Author: alohawild

It has been a while since I did two days in one blog…but it seems the right thing for today.

Friday, I rose by myself at the hotel and soon was showered, shaved, and all that and headed to the lobby. There is no in-room coffee makers in this Holiday Inn Express. I objected, but I was told that the decision to remove coffee from the rooms was local, and I found myself no more drawn to other chains. Also, I still do not have enough points for a free room, even after staying 35 days this year at Holiday Inn facilities.  Other ‘H’s are attracting me: Hilton and Hyatt. They have in-room coffee, and their staff seemed happier and better skilled. I feel I am paying more for less.

I ate my industrial same-as-always breakfast with a banana still available (rare at Holiday Inns). I wrote the blog and talked and texted Deborah. She had another doctor appointment and other morning details. I stayed at the hotel and wrote. Deborah picked me up in her cool, blue Mini about lunchtime, and we headed to Recipes in Rochester Hills downtown. There we had an excellent breakfast, and we both could only finish about 1/2; the rest became another meal. We spent the afternoon together at Deborah’s house, which did include lots of petting and playing with her dogs Zelda and Trixie. At 5:15, we headed to my hotel again. There, I took Air Chevy to refuel (just a top-off to return it to the airport rental office) while Deborah carried some items to my room, including a tragic wine glass to take home, and my aforementioned leftovers.

Deborah also carried a box of items for her adopted father, Dani, and placed them in the Mini. Not a detail usually worthy of note, but adventures have punctuated this trip, and there were a few more to come. The box was just a bit heavy.

The trip to Buddy’s Pizza in Livonia, Michigan, was irregular, as there was no easy highway path, and the trip was a mix of local roads and highways. It was going well, but Deborah knew only some of the paths. At one point, a truck tried to pass her instead of letting her merge, and she hit the gas. Nothing really happened, and there was a slight acidic smell and then a code. We were only then a few minutes from Buddy’s, and Deborah parked the Mini so it could be easily hauled on a wrecker.

It was Jim W’s partner’s second birthday party, and Detroit-style Pizza with dreaded salad was served, and I had a few beers. There was cake, both vanilla and chocolate. It was good to see many of the same people as I saw at the Wagner Christmas.

With the party ending, Deborah called AAA for a wrecker, which appeared in less than 15 minutes. I headed to the men’s room and tripped on the stairs leading to it, fell, scraped my knee like a little kid, and would have to put ice on my knee later. It was sore and scraped, but I was not injured other than embarrassed. Lots of people rushed to help me. I was at first worried that I would be in trouble going home the next day on an early flight, but nope, I was OK, but a little uncomfortable.

The alternator no longer charging means the car will stop working soon. Nothing drivable. After a forty-minute slow ride, we packed into the cab of the wrecker with the box for Danni; the Mini was dropped off. Deborah called an Uber, and we were soon back at the hotel.

I packed, managing to get everything in my bag (and some in my carry-on). The wine glass would go in my carry-on, and it broke. I did have one in my bag I forgot about, and so there is one glass here from the trip. That makes us happy. I was packed and resting after 11.

I woke a few minutes before 5 and started my travel day with a shower and the last-minute items into my carry-on. Deborah went down to the lobby after throwing some clothing on to get coffee. Excellent! After 6, I drove Deborah again in Air Chevy to her house. She took the box and a few items back with her, including some other wine glasses I did not want to risk. We reluctantly said goodbye. A tough hug and no tears there, but I might have had some later.

I retraced my route from more than a week ago and, at 2ish in the morning, enjoyed a second cup of coffee while driving. I picked up in the lobby after checking out. Traffic was blessedly light on Saturday morning. I managed to make no mistakes and was not in the least surprised when Air Chevy developed a tire issue, the same one as before, low by 5 pounds of pressure, which then reduced to 4 pounds as the tire warmed. We had put air in the tire twice before.

I found Budget Car Rental and returned the car. The person was upset and spilling her heart to another person. Apparently, someone chewed her out for not directing their car into a lane better. I remembered to leave the car keys, get everything, and left the Chevy for the next person (it was still coding with a tire issue). I took a picture of the back and front of the vehicle, just in case someone hit it while dropping off their car.

I found the bus to Delta, and then another employee of Budget shared her troubles with her passengers. We made supportive comments. It was tough in the corporate world of customer service and automobile rentals. I found my way after tipping the bus driver.

Delta was slammed, but I found a machine to print my baggage tag, and everything went easily, and I managed to not forget my phone in the scanner or forget to put my ID away. I kept hearing Deborah’s voice: “Do you have your phone? Do you have the keys? Do you have your wallet?” I entered the huge line for dropping off a bag, and a Delta person saw my Silver Medallion metal tag and walked me to First Class to check my bag. I did not get any upgrades, but it was a short and fast lane. I was about forty minutes away from boarding now. Security took me 10 minutes (no special medallion line breaking this time), and my red bag passed. Yay!

My gate was a five-minute walk. Boarding was twenty minutes later, and soon I was in Comfort, having missed an upgrade to First Class by one. I was soon on the plane, and the middle seat was not taken; I had the window. There was an issue with my bag after someone slid a bag against it. I had to unpack and repack on a plane seat. I suspect that is what broke the glass, as it was now moved around and was now against another bag.

I watched the movie Sirāt, and I cannot recommend it. It is intense and heartbreaking, and terrible things befall the characters, all of whom are sympathetic and interesting. I cried a lot and was deeply affected. I then watched the upbeat Moana to unwind. It was much more fun. And then the Goat 2026 animated film started, and I did not finish it as we landed in Portland. It was good too.

When I rose that Saturday morning (remembering back), I finished my leftovers from Recipe, an omelet, and I also bought a croissant sandwich on the plane. I tried not to be hungry today, as you never know when you will eat while traveling.

I arrived without issue, got a bag of OPBean coffee from Portland Coffee Roasters, received a complimentary cup to go with my beans, got out of the security area, and found my bag on the other baggage belt (?!). I then rolled on to MAX, and after a while, the train left for Beaverton. About an hour later, having texted Joan S that I was on my way and that when I was close, I would get off MAX, Joan S took me the short trip to my house. There, I unloaded, checked the house, turned on the AC and hot water, and grabbed the mail.

Joan S and I then went to BJ’s Brewhouse for appetizers, splitting some sliders, and I got some flatbread (most of which I took home and had for dinner). We talked about retirement, health issues, and trips. It was pleasant.

Joan S returned me to the house, and we said goodbye. I went through the mail, washed most of my dirty clothes from the trip, unpacked (finding the broken glass still in the bubble wrap in my carry-on, and then another I had packed in my bag intact). I finally started the blog and talked to Deborah as she went to bed. We miss each other.

And that takes me to now. Thanks for reading. I can barely stay away, and it is only 8 (local time).

To start with, the questions about Mom Wild. She is in Sparrow on the 7th floor, feeling better, and is a terror to the crew there. While her condition is serious enough to have her monitored, she is improving and may make a full recovery. Details do not belong here on social media, but Mom Wild is better. To keep the confusion down, I did not visit on Thursday, as she was mostly sleeping and needed to focus on Linda and Jesse and on getting better. I did see her on Wednesday.

The local health care system, in Lansing, is overwhelmed with cyclosporiasis cases.

Returning to the narrative, I rose at 6:30 with an alarm, sent a good morning to Deborah, who is always up early, and she texted back that she was drinking coffee. I usually make the coffee, and she said she missed me bringing her coffee. My coffee comes from a machine at the hotel. I soon showered, shaved, and so on. Next, I performed the usual updates to Quicken, reading email (mostly deleting them), and getting updated on the news (mostly depressing).

I headed down to the lobby at the Holiday Inn Express for their industrial breakfast and had the usual tasteless eggs, some sausage, and potatoes. No bananas today (“Yes, we have no bananas today”). Kevin is working, and we chat a bit. I am a repeat customer, spending weeks here every year (their website says 35 nights at IHG). I spend at least 1/4 of the year on the road now. Though this year everything is 30% higher for rooms. Thus, my focus is on Hampton Inns, which are not kicking their prices up as fast and have excellent service. The prices are coming down in the fall as I look out towards my next trips.

I read an update from Holly at AAA that the tickets are booked (and my prepayment worked to ensure AMEX would not freak out again) for our church trip to Brazil (19Nov-29Nov, with some adding three days for sightseeing). We are adding on trip insurance and health care coverage through the United Methodist Church-based policy. With my experience on this trip and having to cancel and rebook everything elsewhere, I am more than willing to cover the cost of this trip with these add-ons! Plus, the medical coverage after seeing what is happening here in Michigan!

Yes, dear reader, the irony is not lost on me that when traveling I avoid salads and washed veggies in less developed countries. I was not expecting to add the USA to my list of places to avoid salads!

I unload the car as I have to pack on Friday and wince at the new NOAA jacket and book I have to fit into my bag. I have loaded it with more stuff before; I have a 70-pound limit for bags as a Platinum Delta AMEX card carrier.

I invest the morning in writing the blog. Deborah invites me over for a lunch she will make. Arugula-based salad from her own garden (no cyclosporiasis) and tiny homegrown and delicious tomatoes. I pick up some mozzarella pearls to add to the salad. Deborah plans to grill some chicken that she picked up. I also return to the hotel to get a charger she is missing.

Her dogs, Trixie and Zelda, are happy to see me. There is much petting of dogs. Deborah and I spend some of the morning and part of the afternoon together, and I help, to a small degree, make the fresh salad, and I am surprised by how much zing fresh arugula has. Just a spray of oil and a swish of balsamic vinegar finishes the salad.

Deborah has a work thing, and I head to Lansing at 2, 90 minutes away by way of Flint (it is the fastest way on 70+ mph highways). My Nav in my Chevy is set for the Curious Book Store, and I hope to see Ray Walsh, the owner, and ship a few more books to Oregon. Linda texts me to go with that, as Mom Wild is mostly sleeping and waiting for a room, still in a hallway in the ER at Sparrow. I arrive in East Lansing without incident, and my only driving challenge is to keep my speed to match the flow of traffic.

I park in the usual parking garage and soon have a new collection of books, mostly nautical, at Curious Book Store, and I remember “Elric” (Eric), Tyler, Jamie, Todd, Jim, Rusty, and others who have been here searching for a cheap SciFi or classics (we read both). That would be followed by Arby’s and then a movie, usually an adventure movie or a comedy. Eric would laugh loudly (I can still hear his laughter). Then Pinball Pete’s, the old Frandor location (long gone), was our usual haunt. I remember when the expensive pinball game Dragon’s Lair (1983) came out, and Eric spent buck after buck to learn it. Later, I remember him playing it all the way through (after investing a pile of tokens over many months) and winning. It had a laser disk (yes, this is the 1980s) to play a movie that you interacted with (it has aged poorly, here)

I skipped the pinball today. I did stop by the student books and resisted their 99-cent book sale. Last time I brought three home, but I used a larger suitcase that time. Still, there were a few…

Next, with just 45 minutes left before dinner for Linda’s birthday (on the 23rd), I headed past the place and to the capital area to grab some peanuts and cashoes at the Nut Store and then some Doom comic books (Doom is still a favorite and something I shared with Eric; there were many “Dr Doom” characters) from the gaming store, Summit Comic and Games. Out of time, I make it to Soup Spoon Café a few minutes before Jesse and Linda arrive. I had thirty minutes on my parking app and managed to get it all done without an issue.

The food was good, but mine was average, with good flavors. Jesse hit a home run with the walleye. I would suggest sticking to simpler items and not the pasta. Still, it was a good time, and the desserts were great.

Linda discovered that the coffee grinder, which had appeared without any information, was included with the subscription for Portland Roaster beans she was receiving. Being her brother, I did not see any reason to explain, hee hee.

With dinner inside of us, we said goodbye, and I then headed back to the greater Detroit area. I filled up the SUV with gas at Costco before hitting Highway 69. Cheaper gas is always welcome. I truly miss my EV, but I was not going to use an EV on this trip (the planned or ad hoc trip).

I returned to my hotel, talked to Joan S about my travels (she is in the Pacific Northwest), and asked if she could pick me up at the Beaverton Transit Center on Saturday around noon (I will take MAX for $1.80 to Beaverton from PDX). All good.

I then read Doomquest comics in which Doom creates a time machine, and his nemesis, Richards, traps him on the sinking Titanic. The second in the series describes his attempts to escape. It was interesting. I have backed a Call of Cthulhu based on the Titanic sinking. Hmmm.

And soon I was asleep and woke at sunrise from a dreamless sleep. Thanks for reading!

One last morning at the Hampton Inn Downtown in Grand Rapids. I am really enjoying the hotel and do not feel like a part of a calculation to make money off of an investment. Doing only the minimum and always slightly disappointing. It really contrasts with the Holiday Inn Expresses. I will start booking Hilton again (I still avoid the Hilton suites). Also, the Hampton Inn rooms have been cheaper lately, sometimes by 30%!

I woke too early and could not get back to sleep. I would be tired all day. I was up at 5ish and on my laptop at 5:30ish. I tried to start the blog, but Deborah was up soon, and we were busy all morning. Mostly packed, we met Jeanne downstairs for breakfast. Better than industrial, but still simple. Today there were eggs.

We returned to our room, got some carts, packed, loaded, and while I checked out, Deborah and Jeanne repacked the car. On the road again, we parked soon at the President Ford Museum (the library is elsewhere). We started with the gift shop, and I found a signed book by history author Rick Atkinson, a new book. The collection, at 38% off, was a marvelous collection of history, politics, and social issues that any liberal would be proud to own, many signed by the author. I thought I was going to like this museum. And I did.

The picture of the Ford and his times is about overcoming trials with calmness and discipline. Ford, the story goes, restored Americans’ belief that government can work. The story of Ford’s life and his near-death in WWII on an escort carrier shows a smart and athletic man who had to learn to control his temper, also accept that he was a child of divorced parents (something I had not remembered), and make his own way to college, law, and into politics.

The displays covered his years in service in Congress in appropriations and as an expert on how Congress works. There was a quip that he was the only President to cover the whole budget with the press (which does not sound like fun). There was a display of the tools used in the Watergate break-in. The cover of Nixon and Watergate was excellent (as was the note at the Oval Office reconstruction, a sort of wink at history, that he had all the microphones removed from the office).

I had also forgotten that the Vietnam War ended with President Ford ordering an evacuation. It was on his watch that those terrible scenes with the helicopters and roofs happened. In the display was part of a hotel and steps leading up to it.

And not far from the Vietnam War was the bicentennial celebration, and I remember the strange feel of moving from war to celebration, but it did happen. I remember that for a year before the celebration, a train was carrying the documents like the Constitution around the country. It was a multi-year celebration that could be experienced (it was inescapable, I remember) anywhere in the USA. Congress had covered costs to bring the celebration everywhere so that everyone could experience it. Minority Leader Ford was working with Tip O’Neal to make it work.

Political comment (may be skipped): Compared to a hotel-like experience of a premium party for a few for a limited time, the 250th. No long-term planning, no sharing it with everyone, and no stamps for years celebrating each event’s anniversary. No re-enacting the events worked out with the National Parks for years. No reading of the Declaration of Independence all over the country. No ringing of bells. Just a flash-in-the-pan hotelier selling you a party. Trump’s version of America, Hotel America: if you can afford it, you can come to the party, but mostly you will be paid (likely under-the-table, with no insurance and plenty of undocumented workers) to work the party, at minimum wage with tips (but not much was collected in the jar). 

There was a Dancing with the Queen exhibit at the Ford Museum, featuring a discussion of the special relationship between the UK and the USA. Even cards of QE2’s drop scone recipe could be taken. The display covered the founding of NATO, the relationship that formed during the war, and continued through the Cold War (part of the Berlin Wall is in the lobby). Adventurerism (on both sides) stressed the relationship, but it held, and Ford seemed to bring it back together with him and the Queen dancing together at the White House. The Queen’s dress (and Betty Ford’s) was displayed (loaned with permission from Charles II).

Betty Ford was covered in detail, including her challenges and the founding of the Betty Ford Clinic. There were also comments on her support for the ERA and challenges with breast cancer. She is the first person I remember having breast cancer and publicly admitting a substance abuse issue. I remember all the support for breast cancer research and treatments starting with her.

Only Carter was covered after Ford, and the place seemed to leave current politics alone, remembering another time when the insiders ran the Presidency for two and a half years. It was a marvelous place and recommended. We did visit the graves.  You did feel that the Fords left the world a better place.

As we left, we saw that a cofferdam was being built near the museum and that a pile of rocks was ready. It looks like they are going to add rapids back to the Grand River. Yes, Grand Rapids will have rapids again.

We parked a few miles away and found lunch at Tupelo Honey, where I had a breakfast bowl. The food was good but heavy, and I was thankful I just went for a bowl instead of a platter! Deborah and Jeanne loved their lunch (though I cannot remember what they had; memory is a funny thing). I moved the car; I had, again, forgotten to take the key fobs with me, but again, nobody stole anything. I waited while Deborah and Jeane visited the fudge store. We were in the Ledyard Block Historic District, named after the building across the street from Tupelo Honey, which we admired as we enjoyed our repast. I checked while waiting that the McKay Tower luxury apartments were about $ 3,900 a month.

Next, we drove to Laingsburg, Michigan, my old hometown, to drop off Jeanne. On the way, Linda contacted me to let me know that Mom Wild was in the ER twice today, and Deborah and I headed there after dropping off Jeanne. We met Jesse, Linda’s husband, at Sparrow Hospital, and later I would relieve Linda and stay with Mom Wild. Mom was confused and worried that she would stay there “forever.” I talked to her, explained why she was there and what was happening (many times, as she could not retain the facts), shared my pictures of the trip, and tried to make her feel safe.

Before, and backtracking a bit, Jeanne’s father was there with the dogs (never pet Peanut). We unpacked, and there was a sad moment, as we all understood that the adventure with smoke, Chicago, wine, and a President was done. We hugged.

Aside: Often, the day returns in flashes rather than in a tidy narrative.

Mom is on a gurney against the wall in hallway B and location I. Yes, no rooms were available. I have been through this before with Susie and just stood in the hall (one of the staff brought me a chair). I never spoke to any medical professional while I was there. The place was slammed.

We could not stay, and there was little to be done. I cannot cover medical stuff here, but I can share that more tests and some measures were taken. I drove Deborah back to the Greater Detroit area, stopping by McDonald’s for dinner for me (and a snack for Deborah). We put away the fries half finished. Guess we are not kids anymore, and even a medium is a lot.

I had stopped at the same McDonald’s that Dad Wild used to take me to split a two-cheeseburger meal, and then get another one. No fries (“they overcharge for them”) and a small drink. I thought of Dad as I ate a not-terrible burger while driving. Deborah gave me the burger unwrapped while we flew at 75 mph to Detroit in Air Chevy.

The dogs, Trixie and Zelda, were excited to see Deborah when we arrived about an hour later. Donovan, Deborah’s son, was happy to see her too. We unpacked her items (forgetting one item for Liam in the car). I then, tired, drove to my hotel and checked in. They know me. In room 233, I called Dondrea and checked on the Brazil trip, updated information from the AAA travel agent, sent it back, and then finished yesterday’s blog.

More like I let words pour out of my mind onto the blog, and tried to keep some order to them. Grammarly had a workout. I tried to assemble a narrative and added lots of pictures, as Chihuly’s glass and art are hard to describe. I stopped about 10 and soon was falling asleep. I texted Linda, my sister, to call me if she needed me, and I soon slept and did not wake until after sunrise at 6.

I did dream and was with people looking at art and planning trips. The details have faded away, and I cannot remember who I was working with; it did not seem to be anyone I met before–a stranger in my dreams. I think Dad Wild was there and Deborah. If dear reader, you meet me in a dream, maybe we can see Dream Chihuly combined with a Presidential Museum and dream wine tour in Dream Michigan. It will be grand in Dream Grand Rapids. You all are invited.

Thanks for reading.

We rose late, having left the curtains pulled, and had to rush. We did meet Jeanne for breakfast at 9, as planned. We are in Grand Rapids for two nights, having arrived late the night before. One of our plans was to see the Chihuly show at the marvelous Meijer Gardens while traveling to southwestern Michigan, but the smoke drove us even farther to St. Joseph and then Chicago. With the smoke clearing in Michigan, we agreed it was time to try Grand Rapids and the Chihuly show. We would hit the Presidential Library the following day, then return Jeanne to Laingsburg, and Deborah and I would head back to the Greater Detroit area.

Breakfast at the Hampton Inn Downtown Grand Rapids was nice (but there were no eggs served today, except in a breakfast bagel). We finished, but I had the blog to finish and some church items to do, so we waited until noon before heading out to the Chihuly show. We arrived in light traffic and found a nice parking spot. It was a partially cloudy day with wind. It helped keep it cool, and there was an occasional burst of raindrops, but nothing that lasted more than a few minutes and never enough to get much wet.

We had a 2:15 ticket for the special show, and found lunch first. It was a short line, but it still took a while for the food to reach us. A third of the menu was being ignored due to the salad issue and an outbreak of cyclosporiasis. I had a glass of wine.

Aside: Cyclosporiasis has been traced to Taylor Farms’ Mexican lettuce supply chain shredding plant, but a supposedly false positive had muddled the issue. Here is yesterday’s news.

We walked through some of the gardens, and the carnivorous and desert gardens were interesting. We also hit the store and found you could take home Chihuly for seven to nine grand. Nope. I got $1 pencils to take to friends.

We took the timed tour, and the works were amazing, and all looked fragile if not delicate (most pieces are very thick glass, though you would not think so from seeing them). The security guard shared that some idiot played a sound of breaking glass at the show, which upset the guard, and then another piece was lifted to see how heavy it was. The guard was happy we were all respectful.

The undersea grouping was the climax of the show. You expect it to sway, but again, it is not as delicate as it looks (they have a piece outside the exhibit you can touch and handle, and the glass is very thick). There is also a room of hand drawings sent via fax that include suggestions for finding a bar and then decorating it with a Chihuly chandelier, just for fun. Chihuly would send these faxes to groups all over to share ideas and thoughts.

It is hard to describe a room with different glass studies in various shapes and uses. It was just beautiful. Could it be unbearably lovely? So much so that it overwhelms you.

And like a salesman of old, “that is not all!” There are installations all over the garden, and especially in the Japanese-style garden, more outdoor Chihuly works. We took the trolley tour to see them, and impressive existing sculptures installed in the Meijer Garden. Again, it was hard to focus on it all, and it seemed you were only seeing a tiny bit of a wonderful whole. We took the tram twice to see everything and to stop at the Japanese-style garden. Deborah and I then walked the paths to see close up all the Chihuly glass. The sun did come out, and the lighting made the glass even brighter.

 

We found a pair of sisters as the servers at the ice cream place, now added to the children’s park. They were fun, and soon we had excellent ice cream, and they were laughing at my joke. Deborah was in eye-roll mode, rightfully, I think.

With that and our mood lightening by light and delight captured in glass by Chihuly, we found Air Chevy in a light rain. We returned to the hotel, then walked to Palio Grand Rapids for a lovely dinner. We even tried having our pasta seasoned by making Alfredo sauce in a wheel of cheese as an antipasto with the hot pasta. Wow! Our food, while a bit slow, was great, and we enjoyed wine, dessert, and a great ending.

Sorry that I cannot find the words. I have included lots of pictures.

Thanks for reading!

 

We rose earlier, feeling better in the new time zone and another hotel. Hampton Inns seem, to me, better run and cleaner than our recent experiences with Holiday Inn Express. Also, they are cheaper of late.

We got going, and I even managed to start the blog. The in-room coffee makers did make two cups of coffee each! We met Jeanne at the lobby for breakfast, complimentary, and it was busy, and the food needed some restocking (but it was handled quickly and with a smile). I had a good breakfast and talked to the General Manager, Ed, and he was happy to hear that I was enjoying my stay. Later, he would share with us some of the history of the local older hotels. Ed seemed to love this work and said, “Us older guys get placed in the older hotels” (Majestic Hotel—now a Hampton Inn—opened as Chicago’s tallest building in 1906).

We then packed up, got some carts, rolled the bags and things to the entrance, ordered the car from valet, and I checked us out. This was our best and cheapest hotel so far, in the Loop of Chicago! With everything orderly and loaded, including ourselves, I headed north of Chicago to a chocolate store that Deborah has tried to visit each time, and alas, halfway there we checked, and yes, they are closed on Mondays! We retraced our path and headed to South Chicago for the Griffin Museum of Science and Industry and the Obama Presidential Library (we could not get tickets; they are sold out months in advance) just to see the library. We spotted part of it as we drove in.

We found the underground parking, found a spot, noticed how few folks actually parked between the lines, and walked into the museum. We acquired tickets for the museum and U-505. We tried to get them while we were in line, but the line was faster than I was. We headed in with a plan to see a few things, find lunch (with our expectations low—and they were not surpassed), look at the model ship and nautical collection, and then enjoy the U-boat.

The plan went well, with us enjoying the large model train set, some full-sized trains, the weather items, and then the old town display. We watched some of a silent film about a pair of gloves and perfume spilling, creating chaos. The scan of the old movie was poorly done, with compression artifacts jumping all over it and then expanded too large a size and magnifying the problem. It needs to be rescanned at a higher rate without compression, but it was still interesting (and a good candidate for reworking, like we see in the old Star Trek series and the earlier Star Wars movies).

We found the Kitchen and all grabbed our own meal; I had baked pasta that could have been better with some meat in it. Deborah and Jeanne, experienced in the ways of child-centered cafes, picked premade sandwiches. But it was still good to eat. We finished, found the ships, and I enjoyed the model, especially the Souvenir of the Sea American clipper model (here for the ship). It was a superfast ship (which was wrecked in 1859).

We did the space center next. There are three major artifacts there: Apollo 8, Gemini, and Dragon capsules. H had not seen any of these before so close in such detail (I do not remember one this close and in good condition at Air & Space in D.C., but it might be there). I had not seen Dragon before, and the one here had flown twice to resupply the International Space Station. It was scarred and burned. Bits of the inch-thick white panels were marred with breaks and burn marks. Apollo 8, while at least a third the size, looked fresh (even though it was from the 1960s). Still, it was good to see Dragon and see the updates and size, as large as an SUV.

The U-boat is always a treat, and we showed up with the small group on time, and our tour guide, a former Coast Guard member, managed to convey the risk and suffering of the crew and their 30% survival rate. For the first time, I heard a full account of the salvage of U-505 and that the repairs to the ship, done in occupied France, used weak metal (which is why there are shot holes in the superstructure). The explosive charges were not activated, and the cap for the drain in the sub was not thrown away. We also learned that 1/3 of the crew accepted US citizenship offered to captured German troops. The crew was not reported as captured, violating international law, to protect the capture of code books and machines. The machine removed from the boat, Enigma, was on display (loaned from the Cryptological Museum, which opened after I left Maryland in Fort Meade, within sight of the National Security Agency.  I did not know there was a version with a paper tape printer. Wow!

We headed out after the usual exploration of the gift store and the acquisitions of plastic toys made in the mold-matic (my U-boat toy broke in my pocket while driving). The drive cost about $11 in fees for about 20 minutes of road time. We crossed into Michigan, the time moved back an hour, and suddenly it was dinner time!

We took pictures of the Presidential Library filled with happy smiling people. We will be back! We saw the new statue of the President and the First Lady from a distance. It looked like a lovely campus.

“You are America. Unconstrained by habit and convention. Unencumbered by what is, ready to seize what ought to be. For everywhere in this country, there are first steps to be taken, there is new ground to cover, there are more bridges to be crossed. America is not the project of any one person. The single most powerful word in our democracy is the word ‘We.’ ‘We The People.’ ‘We Shall Overcome.’ ‘Yes We Can.’ That word is owned by no one. It belongs to everyone. Oh, what a glorious task we are given to continually try to improve this great nation of ours.”
–President Obama, 2015

Before we could get far, we had to add air to the same tire that went low, slowly losing five pounds of air pressure over five days. We waited for the person in front of us, using the car to measure the tire pressure, and then left it running for us (it ran out of time just as we started). A few bucks later, we had the tire back up to pressure and also used the car to measure it. South Chicago is no place for a flat, even near the Presidential Library. But it did feel a bit better now with the Library. Excellent!

We stopped at one town, investing twenty minutes, to discover that it was summer and the line for a table was out the door. Later, we stopped again, waited 25 minutes, and The Three Blondes Brewery worked for us. It was also later by then, and the crowd was breaking up. I had great tacos, Jeanne had a pizza, and Deborah had salmon. The noise, the hard floors, and the complex ceiling reflected the sounds, making it hard to hear at first. As folks left, we could hear each other again — a problem at many newer places. Tempted by their brewed products, I had iced tea as I had ninety minutes of driving to go and the sun would be down for some of it.

The rest of the drive was boring, and we soon reached Grand Rapids, but we could not figure out how to get to the hotel. The hotel is a parking garage?! We called, and they said, yes, drive in, park anywhere, and the lobby is on the third floor. Parker, the agent at the desk who had answered our couple of calls (we called to say we were coming in late, after 10), checked us in. The rooms were lovely.

I had some paperwork to do on bill paying. I managed to sleep around 1ish.