Downtown Toledo is such a gem. Tonight had plenty of activity on a beautiful summer evening. People everywhere. We had an our dinner party at one restaurant and walked to another a few blocks away for a late drink. The Mud Hens were in town for a game earlier in the day, and Toledo hosted its Pride Parade earlier in the day. Toledo is a gem. Most people don't realize that.

I caught this view back into the building as we left the second restaurant. It made me think of how much I love downtown Toledo.

tags: toledodowntown

photo posted by matt in Saturday, August 19, 2023

Today was a long day, but a great one. After the trip to Columbus and back, Renee had her annual back to school party for faculty and staff. It's always a great event and gets us out in downtown Toledo, which is fun. Afterwards we stopped into our favorite restaurant, Registry Bistro, literally two minutes before they closed and asked the bartender if we could sit for just one round. She was wonderful, and obliged. So, we had a round with friends and had some wonderful conversation in the process.

I opted for a mixed drink - a "Mr. Howell" as it's known. Turns out rum and "blended scotch" is pretty ok, as our good friend Richard would say.

tags: toledodrinks

photo posted by matt in Saturday, August 19, 2023

The Cuyahoga arrived just this morning. She was moving fast, too, without tugs. And now she's leaving just a few short hours later. Wonder what that's about.

Anyways, shipping season appears to be in full gear.

tags: toledomaumeerivership

photo posted by matt in Monday, May 15, 2023

We've had a front row seat for the annual inspection of the Martin Luther King Bridge in Toledo over the last couple of days. Getting a drawbridge ready for shipping season apparently takes a lot of work. I haven't noticed anything go awry, so, presumably, the old bridge is ready for another busy season of comings and goings on the Maumee River.

tags: toledomlkbridgebridgedrawbridge

photo posted by matt in Tuesday, May 2, 2023

I'm looking out my office window at the MLK bridge over the Maumee River. It's cold and raining. Looks miserable outside. There's a bird perched on the bridge abutment, seemingly unbothered by the weather. She (he?) is huddled just enough under the bridge to stay dry, yet is still able to watch the rain falling on the river. It's just sitting there, watching the rain. Maybe it's enjoying the peacefulness of the scene as much as I am.

Great reminder that even on a gloomy day, there's still beauty to be found in the world around us.

tags: toledo

postposted by matt in Tuesday, April 25, 2023

This place is growing on me.

tags: toledoclubtoledo

photo posted by matt in Friday, April 21, 2023

I love my commute, both of them, actually (there and back). I greet the sun like this on many mornings.

tags: commutetoledoperrysburgsunrise

photo posted by matt in Friday, October 14, 2022

Welcome to Toledo, Oakglen!

This is a new one for me—I've not seen the Oakglen pass through the Maumee River before. She's a relatively large ship, so it will likely be early next week before she heads in the other direction.

tags: toledomaumeerivership

photo posted by matt in Thursday, October 13, 2022

Having dinner with Jake at the Toledo Club tonight. This month's ZIPZ dinner has a middle eastern menu. Should be delicious!

tags: toledodinnertoledoclub

photo posted by matt in Tuesday, October 11, 2022

The river was full of activity today. This is the second ship to pass through the drawbridge. A barge and several small boats did as well.

tags: toledomaumeeriver

photo posted by matt in Monday, October 10, 2022

A view of the Maumee River from an office in One Maritime Plaza in downtown Toledo, Ohio. A computer monitor on a desk shows a livestream overlooking a street near Upham Beach in St. Pete Beach, Florida. (Matt Buchanan/Toledo, Ohio)

I love being greeted by the sunrise over the Maumee River when I get into the office in the morning. This morning was twice as nice as I was finally able to view the livestream from the condo on my computer—our patio camera there is slowly (and surprisingly) coming back to life after Hurricane Ian.

This is truly a great way to start a day…and a week. Happy Monday!

tags: sunrisetoledomaumeeriverstpetebeach

photo posted by matt in Monday, October 10, 2022

It was great to see Toledo's 180th Fighter Wing represented in the static displays at the show!

tags: toledo180thf16plane

photo posted by matt in Saturday, July 16, 2022

Toledo Walleye goalie Billy Christopoulos skates onto the ice during team introductions before Game 2 of the ECHL Kelly Cup finals. (Matt Buchanan/Huntington Center, downtown Toledo, Ohio)

Goose!

The best part of Game 2 of the Kelly Cup finals may indeed have been the introductions. This show never gets old.

tags: toledowalleyehockeyechltoledo

photo posted by matt in Saturday, June 4, 2022

Looking at the label on the back, I believe that's my first copy of Dune (I've had several over the years). I bought it at my all time favorite bookstore — Thackeray's in Toledo — probably around 30 years ago.

Thackeray's is long gone and I miss it dearly. I used to love going there with my dad, and spent many a Sunday afternoon there later in life all by myself, perusing, reading, and buying books.

That book is worth way more than a quarter!

tags: readingbookstoledo

photo posted by matt in Sunday, May 29, 2022

We went to the Walleye game tonight—first game in the second round of the playoffs. They looked fairly good, maybe a little winded from just finishing a seven game series with Cincinnati. And I believe Wheeling was playing with a replacement goalie considering the goalie situation the Penguins, their NHL affiliate, have right now.

Walleye won 5-1. If last night's on-ice tension carries over, tonight's game could be quite interesting. We're not planning on going but will be watching.

Let's go Walleye!

tags: hockeytoledowalleye

photo posted by matt in Friday, May 6, 2022

Thanks to a friend, who shared this story with me as follow-up to my photo of the Toledo Blade Boulevard sign in Florida. It's not the backstory I expected, not even close. But it's interesting, and now I have the rest of the story.

tags: floridatoledo

posted by matt in Sunday, November 14, 2021

It's been a while since I've seen this sign. It's in Port Charlotte, Florida, which is south of Sarasota and north of Fort Myers. I haven't driven this way in quite some time. I remember seeing it years ago though and wanting to research it — why the heck is there a street named after the Toledo blade down here in Florida? Inquiring minds want to know.

tags: floridatoledo

photo posted by matt in Tuesday, November 9, 2021

"...when all the painting's done, it'll be the largest artwork of its kind in the country. It's called the Glass City River Wall."

This is a great story about a pretty cool thing happening in my hometown — a massive art installation that was born from a simple idea.

tags: toledoartmuralglasscityriverwall

posted by matt in Sunday, October 24, 2021

Arrived to this wicked, post rain sunrise and sky over the river this morning. Great way to start the day!

tags: toledosunrise

photo posted by matt in Friday, October 8, 2021

This was a great way to start Friday, and to start the month of October. Ship traffic seems to have been relatively light this year, so I try to appreciate it every time one rolls through. Seeing the Federal Mosel leave port while drinking my coffee was truly enjoyable.

tags: toledocoffeeship

photo posted by matt in Friday, October 1, 2021

Amazon's presence in Toledo has increased dramatically over the last year since its arrival. Delivery vans and semi trucks everywhere. I wonder how many other cities are experiencing the same thing. Or will.

tags: toledoamazon

posted by matt in Wednesday, September 29, 2021

The bridge went up and I thought we'd be welcoming a ship into port this morning. No luck...just a barge heading out.

tags: toledo

photo posted by matt in Tuesday, September 21, 2021

The river was fairly calm when I got into the office this morning, and it was really nice outside. So, I dropped my backpack on my chair and went down to the docks right away to grab a few pics. I love this view looking through the MLK bridge (Cherry St. Bridge) at the High Level Bridge and Owens Corning headquarters. What a great way to start the month of June.

tags: riverbridgetoledo

photo posted by matt in Tuesday, June 1, 2021

It's absolutely beautiful outside this morning. A little cold, but I'll take it. The midwestern gloom of February and March appears to be leaving, right on time.

tags: weathertoledo

photo posted by matt in Wednesday, March 17, 2021

We get excited about new restaurants in Toledo. Culver's just opened their first location in the area and, with essentially no hype machine as far as I've noticed, people are going a little crazy for it. We bailed on our first attempt a few days ago, after waiting in line for over 30 minutes with little progress. We tried again today and committed to sticking it out. After forty minutes, we just turned into the lot.

tags: toledofoodculvers

photo posted by matt in Sunday, February 28, 2021

Amazon built two new facilities in the Toledo area in the last year. The fulfillment center in Rossford is already online but the smaller delivery station in Toledo - pictured here - seems a bit stuck. Construction wrapped up a couple months ago and it has sat empty since then. I drive past it twice each day and rarely see more than two or three vehicles in the lot. I imagine there's quite a bit involved in bringing one of these into the fold of the delivery network, but it sort of feels like it should be operational by now.

tags: toledoamazon

photo posted by matt in Thursday, February 25, 2021

It is so good to be back in the office! I've really missed this view. The river is slowly starting to melt...should make for some interesting sights in the coming days.

tags: toledo

photo posted by matt in Wednesday, February 24, 2021