wednesday's words and wanderings and wonderings

GOOOOO, DAYTON FLYERS! 

March Madness came to University of Dayton Arena where our own Dayton Flyers played the Illinois State University Redbirds. Our good friends have been UD basketball ticket holders as long as we have and we we met in the parking lot for a little pregame tailgate party. While tailgating, members of the Red Scare (the student cheering section) walked past, we yelled "Go Flyers!" and got a group photo. They are a fun bunch of young adults.

Illinois State won the game and advanced to the Final Four of the NIT Tournament. Both of our sons-in-law attended ISU and were texting us throughout the game, giving us the dig that the Flyers were going to crash and burn. Well, they did and now I'm cheering for ISU to win the tournament.

A springtime walk around the pond at Lincoln Park. The turtles sunned themselves on their usual spot on their little plank. As I walked past, their little heads popped up, they moved around a bit, ready to jump in the water if they felt threatened. 

On our way home from Cleveland last week, we stopped in Columbus for a bite to eat. When we stopped to get some gas, Todd realized he left his credit card at the restaurant. By that time, the restaurant had closed for the night. Friday we drove back to Columbus and stopped by Goodale Park to see some cherry blossoms. I've been to Washington DC once during the cherry blossom season...what a sight! Ohio University has a big display of cherry blossoms along the Hocking River and I was thinking of making a trip to Athens this week to see them. The forecast for the next few days has a lot of rain it so it's a wait and see.

Another beautiful sunny day took me to Hills & Dales MetroPark. The Pawpaw shelter is the beginning of the trail. Pawpaws are a fruit native to Ohio and they are delicious. They're a tropical-flavored, custard-like fruit with a short growing season.

Hills & Dales has a statue dedicated to John H. Patterson, the founder of National Cash Register Company (NCR). Patterson owned the land that became Hills & Dales MetroPark. In the early 1900s, he purchased hundreds of acres south of Dayton to create a park for public recreation and employee health. Patterson hired the Olmstead Brothers who designed Central Park and the Washington DC Mall, to design Hills & Dales.

Pretty sight - the soon-to-be-full moon shining in the afternoon sky.

Gotta take photos of the daffodils while they're still around!