Sandy's Cleveland Blog

Ohio has a long history of using barn sides for advertising. Over the weekend, one landowner outside of Bowling Green used his barn to show his support for Barack Obama. According to a recent ABC News poll, Senator Obama narrowly leads Senator John McCain in Ohio.

^{(photo © JD Pooley/Getty Image)}

Today, October 6 (2008) is the last day to register to vote in the general election, November 4, 2008.

To vote in the state of Ohio, you must be a US citizen, be at least 18 years of age, and reside in the state at least 30 days prior to the election. You may register in person at one of the following locations: (You can register at any location within the state, but you must vote in the precinct where you live.)

• Any County Board of Elections Office
• Any Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles Registration Office
• Any public or vocational school in the state
• Public libraries
• Any County Treasurer's Office

You remain registered if you vote in one general election at least once every four years. You may also request an absentee ballot without giving a reason.

Let yourself be heard. Register to Vote!

Voting is just one way to make a difference in Cleveland.


^{(Photo Courtesy of the Ohio Dept. of Travel and Tourism)}

Are you planning a Halloween party? Consider these ten, fun Halloween cocktails from Colleen Graham, the About Guide to Cocktails. There are traditional favorites, like a Zombie and Black Martini (pictured at right) as well as new ones (at least to me), like the Ghostbuster.

For more on Halloween, see:

• Best Cleveland Halloween Events
• Halloween Decorating
• Northeast Ohio Haunted Houses
• Pumpkin Recipes
• Haunted Cleveland

^{(Photo © C. Graham; Licensed to About, Inc.)}

The annual Ashtabula Covered Bridge Festival, held October 11 and 12 at the Ashtabula County fairgrounds, celebrates the 16 fascinating examples of historic covered bridges in that county -- the most of any county in Ohio.

The festival events include self-guided and hosted tours of the bridges, a parade, a quilt show, live entertainment, food, a farmer's market, and lots more. Admission is $4 for adults and free for those under 12. Read more about the festival at the official website.

^{(© istockphoto; Licensed to About, Inc.)}

Ohio apple growers produce up to 100 million pounds of apples each season. If you're like me, you find it confusing to determine which apples are best for eating raw and which are best for baking.

Here's a look at 11 of the most popular of the over 40 varieties of apples grown in Ohio.

For more about Ohio apples, see:

• Ohio Apples Farms
• What was Johnny Appleseed?
• Ohio Apple Crisp Recipe
• Ohio Pioneer Apple Cake Recipe

^{(photo courtesy of the US Apple Association)}

You know all those cool Halloween costumes we've been talking about, for adults, your kids, and even your pets. BuyCostumes.com is offering free shipping on orders of $65 or more if you order by October 6.

Check out the many safe and fun Halloween activities planned for kids this season. There's "Boo at the Zoo," both at the Cleveland Zoo and the Akron Zoo, "Camp Spooky" at Cedar Point (pictured at right), and "Nights on Lake Eerie" at the Great Lakes Science Center. Read more about these and other Family Halloween Activities.

^{(Photo courtesy of Cedar Point)}

Most of us took our driver's licensing test when we were still in high school and for many of us that was more than a couple of years ago. How much do you remember? Sure you know the basics, but tell me you're not confused about the school bus thing. (I just stop whenever I'm anywhere near one, much to the chagrin of the drivers behind me.)

"Blogging Ohio" may be gone, but Tom Barlow's fun review of Ohio's traffic laws lives on. Click here to test your knowledge of Ohio's traffic regulations.

From About.com contributor, Amelia Z. Sawyer:

The Last Days of Summer
As summer comes to a close I find myself scurrying to pack my weeks with outdoor kid-friendly activities. Last week was no exception. The Chef & I packed the car with kids, diapers, milk, and snacks and drove out to the Cuyahoga Valley to visit (and pick berries) Greenfield Berry Farm. We pulled in the drive and were pleased to see fields of berries, a barn, and some other crop that we would find out to be fingerling potatoes.

Green Fields Ahead…
My son Catcher, who had been talking about picking berries each night prior to the farm visit for a week, jumped out of the car, picked up a basket, and ran towards the field. As I scurried after him, the Chef grabbed our daughter, Louisiana and met with Farmer Greenfield. Farmer Greenfield created the Certified Naturally Grown berry farm in a partnership with Cuyahoga Valley Conservancy through their Countryside Initiative. This year, the Greenfield Berry Farm is offering strawberries, blackberries, black raspberries, elderberries, garlic, fingerling potatoes, sweet potatoes, heirloom pumpkins, and sunflowers for cutting.

Farm Fun
I followed Catcher down the path towards the raspberries and paused a moment to wait for the Chef & Lou to catch up. By the time they made it to the field, Catcher had probably eaten two to three quarts. What can I say? The boy loves the raz. As a family we managed to pick about two quarts of raspberries and then were approached by Farmer Greenfield. He asked us if we would like him to dig up some fingerling potatoes with his tractor. We immediately said yes and before I knew it Catcher was headed towards the large farm tractor.

Baby Loves Dirt & Potatoes
The fingerling potato experience was so cool. Farmer Greenfield basically overturned the dirt with his tractor and beautiful golden fingerlings would appear. Even little Louisiana got into the spirit. She decided that she has no qualms with dirt and went right for the potato eatin’. We managed to get about 5 huge baskets of fingerlings. When we got home I realized how many potatoes’ we actually had and made the Chef take about half to his restaurant.

Greenfield Berry Farm was a great experience for all of us. Farmer Greenfield let us know that they will have pumpkin picking in October as well as educational classes. For more information about Greenfield Berry Farm please visit their website or give them a call at (330) 657-2924. Greenfield Berry Farm is located at 2485 Major Road in Pennisula.

Editor's Note: for more fall food fun, visit one of NE Ohio's many apple farms.

^{(photo © AZ Sawyer)}

Paul Newman, the extraordinary actor, Shaker Heights native, philanthropist, race-car driver, and pioneer in manufacturing healthy, no-frills food that tastes good, died yesterday (September 26, 2008) at his home in Connecticut of complications from lung cancer. He was 83.

Newman won an Academy Award for his work in "Color of Money" as well as two Golden Globe Awards, a Screen Actors Guild Award, and an Emmy. His more than 60 films include "Hud," "The Hustler," "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof," "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid," and "The Long Hot Summer."

Food lovers will remember Newman for his "Newman's Own" food company, which he started in 1982 with his friend, A.E. Hotchner. The company started making just one product, a salad dressing using Newman's personal recipe and branched into dozens of products, including snacks, salsa, pasta sauce, and lemonade. One hundred percent of the company's after tax proceeds go to charitable causes, including the "Hole in the Wall Camp" that Newman founded for children with terminal illnesses. In this video from "Newman's Own," Newman talks about the company and the satisfaction he got from it over the years.