It was two years ago today that Redneck Latte Ravings burst into the blogosphere changing lives everywhere first appeared.

I really can’t believe it.

Well, time does fly when you’re having fun.

And, this has been so much fun.

So, to celebrate today, I’m doing a little bragging!

In those two years, I have posted 674 times, counting this one.  I’ve talked about everything from how much I love Dancing With The Stars to how much I detest Nancy Grace and Kate Goeslin to books I’ve read, movies seen, dinners I’ve cooked, things I like, things I hate, my ugly toe-nails and how I fixed them, my baldness, my kids, my friends, vacations, places I love, and I’ve even gotten preachy a time or two. 

Oh, yes, I’ve talked about Liz once in a while too!

Hopefully, you can’t live without it you’ve enjoyed some of it.

I’ve had over 3800 comments, and over 100,000 hits from over 66,000 people!

And some of my blog posts have appeared on national websites, landed me in magazines, and shown UP on a corporate website or two.

I’ve had no swag and no advertisers. 

But, I’ve had a lot of fun! 

And I hope I have more!

Thanks to everyone who’s made it happen!

…Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah on Wednesday overturned a court’s sentence of 10 lashes for a woman arrested for driving in the kingdom.

I’d like to think I had something to do with it!

I grew UP in a town called Germantown.  There are several Germantowns, but this one is in Ohio.  It’s easy to guess how said burg got its name, all you have to do is look at the phone book.

Zechar, Zehring, Zimmerman, Gunkel, Kuhn, Habekost, Mohler, Moler, Muller, you get the idea.

But, I’ve run across a few towns with names that puzzle me some.

Ever been to Loveladies, New Jersey?  Me neither, but I can guess how it got its name.  And what about Hooker, Oklahoma?  I guess they love the ladies there too.  And I don’t even want to guess how Hookerhole, LA got its name!

Horneytown, NC – I’m guessin’ the birth rate is off the charts!

But, maybe not, look at the population! 

French Lick, Indiana – Well, you know how the French are!  Fanny, West Virginia, I wonder if plus size stores abound there.

Big Beaver, Pennsylvania…ok, I’ll leave that one alone!

Butts, Georgia – see above, Fanny, WVA.  Same for Buttzville, NJ, and Lord knows what goes on in Dicktown, PA!

And there is Between, Georgia.  Between what?

Loving, New Mexico – who doesn’t, it’s the Land of Enchantment!

And some founding fathers must have been starving when they stopped to settle.  There’s Sandwich, Massachusetts, Cookie town, OK, Candy Town, OH, Bacon, DE.

Cheddar, South Carolina, I wonder if it’s a cheesy town.

 
Ding Dong, Texas, probably right next to Ho-Ho and Twinkie!

Rabbit Hash, KY, Bread Loaf, VT, Whitebread, OK…I had no idea Oklahoma was ever segregated!

An what about Two Egg, FL?  One chicken?

Toast, North Carolina, Lick Skillet, Virginia, let’s hope the skillet was cold!

Coke, Virginia – it’s a mining town, so don’t get any ideas, and step away from the crack-pipe!

I’m guessin’ Coffee City, Texas is a dream vacation spot for me!  But, I’ll have to stop in Pie, WVA and pick one UP on the way.

There are two towns name Neversink and one named Neverfail, I wonder if they ever did.

I dont’ think I’d want to spend much time in Crapo or Dulltown or Ordinary, do you?

I wonder when Bummerville, CA was founded, the 1960s?

And who wouldn’t want to leave Hellhole, CA?

Unique means, just that, unique.

One of a kind, the only one, nothing else like it.

Dictionary dot com says that it is an adjective, and lists a few definitions. 

1.   existing as the only one or as the sole example; single; solitary in type or characteristics.  

2.  having no like or equal; unparalleled; incomparable.

3.  limited in occurrence to a given class. 

4.  not typical, or unusual.

Something, or someone, can’t be “very” unique, or “rather” unique, or even “kinda” unique.

And it drives me crazy when I hear it!

It’s either unique or it isn’t!

Which brings me back to Germantown, and its covered bridge.

There are many unique things about Germantown, Ohio, but the main attraction in that category is the Historic Covered Bridge.  The covered bridge spans the Little Twin Creek on East Center Street. 

It is the only covered bridge of its kind in the world.

Therefore, it is unique.

It’s also really pretty, very historic, and something of which the tiny town is very proud.

Many just know it’s there, they may not know its history.

It was restored in 1963, I was there when the dedication took place.  Most of the town was. 

It was 93 years old when the town finally got its act together and fixed it UP.  A couple of idiots had tried to drive a truck across it, falling in the creek, and nearly destroying the bridge.

You can’t drive over it any longer.

And that’s a good thing.

It’s just too important.

For the first 41 years of its existance, it spanned the Little Twin Creek a few hundred yards away on Old Dayton Pike.  When the new bridge was built, the old one was moved to East Center Street.  I for one am really happy that the city fathers had the forethought and wherewithall to move it.

That was back in 1911.  I wasn’t around then, and I can’t find out much about the  ”who, what, when , and where” of  the decision.  But, again, I’m glad it happened.

Its inverted bow design is a symbol of American engineering and a reminder of our early history.  It was built in 1870.

In 1963, Mayor Ross Brewer appointed a committee of 12 angry men citizens to plan, organize, and complete the restoration.  Many businesses in the area, some from Dayton and many from Germantown donated money, time, matierials and effort to the project.  Not one dime of city money was used.  It was all civic spirit!

And, it’s unique.

Now, some will say that the bow bridge on the campus of Ohio University’s Lancaster Campus in Fairfield County keeps the Germantown bridge from being unique.  But, alas, they are wrong.  The bow on that bridge goes the other way, and Germantown’s bridge is the only one that has no additional support, unlike those posers over in Fairfield!

Germantown would not be Germantown without the Covered Bridge.  It’s the ‘poster child’ for the town, appearing on post cards, city emblems and many year books.  Wedding pictures, art projects, and family portraits are taken there.  And one of my readers who is from Germantown and lives in NYC has one of two watercolors of the bridge  painted by her Aunt.  She said that when she was a child she was fascinated with the bridge, but her parents wouldn’t allow her to play there.  We all were fascinated with the bridge, it’s just part of the town.  And it’s a symbol of the city’s pride in its history. 

So thanks, Mayor Brewer for your insight, vision, and decision to save the one thing that we all know makes Germantown, Germantown.