RichC | September 29, 2020
My mother’s birthday isn’t one that I mark with a blog post every year, but since I ran across this old photo of my mom in East Tawas Michigan, I set it aside (along with one from me in my new suede coat back in high school). I spotted the Kodachrome slide of Mom next […]
Category: Archive, Automotive, Memories, Personal, Photos |
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Tags: birthday, car, coat, high school, kodachrome, momc, oldsmobile, remembering, richc, slides, suede, tawas, Travel
RichC | September 25, 2020
Since I posted last year about the new Real ID regulations for domestic flying and travel, I figured it was appropriate to update the one-year reprieve. Due to circumstances resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic and the national emergency declaration, the Department of Homeland Security, as directed by President Donald J. Trump, is extending the REAL […]
Category: Travel |
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Tags: airport, corronavirus, covid19, flying, real id, regulartion, Travel
RichC | August 27, 2020
Love this photo, although Katelyn and Taylor do look the same to me … well, add 10 years. I saw this photo from our Bermuda cruise in 2010 and thought, “I’m so glad we took as many trips as we did each year as a family!” The early years of traveling may have been on […]
Category: Archive, Memories, Personal, Photos, Travel |
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Tags: bermuda, coronavirus, covid19, family, hawksbill, jeffp, katelyn, mountian, taylor, TBT, throwback, thursday, Travel, trips, vacation
RichC | August 1, 2020
My goodness, where have the years gone!?! I know that I’m not the only one who asks that question, but when it stares me in the face from 6700 blog post ago … it is a big reminder. I’ve noted in this post that 15 years ago Taylor and I headed up to see my […]
Category: Blogs, Health, Memories, Nature, Personal, Recreation, Travel |
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Tags: back problem, blog, brenda, canadian rockies, epidural, hiking, mri, osteoarthritis, osteoporosis, pain, Travel, treatment, xray
RichC | June 28, 2020
Flew on the airlines for the first time since COVID19 to Florida via Baltimore (photo BWI terminal above) last week and thankfully the flights and negotiating the airport was uneventful. Besides a computer glitch which backed up lines on check in, everything else went smoothly. It is yet to be seen if the rise in […]
Category: Archive, Friends, Misc, Personal, Photos, Sailing, Travel |
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Tags: airlines, cleaning, condo1718, coronavirus, covid19, crosley, dar jones, encore, friends, mark jones, Photos, record player, repair, southwest, Travel
RichC | April 19, 2020
Although it has only been a couple months since Ellerie was born (8 weeks now), the Coronavirus stay-at-home orders has definitely made it challenging for grandparents … especially when they would really like to be with their grandchildren. Brenda and I only ‘now’ realize just how fortunate we were to have been able to travel several […]
Category: Alexa, Archive, Audio, Personal, Photos, Travel, Weather |
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Tags: Alexa, annalyn, baby, coronavirus, covid19, drew, echo, ellerie, family, katelyn, message, mp3, perrysburg, Photos, snow, Travel, visits
RichC | April 8, 2020
Grandparents who receive regular photos, video, FaceTime and Alexa Echo messages from their grandchildren (and children) are fortunate to live in today’s technology rich world. Just a couple decades ago, families who moved apart for careers or whatever reason were lucky to get a few snapshots in the US mail or maybe talk on the […]
Category: Archive, Personal, Photos, Travel |
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Tags: annalyn, drew, ellerie, family, grandchildren, katelyn, oostra, Photos, Travel, trips, vacation
RichC | February 6, 2020
It has been a shockingly mild winter, at least in Cincinnati this year. Generally I don’t put the snow blower on the John Deere 330 tractor until it is needed, yet this year I prepared early … and may have frightened the snow away? Having a winter without much snow is not totally unheard of, […]
Category: Advice, Energy, Environment, Personal, Photos, Science, Technology, Travel |
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Tags: alberta, aoc, biodiesel, biofuel, climate change, cuyahoga river, Environment, family, fire, glaciers, global warming, jasper, mark howard, panic, politic, pollution, Travel
RichC | April 20, 2019
It is great to see our kids squeezing in vacations and enjoying all the natural beauty our country has to offer. This past week, Katelyn, Drew and Annalyn visited “another” US National Park, this time Yosemite National Park in California. It looked like a great time! Click for a larger map and definitely click for […]
Category: Archive, Memories, Nature, Personal, Photos, Recreation, Travel |
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Tags: annalyn, brenda, drew, family, hiking, idiom, katelyn, megan, national park, Photos, taylor, Travel, trips
RichC | March 8, 2019
Chromebooks are not my preferred devices, but they are excellent for those with more limited computing needs. For the most part, they are relatively inexpensive, easy to update, very reliable and frustration free. They boot/start quicker than most devices and data, apps and setting are easily backed up on Google’s cloud … so as long […]
Category: Advice, Cloud, Computer, Software, Tablet, Technology, Travel |
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Tags: android, battery, chromebook, review, samsung, tech friday, techfriday, Travel
RichC | January 25, 2019
As more and more federal employees decide they aren’t going to continue to work without a paycheck, the focus has shifted to the unpaid in the Coast Guard, TSA and Air Traffic Control. Air travel has now moved front and center as the “shutdown-standoff” continues (the Senate is at least negotiating). Flyers are feeling it […]
Category: Aviation, News, Politics |
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Tags: airplane, airport, animated, bird, border, drone, FAA, gif, pelosi, Politics, quadrotor, security, shutdown, strike, Travel, trump, tsa, video
RichC | January 4, 2019
Aviation has bogged in the last few decades, but with computer assisted quadrotors, private space ventures and renewed supersonic travel … perhaps the next couple decades with be inspirational? Supersonic jets may be about to make a comeback – Reinventing Concorde
Category: Aviation, Innovation |
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Tags: aviation, concorde, flight, quadrotors, space, Travel
RichC | August 10, 2018
It doesn’t matter if driving or flying (CVG), it is great to see the the Cincinnati city view when driving north on I-75/71 down the "cut-in-the-hill" and know that I’m almost home. What a great welcome … it almost has me singing this song – LINK.
Category: Misc, Personal, Photos, Travel |
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Tags: cincinnati, cut in the hill, driving, skyline, Travel, wkrp
RichC | March 11, 2018
Ah yes … the stress of a mom flying by herself with a one-year-old … it can be stressful. My daughter Katelyn flew to San Diego, California “alone” with Annalyn on Saturday and reported that all her “distraction” preparations paid off … well she didn’t exactly say that … BUT that fact that she was […]
Category: Aviation, Personal, Travel |
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Tags: airlines, annalyn, baby, california, drew, family, flight, flying, katelyn, san diego, Travel
RichC | January 30, 2018
It’s a long way to Mars and there’s "not a drop to drink" (author Mindy McGinnis) or "plop to eat" on the way … so what’s the plan? Since astronauts are already recycling their urine into drinkable water, the next step should be obvious: "Goo made from their Poo." (in observing the current lab conditions […]
Category: Human Interest, Innovation, Misc, Space |
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Tags: astronaut, food, mars, nasa, penn state, poop, research, science, space, Travel
RichC | January 3, 2018
Before sending another check to the guy I have doing some bottom work on Encore, I really need to inspect the work. I don’t want him to stop working, but I don’t want bottom paint slapped on the new epoxy fiberglass repair before double checking the layers, fairing and keel work and epoxy barrier coats […]
Category: Aviation, Friends, Misc, Sailing, Travel |
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Tags: dar, encore, flights, florida, friends, jones, mark, southwest, Travel
RichC | March 15, 2017
It hasn’t even been two days, but I’m already longing to be back in Minnesota with Annalyn, Katelyn and Drew. Brenda and I were fortunate to have been able to spend the first week of our granddaughter’s life with her, but that closest makes me even miss her even more. She is as my son […]
Category: Personal, Photos, Video |
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Tags: annalyn, baby, bompa, drew, family, katelyn, minnesota, snow, Travel, video
RichC | March 7, 2017
Interesting tidbits posted to Marketwatch … I’m thinking a "bottle of water" might be my request the next time I travel? Don’t get ice in your drink on an airplane From a flight attendant here: “Don’t get ice in your drink, don’t drink coffee, tea, or hot water on the plane and don’t touch anything […]
Category: Misc, Tidbits, Travel |
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Tags: aiplane, airlines, attendant, drink, flight, ice, service, Travel
RichC | July 31, 2016
While Katelyn and Drew were vacationing in Michigan, they included this very cool photo! It is a perfect filler for a missing Sunday afternoon blog post.
Category: Personal, Photos, Travel |
2 Comments »
Tags: drew, family, filler, photography, quadrotor, sunset, Travel, vacation
RichC | July 14, 2016
For Volkswagen fanatics who like travel and camping, there aren’t many better ways to show your VW love than a Dub-Box Trailer. These lightweight trailers are unique and beckon back to day when the roads were open and free … so as long as you have a few bucks for gas and were not in a […]
Category: Automotive, Recreation, Travel, Volkswagen |
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Tags: camping, cool, trailer, Travel, volkswagen
RichC | February 11, 2016
(lower resolution JPG image above – download full resolution PDF from MedAire) MedAire launched its Travel Risk Map 2016 PDF, an interactive map that highlights medical and security risks across the globe. The online map rates regional security as ‘extreme’, ‘high’, ‘medium’, ‘low’ or ‘insignificant’, and medical risks as ‘low’, ‘medium’, ‘high’, ‘very high’ or ‘rapidly […]
Category: Health, Travel |
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Tags: 2016, map, medaire, risk, Travel
RichC | February 7, 2016
I’d be jumping onboard for this Slick Kickstarter Backpack project if the $249 for the TRIP version didn’t frighten me away. Sure looks like the perfect traveling companion for my many trips — both for weekly work trips and those trips to the boat. It looks like they intend to keep the quality high … […]
Category: Business, Sailing, Travel, Video |
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Tags: backpack, kickstarter, mp4, Travel, video
RichC | December 10, 2015
20s?? Well for Drew (photo) … for only a few more days! Katelyn and Drew are in Arizona celebrating Drew’s 30th birthday with his family this week and they sent me a couple photos from the desert and in a hot air balloon flight — beautiful! It is great to see all three kids (Taylor […]
Category: Personal, Photos, Travel |
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Tags: arizona, balloon, birthday, drew, family, katelyn, Travel
RichC | June 17, 2015
Now I’ll be the first to admit, I spend too much time agonizing over purchasing things wondering if I’m buying the right model or brand … and am I paying too much. The Internet has only complicated matters since there is even more information to process. It’s the same thing when booking travel … although […]
Category: Aviation, Personal, Shopping, Travel |
2 Comments »
Tags: airlines, booking, decisions, delta, flights, southwest, Travel
RichC | March 21, 2015
If you do plan a trip on the Amazon River, you’ve probably though about the wildlife … especially the ferocious insects, dangerous reptiles and famous fish … like the Piranha. They inhabit the neotropical freshwater rivers of northern South America, including the countries of Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay, and Venezuela. […]
Category: Nature, Travel, Video |
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Tags: amazon, brazil, fish, piranha, river, Travel
RichC | December 15, 2014
Expedia posted a lighthearted polling of what annoys airline passengers which got me thinking about what I notice and where I may offend. I already do my best to be overly attentive to most of these annoyances, but probably would rank “The Aromatic Passenger” as #1 followed by the “Back Seat Grabber” as my #2 […]
Category: Aviation, Humor, Poll, Travel |
1 Comment »
Tags: airlines, flying, Travel
RichC | November 24, 2014
We’ve driven the PA turnpike several times in the past, although the last trip traveling the full length was probably close to a decade ago, but the 2014 tolls structure gives a new meaning to the term “highway robbery.” This past weekend, my wife drove to Philadelphia from Cincinnati for a bridal shower and thought […]
Category: Automotive, Financial, Politics, Travel |
3 Comments »
Tags: driving, pennsylvania, ripoff, roads, toll, Travel, turnpike
RichC | July 1, 2014
Packing list for this week: Repaired autopilot: ck Tool bag: ck Hurricane prep list: ck Clothes bag: ck Computer bag: ck Weather forecast – pack RAIN GEAR … Well that last one might not be going quite like I planned. So much for scheduling my trip for Encore’s hurricane prep for the first of July. […]
Category: Sailing, Travel, Weather |
1 Comment »
Tags: encore, Travel, tropical storm, weather
RichC | April 22, 2014
A post on the FiveThirtyEight.com blog by Kaiser Fung this past weekend analyzed the prediction of airfares on Kayak (after the removal of Microsoft’s Bing Travel’s Farecast in January 2014), left me wondering if the days of successful Big Data’s Predictive Analysis are disappearing? According to my read on Fung’s selective airfare routes research, you […]
Category: Aviation, Computer, Shopping, Software, Travel |
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Tags: airfare, airlines, big data, kayak, Software, Travel
RichC | February 20, 2014
Those who are regular readers of My Desultory Blog realize that besides posting commentary on newsy items, be it tech, cars, aviation, politics or whatever, that I also include personal entries and photos relating to my family. This blog, now 4000 posts, is a continuation of a journal that I started in 1977 as a […]
Category: Blogs, Personal, Photos, Social Networking |
1 Comment »
Tags: blog, friends, frog, jeffp, jerry moody, journal, kevin, memories, Travel, trips
RichC | December 12, 2013
The more delays and longer the flight, the more cranky passengers are bound to get. Now imagine sitting in the middle seat of modified Airbus A320 as the scrunched seats get smaller and give up 3 more inches to the aisle seats? Oh, I’m sure those fortunate enough to book the wider seats, will be […]
Category: Aviation, Travel |
2 Comments »
Tags: a320, airbus, airlines, Travel, wsj
RichC | August 30, 2013
According to Scott McCartney who writes for the Wall Street Journal, rental car companies are keeping cars longer and accumulating more miles than in years past. The slow creep of their aging fleet is a result of the long recession and the improved quality of today’s vehicles (industry spokesmen say), but from a car renter’s […]
Category: Automotive, Computer, Travel |
2 Comments »
Tags: gifgrabber, rental cars, techfriday, Travel, wsj
RichC | April 21, 2013
I think we’ll spend some money for a meal downtown Cincinnati next month as a way to celebrate my son’s Geography and Urban and Regional Planning degree from Miami University. He will graduate next month and has spent quite a bit of time working and studying revitalization projects downtown (he does have his gown … […]
Category: Education, News, Personal, Travel |
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Tags: cincinnati, graduation, over-the-rhine, taylor, Travel
RichC | April 28, 2012
Airlines say they are warehousing hundreds of iPads and other tablet computers and e-readers left behind by travelers. Carriers try to reunite the devices with their owners but are often thwarted by the lack of ID tags, password protection and Apple Inc.’s reluctance to track down owners based on serial numbers. — WSJ Scott […]
Category: Cellphone, Tablet, Travel |
2 Comments »
Tags: airlines, found, ipad, lost, smartphone, tablet, Travel, wsj
RichC | January 9, 2012
Before you “leap” … how do you know the bungee is going to hold? I enjoy an adrenaline rush as much as the next guy, but the older I get the more control in the outcome I want to have; I’m not sure I like the idea of trusting a bungee cord. One lucky bungee […]
Category: Travel, Video |
1 Comment »
Tags: bungee, jumping, Travel
RichC | December 29, 2011
I’ve lost my share of days by spinning my wheels or tucked under the covers while sick in bed, but I’ve never heard of literally losing an entire day; that’s what is going to happen this week in Samoa. Samoa is at the tail end of the International Date Line and they have found it […]
Category: Misc, News, Travel |
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Tags: new zealand, pacific, samoa, time, tonga, Travel
RichC | November 16, 2011
I’m anxious to try Google.com/flights for my next trip planning although I’m not sure it adds much besides the interface over competitive flight planning websites. The search giant has created a convenient way to compare the pricing and scheduled flight times, but in testing a few closer airports and flights it didn’t turn up any […]
Category: Computer, Technology, Travel |
2 Comments »
Tags: air, airline, flights, google, search, Travel
RichC | July 31, 2011
If you’ve ever enjoyed a summer (or fall, spring or winter) trip to Traverse City Michigan, you then know that it is a great All American town. I’ll bet you’ll love this Traverse City LibDub 2011 video, at least I know Michigander Steve will, although some Buckeyes are pretty set in their ways?
Category: Travel, Video |
3 Comments »
Tags: libdub, michigan, Travel, traverse city, vacation
RichC | July 30, 2011
I read an aviation/travel article by Scott McCartney last week that reminded me of a post I made in June which dealt with booking flights and some of the changes we are all facing in air travel – well perhaps not elite travelers? From the sound of things, we’re in for a few more changes, […]
Category: Aviation, Travel |
5 Comments »
Tags: airlines, airport, carriers, Travel
RichC | July 17, 2011
This was the first air travel that I opted to go fully paperless using Delta’s E-Boarding barcode utilizing my Palm Pre. The process from check-in online to bag checking and the TSA and boarding went well and although I questioned losing the barcode webos card (and Internet connection!) between the ticketing counter and TSA, it […]
Category: Cellphone, Technology, Travel |
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Tags: airline, delta, e-boarding, Travel, tsa
RichC | June 19, 2011
A friend of mine and I discussed buying tickets for a couple of upcoming trips which included flights and rental cars this past week and neither one of us were convinced we picked up the cheapest tickets or were able to find decent rates for renting a car in July. We bounced our shopping sites […]
Category: Advice, Travel |
6 Comments »
Tags: airfare, airlines, booking, rental cars, Travel
RichC | May 4, 2011
For those of us that regularly rent cars, we’ve always known that it is costly to bring a car back to the rental agency with less than a full tank. This lesson is doubly important with the higher prices at the pump nowadays. Some car companies are now charging over $9/gallon “if you bring the […]
Category: Automotive, Travel |
1 Comment »
Tags: airport, car, rental, Travel
RichC | December 22, 2010
I had thought that I had found the near perfect pair of pants from Eddie Bauer for traveling and after buying a first pair in khaki color, opted for a second pair in olive. Besides being comfortable and having strong triple stitched seams, there are a few design features that are worth pointing out. For […]
Category: Advice, Personal, Photos, Shopping, Travel |
1 Comment »
Tags: clothes, flying, pants, Shopping, Travel
RichC | September 10, 2010
A couple sailing friends currently spending time cruising northwestern Madagascar are enjoying the area around Nosy Be. While doing a little map checking on the area, I ran across a couple interesting photos with someone doing some maintenance on a different kind of tourist oriented watercraft (click for larger image). Having just returned from Bermuda, […]
Category: Environment, Photos, Sailing, Travel |
2 Comments »
Tags: boat, coral, madagascar, reef, Travel, underwater
RichC | August 12, 2010
For personal transportation miles-per-gallon watchers, like many VW TDI drivers I know, an article in Thursday’s WSJ that translated US based airlines fuel efficiency into automotive MPG standards, might be of interest. In the past, frugal flyers may have looked at the numbers in order to save a buck, but now more and more travelers […]
Category: Audio, Aviation, Environment, Travel, Video |
6 Comments »
Tags: airlines, Environment, mpg, Travel, wsj
RichC | April 29, 2010
It has become challenging to fly commercial airlines in recent year, especially since 9/11. Not only has the process of going through most airports become time consuming with all the additional security precautions, but the airlines themselves have made changes which most agree have become irritating to down right miserable for passengers, I’m thinking about […]
Category: Aviation, Financial, News, Photos, Travel |
2 Comments »
Tags: airlines, fees, Politics, spirit, taxes, Travel
RichC | March 7, 2010
We had a slow start to the day after a frustrating delayed flight out of Cincinnati — we were switched to a smaller plane. I was sardined into the just in front of the lavatory seat behind two babies (with full diapers) and a 3-4 year old (really a very good kid). Thankfully things got […]
Category: Personal, Travel, Video |
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Tags: comair, delta, facebook, Travel
RichC | June 6, 2009
Here’s a “How-To” technique for making FREE computer to “phone” calls (not computer to computer) from overseas to any U.S. phone number. Its more the penny pincher in me which enjoys finding a way to use technology than the actual dollar savings since it hardly seems worthwhile for the few calls I “really” need to […]
Category: Cellphone, Computer, How-To, Travel |
4 Comments »
Tags: d-link, overseas, phone, skype, Travel
RichC | January 28, 2009
A winter storm has moved through the Ohio Valley Tuesday January 27th and left several inches of snow followed by ice and sleeting rain. By evening there was a substantial glaze on top of the snow making for a bright and reflective photo (click for larger). While out driving during the afternoon the roadways were […]
Category: Personal, Photos |
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Tags: driving, ice, roads, snow, Travel, weather
RichC | January 14, 2009
My company’s original office in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio – Photo Jan. 14, 2009 I’m well season in driving to from one corner of Ohio to the other, but today was one of the more uptight trips I’ve made. In fact, I even checked into the Radisson at 4PM since I no longer wanted to stomp […]
Category: Personal, Photos |
3 Comments »
Tags: baja fresh, driving, ohio, snow, Travel
RichC | October 10, 2008
After reflecting on the doom and gloom of our economy and state of most investors, I thought I would go back a few days to a nice autumn weekend in western New York. We enjoyed pleasant weather and time with my mother and father-in-law at Letchworth State Park. If you’re looking for a great weekend […]
Category: Personal, Photos, Travel |
No Comments »
Tags: hiking, new york, state park, Travel
RichC | June 26, 2007
No big deal … but this weekend’s graduation trip took me to western New York in my little diesel Volkswagen and my TDI turned the odometer over to the sixth digit … 100,000 miles. As far as modern cars go, the 2003 Volkswagen Jetta TDI has treated me very well. It has operated pretty much […]
Category: Archive, Automotive, Diesel, Photography, Photos, Travel, Volkswagen |
10 Comments »
Tags: biodiesel, biodzl, chautauqua, driving, jetta, new york, richc, tdi, Travel, volkswagen, western
RichC | February 16, 2007
Here are couple more photos (click for larger) while heading up Interstate 71 just south of Columbus Ohio this past week. The storm was pretty impressive as it first coated roads, trees and house with a thick coat of ice followed by snow. From Columbus south the February 13-14 front started with ice and then […]
Category: Archive, Photography, Photos, Travel, Weather |
No Comments »
Tags: barn, Canon, cleveland, columbus, dslr, highway, ice, interstate, ohio, photography, Photos, richc, snow, Travel