How 'bout some more RAIN???

Good day to you all...

I fell behind a couple of days, so I am going to update this twice today.

We have had a great trip so far.  The kids are getting along great.  Lou and I are having a lot of fun.  We are getting to see so much of this great country first-hand and close-up.  There are so many priceless experiences that our country offers.  It is kind of a bummer that even though we are doing so many things and traveling so many places, we are really only scratching the surface of the Nifty 50 (or Nifty lower 48).

BTW, I just saw Obama speaking from Independence, Mo this morning (Monday).  He is awesome!  I think I like him so much because he says so many of the same things Lou and I have been saying for so long.  Ideas regarding religion and political parties.  Ideas about patriotism and political parties.  The whole, "If you don't wear a flag pin, you are not a patriot" debacle.  Also, there is a lot more visible support for Obama on bumper stickers and t-shirts in Michigan, Ohio, Minnesota, and Pennsylvania than McCain.  To be fair, We haven't gone through the deep south (yet).  That's tomorrow...

Okay.

Saturday we left Pittsburgh.  This was actually a sad situation because we really loved our less-than-24 hours there.  We got up Saturday morning a little later than expected and checked out of the hotel.  We went back to the "flea market" area to revisit the Lebanese store.  Lou had a great time talking to the owner while we waited for our lamb kabobs and lamb gyros.  It was an eye-opening cultural experience for the kids and me.

After leaving that store, we went to one of the two incline railways in town called the "Mon (short for Monongahela) Incline."   This railway is one of the steepest railways in the country and travels up the side of the hill from Downtown Pittsburgh to the Washington Heights neighborhood of Pittsburgh.  The experience was neat but steamy (80 degrees/90% humidity). The experience was worth is once we got to the top.  The views of the Pittsburgh area, it's three rivers, and the hills surrounding it were tremendous.  Apparently, this is THE spot to visit in the city if you want a paradigm-changing experience.  We also went to a neat little ice cream shop up there and got some much needed cool relief.

After riding down the Mon Incline, we drove around the University of Pittsburgh.  We didn't get out of the car because we were running waaayyyy behind schedule.  That was okay.  U of Pitt was pretty and received Lou's approval of possible schools for the kids to attend for college.

The trip to Monroe, Ohio (which will from now on be referred to as Mayberry, NC), was a stunning visual treat.  Wow, that sounds really lame.  At any rate, the hills and valleys in southwest PA are gorgeous.  Our few minutes driving through West Virginia were also beautiful.  However, I think Lou held her breath the entire time we were in WV.  She has a little bit of a bias against all things WV.  But against her better judgement, she acquiesced, and agreed that this part of WV was beautiful.  On a side note about suggestibility and our son...he had to watch "We are Marshall" while in WV.

We were now headed to The Ohio State University.  The drive through Ohio was uneventful until we got around 20 minutes from the college.  At that point, the rain started pouring down on us.  I mean pouring!  It was blinding and was accompanied by plenty of thunder and lightning.  Of course, this put the kibosh on our plans to walk around OSU.  However, we drove around the campus.  It was what I expected Michigan to be like.  Really, really, beautiful.  This is now in my favorite three Big Ten schools (Minnesota, Wisconsin, and OSU- no order). 

After leaving Columbus, we drove to Monroe, er, Mayberry and checked into our Hampton Inn. Ooh, I almost forgot,  about three miles from here is a HUGE prison.  It must stretch over square mile.  Lovely.

For dinner on Saturday night, we went to Bob Evans, "The Home of Homestyle."  We first went to Bob Evans last year outside of St Louis.  This place is a great example of what people from California think the midwest is all about.  The food is fresh.  The service is friendly.  The portions are large with plenty of extras.  Lou had meatloaf (the same as last year), Joe had a "Slow cooked turkey and bacon melt," and Alison had a "deep dish Chicken noodle soup," which was thick chicken noodle soup poured over a heaping helping of mashed potatoes.  The best part? They have a salad called the "Wildfire  BBQ chicken  Salad."  Last year, our waitress told us this was the best salad in the world, so I ordered it.  Coming from California, I was in for a bit of a shock.  The requisite lettuce and tomatoes were there, but then things got a bit "southern."  They put in chicken, but it was fried, along with a LOT of cheese, corn, and, wait for it, chips!  Oh yes,  BBQ sauce was poured over it, and a side of BBQ dressing was given to me in case I wanted it more saucy.  Naturally, I ordered it again this year.  It came with a side of delicious banana nut bread.  Our waitress gave us an entire loaf of it when we left for free.  I LOVE Bob Evans.  

-Dave