On the road again – day two

I was given a chance to write an article for my wife who is recovering from the 5lbs of refried beans she just consumed at a local mexican food joint. We began our day in Cleveland, OH in corn and apple country and the only change for Indiana and Illinois was that they didn’t have apples, JUST corn.

After escaping the northeast we made our way through Indiana. We saw corn, corn and more corn. At this point I started wondering what this country uses all the corn for. I came up with the following: corn (cob, canned, frozen), cornbread, cornmeal, popcorn and animal feed. After realizing I’d just wasted over 30 minutes contemplating the uses of corn I debated the course of my life and decided we needed some chocolate (why you ask, I don’t know!).

We stopped to pick up some chocolate from the ‘famous’ South Bend Chocolate Company and a large McDonald’s fries and some stuff to drink on the road.

My wife’s favorite are malt balls (you know them as Whoppers candy) so I got some dark chocolate, milk chocolate, peanut butter and pumpkin flavored malt balls. By the time I got back she had eaten 2/3 (she says 1/2 of the fries) and decided to try out my drink too! Needless to say, gentleman as I am… I let her have her fun!

Next state: Illinois. I took this picture, yes I have mad, yes mad photography skills, notice the way I captured the very essence of the highway and the Welcome sign as Candy sped past while keeping my stunningly good looks at bay so as not to distract her from the road…

Did I say there was corn everywhere? This is a rest stop just a little ways into Illinois, surrounded by corn fields as far as the eye can see. Noticed the sign? Apparently you have to watch your children or they may disappear into the cornfield…..

Can a sign look any more like corn (yellow and green) without actually admitting that they are full of corn? We think not and therefore predict (probably accurately) that we will see more corn yet to come as we traverse the vast fields of green and yellow (mostly yellowy brown as it is late in the season). Who eats all this corn? Jabba? Does Colonel Sanders have an army that he was creating and he needed to feed them and came up with popcorn as a cover-up to buying all this corn from the central states? Am I getting too close to a cornspiracy?

This is a bridge to connect the cornfie…. err I mean a bridge to Iowa from Illinois.

We decided to eat dinner at a Mexican restaurant in Moline, IL and had sanchos, enchiladas, tacos, etc. but in reality we ate beef, chicken, cheese, corn tortillas, lettuce and tomato along with a little mexican rice and refried beans.

Well that’s it for today, tune in tomorrow for more of candy corns witty and corny banter as well as some kernel of truth to the upcoming cornspiracy….I won’t write anymore, I promise… as long as she doesn’t eat refried beans again tomorrow….