Another Middle Bass Barbershop Weekend has come and gone and it was great. We got to our "cottage" around noon on Friday and in no time we were settled in. We drove over to the "cook shack" and made lunch. The possible menu included: hamburgers/cheeseburgers with many accessories, hotdogs, cold cuts, and of course eggs, ham, toast and hashbrowns for guys who can eat breakfast at any time of day. They have two gas stove grills and they are very busy around meal time. They also had a couple of big boxes of fresh peaches. I made sure that I had a few of those during the weekend. My plan was to buy a disposable camera for this trip, but I decided that I took a lot of pictures last year and even a small camera is difficult to take around to all the events that are going on. We travel light on the islands. Anyway, what happens on Middle Bass stays on Middle Bass.
There were 16 quartets for the Friday and Saturday night shows. At the end of each show, all barbershoppers were invited up on stage and we sang another 5 or 6 songs. There were about 130 men each night and what a sound you can get with that many.
After the Friday night show, we went to Tony's, a small bar that is off the tourist path and mostly frequented by island residents. There was a take-out food place close by so we got sandwiches, fries and wings to take to Tony's (they don't serve food). We ended up having six quartets in the bar, so we just took turns singing. This place doesn't have the blaring music playing in the background like the places on the main street, so it was perfect. We spent a portion of Saturday afternoon around the new family-oriented pool that had been installed at J. F. Walleyes, one of Middle Bass' hotspots. If you go there, you must stop at Walleyes. After the Saturday performance, we had an "afterglow" hosted by a couple who lives on the island. They had pulled pork sandwiches, spaghetti, beans, potato salad etc., and a keg of Bud. Their house attracted barbershoppers like a bug zapper pulls in "skeeters".
It is great to spend a couple of days with guys who share my hobby and people who like to listen to us sing. Last year we had a guy from California in attendance and this year a former Ohio resident who recently moved to Florida flew in for the weekend.
Tomorrow, at the unheard hour of 8:00 AM, I will meet up with my quartet buddies and begin the roughly 2 hr. journey to Port Clinton, Ohio. There will be breakfast along the way. We will catch the 11:15 ferry to Middle Bass Island to be part of the 61st annual Barbershop Weekend on Middle Bass and South Bass Island.
We went last year too and that was my first year to attend. Housing is provided by residents of the island, there is a "cook shack" where guys can make their own creations for breakfast and fry cheeseburgers, etc at all hours of the day, and of course, a lot of singing happens.
Quartets (there are usually 20 or more) sing two songs each at the Perry Monument on South Bass at 7:00 PM Friday. We all sing again at 7:00 PM Saturday in the Town Hall on Middle Bass Island. Many people come to the islands specifically to hear the singing so we have great audiences both nights. At 8:15 AM Sunday morning, we will catch the ferry back to the mainland and then head home.
Sue's dad is coming down to our house in Kent to visit and staying over until Monday. I should be home about noon on Sunday. I am not taking the computer with me but I am taking the camera. Hopefully, I will have some pictures of the festivities to post early next week.
A while back, The Davy Tree Expert Company took down several big trees along Potomac Avenue in Erie, PA, where Sue's dad lives. Monday morning, we woke up to the sound of big trucks and eventually chain saws, courtesy of Davy Tree. This work didn't involve as much travel for them. Their world corporate headquarters is only about a mile from here.
Our neighbor, Bob, had hired Davy to take down a large tree in his back yard. The previous owner had built a deck with this tree sticking up out of the middle of the floor. I haven't asked, but I'm guessing that Bob was tired of cleaning leaves, branches and bird poop off the deck. Maybe he has plans to build some kind of cover for the deck.
It was amazing to watch these guys remove this tree in big pieces with a crane and reduce it to wood chips before they left Bob's yard. The video below shows a little bit of the process.
How great is a summer when we have had two different pontoon boat rides and it's only the beginning of August. In July, we hitched a ride around Old Hickory Lake near Hendersonville, TN with Sue's brother, Dave, on his new boat. Last Sunday, we got a tour of wonderful, carefree Lake Mohawk , near Malvern, OH on my brother Jim's boat. If you're curious about the "wonderful, carefree" thing, that was part of the radio jingle that they used to advertise the Lake Mohawk development back in the 60's.
In the beginning, Lake Mohawk was just the man-made lake, some dirt roads and many salesmen trying to sell lots. Back then, good lots went for around $2500, which was not cheap in 1964. Today, the average lot, if you find an empty one is about $90,000. There are quite a few houses that are in the 1 million plus bracket. People who live in places like Chicago and Atlanta have vacation homes at the lake. It's hard to imagine that when I was a kid, we would go up the hill behind our farm and down the other side into what is now Lake Mohawk to explore the "Indian Caves" and look for arrowheads.
Mike and Kim went to Malvern with Sue and I (and Wickett), and we visited with my mom. She is doing great with her recovery from hip surgery, and is anxious to begin driving again. She went along with us on the boat ride and then we went out to dinner together. Good times!! Even though he isn't in the group picture, Wickett was on the boat ride too. Turns out that he is a real "sea dog".
Well, today, the shipment of Halter BonBons arrived. Since until about a week ago, I was not aware of these candies, I will give a brief update.
On daughter Kris' blog, I noticed that she had a picture of a small green box, on which I could read the name Halter, and the word "mint". A little web-digging produced that this was a box of mint candies, sold by a Swiss company called Halter BonBons.
They began making candies in 1907 and are still at it. On the boxes, you can see the round label that celebrates their 100th anniversary in 2007. The candies are small, hard, no-sugar added treats. I found a company in Canada that sells the bonbons , put in an order, they shipped it last Monday and today, I'm eatin' 'em.
They are quite good, but there are only 20 in a box at a cost of $2.50. Plus it cost me $7.00 to have the two boxes shipped to Ohio. Cheaper than going to Switzerland, but still pretty expensive. I got cherry and watermelon this time. I'm thinking lemon for the next shipment. They sell cases of 16 boxes for just over $33.00. That is a better price per box. Since brothers Jacob and Abraham Halter, our ancestors, left Switzerland for Alsace-Lorraine around 1650, and the candy company wasn't started until over 250 years later, I'm afraid that Kris and Mike are not heirs to the Swiss candy fortune. Sorry guys. Maybe you have a better chance with the Halters that make the cool Swiss watches.
You saw and heard Mike's quartet in the last post. Here is Clear Choice, the quartet that I sing with. We were part of the same event in Copley, Ohio on July 27th.
Here is a video of son Mike's quartet doing two numbers last Sunday at the Copley Bandstand in Copley Ohio. Left to right, Jerry, Mike(not my son), Jim and Mike (my son). They have only been together about a year and even though I might be prejudiced, they sound good. Give them a listen.
