Great Houses & Art in Athens, Ohio

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By Norma Jaeger Hopcraft

American Dream: A College Education in a Great Town

Last fall I drove exactly 500 miles westward to visit a young friend attending Ohio University in Athens, Ohio. The town sported an historic downtown, dozens (it seemed) of bars, one spectacular indie coffee shop (cannot find the pics), and some exceptional houses (see below).

On top of a hill with a view in two directions!

Somebody had fun choosing paint!

A great house.

The next three shots are of the art on the walls of Big Mamma Burritos, where my young friend worked  part-time.

This is a college town, remember. The posters are going to be interesting, even in a burrito joint.

Great stuff, no?

Here's the sign for Big Mamma's. Even that is a work of art.

American Dream - a Thriving Shop

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By Norma Jaeger Hopcraft

American Dream: a Shop in an Historic Downtown

I visited Clinton, NJ in October - the flowers look great, don't they? Downtown Clinton has mostly 19th- and early-20th-century commercial architecture. The shops look so appealing in this great architectural setting.

A paper, pens, ink, cards store. So inviting!

A boutique...

Examples of more commercial architecture downtown.

This fine brick building hosts yet another appealing shop...

I liked this shop so much, I took a picture from another angle!

Notice the false front at the top of this photo -- nothing much behind those fake windows! At the end of this row is the indie coffee shop I explored a few weeks ago.

Clinton, NJ - Great Architecture and Art

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By Norma Jaeger Hopcraft

Clinton is 60 seconds away from modern U.S. Highway 78, but be ready to take a big step back in time. It's in Hunterndon County, NJ, where the scenery is bucolic and the politics bareknuckled.

The Hunterdon Art Museum is by a mill pond, created by the Raritan River. Imagine the political maneuvering to make this museum a reality.

This bridge crosses the Raritan and takes you to...

…downtown with shops in historic commercial buildings.

                     Here's a close-up of some of the art spilling onto the sidewalk in the photo above.

The Parry House, full of professional office and studios. The sign out front said space was available. I'd like to work there.

Here's the art museum up close. Look at that fieldstone! How about you? Would you like to visit this place?

Mystic Dreamboats

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By Norma Jaeger Hopcraft

The American Dream of Owning a Boat

I enjoyed watching the Mystic drawbridge go up a few weeks ago. When it's up, it stops traffic on Route 1, the legendary highway from Maine to Key West.

Think of the next three photos as a slow-mo movie.

Now begins the parade of boats.

I'm not envious of this power boat, but...

Here's double envy of these sailboats.

Now I'm really in trouble, looking at this beauty.

A catamaran, a double-hulled boat, passes through.

This is the Argus, and you can go for a spin down the Mystic River anytime you want. Floating down the river is fascinating. The degree of picturesqueness makes you want to take pictures and create a calendar! How about you? What rivers have you floated down? Comment below. 

Cottages and Houses in the Pennsy Countryside

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By Norma Jaeger Hopcraft

Not far from my brother's house in Quakertown, PA, I found this quaint little cottage nestled under big trees. This happened in September, when everything was still lush. The cottage looks ideal (if you mentally delete the telephone wire). But it sort of reminds me of the gingerbread house Hansel and Gretel stumbled upon, took a bite of, and suffered the consequences. 

It seems idyllic...

Hidden by the garden.

Remember those warmer days?

These homeowners really did a nice job on their garden.

A close-up view.

This grand old house is in Richlandtown, a few miles from my brothers'.

Another home that captures, for me, the look of a Pennsylvania house.

American Dream of Vacation in the Pennsy Woods

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By Norma Jaeger Hopcraft

Family Camping in Quakertown, PA

In the Quakertown area I see many signs for family campgrounds. Within walking distance of my brother's house, there are two.

Here's the sign for the Bridgeway campground. The property faces a huge pond that has a flock of ducks and a lone blue heron. I know because my brother's house faces the pond on the opposite side.

Back over the covered bridge (the stream it crosses runs from the pond and into the grist mill I showed you a few weeks ago).

I can't get over this covered bridge! I mean, I can get over it, thereabs nothing to stop me or anyone obviously, but I can't get over how charming it is.

Just beyond the bridge, on Covered Bridge Road, is this sign, proving my point about family campgrounds...

This is the home of the family that runs Tohickon.

In the summer, the door to the office (on the right of the barn) leads to a small grocery (lots of Good Humor bars in the freezer case) and a small restaurant. People bring campers in all shapes and sizes to the campground, hook up, and relax with other camping families. How about you? Ever done this sort of vacation? How was it? Comment below. If you like the photos, would you RT and Share? Thanks!

Old Barns and Surprises in the Barnyard, Quakertown, PA

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Is Your American Dream to Live or Work in a Converted Barn?

Just beyond the covered bridge I showed you last week, I came across a picturesque barn with a surprise in the barnyard. I'd call the surprise picturesque, too; tell me if you agree. 

I like the look of it--a stone wall, vines, weathered wood...

A close-up of the weathered, viny effect.

Not a cow, but a---

--Silver Streak, which Google tells me is a Pontiac. 

I think it had a V-8, a snarly, powerful engine. The stories this car could tell...

Another view of the barn.

The front door. Tell me, do you like old barns, old cars? Pennsylvania? Comment below, or sign up to follow this blog. RT and Share, would ya? Thanks!