Gourd Colors

A little sports trivia question to start.

In the U.S., we have quite a few Sports Halls of Fame. The Baseball Hall of Fame? Cooperstown, New York. The Football Hall of Fame? Canton, Ohio. Basketball Hall of Fame? Springfield, Massachusetts. Bowling Hall of Fame? St. Louis, Missouri. (Sorry about that last one. Bowling a sport? HA!.)

Here's the question. Where is the National Skiing Hall of Fame?

Using good logic...you might think it has to be in Colorado. If not there...perhaps Montana, or Vermont, or New Hampshire. That would be wrong, wrong, wrong, and wrong.

It is in Ishpeming, Michigan...way up in our Upper Peninsula. Why would I ask that...you might ask.

The tiny little burg of Ishpeming sent their football team to the big city of Detroit today to play Detroit Loyola in the state championship. Before the game ...they showed a picture of Detroits linemen. 6 feet 6, 260 pounds. Big boys...every one of them.

You probably see where this is going. Just like in the Bible...David came to the big city, and felled mighty Goliath. Beat 'em by a touchdown...26-20. Struck a chord for the little guy...the little cities. And...it's going to be a great 7 hour bus ride home.

It was special. So then...what's so special about these gourds? Most of them are 3-4 years old...that's what. Some people don't know that you can "dry" gourds out. It's not a pretty process, and sometimes they do rot, but when they dry, they turn into a hard almost wood-like piece of material.

These ornamental gourds are all painted. Tedious? Yes. Rewarding? Not-so-much. But...just think of the money I'm going to save in the next few years. All of these fresh gourds probably cost me $4.50-$4.75. Figure in my time of painting...and they're worth maybe a buck...buck and a quarter. But...multiply that by 20 years...and that's a 20 dollar bill in my pocket.

One more Hall of Fame question. Where is the National Figure Skating Hall of Fame? Now is the time for Colorado. Colorado Springs to be exact.

Some people say that I am a fountain of useless information. I don't know how to take that.