Winter in Athens 2007

Hello to all! (Kent here)


Here are a few shots I snapped of the snow this winter.


Ohio University's at night


Dairy Lane Road fence


An old barn, not far from where I work.

First Birthday

Hazel's first piece of chocolate cake!

Hmmmm... I think I'll play with it for awhile....

and a awhile longer...

Finally a bite. mmmmmmm.

I went to Hazel's first birthday party on Sunday. This is a photo story of her eating cake. She mushed most of it around for a few minutes before finally taking a bite. I think she enjoyed playing with it more than eating it. As a true Wiese-Stephens, I'm sure she'll learn the ways of the sweet tooth before long.

Stroud's Run

Kent and I went for a hike at Stroud's today. We did the hike that goes from one end of the campground to the other. It's nice because you climb up to the ridge at the beginning (that gets you warmed up) and then you walk along the ridge for about a mile and then it's down again. There is a great overlook of the lake, too.
Group photo.

Pretty creek shot on the hike. Can you see us?

Along the way...


Strouds Run is a State Park about 5 miles from our house. It's not well kept up due to cuts in the state budget, but it suits us in southeast Ohio. There are plenty of hiking trails, a beach, boat dock, and campsite, among other amenities.

In the summer, I love riding my bike out there, going for a swim, and then riding back the long way, which involves a little off roadin' on my bike. It was a great workout when I was training for the triathlon. Now the lake is frozen, so I don't recommend the swim.

Random thoughts and photos

Fondu is Fun...just ask LORI!!!!!


Random thoughts....

Hello. Kent here.

Fondu is fun, yet quite strange. Lori and I had the good fortune of spending time with old college friends Angel and Ben and their children, while in Columbus recently. Fondu was on the menu for desert!!! How delightful! The anticipation and suspense is the best part....well, rather the 2nd best part. Thinking of the many different choices and options of edible food that can be "fondu'ed" is tantalizing. It is very American. So Manifest Destiny....

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The other day I went for a run on the bike trail in Athens, Ohio, where we live. It was fairly cold, probably mid 20's. During my run, I ran past the "Dog Park", which is a designated, fenced in area for pet owners to allow their dogs to run free and experience socialization with other dogs. (I have yet to see any cats playing in the dog park...)

As I ran past the dog park, I witnessed a sight that led me to laugh. All of the humans, or pet owners, were standing around in the frigin cold weather, while their dogs frolicked, played and danced around the silly humans. It cracked me up. The pet owners appeared cold and not moving, standing in packs of 2 or 3, about a dozen in all. Meanwhile, their dogs are lovin life. Who's in charge here?.....

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I saw a photo in the paper of a Boa-constricter snake that had been discovered frozen in a Cincinnati ? park. The snake appeared to be about 6-8 feet long. A park ranger was holding it up for the photo. I felt bad for the snake that wasnt smart enough to fly south for the winter. ... or at least to burrow into the ground deep enough to hybernate. Although, our weather in Ohio has been pretty goofy this winter....with days in the 50's & 60's during December and January. Poor snake thought that it was spring, along with our daffodils which started to sprout in January.

I felt bad for the fellow who found the snake as well. If I had come across an 8 foot long snake while "doing my rounds" at the park, I would have freaked. How do you know that the snake aint just playing dead, or taking a nap. That snake is going to be pissed off when he thaws out and finds himself in some stupid glass display, eating lab mice all the time.

Hi Ho Hi Ho, It's off to Columbus we go...

Once again, we went to Columbus to visit some friends and experience the big city. We travelled up to the capital on Sunday to take pictures at the Franklin Park Conservatory and visit Angel and Ben and family. Here are some photos that should encapsulate our visit.

This is part of the orchid exhibit at FPC.


Chihuly (a glass artist) has some work integrated into the plant life at FPC.


More Chihuly.


Here are some pics of Angel's gang. Maia's pretty face.


Malcolm is cooking it up in the kitchen!

Truck Love, from strangers!

Kent here, sharing with you about truck love.

Here in good-ol-Athens, Ohio, people have an infinite love for Trucks. New trucks, old trucks, shiny trucks, flat-beds, dooolys, trucks with performance dual pipes (straight out the back or straight up like a semi).....sport trucks, 4 wheel drive, 2 wheel drive, 4-bangers, Diesel and big v-8s.

Growing up, in the sub-burbs of Cleveland, I wasn't very fond of the classic pick-up truck. I did not see much need for them. I preferred sports-cars, and station wagons....and old cars from previous generations. Never did I dream about trucks. One might call me a "hater" of trucks, back then. I did not see much use for a truck bed, let alone 4-wheel drive. Yeah, I know it snows in Cleveland, especially on the east-side, with that Lake effect snow. But I learned how to drive in the snow with old-fashioned rear-wheel drive and 200 lbs. in the trunk. (I am not a fan of front wheel drive, and find it very difficult to "peal-out / spin the tires" for dramatic entrances or leaving).

So, it was not until I spent some time in Athens, along with a few significant trips to my mom's side of the family near Hamilton, Ohio (where my uncle Sturlin and cousin Larry showed off their old 60's model Ford).....that I began to develop my appreciation for TRUCKS.

In Athens, everyone owns either a truck or a Subaru. Its that simple. They both have very utilitarian value. Lori and I own a 1984 Toyota 2 wheel drive, 4-banger, pickup truck. It originally belonged to her paternal grandfather, then her oldest brother Keith. Prior to the Toyota, I owned a Mazda B-2000....which got great gas mileage. I could drive that thing every day for 3 weeks before I needed to refuel. [Once the frame cracked, I sold it to a buddy and he bolted the bed and cab together...and drove it another year or two.]


Owning a 1984 Toyota is a matter of stubborn pride for me. The engines on these Toyotas run forever. In fact, one of the teenagers that I worked with once informed me that he drove the snot out of his. He was quoted as saying, "You cant blow those 'Yota's up, I've tried". One summer, Lori and I drove all over the USA in our truck, and put 11, 000 miles on it in 3 months. So, 170, 000+ miles later, we are still TRUCKIN with our 'Yota.

Our truck bed was a rusty mess. So I got up the gumption to replace it with a wooden one. The other day, on my way to work, two elderly retiree's - husband-and-wife, slowly pulled up next to me in traffic in their new chevy malibu. They were both grinnin from ear to ear. He was driving and wearing what appeared to be a John Deere hat...and his wife gave me the THUMBS-UP. TRUCK LOVE!

Athens Nightlife continues...

Last night I went to see the musical, Man of La Mancha with Carol. I didn't know much about the story so I did a little research ahead of time. I highly recommend this when attending any theatrical performance. I remember the days when the program would give a little info on what you were about to see, but now the program is full of advertising. So a little time on wikipedia can give you a ton of insight and help to follow the story.

I won't go into details about the performance except that I highly enjoyed it and was glad I went. The singers were excellent and the music was live. (Instead of the actors singing to a recording there was a pit like the old days.) Everything was clear and I Carol's second row seats were awesome.

Tonight we'll be back at Mem Aud for a lecture. Woo hoo!