Time To Play

(90) A Becknell in Brussels Feb 2012

2012-02-11T14:26:00.001-05:00

Here are some pictures that Kris took today in Brussels, Belgium. She said that it was -10 deg. Celsius, but still beautiful. Just click on the link to see the album.

(90) A Becknell in Brussels Feb 2012: - Sent using Google Toolbar

This Is Just Cute

2012-02-09T00:05:00.000-05:00

Related To Yesterday's Post

2012-01-29T13:15:00.003-05:00

(clicking on this image should make it easier to read)

The Measles were a Kent institution for 10 years, lasting through numerous personnel changes and a couple near misses at national breakthroughs to posthumous fame as a starting point for a rock-n-roll star and an anonymous appearence on a million selling 45. The Measles, chapter one, were formed by four Kent State University students in 1965. All four members were accomplished musicians, none more so than New Jersey import Joe Walsh and Larry Lewis as dueling guitarslingers. Original bassist Chas. Madonio left to join the Majestics (aka Styx) and was replaced by KSU student Bobby Sepulveda. Drummer Buddy Bennett was the only member to remain througout the duration of the band. The Measles hooked up with the Kent bars and got a fast reputation as a top-flight band. Although they played the top 40 dance action, the Measles pushed the envelope as much as they could, quickly mastering the burgeoning harder garage and psych sounds. An attempt to record some original songs at Akron Recording did not pan out, but through producer Bill Palmer they met Andy Apperson who arranged them to audition in New York. Apperson had already got the Music Explosion on the charts and the Kasenetz-Katz operation wanted more Ohio acts. Several songs were recorded in the spring of 1967. Although nothing came of the audition, the Measles were still packing the Kent bars. In the summer of 1967 bassist Bobby Sepulveda was drafted, and replaced with Chas Madonio (after the Styx disbanded) for the first of many changes. Joe Walsh grew restless with the bar scene and started working with some Cleveland musicians in a more progressive bag. Joe's replacement was former Comin' Generation guitarist Bob Webb. Meanwhile, the Ohio Express, the band that got the deal with Kasenetz and Katz, got a 45 out with "Beg Borrow and Steal" and the flip side "Maybe". Unknown to almost everyone, "Maybe" is actually a Measles song (composed by Joe Walsh), "I Find I Think Of You", that was stripped of the vocals. Shortly afterwards, the 1st Ohio Express LP was released that included two Measles songs, the full-up "I Think Of You" and a Bobby Sepulveda song, "And It's True". Bobby Sepulveda discovered this bizarre lineup when he heard the LP playing in the military barracks! After changing personnel, the Measles added a female singer, Mary Sterpka, and new bassist Jeff Curry, keyboard player Dave Andress (who had been in the Chancellors), and later, a new drummer, Tim Frazier, and got another recording deal with Mainstream records. A name change to something "hipper" was needed, so Lacewing became the new and short lived moniker . The Lacewing LP was recorded at Criteria studios in Miami, just like the other NE Ohio bands like Decembers' Children and Freeport. A 45 of "Paradox" was released but neither the 45 or LP got much action, as there was no promotion even at the local level. After the Mainstream deal had played out, the band reverted back to the Measles and continued to be a major local attracion for a few more years. Joe Walsh added some continuity to the Measles/Lacewing path when he included Mary Sterpka to sing the backing vocals on the James Gang hit "Midnight Man". Bob Webb joined the James Gang on the last LP.

Memories From College Days

2012-01-28T21:31:00.003-05:00

Here is a picture of "The Measles", a band that was very popular during the mid-1960's in Kent. This picture was taken at a bar called the 5th Quarter, which no longer exists. That time period was also when Sue and I first met. We probably danced to this band's music.

Historical Note: You can't see him in this picture, but Joe Walsh played with this band. He is not visible here, but Rich Underwood, the guy in the middle, says he was there. He went on to play with another band called The Eagles.

Demolitions in Kent

2012-01-27T22:11:00.003-05:00

Two houses on Erie Street were torn down recently. This is the start of a series of house demolitions that will make way for the construction of the Esplanade walkway extension connecting the KSU campus with downtown. I hope that the construction plans include hand rails along the walkway to aid those returning to campus on Friday and Saturday nights.

Happy Hour

2012-01-27T21:29:00.005-05:00

Yesterday, Angela, Rudy, Joe and I provided some "old-time rock and roll" for Happy Hour here at IBE. We did two sets with a break in between during the 4:00-6:00 party.
Next month, we plan to do it again with a country music theme.

Douglas With Toothbrush

2012-01-23T19:18:00.002-05:00

This picture was posted on Facebook by Kim Moomy. Douglas likes to brush his teeth since they put a stool in the bathroom. He even uses two toothbrushes.

Oops!!

2012-01-18T22:50:00.004-05:00

I have been told that the pictures of the 1884 car that I thought were included in a recent post were only visible to me. Here is another try without the text.

Printer Upgrade

2012-01-18T13:52:00.004-05:00

We have been talking about getting a wireless printer for a while, so last night we went to OfficeMax and got one. It's an HP Officejet Pro 8600. It's a major improvement over our old one. This model was "on sale" for $149.99. That's what most stores were asking for this model. But they were also offering $50.00 off if you traded in your old printer. Basically we paid $100.00 for the new one.

So now, both Sue and I can print documents from our laptops or my smartphone using our Verizon wi-fi. The printer also scans and copies like our old one and also faxes (if you have a land line). We just have to decide on an out-of-the -way spot for the printer that is still accessible. It will be easier when we get back to our house in Ohio. It's just nice not to have to be wired to it to make it work. It also does double-sided copies with out having to re-insert the paper. Cool!!

World's Oldest Running Car is sold at Auction in Hershey, PA

2012-01-15T19:06:00.001-05:00

World's Oldest Running Car Fetches $4.62M

Oldest Running Car Fetches $4.62M October 10 2011 at 10:05am By Motoring Staff

.

This is the oldest motor vehicle car in the world that still runs.

It was built one year before Karl Benz and Gottlieb Daimler invented

the internal combustion engine.

The world's oldest running motor vehicle has been sold at auction

for an astonishing $4.62 million (R36.5-million), more than double the

pre-sale estimate, as two bidders chased the price up in a three-minute

bidding war. The 1884 De Dion Bouton et Trepardoux Dos-a-Dos Steam

Runabout drew a standing ovation as it was driven up onto the stage at

Friday's RM Auction in Hershey, Pennsylvania - to prove that this

127-year-old car really does run! - and attracted a starting bid of $500 000,

which was immediately doubled to $1 million. Encouraged by the

applauding crowd, the bidding went swiftly up to $4.2 million (R33 million)

- 4.62 million (R36.5 million) including the 10 percent commission - before

the car was knocked down to a unnamed buyer. The Dos-a-Dos

(Back-to-Back) Steam Runabout was built in 1884 by George Bouton and

Charles-Armand Trepardoux for French entrepreneur Count de Dion, who

named it 'La Marquise' after his mother. In 1887, with De Dion at the tiller,

it won the world's first ever motor race (it was the only entrant to make

the start line!) covering the 32km from the Pont de Neuilly in Paris to

Versailles and back in one hour and 14 minutes (an average of

25.9km/h) and, according to contemporary reports, hitting a breathtaking

60km/h on the straights! La Marquise has only had four owners,

remaining in one family for 81 years, and has been restored twice, once

by the Doriol family and again by British collector Tom Moore in the early

1990's. Since then, it has taken part in four London-to-Brighton runs and

collected a double gold at the 1997 Pebble Beach d'Elegance in California.

Count de Dion winning the first ever motor race.

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Things Are Heatin' Up In FarmVille

2012-01-14T21:46:00.002-05:00

Just A Cabin In The Hills

2012-01-09T12:37:00.004-05:00

While we were spending a couple of days in Hendersonville, TN during the holidays, we toured The Fontanel, the former home of country music star Barbara Mandrell and her husband. Sue and I along with David and Barbara (Moomy, not Mandrell) checked out the gift shop, ate lunch at the Farmhouse Restaurant next door and then boarded a bus for the mile long ride to what is billed as the largest log home in the world.

The cabin has 20 rooms and 27,000 sq. ft. of floorspace. Even though there are large rooms for entertaining, the living area of the cabin is remarkably "homey" with much more normal sized rooms for eating, sleeping and relaxing.

Here are pictures that I took during our visit. There were guitars on the walls everywhere. They were donated by famous musicians. I especially liked one of the red, white and blue guitars that I watched Buck Owens play on "Hee-Haw". I put all the guitar pictures at the end of the album. I didn't take pictures of all of them, only a sample.

If you want to know more about The Fontanel, click on the link at the top right of the blog page.

Spectacular Dunk

2011-12-21T17:15:00.006-05:00

Here is a dunk by Heidelberg's Nate Davis last Saturday during their home game against Trine University of Angola, Indiana. I'm sure that this play went just the way the coach drew it up on his clipboard. Unfortunately, Heidelberg lost 86-76.

Cookie Day

2011-12-19T23:59:00.004-05:00

After my Dad passed away, I started to make cut-out sugar cookies at Christmas like he did. Mine are never as precise as his, but they usually taste good. I had just about decided to skip the cookie making this year because we have a lot of work to do this week to get ready for the trip south.

That was until Sue and I stopped in to see my Aunt Esther at Stow-Glen Nursing Home where she lives. During our visit, we talked about Christmas coming soon and Esther was remembering how she used to bake cookies. On the way home I thought to myself, "That woman is going to have some Christmas cookies".

So this afternoon, I made two batches of cookie dough and let it rest in the fridge until tonight. Then I baked and iced 5 dozen Christmas cookies. Tomorrow we will take some of them over to Esther. Hey, I'm not totally unselfish. She's not gettin' 'em all.

A Few Old Pictures From My Mom's Side Of The Family (The Ebners)

2011-12-11T21:56:00.013-05:00

Sue and I went to Malvern today to bring home my Mom's sewing machine. It is old but in good condition and has a nice table that is made to hold a sewing machine. We looked at some other things while we were there and found quite a few old pictures. I photographed a few with my phone and have picked some of them to post here. Mom was good at putting names and other information on the back of pictures. That's good because I would not have known some of these people. Jim and I talked about getting all the old pictures scanned and stored on DVD or something. That's in the future. We want to be sure that we don't lose any of the Ebner history.

My Mom and her brother John (mid-1920's)

(that baby carriage is in her bedroom now and in excellent condition)

My grandparents, William (Bill) and Irene (Rennier) Ebner

(This is how I remember them when I was a kid)

The lady in the wheelchair is Mary Ebner, my 2x great-grandmother.

The lady on the left is Ella Rennier, my Grandma's mother. Her husband is partially visible next to her. I don't recall his first name, but it is written on the back of the photograph. The middle of the three women is Ella's mother, whose married name was Worley.

This is my Grandpa Bill when he was serving in the army during WWI.

Another picture of Mom and Uncle Johnny(ready for church)
Mom was shy as a kid. In many pictures, she is looking down)

Here is a picture that I don't remember seeing before. This is Mabel Rennier, my Grandmother's sister. She became Sister Mary Nora, a nun in the order of The Sisters of Notre Dame. I remember going to visit her many times. She was in Norwalk, OH then later in Canton and in Toledo. Sue drove my Mom to Toledo to attend Sister Mary's funeral. She was a wonderful gardener and quite the comedienne. This picture was taken on my grandparent's wedding day. Aunt Mabel, as my Mom called her, was the Maid of Honor. The other picture shows my grandparents on their wedding day.

Tomato Soup 2011

2011-12-09T23:20:00.002-05:00

We turned 50 lbs of tomatoes from our garden into 28 pints of tomato soup on Wednesday. Only one pint didn't seal, so we ate that one on Thursday.

Silent Night

2011-11-20T22:40:00.003-05:00

On Saturday, November 19, The Akron Derbytown Chorus sang at the 2011 Akron Children's Hospital Tree Festival. This video is one of the songs that we sang and that's me in the second row on the left singing the verse in German. Sue recorded this with my phone and the sound picked up well, but have your computer sound turned up to get the best effect.

Watch Out For The Krampus (if you've been naughty)

2011-11-13T11:52:00.006-05:00

Evidently, in some Alpine regions of Europe, a visit from St. Nicholas comes a little earlier in December and is quite a bit more scary.

Check out the "Scary Christmas" link in the top right corner of this blog page.

David Waldon Plays The Beatles-I Should Have Known Better

2011-11-11T23:59:00.001-05:00

I Should Have Known Better - remastered

For Howard To See (and others)

2011-11-02T00:08:00.004-04:00

Here are some pictures of our new towbar system and our auxiliary braking system.

Christmas In Branson

2011-10-31T23:40:00.007-04:00

The Christmas shows start here tomorrow, so it's Christmas in Branson, MO. We had Christmas dinner tonight, a gift exchange and a visit from Cindy Lou Who and The Grinch. But since it is October 31, we decorated the motorhome for Halloween.

Sweaters For Penguins

2011-10-26T22:40:00.001-04:00

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Beckwith's Farm

2011-10-08T09:57:00.004-04:00

This is a short video done by Channel 3 on a visit to Beckwith's Farm. This farm is on the outer edges of Kent, right here in Portage County. We have gone there to get pumpkins, apples, cider and the wooden horse wall decoration that hangs in our living room.

Alsatian Dancers

2011-10-02T19:46:00.003-04:00

Courtesy of "cousin??" Jean-Claude Halter, here are some traditional Alsatian dancers. Except for the hats, the guys are dressed like barbershoppers.

Towing The Bus

2011-09-26T19:58:00.007-04:00

Here are some pictures that I took of our motorhome being towed to Craig Smith RV Center in Galion for brake work and some other repairs. The brake work is related to a recall from Workhorse chassis (GM) so hopefully that cost will be covered by Workhorse. The other items, such as some roof leaks, generator check up, etc. were jobs that I was going to have someone do, but since the bus is in this garage, we're having them done now. That way we should be in shape for the trip south later this year.

It was a long day. We had to get up this morning and get all the items that we needed to take home with us transferred to the car. Then we disconnected the water, sewer and electric lines and put the slides in. After fastening everything down inside for safe travel, we waited for the very large tow truck to arrive.

Then we followed the tow truck to the RV Center, got all the repairs authorized, had a late lunch and drove home. Of course, we then had to unload the car and sort everything out to the proper place in the house. We were tired. We did get a bit of a lift from the beautiful sunset shown in the last picture.

Balloon-a-Fair

2011-09-18T00:42:00.001-04:00

Here is a slideshow of some of the hot air balloons that we saw on Saturday.

Vintage TV

2011-09-09T19:22:00.003-04:00

Sue and I were watching "The Price Is Right" today and I mentioned that I remember the show being quite a bit different when I watched it as a kid. Thanks to YouTube, we can all see how the show, with host Bill Cullen, looked in 1957. Maybe it's just me, but I think that Drew Carey is trying to morph into Bill Cullen.

A Trip Down Guitar Memory Lane

2011-08-15T21:45:00.005-04:00

My favorite part of the Lawrence Welk Show, back in the black and white TV era, before the pastel leisure suit band uniforms, was when Buddy Merrill would do a guitar number. Here is Buddy doing a little tribute to Les Paul.

Speaking of Les Paul, here is a video of Les and his wife, Mary Ford, singing and playing along with 24 tracks of music history. I remember the first time that I heard this song on the radio. I had a feeling similar to the one that I had the first time I heard the Beatles. Sort of like, "Did this music come from Earth or from some other galaxy?"

You know that you're pretty good when the guitar model is YOUR NAME!

Second Look At Rolling Ridge Ranch

2011-08-04T21:03:00.005-04:00

Here are some videos that are from our visit to the animal park on Wednesday.

Rolling Ridge Ranch Animal Park

2011-08-03T23:33:00.003-04:00

This animal park is a short drive from the RV park that we are staying in this week. We went there today, walked around one small part of the exhibit and then took the 1 hour horse-drawn wagon ride to look at hundreds of other animals. We each got a small bucket (or two) of pellet food to feed to the animals. It was a really interesting ride and our Amish driver gave us some good background information about what we were seeing. On the way home, we stopped at The Amish Door restaurant for lunch (after we washed our hands twice).

Here is a slideshow of pictures that I took at Rolling Ridge. There are some videos of the animals that I plan to post later, so stayed tuned.

Pan Music

2011-08-02T14:19:00.007-04:00

Mark was in a steel drum band while at Miami U. and became legendary on the instrument while he was living in St. Kitts. He is now thinking about starting a small "pan" band to play in the Cincinnati area. Here is a video of Mark playing some steel drum music.

Notice that Wickett is barking his approval toward the end of the video.

From Bulletin

Summer Music, Food and Relaxation

2011-08-02T12:06:00.004-04:00

Sue and I had a great time in Cincinnati over the past weekend. We got to visit with Kris and Mark and Mark's family. We also got to attend the CD release party for Josh Eagle and the Harvest City. Mark is the drummer for the band and has written some of the songs that they have recorded.

After all the excitement of the Saturday night party, with 300 fans dancing to music by JEHC and other bands, we (Mark, Kris, Sue and I) looked for something to do on Sunday that was relaxing and would keep us out of the very hot weather. We decided to have some Mexican food for lunch and then go to a movie. The movie choice was "Cowboys and Aliens". If you like westerns and slimy aliens, you will like this movie. I enjoyed it. The cast certainly featured some well-known actors. I have included a link to more information about the movie in the Hot Links section of this blog.

Now, Sue and I are at Evergreen Park RV Resort in the heart of Amish country near Mount Hope, Ohio. We will be here for a week and plan to do some sightseeing and, of course, eating at some of the many Amish-style restaurants that are in the area. An antique tractor show starts nearby on Thursday and I would like to check that out.

The RV park has great cable TV and WiFi. If we can have this in Amish country, what's the problem with IBE where we stay in the winter?

That Sue Was Quite A Driver, Even In Her Younger Days

2011-07-22T17:37:00.001-04:00

I stumbled upon a rare photograph of Sue putting her car, "Clyde" through its paces on her way to McDowell HS. This was when she had a part-time job as a test driver for Motor Trend magazine. I can attest to the fact that her driving talents have not diminished over the years.

After 8 years, We Got A New Car

2011-07-21T17:30:00.011-04:00

Even though our two Hyundais were dependable cars and fun to drive, Hyundai does not make a vehicle that can be towed behind a motorhome with all four wheels down. So when we started shopping for a new car a couple of weeks ago, we had to look in another direction. I, for one, will miss the 10 year/100,000 mile warranty.

Thanks to publications from groups like TrailerLife and FMCA, we could identify cars that were able to be towed (we RVers call them Dinghies). As we narrowed our search, we could check online to make sure that towbars, baseplates and all the other stuff was available for the cars that we were still considering.

So yesterday, after the usual friendly haggling, we bought a 2011 Ford Escape XLT from Klaben Ford, right here in Kent, Ohio. Sue and I feel very good about our choice and are having fun learning where all the controls are, etc. It will seem a little strange for us to only have one car, but I think we will be ok. The Elantra, one of our trade-ins, had only about 32,000 miles on it. That's after 8 years! We'll also save a significant amount on insurance, license, etc., without a second vehicle. And, of course, if we find that we really need a second car, next summer I can buy a nice little Porsche two-seater.

(click on the pictures to enlarge them, if you want)

Grape tomatoes from the garden.
They were the inspiration for our choice of color for the car.

Maybe we'll nickname it The Towmato

Between now and the time we head south, we will buy the necessary towing equipment and get it installed. That will involve some more shopping, because there are several different manufacturers, like Blue Ox and Roadmaster, who make these things. We also want to work at selling or trading in the Roadmaster tow dolly that we used to tow the Elantra with the front wheels up. Fortunately we have a lot of time to do this.

So, that is the big news for us this week. Thanks to niece, and Ford employee, Sara , for enabling us to get the X plan, Friends and Family discount on this purchase. She stepped right up and admitted that we were related to her.

Maybe we'll go for a drive after the sun goes down and the temp falls below 90.

Check Out The New "Hot Link"

2011-07-17T00:15:00.002-04:00

I used to really enjoy Ripley's Believe It Or Not each day in the newspaper. It isn't in the paper that we subscribe to, so I started getting it emailed to me every day. Beginning today, I have added the link for Ripley's in the Hot Links section at the top right of my blog page. I hope you like it.

Keep On Truckin'

2011-07-13T15:10:00.002-04:00

I've been listening to some CDs that Kris made for us a few years ago. On one of them is "Six Days On The Road", the Grateful Dead version. I used to sing this song in the first band that I joined back in the early 90's. In the lyrics, there is a line that goes, "I got ten forward gears and a Georgia overdrive" (The Grateful Dead said Georgie overdrive). I never really knew what that meant so I looked it up. It refers to when a trucker puts the transmission in neutral to coast down hills or especially mountain roads and can go faster.

This video shows Dave Dudley singing this song in 1970. Check out the clothes and hair style on the electric guitar player. Very typical of the 70's. Evidently, Dave recorded this song at Sun Records in 1963. The Dead did it later.

Recordpub.com - Food Network to show Ray's Place burger on Monday: Kent restaurant to appear on "Best thing I ever ate'

2011-07-04T00:41:00.002-04:00

Check out the article from The Record Courier and if you can, tune in to The Food Channel at 10:00pm on Monday to see the story about the burger at Ray's Place.

Recordpub.com - Food Network to show Ray's Place burger on Monday: Kent restaurant to appear on "Best thing I ever ate'

Sleepy Man Banjo Boys

2011-07-01T13:05:00.003-04:00

I saw these three young men on The Late Show with David Letterman a couple of days ago. When they finished, Dave said to Paul Shaffer, "They're like the Jonas Brothers' right Paul?" and Paul said, "Well, no, they're not".

The song starts out slow, but catches fire quickly.

Video via Jean-Claude

2011-06-28T10:25:00.003-04:00

This is a video from Jean-Claude Halter, who lives in the Alsace region of France. There is a reasonable chance that he is a relative because his grandfather and father were farmers who lived in the same small town that my ancestors left when they came to America. That area of Alsace was mostly German in the early 1800's and my relatives spoke German.

Tar Heels

2011-06-27T11:59:00.003-04:00

This weekend, when we were visiting The Akron Zoo with Kris and Mark, we saw some deer-like animals called tahr. This led to a mention of the North Carolina Tar Heels and the question of what the mascot of the NC athletic teams was. It's the ram.

Sean Chambers Band

2011-06-23T14:17:00.002-04:00

My Facebook friend, Gary Keith, plays harmonica with this group. Gary is also my friend on FB for CityVille and CarTown. Give them a listen and if you want more, they have several other videos on YouTube.

Summer Solstice

2011-06-21T13:05:00.001-04:00

Happy First Day Of Summer

Pagans called the Midsummer moon the "Honey Moon" for the mead made from fermented honey that was part of wedding ceremonies performed at the Summer Solstice.
Ancient Pagans celebrated Midsummer with bonfires, when couples would leap through the flames, believing their crops would grow as high as the couples were able to jump.
Midsummer was thought to be a time of magic, when evil spirits were said to appear. To thwart them, Pagans often wore protective garlands of herbs and flowers. One of the most powerful of them was a plant called 'chase-devil', which is known today as St. John's Wort and still used by modern herbalists as a mood stabilizer.

Playin' The Blues

2011-06-15T23:33:00.003-04:00

Today, I watched the 1946 movie that included the performance shown below. It turns out that Frank (Sugar Chile) Robinson spent a large portion of his life away from performing music. The second video shows him in 2007 after being "re-discovered".

No Ring For LeBron

2011-06-13T00:22:00.001-04:00

To steal a quote from my son, "Karma's a bitch!!"

"Kid's" games get real.

2011-05-31T00:23:00.002-04:00

They Sure Have Fun "Over At Grampy's House".

2011-05-20T21:09:00.001-04:00

Annoying Orange

2011-05-20T11:55:00.001-04:00

As I've mentioned before, I'm easily entertained. Your turn.

Farewell, Robin Hood

2011-05-13T12:40:00.004-04:00

By Thomas Gallick and Dave O’Brien | Staff Writers
The Robin Hood Inn in Kent was no more as of 11 a.m. Thursday, following slightly more than 90 minutes of work by an excavator’s claw.
Drivers slowed down while going through the intersection of East Main and Lincoln streets to take one last look at the Kent landmark, a tudor-style structure built in the 1930s, while a crowd of at least a dozen took pictures and videos. Others perched along the wall at the rear of the building to witness the demolition from a different vantage point.
Dr. John Jacobs was there to take photos for the Kent Historical Society and to say a fond farewell to a building that housed many happy memories.
“I had my wedding reception upstairs there in 1950,” said the retired physician, who is a volunteer for the historical society. “I went to school with the owners’ son. I’m kind of close to the Robin Hood. I’m sorry to see it go, but it’s progress.”
The main chimney on the west side of the building fell with a crash at about 10:05 a.m., sending mortar fragments across North Lincoln Street.
Through the dust, it was obvious that many of the building’s artifacts had not been cleared out.
A box of Christmas decorations fell into the rubble from an upstairs room. A Labatt Blue beer sign also was crushed. Several painted walls, including a wall bearing a large advertisement for Jaegermeister, the German liquor, were still visible.
Dan Brown, a Kent State University student who lives on Lincoln Street, said he just happened to catch the Robin Hood’s demolition while driving home from work.
“Seeing the Hood being destroyed is a little bit of a shock,” he said. “It’s very sad.”
A group of employees from KSU’s Office of Alumni Relations were among the bystanders who watched the demolition.
Alumni Relations staffers Brittney Braydich and Ashley Katona, both KSU alumnae, watched as the excavator tore into the building, which dated to the late 1930s.
Katona, assistant director for communications, recalled seeing bands perform in the popular Kent venue as a student.
“It’s very sad to see it go,” said Braydich, assistant director for outreach. “We have a lot of sad alumni.”
Nancy Schiappa, associate director for outreach with Alumni Relations and a KSU alumna, took photos of the Robin Hood coming down and hoped to snap up a few bricks.
She said alumni who return for 2011 Homecoming at KSU likely will be shocked to see the Robin Hood is no longer standing.
“When you came from the west side of Kent on S.R. 59, you knew you hit campus when you reached the corner with Brady’s (now Starbucks), the Robin Hood and Prentice Gate,” she said. “It’s sort of an iconic corner.”
Stow resident Eric Marschik said he remembers the Robin Hood as one of Kent’s nicest restaurants in the 1950s.
“I came here with my dad in the late 50s for a nice dinner,” he said. “It was one of Kent’s most upscale restaurants at the time. And then during college I came here to drink. A lot of old memories.”
Christine Coven, the current owner of the Robin Hood property filed a demolition permit for the building with the city of Kent last month. City officials with knowledge of the building said it had significant structural issues, which could cost up to $500,000 to fix.
Coven could not be reached for comment.
Cynthia Ebert of Kent stopped by to take photos of the demolition and collect a few bricks herself. She shared that in the 1950s, her great-aunt and great-uncle, Zena and Grover Freeze, and their friends, May and Ed Brown, all of Canton, used to take Sunday drives through Stark, Summit and Portage counties looking for a good sit-down meal.
“By the time I came here ... it was a bar,” Ebert said of the Robin Hood.
“‘It breaks the heart,’” she added as she watched the demolition.
Elizabeth Bujack, Coven’s sister and daughter of former Robin Hood Inn owner Joseph Bujack, declined to comment previously.

Cat Ninja?

2011-05-07T12:39:00.001-04:00

How long will it be before someone makes an "all feline" martial arts movie?

Summer Project??

2011-04-25T21:43:00.000-04:00

A Salty Piece of Land

2011-04-25T15:26:00.000-04:00

A Salty Piece of Land by Jimmy Buffett

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I really enjoyed this book. I was ignorant of the fact that Jimmy Buffett had written this book and several others, so I didn't know what to expect. The story was interesting and the adventures of the main character and all his many friends held my attention. I have another book that he wrote that contains short stories with characters from "A Salty Piece of Land", so that one is next on my reading list.

View all my reviews

Beatles Forever

2011-04-22T13:35:00.001-04:00

This makes me want to get the band back together.

Mom's Ramp

2011-04-22T00:00:00.009-04:00

Here are pictures of the really great ramp that Mom's neighbor, Donny LeBeau, built for her. It makes it much easier for her to get from her kitchen to the garage. The old steps were hard to negotiate. I had to be careful myself when we visited. Wickett got used to the ramp very quickly. I think he would like to have one that goes from our deck down to the backyard. (Note: Check out those uniform, straight mortar joints in the glazed tile walls that my Dad built)

(you can click on any image to enlarge it)

Crops From The Garden

2011-04-13T10:58:00.004-04:00

When we got home, I saw that there were a few carrot tops (not the comedian) poking above the ground in the garden. They were leftovers from last summer's garden and they spent the winter in Ohio. They were an odd shaped bunch, but I cleaned them up and put them in the fridge. I ate some as I was working and they really had a good taste.

Homeward Bound-2011

2011-04-05T20:44:00.006-04:00

Last night, we stayed at High Springs Campground in northern Florida. It was a journey of about 300 miles from Bonita Springs. The trip went well, with the normal stop for lunch and another for gasoline. We did have a traffic jam after we passed Sarasota that probably cost us an hour. We still arrived at the campground at 4:45pm. Our site is shown below.

A pretty good thunderstorm arrived around 4:30 am. We lost our electricity for a while and got a lot of rain. Further north, in Georgia, the storm was more severe and six people were killed in the state.

We started out today (Tuesday) with gray skies and cooler temperatures. As we moved into Georgia, the sun came out and made for a really nice day on the road. We got to the KOA campground near Forsyth, GA about 4:15. Wickett has been sleeping even more than usual today. He was awake a lot last night because of the storm. We have stayed at this KOA before. One of their traditions is that they deliver a box of three very large chocolate chip cookies to your site after you have had time to get settled. They are very, very good cookies. Below is a picture of our site here in Georgia.

Tomorrow, we go to Jellystone Park Campground in Nashville for a three night stay and a visit with Howard and all the Moomys and Meadors. The forecast here tonight is for temps in the upper 30's, so it will be time to turn on the furnace. I guess that is good preparation for Ohio weather.

Farmin' Is In Their Jeans (Genes).

2011-03-26T14:52:00.005-04:00

(click on the picture to enlarge it)

The Garden Club in Streetsboro had a contest for sunflowers and Kris and Mike each won ribbons. One prize was for the tallest sunflower(Mike is next to that one) and the other was for the plant with the most flowers (Kris is next to that one). Since I see that Mike has two ribbons pinned on him, I think that he might have gotten one for the biggest flower too.

Slides From The Past

2011-03-24T22:34:00.002-04:00

These few pictures are my first attempts at transferring 35mm slides into digital form on the computer. I did no enhancing or other editing on these. That will come later. The scanner was a present from Kris and Mark over a year ago. Don't ask me why it took so long to get started on this project. My only excuse is that the user's manual was so confusing that I didn't really make any progress until I put it aside and just let the program guide me. These pictures are from the collection of my father-in-law, Howard Moomy.

I need to practice my guitar playing more often.

2011-03-23T21:21:00.001-04:00

IBE Variety Show

2011-03-18T22:16:00.007-04:00

Here are a few pictures that Sue took during the Friday night performance. On Saturday night, we do it all again. In the one above, I am hiding behind our director.

This is me, Rudy, Glenn and John singing "Lida Rose" during the medley of songs from "The Music Man".

This is The IBE Jam Band. From the left, Angela, Rudy, Joe the Drummer and me.

Here are Philippe and Marcella, from Quebec. They sang two beautiful songs in French, accompanied by The Jam Band.

Below is a picture of one of several dance teams that performed for this show. We had jazz, line dancing, tap and more.

We had a full house on Friday (200 people) and Saturday night is sold out also. There were a lot of good performances and a variety of acts. The show started at 7:00 and was over just a little past 9:00, with no intermission.

Hands Across The Border

2011-03-10T10:59:00.003-05:00

Next week on March 18 and 19, I will be participating in the annual variety show here at IBE. I will be singing with the chorus as we do medleys from Carousel and Music Man. Also, four of us from the IBE Jam Band will be doing two songs. And just recently, the jam band was asked to back up a couple of our French-Canadian neighbors as they perform two songs. I have included YouTube videos of these two songs. It will be a busy week. Tech rehearsal on Monday, regular chorus rehearsal on Tuesday, dress rehearsal on Thursday and then the show on Friday and Saturday.

Comet Guillaume-H-3111??

2011-03-02T20:03:00.003-05:00

(click on the picture to enlarge)

No, not really. After dealing with pain in my lower left abdomen, ranging from mild discomfort to "ouch, dammit, ouch", for all of last weekend, Sue drove me to the emergency room at a nearby hospital early Monday. They did some tests, including a CAT-scan and found that I had a kidney stone.

They said that it had almost completed its path to the bladder and should pass out of my system on its own soon. The fact that it was only 3mm in size would help that process. Stones as big as 7mm usually pass easily. So, after 4 hours at the hospital, they gave me prescriptions for pain (Vicodin) and Flomax (to help the exit happen easier) and sent us home.

I used the Vicodin twice, but didn't have much pain after about 10:00 pm on Monday. Then, around 6:00 pm on Tuesday, this little guy presented himself to the world. (much to my relief)

Tomorrow (Thursday), I go to a urologist here in Bonita Springs. He will look at the stone and decide which one of four possible types it is. Some are caused by infections, others by mineral deposits. One very rare kind is even hereditary. I don't think that I have that last kind, but both my Dad and my brother had kidney stones.

A big thanks to Sue for expertly applying the light source so I could use a magnifier and camera to take the picture. I wanted to have a record of the event in case the urologist doesn't return the little boulder to me.

To all blog readers, I fought the urge to post this picture on Facebook. I believe that it was a wise choice.

Three's A Crowd

2011-02-24T21:51:00.003-05:00

Sue and I were getting on our bicycles today when she noticed that her bike was already occupied by one of the local lizards. This little guy wanted to go along with us on our trip to find a good viewing spot for the Space Shuttle launch. We eventually convinced him to stay home, but he was stubborn.

Even though we are close to 300 miles away from the launch site, the exhaust flames and vapor trail are visible on a clear day. Unfortunately, there were clouds that hid the shuttle from our view today. We had DVR'd the launch so we came home and watched all the NASA video.

Marietta 84-Wilmington 73

2011-02-22T22:30:00.005-05:00

Nephew Trevor scored 19 points tonight (2/22) as Marietta defeated Wilmington in the first round of the OAC tournament. The next game is Thursday against Heidelberg. Below is a picture of one of the more spectacular baskets that he made during this game.

The Shadow Knows!

2011-02-02T00:01:00.000-05:00

Science Marches On

2011-02-01T21:47:00.003-05:00

What happens when laboratory animals are subjected to a steady dose of music by Flock of Seagulls? I think you can guess.

Heavy Traffic Ahead

2011-01-31T12:45:00.001-05:00

Clear Choice at Cleveland Browns' Stadium

2011-01-25T12:39:00.003-05:00

Here we are singing The Star Spangled Banner at Family Days at Browns' Stadium last summer. There were all kinds of activities and concessions for people and then the team played a four quarter scrimmage. Dan Nichols was unavailable that day, so Mike filled in well for him on the tenor part. It was fun to get to sing at this location with my son.

Animals is the craziest peoples

2011-01-21T17:32:00.004-05:00

I don't know how to introduce this video, so I'll just say that I hope that you laugh as much as I did.

Rainbow Revisited

2011-01-18T16:42:00.002-05:00

I posted this video on Facebook last night, but for any followers of this blog who missed it, or are not on FB, here it is again. We saw it when we stopped to pick up some RV supplies at Camping World, south of Fort Myers yesterday. It was even more amazing in person, but the only camera I had was my phone. I think that my video camera might have captured the colors better.

Afternoon Of Art

2011-01-16T20:56:00.004-05:00

In January and March of each year, the city of Bonita Springs hosts artists from all over the country at the Bonita Springs Art Festival. We went last March and enjoyed it so much that we decided to go back again this afternoon.

We spent a couple of hours admiring the work of over 200 very talented people.

Here is a slideshow of just a few of the things that we saw. Warning, not all of the people in the pictures are real. See if you can tell which ones are actually "art".

Vacations Can't Be Fun All The Time

2011-01-07T11:59:00.004-05:00

Jimmy Malone, one of the hosts on the WMJI morning radio talk show in Cleveland, often says that the most dangerous people for a kid are his/her parents. In this case, he may have a point.

Trevor Hits A Triple To Win The Game in California

2011-01-06T10:17:00.004-05:00

This video, courtesy of Marietta University, shows my brother's son, Trevor, hitting the game winner last week against The University of La Verne in southern California (he's #3 in the dark uniform). Since then, Marietta has won another game, has a record of 13-0 and is ranked 24th in the nation in D3. All of this with a team that has no seniors on the roster. They might be good next year too.

Christmas in Alsace

2011-01-06T10:05:00.001-05:00

New Cav's Employee

2011-01-05T17:33:00.002-05:00

ESPN is reporting that the Cleveland Cavaliers have hired this gentleman, Ted Williams, giving him a 2-yr contract and agreeing to pay his mortgage. I have to say that anyone who can speak like this should be given a chance to use his talent and try to turn his life around. If it doesn't work out with the Cavs, any barbershop quartet that is searching for a bass would certainly be interested in him.

I guess the next question is " Can he learn the "Princeton offense"?

Wickett's Florida Haircut

2011-01-05T17:00:00.004-05:00

We took Wickett to PetSmart last Monday for a bath, haircut, toenail trim, teeth brushing and all around grooming. It made quite a difference in his appearance, as the two pictures below will show. This shorter trim is much better for the warmer weather down here.

Before

After

What ever happened to those other two days?

2010-12-28T17:57:00.003-05:00

My coloring project showing The Twelve Days Of Christmas got sidetracked by other Christmas activities and the major job of mucking through the snow to pack the motorhome for our trip to Florida. To the many people who were following my work through the first ten days and were eagerly awaiting days 11 and 12, I offer my sincere apology. I hope that your holiday was not dampened too greatly by my shortcomings. I'll try again next year. LOL

Here is a cartoon that was shared with me by Bonnie Cooper, who works for Gulfstream Coach, the company that made our motorhome. I thought that my lovely daughter, in particular, might enjoy it.

Cookies!!

2010-12-22T21:57:00.003-05:00

Our task of getting all the necessary items loaded into the motorhome continues. But we took time out to make some Christmas cookies. Sue made snickerdoodles and I made the red and green sugar cookies. Tomorrow, we may make a few more.

Here is day 10 of the 12 day countdown.

Christmas Past

2010-12-21T14:54:00.009-05:00

Here is a link to some old-time Christmas catalogs that may bring back memories for some of us and be a history lesson for the younger folk. Just click on the link that is in the Hot Links section at the top of the right-hand column of this blog. Note: The pages may be bigger than will fit on the screen, so use the up-down and left-right arrows to move to the part of the page that you want to look at.

And here are the next two in the 12 days of Christmas coloring project. I missed yesterday because we went to visit my Mom. I've got my priorities straight!

One more day closer to Christmas

2010-12-19T23:39:00.002-05:00

We are working at the process of packing the motorhome for the trip south. I wish that the weather would get a little milder, but the forecast doesn't sound too promising. This little swan seems to be having fun in the water at some warmer location. I am jealous.

Catchin' Up

2010-12-18T20:44:00.005-05:00

I was away from the computer a lot yesterday, so I didn't post the 5th day of Christmas picture. So today, I'll include both day 5 and day 6 (plus a song by Joe Diffie).

Christmas Is A' Comin'-Day 4

2010-12-16T23:56:00.002-05:00

Here are Bing Crosby and David Bowie to set the mood for the Holiday season.

Just a little more snow.

2010-12-15T23:18:00.003-05:00

Yes, we got more snow today, but compared to the past couple of days, this was much more manageable. I would guess that the cars had 3 inches of snow on them when I cleaned them off today. Tomorrow and Friday are not supposed to be snowy at all, and that is good news. Maybe with some sun, we can reduce the size of the snow mounds. In a little more than a week, we have to get the motorhome out of the driveway. I'd just as soon not have to shovel it out.

And in conclusion,

Continued Snow Report

2010-12-14T13:12:00.007-05:00

We thought that the snow accumulation yesterday was enough to last for a while. Then we got up this morning and saw that another 7 inches or more of the white stuff had fallen since midnight. The car was clear of snow at noon yesterday and the picture below shows what it looked like this morning.

The City of Kent sent a small snowplow to finally plow our circle today at about noon. They did not clear the circle yesterday at all. I can understand that it was not a priority. We didn't have to go anywhere, so we could just wait it out. The driveway was a mess again. I shoveled it enough that we could get the car out if we wanted to. Here is a view of the end result. That's my "snow blower" leaning against the back of the car. I inherited it from my Dad. It's probably older than either Mike or Kris.

I posted a picture of the snow covered Adirondack chair yesterday. Here is what it looks like today.

To wrap up, here is the latest installment in "The 12 Days of Christmas". I should get through the next 10, if the crayons hold out.

Here We Go Again

2010-12-13T13:51:00.009-05:00

Well, the warmer weather that came at the end of last week had succeeded in clearing the roads and sidewalks of snow. We also lost the last three giant icicle growths that were clinging to the roof edge at the back of our house. So now, we get dumped on again. The snow that you see in the pictures arrived mostly in the last 24 hours. I estimate that we have close to a foot of the white stuff. The weather forecast says that some areas may get another foot by this time tomorrow. Enough already. If this is intended to give us a reminder of why we go south in the winter,

We Get The Point!!

The driveway is shoveled, the car is uncovered, I've finished the library book that I have been reading, and there are no good sports shows on TV at this time. So I guess it's time to break out the crayons and create some holiday decorations.

Alison Balsom

2010-12-09T12:43:00.003-05:00

For the record, I am a happily married man, and have been for more than 40 years. That having been said, the spirit of the high school trumpet player that lives in me thinks that this woman is hot, both musically and otherwise.

Why Shih-Tzus Don't Do Well As Sled Dogs.

2010-12-06T19:19:00.003-05:00

Here is our 14 year old Shih-Tzu, Wickett, making his way through last night's snowfall.

Ukelele Ike

2010-10-31T01:05:00.004-04:00

Here is a clip of Cliff Edwards, aka "Ukelele Ike", doing "Singing In The Rain", which was a big hit for him. Be sure to look at this video first. Does that voice sound familiar? Scroll down and the take a look at the second video. That should clear up the mystery.

(11 years later, from Walt Disney's "Pinocchio")

"Goldilocks" Planet

2010-10-01T20:10:00.003-04:00

New Planet Discovered 2010, Earth like Planet Gliese 581G

The Goldilocks reference is because it is just the right size and the right distance from its sun to support life. And it is only 20 light years from our solar system.

Watch for a Starbucks opening announcement soon.

Schirrhein Football

2010-09-22T19:39:00.015-04:00

This article talks about the big upset victory that Schirrhein had in 2009 in the Coupe de France football tournament (soccer to us Yankees). It's old news, but I just found out about it.

Schirrhein Boss

Hails

Coupe De France

Giant Killing

Rank outsiders in the Coupe de France, seventh division side Schirrhein, progressed to the last 32 of the competition with a fairytale win over Ligue 2 side Clermont Foot.

Jan 4, 2009 10:23:18 AM

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A Barbershop Joke

2010-09-22T19:16:00.001-04:00

Pleasant. That's The Point

2010-09-19T21:52:00.006-04:00

We spent last Thursday through Sunday camping with The Cardinal Gulfstreamers, the RV club that Sue and I belong to. All the members have RV's that are manufactured by Gulfstream Coach and the Cardinal reference is because the club is based in Ohio and the cardinal is our state bird.

We were camped at Krodell Park, close to the town of Point Pleasant, WV. We also spent time across the Ohio River in Gallipolis, OH. ("City of the Gauls" because it was settled by people from France).

We were quite busy and the weather was just great. Sunny, not too hot and no rain at all. We toured a tavern in Gallipolis that was visited by The Marquis de Lafayette, Louis Phillippe (before he was King of France) and Jenny Lind, The Swedish Nightingale, among others. Other activities included a wine tasting party and pasta dinner at The Merry Family Winery, a tour of a replica of Fort Randolph, which was actually on the grounds of Krodell Park where we were camped, and a visit to this year's Mothman Festival in Point Pleasant. The Mothman Festival has been held for more than 40 years and attracts some very "interesting" people (not counting the members of our club). I have included a link in the "Check Out These Blogs" column for those who might want to find out more about "Mothman". The flood wall along the river in Point Pleasant is in the process of being decorated with murals showing the history of the area. You will see some of the murals in the slideshow.

Here are a few pictures

Fire Pit and Browns

2010-09-10T15:09:00.005-04:00

Seeing the pictures of the fire pit that Mark built inspired me. Ours is not as massive as the one in Cincinnati, but it makes use of the metal outdoor fireplace that the kids gave us when we had Christmas in San Antonio a few years ago.

In the picture below, you can tell that Joshua Cribbs, Browns star (#16, former Kent State quarterback) is entranced by our rendition of The National Anthem.

Johanny Cash??

2010-09-09T11:37:00.002-04:00

This video was posted on Facebook by my FB friend, and likely relative, Jean Claude Halter. The singing is in German, with French subtitles. But I think that you will recognize the tune and then you can figure out the lyrics in English.

Note to Mark: If you need an opening band when you play the Hofbrau House, these guys are a natural.

Update on the Halters in France

2010-08-23T16:31:00.006-04:00

It turns out that Jean Claude Halter, who is 58 years old, may be a closer relative than we thought. He tells me that his father was born in 1896 in the village of Schirrhein. Schirrhein is a dual village with Schirrhoffen and that is where the Halters lived who came to Ohio and from whom we are descended. I plan to ask some more questions and give him some info about the Ohio Halters (without being a pest).

On a different note, I think that I may have caused Jean Claude to start playing FarmVille. Yes, I feel guilty. He did not show any connections to FV when I first became his FB friend, but now he is at level 5 and he sent me a mystery gift today. I feel like a drug dealer.

Here is a video posted by Jean Claude on FB. No, it's not porn, despite what it looks like in the picture. It's just rap in French with a rugby theme. I think I understood more of this than I do when I listen to rap in English.

Relatives from France?

2010-08-20T16:16:00.010-04:00

Here are some photographs that were posted on FB by my new FB friend Jean Claude Halter, who lives in the same Alsace-Lorraine area that my Halter ancestors left when they came to the U.S. in the 1830's. They were German, but today that region is French. Jean Claude has made a couple of FB comments in German, however most of his posts are in French. Thank goodness for the online translator. The two young men are Brice and Johan. I know that Brice's last name is Halter, but I'm not sure about Johan. It appears that at least some of the French Halters are still in the farming business.

The young man facing forward below is Brice and the one looking back is Johan.

OK, I Admit That I'm Easily Entertained. Are You?

2010-08-01T17:45:00.003-04:00

Original Video of Pug singing "Batman"

Batman TV Theme

Want To Read Other People's Stuff?

2010-07-30T16:24:00.005-04:00

I found this item on the website called Found Magazine. People send in things that they have found abandoned and this site posts them for us to read as the "Find of the Day". This is just a sample. If you are curious and want to read more, it's

http://www.foundmagazine.com

I have a major problem with the first rule (very happily so), but overall, I think I've done ok with the others.

Welcome To Pandora

2010-07-22T00:03:00.005-04:00

This tree is sometimes called The Rainbow Eucalyptus (Eucalyptus deglupta to its friends).

I don't know where this next picture was taken but Walt Disney had to have visited there at least once.

Music Map

2010-07-14T22:56:00.005-04:00

Here is a site that I found using "Stumbleupon". (www.stumbleupon.com) Knowing that many who read this blog are into music a little more than the average person, I thought that you might enjoy playing with it. Click on the "Featured Site" in my Check Out These Blogs list.

Clear Choice On The Road

2010-07-13T19:05:00.002-04:00

We sang for The Canton City Women's Club Ice Cream Social earlier this summer. They had arranged to have this 1929 Rolls Royce on hand to add to the "old time " feeling. We got the opportunity to have our picture taken in this beautiful car, and we took advantage of it.