Our Presidential Vacation - August 2018

1          STARTING POINT: THE BOATS ARE SECURE HERE

            Lockport, NY

            Marleese Patterson 2 pts; Stephen Griffith, John Wulf 1 pt

2          NO EVACUATION NEEDED TODAY

            Dunkirk, NY (a reference to evacuation from France in WWII)

            Marleese Patterson 2 pts; Orin Helfrich, John Wulf 1 pt

3          A MEADOW AT 270 DEGREES

            Westfield, NY (west is 270 degrees on the compass)

            Marleese Patterson 2 pts; Orin Helfrich, John Wulf 1 pt

4          BELIEVE IT OR NOT, WE PASSED RIGHT ON BY

            Ripley, NY

            Marlesse Patterson 2 pts; Orin Helfrich, John Wulf 1 pt

5          STATE BORDER CROSSING #1

            New York to Pennsylvania

            Olivia Austin 2 pts; Marleese Patterson, Orin Helfrich, John Wulf 1 pt

6          IT IS “ALMOST AN ISLAND”

            Presque Isle, PA (French translation)

            Sara Villa 2 pts, Orin Helfrich

7          STATE BORDER CROSSING #2 (THAT WAS QUICK)

            Pennsylvania to Ohio

            Marleese Patterson 2 pts; Orin Helfrich, John Wulf 1 pt

8          #20’S HOMETOWN

            Mentor, OH

            Karla Mansour 2 pts

9         DID THEY NAME THIS PLACE AFTER #22 & #24?

           Cleveland, OH
           The answer is NO. Cleveland existed long before Grover Cleveland became famous.
           Sara Villa 2 pts; Orin Helfrich, John Wulf 1 pt

10        THE HOME OF #19

            Rutherford B Hayes National Historic Site, Fremont, OH

            Karla Mansour, 2 pts

11        STATE BORDER CROSSING #3

            Ohio to Indiana

            Karla Mansour 2 pts; Orin Helfrich, John Wulf 1 pt

12        “OUR LADY”

            Notre Dame University, South Bend, IN

            Sara Villa 2 pts; John Wulf 1 pt

13        IRONICALLY, IT IS NOT IN MICHIGAN

            Michigan City, IN

Melanie Brady 2 pts; Michael Mordenga hilarious humor 2 pts; Orin Helfrich, John Wulf 1 pt

14        STATE BORDER CROSSING #4

            Indiana to Illinois

            Karla Mansour 2 pts; Orin Helfrich, John Wulf 1 pt.

15        NAMED AFTER A 17^TH CENTURY EXPLORER

            Joliet, IL

            Orin Helfrich 2 pts; John Wulf 1 pt

16        JOHN DEERE HQ

            Moline, IL

            Olya Schumacher 2 pts; Mary Merle, Orin Helfrich, John Wulf 1 pt

17        STATE BORDER CROSSING #5

            Illinois to Iowa

            Sara Villa 2 pts; Orin Helfrich, John Wulf 1 pt

18        SOFA

            Davenport, IA

            Karla Mansour 2 pts; Orin Helfrich, Judy Hamrick, John Wulf 1 pt

19        AROMATIC WOOD WITH QUICK MOVING WATER

            Cedar Rapids, IA (visiting the Cannon family!)

            Cara Jane 2 pts; Olivia Austin, Orin Helfrich, Judy Hamrick, John Wulf 1 pt

20        “SOME MOUNDS”

            Des Moines, IA (French translation)

            Karla Mansour 2 pts; Olivia Austin, John Wulf

21        STATE BORDER CROSSING #6

            Iowa to Nebraska

            Karla Mansour 2 pts; Oliva Austin, Orin Helfrich, John Wulf 1 pt

22        ORIGINALLY IT WAS NAMED LANCASTER, BUT NOW IT IS #16

            Lincoln, NE

Karla Mansour 2 pts ;Olivia Austin, Orin Helfrich, John Wulf 1 pt; Mike Mordenga (humor) 2 pts

23        STATE BORDER CROSSING #7

            Nebraska to Colorado

            Olivia Austin 2 pts; John Wulf 1 pt

24        NOT A COMB

            Brush, CO

            Lennie Gunder 2 pts; Olivia Austin, John Wulf 1 pt

25        MISSIONS DOOR HQ

            Denver, CO

            Don Carrato 2 pts; Marleese Patterson, Lennie Gunder, Oliva Austin, John Wufl 1 pt

26        WASHINGTONVILLE

            Georgetown, CO

            Don Carrato 2 pts; John Wulf 1 pt

27        YOU REALLY WANT ONE OF THESE IF YOU JUMP OUT OF AN AIRPLANE

            Parachute, CO

Olivia Austin 2 pts; Lennie Gunder, John Wulf 1 pt; Humorous answers Don Carrato, Kathy Duff 1 pt

28        IT’S A BIG BIG INTERSECTION

            Grand Junction, CO

            Lennie Gunder 2 pts; John Wulf 1 pt

29        STATE BORDER CROSSING #8

            Colorado to Utah

            John Wulf 2 pts

30        WEALTHY MEADOW

            Richfield, UT

            Don Carrato 2 pts; John Wulf 1 pt

31        WHEN A WHIRLWIND BLEW THE TOP OF A BUGGY, THEY MISTAKENLY CALLED THE TOWN THIS.
            Hurricane, UT

            Lennie Gunder 2 pts

32        Apparently, I don’t know how to count…

33        STATE BORDER CROSSING #9

            Utah to Arizona

            John Wulf 2 pts

34        STATE BORDER CROSSING #10 (THIS WAS RATHER QUICK TOO)

            Arizona to Nevada

            Joe Crimando 2 pts; Oliva Austin, John Wulf 1 pt

35        IT ADDS A GREAT TASTE TO YOUR GRILLING

            Mesquite, NV

            Joe Crimando 2 pts; John Wulf 1 pt

36        SIN CITY

            Las Vegas, NV

            Lennie Gunder 2 pts; Olivia Austin, John Wulf 1 pt

37        STATE BORDER CROSSING #11

            Nevada to California

            Joe Crimando 2 pts; Olivia Austin, John Wulf 1 pt

38        IT WAS 124 DEGREES AT 4 PM

            Death Valley National Park, CA

            Lexi Bolding 2 pts; Michael Mordenga best humor 2 pts; Olivia Austin, John Wulf 1 pt

39        YOU CAN BELLY UP TO THIS + WHAT YOU DO TO YOUR LUGGAGE IN AN        AIRPLANE

            Barstow, CA (Bar + Stow)

            Jennifer Helfrich 2 pts; Olivia Austin, John Wulf 1 pt

40        THE HOME AND LIBRARY OF #37

            Richard M Nixon Presidential Library/Museum, our 37^th President

            Yorba Linda, CA

41        AMERICA MADE THIS PLACE POPULAR IN 1972

            Ventura Highway

            The pop group America made this a top 40 song.

            John Wulf 2 pts

42        THE LIBRARY AND MUSEUM OF #40

            The Ronald Reagan Presidential Library/Museum our 40^th president

            Simi Valley, CA

            John Wulf 2 pts

43        WHAT DO JERRY SEINFELD, KRISTIN WIIG, AND A 1964 VOLVO HAVE IN                COMMON?

            House of Pies in Los Angeles, CA

This place was featured in “Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee.” We ate dinner there. Great experience!

44        IT HAS AN ICONIC SIGN

            Hollywood, CA

45        HOW DID WE GET TO CANADA SO FAST?

            Ontario, CA

            Gary Feiler 2 pts; Olivia Austin, John Wulf 1 pt

46        THIS IS WHERE “DESERT MODERN” GOT ITS START

            Palm Springs, CA

            John Wulf 2 pts

47        THIS PARK HAS TREES THAT LOOK LIKE THEY CAME FROM DR. SEUSS

            Joshua Tree National Park

48        STATE BORDER CROSSING #12 [WE ARE STAYING LONGER THIS TIME]

            California to Arizona

            John Wulf 2 pts

49        THIS WAS A “MONSTER” RIVER

            Gila River, AZ (reference to a gila monster)

            John Wulf 2 pts

50        BORN-AGAIN BIRD

            Phoenix, AZ (got to know your mythology)

            Gary Feiler 2 pts; John Wulf 1 pt

51        STATE BORDER CROSSING #13

            Arizona to New Mexico

            John Wulf 2 pts

52        STATE BORDER CROSSING #14

New Mexico to Texas

            John Wulf 2 pts

53        PREFER ITS THICK’N’CHUNKY MEDIUM SALSA

            El Paso, TX

            John Wulf 2 pts

54        THE LIBRARY OF #36

            The Lyndon Baines Johnson Presidential Library/Museum, our 36^th President

            Austin, TX

            John Wulf 2 pts

55        NEAR HOUSTON, A GOOD PLACE TO FIND YOUR AMI IN THE FOREST

            Friendswood, TX

            John Wulf 2 pts

56        STATE BORDER CROSSING #15

            Texas to Louisiana

            John Wulf 2 pts

57        WE CROSSED THE MISSISSIPPI AT RED STICK

            Baton Rouge, LA (French translation)

            John Wulf 2 pts

58        STATE BORDER CROSSING #16

            Louisiana to Mississippi

            John Wulf 2 pts

59        STATE BORDER CROSSING #17

            Mississippi to Alabama

            John Wulf 2 pts; Olivia Austin 1 pt

60        CITY OF SIX FLAGS

            Mobile, AL (We visited the Hartin family here!)

            John Wulf 2 pts

61        THIS ISLAND CLAIMS TO BE THE “AMERICA’S BIRDIEST CITY” FOR THE THIRD YEAR IN A ROW; WE SAW A LOT OF THEM AT PELICAN POINT

            Dauphin Island, AL

            John Wulf 2 pts

62        THE SOUTHERN VERSION OF THIS CITY WILL BE WARMER THAN THE ENGLISH VERSION

            Birmingham, AL

            Joe Crimando 2 pts

63        DID #4 SLEEP HERE?

            Madison, AL (Here we visited Justin & Samantha Kuhlmann, and Parker!)

            John Wulf 2 pts

64        STATE BORDER CROSSING #18

            Alabama to Tennessee

            John Wulf 2 pts; Olivia Austin 1 pt

65        I THOUGHT THE PRESIDENT’S HOUSE WAS IN DC, NOT HERE

            White House, TN

            John Wulf 2 pts

66        STATE BORDER CROSSING #19

            Tennessee to Kentucky

            John Wulf 2 pts; Olivia Austin 1 pt

67        THE QUEEN’S VILLAGE

            Elizabethtown, KY (visiting our cousins, Don & Bonnie Hobbs)

            John Wulf 2 pts; Olivia Austin 1 pt

68        HOME OF KENTUCKY SPEEDWAY

            Sparta, KY

            John Wulf 2 pts

69        STATE BORDER CROSSING #19 (should have been #20)

            Kentucky to Ohio

            John Wulf 2 pts

70        HISTORICAL SITE OF #27

            William Taft Historical Site, our 27^th President

            Cincinnati, OH

            John Wulf 2 pts

71        THE NAME OF THIS TOWN REMINDS US OF NIAGARA-ON-THE LAKE

Geneva-on-the-Lake, OH (We had dinner at our cousin’s restaurant with a beautiful view of Lake Erie – really cool)

            Karla Mansour 2 pts; Virginia Heffner 1 pt for complaint; John Wulf 1 pt

72        STATE BORDER CROSSINGS #20 & #21 (should have been #21 & #22)

Ohio to Pennsylvania & Pennsylvania to New York

            John Wulf 2 pts

73        RIGHT BACK WHERE WE STARTED FROM 

            Lockport, NY

Jim Cummins 2 pts for humor; John Wulf 2 pts for correct answer (kind of)

America Is Better Than This?

After the fury (and I mean fury) of comments, I decided to give a summary of my thoughts after I posted the following article on Facebook on Father's Day:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-nation/wp/2018/06/16/america-is-better-than-this-what-a-doctor-saw-in-a-texas-shelter-for-migrant-children/?utm_term=.fc389e00c366

• Did you read the article? I asked some who were especially critical of me whether they read it, and they all gave me the same answer - silence. Implication: You did not read it.
• I don't trust the Washington Post either, but I still read the article. I like to be informed and I don't like being an ignoramus. 
• Guess what? I don't trust the other side either. And if you think "fake" news only comes from the left, you are being naive. Everybody has an agenda.
• I have read other articles that attempt to justify this treatment of illegals, but I admit that I am at a loss of how Christians can ignore so many vital themes in Scripture to a support this policy and application of the law.
• The thing is - did you read the article? We all seemed to want to get into the immigration debate. Sure, that is a part of the article, but the part that grabbed me is the "rule" that the children could not be touched. This is what caught the attention of the pediatrician (who, by the way, is a real person) and concerned her. Research shows the lack of touch and separation from caring adults causes trauma. You can blame the parents all you want for being "illegal," but that does not give us permission to be indifferent to policies that cause harm.
• Just because Hilary called mainstream America "deplorables" does not give us permission to act in a deplorable manner. 
• My original post read like this: On this Father's Day, let me point out this shameful policy promoted by this administration. Our country is holding children hostage in order to get a wall built. We should be better than this. Shame on any pro-life evangelical that supports this.Matthew 19.13-14; Mark 9.37; Acts 5.29. I will confess, the post was a bit strong (or maybe a lot), but you should have seen what I did not write. 
• I will also confess that I believe our president has taken us on a ride by making illegal immigrants the cause of all our woes in America and building a wall to solve it. It borders on (pun intended) fear-mongering and that always turns out so well (don't miss the sarcastic smirk associated with that thought).
• By the way, did you read the article?

Follow Our Trip [March 2018]

During the University at Buffalo’s spring break, I had the privilege of driving 7 students and another CA staff member to Texas to do disaster relief for Hurricane Harvey.

One of my favorite things I like to do during a trip is to give clues along the way to what path we are taking. So, now that the trip is done, I am going to present the clues all at once, and then offer the answers and my explanations.

If you like maps, get one out and follow along.

1  Bison country                   

2  North of Namibia

3  Lake, city, canal, county?

4  Sage, sensei

5  Not a woman’s piece of earth

6  Christopher’s town

7  Baseball’s crimson

8  Her majesty’s village

9  Playing ten pins in St. Paddy’s color

10  Why would you want to live with predators?

11  Did they name the town after #7?

12  St. Jude likes it here

13  Roll river roll

14  Not east Memphis

15  #42 was governor here

16  Noah’s city?

17  Come on now, just what state do you belong to?

18  What what? I thought we were in Texas, not Georgia

19  Louisiana purchaser

20  John, Thurgood, enforcer of the law

21  Mercury, Gemini, Apollo

22  Sweet earth

23  Spouse of Prince Albert, mother of Edward VII

24  This is not like Oregon at all…

25  Solid mineral harbor

26  Barbara Mandrell’s younger sister

27  Some people need to eat this kind of pie

28  #22 & #24

29  I thought we were at Walmart headquarters, but we are missing the “ville.”

30  Bass Pro Shop is shaped like a pyramid – appropriate for this Egyptian city

31  Fort Nashborough

32  Its water tower says, “Florence Y’all”

33  It’s not the Kentucky River

34  Paris of America

35  I am fairly sure that Jayne was not from here.

36  Unlike Worcester, MA, the people of this town pronounce the name of their town the way it is spelled.

37  This is not Switzerland (or New York)…

38  Not South West

39  Most of us had one when we ate at Steak & Shake.

40  College at Beautiful Water

Now for the answers:

1  BUFFALO, NY

Ironically, buffalo/bison have never lived in this area of the country, except in private ownership or a zoo

2  ANGOLA, NY

In Africa, the country north of Namibia is Angola

3  ERIE, PA

Lake, city, canal, county? Lake Erie, Erie PA, Erie Canal, Erie Country

4  MENTOR, OH

Sage, sensei are synonyms for mentor

5  MANSFIELD, OH

Not a woman’s piece of earth

6  COLUMBUS, OH

Christopher’s town

7  CINCINNATI, OH

Baseball’s crimson – the Cincinnati Reds

8  ELIZABETHTOWN, KY

Her majesty’s village

9  BOWLING GREEN, KY

Playing ten pins in St. Paddy’s color

10  NASHVILLE, TN

Why would you want to live with predators? Nashville’s hockey team is called the Predators

11  JACKSON, TN

Did they name the town after #7? When you see me just refer to a number, it is most likely I am referring to a president. Remember that.

12  MEMPHIS, TN

St. Jude likes it here. The famous children’s cancer hospital founded by Danny Thomas is located here.

13  MISSISSIPPI RIVER

Roll river roll

14  WEST MEMPHIS, AR

Not east Memphis – please don’t tell me you could not get this one.

15  LITTLE ROCK, AR

#42 was governor here. This would be Bill Clinton’s job before he became president

16  ARKADELPHIA

Noah’s city? – OK, that was a bit of a stretch.

17  TEXARKANA, AR or TX

Come on now, just what state do you belong to? This is a city that literally exists on the state borders.

18  ATLANTA, TX

What what? I thought we were in Texas, not Georgia. Who knew there was another Atlanta?

19  JEFFERSON, TX

Louisiana purchaser – Perhaps I just should have said “#3”

20  MARSHALL, TX

John, Thurgood, enforcer of the law – John Marshall – first Supreme Court justice; Thurgood Marshall – first African-American Supreme Court justice

21  HOUSTON, TX

Mercury, Gemini, Apollo – These are references to the first manned space flights by NASA, which is headquartered in Houston

22  SUGAR LAND, TX

Sweet earth

23  VICTORIA, TX

Spouse of Prince Albert, mother of Edward VII

24  PORTLAND, TX

This is not like Oregon at all… I know, I could have said Maine too.

25  ROCKPORT, TX

Solid mineral harbor – This is the first landing place of Hurricane Harvey and where Samaritan’s Purse’s headquarters for this disaster relief is located.

26  LOUISE, TX

Barbara Mandrell’s younger sister – I know this was a tough one, but there are not many famous Louises about.

27  HUMBLE, TX

Some people need to eat this kind of pie

28  CLEVELAND, TX

#22 & #24 – It is the president thing again. Grover Cleveland was the only president to serve two terms non-consecutively

29  BENTON, AR

I thought we were at Walmart headquarters, but we are missing the “ville.” Bentonville, AR is the headquarters for Walmart. Benton is not near it.

30  MEMPHIS, TN

Bass Pro Shop is shaped like a pyramid – appropriate for this Egyptian city. Memphis was an ancient Egyptian city.

31  NASHVILLE, TN

Fort Nashborough  Before it was Nashville, it was this.

32  FLORENCE, KY

Its water tower says, “Florence Y’all”  Please don’t tell me you missed this…

33  OHIO RIVER

It’s not the Kentucky River.  Perhaps it should be.

34  CINCINNATI, OH

Paris of America – I don’t know why Cincy has this nickname, but it does.

35  MANSFIELD, OH

I am fairly sure that Jayne was not from here. This was an allusion to Jayne Mansfied. If you don’t know who she is, never mind.

36  Wooster, OH

Unlike Worcester, MA, the people of this town pronounce the name of their town the way it is spelled. This is probably my favorite. The people in MA actually pronounce it Woostah, because as I like to say, “New Englanders add r’s that aren’t and ignore the r’s that are.”

37  GENEVA, OH

This is not Switzerland (or New York)…

38  NORTH EAST, PA

Not South West

39  HAMBURG, NY

Most of us had one when we ate at Steak & Shake.

40  UNIVERSITY AT BUFFALO, NY

College at Beautiful Water – Some people believe that Buffalo’s name actually was a reference to Lake Erie from the French, “Beau l’eau” (beautiful water).