July 2005

With our Travel shows out of the way it's now time to start the Great Lakes Medieval Faire in Ohio. It's just south of Lake Erie. It always starts the Fourth of July weekend.

It's a smaller show but very cute and in the woods which helps this time of year when it gets really hot. The only problem is that it turns into a swamp with any real amount of rain.

One thing we really like is that the fans here really stepped up when it comes to concessions sales. We do sales equal to a show twice the size of this one. And this year we have a sales booth. It's pretty cool. Especially when the weather turns to crap and you're worried about all your stuff getting wet. A problem that is common when you sell from a cart.

 

Ronn painting our new booth

Riki gets artistic

Tortuga sales booth in progress

The first weekend went well. It was solid but it seems that all the shows are a little down this year. I think the economy isn't nearly as strong as our president would have us believe. Especially with gas prices as they are right now. I think people just aren't spending as much.

Another cool thing about where we stay is that it's in viewing distance of lots of fireworks displays. Also our neighbors are really into fireworks and they set off all kinds of stuff throughout the weekend.

On the fifth of July, Sharon's best friends Anne and Amy flew up to visit. It was kind of a trip to celebrate Amy's birthday, which was on that Thursday. They flew into Erie, Pennsylvania. It was much cheaper than flying into Cleveland and about the same distance. The cool thing is that it's only about 2 hours from Niagara Falls.

When the girls' plane landed, which was a tiny puddle jumper powered by a rubber band, we scooped them up and headed east without telling them. It wasn't 'til Amy noticed all the signs saying New York that they caught on.

Once she saw the signs saying Niagara Falls there was no more foolin' her. We fessed up and she was ecstatic! We crossed the border into Canada because the Canadian side is much prettier and built up than the American side. We parked the car at the casino since I have a player's club card there and it lets me park for free. Not that I have any love for casinos or anything.

 

The gang at the Falls...

...at the Casino...

...and in the Grand River.

We wandered up to the casino from the parking garage and hit the bar for a drink. I went to change some money into Canadian. We do it there 'cause they don't charge any service fee. They give you exactly what the exchange rate is. On the way back to meet the girls at the bar I stopped at a slot machine and won a quick $50. Of course, I had to rub it in when I saw the girls.

After our drinks, we decided to head out to see the falls. We walked through the mall at the hotel down to the bluffs overlooking the falls. Once there, we took a tram that goes down the bluffs to the edge of the falls. We got lots of great pics and video there [AVI Videos: The Falls and the Maid of the Mist ]. I was inspired to call my family in Montreal, so I did just that.

After that we were all getting hungry and needed cocktails. So, we headed back up to the hotels and hit TGI Fridays. We got some appetizers and drinks and decided to head back to the casino before leaving to go back to Ohio. We had considered staying the night but figured it'd be a lot cheaper if we left tonight.

We figured we should gamble a little before we leave. We had to contribute to the Canadian economy after all. Instead Sharon and I relieved the Canadian government of over $200. The casinos are government-run, by the way.

After gathering our winnings, we grabbed the car and headed back to the states. Once we got to the border, we found that they had really cracked down on letting people across the border into the US. The customs agent really wanted passports or birth certificates. But after running our IDs she let us off with a warning to make sure to have better ID next time.

We arrived in Geneva around 12:30am and tried to wind down before going to bed. It took us a while but we managed to get some sleep. It's a good thing since we had a lot planned the next day.

On Wednesday, we showed the girls around the area. They really loved all the covered bridges. It's one of the big local sights. Of course we had to show them all our favorite vineyards. I think they liked the South River Winery the best. The weather was perfect and the view was spectacular. We ended up buying a case of wine. (Just what we needed.) We went back to camp and drank ourselves silly. We didn't want to stay out too late since Amy's party was the next day.

 

The South River Winery

Jef the Somillier

Our stage at the GLMF

Thursday morning arrived and Sharon decided she wanted a girls day. This was actually a ploy to get Amy out of the house so I could decorate and set up for the party. You see, even though Amy knew we were having a cookout for her, she didn't know what a large scale the party was on. We had invited about 25-30 people. Included in the list were bartenders from Grand River Manor, the Laurellos, the staff from the faire (including the Entertaiment Director, Brook), and Ronn and Riki, plus lots of other friends.

I went to Sam's club to get a cake and supplies while the girls where out. I also found a helium tank with balloons for only $20. How cool is that?

That's when it happened. "What?" you ask? That's when I saw the ultimate impulse buy. A beautiful Samsung 42" Plasma Screen TV. I had wanted one for a long time and have been very impressed with Samsung's line. It was last year's model so it was really cheap! We just didn't have the cash right now. I called Sharon to tell her about it. She said, "Right now, if you could figure out a way to pay for it, I'd let you get it". That sounds like a challenge to me.

I headed to the Customer service desk and asked them how hard it would be to get our credit limit raised on our Sam's club card. She said we'd just have to call but Sharon would have to do it since she's the primary account holder. I remember her doing that not so long ago, with no luck. So, I asked what my other options were. She said I could apply for a Sam's Club Discover card. I thought that sounded like a perfect way to leave it up to the gods. If they approve me, I get it; if not, I don't. Well guess what? They approved me for up to $5000! Foolish mortals!

 

Happy Birthday Amy (and Brook)

Birthday Boy Brook, and Daisy

Riki at Amy's party

So I returned to the trailer and put the giant box on the bed. The box was HUGE, by the way. Then I proceeded to fill helium balloons and finish preparing 14 pounds of chicken. I distributed the balloons and pulled an extra picnic table over, as well as a fire ring.

People started showing up about 7pm. I was amazed that almost everyone made it. I think about 23 people where in attendance. It made for a great party for Amy. It was Brook's birthday too so I had his name added to the cake. It never hurts to do nice things for the Entertainment Director of a faire. Don't get me wrong, he's a good friend too, so I was happy to do it.

Everyone had a great time. The food was awesome and the cake was delicious. I couldn't have asked for a better turn out. And, I think Amy had a great birthday. We really tired her out. She was the first one asleep.

 

Mark from Detroit

Bartender Candy and her man

Sunset behind the fire at the party

In the morning the girls packed up and headed out to breakfast before heading to the airport. I took a nap. I was beat too, considering I watched the sunrise over the campfire. I'd say it was another successful visit. Now it's time to get back to the grind and finish the Great Lakes show. Then it's off toMinnesota! The land of milk and money! (I mean honey. No, I don't...)