaware is our beaches, but it sounds like you won't be anywhere near them. There's not a ton I'd call a "must-see" around the I-95 corridor in Delaware. The University of Delaware in Newark has a very nice campus. You could visit the brand-new First State National Historical Park in old New Castle. For hiking trails, check out this link, although I can't confess to knowing any of them very well. And if you want some good eats, my favorite Philly cheese steak in the world is found at any of the 3 locations of the Claymont Steak Shop.

And here you had the chance to be the 'cool' parents under the cover of 'ok, just because we are on vacation'. I don't know about you - but when I was younger, I didn't care how cold the water was....I always wanted to jump in. Of course I would whine when it was time to get out as it would be too cold.

Yeah, my kids don't really care how cold it is. But the pool was not heated, and it was in the 60's at night...maybe even the 50's. They got some pool time later.

I have to agree - not the first name that comes to mind.

That was a head-scratcher. But hilarious!

Nice family photo!

Hey now, pay attention - you chose to attend. Nerdy was just very passionate about the subject matter.

We paid for a tour. So we thought we would get to tour and see the telescopes. If we'd known it started with an hour lecture that was way over our heads (not to mention the kids), we'd have reconsidered shelling out the dough.

I will take all of her ice. I have to have ice - it was tough in some spots in Europe - I'd ask for ice and only get 2 cubes.

I've heard that about Europe before. Sounds like I'm going to have issues there.

 

[QueenJen]

thanks for the ideas - the spy museum sounds particularly interesting. Just as I finalized the hotels/rental cars for our trip, I noticed that the Redskins @ Philly is a Monday night game during our trip. Had I not booked the cheapest rate on a non-refundable hotel rate during the first part of our trip, I would have changed our flight to be there for that game too. I'm still trying to figure out how to make it work.

We paid for a tour. So we thought we would get to tour and see the telescopes. If we'd known it started with an hour lecture that was way over our heads (not to mention the kids), we'd have reconsidered shelling out the dough.

I can totally understand that. It can be disappointing when something is different (not in an enjoyable way) from what you expected and you paid x 6 for it.

 

[GoofyIsAsGoofyDoes]

Bonus Chapter 3: Easter in the Middle of Nowhere

I thought y’all were in Texas.
How’d you get up into Oklahoma so quickly?

I have to confess, we hadn’t originally wanted to spend a full day and a second night in Fort Davis.

I’m shocked… Shocked to hear this.

However, the resort was booked up due to the holiday weekend
Danged human masses…

Aren’t those other people aware that the holidays are the only time we can travel and so that ought to stay home and out of our way?

I mean…
The nerve of some folk.

Our home in Fort Davis was the Indian Lodge in Fort Davis State Park

Had no idea that was there,
See, now this is why we travel.

Well, it’s why we ought to travel; I just keep not being able to accomplish the task.

…built in the 1930’s by the Civilian Conservation Corps

There were a whole lot of really surprising things built by the CCC before it was declared unconstitutional.

It was fairly basic, as state park accommodations generally are, but was a nice place to stay and offered much nicer views than your average roadside motel.

So, not a Super-8, then?
(and hopefully not a super-fund site either)

As always, the boys begged to be allowed to swim in the hotel pool, since hotel pools have magical properties that draw young boys to them like internet comments sections draw people who should never be allowed near a computer.

But of course!
I have vivid memories of nearly every dinky, poorly maintained, way over chlorinated motel pool that we ever encountered. I can almost taste that water just thinking about it.

Oh, and I probably should never be allowed anywhere near a computer as well.
Coincidence?

Fearing hypothermia, we were the bad guys and said no.

Not sure if we were ever told no…

The benefits of exhausted kids, tended to beat out considerations of bodily injury.
Besides, back then, kids were pretty much a disposable commodity.
You could just make more.

The hotel also had a nice little game room. You could borrow board games and take them back to your room, or just hang out there, hoping the dodgy wi-fi would hold on long enough for you to send an email.

Now, that’s pretty cool.
And I like the added feature of dodgy wi-fi.
With that going for us, I might be able to get everyone to actually sit down and play one of those games.

Unfortunately, none of the flyers informed us when the service was actually supposed to start. But, using our formidable deductive-reasoning skills, we figured it most likely started at sunrise.

And that’s why we pay for them there college ed-u-ma-cations.

Naturally, a dusty and rarely-used portion of my brain…

Wouldn’t that be pretty much all of it?
(would be in my case, at least)

Drew’s favorite spot was the corner where kids could dress up as soldiers

Like you weren’t fighting with him over the best bits of garb pretending to be the Waco Kid…

and carry around what he refers to as “a shooting gun”.

So close…
Get him to drop the “g” off the end of that middle word there and he’ll be well on his way to speaking proper South’rn.

The entire movie about this barely noteworthy fort in the middle of nowhere was narrated by former L.A. Lakers basketball star Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

Come on now…
You were just pulling my lariat.
Right?

He even wore full western cowboy gear for his on-camera appearances and played the whole thing deadly straight.

Completely reasonable…
Just coming off his award winning role as Rodger Murdock, I couldn’t think of a more plausible choise for his next film appearance.


Please tell me there is a copy of this somewhere out there on the internets.

“This sound like the worst movie in the history of movies. Like, even worse than The English Patient. Why would anyone agree to this?”

Truer word have never been spoken.

“You can dress up like a cowboy.”

“YES! GET ME ON A PLANE!”

I’m teiin’ ya’.
Nearly anyone would go out of their way to pretend to be the Sheriff Bart or the Waco Kid.

It was like hiring a TV chef to narrate your office Human Resources videos.

Irish-ka vish-la retirement planish’ka point a fish-ka-lavin com-ta chose-tra-niv-ish ah…

Of course, this meant my mom had to read every single sign about every single piece of furniture.

I’ve got a relative with this same affliction…
Now, just for the sake of argument, imagine this same scenario bring played out, but it also just so happened that your first stop of the day randomly ended up being the rock and mineral section of one of the Smithsonian museums on the National Mall…

Taps foot…
Looks at watch…
Breaths deep sigh…
Look at watch again…


Bless her heart.

We got a photo of us all in our slightly-less-casual Easter finery.

Christmas card Photo!
The sheer randomness of the location and background makes this epic.

(Not to mention that it even shows Drew almost lookin’ in the right direction. Almost…)

After an Easter feast of peanut-butter-and-jelly sandwiches…

Better than peanut-butter-and-jellybean sandwiches.

we moved on to our afternoon attraction: the McDonald Observatory. Being in the middle of nowhere, the Davis Mountains get terrifically dark night skies.

And here is an actual irrefutable good reason to stop in Fort Davis.

My parents left to take Drew back to the hotel for a nap.

Another check mark on their application for the Prenatal Medal of Valor

Shortly afterwards, the clouds began to roll in.

Dang It! So much for good reasons.

Ran into that problem on the 21st.
Luckily we were able to call an audible and move to a better local.

Our guide arrived and greeted us. He introduced himself as Nerdy McDronerson, Ph. D…

I’ve met that guy.
He’s.. Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

We all sat and fidgeted in our seats as Dr. McDronerson delivered a masterful doctoral dissertation on the sun, explaining the intricacies of quasi-periodic vertical oscillatory motion and detection while observing the macroscopic line-of-sight velocity and taking into account the chromosphere through their correlation coefficients and temperature fluctuations of solar flares sending propagating waves affecting the flux capacitor’s readings of isolated Pythagorean Theorem calculations that average out through…

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

molecular deconstruction of soylent green particles as explained by Newton’s Law…

Wait, waaaa?

and the appearance of both Khyber and dilithium crystals, notwithstanding the azimuth of the arc reactor…

Really? Khyber Chrystals? Without implementing force levitation?

Look, I have no idea what he said. All I know is, I’m an engineer. Science and technology are my thing. And at some point, my brain switched over to the channel where I score the game-winning goal in game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals, much like the dad in Inside Out.

The foot is down!
The foot is down!

…but in the meantime he handed my kids the controls to multi-million dollar pieces of research equipment.

Scotty: “Let’s see… Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, B, A, Select Start… Yes! I’m in!”

We somehow managed to escape without destroying anything, and moved on to the Hobby-Eberly Telescope building. This telescope is much newer, larger, more expensive, and can see much farther into space. They didn’t let us touch anything in there.

Can’t imagine why that would be…

By the time we staggered out of that building, we checked our watches and realized that it had been a full three hour tour. A three hour tour…

The weather started getting rough, the tiny ship was tossed…

The owners of this place clearly had a sense of humor, which as you know always bumps a joint up a couple of letter grades in my book. We were about to find out how much of a sense of humor they had.

I like the strategic positioning of the pain relievers in relation to those two signs, myself.

She has often tried to lobby our local representative to introduce legislation to ban ice from the United States. Our local representative has changed his phone number three times.

“Does the presence of ice somehow offend your sensibilities? Or are you unable to comprehend the sight of one material taking on two forms of matter in the same glass? What would happen if the ice were to somehow sublimate directly into a gas at the same time? Would that alter the shape of the universe as we know it?”

This guy was giving my wife crap and used “sublimate” in a sentence. I loved him.

Enjoys tossin’ rocks at rattlers, does he?

But we got a photo of all of the kids looking like they enjoy each other’s company, so that was a win.

Excellent acting skills on their part.

Coming Up Next: A National Park bigger than the state of Rhode Island that somehow remains one of the best-kept secrets of the National Park system.

A bit like Everglades…
Does it have a similar natural defense system?

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

The Air & Space has been on my bucket list before I knew about bucket lists.

As it should be! Space shuttle, SR-71 Blackbird, Enola Gay, and a Concorde all in one building.

<jaw drops>
YES YOU SHOULD HAVE!!!!

D'oh. Sorry for the oversight. If you're ever in eastern Ohio...

https://www.mikesplacerestaurant.com/

Poor planning dude.

I'm sooooo disappointed in you.



Of course you're used to that.

Take a number, get in line...

Just how run down was it that they have to close it for four months to fix it up?

It seemed fine to me. I'm not sure what they plan to do with their renovations.

I don't care how bad he was! Don't toss him in the well!!!!!


Sorry. Still traumatized by Baby Jessica

I remember that!

Of course! That's a truism.
I remember my first road trip when I was 8 or so.
The only thing I wanted to know was if the place we were staying had a pool.

We try to indulge them when we can. Another truism is that if a hotel has a pool, it probably isn't heated and is barely above freezing. And the kids won't care.

You what????

You'd never survive up here.
"Can we go swimming?"
"Well let's see... hmm... there's a hole in the ice... so... sure!"

What can I say? I hate being cold.

Sweet. Did you?

We did grab a game! Don't ask me which one, though. I can't remember.

Oh. They should close the place down for four months and fix that.

That must be it! Wi-fi for everyone!

Love those supporting pillars.

Me too. Very Wilderness Lodge-esque.

Nice! I've only seen one... once.

I guess hummingbirds are to us what polar bears are to you. My parents have a feeder (for hummingbirds, not polar bears) behind their house. They get visitors almost every day.

Sounds really nice.

I'm sure the service was great!

Sure. Makes sense.... until you read on...

There's no accounting for idiots like us.

Whoops!
Did everyone turn to stare at you?
Did anyone mutter "Dang tourists. No respect atall."

They were very nice and welcoming. One couple gave us their handout so we could see the words to the final hymn.

Photographers refer to that as "the golden hour".

It does make for wonderful photos!

You found the home on the range!!!!!

After all these years!

Here in Delaware, there's a sign on one of our highways directing travelers down a side road to a placed called "Home of the Brave". Which, of course, is a line from our national anthem. I get a chuckle when I pass it and think, "So that's where it is."

As opposed to the unreal. Good for you!

I hate those fake national parks.

Thank goodness.
A small patch of the planet not marred by the ever present PC crowd.

I certainly won't start a gun debate here. I do think it's interesting raising boys, though. Julie was very adamant at the beginning that we not have toy guns in the house. So the boys just end up using sticks, bats...whatever they can get their hands on, and pretending they're guns.

As for PC...in the ideal world, it means treating everyone with dignity and respect. In the real world it often means "express yourself and your opinions only in ways that I approve of."

How totally random is that?!?!?

So bizarre! I couldn't stop laughing. Which I don't think was the point of the movie.

I'm sure it was just like that. I doubt they could offer him vast sums of cash for the role.

I did a little research and found out that Jabbar is actually very interested in history, especially the Buffalo Soldiers, which were a regiment of freed slaves who served for a time at Fort Davis. So that must be the connection.

https://www.voanews.com/a/national-parks-road-trip-29-fort-davis/3838131.html

Dude! Warn a guy when you're going to do that!

I don't want to telegraph the jokes!

Crap. But we just got ours!!!


Shoot.

Better get rid of it! It's not historic.

"Over 150 years ago, early American pioneers sat at tables and chairs much like these, and...ate meals."

Nice shot!

Thanks!

Makes sense.
They should put a mall there... with lots of parking... and of course you'll need lots of light for safety.

It's a prime location!

Oh, Lord.... Time to leave.

I really wish we had.

Wonderful! Who doesn't like hearing an expert in his field?

Would you have rather you were there and he was out in the field? With the antelope?

I was wishing I was anywhere else! Or that he was. All I could hear after a while was Charlie Brown's teacher.

....zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Just brutal.

She canna take any more captain!

One of these days, I'll resurrect the "spot the movie reference" game. I just don't have the time to keep track of points.

It does that a lot, doesn't it.

(Not a question.)

He shoots...he scores!

Definitely worth the wait!



ahem

What's that Phil Collins song? "I Don't Care Anymore"?

Should've kept Drew with you.

I bet that would have shortened the talk!

And the weather got rough too!

No sign of Ginger or Mary Ann, though.

It frequently sounds that way.

Hard combo to beat.

Understandable.
Except I don't like water. With or without ice.
Gotta have sugar in it.

It's water, so I can take it or leave it. I like it cold on a hot day. And I like the price of it at restaurants.

My dad is like that... only worse. He's worked construction all his life.
"Break time!"
"Let's see... I've been working like crazy out in the 90 degree sun.... time for some hot coffee!"

He swears it cools him down.

Coffee! Not only is it hot, but it dehydrates you!

I'll never understand that one.

Yuck. Nope!

But... you can't count the number of days?

Dude. I'm thinking even Drew would stop doing that after a time or two.

You'd think I would learn. Part of the problem is that she springs the trap on me at different times, not just after I've mowed the lawn. So my guard isn't always up.

Also, I'm a dope.

That is not water in front of Drew.

Lies!
This report is built on lies!!

I can always count on you guys to fact-check me. If there's a drink other than water (especially in front of Drew), it most likely was included in the meal. That usually happens with kids meals.

Really nice shot of the chilluns.

Thanks!

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

Kind of like the TPA&S section?

Just about exactly like that.

U is smrt.

It's the thought that counts.

Probably not our most spiritual Easter service ever.

Don't deny it... it was your favorite too.

Well...duh.

Well now I almost feel like I need to see that trainwreck. It surely must be on youtube somewhere.

See the photo I posted above!

I had no idea they actually had a camera trained on me in there.

He was even too nerdy for you? No way!

I know, right? I found my limit!

And then Scotty happened???

Thankfully, no. I couldn't afford that.

Well that's anti climactic.

As pkondz noted, that's what I do. I disappoint people.

This has happened more than once? And you haven't learned yet?

Yep, I'm an idiot. Julie gets me when my guard is down. I climb into a hot car. "Want a drink?" "Sure!" (gulp) Blech!

I'm going to go on a limb and guess that this guy got the biggest tip you've ever left.

He was just running the cash register, so I didn't even need to leave a tip! But he certainly went above and beyond.

But, hey they provide endless hours of entertainment reading them. The level of duh never ceases to amaze me.

As a public employee, I learned early on...never read the comments!

Nice Golden Hour shot!

Thanks!

The time-wasting side that needs a shot of side-splitting laughter is half tempted to google this.

I found a photo--see above!

WHAT?! Not PB&Peeps? Where is the Easter in you?

You just said that so I'd post this, didn't you?

That should win a Pulitzer.

Alex, what are "things that have never been said about me"?

So you kept the hidden talent of running tractors off into ditches on the lowdown. Good move.

"Hidden" talent? This is what we do for fun around here.

Ummm.... not to be a pain in your pattootie, I spy with my little eye a salad bar in that there establishment! Or was that conveniently overlooked?

You guys are so picky. I said the menu "basically consisted" of burgers. Not "solely consisted" of burgers. It's TOTALLY different.

So the real question is: Can crap sublimate?

And do we really want to know? I'm not running that experiment.

Kazahs swear to this method. They drink hot tea when it's 45 out saying it makes them sweat and therefore...

I just....I'm at a loss.

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

The pool was heated, no? I swim in those circumstances.

Nope. Ice cold. I wasn't going in there, for sure!

Nice. Do you have them in Delaware?

We do! Always neat to see them. My parents seem to attract a lot with their feeder in their back yard.

That sounds rather random.

Extremely random! As I mentioned above, I googled a bit and it turns out Mr. Jabbar is a bit of an amateur historian.

Being stationed at such a remote fort, he probably reveled in human contact and a captive audience.

I'm sure that was a big part of it. It didn't look like he got out much.

I'm sure my eyes would have glazed over. I can only handle so much technical mumbo jumbo.

It was like Charlie Brown's teacher!

I can understand that. PB&J can only be so filling.

Yeah, it usually results in us looking to eat an early dinner. Which is good, because we typically beat the crowds.

I dunno, I'm with Liesa that I soy the soup and salad bar. I can't read the menu on my phone, but I did see a grilled chicken sandwich, and a ton of sides (which I can't make out).

Yes, yes, there was more than just burgers. Apparently the word "basically" didn't convey my intended meaning, which was that it was a fairly simple menu.

She is weird! I need my water ice cold, there should be more ice than water, keep filling it up as the water is gone and there is only ice left.

Yes! Another vote in the "Julie is weird" column! I don't like it when a restaurant gives me mostly ice, because then it feels like they're being cheap. Unless it's free refills, because then it doesn't matter. But I definitely like my drinks cold.

Now this made me gag. I put bath salts in my bath water and it usually has a green or purple tinge to it (depending on the scent that I choose lavender or eucalyptus) so the image of drinking this was like

Ew. Yeah, that would be much, much worse!

thanks for the ideas - the spy museum sounds particularly interesting. Just as I finalized the hotels/rental cars for our trip, I noticed that the Redskins @ Philly is a Monday night game during our trip. Had I not booked the cheapest rate on a non-refundable hotel rate during the first part of our trip, I would have changed our flight to be there for that game too. I'm still trying to figure out how to make it work.

The only downside to the Spy Museum is that they charge admission, whereas the Smithsonian museums and zoo are free.

I have occasionally had luck cancelling non-refundable reservations by calling the hotel directly. Sometimes they're willing to help you out.

Oh, and go EAGLES!

I can totally understand that. It can be disappointing when something is different (not in an enjoyable way) from what you expected and you paid x 6 for it.

And my kids are fidgeting and whining! (and me too)

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

I thought y’all were in Texas.
How’d you get up into Oklahoma so quickly?

Texas has plenty of nowhere on its own.

I’m shocked… Shocked to hear this.

Hope you were sitting down.

Aren’t those other people aware that the holidays are the only time we can travel and so that ought to stay home and out of our way?

I mean…
The nerve of some folk.

I demand that the world cater exclusively to my whims!

Had no idea that was there,
See, now this is why we travel.

Well, it’s why we ought to travel; I just keep not being able to accomplish the task.

It is always fun to discover new places. However, if Fort Davis had been the only place we'd seen, I would have called it a disappointing trip.

There were a whole lot of really surprising things built by the CCC before it was declared unconstitutional.

I looked it up and didn't see anything about it being declared unconstitutional. Looks like Congress vetoed funding for the corps during World War II and that ended the program. They had many great achievements, and we owe much of our park infrastructure to them.

So, not a Super-8, then?
(and hopefully not a super-fund site either)

Better than a Super 8!

Which I know isn't saying much.

But of course!
I have vivid memories of nearly every dinky, poorly maintained, way over chlorinated motel pool that we ever encountered. I can almost taste that water just thinking about it.

Oh, and I probably should never be allowed anywhere near a computer as well.
Coincidence?

Hmm...you might be onto something there...

Not sure if we were ever told no…

The benefits of exhausted kids, tended to beat out considerations of bodily injury.
Besides, back then, kids were pretty much a disposable commodity.
You could just make more.

We try to say yes whenever we can. After all, it's vacation! We should be having fun. Swimming there didn't seem like a good idea, though.

Now, that’s pretty cool.
And I like the added feature of dodgy wi-fi.
With that going for us, I might be able to get everyone to actually sit down and play one of those games.

But would your son be happy about it?

And that’s why we pay for them there college ed-u-ma-cations.

Served me well, didn't it?

Wouldn’t that be pretty much all of it?
(would be in my case, at least)

I can't believe it took a week for someone to crack that joke!

Like you weren’t fighting with him over the best bits of garb pretending to be the Waco Kid…

The outfits didn't fit. I don't have the same pull as Kareem Abdul Jabbar.

So close…
Get him to drop the “g” off the end of that middle word there and he’ll be well on his way to speaking proper South’rn.

The other day he called it a "blasting gun". Getting more descriptive lately.

Come on now…
You were just pulling my lariat.
Right?

Honest to goodness.

Completely reasonable…
Just coming off his award winning role as Rodger Murdock, I couldn’t think of a more plausible choise for his next film appearance.

Please tell me there is a copy of this somewhere out there on the internets.

Words failed me. He was literally the last person I expected to see.

Truer word have never been spoken.

That was over 3 hours I'll never get back.

I’m teiin’ ya’.
Nearly anyone would go out of their way to pretend to be the Sheriff Bart or the Waco Kid.

I suspect there's a great deal of truth to that statement.

Irish-ka vish-la retirement planish’ka point a fish-ka-lavin com-ta chose-tra-niv-ish ah…

Best. HR. Video. Ever!!

I’ve got a relative with this same affliction…
Now, just for the sake of argument, imagine this same scenario bring played out, but it also just so happened that your first stop of the day randomly ended up being the rock and mineral section of one of the Smithsonian museums on the National Mall…

Taps foot…
Looks at watch…
Breaths deep sigh…
Look at watch again…


Bless her heart.

My kids have even caught on. My parents keep asking if Sarah wants to go to an art museum with them, and Sarah is like, "Please don't make me go! We'll be there for days!"

Christmas card Photo!
The sheer randomness of the location and background makes this epic.

(Not to mention that it even shows Drew almost lookin’ in the right direction. Almost…)

It turned out pretty well, all things considered.

Better than peanut-butter-and-jellybean sandwiches.

I just threw up in my mouth a little.

And here is an actual irrefutable good reason to stop in Fort Davis.

Well....about that...

Another check mark on their application for the Prenatal Medal of Valor

I think you meant Parental, but yes, they are a great help.

Dang It! So much for good reasons.

Ran into that problem on the 21st.
Luckily we were able to call an audible and move to a better local.

I'm thrilled for you that you got to experience the full eclipse!

I’ve met that guy.
He’s.. Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Yep. That's the guy.

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Same dude. Definitely.

Wait, waaaa?

Did I not get the science quite right?

Really? Khyber Chrystals? Without implementing force levitation?

This guy would have come up with the most boring application imaginable.

The foot is down!
The foot is down!

Good job, everyone! That could have been a disaster.

Scotty: “Let’s see… Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, B, A, Select Start… Yes! I’m in!”

I wonder if you can play Pac man on this thing?

Can’t imagine why that would be…

They just took one look at us.

The weather started getting rough, the tiny ship was tossed…

In my defense, the weather did start getting rough outside.

I like the strategic positioning of the pain relievers in relation to those two signs, myself.

Enjoys tossin’ rocks at rattlers, does he?

As a husband, I so rarely get to enjoy moments like that.

Excellent acting skills on their part.

A bit like Everglades…
Does it have a similar natural defense system?

Thankfully...no.

 

[GoofyIsAsGoofyDoes]

Texas has plenty of nowhere on its own.

True, but “Nowhere” is actually located in Oklahoma.


Yeah, yeah, I know… picky detail…

I demand that the world cater exclusively to my whims!

Congratulations!
Now you now are officially and unequivocally American.

I looked it up and didn't see anything about it being declared unconstitutional. Looks like Congress vetoed funding for the corps during World War II and that ended the program. They had many great achievements, and we owe much of our park infrastructure to them.

A good many of the alphabet programs ended up being tossed out.
I was thinking this one was among the list.
(me… thinking?... yeah, that’s pretty unbelievable, ain’t it?)

Makes sense that is was canceled in 42 as folks of that age were obviously needed elsewhere.
Honestly though, I’d like to see that one revived.
I believe it’d be quite useful right about now.

Hmm...you might be onto something there...

Well yeah...
A computer…
Which I shouldn’t be allowed on, obviously…

But would your son be happy about it?

Oh, of course not.
But once we got busy on the game, he’d get over it.

I can't believe it took a week for someone to crack that joke!

I’m old…
I know to respect the classics.

The other day he called it a "blasting gun". Getting more descriptive lately.

Nice advancement, there.
You still go to work on getting’ him to drop the ‘g’s off the end of his ‘ing’s, but otherwise, I’d say he was commin’ right along.

Best. HR. Video. Ever!!

It’s a rare occurance…
Mighty rare…
But every once in a while, I can hit one deep into the bleachers.

Well....about that...

Yeah, I saw.
But I’d already typed it out so I figured I’d leave it in there.

Could have been a better experience, but things conspired to take that away.
Truth is, I’d have likely enjoyed the outing, but I doubt I’d have made the rest of my family deal with it so it likely wouldn’t have gotten done at all. Good that y’all at least gave it a shot.

I think you meant Parental, but yes, they are a great help.

D’oh…

Auto Correct = my kryptonite.

I'm thrilled for you that you got to experience the full eclipse!

Almost missed it.
But it was one of those jaw-dropping moments that we get so rarely in life.

Y’all have encountered many, and I envy you greatly on that score.

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

True, but “Nowhere” is actually located in Oklahoma.


Yeah, yeah, I know… picky detail…

That does seem appropriate.

Congratulations!
Now you now are officially and unequivocally American.

You just have to get rid of those pesky thoughts of selflessness.

A good many of the alphabet programs ended up being tossed out.
I was thinking this one was among the list.
(me… thinking?... yeah, that’s pretty unbelievable, ain’t it?)

Makes sense that is was canceled in 42 as folks of that age were obviously needed elsewhere.
Honestly though, I’d like to see that one revived.
I believe it’d be quite useful right about now.

It's obviously a program that did a lot of good. On the downside, it was a segregated program, as I'm sure that was a product of the time. We could do much better this time around.

Well yeah...
A computer…
Which I shouldn’t be allowed on, obviously…

Have you told your boss that?

Oh, of course not.
But once we got busy on the game, he’d get over it.

All's well that ends well.

I’m old…
I know to respect the classics.

I hate to leave a good setup there like that.

Nice advancement, there.
You still go to work on getting’ him to drop the ‘g’s off the end of his ‘ing’s, but otherwise, I’d say he was commin’ right along.

What can I say? We're Yankees.

It’s a rare occurance…
Mighty rare…
But every once in a while, I can hit one deep into the bleachers.

That was well done, sir.

Yeah, I saw.
But I’d already typed it out so I figured I’d leave it in there.

Could have been a better experience, but things conspired to take that away.
Truth is, I’d have likely enjoyed the outing, but I doubt I’d have made the rest of my family deal with it so it likely wouldn’t have gotten done at all. Good that y’all at least gave it a shot.

You can definitely see the potential. It needs a more dynamic speaker, plus less speaking altogether.

D’oh…

Auto Correct = my kryptonite.

Ever see those websites with AutoCorrect epic fails? Hilarious.

Almost missed it.
But it was one of those jaw-dropping moments that we get so rarely in life.

Y’all have encountered many, and I envy you greatly on that score.

Now THAT is the reason we travel. It's not meant to cause envy, but rather inspiration to have adventures of your own.

Hope you get to experience more.

 

[QueenJen]

I have occasionally had luck cancelling non-refundable reservations by calling the hotel directly. Sometimes they're willing to help you out.

Oh, and go EAGLES!

Thanks so much! Success! I'll be rooting for the other team.

 

[GoofyIsAsGoofyDoes]

Have you told your boss that?

It's far better that they don't fully realize the true gravity of their errors.

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

Thanks so much! Success! I'll be rooting for the other team.

Well, nobody's perfect. Anyway, I'm glad it worked out!

It's far better that they don't fully realize the true gravity of their errors.

I gotcha. Flying under the radar.

 

[Allison Joy]

I'm thrilled for you that you got to experience the full eclipse!

Almost missed it.
But it was one of those jaw-dropping moments that we get so rarely in life.

Y’all have encountered many, and I envy you greatly on that score.

*Pops in from near obscurity, more than a day late and definitely more than a dollar short.*

Eclipse?

Did someone say eclipse???

I got to see totality!! An amazing experience for a self-proclaimed NASA nerd.

We (Mom, dad, oldest brother and me... It works for us) live less than 3 miles from the path of totality. My brother, a bit of an astronomy nerd -- at least at some point in his life -- and I deiced to forgo the Walmart parking lot and headed further into the path. We drove about 30 minutes away to a local conservation area.

We had our glasses, and my brother set up his binoculars to project it, too. Totality was AMAZING! There were approx. 60 of us in the parking area (not an organized watch party... just a good place to watch it!) and there was a collective gasp, "WOW!" and a few claps and cheers.

So here are some pictures.

And in case anyone is wondering, yes, that is me, reading Apollo 13, and wearing a shirt that says "Star Quest" (the children's musical at our church this summer, of which I am one of two assistant directors), while watching an eclipse. NASA Geek trifecta!

My college town, Cape Girardeau, MO is in the path of BOTH this last one and the 2024 one. Right near Carbondale, IL, which is the town everyone talks about as being at the cross-hairs of the two. But I like to gently remind people there's more than one city in the path for both. Ha!

Cape Girardeau is only 2 hours south of me, so assuming my general living situation stays about the same, I fully intend to take a few days off and travel south for the 2024 one also.

 

[pkondz]

Kazahs swear to this method. They drink hot tea when it's 45 out saying it makes them sweat and therefore...

Uh, huh... And what was it again that you called the country?

As it should be! Space shuttle, SR-71 Blackbird, Enola Gay, and a Concorde all in one building.

So.... heaven.

D'oh. Sorry for the oversight. If you're ever in eastern Ohio...

Now you tell me!!

It seemed fine to me. I'm not sure what they plan to do with their renovations.

Put an X-wing fighter out front.

We try to indulge them when we can. Another truism is that if a hotel has a pool, it probably isn't heated and is barely above freezing. And the kids won't care.

That must be it! Wi-fi for everyone!

Mystery solved!

Me too. Very Wilderness Lodge-esque.

That's what it is!

I guess hummingbirds are to us what polar bears are to you. My parents have a feeder (for hummingbirds, not polar bears) behind their house. They get visitors almost every day.

I remember hearing this loud droning sound and not knowing what the heck was happening.

Here in Delaware, there's a sign on one of our highways directing travelers down a side road to a placed called "Home of the Brave". Which, of course, is a line from our national anthem. I get a chuckle when I pass it and think, "So that's where it is."

I certainly won't start a gun debate here. I do think it's interesting raising boys, though. Julie was very adamant at the beginning that we not have toy guns in the house. So the boys just end up using sticks, bats...whatever they can get their hands on, and pretending they're guns.

Yup. Might as well give 'em the (plastic) guns.

As for PC...in the ideal world, it means treating everyone with dignity and respect. In the real world it often means "express yourself and your opinions only in ways that I approve of."

Correct.

Or not. You're wrong! Change that definition!

So bizarre! I couldn't stop laughing. Which I don't think was the point of the movie.

I did a little research and found out that Jabbar is actually very interested in history, especially the Buffalo Soldiers, which were a regiment of freed slaves who served for a time at Fort Davis. So that must be the connection.

Ah. Okay... sorta makes sense then..... sorta...

I still think:

"I've got a famous person to do the video!"
"Wow! Great! Who is it?"
"KAJ!"

"Uh.... no."

I don't want to telegraph the jokes!

Then just pass a note.

All I could hear after a while was Charlie Brown's teacher.

One of these days, I'll resurrect the "spot the movie reference" game. I just don't have the time to keep track of points.

I hear that.
Doing the contest is the toughest part of writing my TRs. Time sucker.

No sign of Ginger or Mary Ann, though.

Shame, really.

It's water, so I can take it or leave it. I like it cold on a hot day. And I like the price of it at restaurants.

True. Hard to beat that price point.

You'd think I would learn. Part of the problem is that she springs the trap on me at different times, not just after I've mowed the lawn. So my guard isn't always up.

Ah, well... I suppose...

Also, I'm a dope.

And there it is.

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

And in case anyone is wondering, yes, that is me, reading Apollo 13, and wearing a shirt that says "Star Quest" (the children's musical at our church this summer, of which I am one of two assistant directors), while watching an eclipse. NASA Geek trifecta!

Wow, you weren't kidding when you said you take this stuff seriously!

My college town, Cape Girardeau, MO is in the path of BOTH this last one and the 2024 one. Right near Carbondale, IL, which is the town everyone talks about as being at the cross-hairs of the two. But I like to gently remind people there's more than one city in the path for both. Ha!

I keep getting confused on this. More than a few people claimed an eclipse like this wouldn't happen again in our lifetimes. Now there's one in 2024?

Uh, huh... And what was it again that you called the country?

I believe that would be "Crapistan".

So.... heaven.

Now you tell me!!

I'm nothing if not helpful.

Put an X-wing fighter out front.

Then it's totally worth it!

I remember hearing this loud droning sound and not knowing what the heck was happening.

Please don't be a bee...please don't be a bee...

Yup. Might as well give 'em the (plastic) guns.

We gave in. I play with them, too.

Correct.

Or not. You're wrong! Change that definition!

That's it! I'm deleting this whole thread!

Ah. Okay... sorta makes sense then..... sorta...

I still think:

"I've got a famous person to do the video!"
"Wow! Great! Who is it?"
"KAJ!"

"Uh.... no."

"But he said he'd do it for free, as long as he can dress as a cowboy."

"Sign us up!"

I hear that.
Doing the contest is the toughest part of writing my TRs. Time sucker.

Yeah, I got to the point where I just didn't have the time. It's fun, and keeps readers along for the ride, but it is a time suck for sure. Also, the movie quotes were usually the best part of the writing.

Shame, really.

Agreed.

True. Hard to beat that price point.

If it's free, it's for me!

Ah, well... I suppose...

Yes!

And there it is.

Crap.

 

[pkondz]

I'm nothing if not helpful.

So when you're not helping, you're nothing?

Please don't be a bee...please don't be a bee...

More like "Please don't be the world's largest bee that will be able to easily punch through that flimsy screen."

We gave in. I play with them, too.

Lucky. I only had Barbies and dolls with mine.

That's it! I'm deleting this whole thread!

Farewell cruel world!

"But he said he'd do it for free, as long as he can dress as a cowboy."

"Sign us up!"

Yeah, I got to the point where I just didn't have the time. It's fun, and keeps readers along for the ride, but it is a time suck for sure. Also, the movie quotes were usually the best part of the writing.

There was a best part?

 

[franandaj]

Yeah, I got to the point where I just didn't have the time. It's fun, and keeps readers along for the ride, but it is a time suck for sure.

I found when I did the contest I lost readers. They weren't competitve enough (except for Liesa) and they didn't care enough, the contest became yet another burden.

 

[pkondz]

I found when I did the contest I lost readers. They weren't competitve enough (except for Liesa) and they didn't care enough, the contest became yet another burden.

Interesting. I get mixed reactions. Some people like 'em, some don't. I never tell people they have to play, of course... but I do wonder if some flee because of it.
Then again, I wonder if I gain some because of it.

Should do a poll.... Except I'm too lazy.

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

So when you're not helping, you're nothing?

Precisely. And I don't help much.

More like "Please don't be the world's largest bee that will be able to easily punch through that flimsy screen."

Yes. That would be terrifying.

Lucky. I only had Barbies and dolls with mine.

Those combined with BB guns can still be fun.

There was a best part?

Hey, if I'm stealing lines from Die Hard or The Shawshank Redemption, it can't help but improve the TR.

I found when I did the contest I lost readers. They weren't competitve enough (except for Liesa) and they didn't care enough, the contest became yet another burden.

Interesting. I get mixed reactions. Some people like 'em, some don't. I never tell people they have to play, of course... but I do wonder if some flee because of it.
Then again, I wonder if I gain some because of it.

Should do a poll.... Except I'm too lazy.

I think if it's simple and fun, it works pretty well. I find that my time is limited, so if it's something I can do in the moment without a terrible amount of thought, it's fine. If it requires me to remember tiny details from past TR's or time to research the answer, then I probably won't bother with it. Ultimately I'm there to read about my friends' experiences. The contests I can take or leave.

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

Sorry I'm slow on the updates to this TR. Life has been very busy the last couple of weeks! I'm hoping things calm down soon.