If this weekend was any indication of how the rest of this summer is going to be, then bring it on!
After finishing up his road cases yesterday afternoon, Ted mowed the backyard (which looks SO nice, by the way) and then we cooked out, grilling fresh green beans and roasted garlic mozzarella sausages on the grill and topping it off with a fresh baby seedless watermelon. Our first cookout and first watermelon of the year in our first place together! It was glorious. Grilled food is always fantastic and our dinner and evening was no exception.
We ended the night watching the pilot episode of Big Bang Theory and this season’s finale of the show. If you haven’t been watching Big Bang Theory, you’ve really been missing out.
This morning we went to church and then Ted mowed the rest of the lawn – it’s a two day job for him because the grass is so tall that he needs to go over it twice. It’s great to no longer have the most embarrassing lawn on the block – our neighbors are all retired, have plenty of time on their hands, and are supremely proud owners of their favorite expensive toy – the riding lawn mower. Every single one of our neighbors mows at least once a week. We have the time to mow our lawn maybe twice a month, if we’re lucky. They must be humiliated. But now it’s so soft and green and nice looking! Our yard reminds me of The secret Garden. Perfect for bonfires, lawn games, cartwheeling, and bird/bunny/chipmunk/squirrel/coyote watching, it is one of the things we love the most about this house. I can’t wait until the fireflies come out and fill our yard in the evenings!
In the afternoon we loaded the bikes into the truck and drove to the Bass Island bike trail that stretches the 50+ miles from Columbus to Cincinnati and along the path of the Little Miami River. The trail used to be a railroad but when it was no longer needed they took out the tracks and turned it into a paved, two-lane path for joggers, walkers, bikers and roller bladers. The path itself is absolutely great – very scenic with beautiful views of rolling meadows, the river, and lined with tons of lush trees with equal parts of sun and shade throughout and plenty of bikers and pedestrians enjoying their time in the great outdoors. We had a great time and biked a little over seven miles. The weather was in the low 80s and we had a nice cool breeze the whole way. We also saw our first snake in Ohio – a long black and gray fellow slithering across the paved trail. One day, perhaps in the autumn when the weather is getting cool and the leaves are all changing colors, we’d love to bike the whole trail – from Cincinnati to Columbus – then stay in a hotel in Columbus for the evening and bike back the next day. We’d have to work to build up our stamina though!
After our bike ride we stopped at Eastgate Adventures for a few laps around the go kart track, a quick game of mini golf, and two rounds of air hockey. Since we were in the area we tried out a little hole-in-the-wall Mexican restaurant we’ve been wanting to try for months now to fill our hungry bellies and dodge an afternoon rain shower, and it was really good! The place had authentic tortilla chips, totally authentic Mexican cheese, and fantastic steak fajitas. It is in my top 2 list of Mexican restaurants in Cincinnati! Leftovers for tomorrow? I think so! Tonight we’re taking it easy – throwing in a DVD and relaxing before it’s back to the daily grind tomorrow. By the way, here are Ted’s road cases. He does such an excellent job! Can you believe he made these from scratch? Every piece of laminate and foam cut, every latch, every handle, every wheel, every pop rivet, every hole drilled. Count me proud. He custom creates all kind of cases for cables, tools, and lighting and audio equipment. Below is the logo he’s having designed and produced to put on all his cases so we can hopefully drum up more business! What a dream it would be to own our own successful company that we could subsist on as our only source of income except for freelance gigs. We’d make a great team! With Ted’s lighting and set designs, equipment rentals and construction, production, budgeting and managing experience and my acting, directing, teaching, education, and artistic management experience, we’d be unstoppable. Anyone want to fund us as a start-up company?
