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In 2000, we stopped in Bedford, PA to see the famous Coffee Pot that was along the Lincoln Highway. It was in sad shape, with a bulldozer parked precariously nearby.

I heard that an effort to save the Coffee Pot had succeeded, and we visited it in its new location a few years ago. Last Thursday, we stayed in Bedford on our way to Michigan and stopped by on Friday morning to say hello and snap some photos.

In early 2000, before I saw the coffee pot, I wrote a paper about “Duck Architecture” (The Development and Preservation of Signature Architecture in America can be found in PDF form here), and things were looking bleak for these roadside icons. I’m glad to see that the Coffee Pot is doing so well.

Here is someone else who is very interested in Roadside Architecture and has a great website documenting all different types of buildings. And here is her page on the Coffee Pot.

PS: I guess now is the time to confess that I have started drinking coffee again. It’s been a week, and not every day, but today, I bought freshly roasted shade-grown beans and a pint of half and half. Oh help.

We’re back from Michigan. Whoa, that was a long short trip! We did the whole 600 mile drive today, after first packing the car while one of us held Lilia (she woke up too early and with a stuffy nose… she had to be “holded”), doing a quick unfortunately unsuccessful search for a letterbox, and stopping at Zingerman’s Deli to buy a loaf of day-old Parmesan Pepper Bread. The loaf was consumed before we left got out of Ohio.

At a rest stop on the Pennsylvania Turnpike, the A-Plus convenience store was selling shirts that said, “Pennsylvania, Established 1787.” While the shirt is right… Pennsylvania became a state in 1787 when it ratified the constitution… it just seems wrong to me. Pennsylvania as a place was established in 1681 by William Penn. It bugged me the whole way home. I guess that’s silly… even the state quarters put the date that the places became actual states:

I guess I started obsessing when I was sick of listening to the iPod and there was no good radio stations to be found. Next time, I will find something better to worry about on the turnpike!

We are headed to Michigan tonight– which means I have to pack! When Joe gets home from work, we’ll hit the road, stopping somewhere in Central or Western PA, and then we’ll finish the journey tomorrow. We’re heading home Monday and plan to make the drive back in one day. I’ve heard a rumor (hopefully not a rumor!) that we will be getting a Christmas tree and having a Thanksgiving dinner while there! Which makes me pretty lucky, since I will also have Thanksgiving dinner at my dad and Joan’s house on actual Thanksgiving. The Thanksgiving meal is just about my favorite food of all time. I love it so much, if a diner has a Hot Open Faced Turkey Sandwich on the menu, I have to order it. HAVE TO. Some places are better than others. My recent favorite is at Saville’s Diner in Boyertown. Oh look, that’s actually Joe’s review. I’d probably have given it a 5 star review! I hear that Wawa has something called a Turkey Bowl– I guess like this? I really want to try one. I wonder if we will drive by a Wawa on our trip tonight. Although a turkey meal while we are trying to stay awake to drive might not be a good idea… but then on the other hand… Wawa does have coffee!

Well, like I said, I MUST pack, do dishes, and do my exercises. If I don’t do my exercises before sitting in the car for 600 miles, I will regret it!

Tomorrow… Friday Recipe! Once we make it to Michigan.

Wow, I didn’t realize that I hadn’t posted in almost a month! I had a short break from classes (3 weeks), and am taking my first of 3 summer classes now. We just got back from a week in Michigan, and I’ve spent today Hiding Inside In Air Conditioning. Whoa.

I should be writing in depth reviews of the things we’ve done lately, but instead, I will just post a few pictures for the Lilia fans out there!

Lilia loves Stumpy:

Lilia hiking in the Delaware Water Gap:

A concrete playground (brings back memories!) in Coldwater, Michigan

Bernoulli’s principle (don’t ask me to explain it!)

One…

Two…

Three!!

On the drive home, we took Interstate 80 instead of the Penna. Turnpike. We stopped in State College and saw signs for the Creamery. Being a Creamery, they had no dairy-free option, so Joe and I got two orders for ourselves… and I quickly thought to ask for an empty cone. Well, we got outside, and Lilia saw that Daddy’s cone was filled and hers was empty, and she was SO SAD! At her allergist appointment in April, she *barely* reacted to the dairy skin test, and didn’t react to the blood test at all– leading them to believe she is out-growing the allergy. Well, if you were faced with a sad sad toddler, who may or may not have outgrown her mild dairy allergy, what would you do??
Yes, we filled her cone, and kept our fingers crossed. No reaction! See for yourself:

In non-Lilia news, I am now the proud owner of a Ukulele, and I’m working on building up a callous on my left index finger.

A weekend update on a Wednesday. I’ve been busy trying to get some homework done for my big class this weekend.

Somewhat spontaneously, the family drove to DC to see the Smithsonian Kite Festival. Of course, a visit to the DC area includes a visit with Aunt Maria– this was Lilia’s first trip down there, unless you count when she was in mah belly. And a visit with Aunt Maria includes a trip to see Pandas! We had a great time, even though we forgot to use sunscreen (I hope Lilia isn’t cursing me in 50 years for that!).

This post requires PICTURES, and here they are:

Aunt Maria teaching Lilia all about pandas:

I think this is Tai Shan:

A quick family portrait in front of the White House (taken by Aunt Maria):

Lilia completely shocked at the amount of kites in the air (again, Aunt Maria’s picture):

I liked this Cat Kite, but never saw it in the air:

This homemade kite looked really heavy, but it sailed right up when the breeze was there.

This serious kite handle belongs to a kite by Olivier Reymond:

Watch out for Kite-Eating Trees!

Best in Show… it’s an Unidentified Flying Mao!

An Old Cherry Tree:

Joe took a dozen pictures until he could get the leaves blurry and the Jefferson Memorial in focus:

And one final picture… my brand new camera (Canon PowerShot SD850 IS) has given me “unidentified images” a few times. I wonder what the deal is? Here is an example…

We had a great time at the kite festival, and Aunt Maria has given us her old kite. More on that when we get outside and get it in the air!