'Ween Scenes From The 'Creek

Pumpkins outside entrance of Marie's Candies.

Yesterday my friends Barb and Whitney joined me on a trip to Marie's Candies in West Liberty, Ohio.   If I make the right turns, it's about 25 minutes from home.   I know I've mentioned them before, but if you are in the area (near Bellefontaine) you really ought to stop in.  They always have festive decorations, great candy and samples!   We learned something as we pulled up.  Did you know that October 30th is National Candy Corn Day????

Barb and Whitney!

I really don't know of anyone that actually eats the stuff, but according to their signage (and I'm sure extensive research...LOL) it is said that 35 million pounds of candy corn is produced annually.  (I'm guessing 34.95 million pounds of it is thrown away....)  That equals 9 billion pieces which would circle the moon almost 21 times.  There are only 3.57 calories and no fat in this little morsel.

Other Halloween Fun Facts: courtesy of Marie's signs...

* Halloween introduced to America in the 1940s.
* 2/3 of Americans buy decorations, 2nd most decorated holiday
* 90% of parents sneak candy out of their children's treat bag
* Three billion dollars a year spent on Halloween merchandise.
* 99% of pumpkins grown become Jack O'Lanterns  (nearly 998 million pounds of them)

Back to Maries....

The friendly gals do a great job of beautifully decorating the store and their products.  You would think you were in a big city shop instead of a little store out in the country.

My favorite candies are the dark and light chocolate peppermint chews.  Audra likes the chocolate carmel pretzels and Taylor likes the light peanut turtles.  It's all good though!

In Ohio, we celebrate a holiday between Halloween and Thanksgiving called Michigan Game Day.  Marie's even included a little maize and blue for the two or three Michigan fans around...

The hens were lazy this year and didn't decorate their house or ours.  But we do have some photos of the celebration!

Taylor's 2013 Pirate Pumpkin

We had a pumpkin decorating contest at work.  This is our appliance/cabinet dept entry.

Though Taylor carved his pumpkin, I cheated with Mr. Potato Head parts!  The hens will get to enjoy these after the holiday.

A  not-too-happy Sylvia Scarlett dressed up as a Bucket of Chicken and we stopped into where I work.

We did have one trick or treater come a bit early....

Until next time, have a safe and Happy Halloween (hopefully a storm-free one too!)

Gale

If You Like Sandwiches, You'll Love This Post!

If you find yourself in South Columbus, you definitely need to try the Ohio Deli .  We don't live anywhere near there, but a few times a year we take the 45 minute drive.  I don't normally do restaurant reviews, but this one deserves mentioning.  I will occasionally tell you about other really good places in case you are ever in the area.

Though known for the "Dagwood Challenge" and featured on the Food Network's "Man vs Food" show, this deli really wouldn't catch your eye going down the street.  It's not at all fancy and not in the best of areas.  But, I've never had a bad experience there and that says something for a restaurant.  The food is not only good and reasonably priced, but you get a lot of it!  I always wind up taking a half of my sandwich home and have yet to buy a dessert, though they look great!

If you take the challenge, you have 30 minutes to eat an enormous sandwich and a pound of french fries.  If you do it, the meal is free.  We watched a couple guys try, but they gave up and didn't look too well...

The last time we were there, this is what Taylor ordered.  He brought half home.

They also serve many different platters and hot meals, soups, etc.  But I'd say go there when you are really hungry for a big sandwich!

Until next time!

Gale