Franciscan nun hydrant across the street from the Convent and Academy of the Immaculate Conception,
Previously on Midlife Crisis Crossover:
In addition to our annual road trips, my wife Anne and I have a twice-yearly tradition of spending our birthdays together, usually traveling to some new place or attraction as a short-term road trip — partly as an excuse to spend time together on those most wondrous days, partly to explore areas we’ve never experienced before. That’s every May for me and every October for her. We’re the Goldens. It’s who we are and what we do.
Anne knew what she wanted to do for this year’s birthday outing way back in July: see Patrick Stewart live on stage in Cincinnati. As previously recounted, we landed fourth-row seats and had a wonderful time. But Admiral Shakespeare’s grand tour wasn’t the only thing we did that weekend. Friday on our way from Indianapolis to Cincy we spent the afternoon in the Hoosier town of Oldenburg, where German roots run deep and our curiosity abounded…
Throughout our road trips one of our favorite art categories is Municipal Objects That Aren’t Normally Painted Unless Someone Realizes They Totally Can. During our Oldenburg walkabout it took us a few minutes to notice each of their fire hydrants benefited from an artist’s touch. It’s been eight years since the last time we saw such a collection, which dotted the landscape of Chicago’s Navy Pier. Oldenburg’s hydrants are smaller, yet nonetheless decorative and presumably practical. We’re pretty sure we spotted merely a fraction of their total hydrants, but those we saw were cute.
A monk, for spiritual gender parity. The shot reminds me of the interviewees in one of The Onion’s fake Man-on-the-Street articles.
I couldn’t find a definitive guide to Every Oldenburg Hydrant Ever, so some are open to interpretation until I’m told otherwise, such as Die Hausfrau here.
This guy with a froggie in his pocket, a doggie at his feet, and Cincinnati Reds fandom for life.
Same li’l hydrant dude, rear view. Googling the name got me no new details about this whole project.
My best guess is “factory worker taking time off to celebrate Oktoberfest with his family.”
Same happy worker guy, rear view.
Gonna tell my grandkids this one’s Robert Redford in The Horse Whisperer.
…yes, that’s it, that’s the whole mini-gallery today, no 1500-word reading homework. Enjoy your early dismissal! Now go see if you can beat the lunchtime crowd to Olive Garden!
To be continued! Other chapters in this very special miniseries:
- Part 1: Two Lunches at Brau Haus
- Part 2: Welcome to Oldenburg
- Part 4: Antiquing Practice
- Part 5: Admiral Picard’s Personal Log: Star Trek Fans Welcome Patrick Stewart’s Memoir Tour to Cincinnati
- Part 6: Cincinnati! With Special Guest Covington
- Coda: Our Heartland International Film Festival 2023 Photos, Memories and Afterthoughts
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Wow! What great photographs! Yet another great entry of MCC! What a pleasure to read! My thanks!
I have no idea if the absence of an additional letter ‘l’ in “Gonna tel” in the beginning of the caption for the final Robert Redford-y hydrant is a mistake or deliberate choice. A folksy regionalism? Inadvertent error? Old English — it’s perfectly respectable. Chaucer (“What is my gilt..tel it And it shal ben amended.”) uses it, Shakespeare (“Prythee tel her but a worky day Fortune.”) uses it, Thomas More (“Tel him that his bodi shalbe impassible, & neuer fele harme.”) uses it. I just figured it’d be best to bring it to the attention of someone other than myself.
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Kinda hoping I’d lok col by skiping double leters! I’l fel les stupid if everyone folows my lead! Or I could confes it’s a typo and corect the eror, I gues.
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