Ohio: Columbus to Cleveland

I don't really remember why we decided to go to Cleveland for Thanksgiving. Anyway, let's go to  Cleveland for Thanksgiving!

We left on Wednesday after work and got as far as Indianapolis, IN.  We didn't really do anything other than fart around in the Airbnb. We always get a hoot out of how much of the Airbnbs' furniture we recognize from IKEA.

The light in the kitchen could have doubled as a tanning bed.

I think cabin fever must have set in because Lydia was losing it while reading the guestbook. What sort of person reads the guestbook anyway?

Losing it.

Lost it.

Brandon has a pretty pink suitcase. I didn't have to even look inside to know that this was full of baby dolls.

Our friend Svetlana lives in Indianapolis so we made plans to meet her at Metro Diner. Apparently it's a chain. And we went to the wrong one. The other one was so far away that we just said screw it and had some breakfast.

We found Ohio right where we expected it to be, which was nice.

We passed Columbus, Ohio and I wanted to stop, take a peek, and stretch my legs. Lydia was all "everything will be closed it's Thanksgiving wah wah". We stopped in Columbus.

And we didn't even have to pay the meter! In yo face Lydia! Hahaha!

The Ohio Statehouse looks kind of weird. Like they ran out of money for the dome at the end and just made it flat on top. It's a pretty old one, built between 1839 and 1861.

Ok, so it was closed, but it did have cool door handles.

Then we drove the rest of the way to Cleveland.

Cleveland and environs have a solid craft beer scene so I was excited to punch up Thanksgiving a little with some strange and exciting brews. We found a gas station which ended up being beer Nirvana.

I'm not embarrassed to admit I bought this one just because the label referenced one of my favorite movies: Donnie Darko. Ok, it was made in Michigan but who cares. Close enough. The label was nice and creepy:

"95 Days… 23 Hours… 14 Minutes… 38 Seconds… 

That is when the batch will be ready.

And when it is, we can breathe a sigh of relief because there will be so much dark fruit cider to look forward to.

The one in the Stupid Man Suit must complete the batch and return the tank to the Primary Universe where it belongs.

Do not doubt his commitment to fermentation. The bottling day is coming and the world is counting on him.

What is the point of living if you don’t have a bottle?

B. AFRAID OF THE DARK"

The Airbnb was nice and homey, and was a good setting for a little Thanksgiving dinner.

There were some medieval looking chalices that were perfect for my fancy hard cider with balaton cherry, raspberry, and black currant.

Dinner turned out pretty awesome.

Ok, this one was legitimately from Cleveland, and it was made with spruce tips! So holiday festive!

"Spruce tips possess many of the same aromas and flavors as hops, but also have a pleasant citrusy pine not unique to themselves. We used a blend of spruce tips and hops in this seasonal beer to yield a balance between tropical hop goodness and piney dankness."

Then it was food coma on the couch time. A Thanksgiving tradition.

Our Airbnb was nestled in Cleveland's Tremont neighborhood, only a couple of blocks away from the house they used in the 1983 film A Christmas Story. So I procured the film for our viewing pleasure.