Life Imitates Art

So Jackspatula and I survived another holiday outing to his hometown of Warren. Warren is like the Gary, Indiana, of Ohio--and if you've ever been to Gary, you know exactly what I mean. A once-thriving industrial center that went to hell after numerous factory closings . . . they really need to get Billy Joel in to write a song about it. (Or maybe not--does the world really need another version of "Allentown"?) We actually had a pretty good time relaxing and hanging out with the parents--his parents, that is, who have been divorced for 20 years and live in separate houses but still spend the holidays together, go on vacation together, etc. Perhaps the best part of the whole trip, though, was reading the local newspaper, which frequently reminded me of the Onion. Some actual headlines:

"Terrorist Cells Are Unpopular"
"Woman Reports Freezer Cleaned Out"
"Penguin Men Visit Akron"

And, in the advertising section, "Sell your camper or RV for as little as $23!"

Apparently, all the editors fled a long time ago, along with the GM workers.