A long way from PA: Part 1

And so begins the tale of the O'Malley's attempt to be like Lewis and Clark...minus the dystentery of course.

After we said our goodbyes and loaded up our gear, Amanda and I headed out on the road again Wednesday, July 11th. Our goal was to head back to Olney to pick up the rest of our belongings, which we left in the apartment there. Along the way, we planned to make a detour to Louisville, KY to see the Louisville Slugger Museum. Wednesday night we camped on the outskirts of Louisville in Jefferson Memorial Forest. While there we stumbled across a disc golf course, and we felt obligated to play. Little did we know it was league night (really? disc golf league night?) so we accidentally got mixed up in tons of hardcore disc golfers. We clearly did not belong, but we stuck with it, had a good time, and managed not to embarrass ourselves too badly.

Advice: Avoid disc golf in KY,
those guys mean business.

Following disc golf we retreated back to our campsite where I proceeded to build an oversized campfire. The campground dropped off way to much firewood for us and I felt obligated to use as much as possible, hence the barely controllable blaze.

Only YOU can prevent forest fires!

The next morning we headed out to the Slugger Museum downtown. I highly recommend going there and taking the factory tour. First, they demonstrate how bats used to be made back in the late 1800's (and it was actually a guy originally from Philly who did this) and then they take you around the factory to show you the modern ways used to make bats for current Major League players. It's a must see for any baseball fan. There's also some really great exhibits there too, including one where I got to hold a bat owned and used by Babe Ruth, and then take a replica Babe Ruth bat into the batting cages. I have a whole new respect for the Great Bambino now, his bat is like a cave man club. It's enormous and incredibly heavy. I was exhausted after just 10 swings.

After Louisville, it was time for our last hurrah (for now anyway) in Olney. Luckily, we got to see all of our new found friends from Richland Memorial Hospital again because they were nice enough to meet us for lunch on Friday. It was so good to spend time everyone again, but at the same time, we were excited for the next leg of our adventure. It was definitely bittersweet.

Team RMH: We'll miss you guys!

Before we officially left Olney, I compiled a list of observations and random thoughts from our time there:

• I miss Wawa. I knew I would, but I really do. The closest thing to it is called Casey's, but it's really more like a 7-11 than anything. And we all know that 7-11 has got nothing on Wawa.
• Casey's best quality is their amazing windshield squeegees. Now, you wouldn't think that would be a big deal, but Southern Illinois is one of the buggiest areas I have ever seen. There were times while driving where you are hitting so many bugs that it literally sounds like rain. So a good squeegee goes a long way. 
• Another thing I missed from home were Tastykakes. You will not find a better snack cake. It's impossible.
• There are some interesting street signs around here, such as this one:

Gotta love the
white squirrel

• The streets are also uniquely organized. Every road has both a number (eg. 1250 Ave.) and a name (eg. Walnut Street). However, the name is written so small under the number that it is impossible for any mere mortal to see it at normal driving speeds, thus rendering a GPS useless.
• Then there's the ridiculous occurrences where two roads intersect without a traffic light or stop sign to be found. Now generally this occurs on very rural roads so there is rarely an incident of two car crossing paths at the same time, but it is still kind of scary.

Do you see any stop signs?

• The pastor at St. Joseph's Church in Olney looks exactly like Carter Pewterschmidt from Family Guy. I tried to get a picture but was unsuccessful, so you'll have to take my word for it.
• If you have any desire to live to be 90+ years old, move to Olney. I have never seen so many people over the age of 90 who are still in relatively good shape. They must be putting something in the water.
• Olney, IL has got to be the per capita vanity license plate capital of the U.S. Seriously, everyone's got them.
• People over the age of 60 here refer to Walmart as: "The Wall Marts". It just sounds awkward and wrong when they say it like that.
• There's a lot of love for Abe Lincoln around here. Illinois calls itself "The land of Lincoln", Indiana is "Lincoln's boyhood home", and Kentucky is "The birthplace of Lincoln". You'd think he wouldn't be that popular in the South, what with the Civil War and all.
• Pork burgers are one of my new favorite meals. Envision a sausage patty crossed with a hamburger and cover it in BBQ sauce. I dare you tell me that doesn't sound amazing.

Finally, I'd like to leave you with a little slideshow recap of the highlights from our time in Olney, IL. Amanda will be bringing Part 2 of our westward journey to you shortly, so be on the lookout.