• Get Your Graffiti On
• Mid-Way Part 1
• Mid-Way Part 2

At the end of the festival, I went back to take some follow-up photos of some pieces that hadn’t been finished before. In addition, I snuck back up to take some photos of doodles my kids had done. Enjoy!

I went back up to survey main street early on Sunday morning to get the “half-way” point of the festival. Look at the progress made in just one day! Check back later for more photos taken at the end of the festival!

I went back up to survey main street early on Sunday morning to get the “half-way” point of the festival. Look at the progress made in just one day! Check back later for more photos taken at the end of the festival!

These images are all from Saturday. Check back later for those taken on Sunday!

Mount Vernon, Iowa is currently in the application process of becoming a Blue Zones Community. We have a very strong chance to proudly declare that we are a Blue Zones Community because we more than exceed the majority of the criteria already. One way in which you can help us to be even stronger in this process of winnowing the communities to the strongest is by pledging your support to the project.

Some people aren’t sure what becoming a Blue Zones Community is all about. I can completely understand that! Here is some information from the Blue Zones Project website:

If you are interested in learning more about Mount Vernon’s progress in the Blue Zones Project, you are welcome to attend a meeting at 7 pm at City Hall. You can also ask me questions as I am the Community Engagement Director. Wow, what a lofty title. My job is to help you all understand what is going on!

As I said above, the biggest thing you can do right now is to pledge your support. Are you 13 or older and do you live, work, or go to school in Mount Vernon? Are you supportive of bringing experts in to talk with our existing employers, businesses, restaurants, grocery stores, parks departments, organizations, and other interested parties to help inspire, train, and organize simple efforts that require tiny changes to increase all our health? Please pledge your support.

Reading this on your cell phone? Text “BZP” to “772937” and answer the follow up texts of email address, full name, and zipcode (52314)!

The last thing I want to emphasize: becoming a Blue Zones Community is something good! According to the research completed and work already done, it is effective. Excerpted from the FAQ page:

Read more about what we’re doing via this media release: Mount Vernon – Media Release 16 January 2012

If you have any questions, email me at jen@emsun.org or our Blue Zones Program Manager, Dr. Mollie Marti, at mollie@drmollie.com. We’d love to hear from you!

The fest is famous for its apple butter, which is cooked before and during the festival. Volunteers come from all over to take part in the making of the apple butter. (Learn more here.)

The fest isn’t just about the butter, though, it also is host to hundreds of vendors with thousands of crafts. We purchased a handcrafted wooden elephant from Black Swamp Traders for half off the original price.

There are pioneer demonstrations such as handspinning, blacksmithing, lace making, candle dipping, and chair caning.  I spoke to Dawn Mitchell of Festival Farms from Swanton, Ohio who does custom handspinning and specializes in exotic fibers.

We stopped in the WW II Encampment and viewed many weapons and listened to various uniformed men speak about the war.

Glass City Dixieland Band, Wes Linenkugel, Rock Bottom Mining Company, and Barlie and May were playing in various parts of the fest as we walked around, however there was plenty more entertainment that was around as well, even some that weren’t listed came out to join in the fun!

The entire time we walked through this giant festival the smell of delicious food was all around us. We ended up purchasing a few locally made items such as the maple syrup, some BBQ sauce, and of course a pint of apple butter. Overall, this festival was full of interesting things!

We order our alcoholic beverages first, Maumee Bay Oktober Fest for me. Then the appetizer of the month arrives, the catfish nuggets. The nuggets were so warm, and the delicious dip had to have had either spinach or artichoke in it, we made a note to ask next time.  I ordered the California Turkey Melt for only $7.95 with fries and a pickle spear.

The place is cut in half by a wall, however the bar wraps completely around it. There are bar stools surrounding the bar with tables and booths in the various areas of the remaining space. Drums are placed on shelves, while there is a hanging wine rack coming out of the mirror, a pool table sits in the corner, and an American flag honoring September 11th adorn the wall with hundreds of different beer and liquor related brightly lit signs from floor to ceiling.

As the food arrives, Eric (a very friendly and fun bartender/waiter/busboy/merchandiser) sets down place mats that show the dates of the current month with various specials, local business, and events placed on the different days.

After eating, Eric makes sure we are happy before handing us the bill – we sit and finish our beers and watch the football game on the giant flat screen television over the bar. We get up to leave completely full, happy, and excited to come back again.

The morning mist rests gently on the plants found throughout the garden, and provides some pretty water beads on the various flowers and berries. The softness of the red petals, coupled with the crisp green leaves, and the deep burgundy stem are all greatly magnified with the handfuls of tiny bubbles of moisture atop them.

As the sun rises and grows stronger, the clouds continue to expand over the sky to provide protection from the rays – the plants however, feel its effect and the beads of water begin to disappear.

My remaining time in the garden continues to be peaceful. My friend and I chat lightly about various plants, memories of times past, and soft spoken and amusing words flow back and forth from one to another. 

The time arives that we must leave and I look to my friend, “Can we come back next week?” He smiles at me and asks, “Part two?” I nod at him.

 

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Check out the Toledo Botanical Garden  and tell me what you’d like to see next. Do you recognize any of the plants and animals in these images? Do you have a favorite plant that may be in the vast gardens? If so, tell me what it is and I will look for it next time!

In downtown Toledo, Ohio the 41st Annual Greek-American Festival was held last weekend and I had the opportunity to stop in for a few hours and watch some of the amazing dancers, taste some unique and flavorful foods, and capture a few images to share with you!

I made my way through the event, around tents, and into a building that housed some crafts, cook books, and various desserts. Many tables were filled with all kinds of interesting, colorful, and delicious looking pastries, cakes, cookies, and other such sugary delights that the smell housed in the room was one of sweet treats. My friend and I decided to try some of the food that could be purchased at the gourmet food section, outside the building.

 

 The rice pilaf went great with the spanakopita (a flaky filo crust square that is filled with feta and spinach and then baked) and was extremely flavorful, it practically fell apart in my mouth. The chicken and beef was cooked to perfection in the selections we got of meat, and I tried a grape leaf for the first time. Rice pudding to end the meal cleansed my pallet and I enjoyed the texture of the hard rice with the soft pudding.

The dancing started soon after we were done eating, groups of youngsters from the Hellenic Dance Company came out to show us Greek dance moves in costume. They looked as though they were having a good time, but that they were concentrating quite hard. A live band played music when the children were done, while many people went to go learn about the Greek language and culture.