My Hometown
I grew up in a small town called Wellington, Ohio. The population's right around 5,000, graduating classes were between 100 and 125 students, and my wife thinks it's eerily similar to Mayberry or some fictionalized Normal Rockwell ideal of midwestern America.
For those who are interested, Wellington's adjacent to Oberlin (home of the renowned liberal arts school Oberlin College), is the site of the annual Lorain County Fair, claims to be the former Cheese Capital of the World (and currently hosts a Cheese Festival every summer), our mayor works at our local grocery store, and the main claim to fame is that it's the birthplace of Archibald Willard, who painted the Spirit of '76, seen below.
Apart from the occasional phone conversation with my parents, the main way that I keep tabs on my old hometown is through the local weekly newspaper, The Wellington Enterprise. It's an amazing paper for a number of reasons, from the quaint, old-tyme portrait of classic Americana (and the occasional surreal intrusion of contemporary crises and drama) to the bizarre editorials, columns and letters to the editor, and all of it seemingly written and edited by folks who barely made it through high school English (taught by my mother, among other teachers, but that's a story for another day). Add in the fact that the editors occasionally declare vendettas against my extended family (of our town of about 5,000 people, I've got around 100 relatives in Wellington, which is a decent chunk of the population, but that's also a story for another day), and it's pretty easy to see why I've never let my subscription lapse.
Since most of you probably aren't Enterprise subscribers, I'm going to use my LiveJournal to periodically bring you highlights from this venerable local newspaper.
The first installment was on the front page of the paper back in October. "Just So You Know..." provides helpful information to parents and the general populace in preparation for Trick-or-Treating (which will also require an essay at some point in the future--90 minutes isn't enough time for Trick-or-Treat, and 7:30 is waaaaaay too early to be back home with your parents...).
Anyway, please read the following list carefully, as it may save the lives of you and yours come October 31:
Yes, I'm sad to report that in my years away from Wellington, children and black cats are now routinely kidnapped by strangers, and apparently Mikey costumes are all the rage now.
I am glad that the Enterprise staff saw fit to educate us about the most important and most frequently overlooked saftey issue of them all, however:
I'm heading home on Saturday for a Christmas visit with my family, and assume that the frosty weather will keep us indoors and out of reach of the local zombie populace. With any luck, I'll get a "Just So You Know..." installment about elves so that I'm prepared for those pointy-eared little menaces, too.
For those who are interested, Wellington's adjacent to Oberlin (home of the renowned liberal arts school Oberlin College), is the site of the annual Lorain County Fair, claims to be the former Cheese Capital of the World (and currently hosts a Cheese Festival every summer), our mayor works at our local grocery store, and the main claim to fame is that it's the birthplace of Archibald Willard, who painted the Spirit of '76, seen below.
Apart from the occasional phone conversation with my parents, the main way that I keep tabs on my old hometown is through the local weekly newspaper, The Wellington Enterprise. It's an amazing paper for a number of reasons, from the quaint, old-tyme portrait of classic Americana (and the occasional surreal intrusion of contemporary crises and drama) to the bizarre editorials, columns and letters to the editor, and all of it seemingly written and edited by folks who barely made it through high school English (taught by my mother, among other teachers, but that's a story for another day). Add in the fact that the editors occasionally declare vendettas against my extended family (of our town of about 5,000 people, I've got around 100 relatives in Wellington, which is a decent chunk of the population, but that's also a story for another day), and it's pretty easy to see why I've never let my subscription lapse.
Since most of you probably aren't Enterprise subscribers, I'm going to use my LiveJournal to periodically bring you highlights from this venerable local newspaper.
The first installment was on the front page of the paper back in October. "Just So You Know..." provides helpful information to parents and the general populace in preparation for Trick-or-Treating (which will also require an essay at some point in the future--90 minutes isn't enough time for Trick-or-Treat, and 7:30 is waaaaaay too early to be back home with your parents...).
Anyway, please read the following list carefully, as it may save the lives of you and yours come October 31:
Yes, I'm sad to report that in my years away from Wellington, children and black cats are now routinely kidnapped by strangers, and apparently Mikey costumes are all the rage now.
I am glad that the Enterprise staff saw fit to educate us about the most important and most frequently overlooked saftey issue of them all, however:
I'm heading home on Saturday for a Christmas visit with my family, and assume that the frosty weather will keep us indoors and out of reach of the local zombie populace. With any luck, I'll get a "Just So You Know..." installment about elves so that I'm prepared for those pointy-eared little menaces, too.