Great Outhouse Blowout 2012

Posted on October 7, 2012 by Denny

The porch at Penn’s Store has unquestionably been the setting for scenes like the one at right countless times. The majority probably didn’t include electric amplifiers or microphones but I know an awful lot of guitars have been played at the old store; and mandolins and fiddles and other instruments too. On Saturday, I attended the Great Outhouse Blowout at the store for the second time. My first time was in 2004.

The Penn family has owned the store since 1850 and it is known to have existed prior to 1845. The place has taken a few beatings over the years. It took one in May of 2010 when flood waters rose well above the floor and the store was forced to close for awhile. That floor has been replaced along with some other bits and the store is again open for business. Penn’s isn’t open around-the-clock like a big city 24/7 kind of place but it’s open enough.

Today’s event gets its name from the structure at right. The first Great Outhouse Blowout was held in 1992 to celebrate the completion of the first ever outhouse at Penn’s Store and the big step up from “plenty of trees”. Chet Atkins headlined the entertainment at that first GOB.

The Blowout officially got started with a little parade. There are some pretty cool hot rods and customs in there but I thought these two Fords looked like they really belonged.

A centerpiece of the GOB has always been “outhouse” races but not this year. Although I doubt it’s the full story, liability and the signing of waivers had something to do with the lack of racers. To keep the race course from being entirely idle, a three man foot race was organized.

My interior pictures of the store included one with and one without people. In the one with people, the fellow at the center is Squirrelman. After taking that picture, I spent some time in front of the store talking to a fellow named Bob. Bob is one of several locals who help the Penn family keep the store going. Squirrelman came out while we were talking and the two exchanged greetings. “That’s Squirrelman,” Bob told me. My complete lack of recognition prompted him to explain that Squirrelman was part of Turtleman’s crew. “You know? Call of the Wildman on TV,” he said in a way that made it clear that not recognizing Turtleman would almost certainly lead to questions of mental competency. “Oh yeah,” I answered. The walking race was between Bob, Squirrelman, and another member of Turtleman’s crew named Muleman. Bob barely beat Muleman to the toilet paper with Squirrelman a distant third.

I’ve since learned that Call of the Wildman is one of the Animal Planet network’s most popular programs and that Turtleman lives less than twenty miles from Penn’s Store. Researching local celebs might be a good move before I return for another Great Outhouse Blowout.

Before leaving, I ate some good BBQ, listened to some good music, took a wagon ride with Muleman, and took a look at the festival from inside the famous outhouse.

Greenville Tractor Parade

Posted on September 30, 2012 by Denny

Officially it wasn’t a parade. Its official title is the Lead the Way Tractor Cruise and its purpose is to raise funds for Darke County’s United Way. But the line of classic tractors that rolled down Greenville’s Broadway on Saturday looked a lot like a parade to me and I hope no one gets too mad if I call it that. This was the seventh time it’s been held and I’ve been there for a few of the previous ones. I did an Oddment page for the second annual cruise in 2007 when there were about thirty tractors. There were 38 tractors registered in advance this year and even more showed up. The first announcement I heard said 44 but, as the tractors approached, the announced number was 43. A mechanical problem perhaps.

An early announcement also spoke of a participant in last month’s record setting classic tractor parade in Nebraska being present and leading today’s parade. I believe they said his name was Robert. This 1956 Ford was the first tractor behind the police cruiser and its driver was identified as James. Maybe I misunderstood or maybe Robert had mechanical problems. Maybe Robert was tractor forty-four.

It was a great day for a tractor cruise and all the drivers seemed to be having a really good time. These pictures are just a small random sampling of the field.

Although I don’t know whether or not one of the tractors was driven by a world record holder or even, for sure, how many there were, I do know that this was the oldest. I’ve heard the word “doodlebug” used for other things but apparently its definition as an automobile converted to off road use is almost official. There were, in fact, conversion kits sold by Sears and others but most doodlebugs were created with whatever was on hand. The ubiquitous Model T Ford was the basis for many conversions but not all. This is a 1928 Chevrolet Doodlebug.

A tractor has to be at least thirty years old to be considered a classic. It’s just a matter of time.

This was also Prairie Days weekend so I stopped by Shawnee Prairie Preserve to check things out.

With all that agriculture related stuff going on, the big Harvest Moon at the end of the day seemed just right.

MPMF Lite

Posted on September 30, 2012 by Denny

Some consider Cincinnati’s Mid Point Music Festival second only to Austin’s South by Southwest and some concede even that grudgingly The eleventh coming of MPMF has just concluded and it was only the third I’ve attended at all. I think I was there the first year and again for the second or third but I’m not at all certain. Whichever ones they were, I know they were pretty early on and know that I’ve spent many years since feeling guilty about not going. Sometimes I was out of town or had another legitimate reason but mostly I was just too lazy. The effort that I shied away from was not the driving downtown or the hiking between venues; It was the effort of determining which venues to hike between.

This year is typical. There are 180 bands playing at 16 venues over 3 days. Unlike most music festivals, MPMF doesn’t book the world’s most well known bands to get you to attend. It books lesser known but highly talented bands to get them and you some exposure to each other. Unless you are an industry pro, you’re not likely to be familiar with many of those 180 bands. You can either show up and hope you stumble upon a couple of performers that you like or you can spend time planning your visit in hopes of not missing your next big favorite. Or you can do what I’ve been doing and dodge the whole thing.

Maybe the feelings of guilt finally caught up with me or maybe it was the addition of the recently redone Washington Park as a venue or maybe it was actually recognizing the performer who would be headlining one of the Washington Park shows. It was probably all the above and more that prompted me to at least dip a toe — or ear — back into the Midpoint Music Festival. I decided to attend one night of the three day festival and partake of only the Washington Park offerings. The photo at the top of this post is of Washington Park a couple of hours before the official opening of the festival. That is the glorious Cincinnati Music Hall in the background. At what I believe was the first concert at Washington Park in July, the bands had played from the permanent stage where I stood to take the picture at left. Yes, the music has started but the crowd is almost non-existent. The opening crowd at festivals, especially those with sixteen stages, is often like that and rain & rumors of rain didn’t help. As it turned out, not a drop fell on Washington park during the entire concert.

The group that opened the show and is playing to a lot of grass in the previous picture was the Bonesetters from Indianapolis. The crowd was significantly larger, though far from large, by the end of their set. With a good performance of very solid original material, they deserved more but, being both new and semi-local, the exposure was still no doubt good for them. Next up was the even more local but well established Pomegranates. I’d heard of them but don’t believe I’d ever heard them and know I’d not seen them. From the white clothes and dyed hair to the Fender Mustangs, there is plenty of formula and gimmickry here but it’s backed with solid music, lots of energy, and impressive vocals. The next band, Brooklyn’s Here We Go Magic, seems to basically be a group of talented musicians delivering singer-songwriter Luke Temple’s well crafted tunes. They sounded good and I liked the material but there didn’t seem to be a whole lot of energy or conviction coming from the stage. It appears that band personnel may vary from time to time so maybe there’s a killer …Magic lineup out there somewhere.

That headliner I recognized was Andrew Bird. I surprised myself by recognizing the names — not necessarily the sounds — of at least eight performers. Eight of one-eighty! I doubt many attendees would brag about a 4% recognition rate but this old man is doing exactly that.

It was full on dark when Bird took the stage and, while that didn’t help me get crisp photos, it did show just what those overhead spirals were there for. Spinning slowly and lit by frequently changing colored spot lights, they were a nice visual backing for Bird’s music. I had heard a few recorded tunes so was aware of Bird’s whistling ability but did not realize just how good it was or how much he used it. Where another musician might blow into a harmonica for a little non-verbal music, Bird just purses his lips and blows into the microphone. It might seem like a gimmick for a few seconds but it quickly becomes just another instrument in the mix. That mix includes a bassist, guitarist, and a drummer that plays keyboards. And then there’s Bird. Seemingly equally proficient on guitar and violin, he usually plays one or the other but sometimes uses both in the same song. In the close up, he’s playing a glockenspiel while holding a violin which he will pick or bow then lay down to play the guitar hanging at his side.

Music Hall’s circular stained glass window sure looks good hanging above Andrew Bird’s lighted spirals and there was a nearly full moon floating behind me. I truly enjoyed my one venue return to MPMF. I’m sure Thursday is the least crowded of the festival’s three nights and the threat of rain may have also played a role. The crowd at Washington Park grew steadily as the first three bands performed then took a big jump as Bird’s slot approached but it never reached the shoulder to shoulder mass that I feared and the promoters hoped for. I hope it was enough and I hope to be back next year. Sorry I’ve been away so long.

Not all of the entertainment in Washington Park was musical. Among the food vendors was new-to-me Island Noodles. I happened to be Brad’s first customer of the day which meant I had to wait awhile for dinner but I got a great show and absolutely fresh food in return. Although it’s hard to beat a huge flame, it was also fun to watch the veggies get chopped into the big wok. Before I even finished paying for my noodles, the next customer was beside me and business picked up from there. This is good eating.

This particular operation is based in Florida. That’s where Brad lives but he is originally from Toledo and has spent the summer staying with his parents and working festivals around the state. Events included July’s Bunbury Festival which was also in Cincinnati. As he cooked, we chatted, and Brad said he wished he had learned more about Cincinnati when he was growing up near the other edge of Ohio. “This”, he says, “is the friendliest city I’ve ever been in.” That’s nice to hear. I think so, too.

I was in Indianapolis last week and in my trip journal I raved about a bar-b-que joint named Squealers. It deserved the raves but it reminded me of two things. One, I hadn’t eaten in my favorite ribs joint in quite some time and, two, I had a gift card that would let me do it for for free or close to free. I made use of that card on Wednesday. If I am ever convicted of a capital crime in a country that honors the last-meal-for-a-condemned-man convention, this is what I want; Montgomery Inn ribs, shrimp, and Saratoga chips. Being warned about stirring the sweet plum sauce and hot mustard is as reliable as death and taxes. I kidded the waitress about it and she shrugged. “You don’t know what they do to us if we don’t tell you”, she said.

Cleveland Air Show

Posted on September 2, 2012 by Denny

My sailor son has had some good assignments and some that weren’t so good. The one he has currently is better than good. He was once a journalist but in today’s Navy, he is a Mass Communications Specialist or MC. He is one of two MCs presently assigned to the Leap Frogs, the Navy’s demonstration parachute team. He is stationed in San Diego but wasn’t there when I visited a couple of weeks ago because he was traveling with the team for performances in Milwaukee and Chicago. They were also to be part of the Labor Day Air Show in Cleveland, Ohio, and that was close enough to Cincinnati for me to make it.

On Friday, I drove to near Cleveland while the Leap Frogs practiced and prepared for the show on Saturday. In the evening, Fletcher, my son, and I got together for dinner. He gave me a pass for the show and told me to text him once I was there. I arrived a little after the gates opened at 9:00 AM and I sent my text. A couple of messages and a few minutes later Fletcher and I found each other near the announcer’s stand. At dinner he had made some comment about getting me a good view. He now guided me past the fellows guarding the entrance to the reserved seating and the VIP area. I was soon standing with the Leap Frog ground crew right next to the landing zone. The jumpers were already airborne. The Army’s parachute team, the Golden Knights, were also performing at the show and the two teams were opening the show with a combined jump delivering both the Canadian and United States flags. The two national anthems were sung as their respective flags slowly descended from the sky. The two teams would both do separate shows later in the day.

The picture at the top of the article was taken at the later Leap Frogs show as were the two at the right. I apologize for the lack of names but, since I don’t remember them all, I won’t use any. The group’s size varies from time to time and, with only four jumpers, is at the small end of the range just now. It has been as high as fifteen and the count will start increasing before long.

Not only are these guys incredibly skilled, they’re pretty darned nice. As soon as possible after landing, they were shaking hands and talking with spectators over the fence. Once the show part was actually over, they moved to where show attendees had easy access while they packed their ‘chutes. Everyone who approached them was greeted with a smile and sometimes, when a youngster looked a little shy, it was the Leap Frog who did the approaching. The little fellow in the first picture spoke with a couple of the Leap Frogs before settling down to help pack a ‘chute. The second picture shows two sons being photographed by their proud fathers. One wears a parachute and stands beside the ‘chute’s owner. The Leap Frogs happily pose with all who ask. The second son is kneeling on the right side of the picture. Yep, that’s my boy Fletcher.

With the parachutes packed the team agreed to a photo for me then a photo with me. I said they’d pose with anybody.

In the evening, these guys jumped onto second base with the US flag while the national anthem was being performed before a Cleveland Indians game. Fletcher did the announcing for that one. It took the jumpers quite a while to leave the field as they were greeted and high-fived by fans at the front of the stands. Then, after they were off the field, there were plenty of folks wanting to say hello or thanks or ask for a picture. When they came up to their seats to watch part of the game, they were greeted with applause and cheers and more requests for pictures. Two young fans approached with baseballs to be autographed.

Although they were my favorite attraction and the reason I was there, the Leap Frogs were not really the only thing going on at the air show. Among the many in air attractions was some fantastic wingwalking — and hanging — by Jane Wicker, some impressive aerobatics by Sean D. Tucker, and a great performance by the navy’s Blue Angels.

It has absolutely no connection with the air show but I really enjoyed my 3 cheese omelet at Grumpy’s Cafe and wanted to give them a shout out. Great food and prices and a very friendly staff. The tasty Cajun potatoes have just a little zing and I ended up with a glass of water in addition to that small cup of coffee. Most folks will be just fine with them.

Happy Belated Birthday to My Blog

The first Sunday that saw me fail to make a real blog post was the first Sunday after the blog passed the one year mark. Ironic, eh? This blog was launched on August 7, 2011. On August 12, 2012, I was in the middle of a road trip and had run out off pre-written articles with no time to finish one that wasn’t quite ready. So, after fifty-two consecutive Sundays of posting something with at least a little food value, I posted an apologetic surrender in a basically empty post without realizing that the date was anything special. The next week I posted the My Gear article that I’d managed to finish while on the road and the following week posted an article about a hamburger joint after I’d been home a few days. It was the very next day that I got to thinking that I’d been doing this awhile and looked into things to discover that I’d made it exactly one year before stumbling.

A semi-educated guess is that there were about 3800 page views in the blog’s first year with the top three posts being the book review of The Long Ride, an article on an endangered local historic building, the Twenty Mile House, and an article on a day at the World Choir Games in Cincinnati.

RoadDog Day Afternoon

Posted on July 22, 2012 by Denny

I get to be part of somebody’s road trip again. Don Hatch is a roadie whose nickname and online handle is “RoadDog” and that is the source of my not particularly clever title. He stopped in Cincinnati today on his way back from relatives in North Carolina to his home in Illinois. Unlike Fred Zander, whose road trip I got to be part of last month, Don has been to Cincinnati before and even visited the American Sign Museum in its original location. In spite of that, or more likely because of it, seeing the new and improved set up was high on his list of goals for the visit.

To save time and make sure we didn’t miss the four hour (noon-4:00) Sunday window, we met at the museum. We arrived a little after 1:00 and roamed the museum on our own for awhile then hooked up with about a dozen others for the 2:00 tour. This was my first “official” tour of the museum in the new location. Museum founder Tod Swormstedt did his normal excellent job job while RoadDog took notes.

I experienced another first by going inside Neonworks, the independent sign shop that occupies some of the museum’s space. The shop can be seen from the museum proper through large windows but is usually idle on weekends. Today craftsman Tom Wartman showed up near the end of the tour and we were allowed into the shop for an up-close look and a little demonstration. As we watched, Tom sealed and filled then brought to life a length of neon text.

Another of Don’s Cincinnati goals was grabbing some chili but, as I’ve noted before, all the independent chili parlors are closed on Sundays. The two big chains, Skyline and Gold Star, have plenty of stores open and both turn out some very fine Cincinnati chili but I talked Don into waiting until Monday for his chili fix and trying out a ‘burger joint today. Probably the currently best-known Cincinnati ‘burger joint is Terry’s Turf Club and that’s where Fred and I went. However, Don has experienced — and loved — Terry’s in the past so I led Don to someplace “new”. That “new” is in quotes because, while Zip’s Cafe may be new to Don, but it has been turning out award-winning “Zip Burgers since 1926.

For dessert, we did exactly what Fred and I had done and ate delicious ice cream at one of the 98-year-old marble tables at the Aglamesis Brothers shop on Madison Road. Most people who think of Cincinnati ice cream think of Graeter’s and I don’t want to demean it in anyway. Like Skyline and Gold Star chili, it is an excellent product and I’m proud to live near its source. All three brands are Cincinnati to the bone, if any of them had bones, but they can now be found in other cities in the region. Camp Washington and Blue Ash Chili (which is in tomorrow’s plans) are among a number of independent one-location Cincinnati-only chili dispensaries. Aglamesis does have two stores but all of their ice cream is made on Madison Road. Fred actually had Graeter’s on his list when he arrived but I steered him to Aglamesis. I was happy to learn that he did get to sample their product in Columbus, Ohio, and sent this picture to prove it.

We wrapped up the day at Washington Park. The park, which originally opened in 1855, had become a somewhat scary place in recent years but an extensive makeover has just been completed. The ribbon cutting was July 6 and tonight a sort of grand reopening celebration took place with a free concert featuring Jake Speed & the Freddies and Over the Rhine. You can’t get much more Cincinnati than that.

The reverse road trip continues tomorrow with stops planned for Blue Ash Chili, Pompilio’s, and Mansion Hill Tavern.

It Is Balloon!

Posted on July 15, 2012 by Denny

Just as I can no longer hear The Banana Boat Song without seeing a certain dinner party, it’s nearly impossible for me to see a hot air balloon and not think of F Troop.

OK, now that I have that out of the way, I can move on to the 2012 MidUSA Ohio Challenge Balloon Festival that I attended on Friday. The official opening ceremonies were scheduled for 6:00, the gates opened at 4:00, and I arrived a little after 5:00.

The early crowd was naturally sparse but things were happening well ahead of the opening ceremonies. Food, crafts, and other vendors lined the big spectator field and virtually all were open. A small troop of acrobats warmed up near the middle of the field and an Indiana band, The Skallywags, completed their sound check and immediately stepped into their first set on the main stage. Several skydivers rather casually fell out of the sky. There seemed to be just about everything needed for most festivals but this was a hot air balloon festival and there was not a balloon in sight.

One reason for the lack of balloons would be explained during the opening ceremonies. They started with a fellow named Rick Gibbs singing the national anthem. Then Team Fastrax jumped in with gigantic U.S. flags and a group of Native Americans provided a prayer, some music, and some dancing. A small Indian village with a huge tepee is part of the festival and dancing and other activities would take place there throughout the weekend. There were also a couple of short speeches and announcements. One of the announcements was that there was just too much wind for safe ballooning. The announcer pointed out a pole with a red flag flying from it on the far side of the field. No launches could take place under a red flag. A window of opportunity could open later but, instead of a 7 o’clock launch, there would be a 7 o’clock pilots meeting. The red flag might turn green after that.

By 7:20, I was convinced that there would be no balloons flying tonight and started for the gates. At that exact instant, a car with a trailer in tow pulled onto the field; Then another and another. The red flag was still flying but balloonists were at least getting into position. Some unloading was also occurring through at a pace that indicated a complete lack of urgency.

The original plan had been for all of the balloons to take off around 7:00, fly for about an hour, then land and return for a “balloon glow” shortly after 9:00. As I thought about that, I once again became convinced that there would be no balloon flying tonight. I theorized that the balloons had come onto the field in anticipation of the “glow” with no intention of taking off. Again I started for the gate and again action on the field stopped me. Balloons were starting to inflate. Some fellows hauled down the red flag and ran up a green one.

Soon the announcer was describing a “Hare & Hounds” competition where one balloon, the hare, lands somewhere and marks the spot and the other balloons score points by dropping a bag of sand as close as they can to the mark. The hare and the first hound, a sunglasses wearing cutie named Lindy, got off in quick succession. A few others followed but it wasn’t long before a yellow flag was raised and a red one soon followed.

From photo time stamps, It appears that the green flag flew for barely fifteen minutes. I believe that about a half-dozen balloons slipped through that small window. That’s but a fraction of the thirty-five competitors listed in the program and I have no idea whether the flight will count for scoring points or not. I suspect it will since the competition appears to be anything but cutthroat and balloonists are somewhat used to being grounded by winds. So this is as close to as I got to the picture I’d envisioned of a balloon filled sky. But it’s a nice little group floating serenely into the sunset and it certainly looks inviting.

With the late launch, it was a fairly short wait for the glow preparations to begin and I suspect some of those hounds were still in the process of being loaded and trailered back when the glow took place. A laser light show and fireworks were to follow but neither interested me all that much and I left after the glow peaked. This was the event’s tenth year and I’ve wanted to come several times. I’m glad I finally made it and consider a return quite likely. It’s definitely a worthwhile event and I still want to see that balloon filled sky.

I did not make it back to a World Choir Games Champions Competition as I wanted to. Thursday would have been good but it was sold out. I decided to settle for a free Friendship Concert that was to be held on Friday in a park not too far from my home. It was moved, however, and by the time I learned of that and reached the new location, the parking lot was filled to overflowing and I’m sure everything else was, too. I drove on by and on to the balloon festival instead. I had planned on attending the festival on Saturday so this was just a little time shift. It all worked out well except for that Champions Competition thing.

The World is Singing in Cincy

Posted on July 8, 2012 by Denny

The Seventh World Choir Games are happening in Cincinnati right now. Austria, South Korea, Germany, and China have previously hosted the biennial event but this year it’s our turn. The opening ceremony was Wednesday, competition started Thursday, and I got a small taste of the event on Friday. I could have prepared for my visit a little better but I had a great time anyway.

There are ticketed events, which include the big opening and closing ceremonies, and there are free events. The competition is divided into Open and Champions. The Champions participants are selected by a panel while any choir that meets certain requirements can enter the Open competition. Tickets can be (or at least could have been) purchased for specific events and there are daily Competition Flex Passes available. A Flex Pass will get you into any of the competitions “as seating is available”. Part of my poor planning included deciding on Friday that I was going on Friday. For some reason I thought I had to get my Flex Pass at the Aronoff Theater ticket office which opened at 10:00 or exactly the same time as the day’s first concerts. I had picked a Folklore Champions Competition to attend first. By the time I got my pass and walked to the venue (and discovered that I could have bought my pass there), the choirs and been performing to a packed house for half an hour. The doors opened briefly between each performance, a few people exited, and their replacements were allowed in. I evaluated my chances of getting in before it was over and they weren’t all that good. I slipped away and sought out the shuttle running between the venues. The shuttle stop was near where the choirs entered and exited. A group from the Czech Republic came by then some stragglers from a group that had apparently included some “down on the farm” material in their performance. One trustworthy member had been entrusted with an abundance of their props.

I rode the shuttle to Fountain Square where a free Global Village concert was in progress. That’s a choir from China on stage in the picture. In addition to the full slate of scheduled activities, impromptu musical outbursts can occur just about anywhere at anytime. The energetic group performing in front of the Rock Bottom Brewery is the Bel Canto Children’s Chorus from Red Hill, Pennsylvania.

Bombay Cambridge School Choir, India

EDTChoir,
Norway

Vocal Point, Galesville, WI, USA

Vox Juventutis, Poland

Hunter Singers, Australia

Morten Boerup Choir, Denmark

In the afternoon, I easily made it inside for a Popular Choral Music Open Competition at the Aronoff. The theater’s size might be partly responsible for the large number of unfilled seats but I’m sure that the perceived quality has much more to do with it. These may not be the hand-picked cream-of-the-crop choirs of the Champions Competition but they’re pretty darned good. I thought that all six choirs I heard were very good, four were great, and that outfit from Poland was something above excellent.

I have, of course, absolutely no qualifications for offering anything close to a real evaluation of these groups. I can’t even make an untrained comparison between the Open and Champions Competition since the Popular Choral Music Open Competition was the only competition of either sort I actually saw. It started at 1:00 and ended about 3:15. I wandered back to Fountain Square and even popped into Rock Bottom Brewery for a cold one. Yes, I had just been sitting in air conditioned comfort for a couple of hours but at 100+ it doesn’t take long to get hot. As I sipped, I did something I should have done much earlier and looked a little more thoughtfully at the schedule. A Champions Competition was slated for 3:30 just a few blocks from the Aronoff. Had I headed there when the Popular Choral Music thing ended, I could have at least been in line when the doors opened. I walked on over but the line that existed at 4:15 was clearly enough the keep the event filled and then some.

The official temperature in downtown Cincinnati was a record breaking 104 Fahrenheit. As I walked back to Fountain Square, I snapped a couple of pictures of the kiosk at the bus plaza. It showed a solid 104 and I got a picture of that. Then, just as I was lowering the camera, a 105 appeared and I grabbed another shot. On the next cycle it was back to 104. Maybe it was just showing off for the camera. I have evidence of a 105 reading but, to be honest, I couldn’t tell the difference.

Temperature has certainly been a big story around here lately. Keeping residents and visitors safe is a real concern that Cincinnati is taking seriously. Although a big reopening celebration is a couple of weeks away, there was a ribbon cutting and dedication at the totally reworked Washington Park and its several fountains were clearly appreciated. The park is near Music Hall and the School for Creative & Performing Arts which are both being used for the Choir Games. Some large misters are operating on Fountain Square and, of course, there is always the Tyler-Davidson Fountain itself.

Maybe it was the heat that kept me from thinking clearly and organizing my day better. The Games are here through next week so maybe I’ll try again. Haphazard bouncing around was certainly enjoyable but actually hearing at least one Champions Choir seems like a worthwhile goal.

Oddly enough, the World Choir Games were not the reason I first marked July 6 on my calendar. I marked it when I heard that a favorite musician would be visiting Cincinnati and playing on the square. This isn’t him. This is a favorite musician but he doesn’t have to visit Cincinnati; He lives here. This is 86 year old Philip Paul. Remember Tiny Bradshaw’s Train Kept a Rollin’ or Hank Ballard’s The Twist or Freddie King’s Hideaway? All those recordings and a whole lot more had Philip Paul’s drums on them. He was pretty much the session drummer for King Records during their heyday. He still performs on weekends at the Cricket Lounge. When I realized that hanging around to see that out-of-towner would keep me in the area and that actually seeing him would keep me from the late Choir events, it seemed a perfect time to see the Phillip Paul Trio again. It’s good jazz from a rock ‘n’ roll and blues legend who happens to be a really nice guy, too.

This is the guy I’d marked my calendar for and was hanging around to see. Patrick Sweany is originally from Ohio but now lives in Nashville, Tennessee. In a way, I think the move may have been good for Cincinnati fans. Patrick occasionally returns to the Alliance, Ohio, area to visit family and play a few gigs in the ‘hood. Since Cincinnati is along one of the possible routes, we get to see him now and then, too. His music is a little bit blues, a little bit roots, a little bit soul, and a little bit rock ‘n’ roll.

Strangers may have been fooled by the perfectly combed hair and the shades that you can only buy in Nashville and then only with a prescription from your manager but us regulars know what happens when the music starts. And it looks like those great tunes and nothing-held-back performances may be winning over some new Cincinnati fans, too.

Pathways and Presidents
2012 Lincoln Highway Conference

Posted on June 16, 2012 by Denny

I started toward Canton, Ohio, today. That’s where the 2012 Lincoln Highway Association National Conference begins on Monday. The conference actually gets rolling — literally — on Tuesday with the first bus tour but the opening banquet is on Monday evening and I’ve signed up for a pre-conference tour that launches from Niles, Ohio, at 9:15 Monday morning. Since that’s near the far corner of the state, I figured I ought to leave home on Saturday morning. Two full days to drive across Ohio sounds about right don’t you think?

The journal for the trip, with the first day posted, is here. This blog entry may be used for comments and questions concerning the entire trip.

Roads, Women, and Cars

Posted on June 10, 2012 by Denny

I’d have probably been overpowered if they had all been present at the same time, but, over the course of the weekend, I managed a “road meet”, an all-female concert, and a gathering of killer cars. The photo at the right is of the “road geeks” who participated in the “road meet” which was in Dayton, Ohio.

“Road geeks” are different from “roadies”. “Roadies” are attracted to old roads and the culture around them. “Road geeks” are attracted to newer roads and to their design and construction. Neither definition is perfect and the groups certainly overlap. I’m a mainstream “roadie” and a fringe “road geek”. Most in the picture tend to be the other way ’round.

The difference is illustrated by a couple of events from Saturday. One of the participants is planning a drive to and from California in the near future. It was one of the things we chatted about over lunch. He mentioned that the return trip would be more leisurely and relaxed since they would be covering only 500-600 miles instead of the 700-800 of some of the westbound days. My target range is something like 150-200 miles a day. The other event was the “clinching” of a road. “Clinching” means traveling the full length of a road. I’ve clinched a few; Route 66, Lincoln Highway, US-62. I-675 is a quarter-circle expressway on the southeast edge of Dayton that the whole group “clinched” on Saturday. I believe that’s the first interstate I’ve ever “clinched” and am certain it’s the first I’ve done intentionally.

For the most part, though, the differences are a matter of degree and both “roadies” and “road geeks” are very friendly people who enjoy roads and each other. There are certainly some “roadies” who would cringe at the thought of looking over the recently reworked I-70 & I-75 interchange from a park bench but I’ve now seen members of both groups roaming around the former Dixie Highway & National Road intersection with cameras clicking. The sign being photographed is the “Crossroads of America” sign. The title has no shortage of claimants but both of these intersections are legitimate contenders. The DH and the NR, clearly major highways of their day, morphed into US-25 and US-40 respectively. I-75 is the interstate era successor to US-25 and I-70 is the successor to US-40.

From Dayton I headed over to Oxford, Ohio, for another show at the Big Song Music House. This one featured “The Georgia Songbird”, EG Kight. As she has for the other shows I’ve attended here, Lisa Biales, who owns Big Song Music House with her husband Marc, opened with a few tunes. Then EG took the stage and, in the intimate setting that seemed to fit her perfectly, entertained us with both music and conversation that triggered many smiles and several chuckles. Of course, smiles were not restricted to the time between tunes. EGs humor frequently shows up in her songs, too.

Lisa is close friends with both acts, Ricky Nye and Ronstadt Generations, that I’ve seen here in the past and she joined each of them a few times during their performances. EG and Lisa are certainly friends and EG produced and contributed to Lisa’s most recent CD, Just Like Honey, but it’s probably the musical similarities that makes their performing together something special. Both have powerful and clear voices, they both know their way around a guitar, and both are capable of delivering both real and lyrical winks. Lisa joined EG several times, both with and without her guitar, and the two powerful voices combined to produce some pow-pow-powerful harmonies.

I took an overnight break before heading out to my third event of the weekend, the 35th Ault Park Concours d’Elegance in Cincinnati. In years past, I’ve parked as close as I could (which never seemed to be very close) and trudged up the hills to the Concours. This year a friend and I took advantage of the free offsite parking and shuttle. Not a bit of trudging and the fact that the shuttle buses were air-conditioned was deeply appreciated after we had walked all over the grounds and were heading back to the car.

There were plenty of “normal” concours vehicles like Duesenburgs, and Hudsons and brass era cars such as the 1914 Packard above, but the title of this year’s event was A Century of American Power so there were also some cars on display that you might not immediately think of when you hear Concours d’Elegance. Prominent among these were 1960s & ’70s muscle cars and dragsters from the same period.

Prime examples of Detroit muscle are the 427 CI 425 HP V8 in a 1964 Ford Galaxy and the 426 CI 425 HP (for insurance purposes) V8 in a 1963 Dodge Polara. That’s Cincinnati muscle in the third picture. The 44 CI 26.5 HP I4 in a 1951 Crosley Hotshot might not seem like a symbol of …American Power but it was a Hotshot that won, through handicapping, the first Sebring Endurance Race in 1950.

This picture might make you think that texting while driving was encouraged back when the alphabet was smaller but it is actually the push-button transmission controls in a 1958 Edsel Citation.

This is something of a bonus. Carey Murdock is another singer-songwriter I learned of through Josh Hisle. He lives in Nashville, Tennessee. I came close to connecting with him there last Christmas but missed and actually met him for the first time tonight as we both walked across the street to Mansion Hill Tavern. Carey had prearranged a stop at Mansion Hill as a “featured guest” which essentially means a half hour slot at a regularly scheduled blues jam with lots of musicians waiting to form groups and get some stage time. This is obviously not the best showcase situation but Carey handled it well and the crowd seemed to like him. I definitely did.

American Sign Museum Reopening

Posted on June 3, 2012 by Denny

Mark your calendars. On June 23, the American Sign Museum begins full five-days-a-week operation at its new bigger and taller location just a few blocks from Camp Washington Chili. There were previews on Friday & Saturday and I assure you that seeing an entire Mail Pouch barn side in a museum is not the same as seeing pictures. I’ve created an Oddment page for those previews and this blog entry simply points to that page and provides a place for comments.

This way to the Oddment.

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