Tag Archives: Ohio River

African American History along the Cincinnati Riverfront

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I took this Harriet Beecher Stowe House walking tour last Saturday with the idea that it would be the subject of last Sunday’s blog post but it was not. I told myself there wasn’t enough time to create a post for Sunday morning, which was certainly one reason, but another reason was that I felt slightly disappointed in the tour. I should not have. The problem was my expectations were off. For no good reason, I had thought we would visit spots where historic things happened but with just a little more thought I realized how ridiculous that was—the Cincinnati riverfront of 2024 bares little resemblance to the riverfront of the past. The tour took us to places where historic things are commemorated. I enjoyed the tour as it happened and now appreciate it with the passage of a little time.

We met tour guide Zinnia Stewart by the statue of John Roebling near the south end of the bridge that bears his name. Other than a meeting point, the statue plays no role in the tour. Neither does the bridge as anything other than a walkway across the river. I chose the particular opening photo that I did because it mimics the photo that has appeared at the front of this blog since the beginning. Its purpose is to show the river of the tour’s title. Dredging, dams, and other feats of engineering have made the Ohio River consistently navigable for large barges which is something it was not in the days when it separated the free North from the slaveholding South.

The tour began by heading east along the river to a statue representing James Bradley. We were supplied with small wireless (Bluetooth I assume) listening devices so that we could easily hear Stewart as we walked. Bradley was abducted from Africa and worked as a slave until he was able to buy his own freedom in 1833. He then moved to Cincinnati and was the only former slave participating in the pivotal Lane Debates of 1834.

We then headed west past the Roebling Bridge to the string of Robert Dafford murals on the riverfront and stopped at The Flight of the Garner Family. In 1856, Margaret Garner escaped from slavery by crossing the frozen Ohio River with her husband and children. They were captured in Cincinnati and Margaret killed her daughter to save her from a life of slavery. She was prevented from killing herself and her other children as planned. Toni Morrison’s Beloved was inspired by these events.

It was now time to cross the river ourselves. I had taken that opening picture of the River Queen during our visit to the murals and now caught it from the middle of the Roebling Bridge after it turned and headed back. We stopped twice while crossing as Stewart shared stories and photos of people and places along both sides of the river.

On the Ohio side, I spent more time at the Black Brigade Monument than I have ever spent before, and as a result, I know I need to spend a lot more time here in the future. I simply did not realize the many facets of this monument that it seems I’ve only glanced at before. One bit of information that made the whole tour worthwhile is that William Mallory, who was instrumental in getting the monument constructed, was the model for the face of Black Brigade member Marshall P.H. Jones. I thought I knew the story of the Black Brigade but, just like the memorial, there is a lot more for me to learn.

Our last stop was at this statue of politician Marian Spencer. Spencer left her mark on the area in many ways but she is probably best remembered for her efforts to desegregate Coney Island Amusement Park.

Goetta Again

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GoettaFest is that eight-day festival that is spread over two four-day weekends with a gap in the middle. Two years ago I made it to the first day of the first weekend. This year I made it — just barely — to the first day of the second weekend. I knew of the festival’s opening last week but had other things to do. When I did get around to thinking about this week’s itinerary, the predicted weather did not seem a very good match for outdoor activities. Several days of rain were predicted with possibly severe thunderstorms arriving just about the time of the festival’s opening. But, as opening time approached, those storms and even the rain were still marking time in Indiana. I decided to give it a try.

The Ferris wheel is new this year and “The World’s Only Goetta Vending Machine” might be too. I did not try it and now regret not studying it closer so I could describe it here. I believe this is the world’s only Goetta festival so one Goetta vending machine might be enough.

I have previously explained that the Cincinnati area has a near monopoly on Goetta and that Glier’s Meats has a near monopoly on Goetta in the Cincinnati area. The festival is officially the Glier’s GoettaFest. Next to the vending machine, there is a tent filled with Giier and Goetta information. The tent is a Goettafest fixture and I’m sure that the “Goetta Guy” has been here before but this was our first meeting. The “Goetta Guy” is Dan Glier, President of Glier’s Meats since 1977 and the second generation to run the company. Dan’s a very friendly fellow who is there to answer questions or just chat and that’s what we did. I was well aware that Glier’s Meats is located sort of across the street from Anchor Grill where I’ve consumed a fair amount of Gliers Goetta. Today Dan pointed out that the two began in the same year (1946) and have always been neighbors.

Here are a couple of other things that I had not seen previously but which may very well have been here before. I didn’t see anyone riding the mechanical bull while I was there but it was early and the bourbon bar was pretty much idle too. I suspect the two work well together.

Full-time music was happening on both of the festival’s stages with the Billy Brown Band opening on the west end and Red Hot Riot opening on the east stage. They would be followed by Vinyl Countdown and the Kevin McCoy Band.

Of course, there were plenty of food booths offering a variety of creative Goetta-based treats.

I opted for a Goetta Bun Link which, despite the word new on the sign and the fact that I’d never had one, were introduced in 2000. It was quite good and I even have a pseudo-drone shot for the truly curious.

I had every intention of riding that Ferris wheel and, now that I was fed, I turned my attention to it. There was no line but as I was about to approach the ticket booth, I felt the first drops of rain and noticed the breeze had picked up a little. I thought it over only briefly before heading for the car. I was inside the garage before the rain became steady and inside a nearby bar with a $2 PBR before it really cut loose. There was water running in the street when I left but the rain had slowed to a light drizzle.

I am disappointed that I missed my chance to ride the big Ferris wheel on Thursday but just seeing it reminded me of a time when giant “dueling” Ferris wheels were proposed for both sides of the Ohio River. It was just a few years ago that Newport, KY, had plans to build a 230-foot tall wheel on the flood wall near where GoettaFest’s 90-foot wheel was placed. At the same time, Cincinnati had plans to build a 180-foot wheel near the north end of the Roebling Bridge. In a sort of trial run, a 150-foot tall (137-foot diameter) wheel did operate at that point temporarily and I did get to ride that one. Read about it here.

Walking With Amal to Cincy

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Little Amal had already covered a lot of ground and water before she reached the midpoint of the John A. Roebling Bridge on Friday afternoon. The twelve-foot-tall puppet representing a ten-year-old Syrian refugee began her trek in Turkey in July 2021. Much of her travels have been in Europe where she walked in Germany, Italy, France, Ukraine, Poland, and many other countries. She has also walked in Canada and this is not her first time in the U.S. She was in New York City for seventeen days in 2022.

This time though, she will be walking across the entire country. The picture at left is a capture from a live feed of her first night in Boston where a pre-recorded message and lullaby from Yo-Yo Ma offered some comfort. That was on September 7. Cincinnati is just one of the forty cities she will stop in as she travels some 6,000 miles through the country before wrapping up the visit in San Diego on November 5. Check out her plans here.

Friday’s walk started on the south side of the Ohio River in Covington, Kentucky. A bit of rustling in the crowd gathered at the entrance to the Roebling Bridge alerted me to Amal’s arrival, and I caught my first glimpse of her just a few minutes past 3:00. The Ciara Harper Trio and Revolution Dance Theatre began a wonderful performance of Wade in the Water (great harmonies!) as Amal worked her way forward. By the time the song ended, she had joined the singers.

The two puppeteers handling Amal’s arms can be seen in this picture of her starting across the bridge. Some zooming, tweaking, and general mucking about allows the person responsible for Amal’s walking to be seen vaguely here. Most puppeteers are not athletes by any stretch of the imagination but this one is. For sure. Indubitably.

As she made her way over the bridge, Amal frequently paused to interact with the people greeting her. Near the Ohio side of the river, she pets one of Cincinnati’s flying — or maybe just dancing — pigs.

Keeping her pathway clear was at least partially successful and Amal does make it over the river. She takes another whiff of the giant flowers that have followed her from Kentucky as she exits the bridge and heads toward her designated spot.

Reaching that spot, where the mayors of both Covington and Cincinnati awaited, took a while and when she got there all I could see was her head above the crowd. I couldn’t actually hear everything either but I did hear most of what Cincinnati Mayor Aftab Pureval had to say. This was not his first time meeting Amal. They had met last October when Pureval was in Amsterdam for a Mayor’s Conference and Amal was doing a walk in the city that included Anne Frank’s house.

Pureval has some very personal reasons for caring about the world’s refugees that Amal is walking on behalf of. He was born in Ohio but his parents were immigrants. His father was born in India. His mother was born in Tibet. Her parents had been forced to flee Tibet with her and she grew up in India — as a refugee.

Donate to the Amal Fund here.

Ohio River Sternwheel Festival

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For the forty-seventh time, a bunch of sternwheelers gathered to party in Marietta, Ohio, and, for the first time, I was there. Motel and hotel rooms in Marietta are pretty much filled by Ohio River Sternwheel Festival attendees but I found a very reasonably priced room less than twenty miles away in Mineral Wells, West Virginia. Even after a very leisurely drive on US-50, I arrived in plenty of time to head to Marietta for the festival’s opening ceremonies.

There were some short speeches and some long and sincere thank yous, the national anthem with a giant flag overhead, and a flyover by a Navy jet. Things officially went live with the lighting of the festival torch.

A full evening of entertainment followed with a Tina Turner tribute to finish out the day. Despite knowing that “big wheel keep on turning” would sound extra special tonight, I headed to my motel to rest up for a full day on Saturday. I did stay long enough to hear several tunes from Steve and Beverly Pottmeyer and a friend. Steve performed at the very first Sternwheel Festival in 1976 and has only missed performing at one since then.

I made it back Saturday in time to catch the first musical performers. The Marietta High School Wall of Sound wouldn’t fit on the stage so they formed their wall on the river bank. The Marietta High School Choir – Vocal Point did fit on the stage. The place where I parked yesterday was operated by the choir. The Bruce Hass Trio was up next with, as far as I know, no high schoolers.

Between checking out the musical acts, I walked the line of boats pulled up to the shore. I counted thirty although I could detect no wheels on the sterns of two of those I counted.

I had noticed a large sternwheeler passing by yesterday and again today. Thinking it might be offering cruises, I zoomed in on its name and turned to the web. Sure enough, the Valley Gem was offering one-hour cruises and there was one remaining before the sold-out fireworks cruise. I reserved a spot on that cruise then turned to Google Maps for directions. I knew the dock would be some distance up the Muskingum River but it was a little farther than I would have guessed. My estimated arrival time for the 2:45 cruise was 2:46.

Although I was one of the last to board, I made it. I could now see the wheels on all those sterns. Note the kayakers in that picture with the Lafayette Hotel in the background, and take a look at some of the onshore crowd in the third picture. The cruise also provided a pretty good look at the fireworks barge.

My return to the festival area was a lot more relaxed than my hurried walk to the Valley Gem had been. I tried out a couple of benches along the way then stopped at the Marietta Brewing Company for a brew and dinner. Even so, a couple of hours remained until fireworks time and the ever-increasing crowd reminded me of why I mostly avoid events such as this. I probably would have left if I had not been parked in.

So I stayed and enjoyed a very good, nearly half-hour long, fireworks display. This is a festival highlight that locals mention a lot and it’s easy to see why.

Getting through the ensuing traffic jam was every bit the nightmare I anticipated. I don’t think I learned a whole lot about fireworks-related traffic jams that I didn’t already know but I still feel I deserve a few continuing education credits.

Flying Day in Cincy

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Redbull has been organizing Flugtags all over the world since 1992. Flugtag is German for Flying Day and the events feature homemade contraptions that generally do not fly as well as their creators expect. Yesterday they brought the event to this city where things not flying as well as expected is something of a tradition. On a cloudy but ultimately dry Saturday, thirty-nine participating teams and thousands of spectators gathered by the Ohio River for  Flugtag Cincinnati.

I reached Sawyer Point Park early enough to snag one of the last open spots on the street and avoid $20 and up parking fees. The event itself was free. The Belle of Cincinnati was moored near the Purple People Bridge for a true VIP experience. The launch deck was anchored at the west end of Serpentine Wall near the Taylor-Southgate Bridge. By launch time, both bridges would be lined with spectators.

And I arrived late enough that the “hangar” area where the entries were being staged was open. Here’s a fuller view of the WKRP turkey in the opening picture plus some of the others that caught my eye. There are some, but not many, that even sort of look like they might fly.

Of course, the crew is every bit as important as the vehicle.

The Hangar had opened at noon with opening ceremonies scheduled for 1:00. As showtime approached, entrants began lining up on the ramp, rescue craft assumed their positions, and skydivers dropped onto the launch deck.

The first launch was an unjudged honorary entry from Kroger. Maximum speed is extremely important and that’s what the crew is for. Kudos to the Kroger crew member who clearly gave it his all. The first competitor followed as soon as the “landing” area was clear.

I had picked a spot with a pretty good view of the launch but my view of the flight (if any) and landing was blocked. I watched a few more launches then backed out of the crowd at riverside, treated myself to a four-dollar bottle of water, and watched some of the action on one of the big screens which naturally had their own crowds.

I eventually moved back toward the river but got a better view of the mayhem by keeping my distance from the launch deck.

I know there are videos out there that most will find much more entertaining than these still shots but here’s one more sequence anyway. If you are really interested and have access to ESPN2, the whole thing will reportedly be shown August 19 at 6:00 PM.

Flugtag wasn’t the only big-time competition happening in the area this week. Over in Erlanger, KY, at the country’s only remaining wooden railed Putt-Putt course, the Professional Putters Association National Championship took place. I stopped by Putt-Putt Golf of Erlanger on Friday to take a look.

I had not seen a real Putt-Putt course in years. There are no windmills, dancing clowns, or other moving obstacles here.

Every hole is par 2 and this is a fairly rare par shot. I don’t know how many holes had been played but as the tournament neared its end, many players were more than 80 strokes under par.

Some of those 80+ under-par players would be taking home a nice trophy and a few thousand dollars cash.

Paddlefest 2023

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I’ve known of Ohio River Paddlefest for quite a while. I even planned to attend last year until severe weather convinced me — and everybody else — otherwise. Heavy storms led to the cancellation of several outdoor events including the 2022 Paddlefest. There wasn’t even a hint of foul weather this year and I finally made it to “the largest paddling event in the country” for the first time. I was not in position to see the launch of approximately 2000 participants into an Ohio River that was cleared of powered watercraft for the event but I did get to see many of them pass through Cincinnati’s riverfront.

I decided to park in Kentucky and use the century-and-a-half-old Roebling Bridge as an observation deck. People can choose to paddle either 4.5 or 9 miles from the launch point at Schmidt Recreation Complex at the east edge of Cincinnati. The pullout point for the shorter trip is the public landing near the coliseum. The big paddle wheeler at the landing is the American Heritage on her way to Pittsburgh. I don’t know whether being in town for Paddlefest was intentional or something they just couldn’t avoid. Also in that photo, the three ladies in the opening photo can be seen well past the landing on their way to the Roebling and my camera.

There was a race and I’m sure there was a winner but most participants seemed to be much more concerned with enjoying the float and maximizing rather than minimizing their time on the water. Some even took time to look up and wave or wrangle three boats together for a group selfie.

Shooting upriver at the approaching boats meant shooting into the sun but at some point, I realized that I could completely avoid any glare issues by shooting straight down. Snapping paddlers just before they disappeared under the bridge was actually quite addictive and I snapped a few more before I could pull myself away.

Not everything is ruined by shooting toward the sun. Some things actually look pretty good or so I convinced myself.

With the exception of some safety and patrol boats, these were probably the most powerful watercraft on the Ohio near Cincinnati throughout the morning. They did not flaunt it, however, and were well back in the pack.

Shortly after the big boats passed, I finished crossing the bridge and moved to the downstream side to return to Kentucky. Catching boats just as they popped out from under the bridge wasn’t nearly as easy as catching them just before they popped under it but I did catch one.

These are all a bit away from the bridge and moving slowly.

Back in Kentucky, I grabbed brunch and then headed to where the nine-mile paddle ended and where the wrap-up party was being held. For some reason, northbound I-71/75 was closed at the river. I didn’t figure that out until I was forced beyond it. I decided to just keep going and cross the river on the Anderson Ferry for a real break from the normal. The Miata got the first of two comments when the attendant collected my fare. “Nice change of pace. I have to reach up for every other car.”

The second comment came from a fellow directing traffic at the Gilday Recreation Complex. With a mostly straight face, he asked if I was there to pick up a 17-foot canoe. Lots of canoes and kayaks had already departed and many more were in the process of being loaded. But there were still plenty waiting in the park and even a few still on the river. The finish line was still in place when I arrived but it would soon be gone.

Madtree had a beer tent set up and there were several food trucks. The Sunburners provided some good Jimmy Buffet-style music and there were some Jimmy Buffet-style listeners too.

I had my doubts about the claims of this photo-op but a little research confirmed that the Gilday Complex really was the southernmost point of the Ohio River Paddlefest. And today it even felt kind of tropical.

BLINK Is Back

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Of course, there were some official police vehicles leading the way but the real 2022 BLINK Cincinnati parade started off with this happy guy in a glowing pedal-powered pig. I probably could have staked out a spot with a clear view when I arrived but, as usual, I walked around looking at stuff until spectators two or more deep lined the route. Even so, I could see most of the parade; I just couldn’t get a clear camera shot very often. I believe that when BLINK happened in 2017 it was seen as a one-time experiment. It might not have been thought of that way by everyone but that is kind of the way it was presented. The experiment was so successful that it came back in 2019 and this time it was advertised as a biennial event. It was quickly knocked off of the planned pace by COVID-19 but only by a year. Instead of a 2021 appearance, it’s happening now in 2022.

I can’t attach names to many of the parade participants but I do know that’s Dance Flash Fusion in black and green.

Everyone in these pictures shall remain nameless because I haven’t a clue. The gals in the first picture almost look like they can fly when they spread their wings.

The major new thing at this year’s BLINK would be synchronized drones over the Ohio River and that’s where I headed as soon as the parade ended. I snapped a picture of the “Together” light sculpture and continued on to the river’s edge. I arrived about half an hour before show time but the half-mile walk to get there put me in the mood to stand still for a while. Waiting was pretty pleasant with interesting river scenes on one side and good music on the other. “39 West” provided the music although neither they nor the stage is shown on the BLINK website.

From my spot on the railing, I could see the drones lift off row by row then dance through various formations over the water.

I believe the “eye” is more or less the BLINK logo. A short video I took of part of the show can be seen here

After the drone show, I headed uptown. The area is most often referred to as downtown but getting there from the riverfront is definitely up. The mural of famous travel photographer Neil Armstrong with his camera is not part of BLINK but one of Cincinnati’s many permanent ArtWorks murals. The building beyond is the Contemporary Art Center which is being used for the “The Manifold Potential” projection.

This is a projection named “Little Africa”. It’s one of the few displays I’d read anything about before going and really the only one I sort of sought out. It begins with or ends with or maybe just contains this text panel. 

I’m rather partial to mapped projections. I prefer them to what BLINK calls light sculptures even though I’m not 100% sure I could explain the difference. In my mind, projections contain actual images and are often formatted to match the target surface. Light sculptures are closer to psychedelic light shows of the 1960s shining abstract patterns onto the target. This is a projection called “To the Moon” on the American Building.

I didn’t quite reach “The Inside Out” but I did reach Ziegler Park from where I could see the projection in the distance. Ziegler Park is as far north and east as I made it. Earlier in the evening, I’d thought I might grab something to eat at Asianati Night Market where ten local Asian restaurants had stands set up. However, when I finally stumbled into the place on my way to the car, all I wanted to do was keep moving. I know I saw a lot less than half of all the displays but I think I’ll just have to be satisfied with that. In 2019, I attended two nights and still didn’t see it all. I could go back ln Sunday evening for one more shot following publication of this post but I doubt I will. I’m much more likely to be sitting at home resting my still-tired feet.

Got Goetta?

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This is GoettaFest. Regular readers of this blog know what goetta is. Others maybe not. A trailer at the festival had a definition painted on its side. Almost all descriptions, including the one at Wikipedia, have the name Cincinnati in them somewhere. It is very definitely a regional food.

Note that the banner says “GLIER’S GOETTAFEST”. Glier’s Meats has a near monopoly on the product in the area which, as already mentioned, has its own near monopoly. Some family cooks and a few restaurants make their own and there are other commercial producers as this 2018 article shows. Glier’s, however, is king. They own the goetta.com domain, and they own this festival.

Glier’s is a Covington, KY, company and the festival is held on Kentucky’s side of the Ohio River in Newport. The venue, appropriately named “Festival Park at the Levee”, essentially fills the area between the Taylor-Southgate Bridge and the pedestrian-only Purple People Bridge. The Daniel Carter Beard Bridge (a.k.a, Big Mac Bridge) can be seen in the background.

The festival grew to eight days in 2019 but it avoids those sluggish mid-week days with a pair of expanded weekends, July 28-31 and August 4-7. It’s also something of a music festival with bands performing full-time on stages at both ends. I was there shortly after opening on Thursday when Whiskey Daze was on the west stage and What About Jane was on the east stage.

I had to check the food listing to learn that the name of this stand was Original Corn Roast. Its offerings were many and included some goettaless items. I got my Goetta Mac from there and washed it down with Braxton’s Garage Beer.

Goetta Mac is something I’ve eaten before and will again. The Goetta Balls from Goettahaus were new to me. I won’t take extreme measures to avoid them in the future but they aren’t something I have a strong urge for.

I had wanted to try the goetta pizza but my appetite ran out before my choices did. And there were plenty of other good-looking options beyond that.

I once ate a hamburger between a split donut so maybe I could have handled this but I didn’t even consider it.

GoettaFest opens at noon today (Sun 7/31) and is back next Thursday for another four-day run. Get there while the goetta getting is good.

Majestic Possibilities

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This is the Showboat Majestic‘s fifth appearance in this blog. The first (Majestic Still) was in 2013 when I attended one of Cincinnati Landmark Productions’ final round of performances aboard her. The second and third (Much Miscellany and On the Waterfront) both involved Cincinnati Film Festival events onboard the otherwise idled boat in 2015. In the spring of 2019, she departed Cincinnati’s public landing after being sold to Moyer Winery near Manchester, Ohio. I spotted her at her new location when I was on the way home from somewhere else (Portsmouth Road Meet) and snapped a picture. That was in May and a month later the winery burned to the ground. The thriving business that the floating theater had been purchased to augment was no more.

On Wednesday the 17th, the Majestic moved to the town of New Richmond where she will stay for at least ten years. There’s a good report, including video, of the arrival here. There is currently no schedule for events involving the boat, and work remains to get her comfortable and accessible, but there is no doubt she will be a very nice addition to an already attractive town.

New Richmond is much closer to me than Manchester. It is home to the world’s only cardboard boat museum and annual cardboard boat race. It’s a place I get to fairly often in the summer and occasionally in the winter. I headed there last Sunday to get some pictures of the new arrival and eat breakfast at the Front Street Cafe. Then I headed upriver to cross at Maysville, head back toward home on the Kentucky side, and grab this picture on the way.

Chillin’ With Neon

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What would it take to get you to walk around outside in 28° weather? The subjects in the photo at right did it for me. As part of the ArtsWave Red Light Valentines Display, the American Sign Museum kept the outside signs illuminated for several hours on both Friday and Saturday nights, and I decided that was something I ought to see. I helped justify the trip downtown with one last drive across a favorite bridge just ahead of an extended closure.

The John A. Roebling Suspension Bridge has had its share of brief closings over the last few years. Once it was closed until it could be inspected after being struck by a car. Then it was closed when pieces from one of its sandstone pillars started falling onto the roadway. A protective net, visible in the middle picture, allowed it to reopen. Recently, it was closed for its own protection when a fire closed the nearby Brent Spence Bridge carrying I-71/I-75, and the nineteenth-century suspension bridge was just too tempting to truckers with rigs far in excess of the bridge’s limits. It was reduced to a single lane a couple of weeks ago as crews prepare for a full closure on Monday. Repairs that include replacing deteriorated sandstone will keep it closed for nine months or so.

After crossing to Kentucky on the Roebling, I returned to Ohio on the now repaired Brent Spence, and headed to the Sign Museum where I was greeted by a brightly lit Holiday Inn sign.

I have seen these signs lit before, but only when some event was taking place in the museum. Having them all aglow with an empty parking lot and dark building was something new to me.

I was half expecting there to be a number of photographers flitting around the signs but I had the place all to myself. After twenty gloveless minutes of tripod toting and camera aiming, I had a pretty good idea why. As I drove back past the Holiday Inn sign, I found myself thinking that heated steering wheels might not be entirely frivolous.