a few days away from the garden and things went crazy
this tomato plant grew 6 feet high before tumbling over into my neighbor's yard (seen here)
sisters in blue
Gisela tortures Maya
chalah and honey for Rosh Hashana
Jamie and Matt came to visit for the home made pickles
robs house for late night cocktail
Monika finally got her birthday present! Flowerbomb Extreme Limited Edition
So, our last night in Ohio was spent late night with Tuk’s sister and husband again. The next morning, Sam was off early and Monika, Tuk and I were very hungry. Only on place to go…
The Wawa of the Western PA...Sheets!
Monika contemplates whether to order or plunder
okay, they had whole wheat rolls for us veggie dorks.
Lunch, a beer and....
...
...
...
...
...
...
...Goodbye Shots!!
so long Tuk, and thanks for all the memories
oh wait...you can buy fireworks legally in Ohio
I chose the biggest ones that they had
400 miles home
going through a tunnel or two
...
Franklin Square, the base of the Ben Franklin Bridge
We love those two, and their friends, and road trips. And, finally coming back home to see our cats…and friends too. Next time we see Sam and Tuk, they’ll be in costumes, and the leaves will be red and orange and yellow, and my garden will be dead, and we’ll be sure to have plenty of whiskey when they arrive, and a nice, warm bed for them to sleep in for as long as we can keep them here.
I think at some point the night before, we decided to set up Rock Band. That was a huge mistake. I fell asleep on the couch shortly after.
The next morning, we cooked a huge vegetarian breakfast, and it was truly epic delicious.
Monika makes crepe batter, Sam cuts fresh fruit
we ate breakfast in the backyard on a beautiful morning
fresh oranges, plumbs, peaches; vegan fried sausage; pepper, mushroom, mozzarella egg omelet; jam filled crepes!
Tuk enjoys the feast!
Rocky Big Head enjoys the company, or maybe the smell of vegetarian sausage
Sam's eye darkens. Good thing Tuk didn't have to tell her twice.
After a solid breakfast, we went back to Mill Creek Park to go kayaking. When we got there, though, there were non kayaks, only paddle boats, so we went paddle boating for an hour. Unfortunately, I didn’t take the camera cause I was thinking we were going in kayaks. It was a pretty good time that was spent mostly peddling as hard as we could into one anothers boats.
at the flaming ice cube, the girls bought TVP. We used it to make Vegetarian Cheese Steaks for lunch, and it was just as good as always.
The Canfield Fair was in town, and we had to go.
later, we got dressed for an evening at the county Fair
the girls prepare to impress on the drive in.
horses are huge, but very gentle, and very hungry
sometimes they ate, but most of the time, the animals just shat or slept.
don't get me wrong, though, they were all adorable, especially the bunny section
Sam entices a bovine
then off to the carnival side of the fare
to ride some rides. We all enjoy crazy, upside down, rickety carnival rides (except Steve)
a fist full of fun
and another day full of great adventures
We were literally so busy this weekend, I didn’t even check the stats on my blog let alone update it. Shit, I didn’t even make an appearance on Facebook for three days straight.
Well, here it is…our weekend in pictures.
Breakfast with Sam. The first half of this bottle is what caused Sam's facial injury. None of us know can remember how it happened.
Maker’s Mark 46 is a delicious bourbon that, hopefully, will not be a limited edition, while supplies last endeavor by my favorite distillery.
Monika plays emo girl in her new Paramore hoodie
Monika and Sam went to the bread store. Steve had to work on Saturday morning.
Vegan cafe, even in Ohio. I wished I got to this place, but Monika and Sam left me at home. The food that they brought back was awesome.
Looks like they have two locations, and I recommend you hit them up when you’re in Cleveland!
and the party begins again!
we went for a hike at Mill Creek Park. Had no idea where we were going, but it hardly matters
Mill Creek Park is a huge park in Youngstown. Oddly enough, Youngstown share some interesting similarities to our neck of the woods. For instance, parts of Youngstown are often considered just as bad as parts of Camden, NJ. On the other hand, Mill Creek Park is the second largest metropolitan park in the country, with only Fairmount Park in Philly surpassing it. I didn’t see any abandoned neighborhoods. I did see a whole lot of beautiful foot trails and paths, and we had an amazing 4 hour hike.
I have enough of these to make a "chicks and trucks" calendar
working on building memories
Monika was pretending the ground was lava. how convenient, for her.
Monika thought this was a good pic of me, and insisted I put it in the blog.
we found a playground, and took advantage
that girl is a monster.
for dinner, we went to a Lebanese restaurant, and it was truly delicious (and had tons of vegan food)
Apparently a chain, they have these places everywhere, as close as Maryland. The food was affordable and generous, the staff was awesome, and they had a liquor license. And we took a doggy bag home.
alien eyes
her too!
we hit up a bar after dinner, and it was delicious.
Beer and Liquor sales are a little different in Ohio, and actually better than the sale laws in Jersey and PA. It’s not too difficult to beat PA, but lately, the Jersey laws have gotten pretty liberal. Nevertheless, Ohio has it a lot cooler. First of all, you can get beer and wine at any local Sheets, which is basically the Ohio equivalent of Wawa, but on steroids. I know it sounds crazy, but they are better.
And then there’s the Vintage Estate Wine and Beer. They have 800 vareities of bottled beer that you can buy by the case, sixer, of single bottle. The twist is this. You can buy a bottle, walk into the next room, and sit down and the bar and drink it! They give you a chilled glass, and even have a dozen local micro brews on tap. You can even walk back into the liquor store and browse the selections while still drinking your brew. Pretty amazing.
at dinner, we met Steve's sister...
...and her husband John...
for a late night party fire back at Steve and Sam's
The start of Labor Day weekend. Right before the start of school, and the football season, it was our last chance at a long weekend adventure. We decided to get on the road and visit our friends Sam and Steve in Ohio. Before we left, we had to make a seven hour stop at Monika’s classroom to prepare it for the new year on Tuesday. Along with her April, Monika and I busted ass and got the job done in record time…we were the first out of the school, and the only on our way to Oh!0
sanitized, organized, institutionalized
the classroom turned out perfect, in a hurry
Then, we headed west, after a short stop at PJ’s for some “encouragement.”
it takes three tunnels to get to Samland
we love Sheetz!
the perfect welcome
our first shot together in months
birthday party part III
we love Ohio!
It was Monika’s birthday, but unfortunately we both had to work. After work, in preparation for the weekend’s adventure, I had to stop by my local brew shop for some supplies.
perhaps my possible future place of employment
Kreg came by to deliver some presents, and I snapped this mostly disturbing shot…
monika and the "dirty neighbor"
Monika shows off one of the presents I gave her
Fat Tomato for birthday dinner courtesy of my second parents...
Fat Tomato have got a handful of vegetarian options, and they could be made vegan by request. Not the healthiest, that’s for sure, but damn delicious cuisine with a nod towards healthy-esque. They served french fries with a reduced balsamic vinegar as dressing instead of cheddar cheese and bacon bits!
later, Marla and Rob visit with presents for M and beer for R
despite my objections, M tries to smuggle our cat into Ohio!!
Stay tuned>>> —verge
work is like a museum; this is a Steve Sabol original
hops harvesting time
these ones are not ready yet
carrot harvest...one of the terribly unsuccesful garden items this year
but the cantalope harvest has been pretty good
and these albino eggplants should taste good, I hope
I started the day a little "hungover"
preparing food for out guests
sure, we don't have cable, but that doesn't mean we won't be watching true blood every night
Monika is all over Eric. guess what I'll be for Halloween this year
birthday Mimosas
Even though it was Saturday, I had to work anyway.
they're like robots that eat film
"I won't even dignify that question with an answer"
our first show at the Indian Chief with our new drummer
with guest vocals by Jimmy
I decided to make vegan Jalapeno Poppers. I take precautions.
stuffed, breaded, fried then baked
serious about my kitchen
Kreg likes it...
and Kat too..
Monika goes for it...
and also likes them!
we had a fire in the backyard
Kreg got a little ???confused???
so Kat had to draw him for map!
the evening burned away, as did the fire
oh yeah, and then there’s this!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
