Yearly rituals certainly have a strange power- though not as strong as the power held over me by the delicious crunch of a warm funnel cake. Remembering the colorful crowds of Canton’s finest, the stinky animals, and the general feeling of “this is it? this is what we paid 7 dollars for?” from last year’s fair, Phil and I decided not to go this year. Until, while driving down the road from somewhere unimportant, I suddenly announced, “We must go to the fair! What are we thinking? We have to wait a whole ‘nother year to make this decision. And I could really go for a funnel cake.”

I am always caught up in the brightly painted food carts, rows of shining bulb lights, and retro signage. But I had to practically muzzel myself from talking about how exciting it would be to hop in my DoLorean and visit the fair as it existed 60 years ago. But could you imagine? Crowds of mostly well-dressed people who treated themselves and others with respect… or at least that’s how it exists in my mind. My dad insists it still wasn’t that great all those years ago, but a girl can dream, eh?

I’ve fallen in love with my hometown of Canton, Ohio so much this year for so, so many reasons. One of which is our close proximity to the Great Lake Erie. I’ve mentioned before that this lake gets such a bad rap, and understandably so, especially since we couldn’t go to the beach we wanted to on account of it being roped off pending an the investigation of a drunken man who drowned there the week we most recently visited. Sad. But we were still on a mission to have fun on a windy, chilly day, so before heading out to the rocky lakeside, we stopped at one of my favorite Cleveland resaurants, The Greenhouse Tavern.

Practicing sustainability at every turn, The Greenhouse Tavern offers excellent local food at a mid-range price-point. The construction of the interior utilizes mostly reclaimed and entirely sustainable materials, creating a beautiful and responsible eating environment. I have never been disappointed with their selection. And when sitting on the patio, you can even leave your mark on the baseball that holds down your receipt! Fun!

Kyle brought snacks for us to share at the beach while we watched the sun set through the trees and the waves violently crashing onto the rocks below us. It was a beautiful evening with beautiful-hearted friends. Hopefully we can sneak in a few more of these evenings before it gets too chilly outside!

Well, southerners, you win! You win, I say! I seriously thought I was melting in the Savannah sun, with naught but a slight breeze to warm my rosy cheeks. You see, this Lake Erie girl is not much of a beach vacationer in the Summer months, but ask me again in December or February, and I’m sure I’ll be down for a toasty getaway!

Phil and I were only able to spend a few hours in Savannah during our week-long stay at Hilton Head Island. But during those hours, we packed in a lot of vintage shopping, eating, walking, sweating, and a wee bit of site seeing. It’s such a beautiful old city, full of history and mysteries. I’d love to go back some day and take one of those corny guided tours. Those are kind of my thing. Or maybe a haunted tour? That would be the tops. Sounds like an October trip is in order! (In my dreams, that is. With a teacher for a husband, we can never get away in the Fall. Sigh.)