Weekend at French Creek

Danielle and I are writing this post to celebrate another successful PA camping trip over the past weekend! We have a jam-packed summer calendar and will not be having a lot of time to camp for another few weeks, so we decided to brave a little rain last Friday and had a great time exploring some local sites near French Creek State Park in Elverson, PA. Fortunately, Elverson is much closer to Philadelphia than Dover (where we camped the previous weekend), so we even had the time to watch Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban Sunday evening after getting home, thereby doubling the weekend's magic. We also wrangled our friends Jenny and Patrick into joining us (for camping, not HP); in fact, it was Patrick who suggested the French Creek since he and Jenny both hail from the area.

So on Friday night Danielle and I set out for the campground and thankfully arrived before dark, and just barely ahead of the rain. We stopped at a Walmart on the way to pick up a tripod grill for campfires, too, which turned out to be a clutch purchase. I want to set that thing up over our stove at home, but it doesn't fit. Hopefully it will work in our new apartment. Anyway, we made it to the site and got set up, bought firewood from some locals' driveway, and then Patrick and Jenny met us at the site just before dark. Patrick had a travel canopy deal that we set up, but of course by that time the rain was basically done for the weekend! We still hung a lantern in it, though, so it was a great place to make our suppers. So that was pretty much Friday.

Saturday morning we got up and headed to breakfast at Ridge Restaurant, right across the street from Patrick and Jenny's high school (Owen J. Roberts HS) near Pottstown, PA. You can see a great picture above of Danielle and Patrick at the restaurant. The place was pretty cheap and had good breakfast, but the highlight of the experience was our first (and possibly last) scrapple tasting! It was not that bad, really, but considering what it is, I will not be going out of my way to buy or prepare it. You can see me on the right with my slab, and below that I am about to take my first bite! Danielle actually nibbled a tiny corner, and she did not even die. You can look up scrapple yourself for more information, but my understanding is that it is all sorts of left-over meat with a bunch of spices. It starts out mushy and speckled grayish, but once fried it looks as it does in the pictures. Unfortunately, at the Ridge they served it fried on the outside but still mushy on the inside: if I ever order it again, I will request it fried throughout...

After breakfast we drove to a nature preserve-type area, apparently run by a land trust(?), to see THE MAGIC TREE!!! Below you can see a couple pictures of Danielle and Patrick at the tree, with Jenny wandering off somewhere; the magic tree does strange things to people, hence its name. In reality it is some kind of willow, and is something like a couple hundred years old. As you can see from the paint and maybe some carvings, it is a popular hoodlum destination, but the land and the tree were beautiful and the weather cooperative. Danielle also made friends with a lady who was having lunch on the grounds with her "red hat society." I always tell D that the elderly are her demographic. 

After our brief stop at the Magic Tree we headed to St. Peter, a small village situated almost entirely on one stretch of road between two hills; above the road is an old quarry with beautiful blue/green water which we thought could be a pool at a park like Disney World's Animal Kingdom. Behind the inns, ice cream shops, and bakeries of the village is a stream where all the boulders were dumped once they were removed from the quarry. Now the stream has done a beautiful job of rerouting around the boulders, and serves as a beautiful hiking and swimming destination. The area was pretty busy, but we were still easily able to hop around on the rocks and wade in the stream. We actually had so much fun we forgot to take ANY pictures, so I apologize for that. From St. Peter we drove to Hay Creek near Birdsboro, PA, and spent the rest of our day exploring there.

The area is apparently also called "Old 82," since most of the path from the road is actually an old, closed off section of Route 82. From the gates at the dead end the path follows Hay Creek for a couple miles and ends at another abandoned quarry. Along the way we moved down to walk next to the creek, where I got stung by a bee on my ankle, but we also got to try (and consistently fail) to catch frogs and newts, which was some pure, innocent fun! A little way on from the gates a dirt road connects to the pavement, leading up a hill to the Birdsboro reservoir. The small lake is completely surrounded by tall pine trees, and the path around the water is covered in red pine needles. The scene is very reminiscent (to me, at least) of Rainy Lake back home. With literally no one else but us up there, it was a great time to reflect and appreciate, well, everything. I might even dub that place the Magic Lake. Below is a picture of me, Jenny, and Patrick at the Magic Lake.

After walking the loop we headed back down to the road, past an active quarry, and finally ended up at the bottom of the old quarry, with steep rock faces rising up all around us. The area is basically a circular pit, with the road entering on the bottom at the only open end. There are two or three tiered ledges running around the outside, presumably left from the mining operation, and the Birdsboro municipality has installed climbing bolts on the rock faces throughout the area, making it a popular rock climbing hangout. As we walked along the ledges, in fact, we walked through several camps of climbers. It is too bad we did not take pictures there, either, because to me it really was stunning. It ALMOST made me want to get into rock climbing, but not quite. We ended the hike on the way back by taking a brief detour to cross the creek via two cables: one of which you walked on, the other you held at about eye level. The old road continues on after that, but we turned around, crossed the cables again, and headed back to the car. That night the weather stayed nice so that we could enjoy a relaxing (and darn well earned) supper and campfire. Sunday morning we headed home, and that was the weekend! Below I have posted one last picture of the Magic Lake.

Thanks for listening to our tale! Talk to you all again soon.

-Rory

Call Off the Search!

Our typical blogging pattern is that we write and post pictures whenever we go somewhere, do something fun around town, or Danielle gets the crafting bug. Proceeding in that spirit: earlier this past week we signed a lease on a new apartment! As of September 1 we will be in a two-bedroom a few blocks from our current residence, and in a small rental rather than a high rise. We have been searching for a two-bedroom for a while, I guess...I could not say exactly since when. But it is so nice to finally be able to relax and only worry about how we are going to afford this new place! Initially we were looking outside of Philadelphia, in the suburbs, where apartments tend to be a little cheaper. We did not know if it would be possible to find an affordable and liveable place in our neighborhood with two bedrooms so that I could finally have an office (right now our living room is in a constant state of messiness).

After a few weekends and even weeknights traveling out to the surrounding areas for viewings, we realized that if we left our neighborhood: 1) poor Danielle would have a crappy commute every day for school; 2) we would be away from our friends, and what little social life we do have now would be choked out; 3) the extra cost of a monthly transit pass for Danielle would darn near cancel out what little savings we found in suburban apartments; and 4) we would actually miss University City, and we did not move all the way out to Philly to move away less than a year later! All was not lost during our suburban search, though: we met one landlord from New Jersey who actually called us "you's guys!" I found it to be hilarious and fun. Anyway, we received a real blessing: after just a week of beginning to look at Craigslist postings in University City and West Philadelphia, we found our new home. The kitchen is beautiful (at least compared to our current one), there are no slow elevators to deal with (or, in fact, any elevators at all), and it is even our understanding that it has no cockroaches (at least for now)! At least there will be no more searching; only laying awake at night crunching numbers in our heads, planning for the future. We will update everyone on the apartment's exciting details more when we actually move in. That is not a promise--we just will not be able to help ourselves.

Thanks for listening, and have a wonderful day,

Rory

P.S. Look for another camping post coming soon...

P.P.S. We saw Rock of Ages last week and really enjoyed it, but I am even more excited to see Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter this week! Both are exciting, genuine adventures into the history of America.

Hea' Dover Heels for Camping

Last weekend we had the awesome chance to take our first camping trip together as a married couple! We bought a tent earlier in the spring and have been gradually stocking up on gear, so last Friday the time finally came to book a site. We chose Cedar Lake Campground in Dover, PA (hence the title of this post). Unfortunately, the trip did not start out great--at least for me. The traffic getting out of Philadelphia was awful, and a trip that should have taken us a little over two hours took four or better. We left home around 4pm, and after a stop at Walmart and a fine beverage vendor we were able to set up camp by just after 9pm, in the dark. We bought some firewood but were expecting to be able to also purchase a fire starter (we did not have any paper). But it was so late that the camp store was closed, so we were SOL. Thankfully, after making a fool of myself for awhile a neighbor took pity and started our fire for us! So we could finally turn off the headlights, finish setting up, and make supper (after 10pm at this point)! The weather was mercifully beautiful and cool, and the bugs did not bother us that night.

The next day, Saturday, we were able to completely turn around the misery of the drive to Dover: the weather remained sunny and warm, but not hot, the bugs stayed away, and relaxation came easily. We spent the day walking around the campground and gawking at the seasonal trailer residences, reading (for fun--first time for me in a dog's age), cooking over the fire, and watching fishermen; our site was on the edge of a private pond where campers can fish, and they do pretty well! On Sunday we cleaned and packed up our gear and were out of the campground before noon, to give Danielle enough time to write a paper that was due Sunday afternoon.  

I think that is everything I want to write about our trip. Danielle might have a better memory and want to add some things, but for now at least here are a bunch of pictures with descriptions:

Our site from the pond's edge, complete with our adorable "His and Hers" chairs (they are not actually a set)

Right across the lake from us was a "petting zoo," complete with two awesome goats! I think the gray one noticed Danielle snooping.

Our tent with our sandals in front, proving we were there I guess. 

Another picture of the petting zoo across the lake, but zoomed out for better context: isn't the campground beautiful!?

This is the view from our site looking the opposite direction of the petting zoo: the fountain provided great ambient noise for sleeping.

These birds were frequent visitors to our site, and there is a third one not in this shot. They were a little too bold for my tastes, but neat: plus the two white ones wiggled their tails in a pretty awesome way.

This is a view of ALMOST the full lake from the bridge to the petting zoo; our site is just visible on the right.

Obviously: me with the goats. 

A pond across the road from the "lake" had huge patches of what I guess were lily pads, with these beautiful flowers.

Danielle had to lay on her belly to get this cool shot of the patch, encompassing the full spectrum of bloom.

"J" is for "June" and "Job"

Well I feel like a horse's patootie: I cannot believe I have not written a post since March. It is not fair to you all, and it has left me feeling like I have bottles up inside of me, and I need to write to get them out! I feel guilty and alien, as if I went off to war, leaving my beautiful young wife to run the ranch that is our blog. And now I am returning, battle weary, from my tour. Unfortunately, the war was more of a civil one with my own lethargy and indifference, and now we all have to bear with my postbellum reconstruction. It will be painful, and I will be slow to open up to you again, but in the end the most important thing is that we are all reunited.

What has happened since my post of March 26 that Danielle has not written about? There are already posts about our spring break trip, our vacation back home in MN, the day trip to Ocean City, NJ...oh yeah: I got a job. Since mid-April I have been working for a federal contractor as a writer for the Navy Bureau of Medicine and Surgery (BUMED). I get to work from home, which is a mixed bag, but I also get to travel a little, which is a plus for me. So far I have only been to San Diego for work, but it was a great trip! The company that develops one of BUMED's healthcare IT systems is based in San Diego, so I will probably be back there again. I also visited the Naval Medical Center San Diego and am hoping to have opportunities to check out other Navy medical facilities around the country.

Beyond the new job, to be honest, there is not much to report. Danielle has been doing a great job on the blog, though, has she not? Well, I guess I will sign off now: better to start slow and ease myself back into our relationship. I hope to write you all again soon.

Later gators,

Rory      

Ocean City, NJ

Hello Folks!

As promised, here begins the travel section of our blog. This past Saturday was a bright, sunny, and happy day so we decided to head out to Ocean City, NJ for some sun and shore. It is about 1 hour and 15 minutes away to the coast from Philly. 

We started our visit by checking out a restaurant on the boardwalk that we had Yelped before arrival. It was a cute, little seafood joint tucked back behind the main stores.  It's called Hula Restaurant in case anyone wants to go. We both had the special of the day - fish tacos!!!! They were unique, but pretty good. Here is a picture of Rory looking cute while waiting for our food to arrive:

Then, we decided the best way to tackle the sensory overload of the board walk would be to walk the entire length both ways and see everything before deciding what we would like to do. It was a beautiful day so it was the perfect day for strolling along the wood planks, feeling the ocean breeze, and listening to the seagulls. They even have helpful signs to tell you how far you have walked. See:

Along the walk we picked up some "world famous" caramel popcorn from Johnson's, and it really was quite delicious. Then, we scoped out which mini golf place looked the best. The boardwalk is mostly little food places (not really sit down places, more like counters), shops, 2 amusement parks, and a number of mini-golf places. We narrowed it down to a Pirates themed one which Rory said really "called to him" with its Pirates of the Caribbean music setting the stage for adventure. But, there was also a Congo themed one that had intrigue written all over it. I told Rory he could pick and he had quite the time deciding which would be cooler. But, ultimately we chose how we always do in these situations - we went with the cheaper of the two (saved a nickel on each ticket dontchya know). I can't say that Congo themed mini-golf was a disappointment - there were even 3 options for courses, and we chose an awesome mine course. 

And, it wouldn't be a trip to the shore without putting our toes in the ocean and walking along the white sand beach. So, that's exactly what we did!  We finished it all up with a visit to Shriver's Salt Water Taffy where we saw taffy being made and were able to sample a fresh piece of taffy right out of the cooker. 

All in all it was a great day in Ocean City, NJ. I won't ruin your image of this lovely city with long tales of the drive home. I will say that we ended up sitting in traffic for 2 hours while waiting to move the last 3 miles before crossing the bridge back into Philly because of a nasty traffic accident. This wait spurred us to get off the highway to turn around, temporarily landing us in Camden, NJ. If you have never heard of Camden before, let's just say we breathed a lot easier the moment we got the car back on the highway out of there!

But, enjoy the rest of our pictures below. I hope everyone else is enjoying the beginning of summer. Wishing you lots of sunshine and happiness, Danielle.

Additionally, we finally tried Rita's. It is a water ice and frozen custard chain around here. It's slogan is that it sells happiness. We had to buy some of that happiness. Rory clearly really enjoyed it!

Spring Cleaning

I forgot to mention in the last post that one of the first things I did when we got back to Philly was to do a bit of spring cleaning. I finally organized the hallway storage closet. It was pretty organized before but boxes had piled up in the middle. I am pretty proud of my work (and it has managed to stay very organized for the past week) so I thought I would share with you all.  Here are the pics: