December 2017

Photographs made over the past month that didn't have a place in other stories. 

Images made with a Canon 7DMKII, iPhone 7+, and iPhone X. 

December 2017 started with plenty of fog blanketing the city in the mornings as seen above and below.

- Parkside Cafe in Walnut Hills, which used to be a Frisch's Big Boy and still mirrors one, but is much better than a Frisch's could ever hope to be.

I'm not particularly big on any holidays, especially Christmas. However, I did enjoy having the opportunity for us to decorate this year.

If anything, it's an excuse to bust out vintage Cincinnati ornaments that predate me...

...and play with model trains:

- Downtown Cincinnati.

- The Cincinnati skyline as seen from within the convention center.

- Parking garage Christmas decorations.

- The legend known as Kile along with High Life and chicken tenders at The Pony in OTR.

- Christmas in Oakley.

- I've still yet to eat pizza from the ubiquitous, yet seemingly gas station exclusive, Hunt Brothers Pizza chain, but it's on the to-do list. Anything's better than Papa John's.

On a quick road trip to Ft. Wayne, Indiana to see some family, we stopped at the quaint Motor Inn truck stop diner in Mendon, OH with its iconic sign, kitschy bird decorations, and delicious reuben.

- Fort Wayne, IN cityscape.

On the way back from Fort Wayne, we stopped into Dayton to get some empanadas and other good food from Salar. Unfortunately, this restaurant recently shut down due to a fire. I hope it reopens eventually, it's pretty good.

- Birds in Downtown Cincinnati building overhang.

My good friend Bob gave me an incredibly thoughtful Christmas gift, presenting a print of one of my favorite photographs to me. The photograph shows a maintenance man inspecting the now demolished Son of Beast roller coaster at Kings Island Amusement Park. I worked at the park for several years, including two winters in wood coaster maintenance. In the Spring of 2008, I made this photograph for a university assignment while my coworker Dave and I were 200 ft. in the air. That story is here.

This image represents a lot to me and a print of it is great to have, but Bob took it a step further...

...because the entire print is composed via a mosaic of images, almost every image featured here on QC/D in the past decade.

I was blown away by how thoughtful this was and how much it took to put together. Bob is a great friend and someone I might not have ever met were it not for this website, this city, and our mutual love for soccer.

From the bottom of my heart again, Bob: thank you. This means a lot.

- Trees being disposed of already on Christmas Eve in Springdale, Ohio.

- Christmas Day, West Side of Cincinnati.

To end 2017, I found Fading Ads of Cincinnati still on sale at the incredible Ohio Book Store. Coincidentally, it's on display right next to Cincinnati's Incomplete Subway by Jake Mecklenborg, which is an awesome book by a great dude who's been a longtime inspiration.

A few days later, I got to sign a copy of my book as it was being added to the library at Rhinehaus, one of the city's finest establishments. Hoping I'll get to add another book to that collection as I continue working on something new throughout 2018.

I wish I had gotten around to more posts this past month, but I've been busy with my day job, the holidays, traveling, and waiting out Major League Soccer's decision on whether or not they'll be accepting FC Cincinnati. I've been writing a lot, but haven't had much time for getting that work to the site. In the meantime, here's what did go up in December 2017:

From Cincinnati to Huntington, Indiana | A road trip from home through rural Ohio to small town Indiana with good food, my Dad, and plenty of stops to see cool stuff along the way.

The Major League Soccer Decision Looms... | I wrote this for Die Innenstadt, but also posted it here on QC/D. Some thoughts about the past few years in local soccer and where things may be heading. 

2017 In Review | A look back at my favorite photographs from the past year.

Just got back home today from the third road trip this month. Stay tuned for more photos and stories.

Edit: Also, as you may have noticed, there's ads on the site now. I gotta eat and while they're clunking up the mobile version of the site, maybe this is the year I finally get things moved over to WordPress?