“Escape to Margaritaville” at Beef and Boards Dinner Theatre

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Miguel in Island Wear

As soon as you walk into the Beef & Boards lobby for Jimmy Buffett’s Escape to Margaritaville you can feel the excitement. There is a large photo op banner waiting for you to capture that perfect memory shot. The B&B staff waiting to greet you and escort you to your table are all decked out in island wear. You know, those wild flowered/palm tree printed shirts. Even House Manager Miguel Jardon greeted us sporting a marvelous island print suit. Pre-show island music also adds to the anticipation of an entertainment filled evening of music and hilarity. Escape to Margaritaville is truly a slice of musical paradise and a great way to end the summer.

Tully on the island bar (photo B&B media)

Both long time and new Jimmy Buffett fans aka “Parrot Heads” will love this energetic production. From a B&B press release: “This show is a musical comedy featuring both original songs and your most-loved Jimmy Buffett classics including “Cheeseburger in Paradise,” “Margaritaville,” “It’s Five O’Clock Somewhere,” “Fins,” “Volcano,” and many more.” Also listed are the book authors Greg Garcia and Mike O’Malley.

Brick and Tammy in a rousing version of “Cheeseburger in Paradise”

The story takes place on an unnamed Caribbean island. The well worn resort hosts week long tour groups and the resort staff, well, tries to put up with their guests. Fireworks erupt when two gals from Cincinnati show up, one planning to be married in a week, the other an all work no play environmentalist. The bartender Brick (Brett Mutter), likes the soon to be married Tammy (Hannah Elizabeth Boswell), and singer/songwriter Tully (Kyle Southern)  sets his sights on Rachel (Amanda Tong) the environmentalist.

Tully and Brick sing “Five O’Clock Somewhere”

The set design is the mastermind of Michael Layton, including the wonderful backscreen that displays both rhythmic ocean waves and fiery volcano lava. Terry Woods directs the orchestra, Travis Grant designs wigs and costumes. Ron Morgan’s choreography is stunning, and Douglas E. Stark directs with a flair for professional theater quality often missing in some venues.

Tully teaches Rachel how to play the guitar via the song “Three Chords”

The cast of Margaritaville work together seamlessly. Kyle Southern and Amanda Tong realistically develop their chemistry as the show progresses. You have to enjoy Brett Mutter and Hannah Elizabeth Boswell as they work through her impending marriage standing in the way of their growing attraction. Her fiancé makes it very easy for you to love to hate him. Logan Moore plays Chad as a jerk flawlessly. Ray Gleaves successfully plays two roles.

“Why Don’t We Get Drunk and Screw” J.D. sings while trying to woo Marley

Jamal singing “Volcano”

Rachael Bibbs makes her debut at B&B playing the part of Marley, the manager of the resort. In addition to her managerial duties, she has to act in somewhat of a den mother role for guests and staff. B&B veteran and one of this venue’s favorites, Jeff Stockberger fills the role of local drunk J.D.  Always seen with a longneck in his hand, Stockberger shines as usual. His grasp of comedy including perfect comedic timing makes his performance a key part of the success of this show.

To purchase tickets online, visit beefandboards.com. Tickets are also available by calling the Beef & Boards Dinner Theatre Box Office at 317.872.9664 anytime between 10 a.m. and 7 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday and from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesdays.

Roses after the rain

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Rose against a gray sky, morning glory vine grows under the bloom

Getting ready to open

Bet there are fresh raindrops caught in the bloom

Color is peaking through, delicate drops perched on the bud

We had an nice surprise when an unexpected downpour came through right after 12 noon. We had a good 20 minute heavy shower. The air is so fresh and clean right after a rain. Earth’s local cleaning service…

 

Nashville’s Hard Truth Distillery

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Nashville Indiana is home to a relatively new distillery, brewery, restaurant and entertainment venue. The Hard Truth website tell its story: “Hard Truth Distilling Co. began distilling in 2015 in the small upper rooms of Big Woods Pizza Co. in downtown Nashville, Indiana. … by 2017, construction had begun on a new facility…  That property became the gorgeous Hard Truth campus, with the Hard Truth Tours & Tastings Center being the first building to open its doors to guests at the very end of 2017.” The Restaurant at Hard Truth opened in the summer of 2018, followed by the new sweet mash distillery that fall.

Large variety of distilled on site products

On our recent day trip we noticed a sign pointing to a distillery just outside of Nashville. We followed and ended up at the Hard Truth facility, a beautiful setting with several buildings including the distillery tasting room and the restaurant. The first building we came to was the tasting room.

Entrance to the Distillery Tasting room

We had five samples each all different

By sharing we tried 10 samples each

 

 

 

 

 

 

The wide variety of liquors was in itself quite an adventure. We tried everything from certified Indiana Rye whiskey to Cinnamon Vodka to imported Irish whiskey from the owner’s family in County Cavan, Ireland. The bartender shared that Hard Truth sends their own barrels to Ireland to be filled with the whiskey. Then the filled barrels are transported on the seas back to the States. We purchased two different bottles before we left.

This building houses the restaurant

Entrance on Old SR 46, a mile 1/2 east of Nashville

 

 

 

 

 

The grounds of this facility are very beautiful, peaceful and even serene. The hills of Brown County make a near perfect setting for this multi-faceted business. We do plan on returning sometime to try out the restaurant, and to also hit the tasting room of the brewery. Oh yes, they also have a large brewery.

 

Bond Cemetery Road Bridge, abandoned

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Bond Cemetery Road Bridge, aka Brown County Bridge #36, is a very interesting bridge that has been abandoned and is, frankly, degrading at a fairly rapid pace. The HistoricBridges.org website states: “The bridge is severely deteriorated and the bridge is at an increasing risk for collapse. One of the plates that is part of the floorbeam and hanger system is cracked so badly it is split nearly in half. (see photo below) Many diagonal and vertical members have extremely severe section loss at the heads. Restoration of this bridge would likely need to include disassembly and restoration of these parts in a shop setting.”

Abandonment is, ah, obvious

This historic bridge was constructed in 1908 by the Pan-American Bridge Company of New Castle, Indiana, who were very prolific iron bridge constructors in Indiana. The technical design name of this bridge is a single-span, pin-connected Pratt through truss with an “I” beam approach to the south. The bridge rests on metal abutments, wingwalls and round caisson piers.

The concrete filled metal caisson foundation

The cracked plate referenced above

Looking through the decorative lattice guardrail at North Fork of Salt Creek

Bridge behind camera looking down old Bond Cemetery Road

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This bridge spans the North Fork of Salt Creek and is a couple of hundred yards south of Green Valley Road on what is left of Bond Cemetery Road. The old road bed continues towards Highway 46 past the cemetery of that name. There was discussion in the early 2000’s about building some type of trail along the road, including refurbishing the bridge as part of the trail. Too bad nothing ever came of that plan.

Note the “interlaced” I beam verticals, and the moss growing on the deck boards.

This is one of those stories that apparently will not have a happy ending. The private owner of the bridge does not seem to care if the bridge collapses. According to the experts at HistoricBridges.org it is not a matter of if, but when this classic 1908 bridge goes down. What a shame.

 

Cicada emerges

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Last year was supposed to be the great 17 year mass cicada emergence across the Midwest and East coast. In our part of Indiana we only saw one cicada shell and heard none of the loud insects. Within the last two weeks we have heard a lot of cicadas at night. We have found four of them on the tires of our vehicle. One is in the photo, above. They missed the big show by a year…

The reconstructed 1885 Cedar Ford Covered Bridge

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This beautiful Kennedy Brothers bridge started its life in 1885 by spanning Little Blue River northeast of Shelbyville, Indiana. In 1975, instead of demolishing the bridge to make way for a modern bridge, Cedar Ford was relocated to the Shelby County Fairgrounds.

Beautiful white reconstructed bridge

 

 

 

The bridge remained at the fairgrounds for several years and was a great addition to the historic fairgrounds. However, someone raised a liability issue, and unfortunately the fair had the bridge dismantled, sold it to a private individual and then it was stored unprotected for years. So much for “historic” Shelby County Fairgrounds.

One of the abutments

Kennedy Bros trademark scroll work

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Monroe County, Indiana engineer named Jim Barker got ahold of the useable parts and incorporated them into the design of the fully authentic covered bridge. According to Bridge Hunter website the bridge was reconstructed at “the site of the Millikan/Milligan/McMillan/Williams Covered Bridge that was destroyed by an arson fire in 1976. Remnants of the original abutments of that bridge can be seen just West of the current bridge. Although that bridge wasn’t a Kennedy built span, there were at least two of them that once existed in Monroe County.”

Typical notched connection joint

The Burr-Arch truss

 

 

 

 

 

This reconstruction took place in 2019 with as many of the original members as were structurally sound. New materials were faithfully reproduced when required to finish the structure. This bridge is a Kennedy Brothers Burr-arch truss design typical of Kennedy bridges in Indiana. It spans Bean Blossom Creek on Old Maple Grove Road north of Bloomington.

Looks, sounds and smells like it did in 1885

The smell of freshly sawn lumber is perhaps the most remarkable feature of this marvelous rebuild. That’s right, when we walked across the deck of the 127 foot long span, you could clearly smell the clean scent of newly sawn lumber. You can’t help but realize that that fragrance is what the first users of the bridges encountered as they crossed the first time.

 

Tomatoes going red and some mushrooms

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These home grown beauties ripen fast once they start to turn

There were several more that almost made a Fairy Ring…

Our two tomato plants have done quite nicely the past month, giving us, as you can see, some nice fruits. The backyard also was fertile ground, it seems, for quite a few mushrooms that showed up overnight.