I flew into Bishop International Airport in Flint, arriving between 12 noon & 1 pm. From Airport to Rental Car Terminal was all of 5 minutes or less - it's a small airport. Since everyone else was crowding the luggage area, I decided to get an early start & get my rental car. I picked up my luggage & proceeded to the rental car...which was chock full of smoke. So I went back to the terminal & picked up another car, which was in Spot #21. I thought that my luck was pretty good & that the switch in cars would be a definite good sign.
I drove down to the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, just outside of Detroit. I wasn't sure what to expect there, but I did see the dymaxion house, which was advertised in the post-world-war-II era to be a mass-produced, affordable, easily transportable, & environmentally efficient house. Too bad the inventor (Buckminster Fuller) was a bit ahead of his time: I'm sure he might have had a little more traction if he could work his idea now.
I stumbled into some blast from the past items, like a very old traffic light from the early 1900s, the speak & spell toy that I used as a kid, a certificate of authenticity where bunches of Atari games were dumped but later found, the mathematica exhibit.
To be fair, there were many more items to see inside & outside the museum, but time was a limiting factor as they close at 5 pm. You really want to get there in the morning & spend the whole day there.
After the Ford Museum, I was surprisingly tired - my body thought it was 10:00 rather than 5:00 +/-. So I drove the 2 hours to Battle Creek, stopping at both rest stops along the way, & just passed out in my hotel room.
The next day, I drove all the way to Ligonier, Indiana to the Annie Oakley Perfumery. I saw this destination on a map in 2016 when visiting Indiana, but I could not go then. I figured that this was my best chance remaining to go as there was no guarantee I'll be this close (90 minutes +/-) again. I got to try out some mixes (yes, there are some products for men as well) & I chose two items that I liked. I may cover it in an instagram post at some point.
After driving back to Battle Creek, I stopped in at Lux Cafe - I was told that they had good pancakes. I liked their pancakes & liked their omelettes - definitely a good place to eat breakfast. The service was good & the price was good. If you are in the area looking for breakfast or lunch, go there.
I got back to my room intending to walk around Battle Creek as I noticed various sculptures & artwork that I wanted to view & take pictures of. Unfortunately, I was tired again & opted to nap before my first round at 7pm.
After Round 1, I visited Sweets & Meats in Battle Creek. While this place is known for chocolate & jerky, this random visit stood out to me because I got into a random conversation with the cashier. Apparently, this cashier is looking to move soon & is thinking about moving to New Jersey. If he does, I would like to think I may have influenced that with some good points in the conversation. If he doesn't, oh well. I hope his move (wherever he ends up going) is successful.
I ended up eating dinner at a chain called Finley's. For some reason, the server tried to be good, but he was unaware that some of my original dining choices were finished. Finley's felt similar to Famous Dave's, but the portions were smaller.
The next morning, I did walk around Downtown Battle Creek, & ran into the Kellogg House, the Kellogg institute, the Sojourner Truth Statue, the Compass Rose, the Donald Sherrod Plaque, & a few other items.
I was particularly stunned with seeing the Sojourner Truth Statue - While I did know that she was an outspoken abolitionist & a former slave who escaped to freedom in the 1800s, I did not know she lived in Battle Creek, MI the last 26 years of her life. Before she died, she autographed a book owned by local high school student Hattie Johnson in 1980. A plaque of her signature is shown below.
I lost in Round 5, which knocked me out of prize contention. I sincerely thought that I had improved on my Round 2 play, which was the same colors & the same opening, but I allowed the same ...d5 break in Round 2 & my position eventually went down in flames. All my previous games in the last two years has seen the opponent go passive, so I really have to rethink this early Queen development.
I did find it amusing that mistakes made in games (regardless of player) resurfaced in later rounds.
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And that concludes State #21. #fiftystatesofchess
