Toms Maze - October Color - Gourds

Toms Maze - October Color - Gourds, originally uploaded by Andy Wendt.

Nathans Cub Scout Pack had an outing this month at Toms Maze in Germanton, Ohio. The eight acre maze took about 30 minutes to complete. I am sure it would have taken a lot longer had it been dark, or if Nate’s mom and I were short. After the maze we went back to a campsite the pack had reserved and had marshmallows, hot dogs and hot chocolate. All cooked on a nice warm campfire. Also worth a mention is the pumpkin gun they fire off ever hour. It’s actually a converted fire truck with what I describe as a 8 inch, 16 foot compressed air cannon mounted on top. The pumpkin gun can fire a medium sized pumpkin about half a mile.

Ohio Wind Storm 2008 - My Front Yard - Middletown

Ohio Wind Storm 2008 - My Front Yard, originally uploaded by Andy Wendt.

The remnants of hurricane Ike hit the Ohio Valley Sunday September 14 at approx 1:30 pm. The gusts in my area, Middletown Ohio, were officially clocked at 69 mph with sustained winds around 40mph. With the storm causing damage in 84 of Ohio’s 88 counties and over 1.5 million without power the Governor declared a state of emergency for the first time since 1978.

Here at my house on Creekivew Drive we were without power from Sunday at 2:00 until Tuesday at 2:00 and I feel very fortunate that things were not worse.

Here at my office, as I type this with the help of a single candlelight and a Honda generator, we are hoping the power will come back before we have to spend another night here fueling the generators every hour.

Yellow Shop in Nashville, Indiana.

Yellow Shop in Nashville, Indiana., originally uploaded by Andy Wendt.

I spent a good part of my trip to Nashville Indian sitting out here. As my wife Nancy and step-daughter Leanna went through the larger shop just out of sight to the left of this shot. So you don't get the wrong idea, I went in the shop, looked at everything in about two minutes and decided to go outside and sit down.

Glad it was such a nice spot because this shop sold some sort of bag full of rocks, and you could take it over to their little trough with running water and "pan" for minerals. This took another 30 minutes but it made the girls very happy, though I still hold to my origional theory that just taking a match to a ten dollar bill would have been just as fun.

New-Stripe-Wall-For-Banana

New-Stripe-Wall-For-Banana, originally uploaded by Andy Wendt.

Leanna standing in front of her newly painted bedroom wall which was our July 4, 2008 weekend project.

It was actually easier than I imagined. We simply gave the entire wall a white base coat, then every six inches we use used a two inch painters tape to frame the larger stripes. Then of course we alternated colors on the large strpes and removed the tape to get the little white stripe.

And..Ok. I was wrong. The white stripes look good and I can tell they are not that other color.

Cincinnati Granite Installer - Photos

Kitchen-Island-By-Tropical-Granite-Works, originally uploaded by Andy Wendt.

Cincinnati Granite Installer August Acosta is scheduled to be up from.. well.. Cincinnati tomorrow, yes on the 4th of July even, to finish our install of the grante countertops in the kicthen. The granite you see in this photo from this morning is called Golden Thunder and for my wife and I it was love at first sight. Love at first sight for the granite that is. Hopefully tomorrow will be the end of this kitchen remodel project and so far we could not be happier with August or Tropical Granite Works of Cincinnati.

Once this amazing Golden Thunder granite is on the rest of the kitchen countertops you can bet I will post some more pictures.

Cincinnati-Gas-And-Electric-Bill-1959

Cincinnati-Gas-And-Electric-Bill-1959, originally uploaded by Andy Wendt.

The good old days are preserved in this 1959 Gas and Electric bill. This bill was lost under our kitchen cabinets for 49 years before it was ever seen again. The last name of the previous home owner was removed though I am uncertain if he is still living.

Memorial Day 2008 - Middletown WW2 Graves

Memorial Day 2008 - Middletown WW2 Graves, originally uploaded by Andy Wendt.

I was very sad when my son Nathan was not interested in going with me to the cemetary this Memorial Day. Nathan, now 6, claimed he was afraid of the cemetary.

My friend Mike Pitts called around 5:00 p.m. and asked if I had been yet. I was glad he called as even I find it sad to go alone.

This picture is of World War Two graves. These were all residents of Middletown who died in the armed services during the war.

This is one of my favorite parts of Woodside Cemetary. There are 8 rows of 20 graves here. Including a sailor who died during the final days of the war on the USS Indianapolis.