Vacation: Day Three

We woke up ready to explore locally. Weirton, watch out!

Dustin and I ate breakfast at one of our favorite restaurants up in the Pittsburgh area, Eat'nPark, which I used to think was actually called 'Eaton Park'. Also, thought it was an actual park for awhile. Yeah, I'm from FL, whatever. I got the most amazing banana french toast and Dustin enjoyed the buffet.

 

After breakfast, we went to take a tour of Melissa and Miranda's new place. It reminded me of a Norwegian townhouse. We all chatted for a bit and played with Alex and Cash.

I had forgotten my extra set of batteries so we had to go back to Dustin's grandparents house to pick them up. While there, Dustin tried to help Pap with the air compressor. Pap was trying to clean off the lawn mower and then it just turned off. They checked everything and finally realized that something happened to the switch. So, Dustin gave him the leaf blower and he was back in business. I also decided to change because it wasn't nearly as chilly as the weather app. said it would be. It was actually pretty warm. (The last warm and dry day we had up there).

Dustin somehow knows about everything way before anyone else gets wind of it. So he knew that 'Super 8' was being filmed in Weirton, WV before it was ever out in theaters. Of course we ended up seeing it opening weekend JUST for that reason alone. Not only was it cool to see so many parts of Dustin's hometown on the big screen but the movie is now one of my favorites. JJ Abrams + Stephen Spielberg = Winning. The minute we started to plan our trip up there, one of my first thoughts was to see some of the filming locations.

We headed straight to the cemetery which is right down the road from his grandparent's house. They filmed scenes of the cemetery and more notably, the garage located on the property. This probably isn't a big deal to most people but I was ecstatic to be standing in the same spot the movie was filmed. Dustin and I took some photos and walked around a bit. His grandparents are actually buried there so we spent time looking at the grave site. 

Next up, he drove me to his old stomping grounds. The road winded around a mountain and I'll admit it was kind of scary at times. He pointed out his old school and where his childhood best friend used to live. And then we made it to his very first house. Well, where his first house once was. He jokes a lot about how he had to "watch his house drive away" (he lived in a trailer) when he was a kid but it was kind of sad just seeing an empty lot. He told me stories while we sat in the car. The kind of stories I've heard a million times but never get sick of. Like how he would sled down the hill by himself, or how he would run to meet Spike as soon as he got off the bus, or how he'd play in the creek. My mind raced with thoughts of a little Dustin. He hadn't been back there since he was a kid and although he's not a very emotional guy, I could tell it got to him a bit. You can't ever really go home again.

We drove through downtown Weirton. This was another place I had never seen. I mean there's not much to it but it had it's own little charm. Plus, a lot of other 'Super 8' scenes were filmed there. We drove by the Steel Mill that both his Grandma and Pap worked at for so long. Where practically everyone in Weirton used to work. 

We went just a few miles down the highway and we were in Ohio. Steubenville, OH to be exact. It wasn't much different than Weirton except they had a mall. We got brave and actually went into this shady mall. It was just as weird and scary as the carpeted mall in St. Augustine. Needless to say, we left pretty quickly.

We ate leftover DiCarlo's Pizza for lunch. Even Pap has a couple slices. I wouldn't know until much later but that pizza would almost be the end of me. We did not agree. Not even a little. I was Obama. That pizza was Romney. It looked ok but really was such an asshole.

Last time Dustin and I visited, he and I, both painted mugs in his grandma's basement aka her Ceramic Shop. He painted his in Steelers colors and even added Steelers stencils. My mug was purple with some really cool vintage flower stencils. His grandma shipped his down his but mine turned out awful. Apparently, she had a bad batch of paint and it ruined the entire thing. It was so bad she had to throw it out. I was really sad about it, but completely understood. 

I was so excited to paint something again. She said I could pick anything I wanted. I must have walked around the shop for 30 minutes trying to decide. She has so much to choose from! Just shelves and shelves of ceramics. From ALF to vases, dinosaurs to jewelry holders, everything you can imagine. Dustin talked me into painting a skull. Halloween was right around the corner so it made sense. I was on board. BUT, I also had been eyeing a ring holder. The only problem is it needed to be fired in the kiln first. She was so sweet that she offered to put it in that night so I could paint it the next day. In the meantime, I worked on my skull. I first painted the entire thing with a cream colored base. Dustin, Grandma Dee, Cash, Pap, and Melissa sat down at the table with me and watched. Grandma Dee showed me the coolest technique that made the skull look aged. I would paint a little piece of this mud color (greenish brown) and then I would wipe part of it away with a cloth. I love the end result. It's so cool how some of the paint gets 'stuck' in the cracks. She asked if I wanted to whiten his teeth but Dustin and I preferred them as is. My little skull is so bad ass.

Then I got to see her in action. The whole process. She showed me how she pours the mud into the molds. Then waits for a few minutes and takes them out. She shaves off any excess and lets it completely dry before it can be fired in the kiln. Then it's ready to paint! I'm always fascinated with her whole shop. Everything she needs is in her basement! I wish Florida had basements. I'd put all my craft stuff down there.

We said goodnight to everyone and headed to DeeJay's BBQ, in town, where we were meeting two of the buds. I was really impressed with the food. I got a pulled pork sandwich and it was one of the best I've ever had. The inside is decorated in a tropical theme - lots of palm trees. Dustin and I felt right at home. You can't really go wrong with BBQ & Buds.