I was surprised to learn that the Library of Congress has been storing some of the great treasures of American cinema in vaults at the Wright-Patterson Air Force Base near Dayton. And now they're leaving, moving to a new facility in Culpepper, Virginia.
The films include the original negatives of The Maltese Falcon and Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (ironic, that). The 25,000+ films on about 125,000 reels have been stored in a temperature and humidity-controlled vault at the base. The oldest movies were made pre-1900.
The vaults were originally built to house military records, including film. Old movie film, made from nitrate, is extremely flammable and subject to decay, so special care was put into the vault design. In 1969, the storage facilities were turned over to the Library of Congress for storing the nation's film archives.
Have you ever forgotten to close a bank account? Moved before your income tax refund arrived? Forgotten to check the lottery numbers on your ticket?
You aren't alone. In the last fiscal year, for example, Ohioans failed to claim $17 million in scratch-off lottery ticket winnings. If this is you, don't delay; you only have about six months to redeem them.
You should also be aware of the Ohio Division of Unclaimed Funds. They receive money from a variety of sources; unpaid insurance policies, uncashed checks, credit balances, forgotten layaway deposits, rent deposits, dormant bank accounts, and more. At present, the division has 2.6 million accounts worth over $700 million. Their mission is to match it with its rightful owner.
Be warned: there are unscrupulous people who, for a fee, offer to find unclaimed funds for you. All they do is check with the division.
You can do that yourself! Simply go to their web page, click on the box labeled "Ohio Treasure Hunt" and follow directions.
I came up empty, unfortunately. But you could be the lucky one. No need to tip me, but an 'attaboy' would be nice.
Bono, lead singer for U2 and advocate for improved conditions in the underdeveloped parts of the world, especially Africa, has partnered with students at Miami of Ohio to market African-made cotton t-shirts.
Students in Miami's Center for Social Entrepreneurship buy the edun Live brand T's for about $4 per, screen print messages and art on them, and sell them to other campus and off-campus groups for around $10. Among the messages they've come up with so far is "I know who made my shirt: do you?" Proceeds for the shirts will be used to further the Center's mission by bringing in speakers and perhaps sending students to Africa.
edun Live hopes to expand the program to many other campuses. Bono started the company in order to provide jobs and trade to developing countries, promoting the idea of 'trade, not aid'.
I have found no explanation why the company name spelled backwards is 'Evil nude'.
One of the jets flow by Ohio's Neil Armstrong, the first man on the moon, sets in front of the Ohio Historical Society's Armstrong Air and Space Museum in Wapakoneta.
Pity the poor schmuck (me) who usually waits until the last minute to make Valentine's Day reservations at a nice restaurant. Are you aware that they don't accept reservations at Waffle House? It's true.
If you really want to score some major points this year, take your honey to an upscale place. I'm talking cloth napkins, waiters who don't wear aprons, call you 'Sugar', or sit down at the table with you. I've put together a list of ten great places in Columbus for wonderful meals. So don't put it off!
Scali's Restaurant -- The best Italian food in town in an unpretentious but elegant room. I recommend the penne ariabiata.
The European Taverna Opa -- Greek cuisine in an old S. High mansion, a great place for quiet conversation. Closed. Too bad.
SpainBarcelona-- Wonderful Spanish food in German Village. We truly are multi-ethnic.
The Refectory -- the Columbus standard for simple luxury, the converted church has been serving fine French dishes for over 25 years. Great wine cellar, low markup.
My Big Fat Greek Cuisina -- terrible name, wonderful food. Of this list, probably the lowest-cost option. The appetizer is to die for.
Rigsby's Cuisine Volatile -- in the Short North. Italian influences balanced with other ethnic foods to create exciting new tastes.
M -- the most upscale of the local Cameron Mitchell restaurants overlooks downtown Columbus. They serve American food with a world cuisine flare. Hunan Lion -- a modestly priced north side restaurant that serves consistently delicious Chinese and Thai food in a comfortable setting with great service, and all at market prices. One of my personal favorites.
Handke's Cuisine -- in the Brewery District, the home of local celebrity chef Hartmut Handke. His mouth-watering V.D. menu is already posted on the web site, $58.50 per person.
L'antibes -- a tiny place in the French style, known for elegant creative food.
830 sites on our planet are listed as World Heritage Sites by the U.N.'s Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The Ohio Historical Society believes at least two Ohio sites, the Serpent Mound and various Hopewell structures including mounds near Chillicothe, belong on that list. To that end, they have petitioned for their inclusion.
And why not? Both are remarkable examples of pre-European earthworks. The Serpent Mound is the most famous effigy mound in North America, and the Hopewell mounds are preserved in the Hopewell Culture National Historical Park. Also included in the Hopewell petition is Ft. Ancient and the Newark earthworks.
If the Hopewell petition goes through, it may include the first golf course named as a World Heritage site. The Octagon Earthworks in Newark are incorporated into the links of the Moundbuilders Country Club.
These sites would join such noteworthy treasures as the Great Barrier Reef, the Imperial Palace in Beijing, the Galapagos Islands, Thebes, Chartres Cathedral, Vatican City, and the Statue of Liberty. Sites on the list enjoy the protection of an international treaty, the Convention concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage.
This is just the tip of the iceberg, too. Among those we haven't gotten to yet are Sammy Kaye, Dean Martin, Ted Lewis, The McGuire Sisters, the Mills Brothers, The O'Jays, Screamin' Jay Hawkins...
Another in our series on Ohio bands. The Michael Stanley Band was a Cleveland band popular in the 1980's. It was founded by Michael Stanley Gee from Rocky River. Here's a clip of them playing one of their hits, Heartland, in 1981.
In one of my favorite Simpson's episodes, Homer coats his mouth with candle wax so that he can tolerate eating the world's hottest pepper. I don't suggest this tactic, but you might start thinking about your strategy in preparing for the upcoming Fiery Food Festival in Columbus.
In its fourth year, the festival will again bring together chili devotees and other capsicum fans to the North Market near downtown Columbus on February 17th for a day of feasts and firey farts. On the schedule is a salsa (the food) competition, a chili cook-off, a Chef Chili Challenge and the old standby chili pepper eating contest.
Also on tap is music (accordion, Latino and Caribbean) and entertainment for the kids.
Dublin, Ohio company Aquaice is attempting to build a business offering the millions of devoted bottled-water consumers the same purifed product in ice cube form.
Aquaice's product is the epitome of convenience. The water comes in trays individually wrapped into cubes. The customer need merely chill and serve. (Seems like the perfect use for an anti-microwave that would cool food quickly. Remember that you read this concept here first.)
The company is marketing this ice to restaurants, and recently got an infusion of venture capital to allow it to expand their marketing to retail. Aquaice can also be purchased online, $8.99 for 100 cubes.
The company is not without competitors, however. Icerocks, a similar product using spring water, is sold by the Water Bank of America (what an odd name!).
If you would rather spend a buck or two for bottled water than drink from the tap, you might want to check out Aquaice, because you know what ice cubes made with tap water convert to when exposed to heat?
Our state recently lost out as the site of an experimental coal-burning power plant designed to test new strategies for pollution control, partly because the state lacked sufficient information about our subsoil strata.
One of the primary pollutive elements from coal burning is carbon dioxide (CO2), a greenhouse gas we pump by the cubic mile into the air for the enjoyment of our upstate New York neighbors. One strategy for cleansing the exhaust is to pump it deep underground into salt-rich rock and coal deposits or old oil and gas pockets where it would be trapped.
In an effort to catch up, Ohio has allocated $2.3 million to drill a 9,000 foot hole in the bedrock to begin gathering such information. The location of the Battelle Institute-directed project, called the Ohio Stratigraphic Borehole, will be a yet-unannounced spot in either mid-eastern or southeastern Ohio.
The project will help prepare the state for possible future restrictions on gas emissions. Ohio has room underground for an estimated 180 years of pollution storage.
Drilling is scheduled to begin soon, with results coming online later this year.
Among the silos of cornbelt area south of Grand Lake St. Marys in west central Ohio rises a 5-story-high octagonal dome with gold ball and cross that gives witness to the religious fervor that burned in the breasts of the farmers as they toiled.
St. Charles Seminary was built as a seminary for priests of The Society of the Precious Blood, who also started the nearby Maria Stein Center for the nuns of the order.
The many stunning churches in this area were built by the German settlers who brought their Catholicism with them as they settled Mercer County in the 1830's. Once they settled in Mercer County, they began to long for religious guidance and education from the mother church.
By divine coincidence, Father Brunner, of the Society of the Precious Blood in Italy, was eager to leave the bosom of the church and strike out in missionary work. When the request of the settlers reached his ears, he was on his way.
The Society of the Precious Blood was a new organization at that time, founded in 1815 around the principal of charity, and for the purpose of devotion to the precious blood of Christ. Mercer County was the perfect soil for it to take root in and grow. And grow it did, at one time housing six convents, two seminaries, and many churches.
This magnificent structure was originally built in in 1878 on the site of the former Wattles Manual Labor School for Negro Boys. The name Carthagena is in fact from Carthage, in Africa.
Until it ceased being a seminary in 1969, this complex provided a place for priests, brothers and students to study, removed from the life around them. They sustained themselves by practicing carpentry, butchering, and farming. It is now a home for retired priests.
Make sure, should you visit, to view the chapel inside (through the front door and straight back). Ask first, however, at the office inside the front door to the left. It has a stunning mosaic behind the alter. If no service is taking place, take the time to approach it closely and enjoy the workmanship.
The king of the urgency pitch, Burton 'Buddy' Kallick of Buddy's Carpet Barn passed away last week. For years, Buddy's smiling face and carnie voice were a fixture on Ohio television, offering carpet at what he would have us believe were astounding discounts. But only if we acted by Tuesday.
Kallick and his partner opened Buddy's Carpet Barn in 1983 near Dayton and over the next 20 years built it into a regional success. They sold the company in 2000, but Buddy remained as the pitchman through 2002 as they transitioned to the current spokeswoman.
In the age of MTV-style advertising, Buddy's ads harkened back to a time when advertising was unsophisticated, when the product, the seller and the sales proposition were simply presented. With his smile and conviction, Buddy was an iconic salesman straight from the 50's.
I hope he makes it to heaven by Tuesday, so he can take advantage of their specials.
In a bit of questionable good taste, Twinsburg-based toy manufacturer K&M International will unveil a new line of toys at next month's International Toy Fair in New York featuring a Steve "Crocodile Hunter" Irwin action figure. Irwin was killed last year by a stingray while filming on the Great Barrier Reef.
The talking doll will feature Irwin's recorded voice saying things like "Holy guacamole!" and, no doubt, "CrankyCrikey!" The toy is part of a 39-piece Steve Irwin Wildlife Adventure Series that will be sold in North America and Europe.
Lest you think this will offend Irwin's relatives, these toys have been on sale for the past year at Irwin's zoo in Australia. Irwin's widow pushed for the release, hoping they would help solidify his legacy.
The doll's release coincides with PR buildup for Irwin's final video, Ocean's Deadliest, which debuted on the Discovery Channel yesterday.
I was surprised to learn that the Library of Congress has been storing some of the great treasures of American cinema in vaults at the Wright-Patterson Air Force Base near Dayton. And now they're leaving, moving to a new facility in Culpepper, Virginia..jpg)
Have you ever forgotten to close a bank account? Moved before your income tax refund arrived? Forgotten to check the lottery numbers on your ticket?
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Pity the poor schmuck (me) who usually waits until the last minute to make Valentine's Day reservations at a nice restaurant. Are you aware that they don't accept reservations at Waffle House? It's true..jpg)
830 sites on our planet are listed as 
I thought this would be a good time to recap all the Ohio bands we've posted clips for over the last six months, in case you missed any.
In one of my favorite Simpson's episodes, Homer coats his mouth with candle wax so that he can tolerate eating the world's hottest pepper. I don't suggest this tactic, but you might start thinking about your strategy in preparing for the upcoming 
Dublin, Ohio company 
Our state recently lost out as the site of an experimental coal-burning power plant designed to test new strategies for pollution control, partly because the state lacked sufficient information about our subsoil strata.
Among the silos of cornbelt area south of Grand Lake St. Marys in west central Ohio rises a 5-story-high octagonal dome with gold ball and cross that gives witness to the religious fervor that burned in the breasts of the farmers as they toiled. 
The king of the urgency pitch, Burton 'Buddy' Kallick of Buddy's Carpet Barn 
