Tag Archives: holiday

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ressonance

mount tabor

My mom tells me that my grandmother always used to say if she hadn’t chose to live in Missouri, she would have lived in Pennsylvania.

The first time I experienced PA was about 6 years ago when I was still working with the architectural photographer. We had a shoot in Scranton, afterward we explored the outlying area. The beauty of the countryside really hit me – but thanks to my 20-something attention span, I didn’t dwell on it.

A few years later I visited the Poconos Mountains. – Again, I was struck by the beauty of the state.

Last year we traveled for the first time to meet Chad’s family… This time, thanks to a little more maturity, my feelings really made me sit up and take notice.

There’s more at play here than simply being moved by a region

Grimm Family Home

‘s beauty. For example, I love the Pacific Northwest – I think the area is breathtaking and it’s on our regular vacation hit-list… But the feelings that surface when I’m in PA are different… More base… Almost like an instinctual “ping” of HOME.

Chad’s family live about an hour outside of Pittsburgh in the mountains. The closest town, at the bottom of the mountain on which they reside, is called Connelsville. It’s a tiny community – but still unfortunately not immune to the American Mono-Culture. A Pizza-Hut and McDonnald’s scar the town’s main street, and there’s a Wal-Mart on the outskirts of town. Despite this, there’s still tiny mom and pop shops and restaurants.

You can see where the term “Pennsylvania Dutch” came from. The folks here are a sturdy people. The wear and tear of hard honest work can be seen on their friendly faces.

Chad’s family home was built by hand by his parents. It’s a story and a half frame home with wood thatching and wrap around porch. Inside every wall is paneled in knotty pine and historic farm implements adorn the walls. It’s cozy and comforting.

Don’t let the rustic veneer fool you though. The family room is outfitted with a state of the art home entertainment center, the kitchen has new stainless appliances and there’s always a phone jack nearby… Convenient for me to hook up the laptop and not blog.

LIVE

little humans

toddler pic or kitchen ad

Up early and went and got the oil changed in the car…. Meanwhile, Chad and Kevin did laundry and payed with the niece. While waiting on the dryer – I photo documented more of the toddler with the frequency and enthusiasm of a Japanese tourist on meth. Little Jessie must think that her one uncle has a camera permanently attached to his face.

Kids are so cool. I don’t know if I’m made of the right stuff to have one myself. Then again – I don’t think most parents say to themselves “We’d be ideal parents, lets breed!” From what I can tell – the parents grow and develop just as much as the little humans they create.

We get on the road by 3pm and get lost twice – but eventually find ourself on the PA-Turnpike and on-target to Chad’s family’s home.

I love Pennsylvania – the moment we cross into the state and the land rises around us I get this funky resonance. It very hard to explain – but I plan to tackle and articulate these feelings later…. Not like I’d use the blog-trend as a vehicle to work these things out or anything.

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car-hop

please speak directly into the human’s mouth

Had a lazy morning and a late breakfast… Watched Blue’s Clues with little Jessie and colored. She seems to really like her three weird uncles… I sprinkled her with water from the kitchen sink and she dashed out of the room and returned with her umbrella… I taught her the word “rain. She ran around the rest of the morning with her umbrella open and saying “Rain!” whenever anyone used the sink. I’m tickle and touched I got to teach her a word. A CD filled with cliché “rain-songs” is in order.

Spent the afternoon taking back roads and driving past important landmarks from Kevin’s childhood en-route to his brother’s house. We’re “technically” in Canton which you could consider a “rualish” suburb of Akron – which could be considered an “urbanish” suburb of Cleveland.

On our afternoon journey we had to do our ritual stop for a burger at Swenson’s. While I still hold to my affirmation that Ohio folks don’t know what real pizza is, they DO know, (and have mastered) the hamburger.

There are two chains in this region: Skyway and Swensons. They’re both similar… I think Skyways are “cooler” for their 50’s modern architecture which has survived decades of pressure to re-brand and update. Most of their locations are untouched, their 50’s modern fabulousness intact. No drive-thrussky-way drive-in

We stop and I document one, but we hold our appetites for Swenson’s which has the superior burger.mid-mod drive-in

Local culinary lore states that the man who started Swenson’s was originally a partner of Skyway and a falling out caused him to break off and start his own restaurant. Thanks to some insider info from a member of Kevin’s family, I found out what their “secret” is: They mix powdered sugar into their meat.

Their signature menu item is called a “Galley Boy”. Starting from the bottom up: Bun, sweet chili sauce, burger patty, cheese, burger patty, cheese, tarter sauce, bun – all wrapped in plain white paper and speared with a spanish olive through a toothpick…. ABSOLUTELY SUBLIME!

Unfortunately they don’t franchise and there’s probably no chance these burger-masters will ever go national. so… to experience one, you pretty much have to drive to Akron, OH.

I should blog about this – but going for a Galley Boy encore sounds like a better idea.

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thanksgiving part 1

the 30-something kid’s table

Thanks to my militant internal clock – I was up before anyone else. Time in the morning to sip coffee and play with sis-in-law’s golden retriever who seems to be fascinated by the three hefty guys with facial hair who have set up camp in the basement.

Kevin’s mother arrives by 10am with a carload of grocery bags and previously prepped goodies. The matronly types get cracking in the kitchen while the “men” watch the Michigan / Ohio game, and I burn memory sticks on my nieces. I spy some of Kev’s mom’s “secret sacred turkey prepping” which appears more like a medical procedure than a culinary technique.

By mid-afternoon the house starts filling with more family and the aromas of dressing, turkey and pies.

There’s a turkey fryer set up outside which will cook one of the two turkeys for the feast. The smokers congregate outside around vat of propane-heated oil as if it was a campfire. I advise Kevin and Chad to keep back since I can’t remember what the flash point of peanut oil is.

Kevin’s brother, the middle child, is a riot to hang out with. Before the term “metrosexual” was coined, folks would think he was “the gay one”.
He’s got a lighting quick wit and is a real ham when it comes to photos. I’m finding it more fun to take pictures of him than the babies that, by this time, are peppered throughout the house.

Due to the sheer volume of people, we all eat in “shifts”. I was on second shift and woofed down two plates of food before retiring to the livingroom to socialize with the other l-triptophan induced, glazed-eyed guests.

I discovered having a digital camera and a laptop is like being the guy at the party who plays the piano. I thwart my shy inclinations to hide in the kitchen or camp out in the basement by tweaking baby photos and running iPhoto slide shows to entertain mothers. I also make mock-ads from the day’s pic-harvest. Kevin scorns me that I’m working… It’s not really work though – it’s “play work”. A party trick. A fun way to keep my in-laws fooled into the notion that I’m a cool guy.

Mike and Tempo

I suppose blogging would be “too much like work” – though I would disagree. How could something I don’t do be considered work?