But it was perfect.
The impetus for the trip was to attend the wedding of one of my favorite couples, Sean & Kristen. During their outdoor nuptials & day-long reception at an adorable, picturesque Ohio farmstead, I caught up with many of my favorite individuals & tried not to sweat to death. We joked that everyone had at least two exes in attendance, & yet somehow, everyone got along smashingly because that's how small-town friendships work. I was honored to be present to celebrate this couple & their love for one another, & I always appreciate an open bar populated by so many people I like.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMRl6SNoGpTG4gDec-A_Clh_SG7kg5UqfwV1MH08RxnggeCLj5YahoIc0bAwBY3YCaMpzEDwzQGJLypQNHu3sIJ9vgKczfle53aa11kLle3yRSdR-gyv0x3QpjzDRJDzoNVT4gou4pwas/s1600/Ribbet+collage+wedding.jpg)
Speaking of people I like, I also spent a lot of time hanging out with my mama & petting her tiny, excitable dogs, who look like twins.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbM4QnnlbR3_lUs6CLNKsPo8LuVNZ2Tt2MzwtJlv7WelyQCdZhLd5mve6by_dQJXkclI4pmjEVFHuqNvkK6gh58LzhyphenhyphenWnMiPIdwCIQ4JjjM9vQNSmxHwWUHkvsJzzYp9OZOJYI6Hrx4mU/s1600/Ribbet+collage+dogs.jpg)
As always, I ate at all my favorite places - sometimes healthy but oftentimes not, because vacation & also because oops. I went to four of those favorite places two times apiece, with a bunch of others peppered in to spice it up. Rockne's! Melt! Happy Dog! Clogged arteries & dying happy! Instagramming photos of my food!
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM1C1C3yjCZ7IH3pt5d1vS7lcEcjIOMjob7HGNTtMMmR3antW73SyVAcpv4pqiaQMIGmCoV6hGMQCwFgC7dVDxvkQjVGDf19BvFiEdZLOEzq_kj9szWMxBG3btwCytUvKqDEr7n0hVWJo/s1600/Ribbet+collage+food.jpg)
And
for better or worse, I basically never said no to dessert, including
tiny donuts, Graeter's Buckeye Blitz ice cream, a pistachio macaron, & crème brûlée
cheesecake. And yes, I'm planning to eschew cabs & public transportation for awhile in favor of walking everywhere for the next... forever. Just as soon as it stops raining.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0ZAOsUmNbQ9hxEGIpBUg9z1wvzJ4NXroBwczmjQqfQphIYFwzsLtT22S9p3QhxftolpGY7OnGZuFx6vcXMxktjkqkoP43FIYodn3mikH4xgFZLlM66aso_m8YB2RvNU9L-pDMmKe9Tvs/s1600/Ribbet+collage+desserts.jpg)
But it wasn't all food & booze, I swear. I also took in all the sites I love
& saw some new ones, too, in the three Big C's - Cleveland,
Columbus, Cuyahoga Falls. And while I know my hometown isn't exactly "big," Cincinnati sucks & home is where the heart is, et cetera.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqE-qjQFHYo0ihfOm58XNIiH0-hB09dMWVeSiwRVVo65_QwJcLULeI09yzFxnN554teEf4dxtiWLjvaun2iZVZ4m75zrzCu-JzKZX8CwKYNKbEYfkR1nSUHBmSwEPcmoDbNXT1qFNCi94/s1600/Ribbet+collage+views.jpg)
My friend Lindsey even took me to Cleveland for a day, where we started with a visit to Sweet Lorain, a massive vintage superstore. Every three steps or so, I shouted some excitable phrase, like, "Oh my God, look at this!" & snapped a photo of something colorful &/or absurd. Not recommended for people who are easily distracted by shiny objects.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_0JPaRogV3O9DT-Q_iogXyfmxVodjblxq-pBx0hmEsabxiWhcfR_Xz6JhwW1aDawQEsFvPpM3AsCWZPRbptMXBJT5LVb1_lBYC91Sgv2nYvl6FujwMAePx8Oa_hP6vn8M4L62S_qmOL8/s1600/Ribbet+collage+Sweet+Lorain.jpg)
Speaking of shiny objects, we were easily distracted by nearly everything we found at a massive toy store called Big Fun, including meat tattoos & animal masks & wax lips & finger puppets & a drawer full of Pogs straight outta the '90s.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB91EKe1PXd98h9JVX1IPCdezA6-K7_HfJYjkqOwA-mPiOkW3cOwn4LZM7gX_6UCHzswfKK7q2E_EBl0y5SPhXEexDbeNWEzqQfJELhOW7bkizioSywUIicRcmX0SbGAym-Nw_jZqupws/s1600/Ribbet+collage.jpg)
Of course, I saw lots of other favorite people, too, & made all of them take photos with me for the sake of vanity & posterity.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_PDK4i53XG1ib26_DrgSrKmK853kXvGnnpGQSBU6PU68TWuKGIKryNn3m1Z1EAet6O8KurNha8dBSz9dG-0T-lEb9kfY7acW6-T5HEpmzw07uabJBzm3js5YJoQ6loGfCJUtgU_ytAAE/s1600/Ribbet+collage+friends.jpg)
I got back to D.C. exhausted & exhilarated & a little bit sad to leave the Buckeye State behind. And yes, I wrote this post almost solely to show off all my wonderful photos, so I apologize for the total lack of interesting substance. This was the longest trip I'd taken to Ohio since 2011, & I spent each one of those 11 days feeling fortunate to come from such a wonderful place still filled with such wonderful people who always show me a, well, wonderful time.
I've always mentally adapted the lyrics to that old Hawthorne Heights song, & this visit only reinforced it: I can make it on my own, but part of my heart will probably always be in Ohio.
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