Vancura Valedictory
So…here’s my plan: Nearly everyone who knew Barry Vancura knew that he was all about Christmas. He loved shopping for gifts, getting just the right gift for everyone on his list–which was extensive, getting “a deal” on the items which met his exacting criteria, decorating for the holiday (What ? You think that he didn’t have a hand–or at least...
All You Need is Love
Well, not exactly. The Beatles got a lot of things right but this sentiment is not really gonna cut it when it comes to public works…like, say, the Portage County Park District. Saturday, April 22, was the annual Portage Park District Foundation recognition benefit dinner event, giving credit where credit was due to many of the folks (not all, mind...
April Fooled!
So far, April has been fairly nondescript…except for the tree falling on the front porch, of course. And there’s no a whole lot going on after Easter, unless you’re into Earth Day–like the Portage County Park District, which will hold its annual Awards event on the twenty-second in Kent–or are interested in the new moon (which means that you...
Hoppin’ Down the Bunny Trail
Most interesting Easter in a while. Got an invitation to brunch which I had to turn down because it landed smack in the middle of church, which ran long on account of technical difficulties to start with, then just because it’s Easter, involving all sorts of “pomp & circumstance” and majorly long hymns of celebration (Charles Wesley never could...
DANG!! Where Did I Put My Ruby Slippers??
They’re not around here, that’s for darn sure. Maybe they’ve made it to Kansas, though it would be more likely that they’d wind up in PA, the way that wind was whooping it up from the West on Saturday. All of the wind warnings in the world can’t help you much, if the trees do not tip-toe out of...
H&G Amish Style
At the Amish Home & Garden Show, which took place just last weekend, there’s one thing you can count on finding, no matter what you came for in the first place, and that’s –FOOD. You can hit the Auction House Restaurant (which features the Farmers’ Grill) or just browse around to all of the candy shops, kettle corn, Easter candy,...
Grrrrrrr
I am starting (again) to get cranked-out by people being utterly unaware of the fact that what they are doing–or NOT doing–is affecting other people, and not in a good way. In short, people are starting to bug me. Imagine that! Now, I am not, in any way, shape or form, implying that I never do this sort of thing...
Easy Riders?
Well, they did it again. They came. They saw. They caught a break in the weather and had a very successful Road Apple Roubaix on Saturday (March 4, 2023) in Garrettsville…and surrounding locales, as they took to the roads, out-and-about, returned to Slim & Jumbo’s and generally made a day of it. Numerous bike-friendly businesses–Eddie’s Bike Shop, Mountain Road Cycles,...
Winter Wonderland?
So… I’ve been wondering a whole bunch of stuff about this so-called winter which we have been having. It seems that there are records of all sort being broken all over the place…highest temperature on such-and-such a date…least amount of snow for whatever month…lowest temperature on some other date (Thank God every day that we do not live in...
WWJD: Finding A Place To Park
When you’re a “nomad” traveling in a camper van finding a place to park for the night can get tricky; by “tricky” I mean difficult or down right impossible! I am currently in the Florida Keys and most businesses as well as land owners are not keen on letting people sleep on their property. Sure, there are rest stops...
Unseasonable?
If it’s Thursday, this must be Springtime. There was a book or movie once-upon-a-time about someone taking a European tour–one of those guided rat-races through the continent–where nobody gets a chance to do much more than spot the Eiffel Tower on their way to the London Bridge. The name of the movie (or book, whatever) was, I think, “If It’s...
A February Spring Is Not Worth A Thing!
So opines the Old Farmer’s Almanac (Actually the Old Farmer says it’s “not worth a pin,” but I took a few poetic liberties to improve {?} the rhyme). February has a number of putative highlights: andlemas/Groundhog Day, the Full Snow moon (Doesn’t seem to have been very consequential, at least around here), St. Valentine’s Day/ Sts. Cyril & Methodius...
Merrily We Roll Along…
Well, sorta… “Merrily” might be overstating just a tad, but I sure did some rolling. First off, was the trip to Kentucky–Glasgow, Kentucky, to be specific, a trip of some seven or so hours, making good time. The high-rollers on the JAG Quiz Bowl team made the trek down to the Bluegrass State at the invitation of the Jesse Brown Small...
Good Company Poor Sleep Is Extremely Costly
Although it can be hard to admit, your mom probably was right when she said, “Get a good night’s sleep, and you’ll feel better in the morning.” According to a recent Gallup poll, poor sleep habits significantly impact employees and the American economy. According to researchers, insufficient sleep affects more than just employees, with employers losing billions of dollars annually...
WWJD: The Maiden Voyage
Brio would not get into his carrier and he dislikes being picked up and carried so the next step was to attach his leash and walk him to the van! He pulled a Houdini and slipped right out of it; thank goodness that did not happen someplace where the noisy world would have spooked him into doing a runner!I...
I Scream… You Scream… We All Scream…
ICE ! No cream…just that gosh-awful ICE. On the roads, on the sidewalks, on the parking lots & driveways…By the by, I will take this opportunity to give a shout-out of appreciation–which I try to do at least yearly–to those folks around town who keep their sidewalks cleared. Not everybody is able, I do understand, and the village guys have...
Unlikely All-sorts
The Akron Beacon-Journal has had some beauts lately. One of my favorites was the New Funko Pop Collection “honoring” Dolly Parton. Now Dolly has received just about every honor that a country/pop/r&r singer is likely to be nominated for. She’s been in the movies and on TV and received national recognition for her performance and her song-writing and her...
HA HA ! Ha Ha! ha ha…what?
I have always thought that my sense of humor was, at least, O.K. But I’m beginning to wonder about everybody else, especially in the public prints and commercially-produced correspondence, i.e., cards of various sorts. Whole bunches of TV commercials too, fail to make it to contact my funny bone. Ditto for a lot of the programming. Too many laugh...
Oddness Out There!!
Every so often something worth paying attention to pops up on my computer screen. This does NOT include the stuff in the SPAM folder from the vast number of outfits who seem to think that I am some dude named “Ivan” who can’t spell his own name; those people keep sending me info about “male enhancement”, directions to “new...
Right!!
That’s my response to a communication from, of all people, the Porch Kitty Fan Club. In the lovely Christmas card was a quotation–you know the one about the power of the pen– and giving notice that a donation had been made to the Portage APL in memory of Barry Vancura. He would have loved it. So would his “Princess”,...
Final Bow
“Bow”…as in “leave the stage while acknowledging applause after an excellent performance.” Everybody knew Barry, Barry Vancura…and he knew everybody (If he did not, he’d continue talking until something or somebody clued him in as to who furnished the other side of the conversation, and went on from there--it was a gift.). Barry was the consummate retail guy. He knew...
‘Tis The Season
So… Didja get your entry in for the Name a Snowplow contest with the Ohio Turnpike commission? Some of the winners from last year were in the paper recently and I have to say they were pretty clever. This year’s contest ended Sunday, so we’ll have to wait and see what takes the $100 gift card prize–eight of them,...
Well That’s That
And “that” was the 20222 Christmas Walk…an adventure from start to finish, just about.First off, there was the withdrawal of one of the original four houses from the list of designated residences, which necessitated a search for another home in town with easy access and adequate parking possibilities. That search took up some planning time but at last a...
Well… That Was Fun
No, Really. I enjoyed myself immensely. Not everyone would enjoy having people–some known, some unknown–coming through their home for seven hours a day, looking around, commenting on everything in sight, wondering about what’s not in sight, asking questions about stuff that had been answered back when they hadn’t been listening. But I’m not everyone, and I had a fine...
Folly? Did Someone Say Folly?
Oh, “Fa La La La La !” you said. My bad…or worse, maybe. “Christmas is coming, the goose is getting fat, Please to put a penny in the old man’s hat.” Or more like it, at my place, “Christmas is coming. The Walk is on its way. There are way, way too many things for me to do today.” That’s...
Look!!! Up In The Sky!!!
Remember that one? “Look !!! Up in the sky !! It’s a bird! It’s a plane! “It’s Superman !!!” Nah, never mind, It’s not Superman, it’s a whole bunch of super people–The Fraternal Order of Eagles, to be exact. And what set me off on this tack was the sign out front of the local aerie ( That’s ornithologist talk for...
‘Fraid This Is IT
Ya got yer Full Hunter’s Moon. (The last big full moon was the Harvest Moon, you know, like as in–hum along, now, “Shine on, Shine on Harvest Moon, up in the sky. I ain’t had no lovin’ since January, February, June or July. Snow time ain’t no time to sit around and spoon, so Shine on, shine on, Harvest...
Cats Pajamas?
Well, not just yet. You won’t see the Porch Kitties in long johns real soon, but it won’t be for lack of their pointing out the inadequacy of their current accommodations. Everybody got displaced by the painting of the front porch, which necessitated the clearing-out of the miscellaneous items of furniture, food service and fol-de-rol of all sorts which had...
Vintage News James A. Garfield Historical Society
In 1886, Kitch Payne, a Nelson resident, who was a great sturdy fellow, honest and good-natured as the day is long, and well into his seventies, still loved to hear the old neighbors tell of his encounter with a burglar many years ago. Kitch was chopping out a farm for himself in the forest, when a store at Garrettsville,...
The Old Road…. Special People, Special Organization
There are a lot of special people in this community, unsung heroes that seem to go far out of their way for you and me. It might be helping you out in the garden, lending their expertise as master gardeners, or just serving you consistently and delightfully in a favored restaurant. Perhaps it’s the people in period costumes at...
