Monthly Archives: July 2025

Books, Small Businesses, and Wheatberry

Posted on by
8

Last week, I found myself in Chillicothe with a few minutes to kill and a desire to support Wheatberry, an independent bookstore in downtown. Chillicothe’s largest industry was recently lost with the closure of the paper mill and the hit to the economy makes me worry for small businesses like this one.

So I gave myself permission to go in and buy a book. One book and nothing more. There were other things I needed to be spending my money on  and, if you could see my collection of books waiting to be read, you would understand why I really didn’t need to be shopping at that moment. Yet I want to get into the habit of popping in more often and this was a good opportunity. 

I had a lovely time perusing their selection, starting in non-fiction with a quick stop in children’s before making my way to fiction. I have often thought I would like to meet whoever does the buying for this store because it’s like they are purposefully packing their shelves with exactly the kind of books I want to read. 

Given that my interests span so many genres, that’s not the easiest thing to do! 

At some point, I struck up a conversation with the nice lady running the store and we began talking about specific books. Turns out, she and I have similar reading tastes and she began recommending books. Finally, she asked if I like thrillers and if I had read anything by Lisa Jewell, thereby introducing me to a new author. When she endorsed Jewell’s book The Family Upstairs, I said “sold” and purchased it immediately.

There’s something to be said for the services you receive at small businesses. In this case, it’s clear that the staff at Wheatberry love books and are thrilled to talk about them, not just sell them.

The folks that run our small businesses are our neighbors. They support our communities. They share our interests. They might be our friends. They are contributing something value to our communities. 

Amazon might save you a few bucks but Amazon doesn’t support your local festivals or your kid’s ball team. Small businesses in your community not only will chip in to help with uniforms, they’ll show up and cheer too. And they may play it cool while you’re there buying but small business folk do a happy dance at every purchase!

The interaction made me think about how lovely it is to have an independent bookstore nearby. If we want a business to survive, we have to support them as much as we can and I need to do a better job with this. 

If there’s a small business in your community that you appreciate and wish to keep, get your friends on board, and all of you step up to support them in whatever way you can. They need us now more than ever. 

And if you’re in Chillicothe, Ohio and in the mood to find some books you never knew you couldn’t live without, stop by Wheatberry and let them hook you up!

The Tale Of Two License Plates

Posted on by
7

Back in 2003, the State of Ohio issued a license plate to commemorate the state’s bicentennial. The red, white and blue design featured the Bicentennial Commission’s logo and included the phrase “Birthplace of Aviation.”

I bought a car that year and got one of these license plates. And I have transferred it, year after year, car after car, for all these years. I eventually grew attached to the number but could never manage to get replacements ordered in a timely fashion. 

Some might call it procrastination but that sounds like a harsh word. Ha! The fact it went on annually for well over a decade makes it sound even worse. 

When I bought White Lightning last year, it was well past shabby and moving into junky but I wasn’t about to buy new plates when I had literally just renewed my registration. 

This year was different as I jumped on my registration reminder as soon as it arrived, logged into their website, and with the two clicks it took to make a purchase with my mobile wallet, I had ordered new plates with my old plate number. The shiny new one just arrived and is now on my car! It features sunrise in Ohio with the Wright Flyer headed toward the sun.

This is a silly story, isn’t it? 

Those old plates have been on a few cars and have traveled many miles through ten or eleven states and the District of Columbia. They’ve seen me down quiet country roads, busy highways and some treacherous situations but they’ve always brought me safely home. 

Maybe that’s not so silly after all.

Small Town Proud

Posted on by
10

My hometown suffered a devastating loss yesterday. The Hotel McArthur which began operating as a hotel back in the stagecoach days caught fire and suffered severe damage. Situated at the intersection of state routes 50 and 93, this old building has seen a lot over the years and has been a landmark for generations of locals and travelers alike.

While it hasn’t operated as a hotel for many years, plans were underway by a local nonprofit to renovate the building and to create a beautiful place to support the county’s growing tourism industry.

Many of us stood by, helpless and with tears in our eyes as we saw billowing smoke rise high above the village and flames dance through the hotel’s rooftop. We worried for the restaurant next door which suffered water damage.

Our community is blessed to have an amazing network of volunteer fire departments who all responded. And then came the cavalry from neighboring counties. All told, thirteen departments responded to this fire. Without our volunteer firefighters and assistance from our neighbors, the community’s losses could have been much greater.

EMS, ODOT, EMA, the village street department, sheriff’s office and village police all coordinated to keep everyone safe and traffic moving away from the danger. 

For much of the day, I could hear from my office the sounds of newly arriving fire trucks, the urgent sirens blaring as tankers left to refill. No sooner would one leave, another would return. It was an intense day and a worrisome one as we all were conscious of the heat and the danger to firefighters who battled the blaze in heavy turnout gear.

There were also people and businesses who showed up. They brought cold drinks and food for the first responders. The bank where I work contributed too. Austin Powder sent a giant tanker full of water. People gathered to watch as this mighty piece of our history was claimed by flames and water. They shook their heads in sorrow, told stories about the past, and some wept at the loss. We all felt a sincere sense of loss for what was and for what might have been with the renovations planned for this building.

This is why small towns are the best. THIS is why I ignore those who criticize places like my small rural community. Our critics simply haven’t stuck around long enough to see what happens when the chips are down. No one struggles alone. We look out for each other. We fuss over the firefighters and worry for their safety. We mourn a collective loss and together we overcome.

This is what small towns do.

I talked to so many people yesterday and we all agreed that we are proud to be part of this community and we are in awe of how many people came from near and far to offer aid. If you are one of those people, please accept my thanks.

Mini Adventure Day Close To Home

Posted on by
8

Big trips are exciting but mini adventures are sometimes just enough to scratch the travel itch and keep you enriching your life close to home. Adam and I went on a mini adventure Saturday, driving backroads to Circleville for a library book sale and ice cream at the nation’s oldest family owned candy shop. 

It doesn’t sound like much but, you know how I roll: we made some other stops. First of all, the library book sale was well organized and we both found treasures. They do these sales several times a year and you can bet we will go back. Pizza Cottage was probably the MVP with a veggie pizza so loaded with toppings it was hard to see the crust. We also had great service and would highly recommend this regional chain.

We admired downtown murals and architecture and roamed through the Ted Lewis Museum for a little art and culture. Check back for more on this soon.

When that historic candy shop was closed, we regrouped to pick up ice cream from the Dairy Queen walk-up window and basked in the air conditioned comfort of my car with our sweet treats. We’ll visit those other places some other day.

Finally, a quick trip through Ollie’s to “look at the books” led me to bring home several things I “needed.”

Was this an exciting adventure day? I suppose not. We didn’t go far and there are no great headlines from this day trip. However, we looked more closely at things I normally just pass by and we were together. We chatted and laughed all day long and I thought it was a perfectly lovely day. 

Don’t have time for a long trip? Can’t afford a long trip? I would highly recommend looking around your own community and just beyond. Some of my very best adventure days have been less than an hour from home. You might be surprised at the interesting hometown museums, hidden murals, great meals and fascinating people just off the beaten path of places you think you know. 

And, if you think you know a place, that’s a really good reason to go in for a closer look. I’m telling you, there’s fun to be had.

Listening And Empathy: A New Revolution

Posted on by
5

A few years ago, I encountered a gentleman named Floyd while out adventuring. I was white, middle aged and solo adventuring. He is older than me, a black man with friendly eyes, who was out adventuring with his cousin.

Floyd and I struck up a conversation while waiting for our tour to begin and we became fast friends. We talked about travel and day trips, about the state of the country and about race. Most importantly, we talked about how so many of our problems could be solved with nothing more than what we were doing: sitting on a porch, exchanging stories and listening to each other’s perspective.

I have met a lot of people in this life and remember many but this conversation and this man are never too far from my consciousness. That sounds so strange, I know, but my decision that day to make eye contact and say hello was life changing.

At that point, I had been out in the world talking to strangers about an array of topics that made me think most Americans have more in common than we believe. People love their communities. They want to work and earn a living, build a business, grow their families, love their pets, find interests that excite them, and go to bed every night feeling safe and secure. 

But in all those conversations, I hadn’t met anyone who was not white and who was willing to speak openly about race. Floyd and I waded straight into that territory and it was like a breath of fresh air. No one felt threatened. I didn’t think it was awkward. We shared some common ideas. I learned from him. I questioned some things I thought I knew and came home with a whole lot of food for thought.

It’s hard to ignore, mistreat, hate or misunderstand a person when they’re sitting next to you and when you’re willing to lay down your biases and replace your slings and arrows with an open mind and empathy. 

I check in and out of the world these days. Reading the news feels like a strange kind of emotional cutting. Seeing smart people perpetuate falsehoods, scams and spam because they support that individual’s bias is demoralizing. Divides deeper than the Grand Canyon have been carved out of the most unlikely places. I haven’t adventured as much as normal for the last year and certainly haven’t been out talking to people the way I did there for a while so I wonder if I would still believe that what unites us is more powerful than the red and blue lines crisscrossing the nation today. 

Floyd messaged me this week and our conversation got me to thinking about the person I was when he and I met. I was more optimistic about the state of the world and about the future. It is my hope to someday find myself in that mental headspace again. Meanwhile, I’m glad to count Floyd as a friend and appreciate him reminding me of the old Brandi and that what unites the two of us is far more powerful than any differences. 

Do yourself a favor on this Independence Day. Go find a stranger who looks or thinks differently than you. Sit on a bench and chat. Maybe you’ll learn something. It could be revolutionary.

Resilience

Posted on by
7

Monsoon season continues here in southern Ohio. To be fair, it doesn’t rain all the time. Sometimes it’s dry and blistering hot. Regardless, you can be sure the humidity will be over 90 percent so there’s absolutely no reason to put a lot of work into your hair.

So far this year, I’m growing a terrific crop of weeds with a few flowers in the middle and I can’t begin to keep up with the work.

Yesterday, I stood at the window watching an absolute deluge run off my already saturated yard as cars puttered by with their windshield wipers on high. The rain was hard enough to practically knock down a small child but it wasn’t enough to break the flowers outside my window.

How is it that a steady drip of water can reshape rock but a storm like that can’t damage the petals of these flowers?

I don’t know the answer to that question but it got me to thinking about resilience.

Humans experience all manner of storms in life. I couldn’t begin to list the ways that illness, money, job loss, death, depression, and the corrupt world around us can bring relentless downpours of problems into our lives.

Some people lose their footing and never find their way back while others get knocked down but manage to pop up again. A few never fall at all.

Those who nurture their minds and spirits to be resilient always find a way to not let the storm ruin them. They don’t let the deluge of troubles damage their petals.

What do these people have that makes them better able to resist the challenges life throws at them? How do they keep standing against life’s storms?

Maybe it’s stubbornness. Perhaps it’s a sheer will to keep going, to never let life steal their joy and calm. Maybe it’s an inner toughness.

Whatever that quality is, I wish for you that you find it in yourself. I suspect it’s there in all of us if we dig deep enough.

There’s no rain in the forecast today but you can be sure I’ll be ready with a cute umbrella if it does come back. You can’t stop the rain but you can be prepared.

Have a good, dry day, friends!