Victory Parade

It was history and we had to be there. 

I hate traffic and waiting in lines....so we rode our bikes. I met Ben at the Memorial Road Trailhead for the Towpath at 7:30 AM and off we went. We tore through the Valley and met our friends on their bikes a little before 9:30 by Rockside Road. We arrived in Cleveland and chained up our bikes around 10:30. The parades route was packed - over a dozen deep in places. We walked around a while before settling on a spot in front of the Q where a slight rise in the road allowed us to see a little bit. It didn't matter - the point was to be there and enjoy the camaraderie with 1.3 million Cavs fans. With the parade being so delayed and slow we decided to walk over and see where the Victory Rally was going to take place. We snapped a few photos and then headed back to our bikes where we planned to ride over to the West 25th area. There were thousands of people crossing the bridge back to the Westside so we went with Plan C - rode over to Tremont for beers and lunch and watched the events on TV. We took off with enough time to race back to Rockside and catch the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad's Bike Aboard car. A nice slow ride back to Akron with a couple of beers in the AC.

The trip was an adventure and totally worth it...and we didn't sit in any traffic.

Bike Party!

Akron Bike Party's Mike Finney Memorial ride was on Friday night. Mike was senselessly gunned down last year - he was an avid biker and Bike Party-er. So in his honor the theme was "dress like your bike". We had a great turn-out and a lot of fun - and also a moment of silence....

Mucky Duck Brewing Co.

I rode my bike out to Mucky Duck Brewing Co. in Portage Lakes last evening. The brewery has been open in this location for a few months - it was previously across the street in the basement of Nauti Vine Winery. I had three beers and they were all decent. I would say that they could have a little more body - the wit was tasty and refreshing but just a bit watery. Same with the bourbon barrel aged ale - the oak-aged flavor was there but the beer was just a little too light. I also had an IPA that was a decent classic pale with American hops. I overheard the bartender saying that they didn't have the Belgian triple because it didn't come out right - which is a good sign to me - a good brewer is willing to dump beer that isn't right - instead of serving it. I'd still be willing to go back and try more of their offerings - and I believe this is a spot that will improve over time.

Cincinnati, OH

On Sunday and Monday I traveled to Cincinnati to document a Torchbearers' trip. Cincy is the only city of any size in Ohio that I had never been to and it had never really been on my list of priorities. I think my view may have been colored from hearing friends who were going to college there in the late 90's being told not to step off of campus. Whether that was ever true or not it certainly isn't today. I was super impressed by the city and by the people working to make it even better(I will post more about those "people" and the TB activities later - this is my "pretty pictures post").

The Cicadas

There hasn't really been any sign of the cicadas where I live so I set out to do my once every 17 year photo shoot tonight at Hampton Hills. I rode my bike down to the Valley and then hiked the Adam Run Trail. I remembered last time 'round these guys were swarming the place. They didn't disappoint. There were tons - and the noise was intense. So I got my cicada fix today - see you in 17 years little guys!

Inside|Out Instameet

Last night the Akron Art Museum led a walking tour of one of their neighborhood Inside|Out exhibits - this one in Wallhaven. Inside|Out exhibits take full scale, high quality replicas of pieces in the Museum and bring them to various neighborhoods around the city. This tour was also a "Instameet" held simultaneously with the Detroit Institute of Arts, Pérez Art Museum Miami, and Philadelphia Museum of Art - who all have Inside|Out displays in their respective cities. Instagrammers were encouraged to photograph the walks and works and there is a week long contest for the best photo.

We had a fun group of people on a beautiful evening and wrapped up the tour with some drinks, snacks, and conversation at Larry's.

HHWRC Opening

ReWork's opened up their Household Hazardous Waste Recycling Center for the season on Thursday - and I was there to cover it. The center is open every Thursday from 2-7 for Summit County residents. The center is for all your chemicals that should not be thrown away - just leave the latex paint at home - let it dry and throw it away. ...but for everything else be environmentally responsible and bring them here!

Alley Garden

I always like to photograph my garden as a way to measure the progress and keep track of what I've done from year to year. This is the second year that I have planted the alley behind my studio and I have doubled the size. I put most of the plants in the ground in mid-May(I usual like to gamble a bit) and survived both "frosts". I also have a container garden with more herbs and veggies - I'm sure I'll post some photos of that soon.