Ohio, The Buckeye State

Posted on October 7, 2013October 7, 2013 by Dusty Roads

We’ve reached the “O” states. The first of which is Ohio and another No for the count.

Ohio is called the Buckeye State after the Buckeye tree, one of the first to leaf in the spring and the official state tree. But I rather like the Buckeye Cookie, a peanut butter and chocolate delicacy.

Without even doing any research I know one place I want to go….The Columbus Zoo.

Why you ask? Well besides liking zoos I especially want to see this zoo. This is Jack Hanna’s zoo. Recognized around the country as America’s favorite zookeeper, Jack has made countless television appearances since 1983 on shows such as Good Morning America, CNN’s Larry King Live, The Ellen DeGeneres Show, The Talk, Fox News Programs, and the Late Show with David Letterman. Jungle Jack is Director Emeritus of the Columbus Zoo.

Columbus , Ohio also hosts one of the Premier Ballroom Dance Competitions, The Ohio Star Ball. This was very big when I was involved with Arthur Murray Dance Studios and although people went from the studios where I was either a student or working, I never managed to go. Sometimes it would be broadcast on PBS. This was long before “Dancing with the Stars”.

When I think of Amish Country I think of Pennsylvania but Ohio boasts a one of the largest concentration of Amish settlements in the US. Travelers can follow a 76 mile Amish Country Scenic Byway. On the eastern edge of Amish country is the picturesque village of Zoar. Many of the fine historic homes have been preserved as Zoar Village State Memorial, where visitors can take guided tours and costumed interpreters give craft and cooking demonstrations.

Not of interest to me but possibly to others is the Pro Football Hall of Fame located in Canton, Ohio. So plan to divert there for the football fans in your entourage or you’ll never hear the end of it!

Between Columbus and the Ohio River to the southeast is a scenic area that is not well known except in the Midwest. Known as Hocking Hills the area is made up of several state parks and reserves. Cliffs, gorges and caves were created here as glaciers retreated and water scoured the sandstone laid down on an ancient river delta. At the northern end is Rock House, a 300 foot tunnel along a sandstone cliff face with enormous window like openings carved out overtime by water erosion. And just outside the park is the 100 foot natural bridge at Rockbridge State Nature Reserve, a stunning 50 feet above the bottom of the gorge.

If you want to think you are seeing double, Twinsburg, Ohio is host to “Twin Days”. Started in 1976 this gathering of twins, triples and even Quads and Quints , has grown to attract the multiples from around the world. Over 3000 sets converge annually on this little town of 17,000! The festival is held the first full weekend in August.

Other notable attractions are the Lake Erie Islands in northern Ohio, an archipelago that stretches north from Marblehead Peninsula across the placid water of Lake Erie and the Serpent Mound in Peebles, Ohio; a remnant from the ancient mound -building cultures. This mound has been estimated to have been constructed around 1070.

So Ohio has a lot to offer a curious vacationer.

The score now 12 to 23

Oh the Weather Outside is Frightful!

Posted on October 6, 2013October 6, 2013 by Dusty Roads

We’ve been talking about the “Dakotas” , North and South, so I couldn’t help but notice the weather out there. Wow! Have you seen the pictures? A blizzard hit the whole region!

Rapid City, where we went on vacation a couple of years ago, got 21 inches of snow. Temps are struggling to reach the 30’s when it was 85 last week! Here is a partial report from the AP.

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Brenda Nolting, of Rapid City, S.D., rolls her cart to her car after stocki…

PIERRE, S.D. (AP) — In the span of 24 hours, the scenic Black Hills in South Dakota were coated in up to three and a half feet of wet, heavy snow, one of several Great Plains states walloped by a storm system that’s caused millions of dollars in damage.

Wind gusts of up to 70 mph were recorded in the Black Hills, National Weather Service meteorologist Katie Pojorlie said Saturday morning, but the snow was expected to end later Saturday, giving people a chance to start digging out from the unusual early fall snowstorm that set records.

But wintry weather wasn’t the only thing wrapped into the powerful cold front, as thunderstorms brought heavy rain, hail and tornadoes in Nebraska, Iowa and South Dakota. No one died in the tornadoes, reports said, but snow was blamed in the deaths of three people who were killed in a traffic accident on U.S. 20 in northeast Nebraska.

Forecasters said the front would eventually combine with other storms to make for a wild — and probably very wet — weekend for much of the central U.S. and Southeast.

Pojorlie said the historic mining city of Lead, S.D., in the northern Black Hills had received 43 ½ inches of snow by 7:30 p.m. Friday and more had fallen overnight. Rapid City had 21 inches, but 31 inches was recorded just a mile southwest of the city.

Farther south at the Black Hills Wild Horse Sanctuary, the mustangs found themselves in a winter wonderland.

Tornados touched down in near Wayne, Nebraska but thankfully there were only minor injuries.

Is the weather getting crazy or what?!

A Mayor Stubbs Update

Posted on October 5, 2013October 5, 2013 by Dusty Roads

Stubbs Mayor Cat

I am sorry to report that we have experienced a number of setbacks and Mayor Stubbs has not recovered as quickly as we had hoped. Poor Stubbs must remain still for most of the day to aide his recovery and is still experiencing pain. I’m afraid the extent of his injuries coupled with his advanced years are draining on him. We all pray for his recovery.

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Does this mean They are Buddies?

Posted on October 5, 2013October 5, 2013 by Dusty Roads

There has been some tension between my oldest cat, Smokey

and the newcomer, Buddy.

Buddy is almost 3 lbs. heavier and bigger than Mr. Creaky Pants. Plus Smokey was declawed when I got him so he is handicapped in any confrontation. Too many times I saw Buddy stalking Smokey and Smokey trying to slink away like a prey animal. When I would see that I would distract Buddy but I didn’t like it. I worried about what went on when I was not home.

My pet sitter said they got along fine when she was in the house. She felt the behavior was caused by jealousy and that was why it only showed up when I was at home because I’m the “mama” and they all want my attention.

Now that I ‘ve been working from home for a few months the behavior seems to have subsided. Smokey doesn’t act afraid and timid anymore and Buddy picks on Rocky, who is quite capable of holding his own.

In fact if Buddy and Rocky mix it up too much, Smokey jumps into the fray and starts batting them with his declawed paws. The combatants always separate for him. I think I need to get him a little striped shirt.

Speaking of Rocky and Buddy, they have what I think is a strange behavior. Cat lovers, have you had this in your multi-cat homes?

One of the two cats approaches the other. It starts a grooming behavior by licking the ears and head of the other cat. This goes on for a bit and just when you think ohhh, so cute…bam! The first cat pounces on the one that was just being groomed. It makes me think of the hand shake before a fight. Then they go bumping and rolling around the room. Growls and hisses are common but they have their ears pointed forward. I assume they are playing because the ears are not laid back. No blood is drawn. The next day the whole ritual is repeated again but usually its the other cat that starts the grooming.

This morning when I went into the bedroom to make my bed there were two cats sleeping there! Buddy and surprise, Smokey. They had bunched up the comforter between them like a wall to separate them. That’s the closest I’m seen them. Does this mean they are finally becoming friends?

There is never a dull moment around here!

North Dakota

Posted on October 4, 2013October 4, 2013 by Dusty Roads

I’ve been to the southern cousin, South Dakota, but not North Dakota. Lets see what I’ve been missing here.

The big thing that comes to mind is prairies.

North and South Dakota have always made me think of those rolling plains and herds of buffalo. After the Homestead Act opened the prairie lands to farming and the prairie grasses were uprooted for agriculture, the dry winds began to blow leading to the Dust Bowl years of the 1930’s. By then the sea of grass and the great buffalo herds that sustained the Plains Indians were almost completely gone.

In 1933 the federal government stepped in and began buying and restoring the damaged prairie lands. But it wasn’t until 1960 that a system of national grasslands was implemented.

As bad as the damage to the grasslands was, what was done to the buffalo was even worse. Those great herds were gone not just because of the destruction of the prairie but because the white men went on a planned campaign of extermination. Sorry folks, I just get very upset over the way humans handle themselves sometimes. (Between you and me, not much has changed in my opinion) But I’m getting off track here. My point is that The Little Missouri National Grassland is a part of that network of national Grasslands. One million acres of ecologically diverse mixed-grass, prairie, canyon and forest surround Theodore Roosevelt National Park. Antelope, deer, coyotes, bighorn sheep and buffalo make their home here and I want to see it!

And Speaking of Native Americans, the largest Native American Powwow takes place in September in Bismarck, North Dakota. The United Tribes International Powwow attracts thousands of dancers and drummers from many tribes. The Native Americans compete in 22 dance categories for upwards of 15,000 visitors. We missed a Powwow in South Dakota when we got lost on the Pine Ridge Reservation but that would have been small compared to this. I’ll have to plan my visit to see this!

Another historic site that would be good to see is Fort Mandan and the Lewis and Clark Trail. Near by to the restored fort is the Knife River Indian Villages Historic Site. Ruins of several villages including Sacajawea’s are preserved here.

And the last thing on my North Dakota list is the International Peace Garden. The brain child of Canadian horticulturist Henry J Moore, became reality in 1932. Moore had envisioned a grand garden the would straddle the U.S. – Canadian border, dedicated to our two nations friendship and peaceful coexistence. Many of the roads , bridges and shelters were built in the 1930s by the CCC, Civilian Conservation Corp. Today the Peace garden has 2,339 acres of gardens, forests, manicured landscapes, fountain and walking paths. Its only 200 miles north of Bismarck. I should be able to squeeze that in don’t you think?