USA 250, Parma 200

Small boy bubbling up the side street by St. Charles.

Parma is celebrating 200 years.

Some time ago, Parma accepted the pink flamingo jokes; it did not come right away. It is now a mascot.

There are two flamingo statues mounted in Parma. They are both the second at their locations, previous ones were stolen, and broken. Here the remainder of one is floating.

Don't have an answer. Looks fun. 

Now what i believe should be in every Independence Day Parade: the three guys from the Spirit of  '76 painting, Statue of Liberty (and her friend Lady Justice), Uncle Sam, marching bands, of course if the weather is amiable — dogs and horses, old cars are neat. The weather has been brutal this week, it was not so bad this morning, but i was feeling it, and left early.  I read that Philadelphia, and DC cancelled their parades, but american nazis paraded through Washington DC, after all their boys are in charge.

Normally, comic book heroes don't show up, but this one should.

Because, Liberty is not well. 

Judith de Leeuw. Roubaix France. 4 July 2025.

It is always great to see dogs. This is Nitro, he is 14% German Shepard. Just coming into adulthood. Nitro is happy, and well behaved.

The little fellow is Dallas.

Guessing 1957 Chevy Bel Air.

Guessing 1954 Chevy Bel Air.

A hospital was in the parade, and they sent one of their life flight copters to go back and forth.

 

new temple

 Cleveland (Independence) Ohio Mormon Temple. 30 November 2026.

27 June 2026 during a public open house viewing

The first Mormon Temple is in neighbouring Lake County, Kirtland [click] and built in the 1830s.  The second was in Nauvoo Illinois, built during the 1840s, destroyed by fire 1848, new building 2002. The third is in St. George Utah, built in the 1870s. All four, and this Cleveland one have cupolas. The first was built in the late federal style, and some elements of that style continued in the other three mentioned, and others.

 

Normally Gentiles (non-Mormons) are not permitted in their temples, nor are Mormons without temple recommends; but currently the building is not dedicated, and there is a period of weeks that there is a viewing open to the general public & Mormon visitors from outside the area.

 

From the first foto, it appears that the product that appears stone like is pre-fabricated and slid into place.  In this project pre-fabricated modules were also used. The Mormons are in a period of temple building world wide. [(click) Construction Status:  61 Under Construction, 8 Under Renovation, 105 Announced] Almost simultaneously with Cleveland, San Diego (La Jolla) is having a public viewing of their renovations; nearer: recently Pittsburgh, and soon one in Cincinnati.

 

We went on a Saturday, and the ample parking lot was nearly full.  Additional parking was available at AAA  across the street.  They had a large slew of Mormon volunteers to guide people throughout.  Everyone was required to wear disposable booties. The place was meant to be immaculate. Over all the rooms were furnished like a quality hotel.

 

I came to see the architecture and art.  Mormon paintings of Jesus were plentiful, and large. They were respectful, but slightly bland, and had a factory production aesthetic.  There was a walk in and down baptistry with twelve cast oxen heads on the exterior.  What stood out in quality was one huge chandelier, and some other good light fixtures. Stained glass windows were also numerous, some had a white trillium, the state wildflower, on top. Whatever studio made them, made them well. I asked a couple of the guides. One did not know, and the other just remembered they were from Orem Utah.

Not quite authentic looking.

Columbus visit

Sullivan is a calm seven year old Great Dane in good health & temperment.

I was walking on North High, and these people wanted me to take a foto. They only gestured, and said nothing. 

Deer statue looking at me in a lot over from Columbus Museum of Art.

I have posed a pic of Thurber's unicorn before [click].

on Long Street, "Be part of the Climate Solution" 

Mandi Caskey. She Moves with Color. Columbus. 2026. 

Brian Clemons had the original sideways Mona Lisa [click] nearby, it has been decided that it can not be saved. I have read it was the first Columbus popular mural that inspired others to take up the brush.

fatalistic license

Catholische St. Marien Schule 1865.  German Village Columbus

2026 Miscellany #10

♩ I hear the train a comin' 
It's rolling round the bend...♩  

First glimpse of Nickel Plate's 765 coming through the trees. This locomotive has made nearly visits to run through Cuyahoga Valley National Park. Its home base is Fort Wayne Indiana. Many people come out to see steam locomotives on the go. In Ohio, this summer this appearance was overshadowed by the first Ohio travel of Union Pacific's Big Boy 4014. I saw it in Lorain, and i may see it on its way back west in July.

♩ If you miss the train I'm on
You will know that I am gone
You can hear the whistle blow a hundred miles...♩ 

1954 Ford Crestline

school on the campus of St. John the Baptist Basilica Canton Ohio

bridge over Interstate 77, Canton

a retaining wall in the flats of Cuyahoga River Cleveland 

Canton & Massillon

St. John Baptist Basilica Canton Ohio, look lower right.

There is a sleeping man.

barn north of Massillon

My nephew asked if i saw the two sitting mafiosi, outside Massillon.  He did not know Elwood & Jake Blues.

Bing & Bong outside a Canton saloon.

Empathy Saves. Canton O.

A record store set up a table at a Massillon street market. Island of Lost Souls was a 1932 movie.

Skeleton in window, Canton

another Canton window

from the outside, a window of St. Timothy Episcopal Massillon

Flying over, i saw two Sikorsky CH-53E Super Stallions (if the identification is correct), coming from over the church.

come late & things change

A garden center outside Massillon has the cute name, the Lady Bug.  Here is a Volkswagon with a Missouri plate for 2005.   Some years before, it had to be really sharp.was painted in the beetle colors, but some of the red has flaked off, and blue is showing.

I knew of this house in Massillon. I saw fotos of it in pink. I did not know its address, twice i was within a block or two of it. If i did see then, it would have been moreover pink.

Massillon loves high school football. It has two high schools, but the one is famous. Washington Tigers. This was painted, or update for their 2023 championship. It is in a tire shop, which i drove by. Later, i found out of the existence of the mural. Saturday, i went to see it. The shop is closed on the weekends. This was snapped through the glass of the door. The glass was coated, and the background painting is white.

The old Lincoln Highway cuts through Massillon. It intersects with Route 21. A very short street next to off/on ramp is named on one side after Lillian Gish, and on the other Tommy Henrich. On both sides there is a pump house, one had Gish, and the other had Obie the Tiger. Both had murals. There was one with Lillian Gish, which included her role in the Scarlet Letter 1926.  Scot Phillips is the current town's muralist, he also paints in rival Canton. That (or those) buildings, was/is failing, and the city removed the murals. Again, i had driven on Lincoln without knowing.

Tommy Henrich is still up on the other side of the street. He played for the Yankees from 1937 to 1950, with World War II in between.

When i came by, the artist, Scot Phillips was scraping flakes off of Tommy.  He said it was holding up well, considering it catches the western sunlight. The building is moving, because the river moved. I spoke with him, and he really wants to paint Lillian Gish again in the city. He thinks that the city can be nudged with e-mails.

 

Heather Bullach. Red Grange turns Pro, 1925. Canton. 2019. 

Some art holds up better than others out in the weather. Over a span of a few years Canton placed eleven football artworks around the city. Heather Bullach was the artist for Red Grange, the first big "star" of the NFL. The Galloping Ghost came from the University of Illinois to play for the Chicago Bears in 1925. He was considered the best college footballer in history. August 2, 2019 was the public presentation. My foto from Saturday. See the next foto for how much red faded.

from https://artsinstark.com/public-art/the-eleven/    August 2019?

cropped from flickr account of scottamus (Ken) foto 30 April 2022

Tommy Morgan. Moment Ten. 2021. Canton.

My foto Saturday of the 54 metal panels of Pete Rozelle and the merger in 1966 of the AFL & NFL.

a peek into St. John Baptist Basilica Canton

The church was closed. I've been there three times, all closed. There is a gap between two of the doors.  It is an 1871 building, and here the doors do not close tightly. The parish began in 1823, and is the oldest in northeast Ohio.