August 24, 2012 After lunch and taking in a few harness races at the fair, we drove up to Tuscola to see a new store called Vintage Karma. Ainslie and Laura, the owners, were so welcoming and friendly. They have a great thing going there on Sale Street. The shop features work by several artists…
DAY FIVE of RURAL ILLINOIS 2012
August 23, 2012 Today was blissfully uneventful, really. We drove my cousin to Effingham to pick up his truck from an oil change, and after a lunch at Steak n’ Shake, we headed back to the farm. I spent a good amount of time in a chair reading. PG Wodehouse is always a favorite and…
DAY FOUR of RURAL ILLINOIS 2012
August 22, 2012 Today at the track was harness racing. Between the actual trotting races were speciality races, like kids on stick horses. After harness racing we stopped by the Cameo Winery to test some of the new varieties, we visited with a cousin. She gave me a fresh haircut. We then all met up at…
DAY THREE of RURAL ILLINOIS 2012
August 21, 2012 Today we enjoyed lunch at The Fillin’ Station in Toledo. The town has an historic square with a courthouse, post office, newspaper and small businesses. It reminds me of To Kill A Mockingbird and Back To The Future. After lunch, they had finished judging at the halls so we stopped in to see who…
DAY TWO of RURAL ILLINOIS 2012
August 20, 2012 This morning we went down to Grandad’s shed and poked around. That shed houses more bits and pieces than one would think possible. We stopped by to see some old family friends before heading to the fairgrounds for the thoroughbred racing. In the evening was the 2012 Cumberland County Fair Queen and…