Beauty in Ohio: Swans at Buckeye Lake

Get too close and they'll hiss like Naomi Campbell

Buckeye Lake was always filled with ducks. Lots and lots of ducks. But now, they have become replaced by hoards of Canadian Geese, which the locals hate because they settle on land and leave such a mass of droppings everywhere it is impossible to avoid stepping in them. (See the strings below that were installed by my husband as a barrier to keep the geese in the water and off the yard.) The geese are still there, but lately there have been a new breed of visitor: swans. The most recent sitings have involved a husband and wife team with a brood of four cygnets. 

They are so cute, but if you come close -- they will hiss. One day my mom decided she must feed them - with the only thing she had on hand - saltines. While I implored her not to, I didn't have any hard fast evidence as to why this was bad for them. She did it nonetheless and was excited when they ate some of it. I have since learned that it is very bad to feed these birds, because the typical foods people try to give them are harmful to their intestines, and keep them from eating their nutrient-dense diet of super foods like algae. The only time it is ok is if it is winter or late fall / early spring and their natural food is not available. Then it is ok to give them natural popped corn, cooked brown rice or lightly steamed vegetable scraps. Got it? Good! If you don't believe me, stop by Wild Birds Unlimited in Dublin and let tell you what they think. Whatever you do, just don't tell them my mom gave them saltines! 

Pappa swan in Buckeye Lake

Things to do in Ohio: A Romp in a Field of Corn

The first time we saw it was quite a trip. Late one winter night in early 1995, some friends and I were driving around having a "That 70's Show" kind of time, when we stumbled upon a field of concrete corn.  We couldn't believe our eyes (or those ears), so we pulled over to take it all in. At first we giggled and then we were in awe at the installation of 109 eight food ears of corn. Why hadn't we heard about this? Where did this come from? Where the hell were we? (Lost, that's where.) They were all legitimate questions that we might have known the answers to if we hadn't all been in college, living outside of Columbus.

We dubbed it, ominously, "The Corn" but its real name was "Field of Corn" and it was a commission by the Dublin Arts Council by artist Malcolm Cochran. The idea was  to create the sculpture in the very spot where Sam Frantz once planted the very first hybrid corn. He created "Corn Belt Dent Corn," a  double cross hybrid, and so a field of concrete corn was erected in his honor after the Frantzs donated the land. Field of Corn is set on the fringe of an office park and the intersection of Frantz and Rings Road, and failed to be taken seriously by, well, almost anyone for many years. It's been painted, defaced by drunken teenagers, and jokingly called "Cornhenge" by locals, but the truth is everyone kind of loves it, if only for its complete and total randomness. And while it may be a monument the precursor of GMO corn, Field of Corn is more enduring and endearing than most art installations and certainly worth a detour.

How to have fun in Ohio: A Ride in the Testarossa

The Ferrari materializes in front of Mom's house

Returning to Ohio is always somewhat of a "Back to the Future" experience for me. But this time, I really felt it when my cousin Rob Case took me for a ride in his "new" 1991 Ferrari Testarossa. I couldn't help but feel a little Doc 'n Marty when he picked my up in this bucolic Ohio burb of Muirfield to go for a drive. 

watch full screen to experience!

prancing pony

original lipstick red interior

Back to the Future

Passion for cars runs in the family, but Rob takes it to another level. He has painstakingly rebuilt the entire car, restored the leather and made it look, and run, like new.  It really is breathtaking, but I know him, now that he's done, he'll probably sell it soon and it's on to the next thing!

Beautiful!