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At the Texas Roadhouse in Columbus IN - Linda, Luther & Al
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Across the table, Judy, Laura and Brian
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Puppet is one of the Pierson pets
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Lilly is another . . .
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Fresh strawberries, fresh shortcake, and real whipped cream. No wonder Laura looks guilty
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We spent a couple of evenings on the Pierson's screened-in porch.
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Post-church for a late breakfast at Bob Evans
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We finally got a family portrait. Everybody's lookin' good
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At the almost empty RV park, Luther expounds on something . . .
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They took us to dinner one evening . . . the pizza was outstanding
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The restaurant also houses a micro-brewery and winery
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The landscaped gardens are a popular wedding venue
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Judy can't resist pretty flowers
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Or wildlife . . .
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Now we're in Muskegon, for an Aslakson family dinner near the water
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Left to right - SIL Debbie, Sister Sue, SIL Marcia, BIL John, Sister Vicki, us two and Brother Dave. A well fed bunch
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Some shared desserts
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Some didn't
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This place specializes in bacon - in everything. It was irresistible . . .
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The four sibs. Guess who wasn't quite ready for the camera?
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That's a 46-wheeler! Saw several in SE Michigan. Take that, 18-wheelers!
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Appealing sign, so we took the turnoff
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They pronounce it Or-a-GONE. We never got the hang of that . .
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Impressive steam cloud at the nuke plant near Port Clinton OH
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In Port Clinton, a great disguise for a propane tank . . .
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The goslings at the RV park have grown in a month, and are almost adults . . .
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They're getting their colors, but have some inches to add
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We like the mailbox - and the diner - at the Liberty Air Museum
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It's an authentic 1950's diner, and the food is very good.
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It's a fairly busy airport for a small town
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Judy spotted a killdeer in the grass . . .
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Inside the museum, a lot of relics, but very few actual airplanes
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There used to be 3 Ford Trimotors based here that flew to the offshore islands in Lake Erie
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That's a Trimotor engine
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The Indy 500 pace car can "fly", but does it really belong?
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To compensate for the lack of aircraft, some military stuff
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The diner does offer patio seating . . .
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There are two main hangars for the museum . . . this one has airplanes
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And more military stuff
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Al hoped it was a tardis, but it was pretty cramped inside.
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Restored planes at this museum are all flyable (the dozing mannequin holds a donation box)
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This Stearman biplane also flies from time to time
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They've been restoring this plane for 11 years now - and have a few more years to go
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On our last day, the museum's flyable Ford Trimotor stopped in
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They bought this plane in 2014 from the Evergreen Museum in Oregon. It's leased to the Experimental Aircraft Assn, which tours the country with it
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For a few nights, at least, the plane was home
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At the local Burger King, some of the mayflies hanging around the door
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There had been many more earlier in the day
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And there were still a few inside as well . . .
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A Cleveland TV station posted this radar image of the mayfly swarm over Lake Erie
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Somebody posted this picture of their boat at an island just off shore from us
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And this picture was taken in LaCrosse WI, where the flies emerge from the Mississippi River
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On a brighter note, this is the Rutherford B Hayes Museum and Library
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And next door, the Hayes home
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The grounds of the estate are quite peaceful, even with the city all around it
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It's a "signature quilt" - and contains pieces of cloth signed around 1880 by 52 prominant Amercans, including President Hayes
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Hayes loved this chair. His wife, we were told, tolerated it
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Folks used to do amazing things with a pocket knife
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Hayes as a young man. He's almost smiling . . .
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In later years, he apparently didn't smile much, at least when there were cameras around
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In those days, they didn't make new tablewear for every new administration
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Hayes was elected in a bitterly contested election, ultimately decided by a special commission the day before inauguration.
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The museum features campaign ephemera
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We'd had over 3 inches of rain the day before the local paper commented . . .
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Port Clinton is a rather nice town, with several small parks
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The ones we saw were near the waterfront
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These murals celebrate a visit by tall ships commemorating the war of 1812 battles on the lake
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There is a Port Clinton lighthouse. We couldn't find it. This is a model. The real one was reportedly in storage
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Just up the road from the RV park is a miniature horse farm
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This little fellow was curious enough to come check us out when we stopped
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We'll end on this picture of the local tourist information center - a most attractive facility